Selling Domain Names for Fun & Profit With Flippa

One of the few methods of making money online that I hadn’t tried yet is selling either domain names or full websites…until recently.  I just sold a domain name I thought I’d use for a small side business (an idea that just didn’t work out).  It was a pretty simple process and everything went smoothly thanks to a few simple tips I kept in mind.  Here’s a quick summary of my experience selling that domain and a few things you’ll want to know before selling any of yours.

(more…)

My Experience Using Textbroker

I’ve been meaning to do a quick update with my thoughts on www.TextBroker.com.  I started using this service a couple of weeks back for some of my content creation on a few affiliate sites I have.  And I have to say, I found their service a breeze to use and in the end, I wound up with some super quality content in minimal time with minimal cost.  Here are the details.

(more…)

A Quick and Simple Tip for Getting More From Your Current Traffic

I was working on one of my affiliate sites that I’ve neglected for awhile.  I’m not a huge fan of affiliate marketing as a primary way to build a business, but I do have a few affiliate sites out there that make enough of a trickle of cash to make them worth keeping around.  The question I had the other day was, “What could I do to improve on that trickle and better monetize the site”.  Here’s a simple idea that you may want to use too.

Nothing fancy, just something that falls into the category of things that are “almost too simple to work”.  (more…)

5 Steps to Quick and Easy Outsourced Content Creation

I’m working on a new website project that’s basically an affiliate content site.  More on that a little later after some testing.  In the meantime, I needed to get some good content created quickly and decided to test out a new service I heard about called TextBroker (direct link).

(more…)

Never Underestimate How Much You Already Know

I’m working with a client who is in the process of creating and selling an ebook online as a way to transition her business from a purely offline model to a mix of online and offline.  At the same time, I’m also working on a few little side projects of mine, also focused on ebooks and other digital products.  What’s interesting is that it’s made me realize how much we really know (and take for granted) as Internet marketers.  Here’s a quick list of things that will seem like no-brainers to most of you.  But to your average person unfamiliar with direct response marketing, online marketing or nose-to-nose sales, it seems like a mountain of information to get through (and it is).
(more…)

Every Once in Awhile You Just Need a Do-Over

So I just got back from a great conference in Atlanta and one of the first things that was said was that we’d probably hear or learn something during the next few days that caused us to call a “do over” in our business.  What’s cool is that since we’re all business owners, we can call a do over anytime we want.  I think it’s time to call a do over with this site. (more…)

Getting the Most Out of Blog Comments, Forum Posts and Other Community Sites

There’s no doubt that you already know how valuable it can be to leave comments on other blogs, forums and so on as a way to get people to your site. These are just a few methods for generating targeted traffic and demonstrating your expertise on a particular topic. In addition, despite what some people might think, blogs and forums can be great ways to get new ideas for your own content or to find solutions to challenges you’re facing in your business. But there’s a right and wrong way to go about it, and I’m not just talking about common sense stuff like “don’t SPAM people”. Here are three ways you can use these types of sites and some ideas to keep in mind to get the most out of them and not annoy people in the process. (more…)

An Offline Tactic for Online Business

It’s funny how many good ideas are all around us, if you keep your eyes open. I was recently doing some work on the house, taking care of some summertime projects and such. While looking around on the Lowe’s website (that’s a hardware store for those of you not in the US), I noticed they had a really cool content idea that could be used in plenty of other businesses too. Here’s what I found.

(more…)

Tips for Creating the Ideal Business

The more and more I evolve as an entrepreneur, the more I learn about what I do and definitely DO NOT want from a business.

Keep in mind that there are a number of ways to make money, especially online. We really are lucky…don’t take what you know for granted. No matter how new you are to this online business “stuff”, you already know more than most of the people out there in the regular world. Most people don’t even think “internet” when they think “business”. They’re still focused on big companies that require huge budgets, have high overhead and are glorified J-O-Bs, rather than the time-freeing activities we’re all working on. (more…)

Let’s Talk About What YOU Want to Hear About

I’ll keep this post pretty short but I wanted to let you know about this cool little tool I just added to the site. You can see it on the right hand side, just under the optin form.

It’s called Skribit and it allows you, the blog visitor, to suggest topics you’d like to see written about here on the site. Or you can vote on suggestions that others have already added.  Pretty cool, eh?

A couple of cool things about this. First, it’ll just make the site better all around, since using this is an easy way to let YOU drive the content.  And of course, on my end, it’s just one more thing to help avoid writer’s block. Like I said, a win-win for everyone.

Why not give it a shot right now while you’re here? Just three quick steps:

1. Click on the question show at the top of the Skribit box in the sidebar.
2. Type in your suggestion/answer into the blank space (100 character limit)
3. Click the “submit” button

Hey, you can even do it anonymously.

Looking forward to your feedback.

Kenton

One Simple Question to Guide Your Online Business Success

I’ve taken the plunge and jumped on the Twitter bandwagon, along with some other social networking sites…more on that in a minute.

But first, a quick story.  As I was reading some of the posts on my Twitter page, I noticed one from John Reese where he was responding to one of the people following his twitters…or twits….or whatever they’re called.  Anyway, this guy had a really great question and it’s one that I’ve wondered about for awhile. (more…)

Excuse #5: I Don’t Have Money for Learning, Basic Setup, Etc.

This common excuse for not starting your online business is hopefully one that’s easy to overcome.  However, for some, it might be a legitimate excuse, so I offer some suggestions for how to do things "on the cheap" in the short blurb below.  Take a look…

Excuse #5: I don’t have money for learning, basic setup, etc.

For some people, this may be a legitimate challenge.  After all, ANY business has certain costs involved and an online business is no different.  But for most people, it’s a PERCEIVED challenge.  When you figure out what’s actually needed in order to get your online business up and running, and you really run the numbers, the costs aren’t that much.  You’ll probably want to have the following:

• a domain name ($10)
• a free webpage editor like NVU ($0)
• a low cost web hosting account ($15/month)
• an autoresponder account through AWeber ($20/month)

In fact, you could skip those first three, get a free blog account at Wordpress.com, and add your autoresponder there instead.  But you have to be building a list (a topic preached ad nauseum, to be covered here another day).  You could technically get rid of the need for AWeber too, and just use one of the freebie email list managers.  But it’s so critical for your business that it’s one of the last things I’d consider skimping on.

As for the rest of the costs? 

Time.  Rolling up your sleeves and getting to work.

Creating content…adding value. 

Creating a place online where people can go where, when they leave, they’re BETTER OFF than when they showed up. 

They know a little more, have answers to some burning question, or otherwise "got something out of it". 

What can you teach someone today or show someone today that will leave them better off than when they started their day? 

Doesn’t take much money to do that.

Excuse #6: I’m Not a Good Copywriter

Here’s another item from our list of common excuses for not getting your online business up and running.  Pretty easy fix here, but will take some time over the long haul.

Excuse #6: I’m not a good copywriter

This is a skill you’ll probably want to learn.  But…

Don’t buy any infoproducts on the subject yet…the price will be pretty high for most of them. 

Instead, head over to Amazon.com and pick up a handful of the best copywriting books.  Here are a few I recommend:

• Words That Sell (and others in the series, including the spin off – Phrases that Sell)
• Web Copy That Sells by Maria Veloso
• The Online Copywriter’s Handbook by Robert Bly
• The Ultimate Sales Letter by Dan Kennedy
• Note: If you have any other suggestions, just leave a comment below

I have a few copywriting infoproducts and some books too.  Other than the case studies, swipe files and a few little extras here and there, the major portion of what’s in the infoproducts can also be found many books…certainly the basics. 

Bottom line is the books will get you 80% there. 

One thing to keep in mind about learning copywriting is that by doing so, it can make you better at selling your product or service in other types of media…like helping you figure out what to say in an audio or video, what to put in your resource box for your articles, writing pay-per-click ads, and so on. 

All of those things can be based on skills you pick up as you learn to write effective copy. 

But it shouldn’t be something that causes inaction in the beginning.

P.S. (Bonus Tip) – Start keeping an eye out for headlines, blog post titles, article titles, bullet points (which should also be headlines) and other copy that appeals to you.  Then, create a swipe file and start adding examples to it.  Turn them into fill-in-the-blank templates and use them for your own headlines, content titles, etc.

Website Content Ideas: 7 Templates Every Blog Owner Oughta’ Try For Effortless Content Creation

Stuck for ideas for what to write for your next article or blog post?  Here are a few time-tested, proven templates for content ideas that will work for any market.

1. Tips – A post/article covering a list of tips, strategies, etc. for a particular topic.  Tips for getting more traffic from YouTube, tips for raising happier, healthier kids, etc.
2. How-To / Steps – Similar to the above, but in the specific order you’d need to follow to complete a certain task, and likely more detail than just a set of tips
3. Lessons Learned – At some point, we’ve all zigged when we should have zagged.  These can be great fodder for an article or blog post.  Not only would it highlight the mis-step that was taken, but would also include what was done to get back on track (and how your readers can avoid doing something similar).
4. List of Resources – This could be a general list of resources on a given topic (cool sites you’ve found, etc.) or resources that help someone accomplish a specific task
   (5 resources to learn more about ____).  Just be sure not to limit yourself to only online resources.
5. Back to Basics – Nearly any topic can stand to have a "back to basics" or
   "_______, 101" series of articles or blog posts.  Hopefully you’re in a market where there’s a constant influx of new people…so they’ll really need that sort of info.  But even the "old timers" could stand a refresher every once in awhile.  There’s a difference between "knowing" and "doing" and often times a back to basics article reminds us of where we’ve been slacking off.
6. Pros and Cons – If you’re in a market where there are several competing options, products, services, or methods of doing something, a pros & cons article can be a great framework for an article or post.  Pros and Cons of hosting your own blog versus using a free service.  Pros and cons of organic dog food for your puppy.  Etc.
7. FAQs – Again, with the idea of providing great content to your readers, a frequently asked questions article or post is an excellent choice for just about any market.  You can either survey your visitors and use that as the basis for your FAQs or simply find places where your market hangs out (online or offline) and find out what the most common questions or concerns are.

Six New Reasons Why You Need to Use Aweber

It still baffles me why some people don’t use Aweber for their online business.  I’m not sure if the same is true for you, but I know most of the lists I’m on that come from some of the other popular services all end up in my SPAM folder.  Not cool!  Especially when you realize that your subscriber list is the part of your business with the real value (unless you destroy your relationship with them). 

Someone could take all your products, delete your blog, even destroy your computer, but you’d probably land on your feet as long as
you were able to keep your subscriber list.

(Hmmm…reminds me I better be sure to pay my Aweber bill).

Anyway, one other great thing about Aweber is that they give out so much valuable info on their blog.  Good lessons to learn for how to use AWeber and how to provide great content to help people use your product. You should subscribe to their RSS feed or email list if you haven’t already.

One of the things they’ve been posting about recently are at least 6 new analytics features being added to AWeber .

You can read about them here:

• New AWeber Analytics Sneak Peak (Part 1)
• New AWeber Analytics Sneak Peak (Part 2)

Now you’ll be able to track the unique number of users opening your email (right now it’s just a raw total, including duplicates).  You’ll also be able to track actual sales that come from your email campaigns, and even more features.  Check it out. 

And if you’re not using Aweber to manage your email lists, seriously, why not?  I mean, they offer the best:

• Deliverability
• Features
• Ease-of-use
• Killer support
• Ongoing education and tips to improve your campaigns

And it’s all dirt cheap.

Take a look at the cool new stuff they’re adding.

And if you agree that it’s time to get serious & make the switch or get your account started, then sign up here for a free test drive  (at the bottom of the following page)

Stop Taking Care of Your Customers and Maybe They’ll Leave You Alone

(Want to keep your buyers from looking like this guy? Read on…)

There seem to have been quite a few blog posts recently on the topic of customer service…like Terry Dean’s post here & Ed Rivis’ post here.  I figured I’d chime in on this topic too. 

Most of us would probably agree that it’s pretty crazy to think you can totally ignore customer service or completely leave it up to automated systems.  For some issues, you’ll need a person in the loop (but no, it doesn’t HAVE to be YOU).

It seems like too many people online try so hard to be completely inaccessible…no contact info, email, phone number…NOTHING!  With the Internet being a pretty impersonal media to start with, that strategy seems like shooting yourself in the foot.  So much for know, like and trust.

Not that you should allow your support system to go completely out of control and turn into a free coaching program.  But it just makes good sense to offer some basic level of support to help people if needed.  This is especially true if you’re offering software, but still applies across the board for all of us online if you have any sort of product or service.  People expect a bare minimum of support in case issues come up, especially if they’re shelling out their cash for your products…and it’s not that difficult to offer. 

Just taking the extra effort to have an easily accessible, OBVIOUS frequently asked questions page or knowledgebase that people can search at their convenience is a good start…maybe good enough.  The point is, you got them to your site and have them as a customer now.  You either paid for the traffic with cash or with time.  So you may as well do what you can (within reason) to KEEP them as a customer.

On a side note, one other thing people seem to overlook with this whole "inaccessibility" thing is how on Earth are non-customers, but potentially good business contacts supposed to contact you? 

What if someone wants to partner with you on a project, give you an outlet for some good PR, or other opportunities that would help further your business?  Then again, maybe some people don’t want that sort of exposure.

I had an idea for an interview I wanted to do with a handful of people awhile back.  But I tabled the idea when I discovered not ONE of them had an obvious way to contact them on their site.  Sure, I could have done a WHOIS lookup and gone all stalker-style, but do you really think MOST people are going to know to do that?  Or take the time to do that?

I’ve always had a means of contact on this site (since I started actively posting that is).  Just click the contact link here or at the top of the page. 

You’ll see that I recently changed from a plain ol’ contact form to a support ticket system, and there are several very important reasons for this:

1. To handle all support issues / contacts at once & easily track the back-and-forth
2. To offer support across all my products/sites, including some new projects in the works
3. To add info to an easy-to-use KnowledgBase so people can self-help before needing to submit a ticket (yes, I know it’s empty now, but I’m getting there)
4. So I can easily outsource some of these tasks to contractors, etc.

The software I chose isn’t free, though there are free alternatives available.  Oh, and there are a few things I wish it did, like automatically adding email replies to the correct ticket, sort of like what some of the more expensive solutions do.

But hey, that’s a pretty minor downside and a whole lot of upside.  And I can say from an admin perspective, it’s pretty easy to setup and use.  I’ve also used this software to get support for products on other sites and can say that from a user’s perspective, it also works like a champ.

So if your online business use a streamlined, user-friendly support system, then this software gets my "green light" and you should check it out.

But DON’T buy this if you don’t have any products or don’t need to provide customer support yet.  Focus on other stuff first…it’ll still be around when you actually need it.

Oh, you can see a working demo of the admin area and get more info here:

Customer Support Software demo and more info

The Fine Art of Focus – Just Because You CAN Doesn’t Mean You SHOULD

It still amazes me how much opportunity there is out there.  With a handful of low-cost tools, a little know-how and the right attitude, people can jump on all sorts of great opportunities.

But there’s the problem…soooo many opportunities!

I’m pretty good at filtering these things out now, based on some rules I’ve come up with for what sort of projects I’m willing to take on.  But every once in awhile, something sneaks in under the radar.  Then it’s a day spent ooohing and ahhhhing over how awesome that such-and-such idea would be…how we could do this, how we could do that…you get the point.

That’s why it’s best to come up with some rules for what you will and (more importantly) WILL NOT do.  Like the title says, just because you can doesn’t mean you should.  There are a million and one ways to make a buck, online or offline.  But that doesn’t mean you should jump ship off your current project just because something comes along that looks better and that also matches your skills, interests, etc.

For example, just because you know how to create ebook, DVD, or CD graphics doesn’t mean you should setup shop and start doing that for a living.  Maybe you should, but maybe it doesn’t fit in with what you’re looking for.  It may take too much time, or you may not want something that’s strictly based on the amount of time you put in, etc.  Then again, it may be so enjoyable for you (or so profitable) that it makes sense, at least in the short term.  It could be a short-term strategy in lieu of working a job – a way to bridge the gap from employee to business OWNER (emphasis on owner, rather than self-employed DO-er).

Another example…maybe the idea has an unpredictable income stream, like Google AdSense.  You might decide that letting Google (even potentially) impact your ability to keep the lights on makes for bad strategy.  Hmmmm…don’t want to end up like this guy.

So what’s on your list of "I won’t do that for money" things that helps you keep focused when new ideas come along?

Don’t have a list?  You should probably make one.

Have a list? Feel free to leave a comment below.

One of the Best Content Sources for Infoproduct Creators and Affiliates

Content creation for your online business is one of the biggest stumbling blocks many of us face.  I have to admit, sometimes I still find it challenging to come up with good content ideas.  If you feel the same way, maybe this little tip will help.  This is especially useful if you create and sell your own infoproducts or promote affiliate products.  Sorry, can’t say there’s any rocket science here.  No "ninja tricks" or secret sources for push-button article writers.  But since I just had this "DUH" moment, I thought someone else might find it useful too.

Take a look at the product you’re promoting.  If you’re an affiliate, hopefully you have a copy of the product or have used it in the past.  If it’s your own product, then you’re already in good shape.  Read through it, watch it, listen to it or whatever.  As you do that, take note of any times when you mention lists of items, resources, tips, etc.  I mean literally take notes as you go through the thing.  Also, take a look at the sales letter.  Pick out any bullet points that lend themselves to lists of "stuff" you could talk about without giving away the entire course.

Then, create articles, blog posts or other content based on those lists.  Talk about what the product does, what’s in it for the customer if they buy it, the problem that it solves or give an overview of the tips included in the product.  You may or may not want to include everything that’s mentioned in a particular list.  What if you create a series of articles about this product?  All of them together may give away so much info that no one needs to buy the product.  However, your article should still cover enough to be of value…the person should be better off after reading your article than they were beforehand.

Two quick examples:

1. Say you have a course about online video.  You have a section that covers 10 ways you can use online video on your website to boost conversion.  You could easily create an article that outlines some (or all) of those recommendations…places people should test video within their sales process.  But in your course, you may also include "what to say in the video" or some other bit of info that would make the job easier – and that people will likely also want to know (rather than figuring out through trial and error).
2. Or maybe you offer a dog training course.  You could easily create content covering the most common training problems for new dog owners, with one problem covered in each article/podcast/blog post.  But of course, you have 101 training techniques included in your product, including recommended training tools, resources and so on…which you can recommend at the end of your article.

The end result is content that, on it’s own, contains valuable information that someone can actually do something with (not just a bunch of fluff).  The idea is NOT to just create a mini sales letter.  So that’s the obvious benefit to the reader, but here’s how it benefits you:

• It gives you a natural way to include a good call-to-action at the end of your content to mention your product as a way to find out more about that topic
• It helps educate your target market about why they should consider buying your product (e.g., in example #1 above, maybe the reader doesn’t realize how much online video can help).  So you also get an educated customer, which is a better customer.

Like I said, simple enough and probably nothing new.  But I was shocked at how many content ideas I came up with just by going through my own stuff again.  Hopefully that will help you promote your products (or affiliate products) too.

P.S. – This same idea can be used to promote the freebie you’re giving away to build your opt-in list too.  Can you think of any other uses?  Leave a comment below.

A No-Brainer Offer and a Lesson Learned

I just checkout out James Brausch’s blog and it looks like he’s rolling out another newsletter.  If you read any of the stuff on his blog, you’ll see that he’s a big advocate of testing and tracking different aspects of your site in order to boost conversions (among other topics).  I guess he feels testing is so important that he’s devoting an entire newsletter JUST about testing.  You can find out more about it via that link.

Of course, I’m posting this so I can get my free "premiere" issue…James, looking forward to reading the first issue.  Thanks for the offer.

Now that that’s out of the way and since I’m here, maybe I can make this a value-added post for you too.

Here’s my big takeaway from what James has done with his testing newsletter and something for you to think about:

Are there any subtopics in YOUR market that you know enough about (or could learn about) that could justify creating your own newsletter?

If you’re in the online business market, do you know a good deal of info about affiliate marketing, creating information products, article marketing or any of the other subtopics that make up this little corner of the Internet?  Why not a focused newsletter on only that topic?

If you’re in a different market, what subtopics are hot within that market? 

Maybe you’re into real estate investing and could have a focused newsletter just covering investing in duplexes (I’d probably want to know about that if anyone does it).  Or investing in land…I have a coaching student who could run with that idea.   

Or maybe your prospects are really into car audio systems, so you could do a newsletter just about designing your own speaker enclosures.

The list goes on and on, but if you know your market, it shouldn’t be too tough to come up with a couple of ideas.  Then maybe focus your blog posts on just that topic for awhile, see how people respond, and if it looks like the idea has legs, transition over to a paid newsletter format instead.

Just a thought.

By the way, that offer for the complimentary first copy of the Testing Newsletter ends pretty soon.  If you want a copy, all you have to do is post to your blog just like I did, with a link back to the same post that I linked to above (see James’ site for full details).

If you don’t have a blog, you may be out of luck on this one.  This is just another reason to have a blog – here’s my course that shows you exactly how to set one up (another no-brainer offer).

www.BusinessBlogMastery.com

Simple Solutions For the Content Creation Roadblock Nearly All Online Business Owners Face

Ever find yourself with writers block when it comes to creating content (articles, blog posts, multimedia content, etc.)?  If so, here are a few sites you might want to keep an eye on for idea generators for creating content.  Remember, no STEALING people’s stuff…use these sites for idea creation, NOT your own personal swipe file.  Don’t be a knucklehead!  Okay, nuff said.

1. TrafficJam.com
The newly-released flipside of the Blogrush network (similar to how Adwords and Adsense are two sides of the same coin).  Regardless of what you may think of the traffic you get (or don’t get) from the Blogrush network, TrafficJam looks like it has the makings of a pretty decent site for researching your market.  One thing to keep in mind though is that the categories are pretty broad, so you may need to drill down into multiple categories to find different ideas that are relevant to your topic.

2. Article Directories
While some people argue how useful it is to submit to article directories, they can still be a good place to brainstorm ideas for new content.  Of course, the idea is NOT to just go in here and pull someone’s article and use it on your site (even though that’s generally okay).  Nor is the idea to rewrite their article in your own words to avoid linking back to their site (which is sketchy at best). 

Instead, simply use the titles and general themes you see authors writing about as ideas for your own content.  If you’re in the online business market and see an article covering "10 Tips for Getting Traffic From YouTube", maybe you can come up with your own list of however many tips you know of.  Or write more detailed, individual articles on each of your tips.  Or take the opposite stance and write about why you may not want to get traffic from YouTube (huh?).  The list is nearly endless, just us a little imagination and you’ll come up with tons of great ideas.  I’d recommend EzineArticles.com, Buzzle.com and ISnare.com.  The others probably aren’t worth the time.

3. About.com (or other Mega-Content Sites)
If your target market is featured as one of the categories on About.com, this can be a fantastic way to brainstorm content ideas.  For instance, I had an online store I was trying to create content for.  One of the articles posted on About.com was something like "The Top 10 {topic} Gifts This Holiday Season".  Great idea.  I just wrote my own article similar to that, based on what had been selling well in my store and would make good gifts.  That could have spawned other articles based on specific holidays or other occasions.  Again, it’s just about finding the IDEA, not swiping someone’s entire article.  I didn’t sell some of that stuff in my store anyway so that would have just been stupid.

4. Technorati.com / Google Blog Search
Want to know what other bloggers are writing about?  Why not check out Technorati.com or Google’s Blog Search and look for other blogs in your market.  Using either of those services, you can find related blogs in your market and get a feel for what the hot button issues are.  For instance, if you’re in the online business market, you could use mine a an example.  I just posted an article about "The 5 Reasons Why You Should Upgrade to the New Version of Camtasia Studio".  Maybe you really agree, but have a different set of reasons.  Maybe you think I’m nuts and that there’s no reason to upgrade.  Maybe there’s another useful piece of software you could highlight the most important features of, either in an article or video.

5. Google Alerts
Want to know when Google finds new information about your market?  Just setup a Google alert and get emailed anytime Google finds new pages referencing your keywords.  This is great if there are specific terms, products, authors, etc. in your market that you’d like to follow.  I have alerts setup for things like "camtasia" because I work with that program quite a bit, as well as for a few other software tools.  If there are specific terms in your market that you need to keep tabs on, Google Alerts is that way to go.

6. Yahoo Answers / Google Answers
How about finding out what sort of questions people are already asking about your subject?  How powerful would it be to be able to answer those questions with a quick video, special report or other content that gets people to your site?  You can check out Yahoo Answers and do just that.  If someone’s asking about it there, other people in your market or viewing your  content online are probably wondering the same thing.  And even if some of the questions are closed, they can still be good fodder for coming up with content ideas.  The same goes for Google Answers…a good source for ideas.  But it’s been closed for some time now, so you won’t find any new questions being asked there.  Depending no how fast things change in your market, that might be a show-stopper for using this site.

7. YouTube, etc.
Checking out the top-viewed videos in your market on YouTube or other video sharing sites can give you some great ideas for what people are looking for and what’s of interest right now in your market.  And of course, if you can’t find ANY videos in your market, that might be a warning sign that there’s just not that much interest.  See what’s popular, who’s creating that content, and what else they’re up to.

8. Big-Boards.com / Forums
A lot of people bash on forums, but I think you’re absolutely NUTS if you’re not tapping in to these valuable research sources.  You definitely want to find forums where people are talking about your topic (either forums you already know about, that you find on Google, or through a site like big-boards.com).  Much like Yahoo Answers, you can get a good idea of what’s on people’s minds right here and now.  Not only that, but you can provide useful answers and content for people.  If you see the same question coming up over and over, why not create a free special report or other high-value content that answers that question?  Then add that to your signature and offer it for free, or to build your optin list.

Bonus Tip: Use RSS feeds or email updates to stay on top of all these sites
You’re going to find a LOT of sources as you’re searching online.  One of the easiest ways to keep tabs on all these great sources is to subscribe to each site’s RSS feed (hopefully they have one available…nearly any blogs do and many forums do too).  For other sites, see if there’s a way to sign up for email updates.  The point is to be able to get updates PUSHED to you, rather than you having to go out to each site periodically to see what’s new.

Coming Soon…
We’ll go over what to do with all these great ideas and how to keep everything organized in a future article so you can maximize the use of your content.

In the meantime, do you have  any favorite research sites?  Leave a comment below…

~Kenton Newby

Focusing on Leverage

I would say that at least once a week (if not more) I hear someone talking about some job or money related thing that just points out the fact that most of us don’t really focus on building leverage.  The other day, I heard some people talking about how the latest round of promotions in their office were pretty thin since funds for the organization were cut.  Therefore, fewer people got promoted…better luck next year.  Comments like, "Well, that’s life" were all that was offered as the passed-over employees went back to the grind.

Instead of worrying so much about being "given" a promotion, most people would be better off if they used their natural skills and talents to go out and "generate" additional income (or, horror of horrors, develop new skills that allows them to do so). 

It doesn’t matter if it’s done via affiliate marketing, an infoproduct business, making/selling crafts from home or providing some sort of service (though I obviously have my own criteria for choosing among those options).  To some extent, the vehicle used doesn’t really matter.  What’s important is to have some sort of additional income stream that can help you bridge the gap between how much you make now and how much you’d like to be making. 

Ideally that income stream will grow to the point that it can replace what you make from your current employer but will also be systemized so it requires little to none of your time to keep running (so YOU don’t have to be part of the equation).

Why is that?  Is it because of laziness or wanting to take advantage of the work done by others?  Hardly! 

The hard, cold fact is that at some point, you’re not going to be able to do whatever the "thing" is that you do now (or you just flat out won’t WANT to do).  Why not guard against that by setting up that additional income streams now?  Not "multiple streams of income"…just ONE thing.  The former is just an excuse for lack of focus.

This whole trading time for money thing is a bit ridiculous sometimes.  I heard a guy that’s about to "retire" talking about moving to New Mexico.  I guess they pay nearly the same amount there as they do in Washington, DC for his particular job but the cost of living there is much less.  So he commented that maybe he’d work there once he moved, doing the same sort of thing he does now but after he "retired"…presumably because the pay was so great. 

But my question is why would you want to CHOOSE to spend your golden years slogging off to some job, trading even more of your "more-precious-than-ever" time for money, rather than enjoying yourself?  Instead, why not use all that you’ve learned over the last 30-something years and find a way to make that experience work for you, perhaps in the form of coaching, consulting, creating an informational how-to guide or some other "thing" that gives you freedom of time and freedom of location?

Oh well, to each his own I guess…

Six “Einstein Woulda’ Done This” Reasons for Starting an Online Business

No intro on this article…let’s just get right to it.  If you’re thinking about starting an online business or are wondering if this "Internet stuff" is the right path for you, here are some killer reasons why you should rest at ease and know you’ve chosen the right business.

1.  Low Overhead

An online business is one of the few businesses with incredibly low overhead.  You don’t need to hire a huge number of employees, you don’t need to rent office space or stock inventory.  Instead, your online business can run nice and lean, with only web hosting and a few other expenses that are absolutely required.  Anything more is optional.

2.  Run From Anywhere in the World

As long as you have an Internet connection, you can operate your business from anywhere in the world.  There are some huge advantages of this, not the least of which is the freedom of location that this type of business gives you.  Why build a business that forces you to be stuck in one location or that makes it difficult to move to a new area because you’d have to start from scratch finding new customers all over again?  You won’t be dealing with any of these issues as you build your online business.

3.  Allows You to Leverage Your Skills, Talents and Interests

This relates mostly to information products, but affiliate marketing and other online business strategies can come into play here too.  When building your online business, you can focus on markets that you’re interested or have experience and use that know-how to create tons of great content.  That can include your own information products, articles, videos, podcasts, special reports and so on.  The whole web is based on content and if you’re able to tap into something you enjoy and create great content around that topic, you’ll be setting yourself up for success.

4.  Earn Additional Income or Full-Time Income

Of course, this is what we’re all looking for, right?  A way to earn additional income or even a full-time income via the Internet…to get out of the Rat Race and so on.  Having an online business is clearly one of the best strategies for reaching this goal, for many of the reasons mentioned above.  And by building an online business that brings in additional income, you’re able to hedge yourself against uncertain financial changes, market trends and other curve balls life tends to throw our way from time to time.

5.  Can Be Started Part-Time

This is one of the best things about an online business, especially for the "Average Joe"…it can be started part-time.  In fact, it SHOULD be started part-time.  And once it’s up and running, it really shouldn’t be a full-time effort.  Otherwise, that’s just another JOB.  An online business doesn’t require you to "man the fort" for certain hours during the day, to answer phones, or to be instantly accessible.  Sure, you need to provide customer support for your buyers, reply to emails, take care of the occasional return and so on.  But online, there’s not the same expectation that you’ll be instantly accessible as in the case of an offline business (where you might be "leashed" to a cell phone…UGH!).  This allows you to batch your support tasks to take care of them all at once or outsource those tasks altogether.  Product creation and content creation can also be done relatively quickly and during times that are most convenient and productive for you.  This is perfect if you’re still working a job and have limited time to devote to your business.

6.  Plenty of Income Strategies to Choose From

Online business is such a broad term and it’s important to realize that there are several income models that make up the whole "online business" arena.  Here are just a few off the top of my head:

• You can create information products based on your own knowledge
  (or info you learn through a little bit of research)
• You can recommend other people’s products and earn a referral fee as an affiliate
• You can create content sites and add ways for those sites to make money
  (affiliate offers, contextual advertising, paid ads, etc)
• You can create a paid membership site or other recurring income stream
• You can offer coaching or consulting to your target market

For any of these options, I suggest creating a blog to serve as the hub for your products, the basis for your content site, or the place where you add content to go along with your affiliate offers.  There are tons of resources available for learning how to get a blog up and running and you can even use free services like Wordpress.com or Blogger.com.  But if you’re serious about building a REAL business, you’ll want to have that blog on your own domain, not hosted on one of these free services.

If you’d like to learn the fastest, easiest way to get your blog setup on your own domain, watch me take you through the process step-by-step in my Business Blog Mastery video tutorial.  In fact, if you order by Sunday, 6PM EST (GMT -5), you can get it during a weekend special I’m starting a day early…just $27 vs. the usual $55.00.  Here’s the link:

Click Here to Order "Business Blog Mastery" CD-ROM

And while we’re at it…if you’re interested getting a crash course in online business strategies, how to get started and why this is, without a doubt, the best business to start, you’ll want to check out my brand new Online Business Overview Audio CD.  On that CD, I go over a lot of the information above in more detail (and then some) and give you my own personal insights into which online business models are most effective and REALLY worth pursuing.  Check out the back of the CD for details using the link below.

I’m offering an introductory special on that audio CD also.  Regular price will be $35.00 after the special, but you can get it for a measly 15 bucks if you order by
Sunday, 6pm EST (GMT -5).  Here’s the link:

Click Here to Order the Online Business Overview (Audio CD)

~Kenton Newby

Special Offer: Coaching Program

I just got an awesome testimonial from one of my coaching clients who I’ve been working with behind the scenes for awhile now.  He’s currently involved in real estate investing and a few other business ventures and was looking for a way to tap into the MASSIVE opportunity a lot of us take for granted here on the Internet.

In just a few short weeks, he already has several webinars scheduled to promote his real estate business, has a blog for that business up and running, and has picked up so much info that he was able to snag his own client and set her up with a blog using the same strategies we discussed for setting up his own site.  So I guess we can add "blog installation and setup" to the list too.  I’m amazed at how fast he’s gotten things up and running but that’s what you want in a coaching client – someone who can grab the ball and run with it and take ACTION. 

You can read his testimonial at the bottom of this page: Coaching Program

I have to tell you, that’s the kind of feedback I live for.  It makes my day when I can really help someone get over a hurdle that’s holding them back in their business or brainstorm new strategies that allow them to enjoy the freedom we’re all looking for.  That’s the whole point of this "online business" thing, right?

If you’d like to experience the same type of one-on-one coaching, I invite you to check out that link and carefully read the short message I’ve written there.  Oh, and don’t worry…no 10-page sales letter nonsense.  Just a quick 1-pager on who this program is for and who really shouldn’t even bother signing up.

WARNING: There are only 10 spots available at the current price.  After that, the price is going up (at least double, likely more but to-be-determined).  But anyone who invests in one of these 10 remaining spots can enjoy having that rate "locked in" as long as you remain a coaching client.

Click Here to Find Out More About This Coaching Program

10 Ways Article Writing Can Stack the Deck in Your Favor

I was talking with a email coaching client about some ways to shortcut the challenges of article writing. And then it occurred to me that I hadn’t really laid out the benefits of article writing. There was no “so what” to it. Anyway, I thought it might be a good idea to take a look at why this is STILL one of the most beneficial, powerful and profitable ways to market your business online. (more…)

The Importance of Using Protection

For new and experienced online business owners, one of the biggest things to consider while running your business is how to protect it for the long term. This is especially true since most online businesses are "information-based" rather than having huge inventories of products and other "stuff" to keep safe. Because of that unique aspect of an online business, it’s more critical than ever that you keep that information safe and this should be a major focus as you operate your business. Here are some commonly made mistakes that you should avoid when it comes to protecting your online business.

1. Not Having Backups of Websites/Databases

This may seem obvious, but it’s one that a lot of online business owners overlook (or allow others to be responsible for). You’re taking a huge risk if you’re running an online business and aren’t keeping backups of your websites.

Of course, you may be thinking that’s the web hosting company’s job or something like that, right? Well, while it’s true that they usually do provide backup services, and in most cases, can restore files with no problem, it’s still the ultimate responsibility of the business owner. What if something happens on the web host’s end where they can’t restore your files – who’s to blame? Is the web hosting company accountable for that? Or even better, do you really even want to have to worry about that, or would  you rather have this not be an issue because you have your own backups?

If your online business is making even the smallest amount of money, it’s just good sense to go the route of the "responsible business owner" and make sure you’re doing your own website backups. Be sure you also include backups of your databases too, since these are a key component to keep many types of sites running on today’s websites (for instance, blogs, forums, ecommerce software, and so forth).

You can either do these backups manually using your control panel or do a search for specialized software that will automate website backups for you. Then, just temporarily download the backup files to your hard drive until you burn them to a disc or store them in a more appropriate, and safer, final location. Your hard drive doesn’t count as a "safe location" since hard drives eventually fail, computers crash and so on.

2. Not Having Backups of Critical Files on Your Computer

This is right in line with the first item. Not having backups of critical files that are on your computer is another huge mistake that some online business owners make.  If you’re like most online business owners, you have important business-related files on your home/office computer in addition to what’s on your web server. Losing those files could become a major setback, so of course they should also be backed up to a safe location. It’s relatively easy and inexpensive these days to store a large number of files on a writeable CD or DVD. There are also online backup services (like Data Deposit Box, which I use) that will backup and store your data to a secure server for a minimal cost. That way your data is off-site in case something happens to your home/office.

3. Not Having Redundant Web Hosts, Domain Registrars, and Other Key Services

We all know that you should never have all of your eggs in one basket and this even applies to your online business. If you’re currently using a single company for your web hosting, a single domain registrar, or other services that are a critical piece of your business infrastructure, you might want to reconsider. It may be unlikely that one of these services will go out of business or otherwise "completely blow it", but do you really want to take the chance? What would you do if your registrar dropped the ball and forgot to renew your domains…ALL of your domains (this actually happened)?  You need to consider what would happen "if" something catastrophic occurred with that one service, how it could be avoided, and how cost effective that option is for your business.

4. Entrusting Too Much Info To a One Outsourced Worker
(Or Multiple Outsourced Workers That Can Combine What They Know)

If you outsource some of your tasks, one of the worst things you can do is give too much info about how your business works to one person. Ideally you want to avoid having just one outsourced worker if possible.  If that’s just not possible right now, then at least compartmentalize the portion of your business that this person is a part of.

The same applies for groups of outsourced workers, which can be just as bad, even though you’re relying on more than one person in this case. You want to avoid creating a situation where either a single person is inadvertently trained on exactly how your entire business works, or multiple people are able to piece things together based on what each of them knows about your business.

(James Brausch gives another great reason why you don’t want to rely on just one outsourcing service in this post about ELance.)

5. Not Having Everything Documented & Accessible in Case Something Happens to You

As uncomfortable as it is to think about, you should definitely create a plan for how your business will run if something unfortunate happens to you, especially if your business is you family’s primary source of income.

• Does your spouse know how your business works?
• Could it continue to run without your input?
• For how long?

Every aspect of your business should be documented so someone else can pick up the ball and run with it in your absence. This is an ongoing process and can be a bit time consuming in the beginning, but is certainly worth it as a worst case planning scenario or in case you decide to sell your business sometime down the road.  I recommend something like the Freedom Business System to show you how to do this (it’s actually good info for offline AND online businesses).

Check Out These Awesome New Features From AWeber

I just happened across a blog post over on the AWeber blog announcing some cool new additions to AWeber’s Blog Broadcast feature. 

It looks like now you’ll be able to schedule when those broadcasts are sent out (as opposed to them going out whenever AWeber detects a new addition to your feed). 

You can also have them only go out once there are a certain number of posts, on certain days, certain times of day, and so on. 

They do a better job of explaining it than I could so why not just check out they’re 1-minute video explaining the new options?  (Just follow the link above)

Enjoy!

Don’t Go Stupid While Building Your Online Business

If you didn’t know already, I was an officer in the Air Force for just over 8 years.  The other day I was thinking about some of the stuff we learned back then in my career field.  One day we talked about how certain types of "smart bombs" worked.  In this case, the gist of it is that a laser is reflected off the target and that reflection is picked up by a little doohickey in the nose of the bomb.  That thing is tied to the fins on the back of the bomb that guide it down the path to the target and adjust it’s course to the left and right.  At least I think that’s how it went…it’s admittedly a little fuzzy in my head but that explanation serves our purposes here. 

So if you looked at that path of this thing as it’s coming down towards Mother Earth, more than likely it would be a series of zig-zags to the left and right combined with being too high or too low at any given time.  Bottom line is that the thing is almost constantly off course, overshooting or undershooting the target and has to continually correct course in order to hit the bullseye.

What can we learn from this as entrepreneurs?  Well…

Notice that the bomb doesn’t go a little off course and decide, "Hey, this just isn’t working.  I don’t wanna’ hit that target".  Nope, instead it immediately takes action to get back on course.  Then inevitably…whoops, over-corrected and off course again.  Time to get back on course again.

That’s the same way we need to be as entrepreneurs.  Have you tried something related to your online business that didn’t work as well as you thought it would, or that was a complete disaster?   Did you immediately take what you learned from that experience and get back on course?  Or did you go "off course" saying "This stuff doesn’t work" and other such nonsense.

Note: On those occasions when a so-called "smart bomb" does end up going off course, the pilots say that one "went stupid".

Bottom line: Most of us get from point A to point B in a series of zig-zags rather than a straight line.  When you find out you zigged when you should have zagged, get back on course and don’t "go stupid".

What Would It Take?

I was part of a coaching group here locally for awhile about a year ago.  I found some old notes I had taken and one thing in particular that I found is something I’ve always tried to keep in mind since learning it back then.

It has to do with “powerful thinking” for lack of a better way to put it.  No, I’m not going to go get all Tony Robins on you, but I think this was a really useful way of thinking about those problems, goals or other situations that always seem to come our way.

When faced with such a challenge, ask yourself one simple question:

What Would It Take?

Want to have a list of 10,000 subscribers?  What would it take?  Then keep asking yourself that question until you can get down to some actionable steps you can take to help you reach that goal.

Using the list of 10,000 subscribers as an example, what would it take?:

• That would take roughly 833 new members added to your list each month (about 27 per day)
• What would it take to get 27 signups per day?  A viral special report that people can distribute?  A low-cost report they can sell and earn money from while you get the optin?  Daily blog comments on high-traffic sites related to your blog (you DO have a blog don’t you?)?  An interview between you and someone that already has a large list where you collect the optins?

Need to make $5000 a month to quit your job?  What would it take?

• 3 products @ $55 each and selling roughly 1 of each per day.  Okay, so what would that take?
  • Deciding on a market where you could offer 3 such products at that price and testing the market
  • Creating the products,sales pages, blog
  • Promoting those products, building traffic, increasing conversions, adding backend offers, and so on
  • etc.
• 200 newsletter subscribers @ $25/month each (or hey, why not 25 subscribers @ $200/month)
  • Market selection
  • Content creation…content with enough value to warrant the $25 (or$200) fee
  • List building (because more than likely only a percentage of people on the list will sign up)
  • etc.

Okay, you probably get it by now.

But notice the question is “What Would it Take” not “Can This Be Done”.

It’s assumptive in it’s wording – that whatever you’re considering actually CAN be done and that it’s just a matter of figuring out the pieces of the puzzle.

And notice that it’s not “What Would I Need to Do”…you might need to rely on others to help you with some of the things you come up with.

If you have a goal you’re shooting for and you know where you are right now, the answers to the “What Would it Take” exercise help you bridge the gap  between point A and point B.

So when you stop and think about it, “What Would it Take”  is a very powerful question.

The Most Popular Posts in the Last 90 Days

I always find it interesting to know what others find interesting. 

So here’s a look at some of the most popular posts available here in my little neck of the woods.  I excluded stuff like the "Weekly Roundup" posts and others that were just good info, but not articles per se.  Anyway, here’s the list in case you missed one of these:

1. Just amazing…and another reason to have a blog
2. Can You Really Make Money Showing People "How To"?
3. Another Way to Stop Wasting Time on Mundane Tasks
4. The Most Bang for Your Buck Tasks
5. Another Great Reason to Have Your Own Products

I’m using the Popularity Contest Plugin by Alex King which allows you to set how posts are ranked in terms of popularity.  Then it gives you a ton of stats in the backend about the posts on your site. 

You can pull similar data from your log files (like AWStats) or from Google Analytics but those methods don”t allow you to assign weights to different types of posts.  For example, it might carry more weight if a post was reached via a direct link specifically to that post versus it just being one of the 10 posts on your homepage.  Interesting stuff…check it out.

P.S. – A quick tip of the hat to Terry Dean for posting a similar tip on his blog awhile back…prompted me to grab that plugin and take a look at my own stats.  Should be even more interesting once it’s been running for awhile.  Thanks Terry.

Can You Really Make Money Showing People “How To”?

I had a talk with a family member the other day.  I’m not sure how we got on the subject of business because I try to avoid talking about my business when I know it’s going to involve lots of explaining to others, but that’s where the conversation led.  He commented that he just didn’t understand how you can make money showing someone “how to” – in this case, how to make money online but it really could have been any topic.  Do you have that same blind spot?

Let’s consider an example and I’ll let you do the math and be the judge. (more…)