Blogging Video Tips
Quick And Easy Blogging Riches, The Golden Turd
This question comes in from Kay Rennie, from Ozlantis.com. The question is:
You’ve probably been asked this question before, or at least addressed it, but after reading your latest post on what it takes to get traffic – hard work – do you believe there is such a thing as ‘Set It And Forget It’? It’s a term I see used a lot by marketing merchants, but I’m skeptical. And more so after reading your post. I take it to mean that once a blog is set up and all the necessary bits and pieces put in place – email autoresponders, affiliate links etc – the blogger can just go away and wait for the money to roll in. Are there particular types of blogging operations that can do this successfully? What are your thoughts?
My thoughts are that the idea of “set it and forget it” is the proverbial pot of gold at the end of the rainbow. Or, as I like to call it, the golden turd. It looks like gold and everybody is trying to get it. But, when you get up close, you realize it is nothing but a smelly pile.
Look, making money on the Internet is a BUSINESS. It is work. It isn’t a free ride.
I guess it is a result of dishonest marketers, but it seems the Internet is the de facto destination for people who are looking to make it big and not lift a finger doing it. It is this attitude which leads to so many failures in this business. There are a LOT of false starts. People shoot off in some direction, buy some big “make money online” course. Then, when it comes down to actual work being done, they quickly give up and look for another magic bullet.
The truth is that this business is work.
That being said, there are most definitely ways to generate money on automatic in this business. However, it takes work to set those systems up. It takes work to build the list up to a point where you can do that. It takes work to set up the marketing to get it off the ground to begin with. So, even with the fairly automatic money generation strategies, real WORK went into it to set that up and get it to that point.
The most “set it and forget it” type of blog out there is the Adsense blog. Essentially, some yahoo will set up a blog and populate it using content from other people’s RSS feeds. They litter it with Adsense and depend on search engine traffic to drive them Adsense dollars. I’m sure it has worked for some, but Google has caught on and they are actively battling sites like this.
These sites, though, are golden turds. If they work, they won’t work for long. So, it is a high maintenance business and doesn’t even compare to building a REAL online business that can generate profits for you well into the future.
Twitter Tips For Bloggers
In this video, I lay out some tips for bloggers using Twitter. Actually, 3 of these tips apply to anybody, whether you are a blogger or not.
First, I recommend that you put your Twitter handle in a visible place on your blog. Secondly, I think you should install the Twitter Tools Wordpress plug-in, by Alex King. This plug-in allows you to pull your latest “tweets” into your blog. You can either list them on your sidebar (as I have) or you could even have your tweets become actual blog entries if you like.
Ever thought about turning Wordpress into a mini-blog which you can update from anywhere? You could use Twitter Tools to update your blog via Twitter.
Now, when you are setting up your Twitter profile, I have three recommendations:
- Use a real photo of yourself as your Twitter image. I see a lot of people use icons or cartoon images and I think this is a waste of an opportunity. Real photos are more real and it goes that much further into using Twitter to form relationships with actual people.
- Link the website field of your profile to your About page, not your blog homepage. If they arrive on your homepage, their attention may scatter. Realize that this person clicked from Twitter to your blog to find out (most likely) if you are worth following. So, link them to a page which gets to the point and tells them who you are.
- When writing your 160 character bio, use an actual, keyword-rich description of what you do. Don’t waste the opportunity by entering some smart-ass statement which is never going to lead to people finding your profile in a Twitter directory. Be descriptive.
And it goes without saying, but if you’re not following me on Twitter, what are you waiting for? 
4 Factors For a Good Market
A lot of people wonder about what they should blog about. What market should you enter so as to maximize your traffic and your income potential from blogging. This video gives you four factors to look for.
There are four big areas that seem to work very well. It is because these are key benefits that people look for in their personal lives. They are:
- Being healthy.
- Making more money.
- Being sexy and finding a mate.
- Saving time.
Now, these are very broad and you shouldn’t read into these too much. I’m not saying that you need to blog about one of these four. What these are are big, macro-level views of markets that work almost without fail.
What you SHOULD read into this, though, is this: focus on benefits! Whatever your market is, you should focus on how your information is going to benefit the lives of your readers.
Bear in mind that people buy based on emotion and justify with logic (more on this later). Your information is logical. But, when it comes to marketing your blog or your information products, you need to hit the emotional buttons and focus on what they’re REALLY looking for in their lives. And chances are, your audience is looking for one or more of the big four mentioned above.
The Power of Continuity
In this video, I’m driving down the road and I had a thought (as I usually do when at the wheel).
A major revenue stream in my online business is my membership program at PCMECH. I held a membership drive on the site while I was on my cruise a couple weeks ago and did very well. In fact, the membership site brought in over $11,000 gross in the span of 10 days.
The beauty of continuity, though, is that it is, of course, continuous. I provide a lot of value to members and, in exchange, they pay me monthly. A good portion of the new signups were people paying for a year in advance, too. Regardless, though, of the length of time they purchased, it all renews.
This can be done with most blogs out there and I think that continuity just might be the true future of problogging.
I’ll be giving more information about this in a report I am writing. The report will be free, but will only be made available to subscribers of my email list. So, if you’re not on the list, go up to the top corner and enter your name and email. When the report is done, I’ll send it to you.
Legal and Tax Aspects of Professional Blogging
Today’s video answers a question submitted by Alex Miller. He asks:
I was wondering if you could shed some light on some legal and tax issues with blogging. I know it varies by location, but is a business license needed? What are the tax reporting requirements? Employment requirements vs. independent contractor requirements, etc.? Thanks.
Necessary, Cover-My-Ass Statement: I am not a lawyer or accountant. My advice here is stated from the perspective of an average dude. In other words, if you follow anything I say and get screwed by the IRS, it isn’t my fault. Kapeesh? 
In short, blogging for money involves no special legal or tax concerns aside from those faced by any other person or blogger.
Most bloggers start out as sole proprietors. This is, by far, the simplest way to do it. Your only concern will be tracking your income and expenses and paying taxes at the end of the year. I recommend using something like Quicken to track income you make by blogging and categorize it separately from other income so that it can be tracked separately. Likewise, categorize and track any expenses related to your blogging business (domains, hosting, etc) separately as these can be deducted later.
As your business evolves, you may decide to form an LLC or corporation. My company name is PC Media, Inc. and I am set up as an S-corporation. This means that all income is paid to my company – not me. After all expenses, net income is paid to me and reported to the IRS on my yearly 1040 tax return. When you form a company, it needs to be treated as a separate legal entity and that means your accounting needs to be separated from your personal accounting. For this reason, I track all my business transactions in Quickbooks and all my personal accounting in Quicken.
There are no licenses required to blog for money. The only requirement is, as said, to pay taxes on the money you make.
As for employment versus independent contractor, this is only a concern if you hire others. I have one employee and, to be honest, it is a pain in the butt. Not him (he’s fine), but the tax crap is not fun. So, my recommendation is to go independent contractor whenever you can. Just take my advice on that one. Legally, it depends on your degree of control. If the person you hire works in your office and you control the work environment, then generally he/she is an employee. Otherwise, I’m pretty certain you can use the contractor arrangement and spare yourself the tax hell.
If you would like to offer any advice or counter anything I said (I’m not an expert on this stuff), please comment.
Is It OK To Ask Your Readers To Submit To Digg?
Today’s video was inspired by another reader question. It was sent in by Chris Mathewson, from Astro Geek. He says:
My question is this: Would it be in bad taste to add a little snippet at the end of each blog post asking readers to submit the post to Digg, Reddit, StumbleUpon, etc? For example, “If you enjoyed this post, please consider Digging or Stumbling it.” with provided links?
I know there are “Share this” plugins that will allow a reader to submit it to many different social media sites, but this is a passive approach. I’m wondering about a more active approach – actually asking the reader to share it. Or would that seem too much like begging?
Many times, when you want your readers (or customers) to do something, you need to directly ask them. Sometimes, you need to straight-up TELL them what to do. Now, obviously, you should have some tact in how you do that. And it is a lot easier if you have some rapport with them already otherwise they’re going to react negatively. However, NO, it is not like begging.
People tend to like to comply with others. So, if you ask or tell them what to do, many times they will respond.
There is a difference between good control and bad control. Bad control is when you’re trying to get people to do something which is not good. You would use coercion and other negative means of control. It is this type of control which gives control a bad name and makes people react badly. You shouldn’t do that. But, good control is positive. You are directing people into something good – something that will help in some way. And you control them with reality and with likability. When you control people that way, it doesn’t even FEEL like they’re being controlled. Because they WANT to do it.
You understand?
So, no, asking your readers to Digg your stuff isn’t begging. It is wise.
And as usual, if you’d like to submit a question for a future video, ask me.
Getting a Great Blog Design For a Brand New Blog [#22]
Today I am answering a question submitted by Will Kennedy. He says:
This month marks the beginning of my business endeavors as a Successful Internet Marketer. I am paying CLOSE attention to those who are in the position of where I want to be and more. A week ago I came across your website from a search on Google (I forgot what keyword) and I landing on your Blog and was like WOW…this site is clean and sharp..(Tailor Made) Armani style. And I just wanted to know how can I manage to present a blog similar to yours for MY future readers. Yeah,yeah…I know I’m a newbie and I can just get something free or cost-effective and all but I decided of course I’ll take that approach with other aspect of my marketing arsenal but not my Blog…my Blog is my HOME and I want to invite readers to a really nice manor on the hills and not a 1 bedroom apartment on the other side of town. And of course I know it’s all about RELEVANT CONTENT as you mentioned in your previous blog post but I’d like to know how can I present class and provide valuable content and the same time. I’d really appreciate your response.
First, thanks for the complement on this blog’s design. But, my concern is that you might be getting a little ahead of yourself.
When you are first starting out, your primary concern should be content. Focus on creating some really killer content to act as your blog’s pillar content. This is the stuff that you’ll parade in front of new readers to show them what you’re about.
That said, design is important. So, assuming you’ve got content taken care of, here are some options:
- Free Themes. There are thousands of free Wordpress themes out there. These are great starts for a new blog. The drawback is that your blog may look a little “cookie cutter” because it will share the same layout with other blogs which use the same theme.
- Premium Themes. There are an increasing number of premium Wordpress themes out there that you pay for. Pricing is usually very reasonable. The benefits to a premium theme is that the design is usually more professional, they are more modifiable, and they are usually better optimized for search engines.
- Custom Design. You can either hire somebody to do it or take the do-it-yourself approach (skills and time permitting, of course). In this video, I mentioned “Ultimate Blog Designs”. Well, I actually meant “Unique Blog Designs“. I have not used them before, however I have met with them at conferences and they’re good. Plus, they’ve done layouts for many successful bloggers in my market including ShoeMoney, John Chow and my friend Ryan Wade, to name only a few off the top of my head.
So, for a brand new blog, I recommend a free theme or a premium, pre-designed theme. As you grow and as it makes more sense for you, you can look into investing in a total custom design.
A Perspective on World Events [#21]
I recorded this video aboard the Crown Princess, a cruise ship operated by Princess Cruise Lines. You can probably tell since I’m obviously out over the water.
When you take a cruise, it offers a chance to relax. It also (at least for me) shows the real dichotomy that exists in the world. When you are out at sea sitting on a balcony, you experience calmness. There isn’t much noise except for the sound of the water going by.
At the same time, I connected to the Internet from the ship. I did so mainly to monitor how my membership drive on PCMech last week was going in my absence. However, I also checked out the news headlines. As usual, the news was death, confusion, economic problems, war, politics.
Yet, there I am on the open sea. About 70% of our planet is nothing but ocean. Even on the other 30%, the majority of people living there are just going about their lives. Living. Eating. Working.
It starts to put into perspective what is reported in the news.
Look, the job of the news is to get ratings so as to sell advertising. It really isn’t different than many of us do with our blogs. We don’t make money if people don’t visit our sites. News organizations likewise make no money if they have no readers/viewers. So, what do they do? The make the world seem chaotic so that we’ll stick to the news, hanging on their every word.
24/7 news is like a cancer on our society. It creates unrest in the minds of people. That unrest is generated and then backed up and magnified through group “proof”. In other words, if enough people say things are bad, well by God, they must be bad. Right?
If everybody would just calm the hell down and disconnect from society for a little while, you’ll see that calmness pervades our world while a few select people are very busy trying to stir it up again.
Perhaps you need to be at sea to have such thoughts.
And because I was at sea, I decided to take this momentary break from confessions of a six figure blogger to simply make an observation.
Classified Ads on Your Blog – Worth It? [#20]
This video is in response to a question from Malaika from MillionaireMamas.info. She asks:
How do feel about adding a classifieds page on blogs? Will it help by combining all of the ads so that your pages aren’t cluttered or will it turn off readers?
I’m always interested in seeing products and companies that other bloggers use but few have a classified page. Wondering how you feel about this as a problogger.
When I recorded this video, I was under the assumption you meant a community marketplace. This is probably the most common form of marketplace, where your readers can post their own ads to your site. I haven’t had a whole lot of luck with this myself, but it depends on your community. As stated in the video, too, there are pitfalls to starting a new community feature like that from scratch. Namely, negative social proof.
After recording the video, I looked at the marketplace on Malaika’s site. It appears what she is doing is not a community marketplace, but a central place for posting ads. The problem with this is that you’re not giving any of the ads enough “air time”. My guess is very few will actually click on the “Marketplace” link and, if they do, they’re probably going to expect a community marketplace as I did. So, to maximize visibility (and hence your income) I would find a way to integrate the ads into your site.
Ads always work best when integrated with relevant content.
If you would like to offer any input on Malaika’s question, please post a comment. And as always, feel free to submit your own question to me for a future video.
Strategies Vs Tactics – Important To Know For 2009 [#19]
As we head into 2009, there is an important concept that you need to know. That is strategies versus tactics.
Tactics are the actions we take, the things we do in our internet business. Whether it be to blog a particular thing, instituting a particular plug-in, promoting a particular product, designing your site – whatever – all of this is tactic.
Strategy is what guides tactics. It is the broad, overhead view of what we’re doing.
Imagine the general in a war. He is sitting up on top of the hill, using his binoculars to survey the entire battlefield. From that view, he can see the broad picture and can make strategic plans to win the war. HE forms strategy. The individual movements he orders are tactics.
As we head into 2009, make sure you have a strategy. Otherwise, all the tactics that I and others can teach you will only result in the wheel spinning but not much forward movement. People like myself can help you with ideas and ways of doing things, but we cannot create your strategy for you.
I'm David Risley. I've been making my living as a blogger for over a decade. Blogging is my business and how I support my family. With this blog, I'm just gettin' REAL and telling you how this business works. 
