Archive for Ezine & Blog Classes

Business Blogging: Blast Past the Blunders

Here’s how to bust out of blog oblivion: Blogging 101: 6 weeks to Confident Blogging with the Queen of WordPress, Suzanne Bird-Harris.

The latest survey of small biz professionals revealed most people struggle with “Time:” 72% say they don’t have enough time to update their blog.

But we often say that, when in fact the reason we don’t have time is because we’re not sure what exactly what we’re supposed to be doing, or how to do it.

Once you master a skill, you can get it done quickly. And, if you’re successful at it, you want to do it again and again.

Here’s what the survey reveals:

  1. 72% struggle with enough time to blog
  2. 54% of people say they struggle  to know what to write about
  3. 52% aren’t sure how to apply SEO strategies to increase the reach of their blog

No wonder people run out of time. If you sit down to blog and have to figure out these two important things (#2 and #3), well, there goes your day!

To remedy this, Suzanne and I are going to teach the solutions to #1 and #2: blog writing and SEO workshop in January 2011.

In the meantime, get prepared by mastering the basics. If you’re struggling with your WordPress blog, don’t miss Suzanne’s Blogging101 workshop: 6 Weeks to Confident Blogging. (Don’t miss the early bird discount – you must sign up by Friday, Nov. 5,  2010 to save $50.)

You can read more about the details of the 6 week workshop on Suzanne’s Blogging101 web page here.

Here’s what one of her clients said about her: Read More→

8 Ways to Use a WordPress Sales Page

Do you know how many ways a sales page can be used? I woke up thinking about this… because maybe you don’t think a “sales page” is something you need except once in a while for a product launch, when you’re trying to sell something.

Some people call them landing pages, or squeeze pages. I think the term was meant to squeeze your email address out of you, how weird is that? So let’s be clear about what kind of circus animal we’re going to be training to sit up and do tricks on our free teleseminar this Thursday.

Thursday, June 24, 2010 at 4 p.m. ET I’m interviewing Suzanne Bird-Harris on how to use a WordPress platform to create great sales pages. We’ll talk about format styles, different ways to use a page, and key elements that work to build trust. If you can’t attend, you will be sent the audio file and access to our power point presentation, if you register. You can register here:

Name
Email

Here’s my definition of the sales page beast: an attractive, compelling page published on the Internet that is optimized for search engines and designed to persuade a defined group of readers to take one specific action. Read More→

10 Snappy Content Creation Strategies

Speed-drawing  The prospect of writing on the web is daunting for some professionals, especially those with years of graduate school indoctrination with academic theses and dissertations.

It's because writing short and snappy is better on the Web than long, convoluted, and detailed. Doctors and lawyers and other highly educated people like to be correct; sometimes that takes more than one sentence.

The problem is too much information distracts a writer from getting to point quickly and clearly. I'm preparing materials for a class I'm teaching to lawyers who want to master online marketing with blog content, articles and ebooks.

I'd say it's a challenge for some lawyers to be fast and to the point about things, for fear of being wrong or misleading people. But maybe that's stereotyping and I'm making assumptions. I usually do.

Nevertheless, I've made a list of 10 content creating strategies to help write blog posts and articles for the Web, with an emphasis on being short and snappy.

Here are 10 steps that I'm sharing with them, to help anyone write faster, clearer, better.

Read More→

Is Your Blog Working for You? How Can You Tell?

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One of the mysteries of the universe may be measuring the exact return on investment for your business blog. You can spend a lot of time writing, tweaking, doing outreach in the Blogosphere, and still wonder what it all means.

Sure, you’ve got traffic stats. But what do they all mean? If you’re not using a blog to generate ad revenues, then sales are indirect. Indirect is hard to measure with any certainty.

The most important questions to ask are these:

  • “Does my blog do a good job for getting my business found online?”
  • "When people find my blog online, do they stay to read and do they subscribe to come back?”
  • "Will readers grow to know, like and trust me from reading my posts?”
  • “Does my blog make it easy for people to interact with me and use my services?”

Denise and I have invited Chris Baggott, an expert in measuring and tracking blog success for an interview. Won’t you join us? It’s free but you’ll need to register to get the call in number.

Get the Results You Want: How to track, measure and adjust your blog

Read More→

Better Blog Writing: Deadline for Blog Squad Coaching Group

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There’s one seat left for our small coaching group that starts in August; tonight at midnight the early bird discount and bonus offer is off the table. This is an exclusive group for advanced business blogging strategies.

Denise and I will work with you to make sure you get the maximum results for your business blog, whatever your blog goals are.

This is a home-improvement, get-your-keyboard-dirty workshop, no slackers allowed. If you put in the time to improve your blog, you will see results. For info: visit www.theblogsquad.net/BBB.

Online Success in Do-able Chunks with The Blog Squad’s Blogging and Beyond Mentor Program

If you need help with all or parts of your online marketing, (and who doesn’t?) join Denise and I in our Blogging and Beyond Mentor Program. Until May 8th at midnight ET, you can get the help you need on your blogs, newsletters, shopping cart, web writing tasks, and sales processes for less than $10 for the first month. Access tutorials, videos, audio files, and documents that break down the steps you need to follow for online success, plus monthly coaching calls. Details: visit www.theblogsquad.net/mentor.

Articles, Blog Posts, & Writing Ezines

Sign_up Last night Denise and I spoke with Jeff Herring’s (The Article Guy) teleseminar group about differences with article writing, blog posts, and ezine content. Admittedly there is a lot to write when you want to get known on the web, and it can be confusing to newbies.

Let’s break it down. First, you definitely want to be writing on a blog. This is the fast track for getting found by the people who share common interests with you.

And you want to write and submit articles to article directories so that others can find and read your stuff.

Denise and I agree that an article is written in a little different style than a blog post. An article will discuss a problem, expand it, then look at possible solutions. You may wish to include a personal story to illustrate the problem or solution. You may also want to include some statistics or research

Read More→

Blogging Isn’t IT! The Blog Squad Reveals Blogging and Beyond

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.

The REAL Reason I Love Blogging

Just got off the phone with Adam Urbanski, the Marketing Mentor guy, and Denise Wakeman. We hosted a 2-hour teleseminar which was a mini "everything you want to know about blogs" class. When people signed up for the class they were given a $48 discount if they asked us a question, meaning they attended the call for only $1. (An interesting marketing strategy of Adam’s)

The questions, over 200 of them, were great, and got me to thinking about some of the deeper reasons I love to blog. It has to do with this funny little side-benefit that I’ve accumulated in the full year since I’ve started posting onto my 3 blogs.

Here it is: Because I try to come up with new and different content to post 3-5 times a week, I find that I am researching and reading more resources on the Web than before. The side-benefit? I’ve become better informed about my targeted niche of coach ezines and newsletters.

I know more this year about my profession thanks to the fact that I am writing frequently for my blog. My clients are better served for it. It makes my work more fun, because I know more and can handle all the little aspects that can make a big difference for the clients I serve.

[Shameless Self Promo:] If you’re still on the fence about starting a blog for your business, here is an opportunity to peek over Adam’s shoulder as we take him through a 6-week blog training teleseminar:

www.boostyourbizwithblogs.com.

Not that I know it all; there is plenty I still have to learn. But blogging keeps me on my toes, and I am a more knowledgeable professional because of it.

The Truth About Blogs & Your Business

Do you have a burning question about blogs?
Do you have 90 minutes and $1 to spare?

Are you blogging yet for your business? Or, if you are, are you getting the results you want with your blog?

The reason I ask is because I know many of you have heard all the hype about blogging and may be wary to jump in because it is the latest marketing fad.

You’re too intelligent to believe emails that promise you a $10,000 income per month from blogging.

But, make no mistake. Blogs are great for your business… and they can be a big waste of your valuable time if you don’t know how to set one up and use it effectively. Anyone can start a blog, but the fact remains, if it’s not bringing in clients, if it’s not building your business, why bother?

Maybe you don’t know a few key secrets to making your business blog work for you… Here’s your chance to ask.

Next Monday, September 12th, we’ve made special arrangements to get you private 90-minute phone access to the Blog Squad for only $1. On this call we’re going to help Adam Urbanski get started with blogging, and you can peek over his shoulder and learn with him.

* * * Who Is The Blog Squad? * * *

Denise Wakeman and I have teamed up to form The Blog Squad. We have answers to blogging questions you don’t even know to ask yet! We have been blogging for a year, and have 9 blogs between us. We’ve written a how-to guide and work with clients all over the world, helping them set up effective business blogs.   We will have the answers you need to get started blogging now.

Can you make it?

All you need to do to get in for $1 is ask your question on how you can make a blog work for your business, and if you’re one of the first 96 people to register, you’re in! 

If this sounds like a fair trade, just click the link below…

Click this link, ask your question to get in for $1:

http://www.askadamurbanski.com/aboutblogs/

P.S.  When you register you will also get the audio transcript and mp3 audio file for the teleseminar.  This is a $1 investment you can’t afford not to make!