FREE Resources To Help You On Your Internet Journey
SO, you have created your website, what’s next?
In this section, I will highlight a few FREE resources that should help you on your internet journey to success. The proof of the pudding is in the eating – so in other words, in order for your website to be a success among the many thousands before you, you have to get your feet wet and make an effort.
NOTE: Even though I have listed these resources, I have not used them all. I am also not an affiliate of most of them. My aim is simply to provide useful information to help you on your journey.
AND remember, the information you receive will do you no good unless you take action!
NOTE: Though some of these resources are FREE, you can also UPGRADE to a PAID membership as you find the need.
I will not sugar-coat it – you have to work to achieve your goal. Rome was not built in a day – however, you can get started and do your best to move things to the next level!!
As you realize by now, the main thing that will make the difference between sinking and swimming will be your content. Of course, Google recognition is always a plus, however, you have to invest your part by writing. Despite the most recent Google ‘shake-up or shake-down’, however you choose to call it, just plugging in keywords a few times in your article is not going to ‘cut it’ or writing a few words.
Content
This will be the meat and potatoes of your business. Ensure that you do adequate research, even if you are already familiar with the subject.
Here are two links to short articles I wrote about content creation at Wealthy Affiliate –
Here are a few FREE resources to help you get things moving as you start creating your content.
ALSO, this is the BEST PLR site that I use for my content creation as well. You can check it out IDPLR.
There is a FREE membership with 2 Gold downloads and a paid membership for lifetime access…so worth it on this journey!
Titles
Coming up with titles that are:
- catchy
- short
- convincing
- relevant
can sometimes be a challenge. Have a look at these title generators when you need that extra oomph!
- Portent Title Maker
- Seopressor Title Generator
- Hubspot Topic Generator
- Tweakyourbiz Title Generator
- Title Generator
Keywords
Yes, the ‘must-have’ for every piece of content that you write.
Keywords are important as these are the magic words that people search the world wide web with in order to find answers to the questions that they seek. There are single keywords and long-tail keywords. Don’t be overwhelmed. The key is to just find a work that has ‘traction’ and then create your content around it – not as a focus – you want your article to have flow and continuity and simply ‘feel natural’ as in a conversation.
Here are a few points to remember when choosing a keyword for your article:
- choose the best keywords, based on your niche, monthly searches and traffic data
- learn about your competition
- make a list of keywords and see which have the highest search volume
You can test it here as well.
AdWord & SEO Keyword Permutation Generator
Grammar Check
Of course, what good is it all if you write words and there is no adhesive, no sense of direction? NONE. Using Grammarly, a FREE online grammar checker tool is one of the best I have found on the market.
Google Help
Google is a FREE and multifaceted asset to your online presences. Browse around and become familiar with each asset. As a Google account holder, you have FREE access to this information. There is just so much to access and so much that you can use in establishing your online presence.
- Analytics
- Webmaster
- AdWords and Keyword Planner
- Calendar
Logo Creation
Having a logo on your site is not a prerequisite, but it sure looks good. It will help give your site that professional look.
Here is a link to help you:
Favicon
This is purely aesthetic but I hasten to add, it’s kind of cosmetic but nice in any respect. This is one other way to make your site stand out from the others.
Trust Badges
A very popular trust badge is Gravity Scan. It is a FREE resource that will do daily checks on your website once you have created an account.
Email Subscription
As you know, and I am sure you may have heard this phrase – ‘the money is in the list’! Getting traffic to your website is great and getting that traffic to become subscribers to your site is an even greater asset!
Here are a few suggestions:
- Aweber
- Suomo
- MailChimp
- MY preference – Builderall – it is like a one-stop-shop for EVERYTHING. They have a $1 trial for 30-days. It is worth checking out.
Website Speed
Occasionally, you need to check on the loading time for your site to ensure that it is not taking ‘a year and six months’ to get there. I use the tool below:
WordPress Platform
This is such an easy platform to work with. You can use the help of various plugins to make your site look great. Just remember that you only need to install plugins that help your site and not slow down your site’s loading speed.
Here are a few suggestions:
- AMP – for mobile access
- EU Cookie Law
- Cache
- Pretty Links – to make your URLs shorter and not too long
FREE Images
Of course, as you know, everyone likes pictures! It has been statistically shown that people ‘read’ better with pictures before they even start to read the text. Of course, please do your due diligence to ensure that you are not infringing on any copyright restrictions.
Here a few sources for FREE images:
- Pixabay
- Pexels
- UnSplash
- FreeImages
Social Media (Free Accounts To Help Brand Yourself)
In today’s world, it goes without saying that social media has literally taken over the way we do things. We plan out lives around it. This can be good as well as not so good at times, but of course, you are the one who decides how much we allow social media to control our lives.
There are many ways of being socially connected. However, I find that accounts with those below that I have listed, are the main ones to spend time creating – for now. It is a great way to network – if your time allows for it. If you are not careful, you will find yourself spending too much ‘connecting’ rather than being practical.
Here are some networks I recommend:
- Quora
- StumbleUpon
Forums Associated With Your Niche
Depending on what niche your website promotes, one great suggestion about how to get traffic to your site is to become a member of a few forums that associate with it. There are a lot of forums where you will find people of like-minds who seek information, provide information, and compare information in any given niche.
You can even create your own forum. Maybe your new website could be a forum where your main interest is to establish trust, provide feedback, research, and resources about your decided niche. The possibilities can be endless especially with the tools we have at our fingertips today.
My Final Thoughts
Creating your online presence might seem daunting at first, but if you make use of the tools I have mentioned, you will find your way in this new ‘world’.
And remember, a great FREE resource that will help you along the way (if you choose to commit to it) is a FREE membership account at Wealthy Affiliate. You can try out the premium membership for 7 days and see if it could be something for you or remain a free member for life and use the limited access tools available on the platform for you.
T
Updated June 2020
Hi MICHELLE,
Thanks for the great list of resources for a new blogger like me.
Hello Ankit,
Thanks so much for stopping by and I am happy that you found the information useful. All the best on your journey.
Michelle