WordPress: How to Make Your Blog Work for You
May 12, 2008
If your blog is business oriented, you must always consider SEO (Search Engine Optimization).
Yes - the ugly three word phrase. But these tips are easy - no coding needed. No scratching your head over php or html. It’s simply about choosing the theme layout that will help your SEO efforts. It’s easy but almost no one knows about it or thinks about it.
Do you know that Search Engines don’t always read every word on your page? That’s right - they don’t. The header tags and the upper left hand corner of the page might be all that is checked. What if your sidebar is in the upper left hand corner? The content in your sidebar doesn’t change frequently so the Search Engines will think there is nothing new and move on. One of the main advantages of a blog is that it is frequently updated so it is Search Engine friendly.
What’s a blogger to do? Simple - choose a two-column theme with the sidebar on the right!
What are ‘header tags’? Header tags are simply the title of the post. Behind the scenes, your theme encloses your title in header tags. That’s what makes the font bigger and makes it look like a title. Why is the title important? Search engines also look at what’s inside your header tags. Since each post creates a new page it’s easy for the search engines to locate the header tags. So - think about the title of every post. Make it keyword rich for the search engines but make it grab your reader too.
With a little thought and planning you can make your blog really work for you.
For more tips and tricks on WordPress and blogging please visit http://www.wpguru.com Here is where you will learn everything you ever wanted to know about WordPress.
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Stop- Have You Tried These FREE Traffic Tricks?
May 9, 2008
In this article we are going to take a quick look at some free traffic tricks that are incredibly powerful, VERY underground in terms of awareness and application, and so simple that they can be implemented in one short afternoon. (All while generating boatloads of traffic, often on autopilot, for days, weeks and months to come) Read on as we dare go a bit beneath the tired and tepid terrain of the average blogger, and look at some things the leaders of the pack are using to drive HUGE incomes while most of us scrape for scraps!
Amazing Adventures in Aggregation
Here is all you need to do to turn your default Wordpress install into a veritable powerhouse, cash crunching, affiliate marketing monster machine of infinite imagination.
Your Very own planet
Install a free plugin that will aggregate past, present and future posts from a variety of sources in and around your niche, auto updating your site with relevant content that is being called, culled and collected from any number of unique sources that you select.
Convert a Catalog
You then take a catalog, or what is commonly called a data feed, and parses all of the information in the catalog into RSS, and imports it into your simple blog administration area. Now you probably WILL need external software outside of Wordpress to do this effectively, but it is very cheap, and VERY powerful.
What is the net effect? Simply stated, depending on the parameters you set up, you can have an auto updating, auto publishing maniac monster of a blog, pulling outside content on a daily basis to FEED your blog with relevant niche information, as well as an ONGOING supply of perfectly formatted products being posted on your blog, directly from the Catalog items that you converted to RSS. It’s amazing stuff, and with a nice template on your blog, you can have a professional grade affiliate site, selling REAL products and services that updates for YEARS to come on automatic autopilot.
These are things that ONLY the elite level people are playing with, almost entirely “underground”…and are so disarmingly easy to emulate, YOU can do the VERY same thing simply by following the above.
And STOP Looking for the Magical Solution Out “There”.
Focus on the magic within. You have it, I know you do. We ALL do. The one certitude online is this: Content is king. And creativity is coveted. Show you have lots of both in areas that you care most about, and people will beat down your door to revel in it. They do for me, and I guarantee the same for you as well. Life is short, and the journey of 1000 miles begins with one simple step. What are you waiting for?
Want to see how we make money Blogging?
FREE Blog Marketing Strategies revealed so much fun & effortlessly easy, it almost feels like stealing -Ian Hollandar http://karmicconsulting.net/go/blog/
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Alexa’s New Ranking System
April 27, 2008
Alexa recently modified their web site rankings system that most DotComPreneurs utilize as at least one measurement of their web site popularity.
If you asked 10 different people what Alexa is or how a web site’s rank is calculated, you would get 10 different answers. Ultimately the traffic tracked by Alexa was registered only through computers who used the Alexa toolbar.
Alexa states that a web site’s Alexa ranking will now be based on more sources of data (although they did not reveal specifically what those sources are) and that we will now have an even better indicator of a web site’s popularity.
Right now the Alexa rankings cover a time frame of only 6 month max while they recalculate the historic data for each site. When the data reappears, it will reflect the new criteria for web site popularity and you will once again be able to look back approx 5+ years. Go here to read Alexa’s April 15th announcement and find out what other improvements they are working on.
You can’t improve what you don’t measure.
Remember there is no substitute for tracking your website and business’ daily traffic via your own tracking systems, whether that’s Google Analytics or some other web tracking service as well as whatever indicators are relevant to your niche, ie ezine subscribers, blog feed subscribers, along with the gazillions of other performance indicators we can measure.
Jill
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Tony Robbins Lawsuit Against Stephen Pierce
April 25, 2008
The biggest news story in the internet marketing world this week is not a million dollar product launch, a new tool or system that will revolutionize your business. It was the lawsuit heard ’round the world. TMZ (yes TMZ the Hollywood gossip site) broke the news of a lawsuit filed by personal development giant Tony Robbins against internet marketer Stephen Pierce.
Stephen Pierce was recently invited to teach internet marketing at Robbins’ Wealth Mastery event in Australia.
As an attendee of many of Tony’s events, (you call him Tony when you immerse yourself in his teachings), before entering the venue, I was required to sign a waiver and promise that I will not record the event.
Robbins lawsuit claims Pierce illegally taped and later sold video DVDs of his internet marketing presentation from Tony’s event. Robbins attorneys also allege that Pierce claimed in advertisements that he was Tony Robbins’ Wealth Coach, and implied that Robbins endorsed Pierce. To complicate matters, the lawsuit states that Pierce advised his students to skip Robbins $ 8,000 event and buy Pierce’s bootleg video instead. Ouch.
You can view the actual details of the lawsuit that was filed here http://www.aolcdn.com/tmz_documents/0424_tony_robbins_wm.pdf
On Pierce’s blog, he quickly posted his interpretation of the series of events leading up to this and was surprised when the lawsuit was filed. Pierce stated that he had been in communication with Robbins people, had been given permission to record the video, and had complied long ago with their requests. Pierce even went as far as to say he had copies of all of the email communications during this time period, calling it a misunderstanding, which should at least clarify some of what went on here.
Asking me to pick sides would be like asking me which of my two brothers I love more. I have tremendous respect for both Pierce and Robbins and I am watching with great interest.
I hope these two power house DotComPreneurs sort this out and reach an amicable settlement, and make nice again outside of the court system. Tony Robbins has been on both sides of lawsuits, as plaintiff and defendant -a losing defendant in 1998 against Wade Cook and winner in his lawsuit against a Canadian tabloid that blamed him for breaking up a marriage.
While there are many lessons we can extract from this ordeal, one of the obvious lessons in this for you and I and everyone surrounding the internet marketing world is… it is imperative that you get all permissions detailed in writing when you interview subjects, use photographs, sell products others participate in, record video or audio, claim affiliations, utilize testimonials, use or sell interviews with others.
The more successful you become, and the more people on your team, the more opportunity there will be for miscommunication and misunderstanding.
Many a friendship and reputation have been destroyed through misunderstandings that could have been avoided by clarifying the details in advance in writing with thorough legal contracts.
In other words, cover your a**
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How to Establish Business Credit in 90 Days
April 24, 2008
By Paul McDonald, MBA
Business Credit—every small business needs it at some point in time. Unfortunately, the age-old rule so often seems to be true—the only way to qualify for a loan is to prove that you don’t need it.
But that isn’t necessarily the case… here are some simple strategies that will help any small business move toward a good, strong credit relationship with a bank.
I am speaking from experience here. One of my major mistakes early on in business was not creating and working a plan to have established business credit. Had I taken these measures I could have avoided some hard times through the early years of my business.
Be a Good Customer of Your Bank
Remember that if you apply for a business loan at a bank where you have your business checking account, the first thing that the loan officer will do is call up your checking history. If it is constantly in a state of overdraft or is very low, they are unlikely to consider a loan proposal any further. However, if your account shows a regular inflow of cash from many customers, that is much more appealing to a loan officer.
There is another reason to have an account at the bank where you are taking a loan—you can have several months payments at that bank ready to be transferred over at any time. Make arrangements with your loan officer to set up such a program if you can—this can help you to avoid late fees from forgetting to make a payment.
Have Great Financial Records
Get your financial records in shape. Have a nice summary booklet prepared to show to your banker. Include a brief confidentiality statement. Also, have a brief description of what you do, how business has been, and what your future plans are for your business. Include some photos of your business and work. While these measures aren’t really required for a bank loan, they do show that you are serious about your business and help the loan officer to more understand your business.
Letters of reference also help a lot. Ask a few of your best customers to write letters for you to include in your record book. Ask them to state that they intend to continue to do business with you in the future, and at what level they expect to do business. Letters like this will go a long way to convincing a lender to work with you to set up a line of credit.
Most loan officers like to see at least six months history for new businesses, but one banker commented that two years is much better. But wherever your situation is right now, be sure to show summaries for every year you have been in business—even the “bad years.” This disclosure goes a long way to helping a loan officer make a decision about lending to your company.
Establish Secured Loans
This method is widely taught to help people establish credit. You’ll need about $1,000 to start—go to your bank and set up a $1,000 Certificate of Deposit (CD) and use that CD to secure a line of credit for the same amount. You can then use that money borrowed to complete the same move at a second, and then a third bank. You’ll have $3,000 borrowed at with $3,000 on deposit to secure those loans.
Pay the loans as agreed and in about 90 days you should have a good working relationship and history with three banks for your business line of credit.
If you want to improve your position, start with more than $1,000. In fact, one banker I spoke to suggests starting at $3,000. “Most banks do not like small loans (under $3,000 to $4,000) because they are not very profitable.” Because of the fixed overhead of the loan, smaller loans tend to have higher rates even when secured by a CD. The banker concluded by saying: “One $3,000 loan would probably be better, especially if it was paid off early.”
If you don’t do anything else, do this step.
Establish a Floor Plan with Wholesale Suppliers
I’ll be the first to admit that this isn’t always the best idea. In fact, I know of several businesses that went completely under by having too much money and profit tied up in their “floor plan” of products with their vendors.
That’s the key phrase, though… “too much.” If you are in a business that sells products that can be acquired by a floor plan, those items in your inventory are used to secure the credit. While I don’t recommend having 100% of your inventory on a floor plan, it is a good idea to establish some credit with one or more wholesale vendors.
Buy a Company Car on Credit
Sure, if you have cash then sometimes it is a good idea to pay in full for a car… but this isn’t about being debt-free, it’s about establishing credit. Get a company car from a dealer and arrange the financing through your business. Many automotive financing companies and banks will issue business loans for automobiles because the loan is secured by the vehicle.
Leasing a car is sometimes better than buying a car for a business. You can generally write off all the lease costs which is usually greater than depreciation and deducting the loan interest. Business owners considering this move may want to ask their accountant which option works best for them. However, there is no need to worry about which option is better for establishing credit. Leases are usually reported the same way bank loans are for credit purposes.
Include a photo of the vehicle in your financial statement.
Get a Line of Credit Established BEFORE You “Need It”
This is the most important step. You have to be prepared in advance. Establish business credit before you need it for your business. Have a strategic plan to establish credit for your company and work that plan. Don’t be afraid to meet with your banker and discuss the plan—their job is to loan money to good credit-worthy low-risk businesses.
I have never found a business of any size or profitability that didn’t need credit at some point during its growth stage. Plan ahead, establish your business credit as soon as you can and you will not regret it.
Work with More than One Bank
In his book Sharkproof, author and businessman Harvey MacKay explains one of his business mistakes. He had given all of his banking business to one and only one banker for many years. When the market turned hard on the bank and on his business, his one and only bank had pulled his line of credit and it severely hurt his company’s operations.
He continues to explain that he “should have taken his own advice” and spread his business around to several banks. While you may not have a company the size of Mackay Envelope Corporation, it’s still good advice for something as critical to your business as banking relationships—spread the business around.
But remember not to go too far with this idea. It is a good idea to have a couple of banking relationships, but too many makes the other banks nervous. Don’t put all your eggs in one basket, but don’t have too many baskets either!
Refer Business to Your Bank
When you go about your daily business, it is not uncommon to find people who have moved to the area or are unhappy with their current bank. Recommend your bank to them. Write them a great note and tell them how you really do like your bank. Include a business card of your banker for them to contact. You then should send a copy of that note to your banker with another note attached stating that you are truly happy with them and that you are always looking to help their business as well as your own.
Is this sneaky? Maybe. Do it anyway—your banker will love you for it and will remember you when the time comes for you to increase your business with that bank. One banker I know made the comment that referring business to your bank is a very good idea and will pay many dividends to the person making the referrals.
Summary
Not every strategy listed here will work for every company and with every banker or lender. Nothing works 100% of the time, but these eight ideas are enough to get any profitable business started toward establishing good business credit.
Paul McDonald, MBA has been a financial advisor for 20 years and lives in the Kansas City area with his wife Kristine. He enjoys cooking new recipes, reading new books, and fishing. Paul maintains several active blogs on his favorite topics and makes them freely available for syndication worldwide. People who read his work find it entertaining and educational.
Paul can be reached at 1-877-711-1264.
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New Ezine Marketing Strategies for 2008
March 27, 2008
I was fortunate to be on Part 1 of Alexandria Brown’s teleseminar the other night and part 2 is about to take place (you can listen to the recordings of both calls when you register for the
“Ezine Marketing Secrets” teleseminar at this link:
http://www.netofficetoolbox.com/app/?af=611149
Part 1 received RAVE reviews (over 6,000 people registered to
attend) and Part 2 is going to be even better, as Ali will be
interviewing 6 solo-preneurs just like us who are using their
ezines to skyrocket their business in many different ways.
You’ll hear how:
* a family lawyer has used her ezine to help grow her million-
dollar law practice, she gets to work part-time, and now her
clients LOVE hearing from their lawyer!
* an ex-corporate sales guru from Sydney learned that sharing a
heartfelt story about his son opened an entire new channel of
communication with his clients and readers (and increased sales
too)
* a personal coach from Oregon gave up expensive print
newsletters for an ezine, and now attracts clients and speaking
invitations like crazy
* a Dallas-based marketing consultant used her ezine to garner
her $20K in new revenues in just 45 days
* a professional organizer from Orange County is raking in
thousands of dollars in new clients and is also getting a 50%
average click-through rate on each issue
* a California fitness trainer tripled her sales with her very
FIRST ezine issue!
Remember, Ali’s methods have helped her students make MILLIONS
more dollars in their businesses by using low-cost online
marketing, and she has the testimonials to prove it.
And this is her LAST call on ezines EVER. So if you haven’t yet,
register now or you’ll miss the boat forever! Sign up now at
http://www.netofficetoolbox.com/app/?af=611149
Best,
Jill Koenig
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Download Your FREE New Year’s Resolution Roadmap
January 1, 2008
Happy New Year!
I know heading into a New Year can feel exhilerating for some and overwhelming for others.
I have created a FREE report, called the Resolution Roadmap, 12 Steps to Making 2008 Great!
This is the perfect time of year to re examine your Goals and priorities and lay the foundation for creating the best year of your life.
A few words come to mind for creating your best year ever:
Clarity
Commitment
Planning
Momentum
Support
Follow Through
I conducted an extensive study of New Year’s Resolutions among respondents from the USA and 49 other countries and have compiled the Top 10 New Year’s Resolutions for 2008 as well as the top Roadblocks and how to navigate around them so you can reach your destination.
When you download this FREE Resolution Roadmap, you will also gain instant access to special Teleseminars and quick video tips to help you get off to a fast start and stay on track.
http://www.dotcompreneur.com/recommends/ResolutionRoadmap
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Groundbreaking 2008 New Years Resolution Survey
December 14, 2007
As we approach the end of 2007, I am flooded with questions on the subject of New Years Resolutions. They get a bad rap most of the time but for years I have approached each new year with great confidence and determination and have become an expert on how to tap into their extraordinary power to propel yourself into each new year with great momentum.
I will be sharing with you more tips you can use to set yourself up for success in the coming year, but in the meantime, you have the chance to participate in a groundbreaking research project on the subject of New Years Resolutions.
If you have 60 seconds to spare, please answer a few quick questions and complete this short, easy survey. Then look for my follow up next week where I share with you the results as the responses come in from around the world, along with tips that will transform your life in 2008.
http://www.goalguru.com/recommends/ResolutionSurvey
I want to help you advance your Goals with greater ease in the coming year, online and offline.
Thank you and I’ll talk to you soon.
Live Your Dreams,
Jill
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Article Marketing Tip: Don’t Stop Your REader from Going to the Resource Box in Your Articles
December 6, 2007
If you are using Article Marketing to build your list or bring visitors to your web site or blog, one of the most important parts of your article in the article resource box. The resource box is where you get to invite the reader to your web site or blog for more information.
Very few writers know how to craft a prospect pulling resource box. Most do not do it well. The most amazing mistake I see are the article writers that actually stop the reader from ever getting to the resource box.
Sound strange? How do you know you are not doing it?
The 2 Biggest Resource Box Stop Signs
The first biggest stop sign is what I call a “hard end” to the article. By this I mean that you write in a way that the end of the article is way too clear. You might as well put “The End” like in a movie in the way you have worded the article.
The mistake there is the reader gets the message, “Oh, this is over. I’m outta here,” and they are not likely to read further.
What to do instead: Don’t stop the reader, lead them right into the resource box with a soft transition.
The second biggest stop sign is starting the resource box with information about you. This also announces “the article is over and you can stop reading now!”
What to do instead: Save the information about you for the last line of the resource box. Begin your resource box with an invitation to the reader to visit your web site or blog for more information.
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And now I would like to offer you free access to the Article Marketing Minute, a brand new ecourse/audio newsletter on Article Marketing. You can get in for free at http://www.ArticleMarketingMinute.com From Jeff Herring - The Article Guy & the Great Article Marketing Network |
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Double Your Business Income by Thinking Like a Customer
November 29, 2007
“You are today where your thoughts have brought you; you will be tomorrow where your thoughts take you.” -
This principle was not easy to accept and I fought it for a long time. I was certain that there was no way that my present state was due to the thoughts that I had held. There were too many other reasons why things had gone bad: my ex-spouse, the economy, a client who had wronged me, and on and on and on. Since I was not responsible for the economy then certainly my thoughts had nothing to do with it.
But I was wrong. Like the biblical Job who said, “The thing I feared most has come upon me,” I had also thought myself to the situation I was in.
“I credit one simple concept with getting me started on my journey into self-discovery. After a great deal of study and contemplation, I came to the conclusion that people have in their lives today exactly what they keep telling their mind they want.” - Dr. Walter Staples
It was a moment of great illumination for me! The logical side of me said, “If you and you alone can think yourself into such a mess, then surely you and you alone can think yourself out of it.” And that I did. It was not overnight and it was not easy, but it was a sure thing. By accepting all of the responsibility for where I was, and all of the responsibility for where I was going, I experienced a tremendous joy and freedom. I strongly believed that if I got myself into the predicament, I could get myself out.
I had some great inspiration along the way: three steps to take during “hard time:” by Les Brown
1. Have Faith (didn’t Paul say, “Faith is the substance of things hoped for…”)
2. Remind yourself: “No matter how hard it is or how hard it gets, I’m going to make it!”
3. Have patience and engage in consistent action.
Think like your Customer
Before I tell you HOW to think like a customer who wants to buy right now, let me emphasize one point. EVERY person who is good at this skill has doubled his business profit.
Now maybe you are starting to wonder WHY this skill is so important. Or maybe you are starting to get an appreciation of the skill and wondered why most people have not learned it. Whatever your thoughts, take action and master the skills.
The process involves learning how to…
1. Shut off your own “preconceived notions” and limiting beliefs
2. Imagine what it’s like to be a customer who wants to buy
3. Feel the emotions that this customer is feeling
4. Design your marketing to appeal to these irrational emotions
In fact, when you learn how to do this, you are going to create a marketing campaign that your FRIENDS will not understand, ALL of my friends make fun of my marketing… but I get the last laugh.
And you are going to create a marketing campaign that other business owners would not understand. You can do this type of marketing, and your COMPETITORS would not even catch on to what you are doing or how you are coming up with your high-conversion campaigns, most of them will probably ignore you, because they will think you are making a mistake, which is GREAT for you.
This skill will transform your business
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Emmanuel Sodipo is a consultant managing several successful online businesses you can download a free book at http://www.emmanuelsodipo.com |
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