Category: Grow a Home Business

    What to Look For in an Online Community

    If you want to join an online community rather than build your own, it’s important to look at several communities to ensure that you spend your money and/or time wisely before getting too involved. It’s pretty easy to tell quickly if a community is one you want to stay involved in if you know what to look for.

    * Uses Real Names – You don’t really want to waste time in a community where everyone is anonymous. You want to make real connections with real people with whom you can conduct business. When you are dealing with a lot of anonymous people that isn’t going to happen; instead you could end up scammed.

    * Has Active Discussions – The owner of the group should be working hard to ensure that discussions stay active and productive. If no one has started a new discussion in the last week other than to spam the group, it’s probably not a very good community.

    * Offers Plenty of Content – You want to be part of a community that offers informative content to the audience that is helpful to their business. If the content and information that is available is old and outdated, it might not be a community that you want to waste time on.

    * Has a Podcast – A really good addition to any online community is a podcast where the host interviews members and also experts in the niche. This keeps everything new and fresh for the members and keeps them coming back.

    * Community of Customers – The best community you can join is a community full of potential clients for you. For example if you’re an author’s VA you might want to join a community of authors.

    * Community of Colleagues – Alternatively, you might want to learn more about your niche by joining a community full of your actual competition. It can be very enlightening to learn from others who are doing what you are doing.

    * Notice Who Is Commenting – When a discussion starts, who is starting it and who is commenting on it? You may notice that the same people are always involved in the discussions. That is okay as long as the comments are well formed, intelligent, and there aren’t a lot of disagreements without someone checking the discussion.

    * How Many Blatant Ads Appear? – Some measure of promotion is okay because it’s their community that they started likely to promote themselves, but you want the promotions to be well thought out and not the only thing the community is about.

    * Do They Offer Live Events? – Webinars, teleseminars, Twitter parties, and even in-person live events speak to a well-organized and established online community that will continue to grow and thrive.

    Choosing an online community to become a regular part of is an important thing to consider, because it takes a lot of time and effort to create value from the experience. You don’t want to spend your time in the wrong place.

    Categories: Membership Tags: Tags:

    Video Marketing in Spite of Self Doubt

    One of the scariest and most dreaded tasks you may encounter as an online marketer is that of video marketing. Say the words and instantly, hundreds of men and women will retreat into their cave of self doubt.

    But it doesn’t have to strike fear in your heart. In fact, it’s one of the easiest and most fun ways to get your message across, once you get out of your own way and start enjoying it.

    Has Self Doubt Prevented You from Embracing Video?

    Video marketing is basically, using video for the purpose of promoting your business in any way, shape or form. It might be using video to blog, commonly known as vlogging. Or it might be using video sales letters or video for viral, traffic purposes.

    It’s a common thing to want to avoid when you’re already unsure about what you’re doing in the online marketing industry. It’s bad enough to put your name out there, but adding your voice and face to the mix almost seems like too much for some people to handle.

    You might even prefer text yourself for consumption of ideas – but make no mistake about it – the vast majority of online consumers are now turning to video to get the answers they crave.

    Everything from product recommendations to tutorials and advice are now streamed into their world through the use of videos, and it’s a viable media format for almost every niche you can think of.

    You’re probably seeing all (or most) of your competitors employing the use of video marketing. You’re sitting on the sidelines wishing you had the confidence to do it, too – but you don’t.

    The people using it for video blogs are combining text and video to reach more people – those who have a preference for text, and those who don’t. The marketers using it for product creation are making their products stand out among the crowd of competitors.

    Some are even live streaming their insight on places like Facebook – building even more leverage with the community because they’re reachable, consistent and cutting edge.

    So you have to make a decision that you’ll begin video marketing in spite of your self doubt. It’s one of the best things you can do to not only reach your audience, but also build your self confidence with online marketing.

    What About Video Scares You the Most?

    Let’s dig into your fears and uncover the root of your self doubt. Because most likely, it’s just all in your head and not anything to truly impact your use of it. The first would be your worry about the technology.

    Video marketing can seem intimidating when you start thinking of editing software and intro-exit designs, embedding code and more. But really, take it a little slower and you’ll see that it’s not all that hard.

    Video doesn’t have to be edited. In fact, it’s often better if it’s the raw version that shows you being human and unfiltered. So turn on your smart phone, hit record on your video camera, and start filming!

    You can use free platforms like YouTube or pay for access to a site like Vimeo and host your videos there. Embedding is as easy as clicking the share button, copying the code that’s readymade for you, and pasting it in your blog!

    As you level up, you can learn new skills. For example, you might want to learn how people get their cursor to have that highlighted yellow circle effect. All you have to do is Google the question and there will be tons of video tutorials walking you through it!

    What if your self doubt doesn’t stem from the technology at all, but from something deeper, like worrying that you won’t know what to say and will appear stupid? That’s easy to fix!

    Jot down a few simple word or phrase reminders that you keep off to the side to keep your mind on track. That way, when you finish one thought, you can move on to the next without hesitation.

    Are you doubting your ability to produce a professional looking video? After all, the big gurus have green screens and special lamps or their productions. The most you really have to worry about is making sure your background isn’t messy.

    No one wants to learn from someone who has piles of dirty laundry or dishes stacking up behind them. And it’s best to have minimal distractions or noise in the background, too.

    Many people stall out when it comes to video marketing because they look in the mirror and think, “Nobody wants to see me on camera.” That’s a sad thing to say, isn’t it? Ask yourself a question.

    When you learn about how to build a blog, do you refuse to learn from someone because they’re going bald, or have a crooked tooth or a nose that’s slightly too big? No, you don’t – because you’re not looking to date the person, you’re looking to learn from them.

    People appreciate someone helping them learn the solutions to their problems, and they don’t care about your appearance – or the sound of your voice. They care about whether or not you’ll be able to help them.

    Take It Slow to Eliminate Self Doubt

    Self doubt comes on strong the faster you go. So sometimes it’s best to take it slow and implement something like video marketing in baby steps. Let’s look at a few ways you can slow down the process and eliminate self doubt along the way.

    First, you can start by making private videos. This might sound counter-intuitive, but you need time to get used to the recording process. So record your videos as if someone really will be watching them, and then upload them to your video hosting platform and watch them back as a viewer.

    Work out all of the kinks ahead of time – before your videos go public. For example, you might realize that your lighting is too dark, or that you can’t hear your voice very well. Maybe you see that you’re not looking at the camera lens, but at yourself in the video as you record.

    These are all things you can fix before putting yourself out there. So upload, and then password-protect the video so that only you can view the video. If you happen to be happy with your production, edit the settings and make it live for the public.

    Another way to curb self doubt is to start small and work up to larger videos. A small video might be under three minutes. Then go longer to five, then 10 and later half an hour.

    Start with videos where you’re sharing information for free. Nothing puts unnecessary pressure on you more than charging money for something you aren’t sure is any good. So get comfortable creating free videos first.

    Then, as your skills and confidence improve, consider creating video courses or adding video to your sales copy for better conversions. This eases you into the process without any anxiety at all.

    When it comes to the information you’re sharing in your videos, some people have a tendency to want to blurt out a million different things in one video. But there’s a better, more effective way to handle it.

    Pick one nugget of information at a time and make a video about it. One good tip. One excellent product review. Later, if you want to, you can move up to comparison videos such as “Nike or Adidas Shoes?” or multiple tip videos like “3 Good Ways to Get Traffic to Your Blog.”

    Put Your Best Foot Forward

    If appearances are really concerning you, making you doubt your ability to be a video marketer, then let’s look at how you can lessen your self doubt in that area. First, take time to properly fix your hair and makeup (if you wear it).

    You don’t have to get a professional blow out or go to the salon. Just comb or brush it neatly and look just as you would look if you were going on a job interview, for example. Don’t worry if you’re not resembling a model – few marketers in this business actually do.

    Second, don some clothes that make you feel good about yourself. All they’ll be seeing is from the torso and up, so don’t worry about dressing to the nines. All you need is a good shirt or blouse.

    Depending on the message you want to present, you could even wear a t-shirt if you wanted – just make sure it’s clean and presentable, not stained with food drippings or torn at the edge.

    Your videos should be created so that it looks almost as if you’re sitting across the table from someone (the viewer) at a café, having lunch. When people tell you they feel connected to you from your videos – like they’re having lunch with an old friend – you’ll know you’re doing it right.

    You should never make the common mistake of holding the video in your hand up close. No one wants to view a close up facial shot. The video should have you sitting back so that your shoulders are showing along with your head.

    Steady the camera by propping it up or using a stand for it. If you hold it, then not only will you probably look too close, but the video will be slightly shaky from your hand and not as smooth as you want it to be for those watching.

    Aside from your own appearance, it’s important that you set your mind at ease when making videos by ensuring the room around you is pleasant. Instead of relying on fancy lamps, use natural sunlight.

    Open the blinds or shades and watch the room fill with the best lighting for your videos. If it’s too dark still, then strategically place small lamps from your home around the room until you achieve the look you want.

    If the space behind you is cluttered, consider either recording against a blank wall or investing in an affordable backdrop. You can order beautiful room dividers off Amazon that give your videos a nice, professional appearance.

    Just make sure everything looks tidy – and that your family isn’t running around in the background causing a distraction to the viewers. As you level up with a paid video course, make sure you do everything you can to improve the aesthetic quality of your recordings.

    Learn How to Level Up and Build Confidence

    Video marketing success comes with practice. Aside from repeatedly engaging in video, which will put you at ease over time, you can find other ways to improve your confidence with this media format.

    First, watch other marketers to see how they do video. Are they relaxed and laughing, or are they speaking like a paid, professional commercial? Know your goals before you begin recording.

    How long are the videos in your niche by your competitors? If they’re seeing a ton of engagement from 3-5 minute videos and you’re not seeing any on 10-15 minutes, then it’s an indicator that it’s not about length, but quality that matters.

    Are some people doing videos on location, instead of at home in their office? For example, let’s say you’ve decided to enter the fitness niche. You might start out giving great advice via video from your home office.

    But then you hit a wall and engagement and subscribers goes stagnant. One way you can improve is to see what other fitness niche video marketers are doing. You might see that they’re filming on location in the gym.

    This is a good way to copy someone else’s success. You’re not hijacking their message, but finding out what the niche demographic prefers when it comes to learning styles.

    Another way you can put self doubt to rest is to take the easy route and simply ask fellow marketers and trusted online friends for some feedback. Be prepared to accept it and not get offended.

    They might tell you they can’t understand you – that you’re mumbling. Or maybe they’ll say you need better lighting or more energy as you use video. But they also might say it’s fantastic and you shouldn’t change a thing!

    One of the last things you can do to improve your hesitation in using video is to learn how to use good video editing software. You can create a professional intro to your recording, or edit out mistakes as you go.

    Categories: video Tags: Tags:

    Make Marketing Friends to Boost Your Confidence

    Networking is one of the most important things you can do to boost your business – and your self confidence to move on to greater successes. But meeting people can be a challenge to some – even though meeting others online provides some level of anonymity.

    Fear starts rearing its ugly head, especially if you’re a newbie and trying to meet people on forums where everyone seems to know what they’re doing and exactly where they’re going and how to get there.

    Although networking may evoke self doubt for some, it can be the best move you could ever make to grow your business. You don’t have to join online conversations and forums pretending that you’re already successful.

    In fact, most marketers are more than willing to help newbies succeed and go overboard to be sure you’re getting the information you need and the help you ask for. They’ll proudly share ideas and past successes and failures with you and will likely support you in your ventures.

    It’s good to know people going through the same thing you are. They can provide support whenever you feel alone as an entrepreneur – helping you work through self doubt issues and get back in the groove with your productivity.

    Participate in events and meet-ups that you’ve researched and are sure that they’re relevant to what you’re trying to accomplish. You don’t want to waste your time participating in an event that brings you no new or relevant information.

    Before the event, think of some conversation starters to get information flowing. Know as much as you can about the product or services to avoid tedious questions. Also, think of ways you can end a conversation if you get into a boring or irrelevant one.

    Links and business cards are great ways to network, too. If you’re attending a meet-up session or going to a seminar, be prepared to pass on a lot of cards and ask for others. You may end up with some future clients or JV partners to add to your list.

    To network successfully, you should be genuinely engaged with the other person and focus on making the conversation interesting and bringing out others in a positive manner.

    Mainly, think about what you’re going to say or conversations you’d like to engage in prior to the event and try to inspire others as well as be inspired. It’s good to get out of your comfort zone once in awhile to experience new ideas.

    You may be surprised to find out how much you already know about your industry compared to others you meet either on or offline. Networking is a business strategy that many marketers underplay, but can be an invaluable part of your future business successes.

    Categories: Networking Tags: Tags: ,

    Don’t Let Self Doubt Stop You from Recruiting JVs and Affiliates

    Online marketing as a career seems like a very lonely pursuit. But the reality is, it’s not. You have blog readers and loyal customers, and affiliates and joint venture partners that can help catapult your success to the next level.

    For many marketers, self doubt hangs like a low cloud over their ability to make those connections – especially when it comes to recruiting affiliates and JV partners, because they worry that they won’t be worthy of a promotion.

    How Self Doubt Keeps You from Making the Right Connections

    Some people mistakenly assume that they’ll simply get the ball rolling, create great products, and affiliates and joint venture partners will flock to them. That’s just not the case.

    It requires recruitment and networking, and that means you have to be willing to put yourself out there and get to know them – or more importantly, let them get to know you. That’s how business deals are done on the ‘net.

    You probably feel self doubt initially because you come onto the Internet Marketing scene as a relatively unknown competitor. Even if you have the greatest product on Earth, branding and promotion might be non existent for you at first.

    You witness people sharing selfies at seminars and talking like they’re old friends who go back 20 years – and you start to feel like you’re just not part of that crowd. Or maybe the way they interact (like bragging about attending a JV party at the Playboy mansion) has you feeling isolated because that’s just not you.

    Sometimes you might hear of large partnerships between two huge marketers – or maybe even a trio or four marketers coming together to launch something special. You wish you could do that, too – but hang your head because nobody’s asked you to partner up like that.

    You might feel self doubt because, as you look around the Internet, you see tons of amazing joint venture pages – so professionally done – and you worry that your do-it-yourself version won’t impress potential partners.

    There’s another part of you that’s just scared to approach people because you’re worried you’ll do something dumb and look stupid or amateurish. But the reality is – everyone was new to this at some point, and your newcomer status is actually a perk!

    When someone is new to the scene, it’s an opportunity for seasoned JV partners to get in on something that might really take off. As long as you present yourself well up front, it’s a win-win for both parties.

    What Affiliates and JV Partners Really Want

    You might be thinking about it all wrong – assuming that prospective JV partners want the other person to already be established. And in few cases, this might be true. But really, their main concerns are quite different – and very doable – even for the greenest newbie.

    First, the JV partners and affiliates really want someone to understand that they’re protective of their lists. Imagine building a list of 10,000 or 100,000 loyal buyers – would you promote a product that made them not trust you any longer?

    So once you understand that they’re protective of their list, they hope you’ll approach them with a truly great product that you’re proud of. Too many people rip someone else off or slap together a shoddy product just to try to make money.

    The affiliates want to know that what they’re recommending won’t make them look foolish. Remember – they risk having to pay back commissions in refunds if your product doesn’t do what it says.

    Affiliates and JV partners want you to approach them in the right way. The wrong way is to spam them without ever introducing yourself on the day of your launch, and hit them up with a request begging for them to promote you.

    It’s rude – almost like attending a dinner party and instead of walking up and introducing yourself, you simply walk up and hand the other person a business card and walk away. Nobody wants to be used.

    Another thing joint venture partners and affiliates desire is enough time to create a nice bonus that will help them rake in sales. You may not know it, but bonuses are what help increase sales by a lot.

    And these are different from bonuses you create or allow people to use. These are exclusive bonuses that the affiliate creates for their list if the buy your product through their link.

    So the earlier you contact someone, the more time they’ll have to whip up a bonus their list will love. This is most important if you are hosting an affiliate contest, because the bonus could help them win cash prizes.

    Affiliates and JV partners also enjoy perks for their promotions. If you’re new, one way to clear your self doubt is to approach people with special perks like a bump in commission or bonuses that you provide for their list.

    That might include hosting a webinar (if you’re comfortable with that) in conjunction with them to answer any questions their subscribers might have when it comes to your product.

    Learn the Right Way to Toot Your Own Horn

    You’ve been taught growing up that it was unsavory to be a braggart. And that was true to some degree. You don’t want to stick your tongue out and tease another kid about what you have that they don’t.

    But when it comes to business, it’s a whole ‘nother ball game. You have to toot your own horn or else nobody else will, and people will wonder why you’re not! It’s a feeling of uneasiness that you may have grown up with, but now have to let go.

    Nobody is asking you to disparage another marketer’s hard work to make yourself look good. In fact, that kind of behavior will backfire on you. But you do have to be able to put a spotlight on what makes you a wonderful leader in your niche.

    This is something that gets easier over time and with a lot of practice. Sometimes it’s a good idea to see how other people do it. Implement the same qualities little by little as you work your way up to feeling good about your boasting.

    For example, start with being able to say you’ve created an amazing product. Surely you wouldn’t have poured your heart and soul into creating a subpar product (and if you did, then go back to the drawing board).

    So what makes you personally proud of what you created? Is it well-researched? Does it have a unique spin to it that nobody else has done? Are the components like the writing and video and graphics all professionally done?

    Then it’s okay to be proud of that fact and say so! Just because you say you’ve done something great, it doesn’t mean you’re saying that everybody else is beneath you – it simply means you’ve joined the ranks of quality product creators.

    Understand that joint venture partners and affiliates expect you to have confidence in what you put out there – and that includes everything from your sales copy to your ability to contact them with ease.

    The way they see it – if you aren’t confident, then they will start to feel concern that maybe your product isn’t the right one for their list of subscribers. Think of it like being a pilot.

    If you knew how to fly a plane, would you reassure everyone that you’re a good pilot? Or would you greet passengers by saying, “I hope we don’t crash. I’m pretty sure I’m an okay pilot, but you never know?”

    Obviously, you’d reassure the passengers – just as you want to reassure people spending money on your course or product – that what they’re about to buy is worth their investment.

    Prepping Your Product Confidently for an Attractive Affiliate Offer

    The best way to get rid of self doubt is to do your very best in preparing your product for an attractive affiliate offer. You want to feel as good as possible when approaching JV partners.

    The first thing you can do is make sure the aesthetics are good. That means nice graphics. Taking the do it yourself route sometimes saves you money, but diminishes the appearance of professionalism.

    It’s not expensive to hire a graphic designer for a complete minisite (around $50), and many of the platforms now – like WordPress Engine and Optimize Press – require no expertise at all in design because they have everything built in for you.

    But the looks are important because it’s the very first thing affiliates, JV partners – and customers – will see upon landing on your site – even before they read a word of your offer.

    Sales copy can be intimidating, and it is one of the most important components – but it’s nothing to fret about. All you have to do is look at what’s been done in the past. This does not mean copying and rewriting someone else’s sales copy.

    That makes you look unprofessional. It means learning what elements people put on their sales copy in your niche – do they give statistics? Is there a personalized storyline? How many bulletpoints are normal for these vendors?

    Make sure you weave a good dose of self promotion into the sales copy, where you let people know that this is a fantastic product and that you’re someone who can be trusted to deliver.

    Make sure you set your product apart from the masses. Anything you can do to make sure your product has an edge is a good idea. Maybe that means a fresh twist on an old idea.

    Or it could be that you’re the first person to create a membership for the concept, or a software or plugin tool. Perhaps your product is a coaching product where nobody else has offered hand holding in the past.

    Your JV page should be well polished and professional. It should include many common elements such as:

    * Dates and times of the launch
    * Possible earnings throughout the funnel
    * Details of exactly what’s in each level of the funnel
    * Contest information, if applicable
    * Links on where to get their affiliate links
    * Swipe email file(s) for them to use in promotions.

    They shouldn’t have to contact you with any further questions. If you leave out important elements, they might figure it’s not worth their time and hassle, and pass you by. You want everything at their fingertips.

    Make sure you go through the launch test phase to iron out any kinks along the way. If you’re using a platform like JVZoo, it will allow you to make $0.01 test purchases to make sure the funnel flows correctly and that customers are taken to their downloads.

    Approaching the JVs and Affiliates to Get a Yes

    The most nerve-wracking part of your recruitment process will be sending the actual email or opening up a private message to contact a potential joint venture partner. First, make sure this person promotes the kind of product you have in mind.

    Once you verify that (and you can get on their list and check contest leaderboards to see who promotes, what) then you can reach out – but make sure you do it the right way.

    First, be willing to share the finished files. They need to know what they’re promoting. Don’t share a snippet or a glance – share the entire thing with them. You’re asking for their list.

    Don’t ask if they want to see it, just send access upon your very first communication. You want as little hassle on their end as possible. Have everything ready. This includes the files, a link to your JV page, swipe emails, bonus pages and anything else you have in mind.

    Impress them with your knowledge of why this product might be a good fit for their list. If you don’t know, that’s a problem. You never want to cold contact people just to see what sticks – make your JV recruitment process exclusive.

    To tempt them into saying yes, proudly offer them a bump in commission. If you have a funnel, you can offer a bump from 50% to 75 or 100% on the front end, keeping the rest of the funnel in place at 50% like the other affiliates get.

    Categories: Affiliate program Tags: Tags:

    Self Doubt Can Sabotage Your Product Creation

    Getting online to earn a living can be confusing and complicated. There are many directions you can go – and most people start out being an affiliate and recommending other peoples’ products.

    But eventually, if you’re finding that people listen to your recommendations and advice, you’ll want to create your own product – and that creates a different set of self doubt concerns.

    Some Comparison to Others Is Healthy

    Sometimes the fact that we compare ourselves to others is enough to cause defeat in our mindset and prevent us from moving forward with our product creation. We glance around and see what everyone else is doing and immediately feel inadequate.

    You’re not giving yourself a chance to see if you can compete, and you’ve already quit the race before it’s even begun. You never know if you might be able to do things better than your competition.

    What happens if you fall short? Does the world come crashing to an end? No. You find ways along the road where you can make improvements. You don’t have to hit it out of the ballpark each and every time – the key is to work on serving others with your knowledge.

    Don’t waste time and work yourself up into a panic by looking at someone else’s launch and thinking things like, “Their graphics look way more professional than mine,” or, “I wish I’d thought of that topic – now mine seems stupid,” or, “Look how many followers they have – nobody will care what I have to say.”

    Everyone started out where you are now. As long as you get going and improve over time, that’s all that matters. You have to believe in your ability to earn your place in the market.

    How can you do this? Create a product that fills a gap in the marketplace. Is there a topic everyone’s asking about but nobody’s created a comprehensive guide to yet? Is the stuff already out there outdated or different from the way you do things?

    Provide a unique slant on things and your audience will love you for it. Just brainstorm a list of topics or ideas for your niche and then compare it to what’s out there. Analyze what others did and then look at ways to set yourself apart.

    Are there good courses, but they’re all text eBooks? Create a video course or membership that people log into and get more inspiration. Find the people who promoted the other courses and let them know you have something new and different!

    Don’t Worry About the Volume of Competition

    One thing that always causes self doubt among online marketers is not just who else is competing, but how many other people are competing in a niche. Even some gurus will warn you to steer clear of too much competition.

    Nothing could be further from the truth! If a topic is selling, that means there’s a hungry audience for it. That’s all you need to know. You want to put blinders on when it comes to counting up how many products are on the market, or how many websites are already discussing the exact same topic.

    Consumers love learning from more than just one person. Think about yourself, for instance. You’re learning online marketing, right? Do you just learn from one person? Probably not.

    In fact, there are probably dozens of other marketers you learn from on a regular basis. Maybe you learn copywriting from one person, and paid ads from another. Or perhaps you have one specialty you like learning about (such as blogging) and you devour tidbits from a dozen or more marketers who all have something to offer you!

    This is true in every niche, not just marketing. For example, a pregnant woman will buy several books on pregnancy – not just one comprehensive book. They might buy “What to Expect When You’re Expecting.”

    But then they also might buy a book on nutrition for pregnancy, one on keeping the romance alive during your pregnancy – another on how to baby proof your house. And these all might come from different authors in the niche!

    It’s not just about information, either. Sometimes people like to learn from a variety of others with different teaching styles. Maybe your product will directly compete with someone else’s, but you’re offering video and they only have text – or vice versa – the customer wants to read, not watch video.

    Learning styles are a big reason why people develop a preference for one marketer’s products over another. Maybe you teach everything step-by-step, but another marketer generalizes and gives more theory than specific information.

    The right thing to do is to worry if there’s not a lot of competition in the marketplace for your niche topic. It might (rarely) mean that you’ve scouted out an untapped resource – a goldmine of opportunity.

    More often than not, it will mean it’s not a buyer’s market. People simply aren’t spending money to learn this particular topic. If that’s the case, you’re better off going into a highly competitive market online.

    With billions of prospective customers on the ‘net, it’s easy to find your target audience and develop a brand with loyal followers. If your concentration is on helping others, you’ll set yourself apart just for the quality you provide, alone!

    Ever Consider Partnering Up?

    One thing that might help you ease your self doubt is to consider not taking the solo route, but partnering up with other marketers, instead. You’ll want to do this carefully, but it could take a lot of the pressure off of both of you.

    You need to find someone who has skills to bring to the table, and make sure they’re opposite of whatever skills you have to offer in the product creation process. For example, you might have very good writing skills – while the other person excels at graphics and video.

    That’s the perfect pairing for a joint venture. Or maybe you are capable of creating a product, but you don’t know anything about launches. You could partner up with someone who has the right connections, knows what a sales letter should include, and has a large list of ready buyers.

    You can sometimes find someone in your niche who is willing to take you on and mentor you for a cut of the profits. It means you do the work, but they guide you in it. You share the revenue with them upon the launch.

    Strong joint venture partners are going to be very blunt about what you do and don’t need to do to make this a success. Instead of getting offended when they’re blunt, be appreciative that they’re not wasting your time trying to coddle you and prevent hurt feelings.

    Time is money on the ‘net, and nobody has time to waste softening the blow. If they come back and say, “Your sales copy isn’t professional,” then thank them and implement any ideas they have, along with researching how to write better copy to level up your game.

    If you go the partnership route, make sure you don’t get taken advantage of in the process. You have to ensure that whoever you’re connected with has ethics intact and doesn’t have a reputation for treating customers, affiliates or partners poorly.

    Don’t rely on a partner for every launch you do – but use the concept just long enough to get your bearings and discover the right process for product creation through the launch process.

    That way, you’ll feel confident from that point on, tackling whatever issues come up. Try learning during the process. Don’t just let them handle things. Ask why and how – to get an idea for how it all works.

    While they may not spend time teaching you everything, they might point you in the right direction. For example, if you say you’re impressed with the videos they created, they might say, “Thanks! I used Camtasia to do that.”

    That would then spark you to download Camtasia (or the freeware version – Camstudio) and start learning how to do that yourself for future launches. This is how people learn and improve their skills over time.

    Elements of a Product Creation That Oozes Success

    There are some products that knocks peoples’ socks off – and some that leave people scratching their head about how it got launched in the first place. The first place to start is in hiring someone to create professional graphics.

    Since our eyes see things before we can read anything, you want everything from the product to the sales copy graphics to the affiliate tools to look good. You can invest in a professional graphics person or even find a quality provider on Fiverr.

    Another thing you want to do is make sure you’re using an affiliate-friendly platform. One that allows instant commissions, like JVZoo or Warrior Plus, is always welcomed by affiliates.

    Put your mind at ease about potential profits by creating a product funnel instead of just a front end only product. A funnel not only gives you ample opportunities to make money, but it helps affiliates earn commissions, too!

    As you dig into the product creation process, take time to conduct thorough research. You don’t want to put something out there with misinformation or information that is outdated.

    See if you can find a new twist on it to entice both buyers and affiliates alike. That might mean coming up with a new slant – or pairing it with another topic. For example, instead of just creating a course on eating healthy, you could pair it with the stress niche – eating healthy in times of stress.

    What this does is opens your product up to sales from marketers in two different niches – dieting and stress. This is a good way of putting to rest your fears that there won’t be enough buyers for all of your hard work – and you’ll be able to recruit more affiliates for promotion.

    Have a sales copy strategy in place. If you’ve never written copy before, it can be intimidating. Emulate others who do it with a lot of success, and buy copywriting books that can help you learn how to get inside the mind of your customer.

    One way you can create products with more confidence is to make it a multimedia products. While it might sound intimidating at first, using a mix of text, audio and video is a great way to ensure more affiliates sign up to promote you.

    During the creation of the product, be careful not to plagiarize anyone else’s work. Don’t rewrite things or create a knock off of other peoples’ work because it can only come back to bite you if you do.

    Let your personality shine through. Don’t be afraid to personalize your product so that people remember how much they enjoyed taking your course. This sets you up for more sales the next time around.

    To alleviate any worry about dealing with customers, make it your motto that you’ll deliver superb customer support both before and after the sale. There are many marketers who don’t do this, and it’s one reason why so many people feel they’ve been burned.

    Timing Your Product Launch to Minimize Competition

    If you’re worried about all of the other products that get released, and how yours won’t even have a fighting chance, just make sure you time it right. First, check launch calendars like those on MunchEye.com to see what’s releasing on what date.

    Schedule your launch far enough in advance that you maximize affiliate recruitment. They need time to create bonuses, but they also book up their promo calendars weeks in advance – and many will only promote one item per email to their list.

    Give yourself plenty of time to create the product without rushing through it. You don’t want to schedule a launch for a week from now if it’ll be a tight race for you to finish in time. Factor in the product creation, but also the editing, affiliate recruitment, sales copy, technical launch setup and more.

    Make sure you price your product competitively so that you’re balance between giving yourself a fighting chance – and allowing yourself room to grow. You don’t want to undercut yourself too much, but you might not be able to price your product the same as someone more established with a proven track record.

    The best way to alleviate self doubt in product creation is to not only give it your all – but to go above and beyond with every step. Deliver more than what’s expected of you. Be better than everyone else when it comes to taking care of your customers.

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    Write, Publish, AND Market Your Blog Post

    Writing a blog post can be a lot of work what with getting your thoughts down in writing so your reader can benefit. And on top of it all, you’ve got a lot to remember before, during and after your post.

    Let’s quickly go over it all so you can know that you’re doing what you need to do.

    1. Come up with a good post idea – will it entertain, educate, inform?

    2. Write the rough draft. Now read it and take out the unnecessary words. Your readers want it quick and to the point.

    3. Now is the time to insert your live links such as affiliate links or internal links.

    4. Insert graphics.

    5. Make sure it looks good with the graphics, subheaders, colors, etc. Bullets, numbers and bold headings make it easier for the average “reader” to scan your content. While we’d like them to read every fascinating word, we have to settle for scanning, which is better than skipping and leaving.

    6. Let it simmer. You will always think of something important to add to it and it’s easier to do this before you hit publish.

    7. Polish it one more time and read it OUTLOUD to catch awkward sentences. Even if you’re posting a podcast or video, you will still have a paragraph or two of writing to proofread.

    8. Don’t forget to hit the publish button! Take a deep breath and move on.

    9. Broadcast it to your list.

    10. Tweet it, post a link on FB, and shout it out through any other social media channels you use.

    11. Watch for comments on the post and be sure to quickly answer any questions. Some bloggers don’t answer all comments but it’s a good idea to.

    12. Take some time to comment on some of the commenters’ blogs. It’s a courtesy plus you might learn something from their post. In addition, your blog gets more exposure.

    13. Do some more tweeting. There’s no rule that says you can only tweet once per blog post. You should reword the tweet though. And if someone retweets you, thank them and/or retweet one of their tweets.

    14. Watch your stats. Some topics will be real winners with number of views not necessarily number of comments. Do something with the winning topics – write more blog posts, create your own product, link to an affiliate product, offer a free optin report, etc.

    15. Be open to more ways to promote it in the future. If it’s a good post, keep a lookout for an opportunity to internally link back to it.

    Blogging is not about slapping something up on your site, it requires a little more work than that. Post something you can be proud of, then make sure you promote it so lots of people do see it.

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    OMG, I’ve Got a Thorny Blog Problem!

    It happens to the best of us, we’re blogging along and we make a huge mistake. Or we try to make changes and screw something up. Maybe we’ve left it alone for too long and want to resurrect it. Any way you look at it, there’s a huge thorny blog problem.

    Change can be a good thing, like when you want to go to a paid theme with all the perks or you want to update to the latest WordPress. So you do it and bam!, you broke your blog. Or at least you and your readers can’t see it anymore. I could tell you that you should have backed up your blog before you messed with it, but you know that now. So get some help. The first place I start is with my hosting company. They back up everything on a consistent basis so they can actually bring your blog back up from the last time they saved it. It might be what your blog looked like 3 days ago so anything you’ve posted since then won’t be on it. That may or may not be a problem. Otherwise, get help from your resident techy expert.

    Here’s another problem that can happen with change – you want to change your blog’s direction to match your new direction. Maybe your blog has been all about writing content and now you want to teach how to do video. You’ve got to make a choice. If the difference is not too great you can keep posting to your blog and explain to your readers what’s coming up. Some readers will go right along with you and some will protest and drop off. If the difference is pretty massive, then strongly consider starting a new blog on your new passion.

    A very common thorny blog problem is when you’ve decided to start blogging again after a long hiatus. There are two schools of thought here. Either start blogging again and totally overlook the fact that it’s been forever since you blogged, or give an explanation about your absence. I think smaller gaps can be ignored, but larger gaps might need an explanation. It’s okay to admit you got beaten by shiny object syndrome or whatever; it makes you human. Word of caution – if you come clean about your lapse, don’t continue to keep lapsing.

    Promoting an inferior product(s) or a slimy marketer is a serious problem. It can happen if you don’t do your homework and thoroughly check out the marketer and/or the product. It might also happen if you’re desperate for an income and your back is against the wall. Obviously you’re digging your own grave going this route and you can’t stop it soon enough. I’ve seen marketers come clean, tell their story, and give a heart-felt apology. Does this work? I think it depends on what you do next and if your word is good again.

    Promoting products or showing ads when you haven’t previously can be an issue, especially if your blog is long established. Start small, very small with the ads or promotion, and keep the same great content coming. There will always be people who complain that you sold out. As long as you’re still giving valuable information on your blog, ignore them.

    As you can see, every thorny blog problem has a solution. It might not be exactly what you wanted, but there’s always a work around. It’s not always possible to predict which direction you’re going to want to take your blog but the changes may be worth the bumpy ride.

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    Ideas For Blog Post Series

    A blog post series is just what is sounds like – a series of posts that are connected. There are good reasons why your blog should include some blog post series. They’re not the status quo, same old thing and this makes them more interesting for your audience. If your readers can follow the journey you’re taking them on via the series of posts, then they’re buying into You. They become vested and trust is established. Also, a series of posts means natural internal linking and that’s good for your SEO.

    The unofficial ground rules are these posts have to have something tying them together. If not, you can’t really call it a series. In addition, they must cross-reference the other posts in the series, yet they need to be able to stand on their own so a little intro on each post is necessary.

    You might be wondering what sort of thing you should write a blog post series on. Check out other blogs you enjoy reading and get some ideas or try these:

    * A personal challenge – you set a personal goal to write 2000 words a day for 1 week, lose 5 pounds in 7 days, train for a marathon, or create 1 new product per month. It’s best if these goals tie into the general theme of your blog.

    * Affiliate contest – perhaps you have joined an affiliate contest or you’re having one yourself. Periodic updates on how it’s going can be exciting for everyone to read.

    * Before and after – readers love these! Your room remodel, weight loss, website redo, landscaping project, even your blog’s About page are examples. Again, these before and afters should be within the theme of your blog. Your IT blog readers don’t want to see how your veggie garden is progressing.

    * How To – how to rewrite PLR, put a grill together, organize your garage, learn crossfit exercises. The series can take one How To thing and break it into several posts, or it can be a series of related How To’s.

    * Lists – break down a Top 100 into three or four parts so you can be more thorough. Your audience will thank you for not making them read it all in one looooong post. Shorter posts are much easier to digest, plus knowing there’s a Part 2 or Part 3 brings the reader back again and again. You can also do a Top 5 Tips list with each tip as a separate entry.

    * Interview series – interview one expert in your niche – written, video, or podcast – per blog post. I prefer to ask each one different questions even though the general topic is the same.

    Remember that the posts must have a common element, they need to link to each other, and they have to be written to make sense if the reader has not read the other parts. Doing a blog series is an excellent way to retain and entertain an audience, and it’s also helpful for SEO.

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    Great Old Posts Should Never Die

    There are at least two reasons why you should never let your old blog posts die. One is that you want internal linking for SEO purposes, but you want it to be natural to make the search engines and your readers happy. The other big reason is that some of your posts are amazing works of art packed full of valuable information that you want everyone to read. The problem is that you push your content down the ladder every time you publish new content.

    So how do you give those old posts additional chances to see the light of day? Here are a few ideas:

    Reference an old post, with link, to a current post but only if it applies. For example, if you’re blogging about your tomato plants and blight, you can reference that big comprehensive post you did a few months ago on vegetable disease prevention. A new post about affiliate marketing can have a link to an archival post that’s about a different aspect of affiliate marketing.

    Where are you now? Talk about, and link to, a post you wrote exactly a year ago and compare it to your current thoughts, knowing what you know now. Experience is a good teacher and your readers can benefit from what you’ve learned over the year since you wrote that first post.

    Do a part 2 or part 3, etc. If you explained 3 ways to do something in a post, chances are you have more to share. Instead of making a super-long post that loses people, make it a series. People will click the other parts and read them too. Curiosity makes for good natural linking.

    Sometimes you have an awesome old post you want to share with your current readers. You don’t want to let that die – it was well written and the content is very helpful. It’s okay to tell your readers to go read it. Set it up with a nice intro and maybe a graphic first. This is a great idea when you’re not feeling inspired to write a new post. Just don’t do this too often or people will think you’re being lazy.

    Lastly, showcase your old blog posts on social media. Do periodic Facebook posts and tweets about them. You might want to say they’re from your Blog Success Archives or something so people don’t feel like they’ve been tricked when they see an old date on the posts.

    These are a few ways you can resurrect those great old posts and gain some SEO ground with internal linking. Don’t get carried away, be natural and be creative. Your new readers will appreciate valuable content, even if it isn’t brand new.

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    Blogging Mistakes

    Blogging is a natural extension of sharing your passion. It can also produce an income stream if done properly. So what’s the deal? Is it really hard to do? The answer is no, it’s not hard, but the sooner you avoid these mistakes the sooner your blog can become successful.

    Probably the biggest mistakes right off the bat is fear. If you have to work up the courage to post something, it’s exhausting and time-consuming and you’re going to avoid it. No posts mean no blog. The saying “feel the fear and do it anyway” applies here. It should get easier as you progress.

    Another problem that will kill a blog is that of perfectionism. A perfectionist is never happy and always tweaking. That means posts are far and few between. Nothing is ever perfect and people certainly aren’t. Let you human side show, mistakes and all, and your readers will bond better with you.

    Not having a lead magnetic is a mistake. It is so important to build your list as soon as possible that I’d go so far as to say don’t open your blog for business until you have your optin freebie in place.

    Not having a call to action in your posts is a problem. What do you want them to do next? This is where you can send them via an affiliate link to a product that will solve their problem, or to your Facebook page, or another post.

    Too broad or too narrow a niche are both mistakes. Too narrow means you’ll run out of content and too broad means you’re all over the place and losing people.

    Another mistake is not sticking to your niche. Who wants to read about handguns on a photography site? Sounds ridiculous but it happens more than you’d imagine.

    It’s a mistake to not have enough quality, actionable content. People don’t want to just read, they want a game plan. They want to be able to think “I could do that, let me try now.” Give them PowerPoints, worksheets, cheatsheets and the like.

    Giving up too early or abandoning your blog is wrong. Yes, it can be disheartening when you’re blogging your little fingers off the bone and no one is reading it yet, but don’t stop. Instead, learn how to drive traffic to your blog. Continue to get educated about blogging and stay at it for the long haul.

    Being impersonal is another problem bloggers have. Don’t be just another blog. Make yours memorable by adding the missing ingredient, the spice – you.

    Blogging can be fun and lucrative and there’s no reason why you can’t get your share. Pay attention to your mistakes and keep focused on your blogging goals.

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