Bookmarking scripts are the code used to place widgets on your site, and are
the first step in developing your network.  When a web site visitor registers with
any of the web’s social bookmarking sites, they create an account where they
can simply click a button to save the link. The bookmarking site then keeps track
of the number of votes per link, and can give you a strong idea of what is
popular at any given time.
In order to make this process more efficient, you will simply need to place some
code on your site that puts the button right under any article or piece of
content.  This makes the steps a ‘one-touch’ system, and encourages your site
visitors to start interacting with your website in fresh new ways.
You’ll want to start by implementing the set of code for each social
bookmarking site and widget; you’ll want to select only 4-6 different plug-ins to
avoid overloading the site with too many distracting logos.  The most common
social bookmarking sites to choose from include:
-  Del.icio.us
-  Newsvine
-  StumbleUpon
-  Windows Live
-  Google
-  Rawsugar
-  Digg
-  Netscape
-  Technorati
-  Yahoo MyWeb
-  Magnolia
-  Spurl
-  Furl -  Reddit
-  Squidoo
-  Ask
-  Ning
-  Tagtooga

The simplest way to direct visitors to your site is to simply provide relevant links.
You’ll want to ensure that a link to your main website is always included on any
profile pages and signatures, and even sending out an e-mail blast that
highlights which social bookmarking networks you are on can help you create
some momentum.
Ensuring that all visitors can see which social bookmarking sites you are linkable
to is the next step.

After choosing the most effective online marketing strategies, you’ll be able to
better connect social bookmarking into the whole equation.  Social
bookmarking is essentially an avenue of opportunity for your target market to
market for you.  By finding useful information on your site, your links, or any other
content you post across a variety of channels, the chances of the word-of-
mouth phenomena are increased tenfold.
Developing relevant content is the first step in effective social bookmarking;
without it, your potential customers and target market will have nothing to link
to.  As your site builds in traffic, making sure that social bookmarking buttons are
implemented will help people get involved at a touch of a button.  You will no
longer have to take part in extra direct marketing efforts when your social
networks are thriving and providing plenty of link backs.

You’ve come a long way in this course!
This is the last section and a short but powerful one. This will help you develop a
plan of implementation for social bookmarking sites and using them in your
business.
Consolidating your efforts for an effective online marketing campaign will take
some time, and you’ll need to gather the right set of resources and tools to
make the best of scripts and widgets available. Overdoing this on a website or
blog is an easy way to turn visitors off, and you’ll need to use only a few social
bookmarking tools to start networking effectively.
Making A Plan
In addition to social bookmarking efforts, there are other ways to develop an
online marketing strategy. You need to develop as much visibility as possible on
search engines, and the more exposure you receive from customers sharing links
of your website amongst each other, the higher the chances of getting high
search engine rankings as well.
The most common ways to reach your target market include:
- Creating focus ads on websites
- Creating sticky ads that require visitors to click on the link
- Developing a strong search engine presence
- Joining paid inclusion sites
- Developing email campaigns
- Joining social networks

This section is going to share a ton of sites that are directly related to professional
life and business. These range from online business to career sites and business
networking sites.
Make sure that you go through these and pick out sites that will match well with
your online business type. If you are in the Internet Marketing or Business To
Business market, these are the sites that you are going to want to take a focus
on.

Link building is a natural by-product of social bookmarking sites, since you are
using your links and blog posts as leverage while you network.  It becomes very
simple to locate groups of interest, and then to proceed with sharing your links
through article submissions and relevant posts.  Building a profile with a link to
your website is the first step, since the more prominent your position on the
network, the more that other community members will want to learn more
about you.
Increasing links to your website can be done in a few different ways, without
spamming:
-  Commenting on blogs, articles, and posts and providing link back
information of relevance
-  Including your link as a tag on your profile name
-  Making sure people are aware of new information that you have posted,
by copying and pasting the link on relevant discussions or comments

Finding the right networks and communities to join will take some time; you will
need to set up your profile first, highlighting key areas of interest, tagging your
information appropriately, and sharing the information in already-established
web communities.  After that, you can start communicating with other social
bookmarkers to learn about the different groups available.
Many social bookmarking sites are organized by topic and subject, and you’ll
want to narrow down your fields of interest to about 4-5 different areas.  If you
are selling beauty products, for example, you may choose to set your sights on
Fashion, Lifestyle, Shopping, and Style.  If you are promoting a home products-
based business, you may choose to focus on Stay at Home Mom groups,
Entrepreneurs, and Small Business networks.  It’s important to think in larger terms
when choosing communities and networks to join, as you can narrow down the
crowds after entering and introducing yourself. Introductions are very informal on social bookmarking sites, and are different
than joining a discussion forum, group, or portal.  On these sites, your ranking
and seniority is largely determined by the date you joined, and the level of
activity.  It may also be calculated by the number of positive ratings or
comments you have received, as well as a calculation of page views.
Whatever the case may be, it’s important to learn about community rules and
guidelines, and then begin posting in areas that are relevant to your identity.

Building a brand in the offline world involves maximizing exposure and creating
easy access to your business.  Online, this takes the form of communities and
social interaction.  It is even more important to become engaged and get the
right level of exposure on the web today, and community building is a part of
this process.   Joining relevant networks, providing appropriate content, and
building an online profile are all effective ways to make this possible, and
building a strong foundation requires some skill and knowledge about social
networking overall. Ensuring that positive feedback, comments, and relevant
information are posted is one way to promote a brand or identity with ease.  As
more readers begin to learn about your particular topic or niche, it becomes
easier for them to associate and grow with you.

Given how simple it can be to get information in front of influential customers, it
only makes sense to take the steps to get on the front page.  The front page of
social bookmarking sites offers an opportunity for increased page views, visitors,
and increased exposure across multiple channels.  Getting on the front page
makes it easy for millions of visitors to get the ‘first impression’ with very little
effort.  Still, it’s not an easy process. Sites such as StumbleUpon.com, for
example, can generate as much as 20,000 page views after just one showcase
on the front page.  But how is this possible?
The first step in reaching the top ranks is to develop a creative headline.  All
articles on social bookmarking sites that have some leverage contain a unique
and compelling opening; they encourage readers to click on the link, and
essentially draw people in.  It may be helpful to brush up on article-writing and
effective web copy to understand the guidelines for writing compelling
headlines.
The next step is to right an appropriate description.  Descriptions are essential for
ensuring your captive audience stays with the article through completion.  The
first 10-15 words can make or break the article, and this is the time to keep the
information short and concise but informative enough to keep the reader
engaged.  Some social bookmarking sites don’t allow more than 150
characters, so you may need to edit the text down according to site standards.
After reviewing the headlines and description, you will need to make sure the
first paragraph is just as compelling.  You’ve grabbed the user’s attention, and
now it’s time to continue on with a unique presentation.  Posting irrelevant
information may result in banning from the site, so it’s important to stay within
spamming guidelines.
If you are posting information from a blog, it may be simpler to just add a
bookmarking button on the site.  Bookmarking buttons can be pasted within a
website or blog with some simple HTML code.  You will simply copy the code
and implement it on the site so that others can link to it easily. Or instead of
adding bookmarking buttons one at a time from each social bookmarking site,
you can run simple scripts that will add multiple buttons all at one time. Here’s a great little script for this that we found…
http://addtobookmarks.com/
Once you’ve submitted your piece, it’s important to network and ‘socialize’ with
other people in the community.  This can help you create an active profile with
various communities, but also provide added exposure for relevant posts or links.
Cooperation and collaboration on social bookmarking sites are essential for
creating a valuable network, and you can gain an even more influential
presence as you find the right networks and communities to join. Responding to
comments, posting information on other people’s articles or blogs, and just
staying connected to various channels will help you build a positive online
reputation.

Social bookmarking offers many opportunities for marketers to collect
information and learn about the behavior patterns of their customers, as well as
firsthand reviews for particular brands and products.  Social bookmarking sites
are chock full of different perspectives and information, and all of this is stored in
an easily searchable database.
Since like-minded individuals are creating tags on every item they post, it
becomes easy to find relevant products and related subjects within each area
of interest.
Social bookmarkers are primarily interested in learning more about products and
ideas that interest them, and will network accordingly.  They are more exposed
to new information, whether this is pulled from blogs, media sites, or simply a
product page from a business.  The more involved marketers are with these
social networks, the higher the chances of increased brand exposure.  As more
social bookmarkers participate in their communities, the buzz about a particular
product or idea can easily be broadcast across multiple markets with very little
effort.
The thinking process of a social bookmarker is relatively simple.  First, they find an
idea or product of interest.  They then upload this information to the social
bookmarking platform, whether this is a news site such as Digg.com, or a social
shopping sites such as ThisNext.com.  Next, they describe the product or idea,
usually posting a brief summary that includes keywords and other relevant
information.  This is noted on the social bookmarking site’s search engine, as well
as the tags that are added to the item after this.  Once complete, a picture or
other media clip may be added, followed by the social bookmarker’s signature
(if it does not automatically get posted as part of the profile).  Once submitted,
the new item is organized and implemented into the appropriate category on
the site.
Any new information posted to the site can now be viewed by the entire
audience; subscribers to various channels will see new topics posted
immediately, in a very similar format to an RSS feed on a blog.  In either case,
this fresh information will be on the ‘roster’ of all the people in that community.  If
others find it important as well, this increases the chances of sharing as they are
more likely to ‘note’ it and include it on their lists.
But what does all this mean for the marketer? Essentially, this means that the marketer or business can create unique content
and products to send to various social bookmarking sites.  Once they create a
valuable presence, it becomes much easier to influence the decision makers in
each and every community.  This is the essence of social bookmarking and
networking at its best; community building can create a network of influence
that can now also be enjoyed by marketers and entrepreneurs on the web.