5 Top WordPress Plugins for Affiliates

If you are new to using WordPress, the following free WordPress plugins can help you take your affiliate websites to the next level with functionality:

1. All In One SEO Pack – Absolutely necessary for EVERY WordPress and affiliate site. This plugin optimizes your WordPress blog for Search Engines (Search Engine Optimization).
   
2. XML Sitemap Generator – This plugin will create a Google sitemaps compliant XML-Sitemap of your WordPress blog. It supports all of the WordPress generated pages as well as custom ones. Everytime you edit or create a post, your sitemap is updated and all major search engines that support the sitemap protocol, like ASK.com, Google, MSN Search and YAHOO, are notified about the update. If you are looking for maximum search engine rankings, this plugin is also a MUST HAVE.
   
3. WP-PageNavi – Adds a more advanced paging navigation your WordPress blog. This is a more sophisticated paging system for more complex affiliate websites.
   
4. WP-Affiliate – Easy affiliate link masking and more. This is necessary if you want to cloak your affiliate conversion URL’s.
   
5. WP-PostRatings – Adds an AJAX rating system for your WordPress blog’s post/page. Perfect for review sites!

Source: The Affiliate Theme

How to Pick A Niche

Confused about what direction to go? Where to start? Here's a quick breakdown based on content from Yaro Starak:

First,

1. Do Keyword research to find out how many searches are going on
• Goal: Over 1000 searches a day 
2. Check  Google search results to see how much competition there is
   
   • Goal: Less than 10,000 competing pages

8 Ways to Maximize Your Kewords

There are 8 ways to maximize your on-page keyword usage. 

1. Title
2. URL
3. Meta description
4. H1 
5. H2-4
6. Body
7. B/Strong
8. IMG ALT

The more you utilize, the greater your return.

When will I be on Google?

It takes a few weeks to a few months to be crawled and indexed by search engines.  Until then,  don't worry!  People can "find" you by entering your webaddress.  In other words, you're S.O.L. (shit oughta luck).

I doth protest!

Ok fine.  So maybe there's a couple LITTLE things you can do that MIGHT help.  A  LITTLE.  But don't get your hopes up.

Still reading?  I see that you're super motivated, or a glutton for punishment.     Here's some ideas:  

• Google shows sites to people based on what they think those people will like,  based on their sneaky  resourceful personal data collection techniques.  So the best way to be indexed is to update your site consistently, and with "good" content.

• Use topic words, title, description and keywords tags. Search engines look for them.

• Submit your site to the search engines. It puts it on a list of sites to be crawled.  MAYBE.  It's no guarantee.  But it's easy & quick.  So what the heck, knock yourself out:  Here ya go:    
• Google 
• Yahoo/Bing Bots/MSN

• Search engines like links! The more links to other website you have, the awesomer they think you are. 

• Submit your site to directories.  (Business, Niche
• Submit content to article directories like ideamarketers.com, ezinearticles.com articlealley.com that link back to your site.
• Offer to do a link exchange with webmasters in your niche.

Get Local Traffic for Your Local Business

• Geo-target your meta tags.  Use meta tags (title, description, keywords) that refer to your location: city, town, county, zip code, and so on.  For example,   "Wedding Photographer - Sacramento, California 95816"

• Contact Info on every page via a footer. Putting your full address everywhere helps search engines pick it up.

• Add your location to your image alt text. If you have an image of your flower shop on your site, you could give it the image alt text "Julia's Flower Shop, Toronto, Ontario". 

• Submit your site to Google and Yahoo Business Centers Google Local Business Center  Yahoo Local Listings and local directories: Yellowpages.com, SuperPages.com, InfoSpace.com, InsiderPages.com, Local.com.

• Email your local Chamber of Commerce and complementary local businesses and ask for a linnk exchanger.  (You'll link them, if they link you!)

• Leave good quality comments (not spammy) on blogs and forums related to your niche in your geographic location & casually include a link!