Message Board And Forum Advertising
By Dawn Roberts, Sat Dec 10th

Message boards and forums are a great way to advertise yoursite, service or product for free. However, there are a fewthings you should remember when posting.

1. Choose anappropriate site. I know this really goes without sayingbut there are still some that are so enthusiastic about gettingtheir message to the masses, they post on inappropriate sites.For example, it would be highly unlikely that you'll find manyinterested individuals to purchase your yoga wear on amotorcycle website. Instead you may want to try exercise sites,women's sites, parenting sites (mothers do want to get back intoshape after having a child), health and wellness sites....Ithink you're getting the idea. Think of who will be using yourproduct, service or website and go where they are.
2. Choose the proper board. Always read theinstructions and make sure you're posting only where it'spermitted. A lot of boards state "no advertising" in theirgeneral forum and you must respect their rules. However, mostboards have a place to post your ads. Also, if you are marketinga website, look for boards that will critique it for you. That'san excellent way to drive traffic to your site.
3. Create a profile. Viewers are less likely totake you seriously is you didn't take the time to complete aproper profile. List your likes and dislikes, where you're fromand any other personal information you're willing to share.Remember, people want to deal with people - not with"salespeople". You are no different than they are, so show themthat. I'm far more likely to follow someone's link if I canpersonally relate to them.
4. Use a signature with aURL link and a tag line. If you use a signature, you canpost anywhere and you're advertising without even doing it (ifyou know what I mean). For example, I love gardening and I knowthere may be some gardeners that would be interested in IFHB butit's really not the place to advertise my site. In that case, Ipost away about all the details of gardening that I love,offering advice along the way with my standard signature lineattached:

Sincerely, Dawn Roberts http://www.ideas-for-home-businesses.com/ Helping you secureyour financial future - fromhome!

5. Do not spam theboard members! While the 7 exposures rule is true(generally, a person must be exposed to something seven timesbefore they will purchase it), it does not mean you should postseven times in a row. Spamming is crass, irritating, rude andillegal. It shows a level of immaturity and I, for one, wouldnever waste my time following up with a spammer. Look at thisscenario and tell me which child you would choose to pay to mowyour lawn (a) a polite child who rings your doorbell, introduceshimself, tells you he's available to mow your lawn and leavesyou with his name and phone number or (b) a child riding hisbicycle up and down in front of your house, screaming "I'll cutyour lawn for five bucks". First impressions do matter.
6. Relate - don't sell. Avoid the hype at allcosts! Be yourself. Let's say you're marketing a softwareprogram that will save time and money for accountants.

   You could use hype:

   Announcing the one and onlysoftware program you will ever need. This will not onlyrevolutionize your business, it will give you the time to enjoylife like you can't imagine! Buy it now before they're all gone.Don't be the only guy on the block doing things the prehistoricway. Come into the 21st century and get Accounting ForAccountants while you still can!

   or you could postin a manner that others will relate to:

   As anaccountant there never seemed to be enough time in the day toattend to all the tasks that demanded my attention. Not onlythat, the programs I needed were very expensive and requiredhefty annual renewals. Well, I've developed a program thatperforms the tasks that once required three programs to do. It'seasy to use and doesn't require annual renewals. Best of all, itsaves me time and we all know - time is money. Visit"Accounting4Accountants.com" for moreinformation.

7. Watch yourlanguage. Don't be offensive. Avoid words like; hell,damn, stupid, idiot, fat... People take offence to those andmany other words and by all means, don't swear. Be respectfuland diplomatic in all your postings.
8. Use thesearch engines. Search for your topic plus thewords "message board". If you've developed the next bestadjustable wrench since Vice Grip came on the market, you maywant to search for tools+message+board, mechanic+message+board,car+message+board... Think of who would use such a tool. Putyourself in your customer's mind and use the same terminologythe would use. One other thing when searching, don't forget thatpeople often misspell when they're searching. When people arelooking for an adjustable wrench, more than a handful wouldsearch for "adjustible".

Have fun and relax. Posting on a lot of boards is time consumingand sometimes a little boring. Take your time with it. A goodpost will bring you the customers, clients and visitors you'relooking for at a cost we all love - FREE!

About the author:The author, Dawn Roberts, is the creator ofwww.Ideas-For-Home-Businesses.com - your complete home businessresource. IFHB will help you from the planning stage, straightthrough to marketing your ideas for home businesses! Learn howyou can start, maintain and propel a phenomenally successfulhome based business!