An American woman stopped me the other day and asked if I wasn’t from The Blog Squad. I’m not kidding. Now Denise and I aren’t exactly famous, but our picture is on the Internet in many places. Turns out, Elliott Joachim is a fun person, who learned how to blog from our classes and reports. But I wasn’t really expecting to get noticed in Ajijic, Mexico…
I was so excited I posted about it over on Build a Better Blog.
I hate cars and I hate traffic. I work from home, and only ever have to drive one mile to the tennis courts and the grocery store. But Erik Feder writes a good ezine about parking your car, mainly in Manhattan where some parking fees rival apartment rentals in other cities.
Erik is The Blog Squad’s Ideal Client who is being coached live on the air during our weekly radio show Blogging and Beyond. I subscribed to his weekly Parkazine newsletter to review it.
Here are three things I like about Erik’s e-newsletter, the Parkazine:
Episode two of Blogging and Beyond is now posted, if you missed it. We interviewed Internet Marketing expert Tom Antion about database marketing systems. Be sure to listen; Tom gives a very clear explanation of why a database marketing system is so important to the success of businesses that use the Internet. Find out why all the successful Internet star use Kick Start Cart- or a version of it.
Here’s a post from Denise about shopping carts, with a free downloadable PDF on How to Pick a Shopping Cart.
(Update from Mexico: We left the Puerta de Hierro Hospital Wednesday without The Hubby having to have any surgery. This is good news. But the internet connection was down for 12 hours. Hopefully, I can now get back to work.)
One of life’s hiccups…I’m taking The Hubby back in to Guadalajara today. His 3-year heart attack anniversary revealed some funny exam results. The good news is that the angiogram procedure he will have today will reveal what’s really going on in his arteries. If needed, they will put in more stents and he will get another 10,000 mile warranty.
The cardiologist is excellent, and the hospitals are, well, hospitable. They let the family stay overnight with the patient, so I probably won’t be back online for a few days.
I’ve been deprived of Internet connectivity for the last 36 hours. And I didn’t die, although I felt severe frustration at not being able to stay in touch with clients and our new mentor group.
I’m working from our home in Ajijic, near Guadalajara, in Mexico this week. (That photo is our front door viewed from inside.) And even though we have high speed DSL connected to the house, and a Vonage U.S. phone number, the connection stopped all of a sudden. Nothing we did would help.
I did a bit of work from a cyber cafe yesterday. Then when we came home last night, we saw the three green lights on our router and fell to our knees. We’ve been saved!!! Finally we are connected again.
There is something strangely upsetting about not being online. I’m seeing a psychiatrist about this. Does anyone else have heart palpitations and severe anxiety when this happens? Or am I the only nut that can’t live without being connected…
It’s like this deep feeling of losing control over my destiny, like "they" are taking away my ability to work, manage my work flow, and stay in touch with my clients. "They" are the DSL gremlins who want to make my life miserable. I’m sure of it…
We launched our Internet radio show Blogging and Beyond yesterday on the VoiceAmerica channel, and told listeners why having a great blog may not be enough if they want to grow business and leverage the power of the Internet. You can listen to the show here.
(I was afraid my voice might get squeeky as it sometimes does, so I kept sucking on a lemon between breaks. I hear all the opera singers do that.)
I suggest you listen in to the show: we tell listeners what else they will need to leverage the power of the Internet to grow business. And, we interviewed our fabulous Ideal Client contest winner, Erik Feder. Erik already has a unique business and is using the Internet, and we will be coaching him live on the show each week to improve what he’s doing. Learn more by subscribing to our Blogging and Beyond blog.
Of course, if you really want to get more involved, you can still join the Blogging and Beyond Mentor Group that will be implementing simple online tools to grow your own business: www.BlogSquadContest.com/mentor.
Newsletter Nuggets – January 11, 2007
…tips and tricks for writing great ezines and blogs
Table of Contents
1. A Note from Patsi – Blogging and Beyond Kicks Off
2. 10 New Rules for Writing Successful e-Content
3. February 07 Featured Article: A Leadership Checklist – 7 Questions
4. What’s New on the Blogs?
A note from Patsi –
You may be reading this before or after our Internet radio show Blogging and Beyond debuts on VoiceAmerica.com, I don’t know. Either way, the beauty of the internet means you can either listen in real time, or afterwards.
You can download a free desktop audio player for the Blogging and Beyond show.
Go to the page for our show and download the player in the upper right corner of the info page where it says "Download Desktop Icon". Follow the setup instructions to install the icon on your desktop. Then, you’ll be able to click the icon and listen to current and archived shows.
The Blogging and Beyond Show is live every Thursday morning starting January 11 at 11 a.m. ET,. “Blogging and Beyond” is produced on VoiceAmerica™ Channel.
Our goal is to show our listeners how someone can have a real marketing presence and start leveraging the Internet using simple online tools, in a relatively short time.
You can register for the Blogging and Beyond Mentor Program to get directly involved in your own Internet marketing plan at www.blogsquadcontest.com/mentor.
Denise and I have lined up a few excellent guest experts, as well as our Ideal Client, Erik Feder, who will benefit from live coaching on the air. You can stay up to date by subscribing to the blog www.BloggingAndBeyond.com.
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10 New Rules for Writing Successful e-Content
What are the new guidelines for writing ezines and emails that will help get them opened, get read, and get results?
The key to writing good e-content is to make the most sense in the fewest possible words, while making an impression/connection with potential clients, to the point that they respond to your call to action.
Here are a few “new rules” shaping effective email content today:
1. Keep an eye on headlines (they’re more crucial than ever). A cleverly crafted headline (or subject line for email) will determine if your email is opened and read or not. Headlines appealing to reader’s desires on an emotional level will be more effective. “Insider secrets,” “5 tips you can apply now to save time/money/energy,” and “What they don’t want you to know,” are examples of titles that work because they are compelling. They offer a promise to solve a problem. They leave the reader with great curiosity. They seduce the reader to open and read the email.
2. Use keywords in the headline. Use them again in the first paragraph, and repeat several times in the body of the content. When somebody types keywords into a search engine looking for information they need, will your content be found?
3. Keep content length short and to the point. Once you write your message, review it and delete as many words as possible. Ask, “So what?” to each sentence. Keep the focus on your core intention for that email message.
To continue reading, see the complete article over at www.CoachEzines.com.
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Featured Article for February:
A Leadership Checklist: 7 Questions
Categories: Leadership, Careers, Retention
No matter how successful and talented you are, you’ve made mistakes and have acquired some bad habits. Some are old; others have seemingly popped up overnight. Behaviors that may have worked well for you in the past can render you ineffective in the present.
(PRWeb) January 10, 2007 — The Blog Squad™ kicks off their Internet radio show "Blogging and Beyond" on Modavox’s VoiceAmerica™ Channel (http://www.voice.voiceamerica.com/) on Thursday, January 11, at 11 a.m. ET. The show focuses on how to take a business online and create a strong Internet marketing presence.
Their first show, titled "Blogging Isn’t IT!" reveals why a great blog isn’t enough. Blog Squad™ experts Patsi Krakoff, Psy. D., and Denise Wakeman show listeners and coach their ideal client live on the air on how to use simple online systems for Internet marketing.
To read the full press release go here: http://www.prweb.com//releases/2007/1/prweb495948.htm
For information on how to join the Blogging and Beyond Mentor Group, visit www.BlogSquadContest.com/mentor
For updates on the show, visit www.BloggingandBeyond.com and subscribe.
The key to writing good e-content (content for your emails and ezines) is to make the most sense in the fewest possible words, while making an impression/connection with potential clients, to the point that they respond to your call to action.
Here are a few “new rules” shaping effective emailed content today.
1. Keep an eye on headlines (and subject lines). A cleverly crafted headline or subject line will determine if your email gets opened and read or not. Headlines appealing to reader’s desires on an emotional level will be more effective.
“Insider secrets,” “5 tips you can apply now to save time/money/energy,” and “What they don’t want you to know,” are examples of titles that work because they are compelling. They offer a promise to solve a problem. They create great curiosity. They seduce the reader to open and read the email.
“Email is dead. We can still use it to communicate with one another on an individual basis, but as far as content is concerned – RSS holds infinitely more value and promise.” – Chris Pirillo, interviewed by Lee Odden. Later on, Chris adds, "I’ll likely continue to ‘do’ email newsletters…”
Portrayal of the demise of email reminds me of the British chant whenever there is a death of a monarch, “The King Is Dead! Long Live the King!”
Let’s get real. In response to the above interview, email marketing is not dead. It’s just evolving rapidly and only the strong will survive.
In February 2004, Jakob Nielsen reported that a study of email marketing showed that targeted e-newsletters continue to show strength, but that only 11% of newsletters were read thoroughly, so layout and content scanability are paramount.
Email newsletters are still an important way to stay in touch with customers and prospects. Ezines build relationships with readers, on one condition: that you don’t waste readers’ time with information that is superfluous and irrelevant.
The bottom line? Improving the quality of your content will ensure your email marketing and newsletters survive, get opened, get read, and work for your business.
Tomorrow: 10 “New Rules” for Successful e-Content
