Top 20 Free USA Local Classified Sites List

Hello guys, As you know classifieds are how much important for us. We can Buy Sell anything on these. So here we have a list of Top 20 Free USA Local Classified Sites that you use to promote your business, product, services etc..These Classified Sites also have high page rank so if you will put your ads on these so you 100% will boost your sales. Hope this list will help you a lot!

1. https://foursquare.com
2. https://www.xing.com
3. http://www.mapquest.com
4. http://www.sfgate.com
5. http://www.ebay.com
6. http://www.economist.com
7. http://www.craigslist.org
8. https://www.ads2book.com
9. http://www.city-data.com
10. http://www.cpjobs.com
11. https://www.justlanded.com
12. http://www.kijiji.ca
13. http://www.myhome.ie
14. http://www.cpjobs.com
15. http://patch.com
16. http://www.products-and-services.com
17. http://www.rediff.com
18. http://sg.jobsdb.com
19. http://www.backpage.com
20. http://loot.com

5 Ways How to Select Best Keywords For Google AdWords

In this article I will share some tips on how to select keywords for Adwords.

A good place to start with search engine marketing (SEM) is the use of keywords because that is how your customers find you, right?

• If there is anything that you remember from this article, remember these 3 things:
• Think holistically about the different ways that customers could reach you
• Align your keywords and their management with your overall business outcomes
• Delete your low search volume keywords

There are a few ways to develop a list of keywords for your AdWords campaign. Think of the words on the website, your services and products that you offer. What terms do you think your customers use to describe or search for you? What terms do your competitors use to be found?
Remember the story of the 3 bears? Goldilocks tried the porridge and one was too hot and another was too cold and one was juuust right. Well, you can think of keywords for AdWords in the same way. Some are too broad and some are too long and some are juuust right. In SEO, we LOVE Long Tail keywords because those are very relevant. They may not be searched as much as a broad term, but when they are, its money in the bank. Unfortunately, you can’t have a lot of long tail keywords in AdWords because of the low search volume. Compared to shorter keywords (those with two to four words), keywords that contain five words or more drive less than half the volume of clicks and impressions on average. It also hurts your quality score. I’ll explain this a little later.

Let’s say you are David Bouley, the owner and chef of Bouley’s French Restaurant in New York City and you want to have a campaign to sell more gift certificates to your restaurant. Using the term Gift Card is too broad because it will trigger all kind of searches that are irrelevant. He doesn’t want people seeing his ads when searching for Harry & David Gift Baskets. UsingRestaurant Gift Certificates is a little better because it triggers those searching for that more specific gift certificate, yet it can still be a problem because it can show up for Olive Garden gift certificate, or Chili’s, which target totally different diners with a different price and dining experience expectation in mind. A good keyword phrase could be french fine dining giftcard or french fine dining gift certificate. This targets diners who are interested in a French Fine Dining Experience. Another possibility could beBouley’s Gift Certificates, however I bet the search volume would be very low.

Keyword Tools

There are many software tools available to assist you in finding the best keywords for your campaign or website. One of them is the Google Keyword Planner. What I have found though, is that these tools are not as accurate as you may think. The search volume has been off and the bids weren’t as accurate as what I saw when my campaigns went live.

I was told once by a very successful online marketing professional, Matt Trainer, who has made a good living by helping major brands with getting massive targeted traffic and customers into their sales funnels, to take 10 – 15 minutes and step away from the computer and actually think how I, as a potential client would search for that product or service. I’m sure you can think of the right terms just as well as any software can. Heck, you can even think of what terms your competitors are using. Like many things in life, you just gotta take action and step out in faith. Give it a try yourself and, you may start to realize that this practice will work better for you too if you try it and practice it. Maybe you have already seen the same things that I have experienced.

Grouping Keywords

Google LOVES tightly themed, related and relevant content. You want to match keywords to a user’s search terms and to the ads as well as the landing page you are sending them to visit. I arrange keywords within the adgroups. It also makes it easier for you to manage and maintain your account. If you are on a tight budget, keywords are often grouped at the campaign level for greater budgetary control.

Stay Clear of Low Searched Keywords

Watch out for low search volume keywords. As Stated earlier, SEM doesn’t like long tail keywords. These terms often haven’t driven a single impression in months or even years because people aren’t performing searches on them (not because your bid isn’t winning any auctions). While you want them on your page for SEO, Delete them in SEM campaign if you have other keywords that could potentially cover that traffic. My personal preference is to have 2 – 3 long tail keywords that are super relevant even though they don’t perform well because when people do search for example: Buy Bouley’s NYC Gift Certificates, His ad will show up and the person looking for that and ready to buy a $500 gift certificate for a 5 course French Fine Dining luxury experience will have found exactly what they want.

Let’s Get Negative

Just as important as the keywords people use to find you; Negative keywords are an essential part of a well-rounded keyword strategy. In order to increase the profitability and improve control over the flow of traffic in your account, use negative keywords to the fullest. On the most basic level, negative keywords prevent you from showing ads to people who are less interested in what you have to offer, even though their queries may be syntactically related to the keywords in your account.

So, let’s go back to the example of David Bouley’s French Restaurant. He doesn’t want to show up for searches of gift cards from Pizza Hut, or Chili’s or Applebee’s, etc. So a sure fire way to assure we are targeting the most relevant audience is to add these restaurants to the negative keyword list along with gift baskets and Harry. Once the campaign is running, you will see in the keyword details reports what terms are triggering your ads and then you can add the appropriate ones to the negative keyword list.

Having a strong negative keyword list will be valuable as it improves the performance of your campaign and improves the quality scores of your ads.

Scoring High Marks on Quality

You know how you have those warning or indicator lights on the dash of your car? They turn on when you need to check your engine, or if your oil or gas is running low? Well, you can think of the Quality Score of your keywords as a warning light: something that alerts you to potential problems which need to be checked. A lot of advertisers spend a lot of time on this. A good rule of thumb I go by is a score under 6 is a stronger indicator that I need to check the relevance of the term and how it’s performing and if I need to tweak my landing page or ad or both.

Attempting to use tricks, shortcuts or short-term solutions to force the quality score up isn’t the way to go. Rather, you’re better off to focus on your long-term performance outcomes and look for ways to reach them by improving your user experience. Google is ALL about the user experience and so should you.

That should be enough for now to get ya started. I’d love to read your thoughts on this.

Top 10 Ways to Write Attention-Getting Headlines & Content for Your Blog Posts

Many online entrepreneurs typically blog about their niche. They write about the industry, trends affecting their audience, make new announcements and generally, provide informative content for their web site visitors. Having a blog elevates the user experience, showing your audience that you have something to offer them beyond what you’re selling. You have advice, opinions and all kinds of information that speaks to their needs.

However, sometimes the hard part is creating content that your audience will want to read in the first place. Your online business stands out, so too should your blogs, right?

From the right headline to providing them with engaging material, here are 10 ways to keep your visitors scrolling down your entire blog page and coming back for more.

Write Attention-Getting Headlines

1. Top 10 Headlines

People often gravitate towards top 10 lists. It makes sense, since so much of our lives have involved couching topics in terms of numbers. From bestsellers and music charts to doctors asking us to describe our pain on a “level of 1 to 10,” there are terms like “top 10,” “bottom three” and “giving 100 percent.”

Numbers tell readers up front what they’re in for: a succinct read that will give them key takeaways. Besides, succinct is what readers want. Tosin Adeoti, a young entrepreneur and founder of Home-Based Business Coach, says, “Studies show that internet readers scan, skim and skip around blog contents more than they read.” Keeping your audience in mind is essential and “top” lists help. Adeoti says it’s important to give them a “visual break” which can be done by proper use of white space, bulleting points or outlining comments with a top 10 (or 5 or 25) list.

2. The “What you’re Not Doing But Should Be” Headline

Let’s use the example of “Five Things You Probably Aren’t Doing on Your iPhone but Should.” This headline lets your audience know they are in for a short read (“five things”) while also enticing them to read more (suggested by the “what could I be doing differently, or more effective?” headline). In other words, it seems to suggest that is has something for those who don’t want to be left out. It’s a teaser that gets them wondering what they can learn something that’ll make their experience easier, better or faster.

3. The Unusual Headline

Headlines that make people do a mental double take like, “How Discovering Your Online Niche is a lot like Dating” or “The Barry Manilow/Metallica Concert: What Your IPod Says About your Music Style,” can engage your readers. While more serious cut and dry headlines about your web site blog can also make a point, it’s often not a bad idea to mix it up with some attention-getting levity.

4. The “Did You Know” Headline

The “did you know” headline evokes curiosity. “Did you Know that the Cashew is Not Really a Nut?” may be a blog idea for someone with a health-related online business. It imparts a sense of intrigue, telling others that there’s more to a story they likely thought they knew everything about. Similar to the “lesser known facts about . . .” or the “what you thought you knew but didn’t . . .” concept, this headline draws people in to hopefully satisfy their yearning for more knowledge about your business.

Write Attention-Getting Content

5. Check the Calendar

You’d be surprised at how many unique days exist dedicated to a hobby, cause or even certain foods, colors and pet peeves. Be creative.

For example, Jennifer Lilley, a blogger, columnist and copywriting professional who has worked with such clients as Johnson & Johnson andFrito-Lay, wrote a blog called, “How Pumpkins can help your Brand: Trying new Approaches to Generate Awareness.” In it, she says, “These days, there’s a date with a designation for just about anything. From International Cookie Dough Day to Lost Dryer Sock Day, there’s bound to be one that’s an ideal match, and therefore a prime opportunity, to tout your brand. Check out the United Nations’ list of world observances by day for ideas.”

For example, if it’s National Cookie Day (which was December 4, by the way) and you sell eBooks, why not consider a blog that discusses a particular eBook being a “sweet” read or as a way to boost sales of new recipe book? Even if you sell health products, use the day as an opportunity to blog about your own top 10 list of favorite gluten-free cookies. Then, find all things cookie or cookie day related on Twitter, and post your blog. Make it known to the masses!

Of course, make sure the day is aligned with your brand’s message. Lilley says that an event can also be an opportunity to offer a differing opinion, one that’s against the celebration of a designated day. In other words, building messaging around a topic can also be done by taking a stance against something, too. For example, writing all about why there should be more National Kale Days instead of cookie ones, is an idea for the health-minded blogger running a nutritional product web site.

6. Get a Leg up on Hollywood

While some people roll their eyes over the latest Hollywood gossip, there’s something to be said about the fact that it makes for popular conversation. Striking while the iron is hot is key, often allowing you to blog in a way that resonates with your audience in a timely manner.

With some creativity, it’s possible to make the most of the world of entertainment and weave it into your blog. Move outside the online business world, but not entirely. From amazing new movie roles and well-known phrases of celebrities gone wild (i.e. “winning”) to award show memories, it can be worked into your blog as an entire theme. “Think outside the box. Rather than relying on high-profile examples that everyone is writing about, such as Steve Jobs,” says Jane Porter, associate editor at Entrepreneur.com, “consider case studies of other successful people . . .”

7. Turn to Social Media

Social media gives you no excuse for writer’s block because it exposes us to blog ideas galore. Furthermore, if you hone in on the moment, your blog becomes timely, resonating moreso with your audience while establishing yourself as someone truly “in the know.”

Between all the trends, discussions, specialized pages and forums, there’s a writing opportunity in everything. Even if it initially seems like a stretch, keep thinking about a specific topic and consider ways you can turn it into a post. For example, on Twitter, #snowday was recently trending in the United States. What’s that have to do with you?

If you’re selling eBooks on your web site, why not write about how a #snowday is the perfect time to catch up on reading? Talk about books you remember during no school snow days. Reminisce about newsworthy blizzards of days gone by. Throughout all of this, discuss the books that have been part of your #snowday experiences through the years and suggest some favorites you’re now selling.

If you’re selling health products, why not blog about top foods that can naturally raise your temperature and keep you warm during this #snowday?

8. Know Your Current Events

If you sit for hours happily blogging about the joys of music and your online music store, touting it as ear candy for the ages and post it, that’s a good thing, right? Of course. But what if you neglected to take a few minutes beforehand to scan top headlines and breaking news related to your online business?

So . . . you post your blog about the joys of the music industry and then turn on your TV to see an unfortunate turn of events regarding that very topic? Suddenly, that happy-go-lucky post becomes an ill-timed piece of writing.

Porter urges online bloggers to ask themselves these questions: Is there anything relevant happening in your industry — policy changes, tech developments or recent reports — that could affect your customers? Can you distill some valuable lessons from companies or industry leaders who’ve made headlines? What could your customers learn from these victories or disasters?

9. Take off Your Geographic Blinders

Maybe it snows a lot where you live, making it seem logical to weave in references about how nice it would be for visitors to enjoy your products with a steaming cup of hot cocoa. But too many cozy casserole and roaring fire references can be a turn off to folks living in Puerto Rico. Some local “about me and my area” talk is good, even necessary, to get your audience to understand you more and showcase the personality behind you and your brand, but too much local talk can make others feel as if your blog is leaving them out, even if they live in the same county. Not everyone shops where you do or even likes the same coffee house as you (if they even like coffee at all), so go easy on constant mention about your favorite place for a cup of joe. Consider being more generic at times or offer a range of geographic-friendly topics like, “Whether you’re enjoying a fireplace or lying on the beach . . .”

10. Don’t be Afraid to Show Your Personality

Do your readers know who you are? Truly? Beyond the fact that you’re a marketing guru with a passion for providing must-have products via the internet?

Don’t be afraid to inject some personality in your blogs, allowing your audience to know some details that make you more engaging, more relatable, more . . . human. You never know when a chuckle or story that makes someone feel they aren’t alone over a funny thought, habit or pet peeve can translate to buying power.

6 Best JQuery Lightbox Scripts For Your Images Effect

Do you remember life without the lightbox? It wasn’t that long ago, yet lightboxes are popping up everywhere, literally. In 2006, the first lightbox script was released by Lokesh Dhakar and has become a staple for websites and blogs alike. Though they’re mainly used for larger items, even companies like Facebook have adopted lightboxes to display photos in an easy-to-see, easy-to-scroll manner. The original javascript had plenty of good qualities, but it became widely adopted when web developers started making their own lightbox applications.
The original Lightbox has not been lost in newer formats. In contrast, lightboxes have been improved and now incorporate features and functions that enhance the overall quality and user-experience. It is hard to rank the best scripts in any specific order because they all have been crafted extremely well. Choosing the best script for your site will really come down to coding preferences.

1. Fancybox

Fancybox has taken a pretty direct approach and is an upgrade from pure javascript to jQuery. The overall appearance of this lightbox is like the name says, fancy. The interface is clean and displays images and associated caption text nicely. In addition to looking nice, this script displays HTML elements, SWF movies, iframes and AJAX requests. This script is truly a techie’s dream come true.

In addition to delivering such great features, you can customize this Lightbox to your liking with CSS, choose to display a drop shadow under the frame, or employ “fancy” transitions for true customization. The possibilities with this script are almost endless, making it a great fit for many.

2. Shadowbox

Though it doesn’t have the same aesthetic appeal as Fancybox, Shadowbox has plenty to offer for those who are interested in it. This script is highly customizable allowing you to adapt it to your specific needs. The code is both lightweight and neat which delivers supreme flexibility for editing and tweaking the default script.

Shadowbox can display images, HTML, Falsh, SWF movies, Quicktime and even external websites. The framework for this application has not been fixed in place which makes it an exceptional choice for sites with highly specific needs. In addition to being able to modify and manipulate the code to the framework you like best, it can be used as a standalone application.

3. jQuery.popeye2

jQuery.popeye is an advanced image gallery script built on the JavaScript library jQuery. Use it to save space when displaying a collection of images and offer your users a nice and elegant way to show a big version of your images without leaving the page flow.

4. ColorBox

ColorBox helps bridge the gap created by Fancybox’s aesthetic appeal and the flexible and lightweight code of Shadowbox. ColorBox strives to deliver a customized lightbox to their user that is unique every time. This helps the end-user deliver easy accessibility, W3C standards and good design and internet practices.

Like most in its class, ColorBox supports photos, file grouping, slideshows, AJAX, inline and iframed content. Users can customize the application through CSS and it has been written in jQuery allowing it to be chained with additional jQuery commands. Proving just how lightweight and easy-to-use it is, ColorBox uses less than 9kb of javascript coding which can be extended using callbacks and event hooks without ever having to edit source files.

5. PrettyPhoto

If you’re just interested in a very simple lightbox, PrettyPhoto is in essence a clone that has been built on jQuery. It doesn’t support as many files as other scripts but it does deliver the basics with support for images, videos, flash, YouTube and iframes. This script is easy to get running and has a nice, simplistic appearance. Though it is not fully customizable, it does have some flexibility that should allow you to alter it to fulfill your needs.

6. Lightbox2

Though improvements and breakthroughs in code have greatly modified the original lightbox, it is still a script well-worth using. What it lacks in features and increased functionality, it makes up for with its recognizable and respected interface. This model for the modern day lightbox is simple, features lightweight code, and easy to setup and use for those less interested in fancy features, colorful frames and enhanced editing.

No matter which script you are more attracted to or interface you find more appealing, one thing is sure – lightboxes have revolutionized the way we display images and videos on the internet. With a wide range of options and customizable features, developers are sure to find a script that matches their coding and visual presentation needs. If not, you can always tweak the code.

About the Author: Katie Campbell is an editor for Bestcovery.com where she writes software and internet reviews. She became interested in lightboxes when they first started lighting up her screen and as the owner of an image library of over 3,000 files, takes a keen interest in their development.

Microsoft Researchers Developing Storytelling Robots

Scientists at Microsoft Research and their colleagues are developing an artificial intelligence (AI) system that can tell stories based on photos.

The aim is not just to explain what items are in the picture, but also what appears to be happening and how it might potentially make a person feel, US-based website livescience.com quoted the researchers as saying.

For example, if a person is shown a picture of a man in a tuxedo and a woman in a long, white dress, instead of saying, "This is a bride and groom," he or she might say, "My friends got married. They look really happy; it was a beautiful wedding."
"The goal is to help give AIs more human-like intelligence, to help it understand things on a more abstract level and what it means to be fun or creepy or weird or interesting," Margaret Mitchell, study senior author said in a

"With our focus on storytelling, we hope to help AIs understand human concepts in a way that is very safe and beneficial for mankind, rather than teaching it how to beat mankind," Mitchell, who is also a computer scientist at Microsoft Research, added.

To build a visual storytelling system, the researchers used deep neural networks, computer systems that learn by example.

The researchers said although everything worked fine, the computerized storyteller needs a lot more tinkering.

"The automated evaluation is saying that it's doing as good or better than humans, but if you actually look at what's generated, it's much worse than humans," Mitchell noted.

"There's a lot the automated evaluation metrics are not capturing and there needs to be a lot more work on them. This work is a solid start, but it is just the beginning."

The scientists will detail their findings in San Diego at the annual meeting of the North American Chapter of the Association for Computational Linguistics later this month.

OnePlus 3 To Launch In 6 Different Variants

OnePlus 3 may reportedly be coming out in six different variants. Two models of the OnePlus 3 with varying RAM and storage sizes will be up for grabs on June 30.

There will be a standard variant of 4GB RAM which will be available in 32GB, 64GB and 128GB variants. Also, a mammoth 6GB variant will be released with 32GB, 64GB and 128GB variants, according to product listings on oppomart.

The phone will have a 5.5 inch Full HD display powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon 820 SoC and a 3650mAh battery. There will be a 16MP primary camera with Optimal Image Stabilization and a 8MP front camera. The phone will run on the company's own OxygenOS powered by Android 6.0 Marshmallow.

OnePlus 3's global launch will be invite free. "We're releasing the OnePlus 3 invite-free, right from launch day. In addition, invites are gone forever from future OnePlus product launches," said Carl Pei, co-founder of OnePlus in a blogpost

The company is already creating waves with the OnePlus 3 launch campaign. As a first, the phone will launch in the virtualspace on the company's Loop VR headsets, which the Chinese manufacturer made available before the launch. The entire stock sold out in a minute and there is another sale scheduled on June 7.

10 High Authority Backlinks from High PR Dofollow Sites

Building dofollow backlinks is one of the essential work related to SEO, if you want to rank your website higher in search engine. And what if they are of high PR, your rankings will simply boost in Google, bing and other search engines. High PR backlinks help blogs and websites to increase their traffic along with ranking. So today in this guide I am having a list of 10 free high PR dofollow websites on which you can build high PR dofollow backlinks in just few minutes.

After many days searching I have created this list to help you in getting high pr dofollow backlinks in seconds. Just go through the list and start working on backlinks.

1. Backlink From BlogAdda

Go to blogadda.
Now register yourself their for new account.
Navigate to my account.
Their you will see a option Submit Your Blog.
Now add all your blog details and click on submit and that's it.
You will get a dofollow backlink.

2. Backlink From Codecademy

Go to Codecademy.
Register for a new account there.
Go to your profile and add your website link.
That's it. This will be a dofollow backlink from PR7.

3. Backlink From Granta

Go to Granta.
Register a new account on their website.
Fill your profile and add your website link while filling profile.
This will be a PR7 backlink.

4. Backlink From OneTab

Open your Firefox browser.
Now search and install One-Tab extension in your browser.
Open your website/blog in your Firefox browser.
Click on one tab extension at the top in the right side.
It will open a new page, just click on Share as web page.
And that's it, you will get a unique on which your backlink will be available.

5. Backlink From Copyrighted

Go to Copyrighted.
Create a new account there.
Now add a content that you own say your website. When filling details, it will ask you to add website URL, just add your website.
That's it.

6. Backlink From AllTop

Go to Alltop.
Now select your category say it's technology then go to tech category.
At the bottom of the page you will see a option to add your blog/website.
Just add you website details and in few days you will get a email confirmation from them that your site is submitted.

7. Backlink From Indugly

Go to Indugly.
Register a new account on the website.
Add photos from your blog and then the site will give a dofollow backlink by showing url blog/website link on the photos.

8. Backlink From Mozilla

Go to Mozilla.
Sign up for free Mozilla account.
Fill the required details and click on submit.
Verify your email in order to activate your account.
Now login to your Mozilla account and add your bio with a website's link, that's it.

9. Backlink From Ted

Go to Ted.
Sign up on Ted website.
After activation your account, go to your profile then edit profile.
Now scroll down the page and then you will find a link to insert your website.
Just add your website or blog and that's it.

10. Backlink From Eventful

Go to eventful.
Sign up to eventful.
Verify your account there.
Click on profile button and there you will see a button "Add More Info". Just click on it.
Add link which putting your info using : <a href = "http://www.yourwebsite.com"> Your Keyword </a>.
That's it, you will get high PR backlink.

6 Ways to Get More Results from SEO Right Now

As PR pros today we are tasked with a mountain of responsibility. Not only do clients demand monthly press mentions, but many lean on their PR firm's for social media and search engine optimization (SEO) advice, and in some cases execution. Unfortunately, much of the SEO advice out there currently is based on anecdotes and myth. Fortunately, a new search engine ranking factors study was recently released that helps shed some light on what's truly important for getting SEO results in 2016.

But, since I'm not an SEO expert, I thought it would make sense to interview someone who is - Dmitry Dragilev, founder of Just Reach Out (which I covered a few articles ago). Together, we are going to walk you through the highlights of an important SEO study and show you how you can use its findings to maximize the SEO benefits that your clients receive from your PR campaigns. So without further ado. . .the Q&A:

Q. As a PR professional, what is the best council I can give my clients about SEO, especially considering that the methods/strategies change with each Google algorithm change?

A. Backlinks remain an integral part of Google's algorithm. One of the chief reasons businesses hire PR firms today is that as PR pros we are very good at generating mentions from authoritative sites. More often than not, these mentions come in the form of links.

According to the new study, backlinks were the #1 most-important ranking factor that they investigated. Specifically, sites that generated links from a diversity of different sites came out on top.

For PR pros, this means that mentions from smaller blogs or niche publications can benefit our client's SEO. Therefore, we shouldn't necessarily shy away from a mention just because it's not on the cover of the Wall Street Journal.

Q. I used to spend a ton of time on Moz analyzing our client's earned media power and used to put a premium on domain authority. Is that still a thing?A. Simple answer? Yes! A website's overall link authority boosts all pages. The study I referenced above discovered that a website's overall link authority played a major role in how well each page on that site ranked. In other words, a brand new page on an established site will tend to outrank a new page on a smaller site.

This impacts our work because we're often unable to get links pointing to specific pages on a client's website (for example, a product or service page). But rest easy - even links pointing to a client's homepage may boost the rankings for those high-priority pages.

Q. I write a ton of contributed content and typically include imagery. Is that imagery helping to move the needle on those articles?

A. Image-rich media ranks very well in search, so yes it does make a difference. In the old days of faxing press releases to journalists, images didn't matter much. In fact, unless you earned a cover story, your client's media coverage usually didn't include an image at all!

In 2016, things are very different. It's common to see an image on almost every page on the web today. This study we are referencing here confirms that, whenever possible, it's smart to add images to your content. They found that content that contained at least once image tended to rank above content without any images.

This means that PR professionals should aim to use images in more areas than just with contributed articles - consider adding imagery to your online press materials, including press releases and press kits.

As I mentioned up front, as PR professionals we are now often tasked with having at least a basic understanding of SEO. The data-backed SEO tips provided by Dragilev should not only help you and your agency better understand SEO, but actually improve the rankings of your clients in search.

How to Turn off your Search and Location History in Google

By now, it should come as no surprise that Google keeps track of your search and location history.

But you may be surprised to find out just how detailed that history that is. Google not only lets you view your past search history, you can now get a detailed look at just about every place you've ever visited. These settings are enabled by default, but they don't have to be.

While the thought of Google quietly recording your every search — whether it's on Maps, YouTube or its search engine — can be disconcerting, there are reasons why it's useful to keep these settings enabled. For example, it helps Google offer up better recommendations (and, yes, more targeted ads). Plus, if you're a Google Now user, it can help make recommendations more personalized. Nevertheless, if you want to erase your Google footprint, here's how to do it.

Get a clean slate

Google recently streamlined many of its privacy settings and other account tools when it released a privacy dashboard last year. Head over to your "My account" page and select "Activity Controls" under the "Personal Info and Privacy" menu.

Here, you can see a list of cards that allow you to control how Google saves your search and activity history. It's possible to "pause" history related to search and browsing activity, Maps, voice search, YouTube and what else you've watched, as well as "information from your devices," a setting that uses data from your calendar and other apps to improve personalization in other Google services.

Keep in mind that if you use more than one Google account, you'll have to repeat these steps for each account. It's also a good idea to review your privacy and security settings while you're in your account dashboard.

If you want to delete previous activity that's already been saved, you can find instructions for doing so here (for search and browsing) and here (for maps and location).

Have something to add to this story? Share it in the comments.

How to Save Battery Life Using Low Power Mode on the iPhone

For iPhone users who are always low on battery life, there's an easy way to squeeze more power out of your device throughout the day.

By flipping on the iPhone's Low Power Mode, it temporarily reduces power consumption until you can fully charge your phone; essentially, it puts a hold on battery-sucking features like mail fetch and background refresh. You're probably already familiar with Low Power Mode — Apple sends a notification when you hit 20% battery life, asking if you want to engage it.

But the good news is Low Power Mode exists beyond moments of battery emergency. Here's how to get it: Open Settings > Battery > Low Power Mode (make sure it's "on").

You'll want to switch this on right after you're done charging the device — once you plug it back in at the end of the day and it hits 80% charged, Low Power Mode will unfortunately switch off, so you'll want to incorporate this process into your morning routine.

Low Power Mode is available for devices running iOS 9, but it'll work best with Apple's latest model smartphone, the iPhone 6S.

Have something to add to this story? Share it in the comments.

5 Ways to Make Your Blog Post Interactive

Static marketing content is as outdated as print-only newspapers. Just as day-old newspapers become litter in the streets, static digital content is useless to the average reader. With such an inundation of static marketing content, one piece hardly stands out from others, meaning brands blend and ideas fade.

Readers crave the dynamic nature of interactive digital content. An ion Interactive study measured the success and general feeling from marketers regarding interactive content. In terms of effectiveness, 93% of marketers say interactive media is great at educating buyers; 88% say it’s effective at differentiating brands, whereas static was found to be only 55% effective. Not convinced yet? Did you know that interactive content also drives 2X more conversions than static content?

Despite these numbers, many marketers shy away from interactive content. It might be because it has a reputation for being expensive and labor-intensive. But that is an unfair reputation. Creating interactive elements is, in fact, easy, fast and even free.

These five tools allow you to start immediately interacting with customers, which draws them in, converts at higher rates and gives feedback to improve your business.

1) PlayBuzz

The original PlayBuzz site is for the average Internet user interested in which Hogwarts house she belongs to or wants to test her knowledge about 1990s TV shows, but PlayBuzz’s business site is tailored to empowering companies to generate an interactive feature, embed it in their marketing content and watch user engagement rise and their network grow.

With PlayBuzz you can create free countdowns, polls, personality quizzes, flip cards, trivia, rankable lists, general lists, gallery quizzes and a swipe voting feature made popular by dating apps. Each element has an appealing quality that catches readers’ attention and can communicate information quickly in a visual manner. It also keeps visitors on your page longer and is designed for social sharing.

When choosing from so many options, remember highly interactive features like quizzes and swiping are good for social platforms and visually driven posts, while flip cards and polls are good for text-heavy content.

When you are designing these embeddable features, keep in mind your company’s brand and voice, this will ensure consistency while adding that added bonus customers appreciate. The best way to track the success of PlayBuzz content is to monitor its social performance in shares, engagement and views.

PlayBuzz is so user-friendly, you will forget you are marketing while playing with the design tools and fun features. Check out these flip cards we made with it.

2) SlideShare

Slide presentations are something nearly every professional has seen or used, whether it’s from business trainings, college lectures or group projects. Putting information in a condensed, easily-digestible format is one of the most popular marketing, sales and proposal tactics because of its familiarity and logic.

SlideShare can be embedded into any blog post and breaks down a topic for readers in a much more visual and attractive manner than static paragraphs of text. Try it with an existing post that needs more visits but provides valuable content.

Take text from the blog, simplify it for each slide, keeping word count at a minimum, include a CTA on the last slide, and embed the feature somewhere in the post. If you put the slides near the top, you can include a friendly disclaimer such as, “Don’t have time to read the rest? We summed it up for you here.”

Readers appreciate options for taking in information and really appreciate when you understand their limits. SlideShare transforms already written content into powerful snippets of data.

Don’t think of SlideShare as a place to put all the information in bullet points; think of it as a place to present an idea in a visual and condensed manner. It might be a good challenge to fit a hefty amount of information into a slide show. This exercise will help you write succinctly and think about content in an out-of-the-box way.

Give the most important points priority instead of cramming an entire blog post into a slide show. Graphs, statistics and quick thoughts are especially effective on SlideShare.

3) Make a GIF

Regardless of how you pronounce it (“JIF” or “GIF”), these little graphics excel at entertaining and inserting some fun into your digital content. It shows you have a sense of humor and don’t take yourself too seriously. That said, make sure to use GIFs sparingly and only for appropriate topics.

Many websites have tools for creating your own animated GIF or have a domain of popular ones for every emotion and situation. This imagery also warrants the use of BuzzFeed-worthy titles and descriptions to accompany your chosen GIFs.

This type of interactive content performs excellently on social platforms because of the flashy element and viral qualities. These qualities lend themselves well to tracking social success easily by monitoring shares, likes and engagement.

When choosing or creating a GIF, make sure it is a reference your audience will understand. You wouldn’t want to use a GIF from a popular TV show if it’s not likely your customers are familiar with it. However, if pop culture references are common in your content, feel free to use GIFs as freely as you'd like.

Websites such as GIPHY make the art of finding the right GIF quick and entertaining, while at the same time providing you with everythin you need to share with your audience. Take the GIF below - I typed "content marketing' into the search box, found this gem from Mad Men, and simply copied the embed code into the blog. Easy!

4) Qzzr

If the products or services you are marketing lend well to quizzing your prospects, Qzzr is the right tool for engaging them further. This free quiz-making platform allows you to create a quiz in minutes, embed it into any post and track the results. It also comes with a WordPress plugin for easy integration.

Customers love to test their knowledge, if only to prove how much they know. They also love to reveal pieces of their personality and discover new sides of themselves. Giving your customers these opportunities through quizzes is the perfect gateway for interaction and connection.

Keep quizzes as short as possible so as not to fatigue your readers. Make sure the answers are pointed and don’t allow quiz takers to avoid questions. There is nothing worse than a vague answer and worthless results. And there is nothing better than seeing interactions with customers and the fruitful rewards of getting specific.

You might use a quiz if you are trying to target specific products or services to your customers as they begin their buying journey. The fashion-delivery company Stitch Fix requires all first-time users to take a fashion quiz to determine which products will please them most.

You can emulate this model or use a quiz for testing your customer’s knowledge about your industry, current events or other relevant topics. Readers especially love quizzes that tell them which [car, building, time period, scientist, politician, 1980s pop star, etc. they are most like.

The great thing about Qzzr is the ability to integrate with CRM systems. This feature allows you to track the success of each quiz, pull data from the results and target customers more accurately and personally.

5) Podcasts

Podcasts aren’t just for Serial fans or listeners of public radio. The audio format is a gold mine for the busy professional. It gives multi-taskers a chance to consume your content on their terms. There might not be enough time in the day to read all the content circulating within certain industries or interact with specific companies.

But if marketers give professionals a way to gain all the benefits of static content during their daily commute without burying their faces in a screen, they might see a rise in interest and customer conversation. It’s also great for audio learners and is a much more casual and open environment for bringing guests and commentators to foster a fruitful discussion.

Before creating a podcast, study up. Listen to all different kinds of podcasts to figure out what works. It’s also good to pay attention to which length is appropriate. If you are getting more downloads and listens for shorter episodes, your customers might want quick conversation. But if you see a demand for longer form podcasts, your customers probably appreciate deep dives into certain topics.

Bring in guests for fresh perspective. Try implementing different segments to break up the monotony of a single episode. But make sure to get into the groove of podcasting before you give up or count your early success.

As you develop your podcast and find what works, you will find you can adjust and evolve episode to episode based on listener feedback or performance statistics. The key is keeping your eyes and ears open. Podcasting is just as much about listening as it is about talking.

3 Ways to Find Blog Post Ideas That Generate Backlinks

Finding ideas to blog about is a tough job, even for an experienced blogger.

No matter, how good are you at brainstorming ideas, you run out of ideas some of the times.

There are dozens of posts that explain to you how to find blog topic ideas. The majority of those posts fail to explain how to find ideas that drive real backlinks to your blog.

The best way to build natural backlinks is to produce great content and properly promote it. For that, brainstorming ideas for blogging that have the potential to drive high-quality backlinks is essential.

The specialty of this post is that in this post, I will explain you to find ideas that drive you high traffic and backlinks.

Let’s get started.

1. Quora:

It’s a goldmine to find ideas for blogging about. Leveraging it for building your blog and finding inspirations, can do wonders.

Let me unveil you the dirty little secret of finding post ideas that drive backlinks to your site.

Head over to Quora.

There, search for the topic of your interest.

In the above example, I searched for the topic ‘content marketing’.

There, I searched for the questions that have quite a decent number of followers.

If a question has good followers, that means it is a common question.


There’s the thing.

If you create content on the same topic, you’ll get great readership. Moreover, you may get potential backlinks if you present the topic in a unique way.

When you create content on the topic you find in Quora, I advise you to answer the original question along with a link back to your site.

By this, you’ll get additional targeted traffic from visitors and as well as the followers of the questions.

When targeted traffic comes to your blog, you’ll boost your social shares, and you may attract good backlinks.

2. Use the power of Google search:

Google is the best friend of yours to help you find the best topic ideas.

You may ask me – “What should I search for? I am dry”.

Here’s the trick.

Research after research it is found that following are the types of content that are shared and linked to most of the times.
Infographics
Ultimate guides
List posts
Case studies

Now you know what.

Before implementing this strategy, I advise you to install Ahrefs Toolbar for your browser. Ahrefs has the largest database of backlinks. The toolbar displays the number of backlinks the search results have.

I’ll get you clear. Keep reading.

2.1. Find infographics ideas:

Search Google for,

Your keyword + “Infographic”

It returns you all the top infographics in your niche. Most of the top results have a good amount of backlinks.

As I said earlier, for accurate results, as you can see in the above screenshot, you need to activate the Ahrefs toolbar. It displays the number of backlinks beneath the search results.

You can also combine multiple keywords for more results.

Like, if you are in blogging and SEO niche you may need to search for the term,

Blogging OR SEO + “Infographic”

It returns all the pages that have infographics either related to blogging or SEO.

Like this, by adding keywords, you can expand the number of potential post ideas you get.

3. Scan the headlines:

There are plenty of RSS readers, blog aggregators, and content curation sites, which collects the best resources and articles in a niche.

You need to just scan the headlines of the content curated on those ideas to spark up some new blog post content ideas in your brain. The content you are scanning should be popular to get backlinks.

Below are some of the best places to find content ideas like this:

• Alltop
• Flipboard
• Scoop.it
• Pinterest boards
• Feedly
• Blog communities
• Twitter hashtags

Just search for the keyword related to your niche in the search box for these tools, and get content ideas.

For Twitter, just search your keyword.

Now you need to examine the Tweets that got great engagement. You can find tons of ideas for you to blog about.

Wrapping up

These are some the effective ways to find content ideas that generate backlinks to your site.

I suggest you maintain an idea file and update it as you come across the ideas to blog about. It makes sure that your inspiration won’t dry out. Whenever you start writing a blog post, you can refer that file for oiling your machine up.

Make sure the content you create is of high-quality because no one links to your content if it is mediocre and do not deliver value to your readers.


I hope you found this article helpful.

How to Add a Custom Pinterest Tab to Your Facebook Page?

There are three main ways to add a Pinterst tab to your organizations Facebook fan page; via iFrame, via Facebook developer apps, and Woobox. All of these have different looks, advantages, and downsides. Examining characteristics of each can help in deciding on which application to use to install your Pinterest tab.

First, you have to have a Pinterest account. If you are not familiar with Pinterest here is a primer on what Pinterest is and how to use it. In order to install any Facebook Pinterest tab, you have to be using Facebook as yourself as you navigate to the application, so make sure you’re on your own profile, not the page you want to add the tab(s) to.

How to Add a Pinterest Tab via Iframe Host

1. To add a Pinterest tab to your Facebook page using an iFrame host, first go to https://apps.facebook.com/iframehost and locate the “Install Page Tab” button.
2. After you locate the button, chose the Facebook fan page(s) on which you’d like your Pinterest Tab to appear.
3. Once the tab is downloaded, you can go to the top right of the welcome bar and click “allow,” which will fully authorize the application and let you edit your Pinterest Tab.
4. Next, You can change the name of your tab (if you wish) and customize the graphic, and the basic installation will be complete.

NOTE: if you only want to show one or two boards, you have to separate the links from the link to the entire Pinterest account. If you don’t adjust the height of the pixels, you will have a scroll bar to the right and it won’t display all of your Pinboards at first glance.

Advantages of adding a Pinterest Tab via iFrame Host

To the computer-savvy, this application is attractive because it is free and you can customize the size, Pinterest application “display” photo, and what you name your tab/button.

Disadvantages of adding a Pinterest Tab via iFrame Host

The advantages and the disadvantages are one in the same- as customizable as iFrame is, it’s not user-friendly and difficult to master for the basic computer-users out there. Also the iFrame does not automatically adjust the height, so you’ll have a scrolling option until you go in and change the pixel height to allow for a bigger initial “window” or “display” of your Pinterest boards.

How to Add a Pinterest Tab via Facebook Developer Application

1. Go to the Facebook Developer Application installation tool.
2. Click “Create new App,” which is located at the top right of the page. If you want the Pinterest button to actually show up, you have to go through every single step.
3. Fill in all of the fields and then it takes you to a download of the iFrame host version of the Pinterest application- albeit via a bit of a different route.
4. After you locate the button, chose the Facebook fan page(s) on which you’d like your Pinterest Tab to appear.
5. Once the tab is downloaded, you can go to the top right of the welcome bar and click “allow,” which will fully authorize the application and let you edit your Pinterest Tab.
6. Next, You can change the name of your tab (if you wish) and customize the graphic, and the basic installation will be complete.

NOTE: if you only want to show one or two boards, you have to separate the links from the link to the entire Pinterest account. If you don’t adjust the height of the pixels, you will have a scroll bar to the right and it won’t display all of your Pinboards at first glance.

Advantages of adding a Pinterest Tab via Facebook Developer Application

This method simplifies the idea of adding a tab via iFrame host by creating more steps to walk you through the process. It is another free option and you can customize the pixel height, pictures and graphics.

Disadvantages of adding a Pinterest Tab via Facebook Developer Application

Too many steps to reach the same exact result as simply installing the iFrame application.

How to Add a Pinterest Tab via Woobox

Woobox is the #1 provider of page apps on Facebook. Woobox apps have 40 million monthly active users, and logs 150 million monthly visits. Their most popular app/service is the Static HTML app, and the Sweepstakes app is also highly popular. Woobox is a Facebook Preferred Marketing Developer.

1. Last way to add a Pinterest tab to your Facebook fan page is Woobox, which you can enter into the search bar on Facebook and click on, taking you right to the application (or click this link:https://apps.facebook.com/mywoobox/?fb_source=search&ref=ts)
2. Once you are at the woobox application, click “add to page” under the Pinterest icon for the fan page you’d like to add a tab to.
3. Afterwards, your Pinterest tab is installed! You can go to your Pinterest profile and arrange the boards however you wish, and then scroll down to the bottom of the Pinterest Facebook application and hit “refresh cache,” so that all changes you create are reflected in the Facebook app. You must refresh the cache every time you make a change.

Advantages of adding a Pinterest Tab via Woobox

Woobox is another free option that is visually appealing, easy to use, simplified and clean.

Disadvantages of adding a Pinterest Tab via Woobox

Woobox does not let you add multiple, individual pin boards. It just let’s you choose which to show and which not to show. It can only be used ONCE per fan page.

Best Option for Adding a Pinterest Tab

In iFrame, there’s no side-to-side scrolling within the iFrame to see all the Pinterest boards. It’s easier to see all of the boards because you don’t have to guess at the pixel height to avoid top-to-bottom scrolling- and it’s user-friendly, able to be completed in three easy steps without too much customization. You even get a Pinterest logo tab thumbnail.

The Woobox application is free, visually, appealing, and easy to use. It’s simplified and clean, whereas iFrame and the developer app method are more complicated and not quite as user-friendly, though can be more visually appealing depending on your level of computer savvy. Both applications have multiple tutorials on the Internet for installation if needed, and they both have the option of showing one, a few, or all pinboards to followers.

Choose the option best for you based on your tech skills.

6 Apps Your Company Should Take Advantage

By Brooke Chaplan

Phones can either be a distraction or a boon, depending on how they are used. With the proper apps, phones can improve productivity, and help your company make even more profits. Here are six apps your company should absolutely be taking advantage of.

Evernote

With instant syncing across multiple platforms, top-level organizational abilities, and features that enable collaboration, Evernote is the ultimate note-taking app. When you need a team to focus on the same topic, Evernote can be used to create notebook for them all. It’s perfect for getting quick notations down in minutes.

National Trainers

New to the software scene is National Environmental Trainers Inc. which offers HAZWOPER training certification courses. Not only are these necessary in some industries, but can be expensive if all your employees have to go to a location to get them done. Using the new software and now app, you can streamline this process and get all your employees trained and on the same page.

Expensify

Maintaining a record of all businesses expenses can be a tedious chore. With Expensify, all your employees have to do is scan their receipts and the image will be automatically uploaded to a central database. Never again will you have to sort dozens of receipts at tax time.

Trello

Trello is a free online app that allows people to work together no matter their physical location. It encourages sharing and collaboration and displays the data in a visual way, making it easy to see and understand what’s going on. Everything from sound bites, to images can be shared on a customizable board.

GoToMeeting

Meetings tend to take far more time than is necessary, and because employees have to move from their desks, they lose their train of thought and it interrupts their flow throughout the day.GoToMeeting prevents that by allowing employees to have meetings without ever leaving their computers. It also helps when trying to hold a meeting when people are in different geographic locations.

CampFire

For those times when you need to collaborate with a group but a full meeting isn’t necessary, Campfire fills the void. It’s a simple, easy to use group messaging system. With both a mobile and browser based version, it’s easy to send off a quick question or address a concern without the need to completely break your work flow.

Asana

When the days become hectic and the to-do list never seems to get shorter, it’s easy to get discouraged. Asana helps by providing a simple, easy to use interface. When you finish a task, just mark it off. Watching as the list shortens will give you the momentum to keep pushing through to the end of the day.

When used like this, phones can be very helpful for all your business purposes. Just make sure you don’t get sidetracked with the latest Facebook notification.

Boost Your Personal Brand with These 4 Content Marketing Tips

Content marketing -- in the form of sharing useful content such as blogs or videos with web viewers who relate to your brand -- can be one of the most successful digital marketing methods for your personal brand, but only with a solid strategy in place. According to the Content Marketing Institute’s 2015 B2C Content Marketing Report, 47 percent of the most effective content marketers have a documented strategy in place, while only 5 percent of the least effective content marketers have devised strategy.

With the abundance of types of content and channels to distribute content on, it’s easy to get overwhelmed. Use these four simple techniques to positively use content marketing to boost your personal brand and extend your reach and visibility in the global online space.

1. Produce meaningful content on your website 

First, determine your target audience and what passions you have that relate to your professional objectives. You might want to create written posts or videos where you share your expertise by teaching the audience a new skill. This helps cultivate an image of you as an authority in your field.

Don’t just promote yourself in your content. Think about the content consumer first, and how you can best help them. To brainstorm ideas for your content, ask yourself:

• What topics am I an expert on?
• What is the best way to convey my knowledge—through writing, a podcast, a photo slideshow, an infographic, a video, or something different?
• Would I be more helpful I interviewed another expert and weaved their testimonial into my content, or if I made their interview the primary content focus?
• How can I make my content more accessible to more types of users, such as by adding a transcript to a video for hearing impaired visitors, or by adding photography to a blog post for people more likely to want to consume images?

Regarding frequency for posting on your own site, a 2015 study by HubSpot found for companies with 10 employees or less, blogging at least 11 times per month is ideal. The study also found companies that published at least 16 blogs per month received three-and-a-half times more traffic than companies that published four posts or less per month. Start out slowly in the beginning if you’re trying to find your content marketing rhythm, but aim for continual higher frequency.

While your content should not focus on you, it should help you generate positive sentiment and exposure for your personal brand. Achieve this by linking back to an About Me page through your author bio link so people can learn more about you—and do business with you—if they like your content, or add a call to action to get in touch with you at the bottom of the post.

2. Offer to guest blog

Now that you’re an exemplary content-producing machine on your own website, search for other stars in your industry you can network with and whose audiences you can also share your professional prowess with. Choose influencers you admire, reach out to them and tell them why they interest you, and explain how you relate and how you can help their audiences.

Offer to create a post for their website, and ask for a link back to your website in return for your useful content. This generates a positive backlink that benefits your personal brand’s search engine optimization, while exposing you to a new audience that might lead to new business. Here is a step-by-step guide on how to do guest posting effectively. Also, let them know you’ll promote the post through your own network via a promotion on your website, through an email newsletter, or via social media. By offering to help other influencers, they’ll be more likely to help you promote your content, as well.

3. Host guest content on your site

Like guest blogging on other sites exposes your personal brand to new potential contacts, letting an authority create quality content for your site is also beneficial. Your site becomes more well-rounded and a better source for insightful information that will help drive traffic up, while the guest poster is likely to share their post through their own networks, bringing new visitors to your website.

You can also use guest content to promote your own related content. Keep in mind, promoting your personal brand is not the goal with hosting guest content. Rather, make your sure any promotion of your content is relevant and non-invasive to the post. A simple way to ensure this is to use a widget on your site that automatically displays related posts on the bottom of the article or video. You can also include “Read more related to this topic” links on the bottom, and customize what you share.

Content marketing is a waste of time if no one is seeing your content. Entrepreneur recommends using paid outlets, such as sponsored LinkedIn updates, to increase your reach, but amplifying your content doesn’t have to be costly. Save time and money by using free social networks and digital connections to get your content to more targeted consumers.

4. Set up profiles on all applicable social networks where your target audience is.

Content related to personal branding will most likely be useful on professional networking sites such as LinkedIn, while journalists and media pros are also likely to have Twitter accounts. When promoting your content, write posts with search engine keywords in mind, and include a call to action to entice those who see the post to click.

On the content post, encourage discussions to keep readers engaged and coming back to posts by asking questions on the bottoms of posts, or by promoting a discussion via the post you share the content through. Don’t just copy and paste links into social networks or on message boards—experiment by sharing photos or videos from your content to better adapt to the network’s algorithm, and constantly test posting times and types of posts to optimize your reach.

Once you’ve built relationships with other influencers, share your content with them when you feel it’s relevant to their audiences. A successful content marketing strategy is based on how much value you provide for both an audience and those who help you share your content. Create and share with a philosophy focused on helping, and you’re on your way to strengthening your personal brand through content marketing.