In this article, we want to explore the idea of using the popularity of celebrities and current event (news) topics to help market any internet business.

The Idea

Celebrities and news events are not only popular topics, they are also popular "keywords" in the major search engines. Thousands upon thousands of users everyday search the engines to find the latest info.

The idea is to build mini sites that target this market.

We call these "pop surfer" sites.

It sounds a bit far fetched at first, but with a little strategy, these "pop surfers" can help sell our products - NO MATTER WHAT WE SELL, or at least generate a decent amount of qualified traffic.

To get an idea of the type of traffic, have a look at these sites:

http://buzz.yahoo.com

http://50.lycos.com

http://www.wordtracker.com

http://www.google.com/press/zeitgeist.html

Look at the terms in these lists. I'm sure you recognize most of them, as they are an indication of what and who is "happening" right now. Also, keep in mind these sites (Yahoo, Google, Lycos, etc.) are among the most visited sites on the net.

The "Pop Surfer" Mini Site

The first step is to develop a "pop surfer" mini site (or sites - the more the better). It doesn't have to be the greatest or prettiest site ever created. Don't put as much work into it as you would your primary site. The key to these sites is to get the popular names and terms on the page so the search engines can find and spider them.

When developing your "pop surfer" page, keep in mind that you want a page that will 1) get into the search engines, and 2) grab the pop surfers' attention while they are searching for their favorite artist, news story, etc.

The Strategy

After we have our "pop surfer" mini site(s) built and listed in the engines, how do we use it get customers to our businesses?

There are two models that we will call the Indirect model and the Direct model. Each approach has it's own advantages and uses. In one model we "indirectly" target the "pop surfers", and in the other model we "directly" target them.

The Indirect Model

This model gives us the most qualified visitors. In this model, we utilize the power of traffic "exchanges". After we start getting our share of "pop surfer" traffic, we use the exposure ratio from these "exchanges" to drive qualified, targeted visitors to our primary business site.

This works because exchanges allow us to target our visitors. When signing up for an exchange you are usually asked what category you want exposure in. They often give you a list with such categories as Health and fitness or Business Opportunities. This gives us control over where we want our primary sites' information viewed.

Some exchanges have a 1:1 ratio where one exposure on your page is worth one exposure on someone else's page. Others use different ratios such as 2:1 which gives two exposures on your page for one exposure on someone else's.

There are several types of exchanges. The more popular ones are:

Banner Exchanges, which gives banner exposures in exchange for placing other banners on our site.

Exit Exchanges display your whole website, usually as a pop under window when a visitor leaves your site, in exchange for your site being displayed (as an exit pop under window) on someone else's site.

The most powerful, however, are:

Opt In list exchanges. These are special, because in every marketing circle, the number one rule for promoting your online business is to obtain an opt in list of subscribers. Opt in exchanges deliver the most targeted, and qualified visitors we can get with the exchange model.

How they work is when someone enters or leaves your site, a list of newsletter, or business opportunity sign up forms are generated in a small unobtrusive window. When that happens, your newsletter or biz-opportunity is listed on someone else's website - IN THE TARGETED CATEGORY THAT YOU CHOSE when you signed up.

Put the exchange code(s) on your "pop surfer" sites, and take advantage of the traffic.

The Direct Model

The direct model is more of an indirect approach in that we may not necessarily use the "pop surfers" for our primary business but we can still profit from them.

How?

One way is by utilizing Pay Per Click. Not pay per click in the sense that we bid for our sites' exposure in a search engine, but Pay Per Click in the sense that we place listings on OUR sites and GET PAID for having them there. Every time someone clicks a result in your page, you get a percentage of the bidding amount for that click. If you use pay per click strategically, it can be very profitable.

Merchant affiliate programs work well also. Amazon.com, for example, sells books, music, toys, and more. They let you place their products on your website, and you get a percentage when someone buys from you.

Several other merchants work the same way. Do a search for merchants who sell CDs, books, video, toys, or clothing, and have an affiliate program. There are many out there.

Finally, you don't only have to look for affiliate programs. If you have a business or product that you think might cater to popular culture, target the "pop surfers" directly!! For instance, if you print T-shirts, you could probably sell some with hottest stars' faces on them.

Do your research for your pop surfer page topic. You can bet that if a celebrity or topic has recently made news, the traffic is sure to follow.