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One of the biggest goals for many bloggers is to write a post that hits the front page of Digg.
Unfortunately, most bloggers will never sniff the front page of Digg, and in fact, they’ll never even get
close to that level of success.

The truth is hitting the front page of Digg is pretty hard. Not only does it take quality content, but it also takes a lot of luck. Since you can’t control the luck factor, let’s talk about things you can control—the
content.

How can you make your content more Digg-able?

Here are 7 simple tips you can use.

1. Start with a good headline — A boring headline will instantly kill your chances of Digg success. Remember, the headline is the thing Diggers see when your post is submitted and listed. The headline alone is what determines if a Digg user will click on your post and up-vote it. The headline needs to be catchy, clear, clever, and compelling.

2. Make it pleasing to the eye — Sure, the post needs to be written well, but it also has to look pleasing to the eyes. Diggers tend to really favor posts that have good images and videos mixed in. Also, make sure you format your post with nice headings throughout as it helps the post look a little better.

3. Keep it easy to scan — If your post is a huge block of text, no one is going to Digg it. Online users get overwhelmed by big passages of text, because they tend to scan content rather than read it word for word. With that in mind, you need to make your copy easier to scan by using short paragraphs, bullet lists, numbered lists, and bold headings throughout.

4. Get rid of the text ads — Digg users don’t like blogs that are blatant advertisements. It’s all about content first, and your ads shouldn’t interfere with that. So, if your blog is full of those contextual AdSense ads, you’re really limiting your chances of Digg success. The ads just look unprofessional and spammy.

5. Do something different — “Me too” content doesn’t tend to hit the front page of Digg. Why should someone get excited about voting for content they’ve seen a million times before? You have to be different. Talk about things that no one else has talked about, or cover old topics with a fresh, new, or funny angle.

6. Write with a personality — You can’t bore people into Digging your content. So you have to really let your personality shine through in your writing. Don’t worry about being so formal. Write like you talk, and feel free to be funny or sarcastic.

7. Add Digg buttons to your post — Finally, you need to make your posts as easy to share as possible. By adding social media buttons to your blog, someone can Digg your post with one click on the button, helping you attract a lot more Diggs.

What are some other things you can do to make content more Digg-able?

I hate to break it to you, but the online audience doesn’t trust you. If you’re trying to get new customers through your website, building website credibility is the key to your online success. Online shoppers are skeptical by nature, and for good reason. They don’t know who you are, and the internet is full of fly-by-night companies and scams. Below are some tips on how to check website credibility trustworthiness.

What can you do to earn their trust and website credibility? Here are 7 of the top ways you can build credibility through your website and earn that sale.

1. Include quality real testimonials on websites — Customers don’t trust you, but they do trust their peers. So, when other customers rave about how great your services are, people will take notice. Feature testimonials on your website, and make sure the testimonials include at least a photo of the person each is from (video is better, but not always easy to get).

2. Offer a money-back guarantee — One of your customer’s biggest fears is that he’s going to lose money by doing business with you. By offering a money-back guarantee on your products, you put his mind at ease, letting him know there’s a way out if he’s unsatisfied with the purchase.This eliminates the risk, and helps ease the customer toward making the purchase.

3. Highlight your experience with an About Us page — Too many companies overlook the importance of their About page. They view it as an afterthought or a throwaway page. The truth is the About page is actually very important for building trust with customers. Not only does it let them get to know you better, but it’s also a good way to highlight your experience and present your company as established and reputable.

4. Post your contact information on every page — Customers need to know that you’re easy to get in touch with. They want the reassurance that if something goes wrong with their purchase they’ll be able to get in contact with you for resolution. Be easy to contact, and post your contact information on each web page of your website.

5. Share your expertise on your blog — People trust experts, and they feel comfortable doing business with them. Use your blog to position yourself as an authority in your field. Share your knowledge and show customers that you know your stuff better than anyone else in your industry.

6. Have a professional web design — First impressions are everything, and if your website has a cheap, spammy-looking design, you’re going to scare off a lot of potential customers. The truth is people do judge based on looks, so it’s important that your website design for your business need to look professional.

7. Double-check your copy for typos and errors—If your website is littered with misspellings, poor grammar, and other mistakes, no one is going to take you seriously.

Recently, we talked about improving website usability by giving visitors what they want. Today, we’re going to take that one step further by discussing blog usability. Most bloggers don’t give usability a second thought. They crank out their posts and assume all is well with their blog.

The truth is a successful blog is much more than just great content. The best blogs deliver exactly what readers want and make it easy for them to find the information they need. Here are 5 simple tips for improving blog usability.

1. Add Related Posts Plugin—Ideally, you want readers to stay on your blog as long as possible. You want them to continue exploring your content so they become loyal readers. One way to do this is by using a related posts plugin. At the end of each post, this plugin will display a short list of other posts on your blog that cover related topics. It decides which posts are related based on the post titles, tags, categories, and other contextual clues.

2. Link Out to Other Useful Posts—Too many bloggers are afraid to link out to other blogs. They think they’ll either lose link juice or that there readers will never come back. I call BS on both claims. Linking out turns your blog into a resource. It shows readers that you give them access to all the information they need on a given subject.

3. Don’t Use Too Many Widgets—Widgets are designed to improve the usability of your blog, but when you have too many of them stuffed onto your blog, they become distracting and overwhelming. Take a step back and see if any of the widgets on your blog can be sacrificed.

4. Have Clear Headlines—Your readers are pressed for time. Before they’ll commit to reading a post, they want to know what it’s about. That’s where the headline comes in. The headline needs to be catchy enough to grab their attention but clear enough to let them easily understand what the post is about.

5. Use Good URL Structure—Rather than having a messy URL structure like this: www.yourblog.com/post-123?%$765!, you should use a clearer structure like this: www.yourblog.com/descriptive-post-title. Good URL structure is ideal for SEO purposes, sharing, bookmarking, and overall usability.

What are some of your best tips for improving blog usability? Add your own by leaving a comment.

Email marketing is still one of the most profitable forms of marketing available at your disposal. But to run a successful email campaign, you must have a good list. It’s as simple as that.

Here are 10 easy ways to build your email list.

1. Place signup forms on every page—Your website visitors can enter on any single page of your website. That’s why you need to have the signup form on every page so they see it whenever they enter.

2. Make sure the signup is above the fold—According to this recent study, web users spend 80% of their time looking at information above the page fold. This means, your signup form needs to be visible without the user needing to scroll down to get to it.

3. Explain the benefits of signing up—Don’t just put up a signup form without having anything attached to it. You need to let visitors know what’s in it for them if they sign up for your email list. Something as simple as “Signup today to get exclusive deals every week” works just fine.

4. Tempt people with a giveaway—George Carlin once said people will do anything you ask just as long as you give them a gadget or some freebie. Same concept applies to getting email subscribers. Offer them a free eBook, whitepaper, or instant coupon for signing up.

5. Have a print signup list everywhere your company goes—If you have a physical storefront, have a way for customers who come into the store to join your email list. You can also take signup lists to trade shows, conferences, and other events you attend.

6. Make it easy to share your email newsletters—Your email newsletters should have “forward” links and social media sharing links within them. This allows your subscribers to spread the word and raise awareness for your email list.

7. Promote your email deals on social networks—Let your followers know what deals you’re offering to your email subscribers and provide a link where they can sign up and take advantage of the exclusive deals.

8. Include a signup link or form at the bottom of your blog posts—Don’t just put the signup form on your main website, have it on your blog as well. You can create a smaller version of a signup form and place it in the signature of every blog post.

9. Try different forms and placements—Test. Test. Test. You never know how one simple adjustment can change everything. Using a different style for your form or moving it from one side to another really can affect the number of signups you get.

10. Have a signup link in all email correspondence—Place a signup link and call to action in your email signature. This way, whenever you’re emailing back and forth with clients, they’ll see your offer and be tempted to sign up.

Do you have a strong email list? How have you attracted so many subscribers?

Most companies design their websites based on what they think customers want and need, not what customers actually say or otherwise indicate they prefer. This lack of listening to customers’ needs leads to ineffective websites that offer a poor user experience.

The good news is it really isn’t all that difficult to figure out what your customers are looking for in your website. All of the tools are right at your fingertips. You just have to listen.

• Listen up—Most customers provide you with feedback all the time, even though you may not even realize it. In their emails, phone calls, and online reviews, customers provide hints as to the things they like and dislike about your company and your website. It’s important that you’re always listening, and even more importantly, you need to act on what you hear.
• Search box—I’m a big fan of search boxes on websites. Not only do they improve the user experience by allowing the customer to find what he’s looking for fast, but they also give you key insight into which information most people are searching for. Track the searches on your website’s search box, and optimize your website to make that information as easy to find as possible.
• Social media—Are you connected with your customers on Twitter, Facebook, and other social media outlets? If not, what are you waiting for? If so, what are you getting out of it? Social media is a powerful tool for gaining insight into your customers’ preferences and way of thinking. By listening to them on these social media channels, you can glean more information about what they’re looking for out of your company and your website.
• Web analytics—A good web analytics tool is invaluable to webmasters. Web analytics don’t just show you how visitors arrive at your website; they also show how people behave when on your site. This makes it easy to identify the most popular pages on your website as well as the worst pages that cause visitors to abandon your website. You can take this information , and optimize your website to provide a better user experience.
• Keyword popularity—A lot of times, we optimize a website for what we believe are the keywords that our customers are searching for. Over time though, your web analytics may show that certain keywords are more popular than others, and you may even find a significant number of visitors are arriving to your website from keywords you aren’t even targeting. This can help you target the right keywords that deliver quality traffic.
• Live customer service—Many websites now have live chat customer service. This allows website visitors to interact and chat with a real customer service representative while on your website. Pay special attention to the questions your visitors ask, and tailor your website to effectively answer these questions so visitors don’t have to dig for the information they need.

Does your website truly meet the needs and wants of your visitors?