It’s Freebie Friday!
In case you missed last week’s big launch, Freebie Fridays is where I answer real internet marketing questions by real people. Because I’m all about keeping it real.
Last week, we talked about ways to market your blog when you have no money. This week, we’ll discuss Google Alerts, a free tool that can help you manage your online reputation, discover new link sources and brainstorm new blog/article ideas.
Question
Did you know you can research anything with Google Alerts, so what would you search for: love, money or what?
Answer
Since I run an online business, I use it to keep track of any mentions of my name or business name on the internet. Then I have the results delivered by RSS to Google Reader (although you can also have them delivered by email).
Google Alerts is a great (and free) way for any business to track new link sources and stay on top of online reputation management. For example, if I were a restaurant owner, I would want to know right away if a blogger posted a negative review so I could find out why, correct the problem and minimize the damage. Of course, I’d also want to know about a positive reviews, not only to thank the blogger but to join the conversation with that blog’s readers.
I also use it to find new ideas for my blogs. For example, if I wrote a blog about credit card reform, Google Alerts would send me any news articles or blog posts on that topic. Speaking of which, another great way to find new ideas for your blog is the Google Hot Trends list, which updates every hours with the fastest-rising searches of the day.
Freebie Fridays is a weekly feature where I answer internet marketing questions submitted by a reader or found in the wild. Got a question? Get in touch here.
Photo by lucianvenutian. This week question was discovered on Yahoo Answers.
{ 5 comments… read them below or add one }
The main mistake you want to avoid while setting up alerts is to stear clear of anything too generic – you’ll get flooded with hundreds of useless emails real fast.
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I assign few of my site’s seo task to someone and it is very good way to track all the progress. Just create google alert for your website name and you would know what is going on with your site.
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That is an excellent use for Google Alerts that I have never considered. Thanks for the tip, Steve!
You are welcome Adrienne. After using it, let us know how effective it was for you. For me it is pretty good way though and works very well.
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I’ve been using Google Alerts for months now and it’s great; what a time saver.
Let’s hope it stays free. The Great Google never stops fiddling with everything, including AdSense. Apparently these ads on a website pay almost nothing any more.