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Discover the 17 Ways You Can Get Free Traffic to Your Web Site
You re going to find 17 different ways that you can use to get free traffic to your web site. All of these are free and some of them have options that may cost a couple of dollars. That doesn t mean that they don t require any work on your part.

First way - Link Exchanges

A reciprocal link exchange, or link exchange for short, is a great way to increase traffic to your website. In essence, it s the exchanging of links of other websites; you link another site to yours; the website owner of that site links your site to his / her site. It s an equal exchange; one link for one link. Results are that some search engines like Google list sites that have more and better links higher in their rankings. In short, when people search for your keywords, they ll find your site listed near the top of the list with the more quality links you have to spider.

How to Exchange Links

You can exchange links any number of ways. However, before beginning to swap links, note that instead of focusing on mass links, though, it s better to focus on good ones or sites with good rank in the search engines. For example, it s better to be linked to one top site than 200 unethical, spamming, porn sites. You rank higher in the search engines plus receive better traffic to your website.

Instead, exchange links with other sites using links with different text pointing to sub directories e.g. if site is about gardening and one directory is flowers and another is trees, get links to flowers with the appropriate text about flowers and links to trees with appropriate text about trees.

An easy way to begin is to reach out and email webmasters of sites that you d like linked up with. Maybe you already have some ideas like sites that are in your industry, but not in competition with you; association sites, complimentary service sites, affiliate sites, etc.

You can also find software to help locate sites for linking, then create, send and track your emails. Search these terms for help finding software, reciprocal links software automate link exchange or link exchange software reviews.

There are also third party services that help with link exchange programs. For example, one at: http://www.articleaware.com/LinkSubmission can link your site up with about 400 directories, alternating up to five different profiles with your link included in them. This isn t free, but it will sure speed up the submission process.

Visit forums or discussion boards to learn more, too, and to find recommended software and other third party programs, link partners and more. An example can be found at: http://forums.digitalpoint.com/forumdisplay.php?f=53 .

Learn more and locate link partners. Line up great links for your site and start getting more traffic your way at no extra charge!

Second way - Get Traffic with Press Releases

An excellent way to get more visitors to your website is by to write press releases and submit them to press release sites. Here are press release tips to help with creating your own releases. And then we ll take a look at some free sites out there where you can distribute them at no cost.

Press Release Tips

Keep in mind that a press release is a newsworthy announcement. It is not an advertorial or sales letter. A press release needs to be of interest to journalists and other media representatives.

A press release itself follows a general format so that publishing media worldwide in all industries can handle the information quickly and efficiently. Main elements in this general format include:

1. FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE - Write these words in the top left-hand margin of your document, capitalizing each letter.

2. Underneath the phrase above, write out your contact Information. List the name of the person to contact for more information on the release and include a phone number and email address for media to reach you in a hurry.

3. Grabbing Headline ” Study popular headlines in your own media on hand (newspapers, USAToday.com, etc.) Then write your own compelling headline to attract readers.

4. City, State ” Begin your first paragraph by listing your press release s point of origin to the left margin.

5. Cut to the chase ” Make your lead paragraph lead and not put people to sleep. Introduce all key points here: the five W’s (who, what, when, where, why). Don t make editors wonder what your piece is about. They re busy. Cut to the chase right off.

6. Develop Content ” Use the remaining part of your release to fully develop your subject of focus. Have someone read it and proofread it for errors and missing info.

7. Summary / Contact / Offer ” Power-pack your last paragraphs with solid reader information. Include a statement like, For more information, contact . And list at least a URL and phone number for readers who want more info. When possible, offer them something free, too: a free report, free ebook with tips, etc.

Discover the rest of the 17 ways and get a list of over two dozen free press release distribution sites visit <a href="http://www.ecompal.com/FreeTraffic.htm">free traffic to your web site</a>. Nick Hurd is the developer of <a href = "http://www.ecompal.com">eCOMpal a shopping cart on steroids</a> that can be set up in minutes. eCOMpal offers numerous options to track your advertising, improve your sales and fulfill your orders.

Taxing Ebay Part Deux
When my column on paying income tax on eBay profits ran it brought a wave of emails on whether you were required to report income earned from eBay sales to the IRS sparked a number of additional questions and comments from eBay sellers who were hoping that I could somehow validate that their eBay activities were mere hobbies instead of actual businesses and therefore not susceptible to IRS taxation.

Several folks argued that just because their little eBay hobby generated a little cash, that didn?t make it a full blown business. It seems they consider the income from their little hobby to be financial manna from Heaven and thereby not taxable by earthly tax collectors. I?ve always been amused by folks who try to impress me with talk about their ?little side business? but when the subject turns to taxes they suddenly refer to it as ?my little hobby.?

All arguments aside, the conclusion that I came to after reading each of the emails was always the same: while you may think selling on eBay is just a fun pastime and the money you’re making is not reportable as income, depending on the circumstances, the IRS would probably disagree with you.

It seems that everyone likes making money, but hates carving off a piece for good old Uncle Sam. Welcome to free enterprise, folks. If you?re going to come to the dance you have to pay the fiddler.

The IRS rules are clear: you must pay taxes on all personal and business income and that includes money you make selling on Ebay.

In its most basic sense, the IRS rules can be interpreted to mean that if you buy an old vase at a garage sale for $10 and sell it on eBay (or elsewhere) for $20 you made a $10 profit and therefore must report it as income and pay Uncle Sam his fair share.

In reality, if you are a casual seller who only sells a few items on eBay every now and then it’s doubtful the IRS is going to let loose an army of agents to collect taxes on the few bucks you make. However, if you consistently sell on eBay the IRS may deem your activities to be business oriented and you will be required to file a Schedule C and claim the income.

As mentioned last week, the IRS uses a number of factors to determine if an eBay hobby that generates sales revenue is actually a business. These factors include:

? Do you carry on the hobby in a business-like manner?

? Do you spend considerable time working on the hobby?

? Do you depend on income from your hobby for your livelihood?

If the answer to any or all of these question is yes, you?re running a business, not carrying on a hobby, and you are responsible for paying taxes on your income.

What’s eBay’s take on all this? Naturally eBay is vehemently opposed to anything that might rock the eBay boat. eBay does not issue 1099 tax forms to sellers, nor does it report seller’s sales figures to the IRS.

Ebay considers itself merely to be a facilitator, meaning that they provide a marketplace in which buyers and sellers come together to do business.

Furthermore, under its current system it would be impossible for eBay to issue accurate 1099s to sellers. eBay does not track if a seller actually gets paid by the buyer, so eBay has no idea how much money - if any - actually changes hands at the end of each transaction.

On the bright side, if you do sell on eBay as a business you can deduct a number of business expenses, including the cost of inventory, listing fees, shipping, envelopes, packing materials, etc.

You might also be able to deduct things like the purchase of a computer for business use, office space (even if it’s a home office), office supplies, and more.

Talk to your accountant if there’s any doubt as to whether you should or should not be paying taxes on your eBay earnings.

Tim Knox Entrepreneur, Author, Speaker <a href="http://www.prosperityandprofit.com" title="http://www.prosperityandprofit.com" target="_blank">http://www.prosperityandprofit.com</a> <a href="http://www.dropshipwholesale.net" title="http://www.dropshipwholesale.net" target="_blank">http://www.dropshipwholesale.net</a> <a href="http://www.smallbusinessqa.com" title="http://www.smallbusinessqa.com" target="_blank">http://www.smallbusinessqa.com</a> <a href="http://www.timknox.com" title="http://www.timknox.com" target="_blank">http://www.timknox.com</a>