Here are a few example ideas I came up with that you can use a shared Google Calendar to help promote your web site or business.

• If you are a speaker, publish a speaking schedule. You are probably already doing that through Google Calendar already. Maybe you are publishing the calendar to your website. If you are, people can also subscribe to the calendar via Google Calendars or iCal. Promote and publish those links too.
• Is your site or blog all about soccer? Create a calendar around the different soccer matches either around the world or the locality that your readers are most interested in. Let them know how they can subscribe to that calendar.
• Maybe your visitors are mostly business people or marketers. How about creating a calendar that shows when quarterly taxes are due, a reminder when to start their holiday marketing planning and when to start promoting? Enter the dates and weeks of holidays and observances they can use for promotions.
• Similarly, if your visitors are moms, how about a calendar with suggestions of places to visit, things to do, seasonal reminders or shopping and menu plans.
• If you are a coach. Create a calendar around a program let’s say, a 60 day organizing program that users can subscribe to and they be reminded or things they need to do each day or each week to help them move along.

Use your imagination. Think of the calendar as a free reminder tool for your visitors. Remember that you can enter a link in Google Calendar entries. This can encourage subscribed users to click through to visit your site, an offer or simply lead people to read old but timely posts.

Don’t think it would work? This is the third year I am creating a calendar for bloggers of the many blogging opportunities throughout the year. It is very popular and I get people asking when it will be updated each year. Great tool to keep you in front of your audience at all times through the year as well. You can get a PDF copy of this calendar as an example for your own project. This year, I will be creating both PDF and a online ‘live’ version using Google Calendar.

Image courtesy of yalcin Eren

Lynette enjoys discovering new ways to use technology or new technologies to use in a business and in turn help her clients apply them. You can find also Lynette at her blog, Twitter and Facebook

The program is my 42 Day Launch Incubator.  I created the curriculum last year, led my first group to great success and then made the whole thing available as a self study course.  The group coaching option is only available two or three times a year and I would love to have you join me for this session.

I know that there are literally hundreds of you reading this who have been thinking hard about creating an info product.  I don’t normally put a lot of pressure on you – but I want to apply some right now – fall is a great time to create a new product.

Maybe you want to create something like…

• A Beginner’s Guide to a Frugal Holiday Season
• Ten Simple Steps to Total Computer Security
• Sixteen Homeschool Science Projects Under $10 Each
• Top Blogging Secrets: How The Pros Get More Readers
• Five Videos You Should Star In This Fall And How It Will Help You Promote Your ________.
• Common Social Media Blunders And How To Come Back From Them
• Web Time Wasters: Tips for Getting More Done Online
• Turning a Wipeout into a Win!
• Top Guest Blogging Strategies For Traffic & Profits

Whatever it is that you’ve been thinking about sharing with others, I can help you chunk up the process and get it done at last.

Come check it out.

Before I proceed, the caveat here is that if youre considering starting a direct sales business or are already in DS, please consultant with individual company policies and procedures to determine what methods are permissible for you.

I represent Scentsy and my private website is Thriving Candle Business. Our company is extremely forward thinking when it comes to innovation and ingenuity.  I know there are other direct selling companies who also embrace this philosophy.

My claim to fame (one of them, anyway) is that I have never done a home party or a book party since I started with Scentsy in 2006.  Thusly I know of what I speak when I say that there are plenty of home party alternatives that direct sellers can employ and still be very successful.

Whether you cant seem to get home party bookings or you simply dont have the desire for them, here are some suggestions on other ways you may be able to succeed in your direct sales business.

1. Internet Marketing. If you’re an Internet Marketer, you know of all the various techniques you can use.  The same holds true for direct sales.  If you’re not terribly experienced with Internet marketing but would love to learn, I highly recommend The Complete Internet Marketing Moms Start Up Guide!
2. Vendor Events. Vendor events could consist of a $10 table at a three-hour event or it could be a multiple-day event that could come with a financial investment of hundreds of dollars for a booth.
3. Displays. Set up a small display at a salon, apartment complex, office building, or other location that gets a great deal of foot traffic. We are not permitted to retail out of said locations but are allowed to set up a candle warmer, candle bar, room spray, car candle, scent samples and business cards.  The business owner may want to act as the hostess and collect orders or perhaps customers will just enjoy your products, take a business card and order online.
4. Fundraisers. Ensure it is a win/win situation.  If you can also make enough profit (not just break even) to cover your time and expenses, fundraisers can be a great way to gain additional exposure.  Too often though I see consultants give away the farm to a point where it actually is costing her money to put on a fundraiser with her company  – all in the name of acquiring new potential customers.
5. Advertising and PR. The former comes with a financial investment and the latter is generally free but requires something newsworthy to get noticed.  Both can provide a wonderful boost to your business if targeted properly.
6. One at a time. Most direct sellers will agree that home parties still afford you the opportunity to sell to many in a short amount of time.  If, however, that doesn’t work for you, remember how to eat an elephant  – one bite at a time!

As you see, Direct Sales doesn’t always have to mean One of Those Home Party Deals. Hopefully that will give you a little food for thought and perhaps cause you to take a second look at one of the fastest growing industries today!

I’ve got a line up of really interesting moms who are all doing something to earn an income online.  You’ll get to meet them and you’ll have access to a bundle of really terrific freebies.

Welcome the the WAH World

All the details are here: Totally Free Tuesday

Bartering your valuable skills is a fantastic way to get the products and services you need to move forward with your business goals.  It’s especially attractive with your business budget is tight!

Get What You Need!

Since this is Labor Day Weekend, and since last year’s swap meet was so successful, I think this is a perfect time to revive the fun and open up the comments for you to share what you have to offer and what you’re looking for in return.

Are you a skilled writer in need of a new blog header graphic?  Offer to write a couple of killer articles for a graphic designer in need of content.  Are you a virtual assistant in need of a gift for your best friend’s birthday?  Offer to provide your services in exchange for personal care products.

The options are endless – just make your pitch and see what happens!

Let’s Swap!

Leave a comment below that shares what you have to offer for barter in enough detail that someone can make a decision about it.  If you know exactly what you’d like to barter for, lay that out to.  If you’re not sure, you can say that you’re open to creative offers.

Be sure to include contact information!  Your Twitter user name would be good.

Who knows what sort of swap connections we’ll make this weekend   Let’s go for it!

Yeah, you heard me right.  I’m working hard through the holiday break.  (I’m HUNGRY remember?)

Don’t worry, I’ve got my vacation planned for the following weekend.  I’ll be settling into my lake house with lots of relaxation on the calendar.  (My trusty VA is guarding my calendar to keep it clear.)

I was visiting with my friend and life coach, Aurelia Williams earlier today and shared something pretty exciting.  I’ve already met my goal of earning an extra $1000!  Actually, I made an extra $1200 in just nine days.   That took all of the pressure off of my budget this month and puts me well on the path to my long term goal of doubling my income in nine months.

Some new pressure came to light right on the heels of that as I realized how much I’ll need to put aside for my trip to NAMS in January.  I see that as a good thing – I need to feel the burn to keep my motivated.

I have got a LOT done this past week.  I finished up all of the lessons for my Blog Internship course and got a new group coaching program ready to launch, that’s the 42 Day Launch Incubator.  I’m super geeked about the Incubator.  I’m going to be working with other hungry internet marketers as they create their first (or next) information product in just 42 days.

I interviewed 25+ and selected 12 new interns for the Mom’s Talk Network blogs.  This new group will be getting started after my vacation and I can hardly wait!

It’s been a great week and I plan to make this weekend even more productive.

So you go enjoy your weekend!  I’ll be here if you need me

Small business owner, entrepreneur, freelancer, or solopreneur. Regardless of what you call yourself, you’re busy managing your business and you don’t have time to maintain your online presence.  You need qualified, experienced professionals to help you with your Internet marketing. When you have a question, or need advice, you need knowledgeable people whom you can trust to guide you in the right direction.

As a side note, I’m a big fan of Sparkplugging. Wendy, Kelly, and the rest of the team provide immense value to the small business community and I’ve learned a lot from watching them and working with them as a Sparkplugging Intern.

Since our inception, our Internet Marketing Specialists have helped thousands of small business owners and we’re confident that you, Sparkplugging readers, know what it takes to make a business successful.  You’re dedicated, resourceful and motivated, and we want to help you expand your business.  I’m excited to announce this giveaway to the Sparkplugging readers.

Have a question about Internet marketing?  Ask NetBiz.com. We’ll work hard to give you the best answer possible, as fast as possible.

What Can You Ask NetBiz.com?

We have over 200 employees with experience in Search Engine Placement (SEP, also called Pay Per Click or PPC), Search Engine Optimization (SEO), Web Design, and other forms of Internet marketing. We have extensive experience dealing with industries as diverse as real estate, construction, publishing, consumer goods, consulting, and more.  What’s more, if we don’t know the answer right away, we will find it for you and show you the way.

Where Can You Ask NetBiz.com Your Questions?

• Twitter – Follow us @Ask_NetBiz, then send us an @ or DM and we’ll respond as quickly as possible.
• Facebook -  Become a fan of Ask NetBiz on Facebook and submit questions related to your small business.
• The NetBiz.com Blog – Visit Blog.NetBiz.com to get news and tons of useful information on Internet marketing, search engine news, and get in-depth answers to your most pressing questions.  You can ask questions via the comments section.

Why Is NetBiz.com Doing This?

We want to give back to the small business community.  In business since 2002, we currently have over 15,000 small business owners that we are happy to call our clients.  We recognize the great potential that is small business and we want to do what we can to help it grow.  This question-and-answer service is totally free and is something we plan to implement as an integral part of our business.

How Do I Get The Free Advertising?

All you have to do to win the free Search Engine Placement is follow us on Twitter or become a fan on Facebook and then submit a question about Internet marketing.  It’s that simple.  If you want additional chances at winning, ask multiple questions, or share our Twitter & Facebook pages with others.  Every retweet and Facebook share counts as an additional entry.

The free advertising consists of two months, $500 per month, of Search Engine Placement on Google or Yahoo, customized and targeted to your business and clients.

Deadline to enter: Midnight,  September 20th

If you have any questions, feel free to email us! Ask [at] NetBiz.com

Cory Huff is the Social Media and Blogging Specialist at NetBiz.com, a search engine marketing company based in Portland, OR.  Cory was also one of the original group of Sparkplugging interns.

There are all kinds of great events going on all over the world and I could give a fig about most of them.   But NAMS is proving to be an animal of a different breed and my curiosity is piqued.  After reading comments from many I know and respect, I’ve decided that I just can’t let another NAMS go by.

I can’t sit at home reading tweets from friends who are there – networking, learning and JVing without me!

The next NAMS event is set at the end of January 2010.  It’s located in Atlanta and I’ve just registered to attend so that I could take advantage of the early bird discount. (I saved $500!)

If you’ve been thinking about attending an internet marketing event in 2010, I invite you to consider coming to NAMS.  We can meet and learn together!

And hey, if your seriously considering – seriously consider acting before the end of the month cuz that’s when the early bird price expires.

I’m thrilled to come back and report that I went for it!

I paid a deposit and signed a lease for this great three bedroom house on Otsego Lake.  It’s way cute and sits right on the east shore where it will enjoy all the afternoon sunshine.

The lake house will add significant financial pressure on my monthly budget – so now is where I get ‘Hungry’!

I’m Not The Only Hungry One

On Monday mornings I meet with Mom Masterminds members and other internet marketing women (our meeting is open to the public) for a regular ‘Breakthrough’ session.  This week I declared the theme to be ‘Double the Trouble’ and we talked about wanting to double our incomes.

In Friday’s post I said:

“I know I can make everything I want happen if I want it bad enough. With the right projects and focused attention, anything really is possible.”

After a season of bring pretty laid back about things, I’m working up a sense of urgency and tackling all of my projects with renewed passion.  I’m determined to make every dollar I can, ensuring that I’ll get to enjoy the lake house as much as possible.

In the breakthrough session it became clear that I’m not alone in dreaming bigger dreams and feeling increased levels of pressure about earning a more substantial income.   Again and again, participating members voiced their agreement and excitement about reaching for higher levels.

Our new goals make us remember what it felt like to be new and hungry for success, sparking the idea to claim the title:  ‘The Hungry Women of Internet Marketing‘.  We’re going to be holding each other accountable to our new goals and taking regular action on them over on the Mom Masterminds forum of course.

Several of us have joined Jimmy’s Affiliatenaire course to ramp up our efforts in affiliate marketing and we’re starting up an MMer accountability group right after Labor Day.  We’ll be meeting in my conference room one evening a week to talk over our lessons and brainstorm ways to apply the information.  I’m so excited about that!

You Work Harder When You’re Hungry And When Someone Else Is Watching!

When Mom Masterminds launched back in 2004, we noticed right away that sharing goals and being held accountable for them helped many members to take more action.  That and being able to mastermind with other smart marketers helps you take smarter action

If you’re hungry like we’re hungry, I invite you to join us there!

This after I received an affiliate sale notification from her program.  There’s something pretty inspiring about earning $150 in commission, wouldn’t you agree?

There’s no doubt I love what I do and make a good living at it. One of the greatest things about being an internet business entrepreneur is that there are no limits – and right now, I’m focusing in on that because I’ve decided it’s time to make more money. (And I know I can do it!)

I remember when I first started my online business.  I just wanted to make a couple hundred dollars a month.   Time and experience certainly raised my expectations.  I paid off my debts, left my day job and have enjoyed freedoms I once only dreamed of. 

If that sounds like a sales letter testimonial, I apologize   It’s not meant to – it’s what really happened for me.

What you need to understand though is that the ‘freedoms’ I’ve enjoyed – are pretty relative.  For a single mom who struggled paying the bills for more than fourteen years, just being able to pay them and not worry is a big freedom.  Add in some gadgets and fun and I felt rich!  What can I say?  I’m easy to please.

At least I have been.

Talking in real numbers, I’ve earned between $30,000 and $45,000 a year over the last three.  Less when I was focused on helping family out and more when I was more focused on building my business.  I’m not talking these numbers down – I’m proud of them!  But I know I can do better.

And now I want to.

That’s the key isn’t it?  Being an entrepreneur is about pursuing your goals and dreams. Some people dream perfectly wonderful small dreams and when they are achieved, feel fabulous.  I’ve felt great about my accomplishments so far and quite satisfied with the resulting income.

But lately, I’ve been dreaming about more.

I want to do some more things for me. I want to travel more and drive a nicer car. I want to do more to secure my financial future.

I’m driving up to Gaylord this weekend to look at a vacation house to rent for the next nine months because I’d like to split my schedule between here and there and enjoy more down time.

It sounds dreamy, doesn’t it?

I know I can make everything I want happen if I want it bad enough. With the right projects and focused attention, anything really is possible.

The only problem is that I almost seem to be dreaming at cross purposes with myself.  On one hand, I want to have more great down time in a furnished lake house on Otsego Lake.  On the other hand, to get that, I have to work harder and make more money.

Rethink that… I don’t have to work harder – I have to work smarter.

(Something @aliceseba has taught me a lot about over the years.)

Again, with an internet business – there are no limits.  My websites work for me 24 hours a day.  I wake up every morning to sales notices, both from my own products and from my recommendations for others – most of it is now very passive in nature. (I created some projects years ago and continue to earn well from them.)  If I want to make more money – I just have to create smart new projects and give older projects an artful nudge.

With my years of experience, and a mind open to how our industry is constantly changing, I know I can make my new dreams come true.

I’ve decided that between now and the end of the year I’ll put a lot of focus on affiliate marketing. Why?  Because as an affiliate, I can earn money from products I don’t have to take the time to create.

Like today, when I earned $150 from Alice.  She created the product, I just had to recommend it to my list and voila: one fourth of the cash I need for a deposit on my lake house   Now to do that again and again and again, right?

Time to Amp It Up!

I’m taking Jimmy D. Brown’s Affiliatenaire course.  I signed up a few months back when it first launched and have been tucking the lessons away in my gmail account – sounds like now is the perfect time to pull them out and put them to good use.  Jimmy always inspires me and his learning programs are easy to follow.  I’ve taken his Membernaire course in the past to learn more about running paid membership programs and have since launched two successful fixed term membership programs.

My first goal is to add $1000 to my monthly income.  Then, to reach a regular goal of $10,000 per month.

Anybody want to join me in boosting their affiliate income?  Would love to hear from those who are focusing on the same things right now.

Maybe many of us are tired of free PDF’s that are just gathering cyberdust on our hard drives not because the information isn’t good, not because it is free but because it’s no longer as ’sexy’ anymore. Maybe we have all ‘grown up’ in the manner we consume and share information online. I’m not saying that PDF’s aren’t good or effective and that we must rush to multi-media delivery. Not at all. What I am saying is, maybe the days of black and white text only PDF’s is going if not already gone. That we need to work harder to present our information with professional design and layouts whether they are in written format or multimedia.

I’m not sure. But I know this.

One of the biggest reasons I love my work is because I see lots of potential in utilizing technology for marketing purposes. It is true that everyone of us reading and contributing to this blog already are doing so to a certain extent. After all, for most of us, our business wouldn’t exist without technology – the Internet. But what I’m talking about is leveraging technology beyond the obvious.

It is my believe, that if you can deliver your freebie in the form of a tool – yes, I am talking about software, games, quizzes, plugins, themes, even Stock photo that people can actually use, interact and experience, free is still very much welcomed and works very, very well.

NAMS (Niche Affiliate Marketing System) is a bi-yearly event hosted by founder, David Perdew. The NAMS event was created for the newbie, intermediate and advanced internet marketer seeking to find out in-depth information on how to profit as an affiliate marketer. One of the things that impressed me about David is his integrity and passion for inspiring others to reach their goals by providing a step-by-step system for anyone with a desire to LEARN, COMMIT and (apply) ACTION.

This past weekend included the above and more. I opted for Intermediate classes, however found myself in the newbie classes as well because I wanted to hear what each speaker had to say on both levels.

I chose to attend NAMS for the opportunity to gain additional insight into affiliate marketing as well as to meet people ‘in person’. Having been online for over 10 years, it was time to see people in person, to get a feel for who they really are ‘off’ the computer. Seeing people for the first time was truly an experience that I’ll treasure for a very long time. Everyone was so friendly, hugs were exchanged, private conversations took place, getting to know each other on a more personal level happened all weekend!

Nothing Beats a Live Event

Live events offer the opportunity to talk in a way that’s somewhat challenging via instant messaging or emails and sometimes the phone. I have this thing about looking people in their eyes to see who’s really in there (LOL!), what they’re REALLY all about and I have to say, out of all the people I met there, I saw authenticity and passion along with a sincere warmth towards others.

All attendees were required to sign a NDA (non-disclosure agreement), we aren’t able to discuss the specifics about the event outside of the event. But I will say that the speakers who stood out most for *me* were, Lynn Terry, Willie Crawford, Cindy Dawson, Traci Knoppe (breakout session) and David Perdew because they speak from the heart, not to say that others weren’t good, it’s just that these are the ones who made a lasting impression for me. In other words, they don’t hold back like at some events that you attend that are only designed to tease you and then attempt to sell you various packages from the back of the room. The majority of the speakers were all about (sincerely) helping the attendees understand the topics they were covering and a few setup assignments to be completed before the end of the sessions.

On Friday evening, I had the awesome opportunity to chat with Nicole Dean. Her conversations provide substance. In other words, she’s inspiring, encouraging, motivating and a beautiful person to be around. She helped me realize some things about my business by providing tips and ideas that when applied will produce awesome results. I’m thoroughly grateful for the time spent with her.

The highlight of the event was the video that was created “How to Create Products In Less Than 90 Minutes Using Recordings” that was done right there at the event! It was so cool watching it come together. I think sometimes we make things more complicated than they should be by being analytical, wasting time and procrastinating. Anyway, I’m in the video but the funny thing is that I was talking so fast that I didn’t get a chance to finish my sentence. This is an example of what NOT to do when asked to do a video off the cuff! You can see me in the video, meant to say ‘do teleseminars the right way’!  (I’ve done several teleseminars before), it was a hoot, I couldn’t stop laughing.

A couple of my friends were getting on me about the bluetooth that I kept in my ear all weekend, (I’m ALWAYS available for my customers) but one of the things I learned is how to trust your team to handle things while you’re away… I’m working on it

If you’re wondering if you should attend an event, I encourage you to seriously think about it. What’s your reason for going? What are you looking to walk away with? What can you contribute? What do you need to brush up on? What new things do you need to learn to better your business?

I left NAMS with my mind racing at 100mph! Now to put those ideas into action. Whether you’re a newbie or an advanced business owner, there is always room for networking and higher learning. Willie Crawford spoke a message that I’ll place on my office wall and that is after planning: “The Speed of Execution Is Very Important.”

Regina Baker is the co-creator of Wahmcart and an Ecommerce Solutions Advisor. Wahmcart is a full ecommerce software solution for work at home moms without the huge price tag. She’s dedicated to educating the small business individual (sole proprietors) and companies with ecommerce solutions that will allow them to work smarter, not harder while at the same time providing an affordable solution that the “average” person can afford.

If you ask a question on Facebook, you’ll only get responses from your own network of friends. That may not be a bad thing, yet, I believe in the wisdom of the crowd. I’ve received some really good answers to my questions I get from Twitter come from people who don’t know me, don’t follow me and vice versa.

This is not saying my peeps don’t have good answers. They do but throwing a question out on twitter is like polling the real public whereas asking your fans/friends is like – well, asking your friends which can skew your results depending on what you ask. Anyhow, I’m going down a different rabbit hole here so let’s get back to the point.

Besides asking questions myself, I like to search Twitter. Sometimes it is to find questions that I can answer or write a blog post about. Sometimes, to find people or experts whom I can feature. Other times, to find good stuff to share with others. These are just a few search phrases that can be used to achieve all that.

Find questions to answer or to blog about

• “Does anyone know”
• “Anyone know”
• “How do I”
• “How do you”

To find experts

• “Available for interview”
• “Expert available”

Finding holidays/events to blog about

• “Month is” e.g. “August is”

Looking to hire someone?

• “Hire me”
• “Available for hire”

More search options

If you think you will be searching some of these phrases over and over again, you can also save your search. After you complete your search, just click on the “Save this search” link on the top right corner of your search results list.

If you want to narrow down your search, filter out the noise, consider using these search operators.

Lynette enjoys discovering new ways to use technology or new technologies to use in a business and in turn help her clients apply them. You can find also Lynette at her blog, Twitter and Facebook

Free samples.  Free teleseminars.  Free newsletters.  Free eBooks.  Free Videos. Free Previews.  Free Tips.  Free Consultations.  Free! Free! Free!

Frankly, it’s all been too much.

I’m sure there’s something good in all of these offers, but I don’t have time to sort through all of them.

Yes, our economy is tough and money is tight.  But has the free line been moved too far?

I don’t have a message in all this.  I’m just asking questions – of myself and of our community.  Do we offer too much for free?

Does the word ‘Free’ have the impact that it used to?

Would love your thoughts.

You have no idea how shamed and humbled I feel about that.

I haven’t fallen for a scam since I was 20 years old. I actually sent $18 and a self addressed stamped envelope to get info on stuffing envelopes for pay.  That was pre-internet of course… but the lesson was learned well and I knew I’d never fall prey to anything like it again.  I pride myself on seeing a scam coming from a mile away.

*grumble, grumble*

So, last week I was surfing rental ads on Craigslist.  There was a house that looked like a perfect fit for us at a great price.  I emailed the owner for info and received this email:

Before we begin giving you more information on the apartment we need to know if you are currently up to date with your credit report. Obtaining your credit rating for free is easy, using the following link:

http://uscreditreportcenter.com/creditcheck.php (The process is free and safe and only takes a minute to fill out).

We have had a large number of defaulting tenants who came from Craigslist, so before we can set up an appointment with you we need to verify you are a credible tenant. Once you have completed the application please e-mail us back.

I thought that their request sounded fair… so I followed the link.  When asked to pay $1.95, I thought – ok, why not? I saw the fine print about canceling within three days and planned to do that.

To make a long story short – after giving them my credit card I was routed to a page with info on how to request a free copy of my credit report from another website.

*grrr*

So I felt foolish but I thought to myself, ‘Ok, fine – I was tricked.  That’s not the end of the world. I’ll just call the number and cancel right now and be done with it.‘

But the phone wasn’t answered.

And the fax I sent brought no reply.

And the email I sent was ignored.

And three days later my card was charged $34.97.

*argh!!*

I should also mention that the ‘landlord’ hasn’t replied to any of my testy emails about their little Craigslist scam.  Upon future exploration I learned they’re not really a landlord.  They have a private registration domain for email but maintain no website on it.  I suspect that they’re posting Craigslist ads for awesome looking houses all over the country – all with an affiliate link for the credit report site.

A call to the bank, a few copies of my fax and emails and the money is back in my account.  Oh – and my credit card had to be canceled and reissued which will affect me in a lot of other areas.  It’s a pain in the neck and I’m annoyed that I had to waste time dealing with it. All my own fault of course!

You know what annoys me the most?  An affiliate marketer scammed me. I’m an affiliate marketer!  Call me naive, but I didn’t realize that we had this sort of slimy underbelly in the affiliate marketing community.

It’s just wrong.

I explained their are really four reasons why you must use a business blog in your business.

So today I’ll cover the first one which is getting found online.

The cold hard truth is it does not matter what you’re selling, how pretty your website is or how great of a person you are, if your prospects can’t find you online your business is dead in the water!

There are over one hundred eighty million websites on the Internet so how are you going to cut through all the clutter?

Well lucky for you there are blogs.

Now when I talk about blogs I am referring to self hosted WordPress blogs because this is where my expertise falls.

Sure there are tons of other blogging platforms out there like Blogger, Wordpress.com and Type Pad for example.

But for my money I’ll go with a self hosted WordPress blog every day of the week

You see Google absolutely loves WordPress blogs.

I have seen self hosted Wordpress Blogs get found, crawled and indexed in under five minutes!

You see getting found means getting found by the search engines and getting found by your prospects.

Google loves websites that update their content on a consitent and regular basis.

The more you update your wordpress blog the more often Google vistist your site with it’s bots and indexes your content.

Just  think about it, every time you write a new blog post you’re adding another web page to the internet and just another way for your prospects to find you.

Image you write just three new blog posts a week.

In a month you’ll have an additional twelve pages published to the Internet where you prospects and customers can find you!

Now if most of your competitors only have an old outdated five page HTML website you’ll effectively eliminate your competition from the Google Map!

How cool is that?

WordPress also has a great selection of website extensions called plugins.

I won’t get into a huge discussion in this post on plugins but what plugins do is basically add incredible functionality to your blog without hiring a programmer.

And here’s the best part, the majority of the best plugins are totally FREE!

There are several plugins you can upload to your blog which increase the SEO of your blog specifically the “All In One SEO Plugin.”

Again, it doesnt matter how pretty your website is or what you have to sell, if your prospects can’t find your website you’re in big trouble bubba!

So there you have it, the first reason you MUST use a business blog for your business!

So in my next lesson I’ll share with you the second reason why you MUST use a blog as a marketing tool for your business.

Talk to you soon!

Bill

There is a big difference between Guest Blogging and Article Marketing.

Article Marketing involves you writing an article and making it available to web and print publishers with Free Reprint Rights.  Basically, you tell publishers they can use your content as is so long as they include your author bio with a live link back to your own website.

The articles you write can be used by many different publishers and that is in fact your goal – to see your content spread far and wide, reaching as many eyeballs and building as many links back to your site as possible.

Guest Blogging on the other hand is you writing as a guest blogger for one blog.  The blog post you write is written for the specific blog’s audience.  Typically, that blog post is not published elsewhere – not even on your own website.

There are no hard rules on this but it is generally understood that it is in bad form to take content you wrote as a guest blogger and publish it on another blog or website.

Now I want to know… What do you think?  Do you agree or disagree?

We have all heard them and know that they ring true. So why are some online retailers risking sales by providing less than stellar product images?

Don’t they know that when it comes to online retail, a picture can be worth 1000’s of sales! When consumers shop online they are only able to use one of their 5 senses, sight. You have to show them that your blanket is the softest around, that walking in those shoes is like walking on clouds. Your pictures need to tell a story to draw the consumer to the buy.

To do that you need high-quality, detail specific images. Look at the example below.

What is so amazing about this bag? What information are you getting from this image? Does this image make you want to click that”Add to Cart” button?

Now here we have a series of pictures of a similar bag. You can see inside, you can see the sides and the back and best of ALL you can see how the bag looks on! When it comes to bags this is the one MOST important image for me. I’m a petite girl so big bags look silly on my arm but this single image shows me how it will look.

Here’s another example, which of the two images below grabs your attention. The product alone or the one with the adorable baby!

The product photo with the adorable baby, right? It appeals to your emotions and draws you closer to that “ADD to Cart” button.

You want consumers to click that button and buy your products, so why not take the time to entice them with high-quality, detail-specific images.

In today’s high-tech world, it’s not hard to find a high quality camera that will take stellar pictures. Even the digital point and shoot cameras come equipped with more than 10 mega pixels and most are under $300.

So what if you are not the best photographer? With digital technology you can take 100’s of pictures without spending an extra dime. Invest in quality product images and turn those visitors into buyers.

For more posts like this, visit our eCommerce Blog and don’t miss visiting Stephanie’s BizzieMommy.com

Did you know that it’s possible to see what people are saying about you on the internet?  There are a number of automated tools that will allow you to monitor your name, your company, and other words related to your brand.

If you are in sales or you own a business, monitoring your reputation is crucial.  People are talking about you online, whether you like it or not.  You need to be aware of what’s being said.

There are a few things you can do to set up an automatic monitor that lets you know whenever anyone talks about you online.

iGoogle – Awesome free monitoring dashboard

my iGoogle dashboard for Netbiz

iGoogle is a property that doesn’t get quite the love that it deserves.  While a personalized dashboard is something that the average consumer doesn’t really care about, a customized dashboard that allows you to easily drag & drop tools is extremely useful as a free tool.

We’re going to use this as your reputation monitoring home page.  If you don’t have one yet, go to iGoogle.com and create an account (it will link to any existing Google Account you have like Gmail or Google Calendar).  The default dashboard comes with a bunch of junk that you don’t want, like games & a calendar.  Delete the items that you don’t want by clicking on the little down arrow on the top right of each little biz.

Adding reputation feeds.  On the right side of the page, click on ‘Add Stuff.’  On the next page you’ll be given a bunch of pre-made widgets to add.  Ignore those.  On the left side of the page, below the categories, there’s a link that says ‘Add Feed or Gadget.’

Remember where that is.  We’re going to come back to it.

Next, I’ll go over some automated tools that will track your information.

Google Alerts

Google has a service that monitors news sites, blogs, and a host of other websites and will notify you when anyone mentions whatever words you have set up the monitoring service to listen to.  Go to Google.com/alerts and put your name in for the search terms.  If you have a really common name like John Smith, you might want to add an identifier, like the city you live in or what you do (ex. John Smith Realtor Crossville).  Make sure you put the name in quotes when you do the search so that it doesn’t return people with similar names.  It should look something like this:

“Cor Huff”

“Cory Huff” Blogger

“Cory Huff” Portland

The next screen is where you manage your alerts.  Next to your newly created alert, click ‘Edit’ and change the ‘Deliver To’ column from email to feed.  After that’s done, right click on the little orange icon and copy the link.  Paste that link into the Add Feed or Gadget space in your iGoogle page.

Go back to the iGoogle page home. You should see a little box showing the most recent three notifications.  You can mouse over them to get the full text.

Repeat this same process with the name of your company, the name of key executives, trademarks, and anything else you want to monitor.  Tip: Do the same thing with your competitors.  Knowing what the Interweb has to say about your competitors is enlightening.  You can also do it with important customers, vendors, suppliers, etc, etc….

Tweetbeep

There are several different Twitter monitoring services.  I choose to use Tweetbeep.

Tweetbeep can be set up to send you a daily email with a list of all the mentions of your defined brand on Twitter.  Using the same search terms that you defined above, set up a Tweetbeep alert.

You can also set up Tweetbeep as an RSS feed and add it to your iGoogle homepage just like we did with Google Alerts.  That way you have all of them set up in one place.

Why monitor Twitter?

Twitter is a real time conversation between thousands of people in a public forum.  Even if YOU don’t use Twitter, your customers do.  If you don’t monitor these conversations, it can become a huge headache.  Just ask Johnson & Johnson about the Motrin Moms fiasco.

On the other hand, you can also be proactively grateful when people say appreciative things about you.  If someone says that you rock, you can give them a very public virtual high five – which lets them and everybody else watching know that you are participating in the digital community and that you care what happens.

]]> http://www.sparkplugging.com/sparkplug-ceo/how-to-find-out-what-people-saying-about-you-online/feed/ 6 http://www.sparkplugging.com/sparkplug-ceo/swipe-file-what-is-it-and-why-do-i-need-one/ http://www.sparkplugging.com/sparkplug-ceo/swipe-file-what-is-it-and-why-do-i-need-one/#comments Tue, 21 Jul 2009 15:03:08 +0000 Kelly McCausey http://www.sparkplugging.com/sparkplug-ceo/?p=2458 This is a guest blog post by Alice Seba, the Internet Marketing Sweetie.

The first time I heard the term “swipe file”, I was mortified. For those unfamiliar with the term, it means keeping a folder (whether print or on your computer) of sales copy you like. The point is to refer to it when it’s time for you to craft your own copy.

I know, right?!

Is this really a suggestion to plagiarize? The idea seems totally shocking. But really, that is not what a swipe file is for. A swipe file is truly just an opportunity to study great copy – with the aim of improving your own copywriting skills.

Here are three reasons why you should start your swipe file now:

One of the best ways to improve your own copywriting skills is to be a good student of other great copywriters.

Think about it – does someone become a great musician without studying the masters? True, noone disagrees that getting a foundation in copywriting can come from books. But honing your skills comes from study and practice. This is how you learn how great writers create a compelling story that pulls the reader in, how they make the copy read well and flow seamlessly – and more.

Studying great copy increases your copywriting vocabulary.

When you study good copy, you will begin to see which words and phrases have punch. You can buy lists of “power words” or “power phrases”, but seeing them in action really makes it all gel in your mind.

Remember to use your brain when you use your swipe file.

Target markets and products differ. What speaks well to men in their 30s may not work when you’re speaking to grandmothers. There is often some specific logic in using a particular angle, wording, etc. in copy – and you need to understand WHY things are done in certain ways. Both in study and in practice, these things will become more obvious to your eyes.

Are you working on your swipe file yet? If not, start keeping your eyes peeled for great sales copy to add to your file.

Improve Your Copywriting Skills AND Sell More to Your visitors the FIRST Time They Visit: Click here to take the quiz.