Web 2.0 Authority Sites

Posted on March 13, 2007

The next big thing that’s happening right now, is all around us…

As Web 2.0 has finally arrived, the types of sites we need to create to reach our market or maintain our necessary traffic levels, has changed with the times. Our internet surfers are more demanding, much more savvy, and are predisposed to boredom.

I strongly suggest that now is the time to start building websites that will come to be authority sites in your niche markets (if you haven’t already begun). If you already own a website or two this doesn’t mean ditching what you’ve got and starting from scratch. Oh no. You can turn any existing domain into an authority site with just a little knowledge and effort.

So What, Then, Is An Authority Site?

Jason Dowdell of Global Promoter defines authority sites as: “…sites that have been linked to and referenced on other web sites covering the same subject matter and they also will have hundreds if not thousands of pages covering that subject matter and nearly every facet of it…”

Sounds like a pretty tall order…but there are other, easier ways to understand authority sites.

The Components of an Authority Site

If you look at the diagram below you’ll see the elements and processes that go together in building, owning, and marketing an authority site mapped out in an easy to follow format (I know the image is small but in a moment I’ll show you where to get one that you can print out and paste on your bulletin board with all the documentation you need to assist you - for free).

It’s important to note that authority sites do have a few things in common. Most importantly is ‘value to the visitor’. There is not one authority site that receives oodles of traffic and sales that was built by a spammy piece of software that creates pages of links. Remember that - “value to the visitor”

Get Started On Your Own Authority Site

The easiest way to start building an authority site on your own is to draw up a plan (similar to what you’ll find in that diagram above) based on your target market and start getting traffic to the site. Over time, create subdomains for aspects of your topic or closely related topics.

If it sounds like a lot of work, that’s because it is. And sites created to generate decent incomes aren’t created overnight (well, okay, they were in the old days, but Web 2.0 will have none of it and trying to make a living like the old days in this new age won’t work).

The deeper I get into this topic the more I realize that I can’t tell you everything you’ll want to know about this, in a blog post. The in-depth information (with the diagram and examples) is contained in a 20+ page pdf file that you can grab here (free).

Get your copy, have a read through and feel free to post questions or comments on this below.