If you’re running any sort of blog it only takes a few minutes to rapidly increase the number of people visiting your posts.

This one trick only takes at most 20-30 minutes to implement and can have a HUGE impact on the number of incoming visitors.

What is this little simple trick?

…. wait for it…..

simply sign up for a Google Authorship account.

…. Stop Press~!

The pundits complain that Google is always trying to eliminate SEO and people who try to manipulate search engine results. So why the heck would they offer a service that helps you to increase your Search Engine rankings????

Well, signing up for the Google Authorship program doesn’t, directly, increase your rankings. Not immediately noticeable anyway.

Actually it’s still too early for me to tell. But so far, my blog rankings have remained the same.

However, the main (and enormous) advantage of Google Authorship is that each of your blog posts appears with your picture alongside in the Search Engine results.

How much impact can one little picture have???

Take a look at the image below. Which result stands out the most and which are you most drawn towards?

It’s obvious, isn’t it?

Would you believe that the result with the picture alongside is effectively stealing traffic from results that are ranked above it?

Even if your result isn’t the most relevant, or the biggest authority, you will attract visitors with a picture.

This is a simple marketing tactic that I’ve seen used on webpages a lot. Put pictures next to ads, and you will attract more clicks. Interestingly, Google abhors this kind of behaviour in its Adsense program. On the other hand it absolutely encourages it with Google Authorship.

Now just imagine that you have your picture placed beside each search result for every blog post on your website.

Even if, like me, your rankings don’t seem to improve much, you can still pick up a ton of additional traffic.

For example, if you’re ranked #3 for your targeted keyword, it’s now possible for you to pick up a bunch of traffic that normally would have clicked the first result. But the first result looks boring in the search results, yet it’s your picture that attracts the clicks.

It’s not really a question of substance. Because the picture isn’t really about adding value to the person who is searching for information. But it does allow YOU to STAND OUT in the search listings and adds a level of authority.

So what does it take to get this magnificent boost in search engine traffic??

Only, at most, 20 minutes of your time. All you need to do is register for a Google Authorship account, and then after about 2 weeks your beautiful face will be shown beside your listing(s) in Google.

Here’s a link to a tutorial on how to set up Google Authorship.

Good luck with this! I really expect that this tip will bring you a ton of extra traffic