The Rent vs. Own Argument for Internet Marketers

As much as you might talk or read about the “pride of ownership” as a mark of professional success, the fact of the matter is that much of our economy is moving toward one of merely renting what you need while you still need it. You might know this better as the subscription or even the microtransaction model, even if we use the term “buy” when we refer to it.

You might say that you are “buying” a domain, but the truth is that you are simply renting it, a year or two at a time. If you’re not paying attention to those renewal notices, your domain registration can lapse and someone else can snatch up your home on the web. You might say that you are “buying” a web hosting plan, but you’re really just renting that too. The same is true with some online tools you might use or with your Netflix subscription. You’re renting, not buying.

So, what does all of this mean in relation to the “pride of ownership” for a dot com professional? Should we forget about ownership altogether and move completely over to a renter’s mentality? Maybe. It depends.

The Digital Nomad

Perhaps the biggest and most obvious area where we come to discuss the “pride of ownership” is with the home. There are all sorts of articles out there by people smarter and more qualified than I am that dissect the economics of buying versus renting your home, so I won’t dive into the finer details here. What I will say is that for the overwhelming majority of us, the home — whether it’s an apartment, a house, a cottage or a villa — is going to be one of the biggest expenditures we will ever have in our lives. That much is obvious.

But here’s a really good consideration when it comes specifically to the circumstances of running your own online business and living the dot com lifestyle. You can work from just about anywhere in the world, so why tie yourself down to one physical location? A number of dot com pros become what are known as “digital nomads.” They hop around from place to place, country to country, immersing themselves in the local culture and exploring everything that this pale blue dot has to offer.

The expenses involved with buying a home, then selling it, then buying another, then selling another one just don’t make a lot of sense if you’re going to be a digital nomad. In that regard, renting may be more appropriate.

Mode of Transportation

Next to the home, the car is probably the second biggest expense (or at least the second largest purchase) for a lot of people. This again comes with a certain “pride of ownership,” especially if you’re rolling around in something like a Tesla Model X. Then again, people don’t really know whether you actually own the car. They just see that you drive it.

As a small business owner, it can sometimes make better financial sense to lease a car rather than purchase it outright (or finance it), because there are certain tax ramifications that come into play. Conversely, it might not necessarily make sense for you to own or even lease a car at all if you’re going to be working from home all the time. Why pay for something to just in the garage?

Indeed, a recent analysis revealed that it’s actually cheaper to use Uber than to own a car in the biggest cities in the United States. I’m sure a similar argument can be made about car-sharing services.

Tools of the Trade

Everything is moving toward a subscription, because sometimes that just makes more sense. Instead of a large, upfront purchase price for a product or service that could get outdated in a matter of months, you pay a monthly subscription to ensure you always have the latest and greatest product or service.

For photo and video editing software, you might turn to Adobe Creative Cloud instead of looking for an alternative that you buy outright. For storage and backup, you might turn to OneDrive or Dropbox rather than deal with the complexities of buying your own NAS and then finding somewhere to stash it off-site. Instead of paying for each individual book you read, you might invest in a Kindle Unlimited subscription, and instead of buying the newest iPhone every year outright, you might opt for the iPhone Upgrade Program.

With all of these, you are effectively “renting” the tools of the trade you need to run your business. Again, this has tax ramifications, because the whole expense can be written off rather than just the depreciation.

Own Your Future

I write this article somewhat as a hypocrite. I own my home. I also own my car and my smartphone, and I do have a local network storage device that I effectively use like cloud storage. But I also invest in a number of subscriptions and I can definitely appreciate the value proposition for “renting” in the case of car sharing or if I decide to become a digital nomad.

Whatever you decide to do, as a dot com mogul in the making, the objective is still the same. Own your future, but you can rent how to get there.

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An Quick Start Guide for Choosing the Right Web Host (10 Tips to Follow)

When it comes to kick-starting an online business or building an online presence for your small business, choosing the right webhosting provider can be one of the major concerns to get everything on the right track. As your business website or online store will be self-reliant on their assigned web host company, it’s important to make sure you choose a solution that is not only reputable but also customizable to your growth needs and also provides superior customer support in the process.

Small business owners and companies who take enough time to find out a best and well reputed hosting company, they make sure that their business website, online store or blog remains accessible 24/7 on the web and safe for the users as well.

Understand your Hosting Needs First

Before contacting with a hosting company, you should be clear about what you exactly want from a hosting provider. Consider basic things like what you are about to build (like a blog, online store or online portfolio), which programing language you will use, what amount of traffic you want the hosting company to handle and (most importantly) which market you will target (local or international) etc. These are the things that can aid you to choose an apt hosting provider to get a required website or blog developed conveniently.

Tech Specs

Take a close look at your website and determine what you want a hosting provider to do for you. For instance, if it is an online store or you want to host videos and other content on the site, then you shouldn’t choose a cheap and basic package offered by them.  Instead, you should move with a webhost that offers RAM, bandwidth, high speed processing power, and enough disk space to meet all the needs of your website. You can also call your favorite webhosting provider to ask about their packages and what tech specs they offer. Tell them clearly what you need and what they can offer to serve all your needs.

Server Uptime and Performance

Website downtime not only make the user experience worse but can also lower your ranking in search engines. Time is money not for business owners but for customers as well and if a website is inaccessible for periods of time, it can lose out on hundreds of sales opportunities and valuable visitors as well. That’s why, you should have a hosting company that can keep your online store or site up-and-running 24/7.

Technical Support

Quick and 24/7 technical and customer support is something most vital that beginners should consider when choosing a best web host. You will also find that like in price and technical specifics, all web hosts are not equivalent. Since tech support is something that will help users to find out the issues with their websites and fix them as soon as possible to get a website or blog back online. So, always go with a hosting provider who take customer support as one of their priorities.

Price

Finding out a web host can be a tough job which is affordable and reliable at the same time. However, you can find the best price and reliability by comparing different hosting providers in the market. You can also find a list of hosting providers recommended by professionals via Google search to make the process of finding best web host easier than ever. However, you need to ensure that you are getting the best in exchange of the money you will be paying.

Add-Ons

You may need something more than just web hosting from your hosting provider such as SSL certificate, multiple data centers, regular data backups or free domain privacy and other security related add-ons to make your website or blog stand out from the crowd. So always check for add-ons and other features offered by the company that might be useful for you. You can also contact with the customer services department to ask for add-ons you want from them.

Customer Reviews

Before signing up for an affordable and reliable package from your favorite hosting company, remember to check for customer reviews and feedback. For this purpose, you can do a Google search for hosting company, or can search for their social media profiles like Twitter and Facebook etc to check what their customers are saying about their services. moreover, you can also ask questions about a specific hosting provider on social media to know the compliments of their real users.

Control Panel

Whether you are an expert or about to enter into the world of internet, you should be able to manage tiny things like installing CMS on your domain, setting up business email on the website and managing FTP accounts Etc. without contacting the customer services department of web hosting provider. For this purpose, you will need to access control panel of your hosting account. A web hosting provider that allows you to use the cPanel to make changes or updates to your hosting account, can help you get things fixed in real time without the assistance of any other person.

Regular Website Backup

There can be a lot of unforeseen events and incidents such as sudden website crash, hacking attacks and malware etc when you may need to recover website data from the back up account. And a hosting provider offering regular website backup can help you get rid of such situations and to get all the necessary website data back within moments to get your website/blog back online easily. It makes restoration of the website quick and convenient as well, so always check for the website back up feature when you are searching for the best and reliable web host.

Scalability

You will definitely want your business to grow and develop as per the latest market trends and selection of the right web host can play a vital role in the whole process. That’s why, you should check whether or not they fit into your future development plan. If someone else is providing you the best offers and features that also suit for your future development plans, you should sign up with them to ensure scalability for future plans.

Pick Your Host. Then Create Something Awesome!

For many first-time site owners and bloggers, the process of picking a web host can be quite confusing and time-consuming. The important thing to remember is that ‘most’ web hosting solutions are the same in the services and hosting they offer. Many of them will also fall into the same price range when it comes to web hosting on shared services.

With all of this in mind, pick a handful of potential web hosts, then choose which one you like. At the end of the day, your web host is something that you will likely have for many years to come, so make sure you end up going with a good one, and not simply the cheapest one.

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Get Huge Results with These Cool Blog Changes

Let’s assume your team has collaborated together to deliver interesting content for your audience. Everybody on your team is convinced that this article should result in a strong marketing campaign, and the expectation is huge hoping it will go viral building momentum.

So, what is the key in making it go viral?

Unfortunately, it’s not that simple. To leverage a successful content marketing campaign, it requires your team to market beyond your internal resources.

The question then becomes – how do you make people want to read your article, and how do you get it in front of the right type of people. For example, if you are writing content about social media, it’s important you find an audience which will find it valuable.

Here are a few things you should consider to get this done. Your feedback and opinion will be greatly appreacited. Let’s get started.

Tactic 1 – Start With a Better Title

Ever heard of the saying “Don’t judge a book by its cover?”

It was probably developed by those who bought a novel or a magazine based on the marketing details on the cover. Unfortunately, its cover page did not correlate to the content of the book.

When we search online for content we click search results which have titles that sound like it is the right one.  When it comes to content marketing campaigns, you need to have headlines and titles which produce a click.

By incorporating a few of the following words, you should see an increase in your click-through rates from your listings.

Consider the following words to incorporate in your title or tags, and headlines the next time you publish content. These are some words which I have tested, and work very well to achieve a higher CTR.

• How to
• Free
• Tips
• Best
• Hack
• Why?

It’s important you try different headlines until you find the ones which perform better than others. Then you can stick to the same title’s going forward.

Tactic 2 – A Better Conclusion Ends With a Question

I do my best to avoid being fooled by videos with great titles and headers because sometimes looks can be deceiving. Many times I’ll click on a video and it’ll be SPAM, so I have to be careful before wasting time watching something which provides NO value.

What can I do? Here are a few things you can do going forward.

When it comes to YouTube, I’ll go through the comments to see what others have written about the video. I’ll also look at the “Likes” and “Dis-Likes” to get a better idea of the quality. If previous viewers were captivated by the content of the video, then you know it provides value.

If previous viewers felt that the title mislead them then the posts will reflect EXACTLY that. When it comes to content marketing the replies are what suggests to me that the it was an informative read.

Posing a question at the end of your blog creates an opportunity for the reader to consider providing you with a sign of appreciation and engagement. It’s like writing content, and asking the readers for feedback. This is a great way to get opinion, and some awesome future content idea’s.

Tactic 3- CrossPromote Your Twitter Profiles

When it comes to building a site authenticity, you need to ensure that you use every possible bit of resource available to you. Some resources will play a significant role in your keyword rankings, while others such as Twitter can give you that extra push. We all know the importance of social media, and how it can build momentum to your blog quickly. Keep in mind, you can find enormous relevant traffic on the main social media platforms like Facebook, Twitter, and Google+.

Most companies have their own Twitter accounts, and their employees will have both a corporate, and personal profile. By making a tweak in one’s bio allows you to cross promote between your corporate and personal profiles. Spend the time to educate your team to modify their account, and create this additional opportunity for you. Having this awesome setup, you’ll be able to reach out to more people because of the additional marketing resource.

Tactic #4 – Collect Emails Using Facebook Connect

Facebook Connect allows users to subscribe to your blog with a click of a button. They will not be required to fill out any annoying forms, and provide additional information. The one click provides you with their email address and personal name.  Facebook also has another icon available called Facebook share which allows your audience to share your article on their profile. This too is a great means of increasing reads.

The key advantage of obtaining an email list via Facebook Connect is so that you can increase your email distribution. The way I look at it is to apply the Apple strategy in marketing. You want to make things simple so people are more likely to opt-into whatever you are offering. People don’t have time to go around installing huge programs, etc. Make things simple for your users because in the end, you’ll be the one who benefits from the extra exposure achieved.

Tactic #5 –  It’s Not An Essay

It is important to consider the subject matters you are offering for discussion to your users. For example, if you are not reporting on the results of your research, then writing an academic type essay would not really resonate with your readers…right?

Consider how things are rapidly changing in the last few years. Many people are now searching content through their smartphones so you want to ensure your content can be viewed easily. It’s also important to consider the load time, and how fast your pages are being displayed on desktops and mobile phones. The more easier you make it for your readers to pull out the information they need, they higher chance you’ll be able to convert them obtaining a ROI.

Tactic #6 – SEO

When it comes to content marketing, Google Analytics is your number one tool because it provides you with all thr major statistics you need. It’s so crucial for site owners to take full advantage of its service offerings. The in depth analytical information it provides allows site owners to view details of their clicks at no charge. Who clicked it, what hardware did they use and how long were they on your site are some of the information it provides. To obtain this information you must ensure to properly embedded Google Analytics into your site. Simply, head over to GA now, and add your property then embed the code into your template. GA provides you tutorials on how to do this correctly.

In order to increase your rank Google requires sites to up-keep the standards they have outlined. For example, the excessive use of anchor text i.e. keyword stuffing is not favored by Google, and will MOST likely get you a warning. If you continue to build links using un-natural methods, then your site will be banned from the search results. However, it’s important to keep in mind that linking sites to one another does increase site authority…right? You have to make sure the sites you link to are relevant, offer value, and have a high DA (domain authority).

Although Google is very intelligent it does take nearly 3 months for results to be recognized. This is why you should take the time to write content which provides value to searchers. The more value you provide, the higher engagement which will lead to an increase in your SERP rankings.

Pay close attention to the choice of keywords that you use, and cross reference their results. In addition, you are able to view your users CTR which will give you a good indication of the keywords they like to click, and will help you with future content since you’ll know what they like to read. Remember, if your click through rate is high then your site rank will be heavily favored by Google as it fits into a handful of the 200 rankings factors.

Whenever you upload a new article be sure to modify your keywords by making sure they are relevant, in the right places, and with high search traffic.

Tactic #7 – Keep An Eye on Your Competition

No matter what niche your involved in your going to have competition so it’s important you know how to get ahead. Here are a few things you can apply to your content writing to stay ahead of your competition.

The first thing you need to do is identify your top six competitors, and I suggested 6 because you should ideally choose 3 above you, and 3 below you. By monitoring the guys below you it allows you to be up to date with any potential or sudden increases in ranks. However, on the contrary you should pay attention to the guys on top because you can learn from them especially what they have been doing. I like to study where they have been building links, and the type of content they like to read.

I strongly believe that content which yields higher shares amongst social media platforms will eventually yield better site authority, and page ranks. This is something which has been seen numerous times because social media “shares” ultimately determines how valuable the content truly is.

Once you have identified your top 6 sites, then plug the URL’s into Quick Sprout Analyzer Tool. Pay attention to the “social media analysis” tab.  This will allow you to see which blog posts were successful based on the platform, and the number of shares. There are others tool you can use like Topsy.com and Buzzsumo.com to find out more about the competitor content too.

Identify 5 top producing shares despite which blog write it. I like to visit these sites going through certain factors like frequency of posting, number of shares, comments, etc.

Once you’re ready to start writing new content, you can start with the first topic, and work your way down. Keep an eye on the results because you’ll be able to find which ones have been producing results, and which haven’t.

Tactic #8 – Set Deadlines

Followers of your site want to view fresh new content. You want them to be confident to check your site everyday because this increases the likelihood of engagement.  One great way to do this is to write content, and have a solid email marketing strategy in place. With this approach you’ll not only write content, but be able to alert readers when something new has been posted.

Next,

If you are using WordPress, you have so many plug-ins which will keep track of your writing schedule. If you do a quick search in Google, you’ll be able to find the top content planning plugins which you can install. This is a great way to plan your content, and get alerts at the same time.

Final Thoughts

Go through each one, and start implementing them into your content writing. Remember, install Google Analytics so you have a way to track your data to optimize at a later time. In the beginning it will be hard to find out what’s working, but later you’ll have an easier time because you’ll be sticking to what the GA results tell you.

Click Here To Download John Chow’s New eBook, The Ultimate Online Profit Model!

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This Is A Protest I Can Get Behind!

Generally, I don’t care much for protests. However, Russian student Anna Dovgalyuk, has created a protest that I can definitely get behind. Miss Dovgalyuk is protesting perverts taking upskirt photos. How is she protesting this? By pulling up her skirt, of course!

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Super Rare Ferrari F40 at Cars and Coffee

Sally and I check out a super rare Ferrari F40 at this week’s South OC Cars and Coffee at the Outlets at San Clemente.

The Ferrari F40 is a mid-engine, rear-wheel drive sports car built from 1987 to 1992. As the successor to the Ferrari 288 GTO, it was designed to celebrate Ferrari’s 40th anniversary and was the last Ferrari automobile personally approved by Enzo Ferrari. The car debuted with a planned production total of 400 and a factory suggested retail price of $400,000 in 1987 ($860,000 today), although some buyers were reported to have paid as much as $3.6 million for it.

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Learning How to Unplug and Unwind

It’s been over a decade since I last went on a traditional job interview for a traditional kind of job, so I imagine a lot has changed in the last several years. At the same time, I also imagine that a lot of the core fundamentals have remained much the same. Interviewers will often ask you to tell them a little bit about yourself and why you feel you are best qualified for the position. This is all pretty standard stuff and par for the course.

One question that comes up all the time is that the interviewer will ask you about your greatest weakness. Some people say that the interviewer is looking for honesty here, so they get a better sense of what you’re like as a real, rounded person. Interview strategists might tell you that this is an opportunity for you to turn your weakness into a strength (e.g., “I work too hard.”) or as a chance to say how you have a weakness but also what you’re doing to address it (e.g., “My web design skills could use some work, so I’m currently taking an online course to help with that.”).

Myself, I’ve come to recognize in recent years that my greatest weakness, both within and beyond the professional context, is that I suffer from a rather significant case of FOMO. The Fear of Missing Out guides so many of the decisions I have made over the years, chasing different passions, projects and passion projects because I don’t want to miss a thing. To some degree, this has greatly facilitated what success I’ve been able to enjoy as a freelance writer.

It’s largely because of FOMO that I met John Chow in the first place. It’s largely because of FOMO that I became a published author, that I started a YouTube channel, that I’ve tried to learn everything I can when it comes to what it takes to run a successful business on the Internet. FOMO isn’t necessarily a bad thing, as it has led to some incredible opportunities, but it is certainly not without its problems and struggles.

As I write these words that you are reading right now, I’m some 36,000 feet in the air, flying back home to Vancouver after spending a couple weeks travelling with the family. We played tourist in New York City and Toronto, taking in the local sights and sounds (and tastes) as much as we could. This was supposed to be my vacation. My opportunity to unplug and unwind, away from the stresses of everyday work.

But my FOMO and ambition may have gotten the best of me.

You see, before we left for this trip, I told myself several things. I told myself that I would take this time to enjoy myself, visiting such notable landmarks as Rockefeller Center, Chelsea Market, Casa Loma and Royal Ontario Museum. I also told myself that this trip would make terrific fodder for my weekly vlog, splitting the trip into a couple of episodes for my YouTube channel. I then told myself that I would be able to get some work done in the evenings after we got back from a day of exploring.

The truth is that this was just way too much, because we’d be out the door early in the morning and we wouldn’t get back to our room until nearly midnight every night. My FOMO led me to see as much as I could, but this necessarily meant that I would have very little time at the end of the night to get any “work” done, let alone the energy and creative impulse to do so.

So, I didn’t. And that’s why I’m trying to get some work done now, writing this post, as I fly 36,000 feet in the air across Canada, somewhere over the prairies. The truth is I don’t think I really know how to unplug and unwind completely, because my FOMO reminds me that I’d be missing out on the opportunity either to experience more highlights or to get more work done. But I can’t have it both ways. I’m still learning. I never stop learning.

This is the double-edged sword when you work for yourself, because it means you *can* work anywhere and at any time. But the power of the dot com lifestyle means you get to make that choice. And I chose to prioritize the time with my family.

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Are Your Search Rankings Dropping? Apply These 7 Strategies

How do you decide what movie to watch when you head out on a Friday night?

How good is a new movie when it hits theatres? The answer is simple. Check its earnings, ratings and ranks. It is what every concerned website owner, and its shareholders need to know – Show me the tracking rankings! By looking over these elements, you’ll be able to make an informed decision if it’s worth you investing into…right?

The faster you notice a positive or negative change, the better prepared you are to improve your positioning. This is why it’s important you apply the best strategies online especially those which have been endorsed by Google. You have to make sure you follow Google’s rules so you don’t get penalized going forward.

When things start heading south for specific keywords then make one of the following 7 changes. These will help you get back on track, and help you build your brand, generate traffic and meet your bottom line.

Step 1: Internal linking Structure

When I want to read an article, I don’t want to have to click any other additional links to be able to read it. You need to make a conscious choice whether you want to build a site to have many clickable options or impressive content. Using rich anchor text is a mistake many sites make.  Linking one of your webpages to another can be done via anchor text or internal linking.  Users are tired of reading websites which are flooded with “click here” hyperlinks. In the past this was a means of improving your SEO and it is not anymore.

Internal linking can be accomplished by avoiding rich anchor text. Let’s assume that a given word is repeated 10 times in an article. The bottom line to internal linking is to initiate the first instance of the word, and leave the rest of them as normal. Maintaining integrity for the content and not misguiding the search engines with excessive hyperlinking will help you in the long.

Search engines take approximately 3 months to appreciate changes to sites. Make the changes with integrity, and don’t overkill for the future.

By embracing internal linking one can build trust directly with the user, and possibly even get bookmarked as a favorite. Here’s another cool strategy to use when building internal links within your content. Make sure you mix up the anchor text used to include relevant or LSI keywords. The key is to mix them up, but make sure they are relevant to your linked content at the same time.

Step 2: Speed up your site.

Today’s generation of people are ever so demanding. When’s the last time you waited for dinner to be prepared from scratch at a McDonalds? Never, right! We expect businesses to value our time and pre-plan for our arrival. Like all users when we click on a link to a site we want it to load quickly. When sites take a long time to load we naturally assume that we need to refresh or the link is broken, click back and go to the next site.

Google pays close attention to the speed of your site because as ranks increase so does traffic, and it’s their job to ensure that your site is built to withstand an increase in traffic. Check out Google Page speed.  Today, your site could perform correctly with the amount of traffic it receives; however, as site traffic increases this could result in a bottle neck. Ensure that your hosting company allows for greater bandwidth.

• Constantly track your site speed
• Always incorporate changes to your site to stabilize or increase load time.
• Compressing images is a great way to increase the overall speed of your website.
• Track your data so you know what caused the speed to drop.

Step 3: Build Links to The Page Where Rankings ARE High

It’s Monday morning at 9:00am, and you check your Page Rank in Google. You’ve noticed a downward spiral and trend establishing. Many people make the mistake of going head-on, and making drastic changes which hurt you more then, actually providing you with a benefit. For example, they’ll increase their internal linking by increasing the amount of keywords linked which ruins the natural flow of the content. Avoiding the notion of hyperlinking every single repeated keyword will help you in the long.

The key here is to stabilize the downward trend, and not switch its momentum. The upward climb will take a few months for Google to take note of the positive changes made, and your keywords will start to rank higher. During this process you should make the changes, and be patient for your site to be re-indexed again.

Check out this guide: http://www.quicksprout.com/the-advanced-guide-to-link-building/

Step 4: Update Your Web-Page

What do Google’s users want? Fresh, new, and constantly updated sites because this provides value. By making changes to your site Google knows you’re keeping up with new technology. With the adaptation of smartphones, it’s important your content is mobile optimized so it’s displayed correctly on every device. This will ensure you have content which is going to engage everyone no matter how they are reading your content. The higher the user experience, the better chance you’ll be able to convert readers increasing your ROI.

What happens when customers have a better experience? They will share it on social media.

Changes do not always have to be drastic. The method I’ve always embrace is KISS which means “Keep It Simple Stupid”. This is a strategy I learned from Neil Patel, and has worked incredibly well when building momentum. It’s time to skim through your site so you can clean it up, change the color scheme, and improve your content.

I also recommend keeping tabs of past rankings and documenting changes. Build an expectation from your team to meet the highest standards possible, and naturally your site ranking will increase. Using this approach will also allow your team to remember what you’re expect from them going forward.

Step 5: Increase Your Click-Through Rate

The Google Webmaster Tool account allows you to monitor your click through rates. This is something your team needs to be paying close attention to because you know Google definitely will be. The bounce rate, and CTR are both in their 200 ranking factors. It’s a quick way for Google to determine if your listing is relevant to their end user, and this increases the likelihood of getting higher Google AdSense rates too if your part of their program. CTR actually provides enormous information to Google which we sometimes don’t think about. For example,

Through CTR, Google can determine the following:

• Value of the content you have provided
• The ultimate user experience
• The layout of your website
• How easy it is for users to find other relevant content on your blog.

In the end, whenever you publish content, you should have elements in place to track your overall CTR. As your blog grows you’ll be able to gather even more information about the value of your content. The more people who click-through, the better content you have provided for your users. This means a lot for Google, and will help boost your overall rankings within the SERP’s.

Solution #6 Optimize Your Design

Mobile devices are growing, and there are several plans which offer incredible data coverage for subscribers. However, even with the abundance of data, it’s important your content can be downloaded quickly on mobile phones. This will allow these users to save data, and be able to access your content right away too. Think about when you skim online, and how long you’ll wait for data…right? You’ll notice if a page doesn’t load right away, you’ll MOST likely leave and visit another competitive website.

It is becoming increasingly important for sites to trim the fat, meaning, remove the elements which are NOT needed so your page will load faster. Make use of the tools you have available like plugins which encourage image compression, responsive designs, and even customized layouts for mobile phones. At the same time, you have to remember Google’s update which rewards sites which are mobile optimized…right? If you haven’t implemented a mobile design by now, then you’re missing out on enormous traffic.

Solution# 7 Increase Your Social Shares

Social media is a great way for users to recommend articles, and in-order for a user to share articles it must meet two criteria’s. First, an article must be very easy to share meaning it MUST have social buttons in the right place so people can one-click to post it. The good news is there are so many plug-ins which make this easy to do. For example, AddThis.com will allow you to embed social media icons within minutes. However, it’s important you know which ones to include for maximum exposure. For example, don’t waste time giving people poor social platform options because too many choices will reduce share quality. In my experience, it’s best to focus on Facebook, Twitter and Google+.

Secondly, in order to have people to share your content it must be of high value, and provide substance. No one will share your content if you don’t provide value, and the content is NOT unique. Write high value content, and you’ll have no problem having people share your content to generate enormous buzz going forward.

The effect of social media could lead your article going viral, and impress Google. Users endorsing your content to hundreds of friends on sites like Facebook.com could increase your Google page rank at no cost. In the end, people won’t have to search on Google to find your content, because it will be appearing on social platforms, and even newsfeeds which are awesome for traffic.

Focusing your attention on ensuring people share your content on social networks. I’ve noticed when people share my content it shows me what they like to read, who my audience is, and what social platform to focus on going forward.

Here are a few tips to apply to your social marketing going forward.

1. Deliver rich, entertaining and trusted content. Spend the time before you publish anything to make sure it is GOOD.  I often draft four articles, share them amongst a few of my friends and ask them to rank the articles. Always go with the #1. This will provide constructive feedback at the same time from people who will give me their honest opinion.
2. Add social media plugins to your articles. If your using WordPress, you’ll find a handful of awesome plugins which you can install with the click of a button.
3. Ask your followers to share, like, and recommend your site.  Don’t be shy in asking. A lot of people out there who truly believe in your work will help spread the word. However, keep in mind that value is always the way to go. Ask them to share, and make sure they know it’s valuable what you have written.
4. Social media sites allow us to pay for marketing. This option will depend on your budget so re-evaluate your marketing each month. You might want to give it a try to see how it helps increase your engagement. I believe in giving something a try once, then tracking data and make a decision going forward if it’s worth the investment.

Final Thoughts

I hope you enjoyed this content, and its time to go through each solution above to implement them into your blogging. Ad you apply different strategies make sure you keep track of what’s working so you can continue to optimize as time goes on. These solutions can help increase traffic, conversions, engagement very quickly.

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Are You All Tapped Out? Here’s What To Do About It

As a professional blogger (or as an aspiring professional blogger), it’s easy to approach your first project with a tremendous level of enthusiasm. You can feel like you are incredibly passionate about your chosen subject or niche, whatever it may be, and you’ve got more ideas than you can handle. The well of creativity is literally overflowing with possibilities. You dive in head first with this sense of unbridled excitement, because you know that you have near limitless potential and opportunity in front of you.

Drip, Drip, Drip…

But how many times have you seen other bloggers approach their first sites (or even their second, third, or fifth sites) with that same kind of enthusiasm, only to have their passion fizzle out a couple of weeks in. They think that they have this bottomless pit of creativity and they have so many things they want to write about, but not long after starting, they run out.

The well of ideas has run dry, they’re feeling a little burned out, and they’re all tapped out of topics for upcoming blog posts. What can they do?

What can you do?

Just Show Up

Well, let me put your mind at ease. Even the best of bloggers, even the most prolific of writers, run out of ideas eventually even if they maintain an ongoing list of potential blog post topics. This is perfectly normal and it happens to the best of us. The truth is that “writer’s block” is generally not the exception; it’s the rule, and you just have to figure out a system for how to overcome it on a consistent basis.

Gavin Aung Than of the popular webcomic Zen Pencils once said the thing that separates the professional from the hobbyist is that the former is willing to put in the work even when they don’t really feel like doing it. Even when they don’t think they can come up with anything good. Just showing up to work can feel like the hardest part some days, because it’s just so easy to come up with an excuse to skip a day. But you’ve got to put in the work, because skipping one day easily leads to skipping another and another and another.

Before you know it, you’ve given up again and that passion project has completely fizzled away.

Tapping into Creativity

So, what can you do when your creative well of ideas runs dry? Dig another one. A great way to reignite that fire and to get you excited about working again is to start something new. Maybe you’ve been blogging for a while and it’s starting to feel too routine. Consider starting another blog on a different topic. Or explore other creative possibilities like writing a book, starting a podcast, or launching a YouTube channel.

These new wells of possibility can reveal all sorts of new opportunities and they allow you to approach the work with the same kind of enthusiasm and passion as when you first started with your first project. Along the way, you’ll form new connections, learn new skills, and develop a better-rounded understanding of your industry or vertical.

This doesn’t mean, however, that you should abandon that original blog or project altogether. Quite the contrary. While you may be diverting some of your attention and resources toward digging a new well, the “old” well will slowly start to replenish as it sits a little more dormant than usual, just like with a real well in the real world. Soon enough, it will once again be filled with new possibilities, ideas and opportunities.

And you’ll be able to tap into it once again.

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How To Do Content Marketing with SEO for More Qualified Search Traffic

No matter how you approach content marketing it’s important you combine it with the right SEO approach. Content is NO good unless you have the right elements embedded within your post like keywords, bold text, italic text, etc. However, we are lucky we live in a time where you can find all this information very quickly so you can start implementing the strategy right away. Much of what I’ve learned has been from studying those before me, especially, those who have built a reputation over the years to be influential within my niche. They continue to provide awesome ways to incorporate content marketing, and SEO together. Next,

Google has been making major changes in the way they rank content so it’s important you stay on top of things. For example, content marketing is NO good unless you have the right SEO elements within your post. This means you have to make sure you do research looking for “target” keywords that actually drive traffic. Implementing this approach will ensure when you strive for content marketing, you’ll generated qualified at the same time.

Let’s look at some strategies which I’ve learned over the years, and how you can apply them to your website too. Your feedback, and opinion will be greatly appreciated.

Keyword Driven Content

It’s important to study what keywords bring traffic to your blog because these will ultimately tell you what your audience likes to read. As you continue to write content that your audience loves, you’ll have an easier time generating traffic, and meeting your bottom line. Before going forward, you should have a clear indication of your bottom line, and what you expect to gain from your blog. Next,

I often get asked what’s the best way to track what keywords are driving traffic to your blog, and the answer is very simple. You have a free tool available called Google Analytics which gives you all the data you need to get started. For example, they’ll provide you with a list of the following:

• Location
• Landing pages
• Search queries
• Bounce rate
• Referral
• And more

Here’s what I suggest you do going forward…

It’s important to link your GWT (Google Webmaster Tools) account with your GA account so you’ll have the entire breakdown in one place. When you are done linking the two, you’ll be able to find the search queries data from within your GA account. Head over to GA>Acquisition then Search Engine Optimization. Here’s you’ll find all the relevant keywords which drive the MOST traffic. Now the question is: How can you use this data to write more content?

You know what keywords people are typing, and clicking to get to your blog from the Google Analytics report…right? Start writing content based on these keywords because they are performing well with your audience. Research communities, forums, and competitors to find content around these keywords then creating something even more in-depth while engaging at the same time.

Quality Content Always

It’s widely believed quality content will give you enormous leverage when blogging and within the ranks. With quality content you’ll have the word count to play around with your on-page SEO. For example, imagine writing content which is 2,100 words? You’ll have enough space to add “target”, long-tail, and LSI keyword at the same time. However, with reduced content length you won’t have as much flexibility. It’s also important to mention that Google has tweaked their search engine to look for different types of keywords. This helps increase the user experience helping them find solutions to the problems they are encountering. Secondly,

High quality content has been known to attract the best type of links because others love to link to it. One of the best ways to get quality links is simply by writing the best content then sharing to get it in front of people. This will allow other authority bloggers to share your content too, and link back to it as an additional resource for their readers. What are the elements of high quality content? Here’s quick breakdown.

First, it’s in-depth and is focused around “target” keywords which all provide a solution to a common problem within your niche. Secondly, quality content is structured so it’s easy to read and navigate through. A solid structure will increase engagement simply because your reader will have an easier time pulling out the value from inside. Third, this type of content is very easy to share so make sure you include the right social share buttons throughout your content. I would recommend the top and bottom of your content. Forth, it is very easy to read so make sure you incorporate infographics, images, and even videos where necessary.

Personally, I have linked to so many other posts throughout my blog because it would provide an additional resource to my audience.

Guest Blogging Is Awesome

I started to guest blog late in my career, and it’s one of the biggest regrets I have because it would have jump started my business. Guest blogging is awesome to generate traffic, ROI, conversions and build loyalty with a whole new group of people. It’s also a great way to combine content marketing and SEO to dominate the search engines. You have to remember when your guest blogging, you’re MOST likely focusing on “related” blogs which can add value to your content. This means NOT only are you gaining relevant traffic, but a relevant link back to your blog from within the author bio. The key is to be very selective before you start blogging so you target the right niche blogs. Here are a few tips to follow before starting:

First, make a list of authority blogs within your niche so your blogging will be highly targeted going forward. Secondly, make sure you check out their social profiles because popular blogs will have a high number of followers. This is also awesome once your published because MOST likely your content will be shared on these same social platforms. Make sure you skim through the comment section of each blog to check what type of people have been commenting. I like to click on the user comment website to see what type of niche this person is in. The more relevant to me, the better when they decide to visit my blog. Next,

Pitch the best topic ideas which will increase the likelihood of your content being accepted. Finally, always follow the blogging guidelines as they apply to linking, topics, author bio, spamming, etc. Trust me when I say this process will get easier over time, however you have a good starting point right now.

Remember, the more niche relevant, the better for your content marketing because relevance does play a huge role in ranking content within the SERP’s.

Cross-Linking Is Vital

When creating a solid content marketing strategy, it’s important you cross-link between your different posts so the SEO juice is carried through. One of the best ways to increase your page authority, and relevance, is to link between pages throughout your blog. This will connect related posts together, and those with the same keyword structure. I know this can be hard in the beginning when you don’t have too many posts however overtime this will become much easier. Next, it’s important to understand indexing does take time so build your post profiles slowly, and make sure they are authentic relevant internal links. Here are some other strategies to apply to your cross-linking content marketing strategy.

First, make sure when you link between content, you are using relevant anchor text because it will add even more relevancy to your content. If you have been writing for some time, then you won’t have a problem finding relevant content for each post to link to. Secondly, make sure each time you link content you are providing value. I know so many bloggers who will link content, but they’ll link awesome content to poor quality. You are NOT adding page authority to your post because the user interaction will be decreased i.e. social shares, comments, and increased bounce rates.

Third, cross-linking is important to get other content noticed by influential bloggers within your niche. For example, if another blogger is on one piece of content, and you have linked to another valuable post then it increases the likelihood of them sharing both pieces of content. By cross-linking, you are getting related pieces noticed, and creating complete visibility on your blog.

It’s time to go through your blog cross-linking related content together. If you are using WordPress then there are several plug-ins which will allow you to do this quickly. You can even do a quick search in Google and find tutorials which show you how to do this correctly.

Final Thoughts

We all know the importance of content marketing however we forget about how SEO is important to this practice too. Above, we have looked at a few strategies which will make a huge difference when marketing your content. I would suggest you start applying these strategies right away because you’ll be able to generate momentum almost immediately. At the same time, you don’t want to over-do it with these strategies either because then your blog will start to look unnatural. Make things as natural and smooth as possible so your content provides value while being authentic at the same time. Here’s the game plan going forward.

It’s time to go through each one of these strategies finding the ones which will apply to you. Some of these you would have applied already, however I can guarantee there are going to be a handful which you haven’t even considered. Make a list of these tips for easy access then create a blueprint of how you’ll incorporate them into your blogging. For example, if you are going to fix your cross-linking then do around 3-4 daily until all relevant posts are connected. Spreading this process will ensure it gets done quickly, and you don’t get tired in the process. Next,

In order to do this right it’s important you have a tracking tool to check growth of your blog overtime. I’ve been using Google Analytics, and this provides me with all the information I need. Once you have implemented the changes above, you can start tracking things like:

• Where your audience is coming from so you can target your content and linking better.
• The keywords they are typing to arrive on your website. You can than write precise content catered around these keywords
• You’ll also find out where your audience is located so when you write you can create content which they understand. This can be in the form of infographics, images or even video.
• They also give you a good indication of bounce rate. Why is this important? With bounce rate you’ll be able to determine where the visitors go on your site, and what content they leave. If the rate is high, then focus on tweaking your content for better engagement.

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Do Blog Contests Still Work?

The good news is that, at least to some degree, the Internet has leveled the playing field. Anyone with an Internet connection can set up a Twitter account. Anyone with a smartphone can launch a successful YouTube channel. Heck, you can get your own blog or website on the web for practically nothing. Anyone can have a voice online. But therein lies the rub, because everyone can have a voice online too.

Hey! Look at Me!

Breaking through this incredible signal-to-noise ratio is truly the greatest challenge for nearly every content creator. You’ve got a blog, but it’s one of an estimated 440 million blogs in the world, a number that’s probably much higher by the time you read this post. So, you have to promote. You have to get your brand “out there” in front of the right audience.

And for almost as long as I can remember, one of the more popular ways to promote your blog is by hosting a blog contest or giveaway. Maybe you fund this giveaway yourself, maybe you get a sponsor to supply the prize, maybe you collaborate with other bloggers for maximum reach and impact. The specifics here don’t really matter.

It’s about giving something away in the hope that you’ll get something even more valuable in return. But do these contests still work in an age of social media algorithms and crushing Google updates?

Contests Suck for Creators

According to a report and analysis conducted by Creator Hype, contests suck for creators. They say that because of how the system works these days, your contest “doesn’t reach your audience, they don’t engage with it, and they don’t win it. If that’s not the definition of broken, we don’t know what is.”

At the heart of their argument is the fact that the overwhelming majority of blog contests and social media giveaways are won by “professional contesters.” These are people who actively search for contests and giveaways online (and offline), people who aren’t really interested in your brand and your blog or your content at all. They just want to win “free” stuff.

This has sparked a whole industry of contesters. In fact, it doesn’t take much to come across several guides on how to become a successful contester, including the various discussion boards and forums you can follow. In the Creator Hype analysis, they looked at 65 contests run by 37 Canadian creators.

All I Do Is Win, Win, Win

Of all the people who entered the contests, more than three-quarters entered at least half of all contests. This is “absurdly high” given that the contests and creators spanned such a wide variety of niches and verticals. These “professional contesters” are entering everything and anything, so that means that real readers, the folks you’re really trying to engage, have a pretty slim shot at actually winning you select the winner at random.

The stats continue to show that 83 percent of all the tweets for entering these contests are coming from the professional contesters too. It probably won’t shock you to learn that 97% of the Twitter accounts of these professional contesters are used ONLY for entering contests. They might be real people, but for all intents and purposes, they’re really not. Professional contesters have ruined it for everyone, apparently.

It Starts With Strategy

But is that totally true? I don’t think so. Professional contesters are certainly an issue that need to be addressed, but they’re only one part of the picture. Blog contests can still be effective, depending on the actual goals you’re trying to accomplish with these contests. They can still be used to build your mailing list or grow your social following if you’re looking for a numbers boost. We all know how important and powerful appearances can be, even if you’d rather have a large following of truly authentic and engaged users.

It also depends on how you choose to setup your contest in the first place. Remember the ice bucket challenge from 2014? That was for charity and for raising awareness, so the context is a little different, but you can certainly borrow some inspiration from the virality of the stunt. You can also see how the “personal video” dynamic of that stunt virtually eliminates the problem of the professional contester altogether. If they’re willing to put in the effort to make a real video, they may as well be a real entrant.

So, at the end of the day, the answer to our original question is the same answer you’ll find to so many other questions. It depends. As Rebekah Carter of SproutSocial says, social media contests still work, “but only if you use them carefully.”

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The World’s Smallest Minivan at Cars and Coffee

Sally and I head to South Orange County Cars and coffee to check out all the cool cars, plus the world’s smallest minivan. That little sucker can sit six people and it no bigger than a VW Bug!

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How To Create Audience Loyalty By Blogging

A loyal audience is very important when blogging because this can translate into some serious conversions. For example, with a loyal audience you’ll have a guarantee that you’ll keep growing as a blog within your niche. I’ll admit it can be hard to build loyalty, however once you have, it can go a long way. The problem I’ve noticed over the years is that many people don’t put enough emphasis on building their brand, and taking care of their customers. This means in the long run they have a higher chance of losing their readers to competition. The good news is we know a lot about reader loyalty because we can learn from those before us. For example, some of the best lessons I’ve learned come from authority bloggers I have networked with throughout the years.

Over the years I have learned this can be split into “4” areas:

• Research
• Quality content
• Responding to comments
• Build personal brand so people trust and find you to be credible.

Let’s get started, and look at creative ways to build loyalty from your audience.

Research

Solid content always starts at knowing how to perform the right type of research. Through research you’ll be able to target the right audience which increases the chance of them building loyalty with your brand. I have written extensively about the importance of research, and how this can help build momentum quickly. By performing research you’ll be able to:

• Find popular topic
• Find trending topics
• Find out about your audience which will help cater to them
• Come up with a solid marketing plan going forward

I believe there are “3” awesome ways everyone should use to perform the research they need. I’ll outline them quickly below:

Google Search

One of the best ways to find awesome keywords because you’ll find all different types of content. Not to mention, Google is great at providing a list of relevant keywords which are popular with searchers. Always try and start to type with your target keyword, and look for the others words provided by Google.

Forums

One of the best ways to gather popular topics, and niche relevant keywords. You have to first find relevant forums so head over to Google, and do a search using target keyword + forums. You’ll find a handful, but it’s important to only focus on the MOST popular. How do you know which ones are popular?

• Look at the member count
• Look at the members online
• Research the topics posted

Once you have found the forums which provide you with all of the above, you can skim through finding topics. Hopefully you’ll know more about your audience so can focus on topics they want to read.

Competitors

I’ve used this strategy for years to find targeted keywords and popular topics within my niche. Keep in mind some of your competitors have been in the business longer so have a better idea of the topics, keywords and audience. Learn from them because it’ll save you enormous time going forward. It’s as simple as skimming through their content looking for content with the highest shares, comments and looking at how often certain keywords are used. The more familiar content you find published on the blog shows that the audience likes these types of content.

Quality Content

Once you’ve gathered the keywords, and know what to write about then putting together high quality content is very easy. You have to make sure your content is formatted correctly, and you provide the value you had in mind. It can be very easy to go off track however with solid keywords, you’ll have an easier time structuring your content. For example, your main and relevant keywords should be used as the headings as well as the sub-headings. Each time you approach a section you’ll be able to write about the target keywords allowing you to keep your focus.

Here are a few more things to keep in mind:

First, always make sure you provide the value you know your audience has in mind, and this is why you spent enormous time researching keywords + the right topics. Give yourself some time to write out content meaning until you have covered all the fundamentals. I often get asked the question: How long should my content be? My answer is as long as it has to in order to get the value across.

Secondly, it’s important when writing content, you include the necessary elements to communicate your value. This means to include images and infographics where possible. These are two great ways to illustrate your points quickly, and efficiently within a short period of time.

Third, value can only be communicated if you keep your “target” keywords, and points within your mind. This means you should always stop in between, and go over your complete master plan. Having focus will allow you to write what you think is valuable instead of going off track.

Here’s something I read when visiting Neil Patel’s blog at QuickSprout.com.

96% of people decide to come back because of the quality of the content. This means the better the content, the higher the user retention. This also means you have a 96% higher chance of doing better than your competitors if you provide more value than them. In my first point I emphasized the importance of doing research, and provided some cool ways to use your competitor content to find creative material they missed out on. Find ways to make your content better by adding the following elements:

• Images
• Infographics
• Longer depth
• Videos
• And creating a blog which is more interactive then others.

Responding to Comments

This is a form of engagement, and respect for the people who take time to read your content. You have to keep in mind many of the people visiting are newbies which means they will have some questions afterwards. In my experience, there are two ways people will communicate the questions they have:

• They’ll post a comment within the box below the content
• They contact you directly using the form on your blogs contact page.

Whatever way they choose to communicate their thoughts or questions, it’s important you reply to them. Even though retention rate is much higher because of the quality of your content, it’s important to note that 24% of readers come back because of the relationship you have formed with them. There has to be something which distinguishes you from your competition, and building a relationship with your readers is definitely up there on the list.

The good news is replying to comments is NOT tough because the interface on many blogging platforms is very easy. Another cool thing is many other readers will help answer questions because the comments posted are visible to everyone.

You have the option to change up your comment box to make it more interactive. I hope by now your using a blogging platform because it gives you the option to customize your plug-ins. Add a box which is interactive, and allows leaving comments more easily.

Your Brand and Credibility

Your company’s brand and credibility can go a long way in building loyalty with your customers or audience. When you have a brand people trust they automatically come to you for information. This means their first choice will be your blog to find an answer to their common problems. In the long run, you’ll save enormous money marketing because you won’t have to strategically plan how to get your content in front of people.

Think about huge brands like Apple or even Coca Cola and you’ll realize one important thing…

Both brands you trust to create awesome products so when you shop for a computer or go for a drink, you’ll most likely turn to them first. The point I’m making is you should always work hard at building a brand for yourself no matter what other objectives you have.

Here are a few things to avoid going forward:

Content without a strategy: You have to always have a clear vision about the direction you want your content marketing to flow to. Many times people will write WITHOUT having a clear vision about where or who they want to engage.

Fresh content – A few months back Google introduced a freshness update, and they reward people with updated content with a boost going forward. However, you also want to keep in mind your readers, and what they are looking for. They are reading your blog to learn so it’s important you provide them with fresh ideas, content and news.

Not connecting readers – Make sure you always provide a way for your readers to connect with each other through comments or social media. This is a great way to keep building your blog, and attract more loyal readers. Always include at least “4” social media buttons next to each post, and focus on the MOST popular like Facebook, Twitter, Google and LinkedIn.

The good news is if your using a blogging platform, you can install a simple plugin which will add them for your very easily.

Be Your Own Voice

Searchers are looking to follow someone with their own voice. Having your own voice will allow you to build a brand which is unique compared to all others. If people can resonate with your voice, then you’ll have NO trouble building loyalty with them in the long run. However, you have to always stick to the game plan because as a blogger I know it can be hard to stick to your focus and voice. The good news is that establishing your own voice is NOT hard because you are letting things flow naturally.

The next time you sit down make sure you write in your own voice, and let the content flow from your mind. Speak as you would when talking to someone face to face, and let things flow naturally.

Final Thoughts

Building reader loyalty is very important because with so much competition, it’s important you stand out compared to others online. However, I’m surprised at the amount of people who fail to utilize the strategies listed above to build customer loyalty. It’s NOT too late to start to implement the tips I’ve listed above so start doing that right now.

Here’s the game plan I want you to follow going forward:

Start by reading over my content again making notes about the important points outlined. When you have a better understanding of the strategies discussed, only then, will you be able to implement all of them into your blogging. I recommend NOT implementing all the strategies as once because it’ll be hard to manage which one’s actual work compared to others. Your trying to find out proven techniques within your niche which help build loyalty with your readers. Every niche will be different so you’ll have to tweak your approach going forward.

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How To Work Less and Be Merry (Especially If You’re Over 40)

Depending on where you live, there are certain societal conventions that many of us have come to internalize. As a kid, I really enjoyed watching Saturday morning cartoons, for example. But really, was there actually a reason why Sunday morning cartoons weren’t more of a “thing”? Or early Wednesday evening cartoons? Why is it, for example, that most students in Canada and the United States typically attend school from 9 o’clock in the morning until 3 o’clock in the afternoon, Monday through Friday?

Exceptions and variations exist, of course, but most of us have come to expect to see that as the “standard” schedule because that’s how it’s always been. Except it hasn’t always been that way. Just like how many students expect to have July and August off in the summer, but some schools operate year-round and other schools have different schedules for summer holidays too.

The exact same kind of standard expectation extends into our adult lives. By and large, we expect to work 40 hours each week, split into five shifts of eight hours each, working from Monday to Friday. We call it the 9-to-5, because that’s the typical expected schedule… except a lot of people don’t necessarily do the 9-to-5, Monday to Friday type deal. Maybe they work Sunday to Thursday. Maybe they work 10 hour shifts, four days a week. Maybe they pile on 60 hours or more to make ends meet or to stay top of mine when an opportunity for a promotion comes up.

Conform to the System?

But why? Especially if you end up spending several of those hours daydreaming about how you’d rather be spending your time. And if you do, you’re not alone. And as it turns out, research might be on your side about this whole “working less” idea.

A news article on Simplepost cited a recent study from the Melbourne Institute’s Working Paper Series. The study concluded that people over the age of 40 could be way better off if they shifted from a typical five-day work week to a three-day work week instead. They say that by working fewer days (and fewer hours) each week, these “older” workers would still be productive but they’d be less likely to burn out.

The study looked at over 6,000 Australians over the age of 40, getting the volunteers to perform a number of cognitive tasks. What they found is that as people worked more, their cognitive functioning improved, but only up to around 25 hours a week. Beyond that, cognitive functioning actually worsened. This means that working up to 25 hours a week is good for your brain. It keeps you sharp. After 25 hours, though, you likely suffer from fatigue and set yourself up for burnout.

Working a 40-hour work week is better than not working at all, in terms of cognitive performance, but working over 55 hours a week is actually worse than not working at all.

Working Less, Making More

You can see how this all relates back to the appeal of the dot com lifestyle. Remember that John originally set out on this journey to discover if he could make a full-time income from part-time blogging. Seeing how he’s raking in six figures a month, I’d say he has accomplished that mission.

Working less doesn’t necessarily mean your income has to take a hit. Instead, it’s about figuring out how to work smarter and deciphering how to get your business to keep generating money for you even when you’re not actively working at it. That’s the beauty of passive income.

So, while we may look up to the incredible hard work and dedication and innovation of amazing entrepreneurs like Elon Musk and Casey Neistat, working excessive hours might not necessarily be in our best interest. You still have to work hard, of course, but you’ve got to give that brain of yours a break sometimes too.

Or, as John put it after partying hard with Gary Vaynerchuk at Affiliate Ball, what’s the use of “making a six-figure monthly income if you don’t have time to enjoy it?”

Click Here To Download John Chow’s New eBook, The Ultimate Online Profit Model!

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Why Just Blogging Is Not Enough

When I first started publishing content on the Internet nearly 20 years ago, I had no real ambition to make any money at all. It was just a hobby and I’d be thrilled with I’d get a message from just one random stranger. My words were actually reaching real people all around the world and this was an incredible power I hadn’t ever experienced in my life before. The Internet has been truly remarkable in this sense.

And when I decided to give this “make money online” thing a go starting around 2006, the focus — outside of my freelance writing business — was my blog, Beyond the Rhetoric, which is still very much around today. Over the years, I’ve dabbled in a number of different ad networks, tried my hand at affiliate marketing, and taken on some paid post opportunities. However, whatever money I made was largely generated on the blog itself.

But a lot has changed in the past decade. If you want to “make money blogging,” more and more you have to recognize that “just” blogging isn’t enough. It’s not just about using other channels as a means of driving traffic to your blog either. The opportunities have expanded far beyond that, especially since getting the kind of reach and numbers on your own site is arguably harder than ever before.

Enter the Mommy Blogger

There was an article published in the Money section of the Time website that discussed “the new mommy blogger.”

“But I’m not a mommy blogger,” you might say. Wait. Hear me out on this one.

Even if you don’t self-identify as a “mommy blogger” and you have no interest in discussing the topics of motherhood, the key insights from this write-up should not be ignored. They’re just as applicable to practically anyone else who wants to make money from blogging, just adapted to a different vertical for a different audience.

The Diversified Platform

The first big takeaway, as you might imagine, is that making money from just your blog simply is not enough anymore. That’s not what the Internet looks like today and if you focus 100 percent of your efforts on just your blog, you could be leaving hundreds, thousands, or even millions of dollars on the proverbial table. One example they give is a “mommy blogger” named LaShawn Wiltz.

She’s had a blog since 2009, but she makes a “full-time salary” by diversifying her income sources. In addition to the blog, where she hosts online advertising and sponsored content, she offers an online course of “aspiring Instagram influencers” where she charges $150 a head. If you’ve proven your success, you can leverage your success and experience into more success and more experience.

There’s storytelling, sure, and there’s this “word of mouth on steroids” as Everywhere Agency founder Danica Kombol puts it, but there’s also this potential to offer “advice to the development of a vast coalition of female entrepreneurs and influencers set on not just making money themselves, but helping others do the same.” In other words, you make money online by teaching other people how to make money online. Sound familiar?

And the point of making money as an “aspiring Instagram influencer” is not to be taken lightly either. Even Gary Vaynerchuk has said that the power of online advertising — via podcasts, social media, YouTube videos and more — is still greatly undervalued. There’s still a lot of money to be made and we’ve only seen the tiniest glimmer of what influencer marketing can become in the very near future.

Make a Name for Yourself

It’s not just about sponsored content on your blog. It’s about sponsored Facebook Live videos, sponsored Instagram stories, sponsored Twitter discussions, sponsored YouTube videos, sponsored podcast episodes, sponsored mentions in an e-book or e-course…. the list just goes on and on and on. You need to do more than “just” blogging.

When I first started blogging professionally in 2006, it was still the very early days of Facebook and Twitter. I had accounts on both platforms, but I used my Facebook business page mostly as a broadcast tool to announce when new blog posts had gone up.

Today, I actively share content from other creators, actively elicit conversations with followers, and engage much more on the platform as “Beyond the Rhetoric” and not just as “Michael Kwan.” You can say the same about Twitter, YouTube, Instagram and every other social platform. Broadcasting isn’t enough. You need to engage.

If you want your blog to be a profitable business, you have to treat it like a business. And just like a business, there are many more moving parts and opportunities involved than just your core product.

Click Here To Download John Chow’s New eBook, The Ultimate Online Profit Model!

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via Daniel