Category Archives: Online Marketing Tips

Building Your Blog, Building Your Business

Building Your Blog to Build Your Business

If you are blogging (and you will most definitely benefit by doing so regularly) then your blog is a fantastic source of passive income. I have already talked about adding a resource page in an earlier post, but now let’s dive into the blog posts themselves.

Each and every blog post has a job to do. Please don’t ever spend your time writing, editing, formatting, and promoting a post whose only task is to take up space on your site.

Instead, your each post must have a strong focus that leads naturally to a solid call to action.

Calls to action can be:

An offer to buy one of your products or services
An invitation to a discovery (pre-coaching) call
A recommendation to check out an affiliate or JV offer
An invitation to a live/virtual workshop or conference
An opt-in offer

Or it could even be a link to read more about the subject, join your Facebook group, or leave a comment.

The point is, each post is an opportunity to grow your following and create passive income—either directly or indirectly—and your call to action should be foremost in your mind as you’re writing each article. Building your blog is worth your time and effort and will pay off handsomely over the years.

Of course, if you’re like most bloggers, you have hundreds or maybe thousands of posts that are not as well monetized as they could be. So for this step, you’re going to log in to your analytics program, sort all your posts according to which ones receive the most traffic, and start creating those compelling calls to action.

Once you’ve done that, you’ll republish the best ones with current dates (that will move them to the front of your blog) and also add them to your social media promotion queue, so you can get more eyes on them. Or, better yet, remove the dates from your posts altogether.

And you’ll want to add evergreen blog posts to relevant autoresponder sequences, so that subscribers who’ve just met you can quickly find your best content. Don’t just wait for a chance meeting—you have to lead them to your most important information.

Live Streaming Apps

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Top Live Streaming Apps Available Right Now

There are two big players in the live streaming world right now. They are Periscope and Meerkat. However, Facebook Live has been released and there are some other options that we’ll discuss as well. Knowing your options will help you decide where to start and how to begin creating your Live Streaming marketing plan.

Periscope

Periscope is available for iOS and Android. It’s connected to Twitter which means that you can announce a live show on Twitter and Twitter users and followers can easily find your show and view it. If you already have a Twitter account you can, and should, use that business account to sign in and create your Periscope account.

Getting started with Periscope is easy. You install it on your phone, watch the short walk through and manage your settings. There are a handful of features that you’ll likely find useful. They include:

Replay – You can make your show available for 24 hours. Viewers can replay. This gives you an opportunity to promote your broadcast afterwards and to also grow your audience.

Private – You can, if you choose, invite people to a private broadcast. This is an opportunity to broadcast to customers or to people on your email list.

Twitter, hearts, and notifications are additional social media features. Periscope has an intuitive and user friendly interface.

Meerkat

Meerkat is another live streaming app that competes directly with Periscope. It’s also available on iOS and Android. It was launched before Periscope and like it’s competitor it syncs with Twitter. Your Meerkat shows will be pushed to your followers in real time. Here’s the difference with Meerkat, people can only watch it live. There are no options to save. However, there are apps in development that help you record your broadcasts.

The user interface may not be as intuitive as Periscope. However, both apps are highly popular and worth your time and attention.

Facebook Live Streaming and YouTube Ustream

Facebook Live Streaming, and YouTube’s Ustream are other options. They work a little differently than Periscope and Meerkat but are additional options to consider. They are pricier options that allow you to embed live streaming video on your blog or website.

Hopefully it is helpful to understand the different ways you can use live streaming to grow your business.

Creating Resource Pages for Additional Revenue

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Resource Pages to Build Your Online Business

This post is all about how to create resource pages to build your credibility and increase your online income. Resource pages are hand-selected products and services you are recommending to your community. In contrast to a typical blog post, resource pages are designed to be a source of comprehensive information on a particular topic. While blog posts are typically in the three hundred to seven hundred fifty word range, resource pages tends to be longer because they need to cover a subject in great detail. And they are extremely effective for a variety of reasons.

Got a website or a blog? Of course you do! But chances are it’s not as useful as it could be, just because it’s missing this vital piece: a resources page.

Your readers are curious. They want to know:

What tools you use in your own business
What training programs you’ve studied and recommend
What advertising platforms you use
What books you’ve read and loved
Whose blog you read
Who designed your logo
Who you turn to for technical advice
Where you go for marketing advice
And a host of other resources

In fact, next to your “About” page, a well-planned resource page might just be the most visited page on your site. Here’s an example of a great resources page: http://ConnieRagenGreen.com/resources

It’s time to capitalize on that potential traffic with some strategic monetization in the form of affiliate links and partnerships. You’ll be so glad you did this after your business really takes off.

Start by making a big list of all the tools you use on a regular basis. One good way to create a list fast is to go through your passwords file. You’ll quickly see all of the sites you log into regularly, such as your shopping cart, your membership sites, your favorite theme provider, etc.

Next, think of all the training programs you’ve purchased. You probably have them stored in a folder on your computer, so open that up and make a list of what’s relevant. You can even become my affiliate by signing up here.

What about JV partners? Have you worked with other coaches or service providers you’d recommend? Even if they don’t have an official affiliate program, you may be able to work out a private referral program, so don’t be afraid to ask.

Finally, don’t forget your own products. Sometimes I get so carried away with recommending other people’s products, tools, and services I neglect to mention my own.

Be sure when you’re adding links to your page that you use your affiliate link when one is available, and be sure you have the appropriate disclaimers in place when you do.

Podcast: Felicia Slattery – Public Speaking

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For Felicia Slattery, public speaking became a part of her life at an early age. Whereas speaking in front of groups is frightening to most people, Felicia takes it to a new level with grace and ease. Now she works with business professionals to help them put together effective presentations in order to market their businesses. This includes presenting on webinars, creating powerful videos, and using storytelling to get your message out to the people who need most to hear it from you.

Over the past ten years Felicia and I have crossed paths repeatedly at a variety of conferences and events, and I am honored to have shared the stage with her at several them.

The photo above was taken at her new home near Knoxville, Tennessee. I had the pleasure of spending time with Felicia and her family while I was visiting friends there recently. During that time I was able to get to know Felicia even better and I have the greatest respect for what she brings to the table in both her life and her business.

During this podcast interview (you may listen here on this page or over at iTunes) we discuss public speaking in a way you may not have heard from anyone else. She feels that speaking is an opportunity to build relationships from the stage and carry them forward into the future. I shared my story of getting started as a speaker with Felicia, and she told me that what I had experienced was typical of someone who had not previously been a public speaker. I was comfortable speaking in front of students while I was a classroom teacher, but speaking to adults in a business setting was terrifying for me. Now that has changed, but it took several years for me to get there. Speaking falls into one of the three greatest fears for most folks, and Felicia says this is with good reason.

Felicia is also a bestselling author of several books on topics around public speaking, and you can take a look at here titles to see which ones are a good fit for what you are working to accomplish in your own business.

We also take a look at Felicia’s “Speaker One Sheet Templates“, a package I highly recommend. These are templates you open in PowerPoint or Keynote and simple copy and paste your photo and information into the areas she has designed. When I first had something like this created for me the cost was over ten times what she is charging, and you can create as many different styles, colors, and designs as you wish in order to let others know that you are a speaker, author, or corporate consultant.

I know you will enjoy and benefit from my conversation with Felicia Slattery. Public speaking can open doors and provide you with opportunities you might otherwise miss, so please listen to this interview to learn more about incorporating it into your life and business.

Subscribe To All Interviews In My Podcast Series

Taking Advantage of Your WOW Factor

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Wow Factor What is your WOW! Factor when it comes to your online business? You might be missing the boat and shortchanging yourself if you aren’t making the most of your skills and expertise.

Early on in my career as an online marketing strategist and mentor I worked with a man who desperately wanted to build an online business. I helped him to get started with a blog, an opt in page, and even an information product, but he just couldn’t seem to get any traction and his enthusiasm waned. After working with him for a few weeks I asked what kind of work he had done previously and was shocked to hear that he had been a CFO (Chief Financial Officer) for several Fortune 500 companies over a span of almost thirty years.

I quizzed him about his activities while with these companies, and it turned out he was something of an expert with Google Analytics and other programs. He had crunched numbers with lots of zeroes after them and was truly a numbers guy. So why didn’t he seize the opportunity to specialize in this area for his online business, instead of learning new skills that would take years to master? His answer was “I wanted to do something new instead of relying on what I already knew so well.”

This is common and is a huge mistake made by so many new entrepreneurs, in my opinion based on my experiences for over a decade now. The fastest way to position yourself as an expert is to present yourself as an expert. Does this make sense?

If there is something you’re good at, or have experience with this could be the Wow! Factor that will catapult you to success…

Are you a writer? If so, write every single day and wow people with your writing skill.

Experienced with PowerPoint or Keynote? Create presentations that wow people regularly and make them comment on what you create.

Do you have a background in sales? Wow us with your ability to persuade and market in ways that make us hungry to learn your methods.

On the other hand, make sure not to underwhelm us by stooping to mediocrity. Sloppy writing, so-so slide presentations, and sales efforts that fall short of the mark will work against you in the minds of your prospects and clients. When they learn of your background they will sense an incongruity and look elsewhere for people to follow and to learn from. One blog post, one PowerPoint, or one sales effort can define you as an online entrepreneur. Be careful and heed what I am advising here.

The bottom line is this: Make the additional effort and go the extra mile to wow us with what comes naturally to you. You’ll make a name for yourself quickly and build your business in a way that gives you massive credibility right out of the gate.

My Wow! Factor? Persistence, relationship building, and writing prolifically on an almost daily basis. Also, I’m a former classroom teacher so it is expected that my online teaching would be based on a structured lesson plan. This is actually my super power. I’m confident in what I do online because I know that more than 99% of others will not work as hard or with as much diligence. Now that’s a wow you can take to the bank.

Co-Working Space: Wave of the Future for Entrepreneurs

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Co-Working Space: The Wave of the Future for Entrepreneurs

I live in two cities – both in Santa Clarita, California and also in Santa Barbara – and have home offices in each. This has been my way of running my online business for many years now, but this past week I added something completely new to the mix; I joined a co-working space in Santa Barbara. Little did I know I’d be in for a huge surprise.

This concept of sharing a work space is not a new one, but I had never been even remotely interested in having an office of any kind away from home. It just didn’t seem necessary to go to a remote location in order to get my work accomplished. But I was intrigued by the networking possibilities, and loved the European design of the co-working space Santa Barbara had just opened.

I chose a day to experiment with how it might work for me and showed up around nine in the morning. With my laptop bag slung over one shoulder and my sack lunch in my hand, I was ready to begin. The staff showed me a few things, like where to plug in and why you must put your name on your lunch if you expect it to be there later and I got to work.

At first I was keenly aware of the nature sounds playing in the background. Water making its way down a creek, going from a trickle to a stream to a waterfall, along with the unrelenting chirping of birds turned my hopes for a quiet day at work into a cacophony of torturous sound. I started writing anyway, and within fifteen minutes I forgot all about this background noise.

Also, I had decided to be open to anyone and anything around me that day. When people stopped by my desk and struck up conversation, I stopped what I was doing on my computer and engaged them fully. When I went into the kitchen area to have my lunch, again I interacted with the people there. Unlike my home offices, where I demand complete silence in order to accomplish my goals, here I was actually having conversations with other entrepreneurs throughout the day.

One of the projects I had planned to work on that day was to outline and summarize a book on preparing and presenting TED Talks. I had brought along my headphones so that I could listen to some of the speeches I was using as an example without disturbing anyone. This was perfect in that fewer people stopped to speak to me, and I ended up leaving the headphones on for a couple of hours after I had finished listening to the speeches.

Then I went on to finish outlining and summarizing the book, putting together a training on how to create online courses, and writing the sales copy to offer that course to my community. And it was joyous work that flowed effortlessly through me and out onto the internet. What a joy!

During my eight hours at the co-working space that day I accomplished more than I would have in three days at home. Not only was I massively productive, I also enjoyed my time there and believe that more creative ideas flowed to me because of my surroundings. And as for that annoying background noise I mentioned earlier? I now own a CD of similar sounds from nature I can play while working in my home offices. It turns out these sounds help with focus, clarity, and productivity.

Would you ever consider working at least on a part-time basis at a co-working space in your community?

Self Publishing a Book and Building Your List

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Self-Publishing a Book and Building a List: Why This Is So Important

You have a great deal of knowledge to share, and one of the very best ways to share that is with a book. I’ve now written and published more than a dozen bestselling books and am writing here from my experiences. Self publishing a book gives you:

Instant expert status
Opportunities to speak and present to others
Access to an audience you might not otherwise reach
The opportunity to fill your sales funnel with interested, engaged readers

Here’s how:

Start by publishing on Kindle. If you’ve been blogging or creating other content for more than a few weeks, you likely already have everything you need to “write” your book. Simply gather your content, organize it in logical book format, do some light editing to make it flow well, and you’re done! Right now, take some time to see what content you have already created that could be repurposed and used to create your first, or next book.

But before you hit the “publish” button, create an offer just for Kindle readers. This can be a landing page with an opt-in offer of a related checklist, an additional resource guide, or even an audio version of your book. You’ll want to be sure it’s closely related, so downloading it is a true “no brainer” for all your book buyers, and follow up with a relevant autoresponder series.

I highly recommend using Aweber for this, as this service is inexpensive and fairly self explanatory to set up. Their customer service is very good and I am also more than happy to answer questions for you about doing this part successfully.

Pro tip: Add a link to your landing page in the front of your book, so that those who are browsing on Amazon will see it, even if they don’t buy.

Once your landing page is finished and your book is published, you can offer it for free through Kindle’s KDP Select program. Promote it heavily on social media and to your mailing list. The more downloads you generate, the higher your book will climb in the rankings (if temporarily), driving more traffic to your book—and your landing page.

Follow up with a second (and third, and fourth) book to keep the momentum and your list building going strong for years to come.

Live Streaming Video: Why Use It In Your Business?

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Live Streaming Video: Why Does This Make Sense for Your Business?

What are your marketing goals? What are you trying to achieve right now, today, with your marketing? Think about your blog posts, your email messages, your webinars, social media and any other form of marketing that you are currently engaged in? Chances are your goals are one or more of the following:

Build your email list
Drive traffic to a page/website
Build/strengthen your brand
Increase awareness
Brand loyalty
Establish yourself/your company as a thought leader
Make additional sales
Increase engagement

Live streaming video is a relatively new tactic that is now available to marketers. Two very popular applications were launched earlier in the year and show great signs of success and growth. A third, owned by Facebook, was released in a sort of beta release or trial release and is expected to expand and there are more options expected to be released over the next year.

New marketing tactics can be extremely powerful if they’re used strategically and if they help you achieve your overall marketing goals. You don’t want to jump on the bandwagon without making sure that there’s something in it for you. So what do you have to gain from live streaming?

Stronger Personal Connection – Because your audience and prospects can engage with you while you’re talking, you’re able to essentially talk to a large group of people in a very personal way. We buy from people that we like and live streaming provides the opportunity to tap into that trigger and forge an emotional connection.

Wider/Different Audience – The people who find and follow you on a live streaming video network may be quite different from the prospects you’ve already connected with. You’re able to reach and connect with a whole new group of people thus enabling you to widen your audience.

Different Form of Content – Being able to reach your audience, to educate, and inform is a powerful tactic. Each time you’re able to leverage a different content format, you’re strengthening your position in the market place. You’re not only giving your audience a choice on how to receive your information, you’re connecting with them multiple times which strengthens your brand and awareness.

There are more benefits as well. In fact, researchers are finding that live streaming is more engaging than other forms of content and can lead to a longer view time than some on demand content. You can also leverage real time statistics and analytics to see how your content is performing.

Finally, while live streaming isn’t easier to create than any other form of content, you may find that it suits your needs and goals. You may also find that your audience responds quite positively to it. Do you have experience with live streaming videos you would like to share with us here?

Live Streaming Videos to Boost Your Business

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Boost Your Business with Live Streaming Videos

There are a multitude of different tools and tactics that you can use to market your business. For example, you might use video, blogging, and webinars to drive traffic, build your email list or sell products. Each of these tools leverages content as a foundation. Content is the core element of your marketing and content is also the foundation of live streaming.

What is Live Streaming?

Live streaming is a brand new tool that has quickly taken hold. Essentially it’s another type of social media and social networking. It’s a cross between YouTube and Facebook or Twitter. As a creator, you simply turn on your phone’s camera and start recording.

Whatever you’re doing in front of the camera is being shown live to anyone that choses to watch. As a member of a live stream network you can tune in to watch live stream “shows” on just about any topic imaginable.

It’s Still About Creating Great Content

It’s fair to say that some live streamers are simply going about their business of the day in front of the camera. This isn’t really a way to grow a business and people won’t watch that for long. To capitalize on live streaming it’s important to create the same type of plan that you would for any other marketing tactic.

That is you want to create a content plan. Your content needs to be consistently valuable. It needs to provide some sort of benefit for your audience and it needs to help you achieve a business goal.

For example, you might live stream a show every week to offer tips on how to perform specific strengthen building exercises. At the end of each show you might invite viewers to visit you on your blog, to sign up for your email list, or to hire you as a personal coach.

Think About Live Streaming Like Live Television

There will be interactions with your audience. As you live stream, viewers can post comments. You can read those comments in real time and respond, or not. You can answer questions that they post as well. This makes it a very interactive way to share content and connect with your prospects.

Also like live television, there are opportunities to make mistakes. You can say the wrong thing. You can forget what you were going to say. You might get flustered, angry, or the dog might start barking in the background. There are any number of possibilities. It’s live!

However, live doesn’t have to mean unscripted nor does it mean unscheduled. With the live streaming applications that are available today you have the ability to schedule your shows. This is highly recommended because it will give you an opportunity to promote your show and to grow your viewership.

What other questions may I answer for you on this topic?