I think bloggers might be the most self-critical people I have ever met. In some cases monitoring our own progress can be a great thing, I expect we have all worked with people who we wish would have cared more about their own performance! But when we routinely beat ourselves up, something has to change….
Why? “Why?” might be the most important question you can ask. Why should someone visit my blog? Why would someone buy from me rather than anyone else? Why ought someone choose this product? Why advertise with me? Why do readers like this over that? Why am I doing this? Why are we in this situation?…
I am getting a bit annoyed with the Hollywood writers strike. Not at the writers but at what people are saying about them. While I do not know any details about what caused the strike, the popular perception seems to be these writers are over-paid already. Some are obviously paid very well indeed, I expect…
Branding and positioning change the marketplace, alter the rules of blogging, and branding your blog is essential if you want it to take off.
I am by no means a wealthy man but I do enjoy living well, given the opportunity. Vezeo is a blog especially for people who have a passion for the finer things; international travel, food, restaurants, and resorts, and either have the means or the aspirations to match. The blog is off to a good…
Twitter is a social site based around the idea of 140 character messages, but it has grown to be much more than that. My relationship with Twitter has mutated over time. My opinion of the service has ranged from true believer, skeptic, objective critic, right up to now which I would describe as “cautious optimist“….
While I often recommend that bloggers “link out generously and often” I don’t take my own advice quite enough so here is a roundup of some links you will love: Is it really 2 years since we launched Performancing? Ryan is doing a fun treasure hunt to celebrate. Want to win $1000? Put a value…
In my last article on Social Media I said getting more Digg traffic means understanding and appealing to the peculiarities of the Digg audience without alienating your own. What do Digg users like? Pro Apple, Anti-Microsoft Pro Open Source, especially Linux, especially Ubuntu Anti George Bush, pro Ron Paul At least half seem to be…
It’s funny but whatever you do, there will always be people who misunderstand you. The more public you make yourself the more you will be misunderstood. In many ways it is our own fault, in different scenarios we wear masks to shield part of ourselves so we feel less vulnerable. Our “work mask”, the persona…
A couple of times this week I have seen great stories get buried on Digg. It happens and it sucks. The thing is we all tend to think our own story is worthy of getting votes. But in many cases I think the people who complain about getting buried the most secretly know they were…
Aaron has a great post about PR agencies in the social media / web 2.o space. Worth a read, if only for the Office Space inspired giggle. Reading this made my brain connect what Aaron had written with a thought I had been having all morning about authenticity. The attraction of blogging and social marketing…
Often clients assume I am always going to recommend blogging but that is simply not the case. I am not going to push blogs as the magic bullet solution because as you know, blogging does not suit every company or individual. In most cases the decision is down to: Will a blog provide significant benefit…
What is wealth to you? What attitudes do you have towards money? Are you attracted and enthused by the idea of business or are your feelings conflicted or negative? A couple of people have told me they get uncomfortable talking about money. In fact reading about business or making money makes them feel uncomfortable. It’s…
While in previous entries of this series I mentioned how the implementation is more important than the idea, no human endeavor in this world happens without someone first having a brainwave. Look around, how many things that we take for granted were some bright sparks moment of inspiration (often followed by years of perspiration). Making…
Digg users are famously hostile. In fact you could say the internet in general has long had a reputation for being hostile. What can we do to avoid the worst? What can be done? This post will probably kiss away any chance of me getting on the Digg homepage again but such is life. I’m…
Making money online need not be something you only dream about. In this series I hope I have given you some ideas and inspiration that show you really can do this. A common theme in feedback though has been an issue of confidence, so let’s address that now.
Making real money online does not happen inside your head, it happens out in the world. If you are like me you will have lots of ideas that never get acted on. We need to go from day-dreaming to doing! In the previous entry of this series I talked about scaling up your operations. How…
Making real money online means breaking out of the limitations you have set yourself. We all constrain our earnings in our own ways. This post is how you can change your approach to earning money and break through your profit ceiling.
In the first part of this series I showed three earning styles. People earn money by working for it directly, creating a business that makes them money or by investing. While there are no rights or wrongs, and most of us actually never leave the first category of working to earn, the best potential for…
I have made many mistakes since becoming a professional blogger and new media consultant but todays post is about the biggest financial mistake I have made and what I am doing about it. What is this big mistake? I am sure it is a mistake many people make but before I describe it, let me…
Teaching Sells? It certainly does! I have long maintained that bloggers can sell by educating and building trust, it is a large part of my AuthorityBlogger concept. Brian Clark of CopyBlogger fame has produced a free ebook telling you why you should have your own product and how to go about it. Whether blogging is…
So was Blog Action Day a success? I feel like it was. My post got a warm response and there was a lot of buzz around the intarwebs. It seems though my comment about the topic getting folks hot under the collar was spot on. I had the worst day for unsubscribes ever! I have…
Blog Action Day is here! It seems like only five minutes since I was invited to join in. From the first mention I thought it was a great idea so I am so pleased the project is already a success with some fantastic blogs and backers involved. This Blog Action Day has been dedicated to…
So you will do-doubt have noticed Darren Gave Away $60,000 of Prizes in a Week. You can already see Darrens conclusions, but after reading his list I had a thought I want to share and get your opinion on. The Problogger give-away was a big success I am sure, and Darren has learned a great…
Do you spend a lot of time obsessing about the technical side of what we do? I am here to tell you the technical side, while important, is NOT your priority.
My first round of October free guest posts are up, a couple even got to the Digg front page 🙂 5 Skills That Boost Your Design Career My Top 5 Biggest Freelancing Mistakes 5 Tips For a Less Stressful Moving House Experience WP_Submission WordPress Plugin Makes Reader Submission Projects and Blog Carnivals Easy Hopefully more…
In the first part of “Buying and Selling Blogs” we looked at ways to see value over and above the traditional income and value of the domain. The next step after looking to see what value is there, is to see what value you can add. It’s just like in the real world of real…
Selling blogs is a growth area of professional blogging. Having said that it’s not just people who want to buy or sell blogs that want to know how to value them. Bloggers often want to compare their progress against others. This is a very difficult question because often you are comparing apples and oranges, plus…
A blog critique for Adii, a designer from South Africa.
I’m still lacking internet access so please forgive me for offloading blogging duties to some links today 🙂 Thankfully there is much goodness around for you to see! seodigger – Find out if your site ranks for searched-for keywords. Nice tool that helps you discover where and what keywords your site shows up for. 22…
You already know how effective guest posting can be for building your profile as a blogger and also driving more visitors to your blogs. There are opportunities for guest posting and then there are also paid blogging gigs out there if you know where to find them. Over the weekend I discovered a third type…
Dear FeedBurner, Let me start by saying I love your service. Of course I have no choice. There are no alternatives. But really, I do love your service. I find it looks nice, is easy to use, and mostly gives me what I need. The main issues I have are in the area of your…
How Do I Increase Traffic to My Blog? What can I do to get more visitors? How should you promote your articles?
I just did my first ever Sketchcast over at Codswallop and I found the experience quite strange. For years my teaching method was to speak while I write and doodle on a whiteboard. That felt natural and fun. For some reason recording my voice while trying to draw didn’t really work for me. Perhaps with…
As I write this I have my family falling ill with a sickness bug all around me. This week we move house. I have work to deliver for a project today and another ongoing project kick-off happening in parallel. On top of all that I have my usual day to day tasks. It’s not going…
[Guest Post] In our rush to post, share, and engage, we may unknowingly make errors that hinder growth and harm credibility.
The other day I wrote about how you can swap services to get help rather than think you have to pay people all the time. This morning I read Jacks My worst nightmare post and it made me realize how they are very related. Rather than write the post I was going to I had…
I just looked through my domain name accounts. There are over 30 unused domains in there. What on earth was I thinking? The problem is I know I will have yet another “brilliant” idea soon and do the self same thing. Get inspired, find a perfect domain name (or maybe not perfect), then sit on…
Are you a “Jack of all trades?”. Very few of us are. It’s rare indeed to find someone with all the skills required to do well in this game. Just check out the jobs and roles I listed in my blogging hats post. There are a lot of things involved in blogging, online marketing, and…
I was asked last night how I think up topics for posts when I am writing freelance or guest posts. It can be tricky but I did come up with an analogy that I think works to explain how I deal with it. Think of each place you post articles to as a different friend….