Preconceived Notions about Life and – Snakes

How do you react when you see a snake or some other reptile?

Many people are super frightened and want to kill any snake that they may see near their home.
We’re not born with any fears except the fear of falling and of loud noises.  Other fears and phobias develop as a result of what others have shared with us as we’ve grown up.

That fear of reptiles develops from the conditioning from parents and others who have acquired the fear from their predecessors.

As a child I went to a day camp where one of the activities was going to the “snake pit”   where we would sit around the edge and the handler would
pick up snakes for us to handle.  I loved the little ring-necked snakes….about  8 – 10 inches long.  Fun to hold.   At the snake pit, I learned some of the characteristics of poisonous snakes – the flattened head, a small depression between the eyes and sometimes a “rattle” for a tail.

My parents didn’t instill a huge fear in me…. I learned the value of snakes in controlling rodents.   We lived on the edge of some woods though and seeing a snake in the shed where we kept gardening supplies was a little startling.

Another unforgettable experience was when our basset hound yelped from the other room when we were living in a very large older home.  That large black snake definitely didn’t belong in my kitchen….  Quickly removed, safely from the house, with the help of a large shovel.

Recently I had the opportunity to attend an event at  my grandsons’ school where “The Reptile Man” showed quite a variety of reptiles to the enthralled audience of children.  HIs loving attitude toward his animals quickly spread to the children and they were all excited at any opportunity to go up with him to be part of handling the animals.    He had a cute name for all of them…..like Sheila the Gila – monster.   He was very clear about leaving snakes alone in the wild.  They like to be left alone.  And poisonous snakes are not to be reckoned with.  He described in detail the effects of poisonous snake bites.  He taught the difference between realistic caution and unfounded fears.

To see the throngs of children lining up to have their picture taken with either a small alligator or a huge snake was amazing!  They knew these creatures were safe because of being raised in captivity.   With careful education, they knew that they could be close to these animals.  The generalization that all reptiles are scary was dropped by these kids for sure.

You may be wondering what this discussion has to do with your life.
What negative conditioning have you received that is affecting your mindset?
Are there things that you are not attempting because you have generalized your fears about trying something new or going to different places?

If you can just think rationally about opportunities rather than reacting quickly from your preconceived notions, you may very well find yourself getting beyond stuck and moving on to new experiences.  Think back over the last few days or weeks.  Where have you made quick decisions without getting beyond the old beliefs that may or may not be reality?

If you’re ready to start improving your memory and your brain health, you need to check out the comprehensive Jump Start Course For Your Brain

In this three-part audio course, you will learn more about what you can do for your brain and create a simple plan for yourself to get started.

Designing a Website – How to Register a Domain Name

Ready to start your first website? If you’ve done a little research and have been checking around about how to build a website online then you probably know that you need to register a domain name. If you have not done this research, I highly recommend that you do.

Then comes the next question: How can I register a domain name?

Before you head out to register your new name it’s important you understand how the process of domains and hosting works.

What Is a Domain Name?

It is an address that points to a place on the internet called a ‘website’. Every website has it’s own, completely unique address. In order to have your own presence on the internet that is uniquely your own you must have a domain name. The most common format is the.com but there are many other common names that end in .org, .net, .ca and more.

Why Do I Need a Domain Name?

You can’t have your website online without one. If you want to have a website that is yours alone and not hosting on someone else’s property like the free website builder then you need one. Once you have a domain, connecting to a hosting account and publishing your website to the internet is a synch.

How Do I Choose a Domain Name?

Before you zip off to buy your first domain name I would recommend you do your research. Here are some quick tips for buying:

– Make sure it’s easy to say out loud.
– Make sure it’s easy to type in and remember.
– Don’t do any ‘odd’ spellings or add weird numbers.
– Buy a .com.
– Use a keyword tool such as Wordtracker or Google Analytics Keyword Tool for ideas.
– Use an online thesaurus to get additional word ideas.

Where Can I Register My Domain Name?

Ok so now that you know what a domain name is, why you need one and how to choose one let’s get into where you can register one.

You can’t buy one just anywhere. You must buy one from a domain name registrar that is appointed by the International Corporation For Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN). There are many registrar companies out there. Some are credible while others use less than ethical means by which to sign up new customers. I would recommend you do your homework and even ask around for referrals to find out a good place to register your domain.

Some hosting companies will also register names for you, allowing you to save time and effort finding two companies to trust with your business. Some companies who host your domain will offer you a free domain registration when you sign up with them.

When choosing a registrar, here’s what you’ll want to look for:
– Established business – Find out how many years they’ve been around.
– Competitive pricing – A domain name costs about $10-$15 per year.
– Customer support – Make sure it’s excellent and responsive.
– Easy to use control panel – Can you go in and make changes to the domain quickly and easily?

Choosing a webhost may take a little time and research, but you’ll be glad you invested in finding one that will keep your site up and running.

If these directions are good but you’re thinking you would like someone to show you exactly what you need to do then I can help you there, too. If it’s more personal help you need then sign up for my intensive WordPress website course where you get everything and the kitchen sink when it comes to lessons, support and ongoing help. My course comes with lifetime retakes so you get access to frequent Q&A webinars All Year Long!

META Tags are Dead, Right? So Why Do I Need Them?

One of the first, and most basic, elements of search engine optimization (SEO) is META tags.  Almost everyone quickly discovers the title, description and keyword tag located in the HTML coding of each web page.  However, there are many misconceptions and myths floating around online. Let’s take a minute to go through the latest information about these tags so you’ll know what you need to create and why.

Title Tag

The title tag is actually not a META tag. It is simply the title given to a particular page of your site.  If you’ll look in the source code of most any web page, you’ll see something that looks like this. (I’ve added bolding to make it easier to read.)

The title holds a lot of weight with Google and other engines.  It also is the first exposure searchers have to your website so it must play a dual role.  First, it should contain at least your primary keyphrase.  If there is room, insert others as well.  Second, it should entice the searcher to click to your site as opposed to choosing any other option such as the other nine organic listings, 10-11 paid AdWords ads and possibly an eight-pack of local listings.

Just filling your title tag with keyphrases is usually not the best route to take, in my opinion.  While it is important to the rankings equation, it also must fulfill its status as a copywriting platform.  You have to get across why your site is different or better than the others the searcher will encounter. You have to attract people who are interested in what you sell and discourage those who really don’t match your target market.

For instance, using the same example above, let’s see what types of listings would appear when we do a search for “copywriting course” in Google.  We’ll look at the top four organic (free) results.

 The first one includes keyphrases and also specifically outlines what type of copywriting course this is: Web and SEO.  That would tell anyone looking to learn direct mail or other forms of copywriting to look elsewhere.  The title is very specific and clear.

The second listing’s title is just stuffed with keyphrases.  In fact, it doesn’t look like it has anything to do with copywriting courses based on the description. (Take note of how the two work together. We’ll look at the description tag next.)

The third offers copywriting course reviews. Simple and clear enough.

The forth title is lacking.  It states the company’s name.  No keyphrase at all.  If people are familiar with this organization, that tag would be fine.  But for those who don’t know who American Writers is, the tag would do little to persuade them.  No keyphrase + no persuasion = poor results.

How long should the title tag be?  In reality, it can be as long as you want.  However, only around 65-70 characters (including spaces) will be displayed.  The rest will be truncated.

Description Tag

While Google no longer uses the description tag for ranking purposes, it is still an important element to include on every page.  Don’t make the mistake of thinking that, just because this tag no longer holds ranking value, it shouldn’t contain keyphrases.  By all means, it should.

When you begin a search for something on Google, you type in whichever terms come to mind that describe what you’re looking for.  You have those phrases on your mind because they represent what you’re trying to find.  You’re sensitive to seeing those words on the screen.  You’re attuned to search listings that use those phrases.  Add all this to the fact that keyphrases are bolded in the description tag and it gives a powerful one-two punch that attracts searchers to your listing.

“But Google doesn’t always display the description tag. Why bother?”  Because eight times out of 10, Google will use the tag you provide *if* it is relevant to the search query.  In other words, if it matches what the searcher is looking for (i.e., includes keyphrases) it is very likely to be used.  It’s the times that the description doesn’t effectively describe the search or when no description is provided that Google opts to select its own description from the content on your page.

The length?  Again, you can put an entire paragraph if you want, but only about 175 characters will show in the listing.

Keyword Tag

The keyword META tag hasn’t been used since the mid-1990s.  It doesn’t hurt to put a few phrases in this tag, including perhaps some common misspellings, but it won’t help your rankings one bit.

Now that you understand the dual purpose of tags and what’s at stake rankings-wise, you can go about crafting a tag set that encourages clicks and contributes to solid search engine positioning.

Small Business Website Design – Determining Your Rates

So you’re ready to provide website design and maintenance as a service – smart move! There are millions of users on WordPress and it’s popularity is constantly growing. That means the opportunity to earn good money providing WordPress services is wide open.

Before you can offer your services for hire you must choose your rates. Here is a checklist to help you decide what rate to charge:

Consider Your Market’s Budget

There’s no point charging a rate higher than your market can afford. It can also be a bad idea to highly under-charge in a market that expects a certain price point. If you are lower or higher than they expect it can cost you in lost clients.

Consider How Much It Will Cost to Reach Your Market

Consider to the cost of reaching your market and build that into the return on investment you need to make through your rates. You’ll need to advertise to reach your market.

Research Your Direct Competition and Their Rates

Of course one of the first places you should look at to determine your rates is your competition. Check out what they are charging and determine where you fit in comparison.

Estimate a Project Start to Finish in Time

You need to understand how much time a project is going to take you from start to finish before you can accurately determine how much to charge. If you’ve never done a start to finish project before it would be a good idea to do some practice runs or even volunteer or do highly discounted projects so you can track the time it takes to complete. Or even trade services to gain the experience.

Consider Additional Costs Such as Graphics & Stock Photos

If you are hiring a graphic designer or buying stock photos, etc for the site design you need to build them into the costs.

Consider Admin Time For Emails, Phone Calls, Etc

Many website designers or freelancers don’t consider the time they’ll spend consulting with clients over the phone or through email. Build these into your rates.

Determine Your Rate Structure: Hourly or Per Project

Will you charge hourly or for a full project. There are advantages and disadvantages to both.

Interview Potential Clients to Determine What They’re Willing to Pay

Can you connect with people who’ve already paid for the services you want to charge for.

Determine Your Minimum Expected Rates

What is the minimum you are willing to work for – this is your starting point.

Determine Your ‘Beyond Expectations’ Rate

What is your dream rate. What would be a rate that is greatly beyond your expectations. Keep this in mind and go for it in by creating a high value package.

Determine Your ‘Standard Rate’ While Leaving It Open For Additional Services

Some potential clients won’t be able to go for your full package so create a standard rate for those who need a taste of your services.

Determine Your Ideal Client & Create a Questionnaire to Qualify Potential Clients

Don’t forget to figure out exactly who you want to work with. Then create a questionnaire that will allow you to decide what potential clients will be best to work with you. This will help you find your ideal clients and allow you to recognize clients who are not your best fit.

Determining your rates as a website designer can be a frustrating process. Just be aware that you can change them later. Sometimes the easiest way to figure it out is to just get going and test out what works for you.

Copywriting Makeover: Local Vet Increases Business via the Web

After working for several years for a prominent, local veterinary practice that had multiple branches, Dr. Wendi Lily-Bare decided it was time to go out on her own.  She arranged to purchase one of the smaller clinics which would allow her to keep the existing business name and equipment.  However, the current website was not included in the bargain.

With an understanding of how important a high-ranking website is to a local, small business, Dr. Lily-Bare quickly began making plans for the creation of her online presence.  Those plans included the use of copy (text) that connected emotionally with her site visitors and clearly showed them why they should choose Pet Friends over all the other available veterinary clinics in town.

Researching the Best Options for Keyphrases

As is the case with all search engine optimization (SEO) copywriting, the first step in the process of creating the Pet Friends site was to research the best keyphrases for use in the copy and tags.

These same keyphrases would also be used in developing the clinic’s local Google listing.  This would allow Dr. Lily-Bare’s site to potentially come up in the “Local Business Results” section of Google whenever someone typed in a keyphrase related to one of her pages.

Being a local business in a relatively small town, we decided to work with general veterinary-related terms and attach what’s referred to as a “geo-modifier” to them.  (Local businesses must include their specific location in order to weed out prospects that are outside their service area.)

Basically, we looked for keyphrases such as “veterinarian” or “veterinary clinic” and added the exact locale which, in this case, was Northeast Columbia, South Carolina.  After compiling a list of good phrase candidates, we divided them up among the site pages.

Hook Prospects Right from the Start

While many people believe writing copy only applies to the individual web pages, there is actually another step that is just as important.  Writing the title and description tags for each page is vital in securing that initial click.

What happens when you go to Google or another engine and conduct a search?  You’re provided with a whole page full of possible websites that might meet your needs.  How do you decide which ones to click?  By reading the title and description of each site on the page.

Vets that have title tags which are bland (such as Veterinary Services, Vet in Baltimore, Pet Urgent Care) don’t do themselves any favors.  There are ways to include keyphrases and still make a connection with your prospects. For instance, Pet Friends’ Home page title tag reads:

Because They’re Family | Veterinary Clinic | Northeast Columbia, South Carolina (SC)

A keyphrase is there.  The location is there.  And there was still room for an emotional tweak at the beginning which helps to capture the attention of searchers.  After all, if you can’t get them to click your title tag, it won’t matter much what you say on your Home page, will it?

Writing the Copy

If you’ve ever shopped at Walmart for toothpaste, you’re sure to understand the frustration of most online searchers.  On the toothpaste aisle, you see dozens of choices.  All clean your teeth.  All freshen your breath.  If you rule out the specialty toothpaste products (such as those for sensitive teeth or with extra whitening power that cost $8.00 a tube), then that leaves many left over.  How do you choose?

The same dilemma applies when searching for a local vet.  Go to most vet websites and you’ll find they talk about themselves instead of to the site visitors, they don’t give a clear reason to choose them over all the other vets, and they have no special features/services.  Remove all the specialists and you’ve got a whole list of “just vets” to select from.  How are you supposed to make an intelligent choice?

When it comes to toothpaste, most people default to a mindset of “they are all the same.”  Unfortunately, most pet owners do likewise when searching for a new vet.  We set out to make sure Pet Friends’ site visitors knew they were different.

The Home page headline set the tone: “Because They’re More Than Pets. They’re Family.”  Rather than babbling on with company-focused copy, we shot an arrow into the heart of every pet-owning site visitor that landed on the Home page.  Rather than displaying the same old list of standard services that every other vet had on their Home page, we played on the fact that pets are family members in every sense of the word.  The copy clearly relayed a message that Pet Friends’ staff members were all pet owners and pet lovers who saw your cat or dog in a very “human” light.

The Results

Because this was a brand-new site, there was no benchmark for comparison.  Nonetheless, measuring results wasn’t hard since they came so quickly and were so obvious.

Within days of launching the new copy, Pet Friends’ site had worked its way up to top 20 rankings for many search terms.  Within a couple of weeks, at least half of the terms ranked in the top 10.

Now, several months after launch, Pet Friends’ site has page-one rankings for all but two of their 18 preferred keyphrases.

According to Dr. Lily-Bare, “We write on every new patient’s chart how they found out about us.  I always check when I’m looking over their chart.  We’ve gotten a lot of new patients from people who have found us through Google and other search engines.  It’s an excellent way to advertise that continues to pay off month after month.”

Anchor Your Copy to Keep it on Track

I was talking with a copywriting coaching client the other week.  During our session, I mentioned that he needed to anchor back to the headline as he wrote his copy.  This is a point where most people get derailed when writing.  Let me explain.

The headline is – by far – the most important element of any copy, online or off.  It is the most read part that must capture the attention of your prospects in order to cause them to continue reading.  Many copywriters, however, develop excellent headlines, but then veer off into left field while writing.

Lose 10 Pounds in 10 Days

For someone that wants to drop a few pounds quickly, this headline would be a big draw.  Your copy might start by empathizing with your target customer, letting him or her know that you understand where they are coming from and that you have a great solution for his/her weight problem.  “Lose 10 Pounds in 10 Days” is what hooked your reader. How do you think they’ll feel if – after the first bit of copy – all you talk about why losing 10 pounds is a desirable goal? Or why losing 10 pounds will make them more healthy?  Those are excellent benefits to include with relation to losing 10 pounds, but that information doesn’t support the headline in and of itself.  It doesn’t reinforce the promise you made… the promise that the reader can lose 10 pounds in 10 days.

As you write, look back at your headline and ask yourself, “Is this information supporting the headline?”

If you’ve added a few bullet points to the copy, you might work it this way:

Lose 10 Pounds in 10 Days

It seems like an easy task, but losing 10 pounds can be as big a challenge as losing 50 unless you understand these fundamental mistakes most dieters make. Losing 10 pounds is a very desirable goal. You may even have all the right motivation: to be healthy, to look better, to increase your energy.  But failure still looms for most people. That’s precisely why Henry’s Weight Loss System was created.

•     No drugs.
•     No caffeine.
•     No exercise.
•     No group sessions.

Through this unique system of gizmos, your body supernaturally adapts until – at the end of 10 days – you miraculously find you have dropped 10 pounds without even trying.

Etc., etc., etc.

Did you follow that?  The last sentence reinforced the headline.  Yes, I empathized.  Yes, I gave benefits.  But I also anchored all that back to the headline so I could remind readers of the original promise that they were interested in.

If you made a promise, support the promise.  If you asked a question, answer it.  If you don’t keep your prospects engaged, they will leave.  Whether you’re writing an ecommerce product description for a coffeemaker or long-form copy for a new type of software, anchor back to the headline, support the hook that captured your readers’ attention, and you’ll greatly increase the chance of converting them into buyers.

Making It Easy for Customers To Choose You

Isn’t it frustrating?  All you need is a new computer desk (or whatever you may be currently shopping for), but you can’t make a decision.  It shouldn’t be this hard, should it?  What’s holding you back?

Here’s something every web site owner should know.  When visitors come to your site, they are looking for a reason to buy from you.  Think that’s stating the obvious?  You’d be surprised!  I come across countless sites every day that do everything but give the visitor a reason to buy, subscribe, click, call or otherwise take action.  It’s a fatal mistake in any business, but it’s especially damaging for web-based companies.

Let’s continue with our example of buying a computer desk. You start with the big three office-supply stores.  You click the “office furniture” link, and you’re faced with a barrage of links to pages about lamps, printer stands, bookshelves and more.  Then you get to the desks.  Computer desks, desk collections, metal desks, workstations… geez!  There are lots of links, but no information.  Finally, after drudging through pages of links, you find some actual copy that describes a desk you think you might want.

You look over the features. You write down the price.  You gather the shipping or delivery information.  Great!  Now, on to the next site.

When you arrive, everything looks almost the same except the logo.  Same navigation, same links, same inventory, same prices.  The shipping amount is the same, and the delivery policy is identical to the site you just came from.  As you click from site to site, it’s like déjà vu.  How are you supposed to make a decision to buy when all your options are equal?  What will be the determining factor between site A and site B?

If you’re feeling frustrated just reading this scenario, imagine how your site visitors feel.  When they come to your site, they are looking for a clear reason to buy from you instead of all the other sites.  Do you give them a reason?  Do you give them several reasons?

If all factors are equal – even if all factors are similar – your visitors will find it difficult to make a decision.  When they start guessing at which site would be best to buy from, you start losing business.  Maybe they’ll choose you, maybe they won’t.  There is a way to ensure you are chosen over your competition.  You have to clearly point out how you are different or better than every other option available.

MarketingExperiments.com recently published their findings in regards to differentiating your company from others.  They reported that most companies – when asked what their most unique aspect was – answered, “Our great customer service.”  I have bad news for you.  That won’t cut it.  Why?  Because, in most cases, when customers are visiting sites to gather information and make purchasing decisions, they won’t come in contact with your customer service department.  It would be a nonissue until something went wrong.

Also, since most businesses are claiming excellent customer service, it’s an overused promise that has begun to carry less and less weight.  You need something solid.  You need something that is persuasive.  If I were standing in front of you and told you that I was considering buying my desk from you or from Vendor Z, what would you say to convince me to buy from you?  Here are some things to consider when trying to discover ways to differentiate yourself from other businesses.

•     Offer free shipping (on all orders or on orders over a certain amount)
•     Increase your inventory
•     Decrease your inventory and only carry specialty items
•     Lower your prices
•     Raise your prices (works well for premium goods & services)
•     Increase your area of expertise (for service-based businesses)
•     Specialize or narrow your niche
•     Achieve ratings or rankings from well-known associations or organizations
•     Apply for a patent
•     Win awards
•     Offer a customer loyalty program

Conduct an online survey of your visitors to ask what they want.  (SurveyMonkey.com is great for this.)  Look back over your complaints and other feedback for ideas about how to set yourself apart.  Email existing customers (if you have their permission to do so) and ask them why they chose you.  Whatever you do, don’t stay in a position where you are exactly the same as (or highly similar to) your competition.  The chances are far too great you’ll get lost in the crowd.

5 Common Mistakes That Will Kill Your Web Copy

Sometimes learning what not to do is as important as learning what to do.  Copywriting is no exception.  I oftentimes see copy that is well written, but obviously created by an amateur.  How do I know?  One or more of the following five mistakes was made and they killed the copy.

You must plan before you write copy.  Most of these mistakes came about because a newbie put fingers to keyboard and started rambling.  But once you understand why these mistakes are so deadly you can easily avoid them and overcome them before you ever write the first word.

Pull up your site in a browser and follow along.  See if you’ve made any of these mistakes on your site.

#1 – Writing Without Knowing Your Target Audience

This is, without a doubt, the biggest mistake of copywriting and the #1 killer of conversions.  Why?  I’ll answer with a question.

When you write a letter (or email), do you just start writing and decide afterwards who you’re going to send the letter to?  Of course not.  So why, then, do so many people just jump in and start writing website copy without having a clue about who they are writing to?

How can people communicate with their site visitors if they have no idea who they are, what they are looking for, their preferred communication style, what problems they face, how they hope to use the product/service to solve those problems and countless other information?  Truth is, you can’t.

Take knowing your target customers to the extreme.  Find out everything you can about them.  Then combine all that info to create an imaginary person (or imaginary people) who fit the profile of your target audience members.  You can even name them if you want to.  Then – with every sentence – write to that person (or persons).

#2 – Writing Without Knowing the Product/Service

Like it or not, copywriters have to be salespeople.  That means you have to know all the details of the product or service you’re writing about.  How else can you convincingly convey the information to prospects who visit the site?

Ask your client for samples of products, use of the services or access to member areas of a site before you begin writing.  Using or taking part in what your client is offering to his/her visitors will make a huge difference in the quality and persuasiveness of your copy.  Nothing comes across as well as copywriting that has been created from experience.

#3 – Writing About the Company Instead of To the Site Visitor

For the most part – at least in the beginning – your site visitors don’t care about your company.  Rather than hear about how long you’ve been in business and that you’re specialists in this, that or the other thing, customers would rather find out how your product/service can benefit them.

If your home page starts with something like this, you’re in trouble: “ABC Company is the specialist in [insert industry here] with over 20 years experience.  We provide [fill in the blank] with our extensive knowledge and helpful service. Dedicated to providing the highest quality, we guarantee our work with a 100% money-back promise.”

You’re we-ing all over yourself.  The customer has the money.  Don’t you think the copy should at least acknowledge him/her at some point?  Rather than using “we,” “us” and “our” so much, turn it around.

Talk to your site visitors instead of about the company.  Let them know you understand their needs and have answers to their problems.  Don’t ignore them by talking only about yourself.

#4 – Outlining Features Instead of Benefits or End Results

Features are nice, but benefits and end results make the sale because they clearly explain why the customer will be better off after buying your product or using your service. One of the biggest selling factors in copywriting is the ability to tell the customer what he/she can do with a product or service.

Take a tip from the infomercials.  They don’t simply tell you that a rotisserie cooker rotates as it cooks a chicken.  No!  They tell you that this rotisserie cooker can bake a whole, marinated, Italian herb chicken that’s juicy, moist and succulent.  That the seasonings slowly seep into the meat so you get bite after tender bite of flavorful chicken so good you’ll beg for more.  Who cares that the thing has a pointed, metal prong that rotates a chicken while it cooks?  You’re buying it because it can deliver that wonderful whole, marinated, Italian herb chicken!

#5 – Neglecting the Medium

Does it make a difference as to where your copy appears online?  Isn’t all Web copy the same?  The answers are “Yes” and “No.”  Landing pages are not the same as home pages, which are not the same as catalog pages, which are not the same as sales letters, and so on and so on.  Don’t neglect to find out the differences between these and the other types of Web copy.  They all have special considerations that should be studied before you begin writing.

Did you Love the Movie “Julie and Julia”? You Can Live It!

Have you seen the movie Julie and Julia?

A woman, Julie Powell, decides to dedicate a year of her life to cooking all the recipes in Julia Child’s first book while blogging about the adventure.  Here are a few of my favorite lines from the movie…

Julie: I could write a blog. I have thoughts.

And, another of my favorite lines…

Julie: You’re not a writer unless someone publishes you. See, that’s what’s so great about blogs. You don’t have to be published. You can just go online, press enter and there it is, out there.

What Julie didn’t realize when she started her blog is that you can also make money blogging.

Blogging has become a world-wide phenomenon that is giving many people the opportunity to earn real money online. Blogs are popular for good reason.  They are easy to set up and learn, and the cost is minimal and sometimes even free.  With modern applications, you can get started blogging in less than an hour or so.

The big question now is what should I blog about?

Have you taken recipes and tweaked them just so to make them perfect?  Do you enjoy testing new dishes on your family?  Recipe blogs are very popular with people who are gourmet cooks as well as people who don’t know the first thing about moving around a kitchen, but would like to learn.  Sharing your cooking successes, and failures, is a great way to make money online.  Even if your cooking usually turns out to be stories of woe, like my “never mix cheese and cabbage” disaster, having a way to connect with other people who share your interest is a great way to turn your stories into profits.

There are some simple skills required to start blogging about cooking.  Of course, you have to enjoy cooking.  You don’t have to be a chef, just have an interest in food.  You’ll want to be able to organize your thoughts, and get your recipes in some sort of understandable order so people can follow along.  If you have a digital camera, you’ll be able to include pictures of the dishes you make, but that is not absolutely necessary.  There are many publicly licensed food photos on the internet for you to use.

The main skill you’ll need is patience.  You won’t see a lot of traffic to your blog at first, but don’t worry.  It takes time for people to find out how great your blog is.

Of course, you want to make money with your recipe blog.  By using one or more of the following methods, you’ll have a real home-based business that will start producing income for you and your family.

Make Money by Selling Products: Some people enjoy the retail aspect of their business.  Whether it’s kitchen gadgets or cookbooks, your readers will love to hear what your favorite kitchen tools are. You’ll be sharing your love for cooking, giving your opinion on products, and making money at the same time.  Great idea.

Make Money by Selling Advertising: Once traffic starts coming your way, you’ll find advertising on your blog to be a nice way to generate income.  This is something to keep in mind, but you won’t really hit your stride making money with this method until you start getting readers.  Just file this idea away so you can start making your plans.

Make Money by Selling Your Blog: When your blog becomes popular, you have become a successful blogger, for sure!  If you’re ready to move on to other things, you can consider selling your blog for a big profit.

By focusing your energy on your own unique style of blog, you can find a home for family recipes, regional dishes, cooking disasters and fun stories that your readers will come back to time and time again.  Sharing your knowledge of cooking, your recipes, your successes and failures, all can bring in a nice income if you are ready to learn how.  But, you’ve got to take that first step in order to see your dreams come true.

To learn exactly how to set up your blog and how to create a recipe blog that people love, talk about and come back to, grab the guide “How to Start a Cooking Blog“. You’ll also learn how to get traffic to your blog and make money doing something you enjoy.

Small Business Website Design – How to Choose a Website Template

You’ve made the decision to build your website. You’ve chosen the program you want to build it in. Now comes that agonizing decision of choosing a website template!

How to you choose a small business website design template?

Before you make any template decisions you must know how your website is being built. There are so many ways to build a website, including:

• Software programs like Dreamweaver or Microsoft Expressions
• Website Builders like Weebly
• Online Content Management Systems like WordPress or Joomla

My recommendation is always WordPress. After spending over ten years designing websites in just about every way possible I settled on WordPress because of it’s cost (free!), ease of use, flexibility, variety of looks and customizability.
Let’s get back to the topic at hand – templates!

So you’ve chosen your site design method and now you’re looking for templates. Here are some factors to keep in mind as you do your search:

1. Customization – How much can the template be changed? Some templates are meant to be used exactly as is while others are designed to be tweaked and customized. Find out how flexible your potential theme is so you can decide if it’s right for you.

2. Support – If you run into issues and problems with your template will there be anyone to answer your questions? Having this kind of customer support is usually something you’ll get from themes you pay for and not free ones. So consider if it’s worth it to you to have available support as you need it.

3. Flexibility – Does your template limit your website in any way? Does it allow you to do everything you need to do with your website at the moment and anything you might want to do in the near or even distant future. Try to think long-term with your template and if it will suit your needs over time.

4. Branding – Does the template match the branding and style of your business. If you are starting a business from scratch this may not be an issue but if you are bringing your offline business online you want to consider your brand and keep it consistent. Some things you might not think about initially are matching: fonts, colors, logos and images. Consistent branding builds trust and confidence in your business, allow your potential customers and customers to feel comfortable buying from you.

5. Navigation – Last, but certainly not least is website navigation. Does the template allow ease of use for moving throughout the site? Potentially one of the most important thing about your site is how easily people can find what they are looking for. Make sure any potential templates you choose are not confusing or constricting and allow users to easy find their way to the good stuff.

Now that you have some solid advice on choose your first website template maybe you need clear directions on how to get that site setup from scratch to finish?

Why Use WordPress For Your Website

Here are the reason why I choose WordPress as the software to build my website:

It’s free – You only pay for hosting, no additional fees for expensive software (ie. like Dreamweaver which is hundreds) or monthly fees for a builder type program.

It’s easy to install – With WordPress you can literally have a good-looking site up and running within a day.

Hundreds of Templates – With many site builders there is a limited number of templates. Because WordPress is so popular there are new templates being built all the time.

Community Development – Most proprietary software has a very small staff working on the program development. WordPress is wide open and there are hundreds of people who work on improving the program constantly. This makes it a big and very exciting ‘virtual community’ project that gets better and better all the time. Having hundreds of brains all working towards the same cause can be a powerful thing.

SEO – Perhaps one of the most touted features of WordPress is how easy it makes you to search engine optimize your site. With WordPress you automatically get your keywords inserted into your page titles and you get a great summary that shows up in the search engines. But WordPress also makes it easier to do internal site linking which also helps with the search engines and there are many plugins also designed to move SEO along even further.

Easily Updated – While it is true you do have to update your WordPress sites and backup your files yourself it couldn’t be much easier. Just a few clicks of your mouse and you’ve upgraded to the latest versions and backed up your sites.

Security – Yes, hackers are working to ‘break into’ WordPress all the time because it’s so popular but the developers are constantly keeping ahead with new upgrades which means it’s probably one of the most secure website systems out there. But as long as your WordPress account is updated to the latest version it is very secure.

Plugins – Most sites come with a certain set of features and that’s it. Not with WordPress. Plugins are little add-on pieces of software that can do anything from making it snow on your website (seriously) to keeping automated spam bots from messing up your comment area with their spam crap. Again, plugins are another example of that virtual community at work here. There are hundreds of people putting in hours upon hours for free to create valuable plugins to serve the WordPress community.

Versatility – I use WordPress for my websites, my blogs, my salesletters, my membership sites and everything else in between.

Blogging – A blog is an interactive, social tool that is pretty much a stable to most businesses with a site online these days. There’s no extra steps to adding a blog when you use WordPress, it can simply be built right into your website and easily managed all in one spot.

Complete Control – When it comes right down to it there is very little that WordPress CAN’T do. When you’re a beginner of course you are limited by your own knowledge and skills but perhaps what I love most about WordPress is that it’s a program that doesn’t limit me to build the biggest and best site I possibly can. The limits are really only set by my own imagination and abilities.

Small Business Website Design – What Do I Put On My First Website?

Creating your first website can feel overwhelming and intimidating. Once you get beyond the process of getting the actual bones of the site done and have a good structure to build on you then need to decide what to put on your website.

The words on your website are often known as it’s content. Creating website content can be a daunting task if you’ve never written for the internet. It doesn’t work to just transfer the kind of content you would use offline into the online world.

The internet is an entirely different creation, a completely different medium and you need to really understand how people think in order to write for it well.

Let’s start by going over some of the most common and important website pages:

Home page – This is the main page of your site. It’s the page people will land on if they type your domain name into their internet browser. So how do you make sure you don’t mess this page up and end up driving people away? Use your home page to capture the attention of your potential customer or client. Call their name by understanding them as a person with a specific need or problem that you can help with. Know their language and use it. Don’t save the good stuff for later because there may never be a later – get it out there and grab their interest from the start.

About page – It’s a mistake to leave this page off your website. People routinely go to the About Page to find out about a company or a business owner. They want to know they can trust you and that you’re a real person. Create a detailed about page that assures their worries and confirms that you’re just the type of business they’ll love to work with.

Products or Services pages – Of course you’ll need to showcase what you have to sell. Make sure you clearly state what it is you have to offer and give your visitors calls to action. Don’t just assume people will see your stuff and know what to do next – spell it out for them!

Contact page – Another essential website page that builds trust. Even if a potential customer has no intent to actually content you it’s very likely they’ll check your contact page to confirm you are a legitimate business. Prove your legitimacy by posting your name, position, phone number, email AND physical or mailing address. The location is important because it’s much less suspicious than having no way to track you down physically should problems arise.

Privacy Policies & Disclaimers – Legally it’s a smart idea to have some privacy policies and disclaimers added to your website.

Every website is different. What you write for your site is going to depend largely on your target market and what they respond to. Pay attention to how your visitors react and do what you can to track – then tweak as you go to improve your content and the response it gets.

Building your first website can be intimidating, but even the most non-technical beginner can do it! Want to learn how?

Check out this six week course that teaches you everything you need to know to build your own website, from scratch, with WordPress.

How to Get Healthier and Wealthier at the Same Time

Here’s little quiz for you.

1. Do you love to eat? Ice cream, chips, fried foods, big slices of fresh bread, chocolate, cheese, sauces… Any of those making you drool?

2. Are you slacking off on the amount of exercise you should be doing? Making excuses to get out that exercise video, go to the gym, or even take a 1/2 hour walk every day? Who has time for that?

3. Do you wish you had more disposable income? Maybe an extra $100 per month to start?

If you answered “Yes” to at least 2 of the three questions above, you’re going to love this article.

But, first, don’t feel badly if you aren’t eating well enough and aren’t exercising enough. You aren’t alone.

If you’re like most humans on the planet – you love to eat. Maybe a little too much. And, again, if you’re like most people on the planet, you’re not getting enough exercise. Perhaps you’re too busy working or taking care of your family, but the fact is that you’re not taking good enough care of yourself. And, finally, if you’re like most people on the planet – you’d like more money.

Here’s what I’m going to propose.

Start a Fitness Journal or Weight Loss Journey Blog for Fun and Profit

The cool thing is that you don’t HAVE to be an expert to succeed at this. In fact, the more believable you are as a flawed human being, the better off you can do.

Think about this. Who is the average American more likely to believe and trust?

1. Someone who has 3% body fat and looks like they spend all day at the gym and have natural genetics for general awesomeness?

or…

2. Someone who has a before picture where they weighed 400 lbs and an after picture weighing in at a healthy 170?

I would want to know how the second person pulled it off. Don’t you?! Not only that, but if the blog was believable, I’d probably tell my friends, post on Facebook about it, and buy everything they offered about how I can lose weight, too!

So what does this mean? Simple. People search online for solutions to their problems. A BIG problem for people is their overall weight and lack of exercise. So, if you set up a blog, you can not only help those people but … and this is the best part … hold yourself accountable to lose weight, too.

Your first blog post can be as simple as this:

“My name is Sally and I have a confession to make. I need to lose about 80 lbs. How’d I gain it all? Well, it snuck up on me one potato chips at a time, but I’m determined to lose it because (insert your reason why here).  I’d like to use this blog as a diary to show you how I do it. I’ll share the ups and downs along the way. Share anything that works really well. And, the fads that I try that don’t. So you can avoid them! Please come back often to see how I’m doing. I’d love to cheer you on, too. So please comment and let me know how much weight you need to lose so we can do it together.”

You can do that. It’s as simple as writing an email.

The only trick is in getting started. That’s where I come in.

To learn exactly how to get your Weight Loss Journey blog up and running and make people love it, talk about it and come back for more — grab the guide “How to Start a Weight Loss Journey Blog“. You’ll also learn how to get traffic to your blog and make money doing something you enjoy.

What is the Most Important Feature Your Business Needs to Use on the Internet?

So you’ve got your business online and now you’re wondering where to go next. Or maybe you’re not quite moved online yet and you want to know what is the most important feature your business needs to use on the internet.

Well if we look at this from the standpoint of what your most valuable asset would be in your business, offline or online, we will find the answer.

What if I took away all your customers and all your potential customers. Would you still have a business? Nope, no way.

So if we had to boil marketing on the internet down to one most important feature that would hands down be your customer and leads lists. What does that look like in terms of online marketing? It’s your email list.

If you do nothing else on the internet it’s important that you build your customer and potential customer database. With programs like Aweber it is easy to build multiple email lists of people who are interested in what you have to offer but are not quite ready to buy. It is also easy to put those who’ve bought from you into email lists either manually or through a bit of automation.

How do you build an email list?

Well this will bring us to probably the second-most important feature of an online business. That would be your website. Using a website to market your business is going to have a large impact on your ability to sell and to collect new leads.

With a website you can give people as much information as they need to tell them WHY they should join your email list and what value you will be providing to them.

What do you do with an email list?

So now you’ve begun to build this great asset but you’re not sure what to do with it. Many people build an email list and then leave it sitting, quiet and useless. Don’t let your list go cold. Email them with useful information that builds their trust in you as a source of knowledge on your area expertise. Make offers from time to time but always provide value and build the relationship with your list.

How often do you email your list?

Many people who start a list worry about emailing their list too often. How often you email your list is going to depend on how much value you can provide to them and how many emails that will take. If you can provide value only once ever two weeks then do it. If you need to email three times a week because you have so much value to add then do it.

Just keep watch and judge the reaction of your list and make adjustments from there. If you are loosing a lot of subscribers then you’ll know it’s time to adjust. If you are getting lots of positive reactions then you’ll know you’re on the right track.

Overall building an email list is one of the most valuable assets you can have in your business. If you take the time to do it right you will build long term relationships that will last for years and provide you with fiercely loyal customers.

That’s why I’ve created Email List Mojo… A course that’s designed to show you how to set up your first email list on Aweber (an email software program) and add it to your blog or website built with WordPress.

Check it out here: Email List Mojo

4 Common Misconceptions about PLR Content

Recently, in an interview, I was asked this question:

“Can you explode any misconceptions that stop people from using PLR content?”

Here is my answer.

There are four main myths that I run into regularly.

1. The biggest misconception that people have is that all PLR is crap.

2. The second biggest misconception is that ghostwriters are not good writers. We can even take that a step further and add that people assume they are stupid, taken advantage of, and/or they don’t speak English as their native language.

3. The third misconception is that using PLR takes away from your expert status.

4. The fourth misconception is that PLR and ghostwriting are somehow dishonest.

Let’s run through those one by one.

Myth #1: All PLR is Crap.

If you go back to about 2003, then I’d say that you are absolutely correct. Nearly all PLR at that time was junk. There may have been a few exceptions, but I wouldn’t touch most of that PLR content with a 10-foot pole.

We’ve made great strides in the last few years to raise the standards for what is acceptable and what is not in the PLR world. I’d like to think that I was one of the leaders in that movement.

Myth #2: Ghostwriters are Stupid.

I’ve got to tell you that I’ve worked with some ghostwriters who are brilliant in many ways. Oftentimes, they’re fabulous communicators, smart marketers, and hard working entrepreneurs. And, yes, they’re qualified to write quality information on many topics on the internet.

For instance, for a long time, I had a nurse writing my health PLR articles. I’ve also got a writer who graduated from Stanford University, who writes for several popular print magazines, and is a published author. Yes, she has her own book. And, another who had a career as a Political Speech Writer (before having children). That’s just three of my writers. They’re all amazing people, each with a variety of skills and life experience.

To assume they aren’t capable of writing quality content would be just silly.

I don’t just go to eLance.com and take the lowest bidder. To think that’s how all PLR sites work would certainly be a misconception.

Myth #3: You’re Not a “Real” Expert if you Use PLR.

The other misconception is that using PLR articles takes away your own value as the expert. That you are somehow cheating, plagiarizing, or that you’re a phony if you use PLR.

If ONLY you could see my customer list. It reads like the “Who’s who of Successful Online Business Owners”.

Business is all about cutting costs while increasing the bottom line. What better example is there than PLR content?

If you use PLR articles as drafts, they are delivered to you, ready for you, as the expert, to add your unique thoughts to them.

If you look at PLR like that – you can still keep your personality in your brand – and your sanity at the same time.

Myth #4: Using Ghostwriters or PLR is Cheating.

Most biographies in the bookstores are written by ghostwriters.

Most of the famous orations from our history were written by someone other than the public figure who gave the speech.

It’s not cheating to get help. It’s smart business.

Nicole Dean is the owner of  www.EasyPLR.com – where you’ll find high-quality PLR articles sold in very limited quantities.  The PLR articles at EasyPLR are professionally written and professionally edited — top quality at an affordable price.