URLwire.com - News of Useful, Unique and Educational Web Content Since 1994

There are sources of press releases, such as Business Wire and PR Newswire, but the volume of releases is so large it's almost impossible to find anything useful. The one that's worth visiting for web watchers is Eric Ward's URLwire” - The Guardian
Announcing Content - Criteria and Details
July 2, 2009

CleanSolarLiving.com Helps Individuals Learn How To Become Solar Panel Installers

CleanSolarLiving.com Helps Individuals Learn How To Become Solar Panel  InstallersMore than ever before, people with skills in electrical and roofing work are asking How do I Become A Solar Panel Installer

CleanSolarLiving.com, the web's top resource for consumers looking to install solar panels on their homes, also is helping the solar industry grow by helping individuals learn how to become solar panel installers.  If you’re interested in a career in solar panel installation the site has just launched a new section with helpful information.  And once you're ready, the site offers free solar classifieds to post your availability or to find solar installer jobs. Solar Panel installation is one of the more unique professions in that it requires both electrical and roofing trade skills.  This combination of skills is not very common, which is one reason job opportunities for solar panel installers very strong right now, and the demand for solar installers is expected to experience strong growth over the next 10 years.  With new federal and state tax incentives, and new initiatives such as the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA), funding for solar panels is also becoming more readily available. In May, President Barack Obama announced over $467 million from the American Reinvestment and Recovery Act will be used to expand and accelerate the development, deployment, and use of geothermal and solar energy...click to read more.

Posted by Eric Ward on 7/2/09

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URLwire has thousands of private email subscribers. For those of you who want to receive URLwire but don't want to do so via email, I provide an RSS feed, or you can follow New Site Tweets from URLwire via Twitter. Read about other subscriber options

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URLwire is in its 15th year announcing meritorious, link-worthy content, Sites are announced via email, Web, feed, Blog, Widget, private group and other methods. URLwire site announcements are crawled quickly by search engines, and the URLwire.com site receives millions of pageviews every year. | How to announce your site - URLwire criteria, fees and details
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URLwire FAQ - Frequently Asked Questions

What is URLwire? 
I started URLwire in 1994 as one of the methods used to help Jeff Bezos announce and attract attention and links for the debut of Amazon.com

That sounds glamorous, but it wasn't.  I did it from the kitchen table in my three-room apartment on a dial-up modem.  URLwire has been going ever since, helping educational, useful, and unique sites attract natural links. I've been helping great content obtain links since before search engines existed. Since before the search engines realized the value of those links.

URLwire is a discreet and highly regarded news service for announcing genuinely meritorious Web content to the right people.  Sites announced on URLwire must offer useful, unique, or educational content, or show off the capabilities of the web in some way that is obvious and real.  My URLwire contacts are looking to be impressed or intrigued by an overall experience a user will have when visiting your web site. URLwire has readers in 17 countries, and reaches hundreds of librarians, researchers, site seekers and editors looking to be informed of quality web content. I announce your site privately to my personal contacts and publicly here on the URLwire.com site.  I also announce your site via several other venues, described in detail below.

URLwire is not a press release distribution service, and is not automated.  It is sent by me, one at a time, to editorial contacts who look forward to it.  My subscriber/member list has continually evolved and improved over the years, and each month I continue to add and remove subscribers that I feel are of the caliber that make sense for my clients. 

What is the main mission of URLwire?
The mission of URLwire is to help your high quality content attract high quality links from trustworthy sources, like online site reviewers, bloggers, editors, writers, vertical web guides, social linkers, etc. 

Here's an example of URLwire's potential.

URLwire is not a link spam tool for helping you chase search engine rankings, and URLwire was around before there were search engines.  Yes, it is possible that your site's search rankings may improve after using URLwire, but it isn't URLwire alone that makes that happen. You must be producing useful and linkworthy content in the first place, or no amount of publicity and links will help you.

That last sentence was very important, so let me repeat it...

You must be producing useful and linkworthy content in the first place, or no amount of publicity and links will help you.
What types of content will URLwire accept/announce?
Your site must offer useful, unique, or educational content, or show off the capabilities of the web in some way that is obvious and real.  The site does not have to be brand new, however I will not announce sites that offer no content other than a list of products, and I will not announce sites that are, in my opinion, offensive or distasteful.

Who pays for URLwire and what does it cost?
The people who want to announce the site pay the fee, which is $495. A detailed service description is available here

How do I start the process of announcing a site?
If you know you want to proceed, click here. If you want additional information, continue reading below or send me an email and tell me about the site you're wanting to announce. I'll reply as soon as I can.


URLwire subscriber comment
"Eric knows quality web content, and he knows how to reach  out and publicize it politely, personally, privately. When we see an email from Eric, we read it and link to many of the sites he sends us."  -- Library of Congress


Why did I create URLwire?
I created URLwire because mass wire services are not selective about what they announce and who they send it to, and cannot reach the key online contacts who specifically write about, review, and link to new web content. Mass wire services send out thousands of press releases a day.  URLwire announces a few sites each week. 

Who does URLwire reach?
Your content's subject matter determines who I contact. 

I personally do the vetting/research and identify the exact people who are URLwire subscribers and also looking for the subject specific and purposeful web content in your subject area.  For example, if your content is about Jazz music, the people I contact and announce your content to can be from widely read online publications like like Yahoo New and Notable or USA Today Useful Sites, or from niche links pages devoted to jazz

The key is to match your content to the exact people that will care about it.  No matter the subject, if your content is of high quality, then there will be people on the web who will care about it.   As an example, over 300 librarians across the U.S. are URLwire subscribers, and they represent some of the most trusted sources of site collections in the world.  Some of you understand what that means to your organic rankings.  If you don't you need to read this.

I also tag your site announcement so it will be found by those doing tag searchers (technorati and del.icio.us., etc.) and I provide chiklets directly to your site's URL so social media users have the opportunity to share your site with the exact people who would be interested. 


URLwire subscriber comment
"Eric, the sites you send us are exactly what we look for.  Thanks for being on target and not sending junk" —  Adrian L. Yahoo



Key Point: URLwire subscribers have requested it and those who subscribe via proavte email have also given me a profile of the types of sites they want to know about. 
Below is just a sampling of thousands of online venues where editors, librarians, and content seekers are looking for high quality web content to write about and link to. 

Sample URLwire member/subscribers: Yahoo New and Notable Sites - NYPL Best of the Web - Forbes Best of The Web - Boing Boing - IRN Internet Resources Newsletter - USA Today Web Guide/Useful Sites - Exploratorium's Web Picks - Librarians Internet Index  - Cool Tricks and Trinkets - Parents Best Web Sites - Guardian Web Watch - Education WorldThe Scout Report - AOL StudyBuddy - BestHistorySites - PC Magazine Top Sites - Lockergnome -  - NetDetours - About.com- FreePint - NetGuide - WebUser - Suite101 - Zoo.com - .net

Again, this above just scratches the surface. Here are a few additional examples in specific niches
Busy Educator's Guide to the Web - Classroom Earth Best of the Web - Berit's Best Sites for Kids - Surfing the Net With Kids - Ask for Kids - Child & Family WebGuide from Tufts University - FamilyTree Best of the Web - Kids Web
Let's get even more nichified.  How about these?
Best of PhysicsWeb
Useful Web Links for the Materials Industry
Sleep Disorder Sites
Dulcimer and Folk Music Links
Jazz Music Links
Speech-Language Pathology and Audiology Links
My point is there are literally thousands of people on the web who enjoy identifying and linking to content in thousands of subjects.  My attention to this niche for years gives me unrivalled contacts and credibility, from today all the way back to the nineties when URLwire was a Netscape Editor's Choice source for new sites.

I want to receive URLwire, how do I sign up?
There are many ways to receive URLwire, described in detail here. Quickly, if you want to hear about all of the sites I announce (5-7 per week max), you can simply subscribe to the URLwire feed here or subscribe to the private URLwire group at Google. If you just want sites about a specific subject, send email to subjects@urlwire.com or eric@urlwire.com, and tell me exactly what you want, then only if I have a perfect match will you ever hear from me. I match it myself. No bots and no scripts. 

How does URLwire differ from large wire services?
1). I limit the number of sites I'll announce to a few per week
2). I am extremely selective about what I feature on URLwire
3). I am overly selective about who I contact on your behalf
4). I'll make another announcement for you if you aren't pleased with the response

I know my subscribers and what they want, and I don't pollute them with off topic announcements. URLwire is not for sending news about your IPO or CEO.  If you have news about something other than the content of your site, you should use a fine service like Market Wire or Internet News Bureau or PRWeb to distribute it.  I recommend them as they are excellent services for this type of news.  Only use URLwire when your news is about the content on your site. The quality of the site ultimately determines whether or not I will announce and pursue links for it.

How are sites announced on URLwire?
The URLwire News Network announces new web sites via multiple channels as follows. 

Step One - Private email
The first step is sending individual announcements about your site via email to my private contacts. This will take anywhere from one to three hours depending on how many contacts I identify that are appropriate for your specific site announcement.  For each site launch I announce, I personally sort, cull and sift through my entire membership of URLwire subscribers, matching your site announcement with the stated interests of my contacts.   I also look for the key influencers who are not already URLwire members but who cover and link to sites in the same subject area as your site. Any given launch alert is typically a fit for 300 or more contacts.  My contacts only hear from me when I have a site that matches their stated interests.  And URLwire is purposely not automated.  It's sent one-to-one from me personally to my contacts.

Step Two - Web
Next I'll post your announcement on its own page on the URLwire web site, and create a headline link and summary to it on the URLwire home page above and on the URLwire headline page.  Your announcement will be crawled by the various news bots and search engines almost immediately.  Google News and Yahoo News, for example, crawl URLwire site announcements within minutes of their appearing. URLwire has millions of annual page views. This is achieved as a result of thousands of sites around the world linking to my headline page or story pages over the many years URLwire has been here.

Step Three - Blogs, Feeds, Twitter and other Social Media
I place your site announcement on the URLwire Blogs and RSS feed. I'll also Tweet your URL via URLwire's Twitter option, tag your announcement so it will be found by tagging sites like technorati, and I'll enable the well known share chicklet (below) on your site announcement so social linkers and bookmarkers have the opportunity to share, digg, bookmark and otherwise spread your site's URL. Social Bookmark Button (this one's purposely not enabled)

Step Four - News Bots, Private Groups and Syndication
I place a brief summary of your content announcement on the private Google Group for URLwireMy announcement of your site will also be indexed by Google, Yahoo, and MSN very quickly, and I've had instances where Yahoo News picks up my announcements in less than five minutes. I also have arrangements with key news syndication services and newsbots, like Moreover, NewsHub, and WebProWire, and to provide them with my content announcements.  This gets your site announcement headline and link on thousands of other sites and into the Web's largest news indexes.

Why does URLwire produce so many versions of the site announcement?
URLwire is not a press release distribution service. Most site reviewers do not want a press release anyway.  That's why I don't automate URLwire. I provide each of my members with my site announcements in the exact format they want.  If they want a short email with a special subject line, no problem. If they want a weekly digest, I send it that way.  If they want an RSS version, I have it. Blog?  Yes. Via private Google group? Got it.  Twitter? No problem.

Who writes the site announcement?
You write the initial copy, and I'll make suggestions if I feel it will improve the reception. If you prefer that I write the entire announcement, I will but I charge an additional fee.

What sites have used URLwire to announce their launch?
Literally thousands over the years. A sampling of sites that hired URLwire to announce their launch includes Amazon.com, Weather.com, Wine.com/Virtual Vineyards, Dell, Rodney.com, Infobeat, The BBC, Kellogg's, MoMA, Law.com, Visa.com, and sites for Ziff-Davis, The New York Times, The Discovery Channel, Microsoft, AOL, About.com and The AMA, and PBS.  Many other now famous Web sites were originally launched through my URLwire service. 

Do the people who receive URLwire like it?
They love it. They are interested in my announcements because they know it's something they haven't seen, will be a match for their interests, and a top-notch site.  But don't take my word for it.  Read their quotes here

Does URLwire work?
Rather than me tell you, I'll let my clients tell you.  Here are three quotes and a longer testimonial.  A few more URLwire testimonials are also available.

Jim Osgood - OfficeFinder.com
"Eric, URLwire got our site covered and linked online in places we'd tried for months to get in without success. And, URLwire did it in one day. Thanks!"
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Rob Ford, FavouriteWebsiteAwards
"URLwire is a great service which has proven results. Two projects I have been involved with that you have featured have both gone straight into the Yahoo directory and been listed on their Pick of the Day page. Thanks a bunch, Eric!"
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Amy Strycula, CoolShopping.com - Cool Shopping Sites
"We've been using Eric's URLwire service since 1995, and on more than one occasion had to work closely with our hosting service to keep our servers up under the high traffic loads that resulted".
"The Silence is Deafening" - a Reverse Testimonial for Eric Ward
What if URLwire doesn't work?
Give URLwire six weeks, and if by then you don't feel URLwire did what you expected it would, let me know and I'll run an additional URLwire announcement free of charge.  I'm not in this just to make a few hundred bucks.  I'm in this for the long haul.  Try asking for this assurance from any other content publicity service.

Can't a Public Relations firm do what URLwire does?
Many Public Relations firms hire me to announce their client's sites.  They know I have many years of contacts and relationships in the online world, while they have contacts in the off-line world.

How do I start the process to announce a site?
If you know you want to proceed, click here. If you want additional information, send me an email and tell me about the site you're wanting to announce. I'll reply as soon as I can.

Eric Ward
Phone: 865.637.2438 - but please try email first.

You can read about my other services at  EricWard.com

Selected Content Announcements Appearing 
on URLwire are Below 
Subscribe to URLwire via 
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GameFly Inc. Introduces Ponged.com - Ultimate Destination For Free Online Games
GameFly.com, the leading online video game rental service, announced today the launch of their new website, Ponged.com (www.ponged.com). The free online video game site offers access to over 500 fun and unique games spanning seven different genres, including action, strategy and shooter...click to read more.
MySavings.com Helps Consumers With Grocery Coupons, Free Samples
With the current economy, consumers are benefiting more than ever from online discounts and savings. The demand for free stuff, online giveaways, free samples (freebies), and coupons on the web has skyrocketed. There are hundreds of companies giving away free stuff, whether for promotional reasons, political, educational, or even religious incentives.   Some of the offers include free product samples, or purely promotional items (pens, books, bumper stickers, posters, software, and DVDs).  Printable grocery coupons are also quite popular. MySavings.com.  MySavings.com aggregates thousands of different offers and lists them in an organized directory...click to read more.
Speech-Language Pathologists at Ravinia Reading Center Launch New Site About Dyslexia and Reading Development
Ravinia Reading Center, a local reading center in a suburb of Chicago, IL intends to help inform and encourage parents of struggling readers by publishing credible answers in a series of informative articles by Dr. Holly Shapiro.  Dr Shapiro, Ravinia’s director, is a long-time phonics expert and speech language pathologist with a Ph.D. in Learning Disabilities. Headlining the new website, which launched in May, is a water-color flash experience, guiding concerned parents through “The Struggle to Read.”  The interactive journey begins learning about the nature of dyslexia and reading difficulty.  From there, parents can learn how children build new language skills like phonics and phonemic awareness, to finally achievie reading fluency...Most of the site’s content is focused on addressing common misunderstandings about dyslexia, and guiding parents to substantive, peer-reviewed dyslexia resources...click to read more
JFK Presidential Library Launches WeChooseTheMoon.org to Mark 40th Anniversary of the Moon Landing
The John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum has launched a new website to celebrate the 40th anniversary of the first moon landing and President Kennedy’s grand vision that made that achievement possible. WeChooseTheMoon.org, http://www.wechoosethemoon.org, went live at 9:32 a.m. on July 16th, 2009 – exactly 40 years to the minute after the historic launch. The site, powered by AOL, recreates Apollo 11’s lunar mission, minute by minute...click to read more.
FormLogix WYSIWYG Form Builder Makes Online Form Creation Simple
FormLogix form builder provides businesses as well as individuals with an online solution for data collection, management and analysis. You can get a taste of this user friendly web tool at www.formlogix.com. “We believe that web forms constitute a powerful tool and should be available to all” says Benny Tsabba, Founder & CEO, FormLogix..." The FormLogix form builder allows users to create an endless variety of forms: contact forms, surveys and polls, questionnaires, feedback and support forms, online invitations, order and purchase forms, registration forms, etc.  With FormLogix the form creation process is extremely simply and requires no programming skills...click to read more.
JCEarrings.com Offers Web's First Matching Service for Jody Coyote Earrings
JCEarrings.com now offers the web's first matching service for popular handcrafted Jody Coyote earrings. More than 38 million pairs of Jody Coyote earrings have been produced in the last 30 years by the Jody Coyote company.  In so doing, the company developed proprietary techniques to manufacture their distinctive and handcrafted designs, meaning a lost earring cannot be replaced with one from a different manufacturer.  Jody Coyote has always classified its earrings by style number only, not by name, so JCEarrings offers color categories to make searching easy. If JCEarrings can't replace a lost earring, they put the request in their proprietary database and match it against incoming stock...click to read more.
CleanSolarLiving.com Launches New Solar Energy Information Site to Drive Growth in Solar Installations
CleanSolarLiving.com has launched a new web site which provides comprehensive information and unique content for people interested in moving forward with solar energy projects for their home or business.  CleanSolarLiving.com is also the fastest and easiest way to get connected with solar installers in a specific geographical area. 
Site founder Mike Weimar commented “our solar installer finder allows users to submit some brief information on their solar energy needs and in return get connected with up to four solar professionals ready to serve their specific needs.  It’s free and saves time and money for anyone looking to get started with a solar project...click to read more
Technology Stocks News Aggregator Tech Investor News Launched
Tech Investor News (http://www.techinvestornews.com), a website that delivers total news aggregation for technology stock investors, goes live today. This always-updating site delivers complete tech sector news aggregation, plus company-specific aggregators for the top 20 technology stocks. Tech Investor News is designed to be the definitive source for tech sector financial news. It is also a gateway to a network of company-specific news aggregators for the top 20 technology stocks: AAPL, GOOG, MSFT, INTC, IBM, HPQ, RIMM, CSCO, ORCL, DELL, QCOM, AMD, AMAT, ADBE, EMC, PALM, YHOO, EBAY, AMZN, and NOK...click to read more
South Africa Travel Site SA-Venues.com Unveils Major Redesign, New Content
South Africa is a favorite destination for North Americans looking for a completely different experience -- from families who want to see elephants in their natural habitat, to adventurous bird watchers, to globetrotting sports enthusiasts. South Africa travel site SA-Venues.com is poised to help visitors with a full range of choices in South Africa accommodations and activities. As one of South Africa's leading travel sites, SA-Venues.com now greets visitors with thousands of newly redesigned pages offering a large searchable database of tours, safaris, activities, and every kind of accommodation...click to read more.
UV10.com Site Helps Investors Find Property in Brazil
uv10.com was founded by two experienced property professionals who wanted to offer a comprehensive investment service to the growing number of people interested in purchasing property in Brazil. Many of the properties listed on uv10.com cannot be found anywhere else. Because Brazil is one of the largest nations on earth it can overwhelm those searching for property...click to read more
Building Materials Site BuildDirect.com Launches Top Ten Lists
Online building materials manufacturer - wholesaler BuildDirect.com is providing users with a real-time glimpse into the most popular products viewed, sampled, rated, and sold via new Top Ten Building Materials feature live now on the site. The current Top Ten section allows users to view data from the current week, past month, past three months and all time. For example, this past week the top selling floor has been the Toklo 8 mm Collection Laminate Flooring, but all time, the most purchased product has been Yanchi Strand Woven Bamboo Flooring. User ratings indicate people...click to read more
CDC Offers Swine Flu Information Center Web Site
The ongoing outbreak of novel influenza A (H1N1) continues to expand in the United States. CDC expects that more cases, more hospitalizations and more deaths from this outbreak will occur.CDC’s response goals are to reduce spread and illness severity, and provide information to help health care providers, public health officials and the public address the challenges posed by this emergency. The CDC website will be updated regularly as information becomes available. The CDC and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) are also working together to provide consumers and partners with Swine Flu Social Media Tools that access information about the ongoing 2009 H1N1 Flu outbreak. Visit ...click to read more
SqueakyFax.com Invoice Reminder Service Helps Businesses Collect Payments
Creative Entropy, Inc. has launched SqueakyFax.com,  a web-based service that helps companies collect payments from past due business accounts by sending customers invoice reminders via fax. The service provides an affordable, innovative way for companies to collect past due payments, especially amounts that are too small to be handled by a collection agency, without the hassle...click to read more
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Publisher news and notes

Here's a unique testimonial for URLwire - The Silence is Deafening

My various link building and publicity services have been included in Business 2.0 Magazine's Best Business Links on the Web and have now been written about and mentioned in over 100 books, magazines, newsletters, TV, and Radio programs, and are included in college courses on Internet marketing.
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More Subscriber Comments

Eric is one of the most plugged in professionals we know, having been online approximately forever. So if you want to get your news around, call the guy. In addition to being non-annoying, he's extremely effective in telling Heavy Duty Influentials what it is you're doing. -- Chris Locke,The Cluetrain Manifesto (full quote)

"URLwire is the antidote to the disease of mass press release spam.  What you do is genius!" 
- Web Marketing Tools

"Eric, Thanks very much for offering this service"
- Yahoo Internet Life Useful Sites Editors

"Eric, your picks are exactly what we look for. Thanks for being on target and not sending junk"
- Yahoo Picks of the Week

"Cool stuff, Eric. Keep it coming"
- Sam Meddis, USA Today Hot Sites

"Your service is great...We are always interested in new Internet resources, important new Web sites and interesting things that are going on on the Internet"
- Martyn Williams

"Eric, you provide a great service and we use a lot of what you send us." 
- ZDNet

"Just wanted to let you know that your URLwire service is very helpful to our team of editors. Our editors look forward to receiving your emails about recent web launches and are grateful for your service. Thanks!" 
- John Kelly

"Thanks Eric! Your selectivity and intro are appreciated..." - Ken Laws

"Eric Ward's URLwire service allows you to tailor your Web news messages for each media contact. More expensive? Yes. But the impact is optimal..."
- WDFM

"Thanks again for the continuing service. It is not an overstatement to say that it is one of the very best services available on the Internet, and one of the *very* few that innately understands the medium it is working in. Thanks again.
- LookSmart

"Eric, you're doing a hell of a job. I've come to rely on you for a lot of front running, as well as supplementary content. Thanks for that..." 

"Eric...I just wanted you to know how much I like reading your pre-press release material. It's nice to have someone know your name in this cold modem-based world..."

"When I see Eric Ward's name in my in-box, I open it immediately, and I know it's good stuff. His selectivity and appreciation for what is and isn't Web news is unmatched anywhere. He's been at it longer than anyone, and he does it right..."

"Hi Eric, take it from someone who has been receiving a steady stream of these automated press/news releases... your personalized, selective, one at a time, no spam Web news releases are a slice of heaven!!! I can't even read all the others, but yours, I read immediately..."

"Hey Eric, I really appreciate your service. I've used information from your postings for a number of stories. I must say that your service is great. Thanks and keep up the good work."

I LOVE each and every piece you have sent me. Thanks for the noticeable effort and the outstanding job you do Eric!

"Well written, directed to me personally, and always include a succinct note explaining why Eric directed the news to my attention. And I do read them, consider them, and cover them. 

"Eric, just want to drop you a line to say "thank you" once again for your consistently high quality Web site pointers. Definitely "sites we can use". 

"The oldest and most renowned firm is Eric Ward's URLWire" 
- Paul Bruemmer

 



URLwire.com / EricWard.com / Seagrove Beach FL & Knoxville, TN / Email - Voice: 865 637 2438 by appt