Introductions Thread

Sup just heard about this place from reddit. I’m a running coach trying to learn more about websites to help my business. I really suck at website stuff by gosh darn I’m trying.
 
Hi all! Noob here. I don't know how I stumbled across this forum but I'm so glad I did. I have spent the last 18 years at a small company working my way up in the quality role and am now quality supervisor. Problem with quality is people don't like when you expect quality work- go figure. I have been dreaming of starting my own business but couldn't get a firm understanding of where to start. Love that you explain the mindset right along with the steps, straight forward, no BS. Question- what would be the advice if my chosen product could really fall into two verticals? Ex. Entertainment and health?
 
I've been lurking here off and on for years. Just finally made an account.

jdmralph said:
Hey everyone

I've been working in the field of SEO for quite some time now. Currently I'm searching for nofollow backlinks to enhance my backlink profile. It's all about maintaining that balance..

If any of you have recommendations on places or services to acquire nofollow backlinks I'd really appreciate your input. Also, feel free to reach out if you want to exchange tips and stories about SEO – I'm here for that too.

Thanks for welcoming me! Excited, for some discussions!

Cheers,
Ralph
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Directory links are mostly nofollow. And there are more than a few that will allow SABs without an address showing if that's your need.
 
Hi !

I'm thrilled to join this forum and start learning from all the experienced members here. I've been exploring SEO and online marketing for a while, but I know there's so much more to discover. I'm eager to connect, exchange ideas, and improve my skills. Looking forward to engaging with you all and contributing where I can!

Cheers!
 
Yo, I'm a long-term lazy lurker who has been on and off browsing the posts here. I thought I'd introduce myself a bit because why not? My experience with Internet marketing is just filled with a bunch of failed websites that I haven't been able to succeed with because I suck. Although, I am running a YouTube channel that's bringing in a fair bit of side money, so that's that.
 
Hi, my name is Steven. I'm the founder and CEO of Proxycurl, a B2B data company. Inside Proxycurl, I developed three products: a LinkedIn dataset called LinkDB, Proxycurl API, and Google Sheets add-on called Sapiengraph.

Before those three products existed, I built Gom VPN as a response to MDA's filter of blocking porn in Singapore, a CDN called Kloudsec, a sales automation tool called SilvrBullet, a cryptocurrency exchange called NuMoney, and SharedHere. I don't remember what SharedHere does. I only remember that I fucking hate paywalls and I got a fraudulent police investigation on me because a local newspaper company accused me of hacking its servers. LOL

Out of desperation for money because SharedHere wasn't generating any income, I had a eureka moment where I remembered a trick I learned to scrape LinkedIn profiles at scale. That's how Proxycurl and Sapiengraph were born.

I'm a businessman and it would be a lie if I said I'm not here for business reasons. I'm here to connect with people since I just realized how important connections are in business. So, to make that possible and with the experience I have, I'll be sharing lots of knowledge and opinions.

I'll be contributing soon. (Just read the Art of Commenting post. Epic stuff. Thanks @CCarter )

P.S. I'm quite an autist because I think I have little social awareness. I get this from my wife all the time. Sometimes I can say things that are curt/rude/insensitive. I seek your forgiveness in advance and know that if I say something insensitive, it is really because I'm an idiot.
 
You are a truly glorious autist and I can't wait to read your text walls.
Since you already outed your brand, I figure its fine to post your site.
I'm sure this community will absolutely love it and probably just want to buy things anyway. (seriously go get a bst with your pricing 1 sale a year makes it worthwhile)

https://nubela.co/proxycurl/
 
secretagentdad said:
You are a truly glorious autist and I can't wait to read your text walls.
Since you already outed your brand, I figure its fine to post your site.
I'm sure this community will absolutely love it and probably just want to buy things anyway. (seriously go get a bst with your pricing 1 sale a year makes it worthwhile)

https://nubela.co/proxycurl/
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HAHA what a compliment. What's bst tho @secretagentdad ?
 
Hello builders, I'm Finch from Nairobi Kenya. I am currently into AI automations and AI consultancy. Not yet a pro but I have been practising and getting better at it. Hope to get like minded guys around here so that we can share ideas and maybe collab to make some cash. Really excited to be here.
 
Hey everyone, I'm Vlad from Romania. I work as a B2B digital marketer and I've been a long time lurker here and enjoyed reading your posts and debates. This is an amazing community, I'm thankful to be part of it and I also hope I can give back.
 
lawz123 said:
Yo, I'm a long-term lazy lurker who has been on and off browsing the posts here. I thought I'd introduce myself a bit because why not? My experience with Internet marketing is just filled with a bunch of failed websites that I haven't been able to succeed with because I suck. Although, I am running a YouTube channel that's bringing in a fair bit of side money, so that's that.
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Nice, what niche?
 
Top of the Mornings lads. I leave the Army on 2 years and 8 months. I am here to learn and build a businees so I can work online when I move to Panama. Onwards and upwards.
 
Hi everyone, I’m Anggi

I’m a virtual assistant for medical clinic and professional with fashion design background. I assist them with social media management, lead generation, and admin task such as email and calendar management, so healthcare professionals can focus on patient care and business growth without worrying about the small details. I am a creative and efficient individual driven by a passion for learning and overcoming challenges.

Let’s connect!
 
Hello builders, good to be here, hope you all are doing well.

Built and ran an agency for the last bunch of years, now shifting my focus. Towards what exactly I'm not yet sure, but it feels good to start fresh on a new journey. I feel young again, hah.

Learnt a lot from folks such as guerilla, grind, eliquid (great podcast!), eli/bluehat, and many others back in the wf days. Their spirit of generosity and sharing was of incalculable value to me, so with that in mind I hope to give back wherever possible and pass it forward to the next gen. And of course suck up as much new info as I can because there is still so much to learn.

Interested in building websites, apps, bots, os utils, dapps, products, automated services. What to focus on, that is the challenge.

I'm a bit of a jack of all trades and decently versed in a wide range of skills, which has had its pros and cons over the years. But now that I've refocused on building my own projects it feels good. I feel like I can build anything. I'm old af now, time flies by that's for sure, but I'm more excited than ever to build.

Thanks for reading my intro, Great to be here :smile:
 
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Hello, my name is Danish. I'm an English major dropout. I'm a content writer for a medium-sized tech company. And I have a newsletter called How Not To Suck At Writing on Beehiiv as a side hustle.

Besides learning and rereading @CCarter's posts and the digital crash course, I'm here to share what I know about writing to leak traffic to my newsletter. Thanks

200.webp
 
Hey all,

I'm Frank, have been working for myself in marketing for about 10 years. Prior to that I was working at an admin job, and started doing graphic design and building simple websites in my spare time. My background is in graphic design, and I'm more of a front end designer than a programmer/coder. I started doing some volunteer marketing, and realised that I loved the marketing psychology side of things. After that I did what was probably the equivalent of a marketing degree through self study online, and on some long service leave from my admin job I started a small marketing / web dev business.

Thankfully I was able to grow that into a liveable wage. I currently do a mix of website design/dev/project management, SEO and running Google ad (inc. some charity ad grant) campaigns. I mostly work with service based businesses and charities / non-profits. I don't make a whole lot of money, but $ work is not really my focus once I've met my basic needs, so I'm okay with that and I live pretty minimally so don't need a lot of money. I also have some chronic health conditions I have to manage (working for myself has been amazing for that, a 9-5 was really causing me issues). I also like volunteering a lot, so I do about a 2 - 3 day $ work week and volunteer marketing work and special projects for the rest of the time. I have been doing the digital nomad thing for a couple of years now too which has been amazing.

I've been feeling lately like I've been spreading my attention too thin, and like it would be better to focus on just one area of marketing / online stuff. From the feedback and results I've got I'd say I'm probably an above average marketer, but working across 3x different areas it's hard to keep on top of things and impostor syndrome is an issue for me. Feel like it would be better to spend all my time in one area so I can develop stronger skills around it.

Anyway, that's me, look forward to spending time around here!
 
Hey everyone, my name is Afgoon and I'm an e-commerce site owner. I've been into the paid ads game but decided to dive into the rabbit hole of SEO once I saw how wishy-washy paid ads really are (mostly talking about FB ads). I've come to realize that it's pretty fucked on both ends as of late but still believe I can make a killing with the right strategy.

My main revenue comes from operating both Shopify and Amazon FBA stores. Been doing this for about 2 years now and still consider myself pretty new to the whole game.

Hopefully I can learn a thing or two from you guys
 
Hello

I am danieldelex. I am new to this forum community and very excited to get involved ! I am looking forward to contributing and learning from the community.

Could someone guide me in the right direction for where to start? Are there any specific threads; resource ; areas of the forum that you would recommend for a newcomer?

Any advice on how to get the most out of this forum would be greatly appreciated!

Thanks in advance for your help!
 
danieldelex said:
Could someone guide me in the right direction for where to start? Are there any specific threads; resource ; areas of the forum that you would recommend for a newcomer?
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Welcome!

Learn the basics of using the forum: https://www.buildersociety.com/threads/newcomers-all-you-need-to-know-about-using-buso.4726/

Learn the mindset of the successful people here: https://www.buildersociety.com/forums/digital-strategy-crash-course.25/

My advice for getting the most out of this forum:
1. Take everything you read with a grain of salt (think for yourself)
2. Don't be afraid to ask questions
3. Experiment as much as you can
4. Don't be easily offended

Good luck with your projects!
 
Hello, my name is Michal, and I’m sending greetings from Central Europe.

I’ve been reading this forum for a couple of years, and what I appreciate is how it grows alongside me and my evolving opinions about business and life.

I’ve been involved in SEO since the beginning, from fast rank/bank services on WF to various techniques that are largely irrelevant today. I earned good money back then, but I became impatient and lazy, leading to poor decisions like buying a car and other unnecessary things. I struggled to get back on track when Google started changing the rules, and I wasn’t ready to build an authoritative and real business.

At first, I resisted these changes, but then I made the best decision by starting to work for a digital marketing company in my country. This choice gave me the most important quality for me: patience. I stopped worrying about whether my side project ranked in the TOP 10 or TOP 3 because I had a steady income, which made me more relaxed in my daily life.

At the same time, I didn’t abandon my dreams; I built a small e-commerce store that serves US customers. It gets a few orders here and there, but nothing that can replace my 9-to-5 job just yet. However, since I have some capital now, I started thinking about investing some of it back into the SEO game to slowly transform my life again.

What I want to convey with all of this is that if you’re not successful in your own business, struggling to find your technique, or unsure about what to do in life, it’s perfectly fine to take your expertise and work a 9-to-5 job while you are reading this threads and trying to find your sweet spot in IM.

Just let your dreams live in your heart.
 
Found this forum for the first time tonight through a link in an SEO blog discussing a term I came across on social media that I didn't recognize. Nice and straightforward, right?

For about 10 years on and off I've been involved in various forms of internet marketing. SEO, dropservicing, affiliate. Mostly focused on client work these days but I've been looking more and more into ecomm as well. Seems like a good place to pick up some new info.

I've been hanging around on marketing and SEO focused sites, forums and recently Discords for years so I'm surprised I've actually never heard of this site before. I recognize some of the posters though, including some who write newsletters I'm subscribed to, so it seems like somewhere worth checking out and hanging around. Glad I randomly found the place.
 
Howdy. Found this place on a list of message boards that are still going strong.

I've worked in web analytics for the last 14 years or so. I've dabbled with my own sites from time to time, and currently at a point where it is either more successful (at least covering cost) or I hang up my hosting I've had for the last six years.

I've also largely quit social media recently and looking for a place to read posts. Excited to spend some time here and learn more about offsite SEO, and hopefully share some of my knowledge of web data analysis and GA4/GTM.
 
Hi all!

A long-time lurker who decided to finally start contributing to the interesting discussions y'all having here.

I've been in SEO for over 7 years and I've also dabbled in other marketing channels, such as PPC. Had my first solo project in 2022 - an affiliate website. The first HCU wave hit me just a week before the website was about to reach Mediavine thresholds. I told myself cool, I'll wait it out while continuing to earn affiliate income (about 300$/m). One week later, my Amazon Associates account was permanently banned, with no explanation whatsoever, so the project pretty much died. Wasn't able to recover my account, so I removed all affiliate links as per their TOS.

I still have the domain and haven't decided what to do with it going forward. I've contemplated repurposing it in some way - maybe creating a small media/news website, or offering products/services such as e-books or courses. Not sure about working towards driving traffic from social media - from what I've been seeing from others, looks like too much work and little ROI if you're just starting and don't have a lot to invest other than your time.
Haven't decided on anything yet and would be happy to learn what all of you did with your websites after the HCU obliteration. Did you sell your domains or have you managed to pivot?
 
WhatAboutNow said:
from what I've been seeing from others, looks like too much work and little ROI if you're just starting and don't have a lot to invest other than your time.
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I'm curious to know what brought you to this conclusion.
 
@WhatAboutNow, it’s all about matching your traffic source with the proper monetization method. You mentioned Mediavine and a content site. That could crush it with Pinterest if the niche is right. If the niche isn’t a good match, there’s Facebook that could work okay with CPM ads.

Historically, if you aren’t building a real business, you choose a target traffic source (platform) and then build the site to match it. That’s what Google SEO and content sites were. People create 5 page landing sites to be a funnel for PPC ad traffic. They create one-product Shopify sites for TikTok and Instagram traffic. Etc etc.

You’re in a position where you have the site already. We know the intended monetization method and what traffic sources that matches. It’ll get narrowed down further depending on your niche. For CPM ads you need a lot of targeted traffic for it to be meaningful. Google and Pinterest can drive a lot of traffic and the nice thing is their systems already are driving people down the interest funnel, so you get interested users on your site (who view more ads).
 
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