Apr

Review of Drip Fed Blogs – Self Help Blog

carolw44 on April 14th, 2012

I’ve been keeping my eye on the drip fed blogs since I first saw the Drip Fed Recipe Blog. I didn’t want the recipe blog, I was wishing for a self development blog instead, and I was absolutely delighted when Justin and Brad came up with the Drip Fed Self Help Blog.

I paid my $47, gave them my blog domain, and waited about a week for my blog to appear.

When it came I was pretty happy. I have a fully hosted blog with 365 days of posts already pre-loaded. These posts are set up to post automatically once a day. Each post has a link to Brad and Justin’s self help course, which pays $140 commission.

The posts are a mixture of videos and articles, and quite well written, with a mixture of common sense and Law of Attraction principles, and not too extreme for the general public.

The blog itself is on the Woo Canvas theme, which is very plain at first sight, but can be prettied up and formatted in any number of ways.

You can find a link to a Sample Blog on the sales page.

The posts have not been tagged, which looks like a drawback at first, but in the members back office they explain that tagging all the posts the same way would reduce their effectiveness with Google.

Yes, everyone else with Brad and Justin’s self help blog has the same articles… but they are all posted in a different order to help reduce the duplicate content issue, and they are not worded exactly alike.

The members area has helpful videos on all aspects of setting up your blog, and also training on how to promote, including free traffic strategies.

They also explain how to move the blog to your own hosting if you want to do that.

At this point I’ve had the blog 2 weeks, and have been really busy with other projects, but I’ve managed to personalize it, add an auto post to Twitter, and do some tagging. Now I’ve added Google Analytics, and it’s time to get some good backlinks.

Overall, I am very happy with the blog and I expect to make ClickBank commissions from the links already provided, as well as my own banners on the side. I like the fact that the theme starts off pretty plain, which means that I can personalize it my way, though it looks ok as is, too. Having a few of my own blogs and knowing how hard it can be to come up with content on a regular basis, I really appreciate the drip fed posts, and the quality is good. The blog loads reasonably quickly too.

I think the setup is ok for a newbie who has no WordPress experience, as the members area videos cover the basics, and Brad and Justin will fix your blog if you make a mess of it.

At this point, apart from one typo, I haven’t found anything that I don’t like.

Only time will tell if this blog earns me the commissions which it should, but that depends to a large degree on my own skill and effort in promoting it, as I would not depend solely on organic search engine traffic.

After I paid, I was given the option to buy the older drip fed blogs for a reduced price. It’s a steal if you have the cash.

Tags: blogging, drip fed blog, niche blog

Blogging, Reviews 2 Comments »

Feb

The A-Z of Writing Good Promotional Emails

carolw44 on February 28th, 2012

I just found this excellent video on Darren Olander’s blog.

He explains how to write an email which will stand out in safelists and in your subcribers inboxes.

The key elements are:

Subject – purpose is to get people to open that email. Shock or interest them, but don’t give away too much!

Personalization – use it conversationally, don’t abuse it.

Main points – not too much detail, just tell enough to make the reader want to see your site.

Closing – give them an action, such as “Click here to get your ….”.

P.S. – this is the most-read part of promotional emails, so make it count!

Watch Darren’s video below for all the details:

Click here to join Darren’s Adchiever Safelist
Click here to go to Darren’s blog

Tags: write promotional emails

Email Series, How To's 2 Comments »

Feb

Simple Conversion Tracking For Your Squeeze Pages

carolw44 on February 9th, 2012

You probably have your squeeze page out there in a number of places, and it can be hard to tell where your signups have come from.

Here is a simple way, and you can try it out for free.

I use the trackers at TEToolbox, so you will need to log in at TEToolbox to follow along. They will give you up to 10 trackers for free.

First, create a tracking link for your squeeze page. (Click on Websites tab, then click on Add Tracker. Enter your squeeze page URL.)

Now you will see your Tracker URL and Conversion Image.

Take the Tracker URL and add it to your traffic exchanges or rotator. You can also use it in safelist and autoresponder emails.

This will do your click tracking for you.

Now take the Conversion Image code and add it to your Thank You or Confirmation page.

If you are using the TEToolbox Thank You page, you will need to edit it in HTML mode. (Use the HTML button in the wysiwyg editor.) Just add the code at the end of whatever you have there, click the Update button, and remember to click on the Save Changes button at the bottom of the page.

The image is only 1 pixel by 1 pixel, so it won’t spoil the look of your page at all.

Now, when someone submits their email address on your squeeze page and is redirected to the Thank You page, they will be counted as a Conversion, and you will have some idea of where you are getting the most response from your advertising.

(If you are not using Thank You pages yet, grab a copy of Build Your List with Ease and learn how to do it. It’s a great way to monetize your list.)

Watch Tim Linden’s video at TEToolbox for a complete explanation. You will find it under the Help tab, click on Help Videos.

Here are some cool things you can do with the TEToolbox trackers:

Change the tracker link to something you can remember. Click on Edit Settings for your tracker and enter the name in the Custom URL space to replace the number.
In the Advanced Settings, untick the box for “Automatically Track Clicks as Conversions”. You only want your actual signups to track as conversions now.
Add other urls to your tracker. This is good if you are split testing different versions of a squeeze page, or perhaps getting signups from your blog and your squeeze page.
Add your squeeze page tracker along with your other sites to another tracker which you can then use as a rotator. The tracking will still work just fine.
Add a tag of up to 10 characters to the end of your tracker. You won’t need this on websites or traffic exchanges as TEToolbox will automatically list those as sources, but it is very useful for safelists and other email campaigns (otherwise you end up with stats saying the click came from mail.google.com and so on…). TEToolbox will then show you stats by tag.

Tags: conversion tracking, squeeze page, thank you page, tracker links

How To's, TE Toolbox, Tracking 6 Comments »

Jan

Money, and the Sharing, Caring Person

carolw44 on January 30th, 2012

How do you feel when “gurus” show you how to sell, with hype and pressure and scarcity tactics?

Do you feel confused because yes, you do want to make money, but you don’t feel right doing it like that?

Well you are not alone.

Money can be a tricky topic, although if you are here in the marketing world then you have moved past the point where you think it is evil and dirty. So what is holding you back from raking in the rewards?

I’ve just finished listening to Mike Klingler‘s webinar “How To Break Free From Your Resistance To Money (Money Consciousness vs. Money Resistance)”.

Mike talks about the difference between sales mindset and empathy mindset.

The sales mindset is all about creating a product and making the sale. It’s often self-oriented, as long as the person makes the money they want, they are happy. And there is nothing wrong with that, overall.

If you are empathic sort of person, one who cares and shares, and deeply wants to help make this world a better place, then this approach will not work for you. It will only confuse you when you try to apply it.

An empathic person needs to understand that they need money too, because without money they have less power to change the world and make it a better place. However, the empathic person needs to train themselves to bring in the cash.

How do you train yourself? You do it by over-delivering, and getting feedback of appreciation. Once you realize you are helping people then you will naturally feel better about asking for payment, and eventually, as your skills and contribution grow, you will feel ok about raising your prices as well.

Asking for payment is not just about asking for money, it is about the whole process of how you present your self, your product, your sales page and headlines.

The trick is, to make sure that what you are promoting and creating is in alignment with who you really are. If, deep down, you don’t feel that your business is contributing, then it will be hard for you to get the results you want.

One way to know if you are in the right business or network is by asking yourself if the work is interesting, rewarding and fun, or just hard work?
If it’s mostly just hard work, then what you are doing is not in alignment with your deepest values.

I hope Mike has recorded this webinar. If he does, I will post a link here. It’s well worth the hour spent listening.

***

Mike has sent out a replay link to the webinar – http://www.screencast.com/t/7fTIiNN6Fh – but it’s only good until Tuesday. He says he will run seminars on this topic again, so if you are interested, keep an eye on his Facebook page.

Tags: mentoring, mindset, money

Motivation 11 Comments »

Jan

Help With The Mysteries of Marketing

carolw44 on January 26th, 2012

Traffic exchange and internet marketing is a very challenging field. Get rich quick is a dream which gets many of us online, or perhaps keeps us there. In the end, though, we need to find patience while we learn the skills we need to succeed. For this reason we all need mentors, no matter what level we are at with our marketing.

Here is my list of people and programs who can and will help when you need it, and which you can access for free:

For basic traffic exchange marketing skills, follow the boys at ClickTrackProfit to learn how to use traffic exchanges in an organized and professional way. Watch their training videos and the video of the day. Surfing for badges is fun, but that’s just the icing on the cake. You should be learning everything you can.

For basic list building skills, grab a free copy of Build Your List with Ease, and learn how to set up an autoresponder and squeeze pages.

Want some answers to your questions? Join Krazy Kaye and the rest of the crew at Net Learning Academy. You can join for free, attend the live webinars, and find a lot of resources in the members area.

If you are ready to learn about WordPress, social media and list building, which will allow you to take your marketing into the wider internet beyond the traffic exchanges, join the regular joes who are doing it at Family Networker. You will get support on the skype chat room, and there are plenty of useful resources inside the members area, including a 14 day Core Training with videos.

Also, keep your eyes open for good blogs with helpful content, and subscribe to their updates. One which I really like is PotPieGirl’s blog on internet marketing, especially the training resources in the sidebar. She writes in a way which is very easy to understand, even if you are a newbie.

I hope this list helps you to get your skills to the next level. There are many other resources out there, all you need to do is find them and use them. If you have a good one, post it in the comments below.

Tags: internet marketing, mentoring, traffic exchange marketing

How To's 20 Comments »

Jan

JSS Tripler – Take A Chance On This?

carolw44 on January 8th, 2012

Is it possible to make 2% per day? With a good conscience? The folks at JustBeenPaid and JSS Tripler say YES! And they are willing to give you a $10 position for free, so you can see how it works.

Usually it’s a good idea to steer clear of triplers and other HYIP programs, as they eventually run out of funds and have to close down. Even if you make some money yourself, there will always be other people who never had a chance (your referrals included).

BUT… JustBeenPaid and JSS Tripler (a sub site of JustBeenPaid) have supposedly been built to handle ups and downs without shutting down. When they are nearing a crunch point, they do a “Restart”, which leaves all new members as they were before, while older members have their positions in JSS Tripler converted to matrix positions in JustBeenPaid. They claim the system is indefinitely sustainable. The sites have been running in their present form since February 2011, so they have done pretty well to last this long.

FREE $10 Position: At this time they are giving all new members $10 to buy their first position, and see for themselves what it’s like to make 2% a day. If you have been wondering about JSS Tripler, now is your chance to try it, pain free!

Click here to Join JustBeenPaid

The $10 will be added to your account after you have set up your profile. Then you will need to use the JSS Tripler link in the members area to get your tripler position.

Note: The $10 will be taken back after 60 days, it is just a loan. But, by then you will have made enough in your account to grab a 2nd position from your profits, and you will be home free after that. Make sure to take your 2nd position as soon as you have $10 accumulated in your JSS Tripler account. Does this suck? No! You still end up with a position, free… and the system does not collapse from giving away too much.

Update: 10 April 2012 – JustBeenPaid and JSS Tripler are still going strong. They stay in touch with members daily by email and also with online webinars. One change – they take back the free $10 after 45 days now, which is still pretty generous, after all you can earn $9.00 in that time, and it helps to keep the program sustainable. I have taken the cautious approach and used referring to build up my account. A couple of my downline have invested larger sums and their profits exceed mine significantly, but I am still happy with my earnings and looking forward to more.

Tags: JSS Tripler

Reviews 11 Comments »

Dec

You Can Make An Ebook!

carolw44 on December 26th, 2011

I love writing ebooks! And I had a ball with this one, and learned a lot.

What does it take to make an ebook?

First, you need an idea! Once you have that, you can take action.

You ebook doesn’t have to be long or complicated, it just needs to answer a question or fill a need.

You Can Make An Ebook! will show you how to create your ebook document and turn it into a PDF.

You’ll learn how to format it correctly, add images and a table of contents, and even bookmarks for your PDF. (And you’ll find out why you need a PDF.)

You’ll learn how to add images and hyperlinks, and more…

And then you will learn about hosting your ebook, and how to secure your downloads from thieves.

Need advertising and promotion tips? Those are in the ebook too.

You will learn how to get affiliates and fans to promote for you, and how you can make your ebook rebrandable.

Best of all, most of this can be done without spending a penny if you are willing to put in a bit of extra time and effort.

YouCanMakeAnEbook.com

Tags: make an ebook

Ebooks, How To's No comments »

Oct

Can You Use The Word “Free” In Email Subject Lines?

carolw44 on October 25th, 2011

We all know that some words can get your email filtered out as spam, or sent to the Junk folder, and the word FREE seems to be the one which stands out for most marketers.

So do we really need to spell it as f.ree or fr.ee or fre.e, or is that a bunch of baloney?

According to the AWeber blog, Free is just fine in your subject line. According to their article Yes, You Can Put “Free” In Your Subject Line, Yahoo has a new tool which maps email deliverability, and the word FREE is being delivered with no problems.

So what do you really need to worry about? The MailChimp people have written a long article about things which trigger the spam filters, you can read it here. It is complicated!

Here are some basic things you can do to make your emails look better to spam filters:

Use double opt in
Use both the text and HTML templates for your autoresponder emails where available, spam filters check to see that the HTML version matches the text version
Make sure your HTML is correct
Use a lot more text than images
Don’t use all capitals in your subject line

It’s a lot to keep track of in a constantly evolving area.

You can get some help at ViralMailProfits. The folks there have added a Spam Assasin rating to their system. It tells you how your email body scores against current criteria, and they won’t let you send it out if it scores too high.

Tags: email marketing, spam filters

Autoresponders, Email Series 2 Comments »

Oct

The Human Face of Traffic Exchange Marketing

carolw44 on October 20th, 2011

Joseph Riley of ForeverConceptsTraffic Exchange inspired people in life, and he is still inspiring people…

This week, in the few days after his passing, we have seen the greatest upsurge of team work, sharing and caring that I have ever seen in the traffic exchange world.

People have run telethons and webinars, donated money, spent time, reached out on Facebook, Twitter, and in their blogs, even reaching out to media all over the world (not that the media seems to care). There are petitions, sites, splash pages, gifts for donors, everything you can think of.

New friendships have been made, and people who we may not have known much about before this have earned our respect. Kaye Towne of Volcano Hits is one of those, what an amazing woman!

At the moment I write this, $3468 of the $10,000 needed to get Joseph’s body out of the USA has been raised, and people are still working for more.

We have so many people on the traffic exchanges… if everyone who saw the promotions donated only $1, we would have reached that goal in no time at all, even with PayPal fees…

This makes me wonder… how many surfers are operating in pure survival mode, clutching at every penny, and feeling so bad about their life and their prospects that they cannot let go of even $1? Come on folks… it’s time to let go a bit, ease up, stop stressing so much. Trust that your god loves you enough to provide for you. If you are now in that survival mode, you will look back later and realize that you were ok after all, even when times were bleak. Trust me, I’ve been there. Not rich yet, but I made it through those times, and in fact, those really bad times started to get better once I realized that it was my own lack of trust which made things worse. (Not that I didn’t have my reasons, as everyone does.)

So let me give you a gift, if you choose to donate. It will be worth more than $1. Send me your donation receipt to carolw44 at gmail.com (you will have to put the @ in there when you mail me, this is to stop the spam bots from getting my email address) and I will upgrade your account at Build Your List with Ease. (If you don’t have an account, create a free one before you email me.)

Click here for the Joseph Riley Memorial Page, where you can donate, read about Joseph, and check the progress of the fundraising efforts.