In this video I will you my step by step method to create a money making ebook that will help you to increase your affiliate marketing conversion. I also show you how I use ClickFunnels to deliver the eBook instantly.
Running a business in the world today isn’t easy. Sure, the internet has changed the way businesses connect with different audiences and customers around the world, but there are still many local and offline businesses that are struggling to compete.
This is especially true in the world of ‘trade businesses’, where individual contractors and hands-on jobs need to compete with bigger businesses and brands that have much larger marketing budgets. A perfect example of this would be if someone went to Google and was looking for a plumber or electrician — would they find your brand or one of the big name brands that either hire insider employees or outsources the work?
Today we are going to highlight some of the best ways that local small businesses, contractors, and trade businesses can compete in the new world of online searches, reviews, and local marketing. It’s not just about getting new business and leads from local audiences, it’s also about perfecting your expertise and authority within your space, while also using the power of the internet to make it easy for potential customers to find and get in contact with your as well.
When you have a local business or your personal name is your business, people are going to search for these online first. With that in mind, you need to rank at the top of Google for optimal results. If you don’t already have a website or blog in place, this is a must!
A website will make it easy for potential customers to find you online, while a blog is ideal for creating new forms of content and ranking for local long tail keywords. With a site of your own, you can also showcase customer testimonials, services offered, and having a live form for free quotes and estimates.
Try to rank for both your personal name and your business name. To help with this process, we recommend setting up both personal accounts and business accounts on social media platforms like Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn. The reason for this is that Google loves to rank these sites and by having profiles set up on each of them, it should be easier to rank for your name and business with each profile you set up.
Depending on your expertise and the type of business branding you want to focus on, registering and using your personal name as a domain name might be a good idea. In the world of blogging, make money online, and affiliate marketing, people are doing this all the time. Not only are they launching blogs with their name as their domain, they are also building powerful brands in the process.
The more focused you are on your brand name and ranking it on Google, the better the results you are going to see. An extra added bonus here is that you can often link back to your main site from each of these social profiles — which will also pass link juice back to your site. With enough of these in place (and promotion to your social profile), this will help your main website rank higher as well.
When you run an offline business or are making money based on your hands or a specialized skill, you can only make as much money as there are hours in a day. With this in mind, it’s important to manage your time working as efficiently as possible, while also making sure you are getting paid for every minute worked.
While some business owners might not like how the internet has affected their businesses, they also need to take advantage of what has come out of it as well. A perfect example of this would be automated tools and solutions for better managing a business’ finances.
For example, imagine how useful invoicing software for plumbers would be in reference to keeping invoices in order, not having to write out and collect paper invoices, and also for creating easy to follow monthly revenue reports. At the end of the year, when it comes time to do the taxes, having all of this in order and through an online reporting tool could save hundreds of hours and dollars in itself.
According to U.S News, plumbers across the country can earn anywhere from $30k to almost $100k per year. The difference between the highest and lowest earners, isn’t likely just in reference to their work, but also their business and financial management as well. Through the use of online tools, better customer support and management, evert plumber and trade business owner should be able to increase their earnings.
The median salary for a plumber was $51,450 in 2016, the BLS reports. The best-paid pulled in about $90,530, while those in the bottom 10 percent earned $30,430 a year. Apprentices who are just starting out could make 30 to 50 percent less than a fully trained plumber.
Another great way to use the internet to better run an offline business is to look at your options with staying in contact with customers through the use of an online blog and customer email list. These are both pretty easy to set up, as there are many providers and solutions that were custom-built and catered towards small business owners. To learn more about other similar methods and solutions like the ones mentioned in this section, be sure to check out this article and infographic.
Another area that small and local business owners might not have been spending as much attention towards, is social media and how local directories and review sites could have an impact on their businesses. More often than not, sites like Yelp or HomeAdvisor will automatically create profiles for businesses through the world — thus allowing to rank higher and more often in the search results.
While this is great in theory, it also offers some problems for these smaller businesses. Such problems can be competitive on in the search results, more sites to claim as a business, and also more sites that need to be reviewed for complaints, ratings, and feedback.
To make the most of these platforms, it’s important to claim your business as soon as possible. This is especially the case with Google Local, as it’s going to be one of the most prominent sources for information appearing in Google. The benefit here is that many of these platforms also allow you to not just claim your business page, but also to update it with your business info, hours, contact info and sometimes even a link back to your site.
Offline or Online, the Internet is Your Friend
Improve the day-to-day operations and growth of your business by taking advantage of what the internet has to offer. Offline businesses that have ignored the internet have quickly found themselves in trouble and often out of business. Those who have adapted with time, not only found great success in the resources available, but have also moved past the competition in the process.
Before he decided to throw his name onto what would becoming a very popular brand of processed meat products, Jimmy Dean was a popular American country music singer and television host. In fact, it was on The Jimmy Dean Show on ABC in 1963 that Jim Henson got his first big nationwide break and we all know how big Sesame Street and the Muppets have become since then.
So, what does any of this have to do with professional blogging, Internet marketing, making money online or the dot com lifestyle? After all, Jimmy Dean made his fame and fortune well before the Internet was even a thing! Well, you have to realize that certain lessons in business (and in life) are timeless and you just have to know how to adapt them to your current circumstances. This is one of those times.
I make use of a Google Chrome extension called Momentum. Offered by a company called Momentum Dash, it’s free to download and generally well received. Basically, it replaces the generic “new tab” screen in your browser. You are treated to a new inspirational photo each day, as well as access to additional options like weather, setting your daily focus/intention, keeping a list of frequently used bookmarks, and so on. You can unlock more features with the paid “Plus” version, like integration with Trello, multiple to-do lists, and the ability to skip to new background photos.
One of the other main features is that you are presented with a new inspirational quote each day. And one day, I was presented a quote from Jimmy Dean. It went like this:
“You can’t change the direction of the wind, but you can adjust your sails to always reach your destination.”
In life, you’ll find that everything tends to fall into one of two big buckets. On the one hand, you have the things that are utterly out of your control. You don’t get to decide if it is going to rain tomorrow. This is out of your control. On the other hand, you have the things that you can control. It is completely up to you if you want to have coffee or tea in the morning. You can even drink orange juice if you want. This, barring unforeseen circumstances, is in your control.
So, while there are things that you can’t control, you can leverage the things you can control to best deal with the situation. You can’t control if it is going to rain, but you can control if you’re going to pack an umbrella. You can also control, to some extent, where you live. Maybe John doesn’t like the rain of Vancouver and that’s why he moved to Orange County.
And this is just as applicable when it comes to making money online. You cannot control or change what Mark Zuckerberg and his team decide to do with the Facebook algorithm, but you can control what you choose to do about it. Maybe you double down your efforts to get as much exposure on Facebook as you can. Maybe you choose to play by the rules and budget for some boosts. Or maybe you decide to divert your efforts (and resources) in other areas, like article marketing or arbitrage.
Because the intricacies of networks like Facebook, YouTube, Instagram and Twitter are outside of your control, you can choose not to build your Internet business on rented land. You can focus on the properties that you can control, like your website and your mailing list.
You cannot control which way the wind blows, but you can control how often you revisit your strategy so you can best adjust your sails. You can still choose which way you want to point your ship and you can still choose what destination you’d like to reach. These are all elements within your control and you just have to choose how you’re going to interact with the circumstances as they present themselves.
This is why it pays to have a versatile skill set, including both technical (“hard”) and soft skills, that you can use to adapt to virtually any situation. Because if YouTube decides to boot you from the partner program tomorrow, you can always pivot, adjust your sails, and keep sailing toward your island paradise. You’re the captain now.
In this video, I follow up on yesterday’s video with a lesson how to increase your affiliate marketing conversion rate, plus a quick tutorial on how to apply for the Aweber and Constant Contact affiliate program.
Let’s get started with Part 2, where we’ll be going over other “typing speed” strategies to help you in your content writing and blogging. I’m a huge believer that if you can increase your typing speed without jeopardizing your quality, then you’ll be able to achieve something very special with your blog. Experienced bloggers really won’t have problems but those starting out might need to make some adjustments to their content writing. If you think about the benefits of slightly improving your typing speed, you’ll know it can have a dramatic effect on your blog. For example, here are some right off the top of my head:
In Part 1, I went through 2-3 ways to improve your content writing and would like to discuss a few more going forward. Let’s get started…
Knowing you have deadlines in place is a great way to stay focused on the end goal. When you don’t create deadlines, you won’t dedicate the time required to writing or even making improvements and this is a great waste. From my research, every successful bloggers has a schedule they follow every day and won’t stop until they achieve what they set out to do. For example, the one thing that has kept me writing throughout this content until completed is knowing I have content that needs to be published next week. Not to mention, I have to send these in to be edited, which is very important.
Did you know, when I write content…it’s in intervals of 7 minutes?
This means for 7 minutes straight, I’ll do nothing but write content WITHOUT any distraction and this helps me get what I need written down. As mentioned, I’m currently writing 300 words every 3 minutes so after 7, I have roughly 600 words. The only difference is compared to others who divide their attention on other things, I completely focus on my work during times I’m wired in. Now after the “7” minutes, I’ll take quick breaks of no more than “7” minutes then get right to work again. This will ensure I stay right on track and finish my work accordingly.
In the end, my point is you have to ensure you write smart and take even smarter breaks.
One reason I have problems writing is because I sometimes do it at night and this is usually my downtime. Over the years, while writing content, I’ve figured out my MOST productive time is during the day so I try to do what I can from 9AM-3PM. I’m not saying you should complete your entire work by this time, but the priorities on your list so you do a 100% job. If you just started blogging, then soon, you’ll figure out what is the best time for you to start blogging and this can definitely help you with your typing. At the same time, it’s as important to create an outline of your work, labelling MOST important to least.
I got this strategy from John Chow because he does his writing and scheduling on Mondays. If you feel some days are better than others, then you might want to shift your schedule to write on the days you have more FREE time. By doing this, you’ll be able to write WITHOUT any other distractions or other NON-personal work that needs to be completed.
In this video, I show you how I would make money online by using the email affiliate programs offered by Aweber and Constant Contact. Both programs offer great opportunities to make money online if promoted properly. In the video, I explain how each program works and show you to promote it for maximum benefit.
No matter who you are, where you live or what you do, it’s pretty safe to say that we all want to be happy in our lives. And while it may indeed be the case that money cannot buy you happiness, it is a fundamental requirement in order to provide yourself with basic human needs and to survive in modern society. A great meal, a new toy or a nice vacation every now and then certainly don’t hurt either. There’s no shame in liking nice things.
And so you choose to pursue the dream of living the dot com lifestyle, a life that can provide with both time and location freedom. This way, you can live your life on your own terms, uninhibited and unrestricted by the conventional confines of a 9-to-5 job for the man. That’s admirable.
In your efforts to achieve the kind of freedom that only the dot com lifestyle (or a massive inheritance) can provide, maybe you decide to start blogging. Or freelancing. Or Internet marketing. The actual vehicle of your ambitious endeavor isn’t especially relevant in this context. What is relevant is your motivation to change your life for the better.
When you first start out, you might come blazing out of the gate with all sorts of unbridled enthusiasm, like a race horse that has been cooped up in the stable for far too long. You just want to take that positive energy and run with it. Your fingers go flying across the keyboard at a breakneck pace, busting out multiple blog posts a day and you couldn’t be happier with the progress you are making.
A few days go by. You log into your publisher account at your affiliate network of choice. Zero clicks. Zero conversions. You log into your AdSense account. Maybe a couple of clicks. Less than a buck in revenue. You log into your Analytics account or check your stats through Jetpack. Whoa. Those numbers are awfully disappointing.
You feel deflated. Defeated. Like you want to throw in the towel and give up. The blog goes without new content for long stretches of time. Maybe you bring in a conversion or two, or you come across a new strategy for promoting your site. You can little burst of enthusiasm for a couple days, but that quickly fizzles away. This is not the path to success. This is not how you stay in the game.
Do you know what it really takes to make money online? Staying the game even when the odds look like they’re stacked against you, even when the results aren’t where you want them to be. You need to stay in the game and endure the failures and shortcomings, learning from them so you can keep moving forward.
But how do you do that?
You need to keep your morale high so you can persevere through the tough times and to do that, you also need to keep your motivation high. When you feel motivated, you’ll feel compelled to keep going. When you’re feeling unmotivated, not a heck of a lot is going to get done.
A trick that you can try is something called an “accomplishment list.” I’ve also seen this referenced as a “reverse to-do list” or a “done list.” Use whatever term you want. The thinking is that while a to-do list is a constant reminder of all the things you haven’t done, an accomplishment list is a constant reminder of all the things you have done.
When you’ve accomplished something that puts a smile on your face and a feather on your cap, put this on your accomplishment list. Some people like to do this daily, but I think that’s unnecessarily time-consuming (and too much of an obligation) and it’ll lose its potency when you turn to it so frequently. I say create a list each month and contribute to it once or twice a week.
At the end of the month, you can look back at all the things you’ve accomplished, all the things you’ve worked on that moving you closer to achieving your dreams. This encourages you not to compare yourself to others, but rather to compare yourself today to who you were one month ago. Are you in a better position? Then you are moving in the right direction.
I don’t know about you, but that’s awfully motivating for me.
