You Got The Killer Domain -- Now What?

You've probably been playing around on the internet for a couple of years. You've registered a few domains, and made a half-hearted attempt at getting a website built with Microsoft Front Page. Maybe you even learned a little bit of code.But there's still so much work. Even if you build the website, it's basically empty until you do all the manual data entry plugging in links and pictures and whatever. After a couple of months, you discover hundreds of other websites are already doing it all better than you, and you don't have any more time or money to dedicate to building the site.You are discouraged, frustrated, and tired. But, you still believe you have a great name -- if only you could back it up with an actual website.

Use A Free Content Manager

There are dozens of programs available now that empower you with the backend architecture to have a professional-looking website with all kinds of bells and whistles. There is a website called "SourceForge.net" that is sort of a clearing house of free programs and website code that you can download and use on your website. FREE! Some of the most widely used website architectures are called Php-Nuke, Postnuke, and Mambo. These are programs that let you run a database-driven website with all kinds of cool functionality like registering new members, password protected pages, shopping carts, paypal integration -- everything you need. Each Content Management Program is designed with a different purpose in mind, so even though it's free, you'll need to take some time to determine what the goals are for your website, and choose accordingly. Once you decide what you want, you simply upload the program to your web host, and it virtually installs itself with some minor tweaks.

Getting Content To Your Site:Syndication, Affiliate Programs And More

Okay, so now you have a website.It's empty, but you got it happening. Now what?Again, it depends on your goals.You might try to repurpose content from various syndicators -- websites that grab fresh articles, pictures, and amusements and let you use it on your site. What's the catch? They get a tiny weblink on the story on your website.Big deal. Small price to pay get fresh news and human interest stories to your site every day. Take a look at Syndic8.com for an example.

There are also clearing houses for articles by freelance writers.Articles are written by these people for the explicit purpose of you being able to copy and paste their stories on your website. No copyright infringement, as long as you keep their name and other details in-tact. Again, small price to pay to help fill the pages on your site.Just do a search for "free articles" and you'll find sites like "ArticleCity.com", "ezineArticles.com" and others.Copy and paste away and you'll have a website full of cool, professionally written stories in under a day.

If money is burning a hole in your pocket, then buy a package that you can re-brand for your site. Different packages can include ghost-written articles that you can attach your name to, all the way to multimedia content like videos, ebooks, and software that your site visitors can download. A lot of wbemasters buy packages with "Master Resell Rights" so they can rebrand the content with their own names, and sell the packages again and again.You need to be careful here because a lot of content is duplicated, and one website might sell you ebooks for $50 a piece, and another website will sell you a package of 1000 ebooks for $25.00.Buyer beware.

Affiliate programs are simple ways to help capture some money from people visiting your site. Dozens of programs abound and cover everything from banner ads to book sales to... whatever. The list is endless. The most famous Affiliate program was started by Amazon, and continues to generate tremendous business for the company, with thousands of sites also reaping small gains. For an example site that consolidates affilate programs, take a look at Linkshare.com and CommissionJunction.com. These are a couple of the biggest.

Now, you have the backend programming covered and the frontend content is in. You also have a couple of banner ads floating around, and maybe even a few links are built in to sell some DVDs. You're probably managed to build a small download section with ebooks as well, and the site is taking on a respectable look and feel. So, how do we drive visitors to the site?

We all know about search engine submission and links, and all that stuff.But I'm going to share with you a small secret that will help to drive explosive growth to your site. Are you ready?It's so simple it's gonna hurt.Here it is: you're looking at it.

Huh?

Yup. The sole purpose of this article was to build links on other people's websites, thereby increasing the rank of MY website in the search engines. Like I alluded to earlier with the mention of findingfree articles for your website, this is an example of that.You can copy and paste this article on YOUR website, as long as you keep my information in tact. And, there's also a lesser known, but just as effective means of getting your name out there. It's called "Press Releases". Write a press release about your new website.Announce to the world the benefits they can expect to gain by visiting your website.Best of all, you can submit your press release to dozens of Free Press Release Posting websites all over the internet. Our site is called http://www.MediaSyndicate.com. There are lots of other sites that do the same thing, and you can find them just by doing a quick search.

Hopefully, this article is a helpful primer on how to start your website. To recap some of the tools mentioned :

• Get a good (free) content management system
• Populate your website with content from other providers and syndicators
• Submit your website to search engines
• Write a couple of articles of original content for use on other sites
• Write a press release and post it to news sites for free
• Find affiliate programs to help generate passive revenue
• Continue to build on what you already have

It will most likely take you at least six months before you realize any serious traction. This is because it takes a long time for the search engines to catalog your website.After that happens -- the fun begins!


Mark Pivon is a freelance writer and editor of MediaSyndicate.com -- The Free Press Release Posting Site. He has worked with many large multinational corporations including AOL Time Warner, MTV.com, J.Crew, The Bank Of America, Marriott Execustay, Medscape, The Province of British Columbia, Irving Oil, The State of New York, -- and dozens of other public and private organizations around the world. During his spare time he enjoys cooking and mountain biking. He currently resides in Vancouver, British Columbia.