How To Do Internet Marketing On A Small Budget
Many businesses starting out don’t have the budget that others have. I believe this should NOT slow anyone down because you still have options available to market your content. In today’s age, content marketing is very important so we should all implement strategies that help us establish the bottom line. This means through content marketing, we should convert readers into loyal followers, which, in the end, will help translate into major profits. I’m a true believer of that “budget” should always be flexible. However, this isn’t always the case for someone just getting started. Over the years, I have started many blogs WITHOUT a budget, and have been able to scale quite well. Let’s look at some small budget tips in relation to content marketing. These tips will help beginners get started so they can still keep an competitive edge online. Next, I would like to hear your feedback on the topic. Please let me know what you think in the comment box below. Let’s get started with small budget content marketing tips I’ve used for years. Research Your CompetitionIf you’ve been reading my previous posts, then you know the emphasis I put on research. Through research, you can save enormous time because it will help you understand what has worked in the past. Knowing this will allow you to implement the same strategies going forward. I always take this one step further by researching my competition because they have been in my niche longer. This helps me understand what marketing, content, social, and engagement strategies they are using to get ahead. How can this help when you have a small content marketing budget? By understanding the content types that have helped them excel, you can then focus on writing the same type of content. By going over social shares on each content, you’ll be able to market on the same social profiles, which will help accelerate your marketing. You can even take this one step further by reaching out to the same people who have shared your competitor content, and ask them to share yours. However, you have to make sure your content stands out compared to your competition because otherwise they won’t think it’s any better and NOT worth sharing. Here’s a few things to focus on…
Doing this will also provide you an opportunity to see who’s an authority in your niche. At this point, you can even reach out to them because you know it will be a benefit for you in the future. You might have them endorse your website or even allow you to guest post with a link within the author bio. The opportunities can be endless. Cost Effective ContentOne of the best ways to save on content marketing is to create cost effective content. This means instead creating content where you have to invest time and money, you’ll be able to write content that is the opposite – time saving and NO cost. For example, why write content that requires you to purchase products or services before you can complete it? This will require a huge investment that many of you might NOT have, especially when you are just starting out. It’s better to focus on a content format where MOST of the work has been done for you. Here are some examples:
On many of these, you have the option to create videos using FREE tools available to you. Another cool thing when creating content based on blogging interviews is that much of the work is done for you. You research influential bloggers within your niche, reaching out to them to answer a common question. You gather all the answers and create a summary of what each of them has said. The initial outreach will be lengthy, but it’s free because communication is done mainly through email. After, summarizing can be done within a single day and then you can hit published to go live with your content. Many people love to share expert posts because it provides enormous information that otherwise will NOT be available. Next, many of the bloggers within the expert post will be more than happy to share once you go live. Understand What’s WorkingIt’s NOT uncommon to create different types of content when you first get started. However, you can cut down your content marketing costs by evaluating what’s been working for you going forward. Once you find a content type that has provided engagement, traffic, and growth, then stick to this type. What does this do? It helps you save time you would have been investing in other content types that haven’t been working. It also saves you time that you could be using to perform research, hence leading to further growth. When you write out different content formats, then look at the following:
After, you can build a better picture of the type of content you should focus on going forward. Get Creative Writing ContentThis is a strategy you can use to create content quickly and it can still provide enormous value. I believe a few years back, “Google” started to focus on quality content because this would help increase the user experience. The success of Google would depend on their ability to provide accurate results that also provide value. This is why I encourage all of you to always first focus on quality. Next, you can focus on repurposing content, which will save you enormous time and money. Here’s how this strategy works: First, you find a high quality piece of content relevant to your niche. You can search online or even visit your competitor sites to see what has engaged their readers. You can use tools like Topsy.com to find content that has been shared enormous times online. Create a list so you can go through, finding ways to make each one better by looking for videos, images, and infographics. If they haven’t included them, then it’s a great chance for you to rewrite content and include them going forward. Secondly, don’t forget to share your content online, and most times, this will be enough to build momentum. You have to make sure the content is relevant and in demand. This is why I recommend doing research, looking for common problems people need a solution to. Also, sharing this content within social platforms is a great way to attract FREE traffic because you know your competition had a steady stream of shares. You creating something better will increase the likelihood of getting way more shares, adding to your engagement, growth, and bottom line. Quality vs. QuantityThis battle has been around for years and many people believe that quantity will outweigh quality. I must admit this has changed enormously over the last couple of years with Google being MOSTLY responsible. Sometimes, the best way to get low budget content marketing is for you to ignore marketing as a whole and let nature take its course. For example, many times, I’ve noticed that when you do awesome work that adds value, everything else is pretty much taken care of. Google has stated several times that there are over 200 ranking factors, some of which we don’t control directly. This means writing quality content will be enough to increase your blog in the SERP’s, newsfeeds, and even social media platforms. However, you have to ask: What is quality content? First, it’s better than all of the current content available online. You do your research and include missing elements to your content to help increase overall quality score. Next, it’s content that is structured correctly through a solid introduction, sub-headings, body, conclusion, etc. Third, it’s content that solves a major problem within your niche because this adds value. Think about when you have done research in the past and the elements you have looked for. You look for content that solves a major problem and is in-depth…correct? Finally, it’s content that other bloggers find useful, and love to share with their readers. I link out to several guides because they provide an in-depth resource I know my readers will love. If you can add all these elements to your content, then you won’t have a hard time creating something that is quality. Because you are focusing on quality, you have reduced the amount of written articles you need, which helps you save enormous time and money. Writing a lot of content is tedious and can put a strain on a new blogger. However, writing “1” solid piece every 10 days will give you time to research, create, and publish value. This will have 10 times the benefits than a handful of other posts, helping you meet your bottom line more quickly. It’s that simple! Manual LaborI know the title seems a bit scary, but the truth is, before the Internet, people did all their marketing through manual labor. For example, they would head out and promote their business using word of mouth. I admit this sounds tedious right now, but if you have a low budget, why not put the work in required to get your business going? Keep in mind, once you have grown your business and have a more flexible marketing budget, you can always switch to online methods. Get a few business cards ready or brochures, which will cost you no more than $50.00, and head out to do some serious manual labor. I have done it in the past and even enlisted the help of a few of my friends. After I got a few customers, I had more money to start using some of the online methods that were not available to me before. It’s up to you, but serious business people always are willing to put the work in. Now What? Now that you have learned some ways to market your content with a small budget, it’s time to apply what you have learned. This usually would be hard, but I would recommend you read the above content again, making a list of the important points that you’ll be easily following. I’d like to go over some of the important steps that you can follow right now. First, read the content over again, paying close attention to the points mentioned throughout. This will allow you to fully understand the content, and understand how each factor will help you with your goals. Next, it’s always important to research your competition because this where you learn what’s working and what’s not. Your competition has been in your niche longer so they have tried several things. This has led them to understand the best way to market content by spending as little money as possible. No company wants to spend money when they can save it by doing simple research…right? Now it’s time to start implementing each of the strategies discussed above. I recommend you take your time while implementing because in the end, it’s about quality, NOT quantity, no matter what you do. Start with the first one and then move on to the second. It’s time to understand how each one helps you in your objective of meeting the bottom line, which is what everyone is trying to accomplish. When you have implemented a strategy, you need to ensure you have a tracking device in place so you can see how your performance is doing. You want to optimize where you can keep your end goal in mind – content marketing with as low a budget as possible. I’ll admit, in the beginning, this will be hard, especially when you haven’t used any of the strategies before. However, after you find out what has been working, you will be able to divert your attention to using only that because it yields the best results. Keep in mind, It’s always a good idea to network at the same time simply because when you network, you are increasing the chance of someone else promoting your content. With the growth of social media platforms, it will be a great idea to have someone who is an authority in your niche promote your content for you. Some of these people have over 50,000+ followers, which will be enormous when getting started. It’s also a benefit knowing that much of this marketing through influential bloggers will be free. Final ThoughtsI hope you enjoyed my content and your feedback will be greatly appreciated. I have tried to cover what I learned over the years, however, if you have anything that has worked for you then please let us know in the comment box below. I’ll admit things are rapidly changing so new marketing opportunities are popping up that’ll help promote your content quickly with very little investment from your side. With that said, It’s time to put everything into action by reading over the content once again, and implementing the strategies one by one. from John Chow dot Com https://ift.tt/2M8FuJH via Daniel via Blogger https://ift.tt/2wZvahl September 09, 2018 at 10:31AM
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2019 Jaguar I-PACE At Cars and Coffee
On this episode of the Dot Com Lifestyle Vlog, I head to South OC Cars and Coffee to check out the new 2019 Jaguar I-PACE electric SUV. This is Jaguar’s answer to the Tesla Model X. In addition to seeing a lot of other cars, I also ate mini donuts off the hood of a Mercedes AMG GT. Because that’s what you can do when you live the Dot Com Lifestyle. from John Chow dot Com https://ift.tt/2Mcy7kc via Daniel via Blogger https://ift.tt/2wUtExN September 08, 2018 at 10:30PM
You Suddenly Lose EVERYTHING In Your Business. What Do You Do?
A few months ago, legendary marketer and cool friend Russell Brunson sent a brief email to over 100 of his ‘Two Comma Club’ award winners. Inside that email was a single question. Here’s what it read:
He started reading through the crazy detailed plans, mapping out what they’d do day-by-day. They sent him incredible, creative blueprints for how to get their business back up and rolling again, and generating income and leads in just ONE MONTH. Every Two Comma Club expert had a different answer, and used a different strategy (which is really, really cool!). Each of his 30 speakers are going to answer that question for you IN DETAIL during the summit. They will lay out their step-by-step detailed ACTION PLAN (Day 1 through Day 30) for how they’d get their business up and rolling, and each plan is DESIGNED to start out from ZERO. Meaning, even if you have:
Even if you’re starting out truly from “Square One”, this summit is pre-engineered for YOU to succeed starting from SCRATCH! THIS IS THE SUMMIT YOU NEED TO ATTEND! Click here to reserve your spot for the free 30 Days Summit Event! from John Chow dot Com https://ift.tt/2Qe4bHZ via Daniel via Blogger https://ift.tt/2MYZ1Bt September 07, 2018 at 09:22AM
5 Best WordPress Plugins to Grow Your Blog
If your goal is to eventually build your blog into a well known brand, there are great tools available to help you scale quickly. You can start the process by utilizing the best WordPress plugins to grow your blog. Plugins are essentially tools that you add to your website that serve a specific purpose. The best tools allow you to do one or more of the following:
Today we are going to look at 5 WordPress plugins that can change your blog from small-time to world famous. Let’s dive in! 1. MonsterInsightsThe first plugin we are going to look at is called MonsterInsights. As the name implies, this resource gives you insight into crucial data on your blog. This tool links your blog to Google Analytics so you can monitor information regarding people who land on your site. You’ll be able to see how many sessions occurred throughout the day, the number of individual page views, where the visitors came from and how long they stayed, without leaving your WordPress admin area. When you download this plugin, you’ll know where your visitors are coming from and who is linking to your content. If you can see how visitors are getting to your blog, you’ll be able to discover whether your ads are working, and where you can improve. The best thing about this plugin is its ease of use. It’s intuitive and makes finding data simple. 2. WPFormsWPForms is our go-to contact form plugin because it’s so customizable without the need to write a line of code. You can simply drag and drop the fields and buttons that you need to make the form that you need. As a blogger, time is scarce, and with this plugin you can create a form for your Contact Me page in as little as 5 minutes. The plugin comes packed with an array of options and settings that allow you to tweak your forms. You can change colors, size, format, and much more. It’s a breeze to make something that’s completely unique and suited specifically for your blog. 3. OptinMonsterDriving traffic to your site is just the beginning of your content marketing journey. The question is, how do you convert the people who decide to read your posts once and leave? OptinMonster solves this problem by allowing you to experiment with different call to action styles to strategically help you convert more visitors into email subscribers. You can design campaigns from the ground up or use the vast array of templates the software has to offer. You can create sticky headers, exit-intent popups, slide-ins, and more to catch the attention of your target audience. The best part is that you can A/B test different opt-in forms to see which ones convert the best and keep tweaking until your content is a conversion driving machine. 4. YoastNow that you’ve figured out how to keep and engage your audience, it’s time to pump up those numbers and get more viewers than ever before. Yoast is a plugin designed for bloggers who want to rank higher in search engines. Using a Search Engine Optimization (SEO) plugin is crucial for those looking to maintain a healthy, growing audience. Essentially, you can target certain “keywords” and use them to your advantage to rank higher on Google search engines. Let’s say you have a cooking blog, you may want to focus on general cooking terms as well as popular food recipes. When a potential viewer searches a recipe, if done correctly, your page will appear high in their search results. There is no better way to draw traffic to your website. Yoast is a must-have plugin for every serious blogger. 5. Subscribe to Comments ReloadedHave you ever commented on a blog post, wishing that you could be notified when someone replies? This plugin solves this precise problem by letting readers subscribe to those comments they deem interesting. The visitor reading your comment section will see an opt-in box that says “Notify me of followup comments via email. You can also subscribe without commenting.” Once they opt-in they will receive information pertaining to the comment section of the blog post, helping your blog stay top of mind, and hopefully encouraging repeat visits to your site. ConclusionNow that you know the 5 best WordPress plugins to grow your blog, you’re ready to get started. Make sure to take your time tweaking options and experimenting. Every blog is different, but every blog has the ability to be popular and profitable! We hope this article helped you discover new and exciting plugins. Looking for more information on how to develop killer content? Check out our post on Writing Content the Right Way. from John Chow dot Com https://ift.tt/2Czqp4u via Daniel via Blogger https://ift.tt/2LZr6Dv September 06, 2018 at 11:42AM
My 1 Week Income Results with ClickFunnels
It is one thing to show you screenshots of how much I make with affiliate marketing. However, it’s never really quite real until that money is inside my bank or PayPal account. With that in my mind, here’s a screenshot of how much ClickFunnels sent to my PayPal account yesterday. The amount represents one week of ClickFunnels commission. Unlike most networks that pay their affiliates once a month, ClickFunnels does weekly payouts. This gets money into affiliates’ hands much sooner and helps to avoid cashflow crushes. What To Look for In An Affiliate Program While I use ClickFunnels as my main tool to create sales and landing pages, I have found their affiliate program to be among the best in the industry. One of the most asked questions I get is what I look for in an affiliate marketing program. While there are whole list of criteria, there are four main features I look for.
The ClickFunnels affiliate program gives you 40% of the customers bill for life. Not only do you get paid over and over again, but the customers you referred are yours for life. Anything they buy in the future, you will make money on. The affiliate program is also free to join. However, I do recommend you to be a customer or at least sign up for the 14 day free trial so you can get to know the product better. To help their affiliates, ClickFunnels has a 100 Day Super Affiliate Challenge. If you accept the challenge, they will guide to step by step on how to become a ClickFunnels super affiliate and retire in the next 100 days. I am in the challenge and my results so far has been pretty good. The challenge is free to join and all the training is free as well. I recommend signing up even if you don’t plan to be a ClickFunnels affiliate because the training can be applied to any affiliate marketing program. What Is ClickFunnels? ClickFunnels is more than just a landing page creation software. It’s actually a complete business automation tool that brings your entire marketing system into a single, and tightly integrated, service. ClickFunnel is one of my foundation business tools and I wouldn’t be able to do what I without it. If you wish to find out more about ClickFunnels and how it can help your business, then I recommend registering for a free webinar Russell and I are doing for ClickFunnels. If you wish to try out the service, then go sign up for the 14 day free trial. from John Chow dot Com https://ift.tt/2NXfAtS via Daniel via Blogger https://ift.tt/2wQfGwq September 05, 2018 at 08:27PM
Skills Top Writers Have – Follow and Grow Your Content Marketing
Blogging is all about writing the best content available because if you don’t, you’re going to have a hard time engaging your readers. I’m a true believer in that with content writing skills, you can add more value to your readers. How? You’ll be able to provide depth that would otherwise be impossible. Today, we are going to be talking about something very special, and it has to do with content writing. Even though we have discussed this topic several times before, it’s important to note we are going to be learning from the best. I have done some research and gathered information that I know you’ll find very useful. I’ll be going over content writing skills that some of the top writers have so you can implement them into your blog. I’ll discuss anywhere from 4-5 skills and then go through some action steps you can take to start using them in your writing almost immediately. Here’s some of the things we’ll be discussing…
These might not sound enticing, but I promise, if you stick around, you’ll be amazed at what you have learned. Let’s get started. Writing VocabularyMany writers I know try to impress others by using big words, and this is the worse way to generate a buzz online. I believe writing using your own vocabulary is the best approach when building engagement for many reasons. Let me tell you why. First, the Internet has allowed you to connect with people all over the world and this means some might NOT have a full comprehension of the English language. This means going out of your way to use big words will just confuse them, which is why I always say to forget writing content that isn’t your own voice. Many of us will agree that we often go out of our way to impress others by using big words, which is fine when you know the person or persons you are speaking to. However, with online content writing, you’ll have people from all over the world who are reading your content to solve a problem. They want to understand what you have written so keep things as simple as possible. Remember, eliminating big words doesn’t mean you can’t provide value, it just means writing in a language where people will be able to comprehend what you’ve written more quickly. Next, Not using big words doesn’t mean you don’t understand the fundamentals of grammar or punctuation. Many people think that writing with big words makes your content structure better, but it’s completely the opposite. I’ve noticed those using big words will usually fail to look at the smaller things like grammar, punctuation, and structure. I encourage all of you to focus on writing in-depth content, then focus on structure. I’ll admit, before, I was the same way and it cost me several readers until I started to understand the demographics of my visitors. Many of them where coming from countries where English wasn’t the first language. It’s not that they didn’t speak English, but they just understood the fundamentals. For me to create some serious engagement on my blog, I had to be careful the way I would write content when adding value. It was important I write in a language where a majority of my visitors would understand. Visitors’ FeelingsOne of the best skills some of the top writers have is their ability to engage readers by tapping into their feelings. Many of you DON’T know that marketing experts are the best at tapping into sensitive feelings then promoting a product or service. However, this can work to promote your content so that it engages your readers, and I’m sure many of you would agree. For example, Isn’t it true some of the best content available solves a major problem within your niche? Many people are having a problem and need help so when they find a blog that can provide them depth, it’s most likely going to cause a serious buzz online. However, for you to understand your visitor’s feelings, you first have to know what they are looking for and this is where the following coming into play. Research – This is the best way to really find out about your readers, and understand what they are looking for. By doing research the right way, you can understand what problems they face and what you can do to make sure they find the right solution. Here are a few ways to ensure you get the right information:
By answering all of the questions above, you’ll be able to pinpoint what your readers are looking for. This will help you write content based on their feelings, which will resonate better going forward. In short, when you can understand the reader’s feelings, you’ll be able to provide them value that resonates. It’s that simple! Content LengthThe discussion of content length has been around for years, and there is NO real answer to this question. I believe content should be as long as needed to ensure you get the point across to your readers. However, I also believe that you need to ensure it’s over 1,500 words because that’s the only way you can offer the depth you are looking for. Visitors come to your blog because they are looking for a complete solution and you need to make sure you provide it for one simple reason. There is NO shortage of information available online and if your readers can’t find what they need on your page, they’ll simply go somewhere else. It’s really that simple! So, what is an adequate length for your content? Again, this question has been asked so many times that I’ll provide my true answer… Personally, the more research you do, the better because you’ll be able to gather even more information before going forward. Whenever I write content, I ensure I go through a series of steps that will help me write even lengthier content going forward. The more depth I can provide will depend on the questions I’ll be answering. For example, when writing about strategies to “make money online”, I’ll make sure I cover everything so my visitor will be able to find everything they need on my page. I’ll cover such things like:
If I write approx. 500 words on each topic, my content will be roughly 2,500 words, which is a lot of information. Right now, the longest content I have is approx. 10,000 words; however, it has generated a huge buzz online, which is obviously my bottom line. Next, Another way to add enormous depth is by reaching out to authority bloggers who’ll provide even more substance to your content. Authority bloggers have been around a long time and have a lot of value to provide so why NOT tap into their head about your topic? This will do two very important things for you… First, it will add more content and value to your article. This will even increase the engagement and social shares because of the value it provides. Secondly, it will help build a relationship with the blogger, which will come in handy later on. Since my outreach program, I have been able to network with 10 authority bloggers within my niche, which has helped me build some serious momentum overtime. In summary, it’s important to make your content as long as possible to provide value. From my experience, this usually means 2,000-2,500 words. However, you can always include images and videos instead of words because they’ll provide some serious value, too. ExperienceMany of the top content writers have enormous experience, which has allowed them to know what resonates with readers. In addition, with experience, your writing becomes much better, which is always important because it’ll help you get words down faster with very little errors. Anyway, we need to discuss what experience is important. First, knowledge will allow you to provide more insight to your readers. With this, you’ll be able to translate your thoughts faster and in a way that it’ll be understood by visitors. Next, people will trust you more than others in the same niche because of your knowledge and experience. For example, think about the blogs you read and how long you have been reading them for. You’ve probably noticed many of the ones you read are those that you believe provide the best knowledge because their writers have years of experience. Their content is much easier to understand than others because they know how to put it down in a way that resonates with you as the reader. For you to gain the experience you need, focus on the following in your niche. It’s very important to be active on the following:
Insight and Open Mind These are two of the most important things, and you’ll soon know why. These two combined create a strong mind, especially one that is full of creativity. What do I mean by writers having insight and an open mind? For you to be an expert writer, you have to know how to put things together. You have to combine life’s challenges, and be very creative in all your adventures. Some of the best content I’ve ever written comes from being able to combine different elements together. I’ll write about “making money online” and use examples from businesses that has excelled using strategic marketing. I was able to do this because online marketing can be tied to offline business marketing. However, it takes knowledge and creativity to put all this together in a way your readers will understand. If you want to write extraordinary content, then you have to write freely, bringing in life’s experiences. When writing, use examples that tie your content together and keep building from there. Soon, it’ll be a breeze to write content that resonates with your readers. Final ThoughtsI hope you enjoyed my content above and will implement what I’ve written into your content writing going forward. However, I always leave my readers with actions steps they can take to help them get started. Let’s go through a few… First, I want you to go through the content again so you fully understand everything I have written throughout. I understand when people read content for the first time, they usually skim through, NOT fully grasping some of the important factors discussed. Go through and really understand the content. Secondly, while going through, it’s important to create a list of the important factors in point form. This will serve as a guide that you can follow and will be very direct. For example, you want to make sure you can look at it and completely understand the content. The list should include some action steps that you’ll be able to apply quickly when needed. Third, research some topic in your niche that you know will be special when you are done. For example, go through, finding a very important problem your readers are having. Then, go through finding answers, which you can present to them in a structured manner. This will help you write valuable content, and help you build brand awareness. When you provide value, you’ll be able to build loyalty much faster. Forth, start writing your outline and keep the content writing skills in mind. However, here’s something else… Valuable content is always structured and includes the following:
When you are done writing, then you can go back and look for the steps discussed in this article. Did you follow through and add the elements? The list should always serve as a guide, no matter what, so you can improve your content writing over time. Soon, you won’t even have to look at your guide because you’ll be able to write from experience. from John Chow dot Com https://ift.tt/2oJgtLJ via Daniel via Blogger https://ift.tt/2PB5jEm September 05, 2018 at 09:07AM
A Quick Guide to TubeBuddy Tag Explorer for YouTube
At this point, if you are the least bit interested in almost any kind of marketing on the Internet, you should be getting into video (if you’re not already doing it). And while platforms like Twitch, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram have certainly made some headway in this space, YouTube is still the undisputed king of online video at this point. It pays to dedicate at least some of your time and energy into building an audience on YouTube. I’ve written quick guides to features like the end screen and YouTube cards, and how you should be leveraging these features for maximum benefit. From a search engine optimization (SEO) perspective, you should also be paying very close attention to the tags you assign to each video, just as you should be mindful about the title and video description. And just like any other SEO practice, taking blind shots in the dark is probably not the most effective strategy you can take. Instead, you might consider a tool like TubeBuddy. It’s YouTube certified and you can get started for free. Premium plans start at $9 per month for additional tools and features. Even with just a free account, TubeBuddy can be very helpful in maximizing what you get out of your YouTube videos. One of my favorite features is the Tag Explorer. Let’s use my vlog on comparing the Rode VideoMic Pro shotgun microphone with the Boya BY-M1 lavalier microphone as our example. When I was going through the process of uploading my video and writing the accompanying title and description, I also took a little time crafting together the collection of tags I wanted associated with the video. In the past, I would just type in what came to mind. Some people might use the AdWords keyword planner or other similar tools, but those aren’t necessarily 100% accurate or relevant for YouTube. The TubeBuddy Tag Explorer is. When you get near the bottom of the screen, you’ll see something called Tag Tools. That box contains a number of buttons like the ability to copy the list of tags you’ve already added, clear the list of tags, import tags from a saved list and so forth. In this context, one button of interest is “Suggest.” TubeBuddy looks through your content to suggest tags for both “search” and “related,” showing the views received from this search term, tags used by similar top ranking videos, and words used in the video’s title and description. Simply click the green “plus” symbol to add the tag to your video. Back on the main “edit video” screen where you add your video tags, you’ll also find a very useful feature. As you start typing out any tag, a window will hover on top to provide related search terms that “autocomplete” what you’re typing. With the free account, they’ll show three results at a time. You can upgrade your license to a paid plan to unlock more. But you don’t even need to be on your own “edit video” page to take advantage of Tag Explorer. Whether you’re watching your own video or someone else’s, you can see the tags associated with that video on the right side. Clicking on any of the tags brings up the Tag Explorer. The window offers a summary, including the most used tags from top ranking videos for that tag, as well as a keyword score based on search volume and competition. It’s just like a keyword planner, because that’s precisely what it is. This is perfect if you want to “spy” on the “competition.” Research tags that are attached to high-performing videos in your niche, videos that you may want to emulate. You can see not only what tags they are using, but what related tags you might assign if you produce a similar video. The Tag Explorer can also show trending tags, auto-suggested tags, and the current search results for that tag. This is all great research material. Considering that you can get into vlogging for $200 or less, getting your feet wet with YouTube is well worth the investment of time, money and effort. Leverage tools like TubeBuddy to maximize your shot at success and reduce the guesswork of YouTube SEO best practices. from John Chow dot Com https://ift.tt/2LX6qfh via Daniel via Blogger https://ift.tt/2wI2NFi September 04, 2018 at 12:44PM
6 Best WordPress Contact Form Plugins for Your Blog
So you’ve designed your WordPress blog and it’s looking beautiful. You’ve got an awesome landing page, your about me is written to perfection and your first set of blog posts are all ready to go. But are you forgetting something? That’s right, you need a contact form. A simple contact form is essential for your website. It’s how your visitors, subscribers and potential customers can reach you any time they have a quick question. There are a ton of contact form options for WordPress, so much so that it can be overwhelming to decide which one you should utilize and will work best for you. You want it to be simple to create, have the features you need and you want it to look snazzy too. Don’t worry yourself over which contact form plugins are superior and which ones are duds. Here are the six best WordPress contact form plugins for your blog. 1. WPFormsWPForms is one of the most user-friendly contact form builder that offers a wide range of features, making it a great option for beginners and pros alike. They offer free and premium versions starting at only $49 per year and the drag-and-drop builder is super easy to use. The free version is perfect for smaller blogs but the premium version will offer you a number of valuable features including the ability to integrate your forms with email marketing services like MailChimp, AWeber and Campaign Monitor. Another awesome feature is the ability to capture leads from abandoned forms with their Form Abandonment tool. That means when a user visits your site and fills out your contact form but changes their mind and doesn’t click send, you still get a notification with all their info so you won’t miss out on any leads. 2. Contact Form 7Contact Form 7 is one of the most popular, completely free WordPress contact form plugin available. This is a contact form for minimalists; it’s a very simple contact form that’s reliable but it doesn’t feature a ton of bells and whistles. But it does offer several unique contact fields such as CAPTCHA, quizzes, file submissions, drop-down menus and more. Though the interface can be confusing for some WordPress beginners, if free is a big selling point for you as a smaller blogger then this plugin is your best bet. On the other hand if you’re looking for a more robust contact form that will allow you to do more, another one of these plugins would be a better option. 3. FormidableFormidable is another great contact form plugin with free and premium versions. You can start with a pre-built contact form or build your own customized form. You can also use their awesome style editor to change the colors of successful submissions for instance to match the theme of your blog. With the premium version of Formidable starting at $49 per year, you get a bunch of extra features like email marketing integration, user tracking and user registration. But since Formidable is a newer company, they don’t offer as many features as some other plugins that’ve been around for longer. 4. Gravity FormsThis powerful plugin allows you to easily create all types of forms for your blog. With Gravity Forms you get access to more than 30 form fields and support for a wide range of add-ons and external integrations including Dropbox, Freshbooks and PayPal Pro and the pricing at $49 per year is great for all the features you get. It’s also awesome if you’re planning on accepting guest posts on your blog because the plugin allows for user content submissions. This plugin also offers a ton of support including a full ticketing system, FAQs, language translation and documents you can browse on topics like configuring notifications, embedding a form, how to build save & continue forms and much more. 5. WufooWufoo is an awesome online contact form builder developed by SurveyMonkey. Wufoo offers all the features you love in a contact form including over 400 customizable templates, reporting, custom rules and the ability to accept payments too. They offer a free plan as well as plans that start at $14 per month. Wufoo also offers a cloud storage database to its users who are on paid plans. The cloud is used to hold files uploaded through the file upload field in a contact form which would really come in handy if you’re accepting guest post submissions or allowing other types of file uploads on your form. 6. Pirate FormsPirate Forms, developed by ThemeIsle, is a great plugin to easily create engaging contact forms for your blog. Their free version is easy to use, fully customizable and offers features like reCAPTCHA, custom SMTP and more. If you want access to premium features like MailChimp integration and custom form fields you’ll have to upgrade to the pro version starting at $39 per year. Now that you have a number of amazing and powerful contact form plugin options for your WordPress blog, you should have no problem creating a beautiful form that’s inviting to your visitors and you don’t even have to know a thing about code. Get ready to be more engaged with your audience and have a busier inbox than ever before. from John Chow dot Com https://ift.tt/2NLXPh8 via Daniel via Blogger https://ift.tt/2LYI2tW September 03, 2018 at 10:44AM
Proven Ways to Get Your First 1,000 Email Subscribers
I believe a successful blog has to start building an email list because this is the only way to generate enormous traffic and loyalty. However, because of the vast competition available online, it’s important to understand the fundamentals of a successful email campaign and customer retention. For example, you have so much competition that there is NO shortage of options for visitors. Next, visitors have been online for so long that they don’t just opt into any email newsletter because you have to prove yourself before getting started. Over the years, I have worked with many people within my niche, and have learned a lot along the way. For example, I have learned:
Today, I’d like to go over some proven methods of how to reach your first 1,000 subscribers quickly. These are proven ways that I use with my clients all the time. They work well because you are providing value by writing in-depth content, but also doing enormous testing a lot the way. This all translates into a solid blog that NOT only has loyal readers, but also a high conversion rate. Let’s get started by exploring the “4” MOST important factors of building your first 1,000 email subscribers quickly. Let’s jump right in… A Solid Piece of ContentThis is the MOST important factor when building engagement and loyalty online. There is NO shortage of content available online so people have enormous options when they are skimming. You have to stand out compared to your competition, which is why I encourage everyone to write high value content all the time. Not to mention, after the recent Google update, you have to pay closer attention to quality because you’re going to have a hard time ranking if you can’t provide value to your readers. It’s funny because Google understands the user search pattern and they know that visitors are more likely to leave if they don’t find value right away. With that said, let’s look at what defines content as valuable. ResearchIt all starts with research and I have always put emphasis on this part because it provides much more knowledge (you’ll learn this later). By doing appropriate research, you are finding out what your visitors are looking for within your niche. You can then cater content to their needs, which will resonate going forward. However, you have to know how to do research the right way so you find trending topics that are popular at that specific time. Keep in mind, technology changes quickly so there is NO point in writing about something that won’t resonate well with your readers. For example, Forums are amazing because they provide in-depth resources in real-time. At any given time, you’ll have 1,000-2,000 people online who are all posting Q&A’s. This means you can find enormous information quickly, and can compile a solid list of keywords, questions, and even some answers to incorporate into your content. Social media is another cool place to find trending content because popular blogging sites are always sharing what’s new online. If you know how to search the right #hashtags, you can generate a solid list of popular content. Structure: You have to make sure your content is structured because people don’t want to read words that are cluttered together. I would recommend keeping paragraphs no more than 5-6 sentences, making sure the line height is between 20-21px. It’s important to separate each paragraph with headings so things look well-spaced out, not to mention, many bloggers like to use images to help split things up when they feel their content is becoming way too cluttered. Competition: One way to find out how to structure your content or get solid ideas is by visiting your competitor’s blogs. They have been around longer, which means they understand the industry more in-depth than you do. Head over to Google and type in “niche keyword + top blogs”, and start skimming through the top 4-5 because they can provide enormous tending content for you. It’s important to note what they are writing about and take some cool ideas from them. For example, if they have no images, videos, or even infographics then consider adding them within your content going forward. Once you have done your research, you can start to put everything together. I recommend taking your time, and spreading out your content writing so you don’t get tired. I’ve noticed a tired writer will produce lower quality content, which will effect overall engagement. Optimized Landing PageLanding pages are awesome for immediate conversions if utilized the right way. For example, through your landing page, you can get opt-ins, conversions, earn a profit, and continue to remarket to your readers over several months. Each opt-in will increase the chance of you converting the subscriber into profits. Even though this should NOT be your main objective, it’s nice to know you do have options when you need them…right? The question now is: What makes a solid landing page? There are a few things I suggest you use going forward to convert your reader. These are not hard to implement, but do take time to test until you reach your optimal conversion rate. Let’s take a look at some of them right now… Provide a Relevant Offer: Sometimes, when you have valuable content, it might NOT be enough to convert the visitor so you can always offer a discount or special offer. This will entice the visitor to opt-into your form, which will increase overall conversion rates. Colors: Always make colors attract, but NOT too bright because this can be tough on the visitor’s eyes. When they don’t like the look and feel of your page, they’ll simply leave. This means you’ll lose an opt-in opportunity and the visitor might NOT come back. Relevancy: It’s important to make sure you have a landing page that is relevant to your content and/or website. I have been on so many sites where the landing page has nothing to do with the content. I have never opted into a form when this happens because the landing page doesn’t appeal to me. This is why I have always encouraged relevance throughout the content and on the website itself. Always Split Test: I am surprised by the amount of people who refuse to split test their landing pages. Each visitor should be treated separately, which means if you don’t get them to opt-in, you should find out why. You should always split test until optimal conversion rates have been achieved. You never know how many people you are missing out on if you don’t keep track and optimize your landing pages. This might be hard in the beginning, but I promise will get easier as time goes on and you learn what’s important. Next, We are in a time where you have so many new tools available to you so it’s important to make sure you use all the tools you can. This will help collect the data more quickly and allow you to implement the changes to your pages almost right away. Find Solid Traffic SourcesI always encourage my clients to have 3-4 solid traffic sources so they can find out what’s working and what’s not. Generating leads and finding out how well your site is performing can only be accomplished when you have enough traffic flowing to your website. However, you have so many available options, you should have no problem as long as you have done your research beforehand. For example, I always recommend these 3-4 because they have high levels of engagement. Forums: You can find relevant forums for almost every niche. Do a quick search in Google and start actively answering questions in a few of them. Add a link to your website within your signature so people can visit your site going forward. Social Media: Amazing for niche relevant traffic, however, you need to know what #hashtags to use within your headlines. You also want to test what headlines and post types do well in attracting the right types of people. You’ll find images might perform better than others. Also, give other social media platforms a try because you never know where you’ll find an abundance of solid people who love your content and niche. Competitor blogs: These are awesome because they are relevant and you have the ability to post comments. Many bloggers will allow you to add a link before submitting a comment, which can lead to some serious traffic. I recommend doing the following:
This will just help attract more people to your blog who will NOT only love your comment but also find your blog useful. It’s amazing how many people I have attracted to my blog using this strategy. Knowledge is KingEvery influential blogger will tell you the same thing. With knowledge, you can provide readers with the type of information they are looking for. This means people will rely on your knowledge to help them succeed and there is NO better way to build loyalty than this. When people trust you, they’ll be more than happy to follow your every word, which is important to build that on-going momentum and growth. Conversions also occur through trust and authority because every product you recommend will MOST likely be purchased by your readership. However, keep a few things in mind: First, it’s important to always be genuine in your approach because trust is hard to gain, but very easy to lose. Secondly, only recommend the best products to your readers and I like to do this by writing reviews on the ones I’ve used personally to get where I am today. Third, always keep researching the new trends within your industry. For example, it’s hard to stay on top when the niche is changing around you. The good news is you have so many tools that will provide you with the MOST up-to-date information.
Final ThoughtsIt’s very important that you stay focused on the end goal, which is to increase email subscribers. I can guarantee you if you follow the information above, you will have an easier time converting visitors into loyal followers. It’s all about trial and error, and the above has been tested numerous times with amazing results. However, you have to be careful how you implement the strategy. From the beginning, you should pay close attention to quality because as mentioned, trust is hard to gain, but very easy to lose. Here’s what I recommend you start doing almost immediately.
from John Chow dot Com https://ift.tt/2ozXsLy via Daniel via Blogger https://ift.tt/2PqQnbI September 02, 2018 at 07:49PM
Tesla Model 3 Performance at Cars and Coffee
On this episode of the Dot Com Lifestyle vlog, I head to the San Clemente Outlets to check out the weekly South OC Cars and Coffee. The show featured the new Tesla Model 3 Performance Edition. This is the top of line Tesla Model 3 with dual motors and extra tweaks for the race track. Other cars that stood out included the new Corvette ZR1, a pair of Callaway Corvettes, a bunch of punch buggies, a Ferrari F12, an Aventador Roadster, a turbocharged brick, the world’s smallest minivan, and more. Enjoy! You can see more Cars and Coffee coverage over at sally Chow’s Intagram channel. Go follow her! from John Chow dot Com https://ift.tt/2LPh9s0 via Daniel via Blogger https://ift.tt/2CaP9Ql September 01, 2018 at 05:54PM |
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