The Block Chain is a relatively new technology invented by a person or group that took on the name Satoshi Nakamoto The basis of the technology is a very secure ledger system for controlling document distribution that is not subject to change.
The spread of this is worldwide and comes with no country designation. Document transfers are instant and the general cost is minimal.
For instance, you write a will, and using a distributed ledger it hangs around until the day the freeloaders line up for their part of the proceeds. If any changes were made to the original document they would be clearly shown and by whom and when. So if cousin Joey tried to pull a swifty and add an extra figure it would be disclosed for all to see.
It is important that no one owns the blockchain so there is no Government intervention or outside influence and its security can not be compromised.
Disruptive technology takes time for general acceptance
The introduction of disruptive technologies has changed the way we do business. It started with the Internet and then Google, Facebook, and others right through to 5G mobile technology. They are now accepted as part of our normal life, and things we just can not do without. The BlockChain is such a Technology.
Bitcoin was developed to make the best use of blockchain security and offer a negotiable store of value. Bitcoin transactions use the security and privacy of the blockchain to build a virtual bank. The value is built on buyer demand and a scarcity factor.
Using the same technology many companies were formed to make the best use of the public arena. Ethereum. Solana, Cardano, and link to name a few.
They transact billions of documents a day that retain all the security that BlockChain provides. They provide a platform for Insurance, Real Estate, banking, and virtually every other high transactional transfer.
Why does your blog page need an extra layer of security
I believe this is really out of the square. First up they are going to time stamp your material so original content can not be disputed. This is an initiative of Trusted Web a European initiative to ensure the originality of your documents
Think of your terms and conditions page and Privacy policy that could have to stand up in a court one day ( heaven forbid) Your original document is time-stamped for all to see and any fraudulent changes noted.
The people Behind Yoast SEO have an interest in this and are offering free service on their plugin.
With the WordProof integration in Yoast SEO, you can use ten timestamps per month for free. One timestamp is used every time you update the page. To access more timestamps, you’ll need to buy a WordProof subscription.
Yoast SEO
It is important to note that both Yoast's free and paid services qualify for the free offer.
There will be many other opportunities to secure documents
You may want to protect the Pricing pages, Your about you page, Critical performance details, Logos, and even plans and contract details.
This is just the tip of the iceberg in the use of Blockchain technology to provide absolute security for your online information
Buying more time stamps
Yoast gives away 10-time stamps per month for free, and any change is a new stamp. After that, you need to pay. The free ones apply to the terms and conditions and Privacy policy.
For those that don't use Yoast go directly to TrustedWeb and deal with them. Prices are very reasonable and appropriate for what they deliver.
Conclusion
I love that new disruptive technology offers substantial change to our everyday life.
As a blogger and Website Author, I have often wondered about how to find an extra level of security that puts the scammer at a disadvantage.
We are all impacted by a scam at some stage so this is a real impose on them and one more nail to stop them.
I have no association with the companies above.
The Blockchain improves blogging security by Peter Hanley
The range of subjects is infinitesimal because everything can be broken down into little parts. There are currently over two trillion blogs on the internet and you can still rank on page one if you know what you are doing. That is the exciting part.
We start with a Niche or area of interest and start to break it down to our specific needs. Broad niches may be Medical, Sports, Legal, Industrial, Domestic, and on and on.
With Sport, you have a range of every possible sport played and this is a number that fills an Olympic stadium. Then you pick a sport like Football. Many codes come under the broad term football that relates to the many countries where it is played.
Add to that teams, players, countries, competitions, Equipment, Exercise, nutrition, etc
Therefore as you break any subject down it expands to a massive proportion of things to write about.
What do I write about in a blog to get noticed if I love what I am doing
Write for Love and not for money
Writing is a selfish pastime where your thoughts intermingle with facts to produce a product that others want to share.
When you are writing for money the effort becomes a chore that you simply won't be able to carry on. It will become hard and time-consuming for little reward and the urge to stop will be overwhelming. All the work you have done goes down the drain and you justify that it was a silly idea anyway. Time to move on.
However, when the subject is of great interest and you need to share your massive bank of knowledge it ceases to be work and the production will continue the journey.
Set yourself a plan and stick to it
You could grab an excel spreadsheet and write down all the broad niche headings you can think of.
Then under that start to break those headings into smaller parts And again and again.
Within a short time, you will have a list of things to write about that will engage you for the next year. Broad term keywords with which you can rank.
Choose variety in your topic selection
You can't write forever about tying football laces in a Soccer boot. However, when you move over to the best polish for a soccer boot in winter you start a whole new trend. And what about studs and brands to grow the list. Why do forwards have colored boots and backs stay in black boots?
For those that don't know the answer, it is because forwards are all showmen and backs workmen.
The narrow topic is Soccer boots however we are taking this in a lot of different directions with just a bit of thought out of the square. My boots hurt my Achilles tendon and how I fixed the problem.
Don't compete against the professional writers
In every niche, you have a range of heavy hitters that bring with them a history of high authority. This would include the manufacturers, major retailers, Doctors, and Sporting identities to name a few.
Google likes to recognize their position in the subject and rewards them with better page location. Therefore you are butting your head against the wall trying to get past them.
The answer lies in getting around them with subjects that have a following but are not major competitors.
This is done by picking unique keywords and picking up the traffic associated with them.
It may not be the highest volume of traffic however over time it will all build to a heap of monthly clicks
Grow your business with regular posting
Because you will not be in the high volume keywords you can compensate by combining traffic from a wide range of subjects. Every blog you write will have traffic however one blog will not make the grade. However, 20 or 50 blogs will slowly build a credible following.
At this stage, Google will start to recognize your talent and authority on the subject and favor you with better search positions.
Unless you are very lucky with keyword selection our friends at Google don't give you a lot of airplay. They want to see if you are a stayer or fly-by-night writer and take time to give you any credence. This leg may be 6 to 12 months because it is a big competitive world and being gifted with a first-page listing does not come easy.
Think of it in their way. they want to see that you are a suitable choice of authority and information before taking you to the dance.
So sit up and keep writing to bring the results to you over time. It will happen the only question is when.
What do I write about in a blog to get noticed, does it need extra training
Take some extra training to better your position
Believe me when I say this whole industry stays the same however with regular changes. For example, Google was the first search engine way back in 1998 and is still the dominant player. To this day they do upgrades nearly every month that make subtle changes that may or may not affect you.
Way back then a Keyword was just that a single word but now it is a keyphrase. A group of words to convey a deeper meaning.
Blogs were 500 words and acceptable now they want 1500 words that convey wisdom and intellect.
Bing and Yahoo. Here we use exact match keywords, at least for now, so nothing has changed. Finding good keywords with low competition and moderate traffic is still the objective.
Google has changed to focus on User Intent and using Artificial intelligence to help with the work. So the robots read your mind and find an answer to what you are thinking not what you search for.
Your paid sites, like Adwords, will still use Keywords so we can't drop them yet
Keywords throughout your site will still be search factors so Don't move away just yet
YouTube is a big contributing factor to all search terms so don't ignore it.
This has all added a degree of difficulty to establishing your leading search words.
We are in this market for traffic so let's think about this. Traffic comes from all search engines.
Establish your traffic position with the very best tools.
Your traffic comes from different places so using Bing Webmaster Tools and Google search console you can get an idea of what works in your past posts.
These will track your progress and assist your selections.
I use the Jaaxy keyword tool to give me an idea of competition and traffic before I do a Google search to see who I am up against.
You can not go head to head with the experts because they will outrank you every time. With a better selection, you can dodge around them.
Think like a searcher after a couple of beers
When we search we don't all use a highly rational approach to our query rather we gabble of the first thing that comes to mind.
This is why Google looks more for intent than the actual words. Then Google picks a site with the most relevant authority to the subject and sends you there.
Therefore your selected word should answer a particular question that the main sites have not thought about.
What to do in Texas on a Tuesday. The travel blogs will concentrate on prices and weather but not so much local information. Your keyword will rank.
Site authority is an essential part of searching success
Site authority has gathered a lot more relevance than in past times as Google Robots twist your search term into intent. Travel to Texas will host a bundle of high authority sites with a track record and high search numbers. These will include all the bigger travel associations. Therefore the underqualified you will not get a look in. Establishing authority takes time and some recognized qualifications behind you. A Doctor on medical issues will outrank you, A lawyer on legal issues will outrank you and the list goes on. With these handicaps in mind, your articles need to be on the fringe of common search. You don't go head to head you bite at their heels in areas they don't want to play.
My brother cured his shingles with Cold tea compresses. Why raincoats are not necessary for Texas You can't be sued for adultery in Las Vegas
These are just random examples of getting around the mainstream questions and having a better chance to rank.
Building your brand and getting authority
If you work on your branding you may establish a following that recognizes you as a relevant expert in the field. IT may be a personal brand or site brand depending on which way you push the barrow.
The most outspoken brand is a guy called Neil Patel He is found in every search by name, not by the company which is Uber Suggest. This is actually a great search tool.
We follow Neil because he contributes knowledge to the industry because of his ever-present video productions.
This is the top of the tree however you may find a place among your peers. Their traffic tells Google you are one of the good guys so you get more love from the search terms
Where questions are asked Keywords answer them
When you see Quora or Reddit questions on a subject it means that there is traffic but no good answers. This is great grounds for finding relevant keywords to rank.
You can also search these forums to find high-traffic questions begging for a good blog.
Nearly every subject has a strong center of authority figures that dominate the main pages. Chain saws will have a host of distributors and retailers advertising every saw available. There will be several pages of them creating a first-page roadblock.
However, you can join the action by sneaking in from the sidelines. What is the best oil for a Stihl saw doing heavy work?
When you have the reader you may even recommend another product with a great review and affiliate link. You beat the best.
Fill your site with good keywords
You are ranked not just by your title word but by those in your work as well. Therefore consider your headings and turn them into relevant search terms to attract readers. Readers looking for a Stihl saw would also be interested in Bosche saws who both use the same cutting oil
Expand your words to cover as many opportunities as you can
Conclusion
This is an ongoing area of learning that makes a difference to your results. Being on page one of a search term is essential if you want to be in the traffic results.
Never just write a page or post without due reference to the keywords you choose. It is all about ranking that has competition and traffic as a balancing act.
Maintain your training because it is a fast-changing world.
How to do a Keyword search for traffic by Peter Hanley
A phobia is an uncontrollable, irrational, and lasting fear of a certain object, situation, or activity. This fear can be so overwhelming that a person may go to great lengths to avoid the source of this fear. One response can be a panic attack.
What's more about 19 million Americans suffer from some sort of Phobia so it is pretty mainstream.
I use and promote Affiliate marketing and have done for some time. When talking among friends and family it is often like admitting to the guilt of some kind.
Comments like that is a spammy thing where no one makes any money or even why would anyone buy through you? Or even that is Pyramid selling and it's illegal
This is where any rational conversation usually stops as the curtains have come down and no further conversation will be had.
I am Ok with that as there are enough people with an open mind that will listen to rational discussions and make a decision based on facts.
Affiliate marketing goes back a long way
The only thing new about this is the name, commission salespeople have carried the market for a hundred or more years building the industry on results-oriented marketing.
Classic examples of this were the door-to-door Encyclopedia salespeople selling a subscription for monthly volumes of a high-priced article. The other was the Hoover Vacuum tribe that threw dirt onto the floor and used a wonderful machine to clean it up. They got paid on the sale.
Affiliate marketing is a system that pays on performance
This is a pretty simple model, you market a product for someone else and get paid for the sale.
When businesses operated in a local market reaching customers was relatively easy so all the basic methods were employed, and still are in many cases. However, as the market became global the marketing reach needed a lot more action. Thus employing others to support your own efforts became the Norm and the Affiliates become a positive part of the plan.
Amazon moved the market
You may remember when Amazon launched as a bookseller way back in 1994. Most of us thought it would never last and that includes the major book shop groups. Most of which have now gone.
Amazon initially employed an affiliate model to drive sales and deliveries worldwide. They gradually branched out into a massive range of products and became the biggest supply warehouse in the world. With a bulk of the sales coming from affiliates.
However, when you own a market you tighten the screws on your partners by dropping commission rates and diverting sales to house sales. That is not to say marketing for Amazon is not a good idea. In fact, in many ways, it is a good starting point for new entrants.
When I say Amazon I also include Walmart, eBay, and Linktech in China.
Affiliate phobia and getting rid of it with product reviews
Providing product reviews for cash
This has been very popular over the past decade as a way to market a product. You write a nice review have a Link to the manufacturer and get a commission on the sale. Sometimes you may compare two or more products and have links to them all, let the reader choose.
We all research products before buying them so this is a massive market. Readers don't know you but believe you and will often act on your advice. That is still affiliate marketing.
Start a business with no stock, no billing, no deliveries, and no customer service
The above statement looks like a gift from above however it is how Affiliate marketing runs. Commissions can be either one time or over a subscription period of months or years.
I am a fan of recurring payments because you can build a permanent income around growing sales. One sale may net you $20 but when you have 500 paying you every month your return will be $10,000 a month. This is where earning money while you sleep comes from. It is just a part of affiliate marketing. As a referring agent, you get paid when a sale is made and your obligations end there.
Affiliate phobia and getting rid of it by expanding your ideas
Affiliate sales are made for real and virtual products
The Amazon example is based on flogging real products and getting paid a commission for your effort. However, services like Web hosting and Data storage are virtual products that still generate an income.
Then there are training courses, sales courses, eBooks and so many more that reside in the ether but are considered saleable items.
The affiliate market will refer to just about anything you can think of and someone is making money from it.
Do you need to be experienced to become an affiliate
No experience is needed in many cases however to improve your chance of success it always helps to know what you are doing. Riding a Pushbike requires no experience but try it for the first time and see what happens.
Some companies will want proof that you are capable of selling enough products to be considered as a partner. Amazon however takes you on day one and sacks you on day 90 if you don't perform. Everyone has their own rules so you need to understand this when you start out.
Affiliate phobia and getting rid of it with great products
Where do I find the best products to sell as an affiliate
Companies can be found in many places. first of all, there are groups that run the affiliate operation for others. They may be agents for hundreds of retail outlets and run the whole program
Or you can simply search on google by naming a product and saying affiliate and a list will come up
All the above represent just a sample of the market when it is actually many-fold larger than that.
Are there good and bad affiliate opportunities
There are generally good and better depending on the market, you want to enter. Companies want good affiliates because that is where the sales come from so you will be looked after.
However, there are many traps to be aware of.
Pixel date is important
When you send a visitor to a site and they make a purchase you get paid. However many companies only respect that link for a short time. If the buyer returns directly to the site you miss out. In the case of Amazon, it can be just hours. Many buyers will look at a few opportunities before making a selection therefore you will often be cut out of the negotiation even though you started it.
The best companies allow a reasonable time through to a lifetime of honoring your customer.
The reward you receive matters
When you make 2% on a $30 product it is $0.60 a sale, you will never get rich. Even 2% on a $500 sale is still only $10 so you need to move a mountain of product.
The answer is to select products with a good return value and a chance of some amount of volume. The effort is the same for all of them so be sure you can get a return for effort that makes it worthwhile.
The cancellation clause
This is particularly apparent in the cheaper end of the market and with vendors like Jv Zoo WarriorPlus and virtual market products. These are in-your-face sales that often fall over because they don't deliver on what is promised or they have high upsells to follow the initial purchase. Most of these companies will advertise the return rate so it is good to be prepared early.
The upsell method of extracting more money
Again this is common with parts of the market. You start with a $19 purchase however to get the full value another $49 is needed. Then the required tools are $99 and the real McCoy training $499 a month for evermore. This can go through to tens of thousands of dollars for gullible travelers seeking instant riches
No experience, instant Income for just 10 minutes a day
Here we are getting into the spam market. The promise of instant wealth is only for the most gullible and it is just unrealistic. Buy our new bike and win the Tour de France without training. Hey, I can't ride yet but imagine me in the Yellowjacket next week, it must be a winner. Unfortunately, life is not like that. Unless you know what you are doing and apply yourself over time you simply won't make it. Sorry, but true.
Conclusion
Affiliate marketing is a legitimate form of business that will suit those that want to pursue a career or gain an income from selling products for others.
There is no limitation imposed on you and you are paid for performance and mostly paid quite well.
There are rules and risks and a need for training however the entry is unlimited and applies equally to everyone.
No bosses breathing down your kneck, not a time clock to be seen and done from anywhere at any time.
You can build a business that generates income among the top earners because the sky is the limit
Affiliate phobia and getting rid of it by Peter Hanley
However, the use of the word, university, has been common on the internet because of the number of people seeking greater knowledge. There are several important issues that separate the universities. Quality of content Relevance of the course Subject coverage PRICE and ongoing fees.
The Amazon university
When Amazon was in its prime this represented some value however the commissions have been reduced so much that you need large volumes to survive. A basic course starts at $49 a month and private courses going over $1000> Market place super hero at $999 and others going over $5000 you really need to be careful
A typical upsell bombshell is Internet Uni at a low $49 a month however the upsell is $400 a month with plenty of promises and delivery never guaranteed. Internet university is a supposedly free site with a $400 a month upgrade. Excuse me!
There are so many traps that learning to find them needs a University degree
I write on a lot of subjects and this one is probably filled with as many false promises as I have seen. Amazing Amazon course at a low $ 5000, Wholesale formula $2997, and even a basic Amazon boot camp at $345
A simple search will blow your mind with such a wide range of experts all promoting one product. How to sell on Amazon when in fact it is hardly worthwhile with commissions around 2%
Where do you get the best Internet value?
One of the many traps is that you can get the training and then need a website. That along with a Domain name, monthly hosting, and a few tools to make the journey palatable. the cost is starting to add up and you are not making anything yet. Everything is in the future.
On top of that is making a worthwhile return, it is no good selling low-priced articles and making a small return. and even harder selling high-priced equipment in small volumes at low returns. That is the dilemma of internet marketing.
The good news is that there are a lot more ways to make money on the internet than selling products to others.
You need to start somewhere
You are heading off on a long journey to a town called success. Therefore you need to plan the journey with care because there are many problems to cover along the way.
The Internet is so full of opportunities however there may be just one that is right for you. You can not do everything so you must pick your area of excellence and excel at that.
Training as a Chef when you want to build websites is a waste of time. Building websites when you have little interest is also a waste. Doing anything for money will not last, boredom and disillusion will take over and you will give up.
Doing something you love will last the journey. Remember this is not a quick fix cash grab, you want a University that gives you a big future value. This is completing something you like doing and getting a fair return.
What is the Internet Income University and Will it Help You at Wealthy Affiliate?
The Wealthy Affiliate University
On top of this are Black Friday specials and annual accounts where you can save even more, in fact up to 50%.
The important thing is that the only extra to pay is Domain names and you can have 25 of these at the same price for hosting. No upsells, no Shiny objects all you see is all you get. You may wish to buy a few plugins along the way but that is voluntary.
if you are new you may want to try a free entry first however if you have any experience jump right in and start transferring your domains in.
A good forum is necessary
Let's face it not everyone has all the answers. Yes, Wealthy Affiliate has 24-7 hosting services but what about all the other bits. You can search for training on hundreds of subjects or ask a question in the forum. Here the senior players hang around wanting to help solve your problems. It sure beats surfing the web for an hour or two.
The levels of training cater to all different levels of experience so you are not thrown in at the deep end. My experience was to do the basic course as fast as I could, I knew all the basics so did not have a lot to learn. Wrong. I went back and did it a second time because I realized how much I missed.
I am a graduate and am listed in the top 150 of active participants among the million or so members. A member since 2015 I originally joined to learn how to build a website for my daily business. I am now a full-time blogger.
Conclusion
I have no trouble recommending this directly to you. It may seem like I am overselling however you don't need to take my word for it because you can take it for a test drive and make your own decisions.
Take your time and make a decision based on fact
There are hundreds of web Universities but only one Wealthy Affiliate.
Your call.
What is the Internet Income University and Will it Help You by Peter Hanley
People walk in the door because you are there, is that not enough? Well no actually. You could be missing over 50% of your sales opportunities by not being in the competitive arena.
Have you heard about online sales? The growth has been exponential and in part driven by Covid Isolation rules. Once you try online shopping you are hooked. It is so easy and saves you a trip to the shopping mall. You will wander among strangers all on a hypnotic trip trying to find an elusive outfit.
I agree we all love the hardware shops because they are filled with magic and deliver an impulsive need to buy really great things.
But hey, a clothing shop filled with dusty clothes jammed in a rack and a sales assistant playing hide and seek when you really need them.
Then there is the supermarket, which in tradition was a nice place, but is now filled with time pore, pushy people with a basket full of bad manners. Let's not mention the screaming kids.
Furthermore, product shortages have run rampant down the aisles ripping out the special signs so it is hard to get a bargain without being super picky.
Welcome to online shopping, the new world way
I am the average work-from-home bloke that spends a lot of time at my computer screen locked away from the world. I now have interaction with courier drivers from all over the world delivering wife-ordered products at all hours of the day.
Indeed it is not perfect and there are a few returns as well as the odd trip to the Post Office because of lazy postmen that leave a card and not door knock.
My kids get food delivered, I get wine delivered, and my wife gets presents for the family delivered so it is an online world
How to go on-line
This is not a small decision. It will take up a lot of time and come with several costs but the rewards will be great. If you could increase your turnover by any small percentage I am sure you will justify the returns.
You will need a good stock system. This will be connected to a billing program Then build your online platform.
Now your stock lines will be consistent and all sales immediately recorded.
If you are a WordPress fanatic basic software is available from Woocommerce. A free plugin that starts the journey. As you grow you will add modules and may even wish to pay for some of them. You will want the system as good as you can get it.
The other is an online program called Shopify. Millions of users with a monthly cost that will suit many of you.
The next step is an integration of all the elements to create a total product.
Good marketing strategies for small businesses with an online store
Creating an online store is an investment in the future
As I have said this will not be a simple venture. It will take a lot of time and some cost however the final product will last for years to come.
You might even think of it as starting a new business.
Your online store works in many ways. Many will log in and buy from what is available and on display.
Some will browse the range until they find something suitable and then visit the store to complete the transaction. Unless you ask you will never know where they came from.
You expand your buying public well outside your capture area creating a whole new market.
You can introduce new discount activity at the click of a button. Therefore marketing exposure is increased for all customers.
If you are in the retail space this must be done.
We look at restaurant menus, make orders, and reserve tables without leaving home. Then there is the weekly shopping and even a home visit Doctor now.
Unfortunately, not everyone can set up a shop but most of you can. Therefore if you are in the can space and have not moved yet you better put your thinking cap on or plan to retire.
Tell your customers what you are doing
Communication is key to marketing so take every opportunity to keep your customers advised.
You have a variety of methods at your disposal, mostly free or at least inexpensive.
Email, it still works.
Newsletters are a sure winner
Facebook still has the biggest share of the market
Instagram is followed by a huge female audience
TikTok has come of age
Blogging
Then there is the hard copy flyer
However, you may not wish to do all of these but you should tick some and work them hard.
Consistency reigns supreme. The more they see your message the more they will support you. Too much is never enough.
Adopt a media and work it hard and the results will follow.
Good marketing strategies for small businesses with retargeting
This is the age of retargeting
I throw this in as an interesting subject or a consideration for the bigger businesses. The reason is that it comes at a fairly high cost.
We have all experienced the phenomenon when you think about dog biscuits and the next minute you are plagued with advertising. Every time you do a web search there is a new advert for Dog biscuits. This is the not-so-subtle art of retargeting. Those simple ads that follow you cost the advertiser money every time you click on one. they hope that click will lead to a sale.
The science behind this is very intelligent, in fact so much so that people think their minds are being read. However, they simply pick up random associations that you show and exploit that behavior to a suspected benefit. In simple terms, you may have clicked on a cute dog picture in a Facebook search and a meeting is arranged. You are on a suspect list. If you don't respond after a few ads they will move on but click on one and you are theirs forever.
These guys really know their stuff and you pay for that.
Remarketing is different
Again it is a connection by association. After you buy the Dog Biscuits you are deemed Guilty of wanting more. Of course, you will be interested in Dog training, Gucci collars, and a Flea treatment. You have opened your wallet and now they want more because you have shown sucker tendencies. I joke but you get what I mean.
Adwords are another option for the big spenders
When you are in a highly competitive area you need to be on page one of a search term. There may be 10 pages of Dog Biscuit supplies and your chance of getting to page one is nigh on impossible. So what can you do?
Pay to have your details on page one in an advert and when someone clicks you pay a cost. That cost can vary from a few dollars to many hundreds depending on the return expected. One I looked at recently was small business loans, the cost of a click is nearly $400 and this one company was spending $300,000 a month on leads. You read that right however it is just a marketing cost to them.
Now a Dog biscuit advert may cost $10 but if you get a long-term customer it would be well worth the expense.
I have a friend that sells Patios and small property ad-on. He pays about $100 an ad but a sale will be several thousand dollars. When his order book looks a bit slow he just ups his spending until he is happy. It works for him.
Make your keywords local
We have seen how our Dog Biscuits is a popular subject and will your website attract local buyers or will they stay with the major chains. In fact, in my area, the three main competing businesses are all owned by the same people. Thus they compete against themselves.
I buy pet food once a month and about a week before I receive special offers from all three. They don't really care where I go as long as it is the group. I would always use the local guy who was a bit further away but would match the prices offered by the others. He went broke because he would not compete.
If he had mailed and promoted a local guy image, best Dog biscuits in suburb Barker. He could have survived.
Building your database
This may be the best Asset you can have. Worth more than anything else you own. The name address and phone number of everyone that walks through the door. When you know your clients you can contact them, send them all sorts of information and stay in front of your mind. It is the only position to be in. The major chains will exploit this to the maximum so you need to compete. Emails, Newsletters, and SMS messages are all low-cost channels of communication. Exploit them and hammer your base with information, if they get sick of you they will opt out so let them go. Use, at a minimum, one social media channel with something every day, even twice a day so when the buying time comes you will be in the line.
Increasing your knowledge
The internet world is an evolving market with changes made every day. Keeping up with all of this requires some attention to continual learning.
Many professions now insist on regular seminars to bring the latest trends to their members as part of their licensing requirement.
I don't want you to go that far however Wealthy Affiliate has all the training and ideas you will need. Just the forum alone is with a look at. This is where members add their own training and discuss problems that they are having. What's more, is that they have a free entry to try all the facilities.
I was asked just today how I keep up with changing technology and my answer was that I dedicate a small part of my spare time to learning new things. You should as well.
Conclusion
The old saying is “Get in or Get out.”
The business world has changed and unless you apply your strategies you are going to get hurt.
When you don't have time, and I respect that, then outsource the management of the program and follow the results so that you get a positive return
Good marketing strategies for small businesses by Peter Hanley
First of all the only real relationship is that they are both sent to mobile devices, to authorized recipients, and seek a response.
They both use the Mobile network and come with a cost to send them.
MMS is really a big brother with lots more capacity and charm to sway the recipients.
SMS has a maximum capacity of 160 characters, no images, no links just a message that can always accept a reply. In marketing, they must also have an opt-out clause included in the 160 characters, and if you use a name salutation even fewer characters to play with.
However, SMS does a great job and can get a high response rate when used how they are intended and within the limitations you have.
MMS is vastly differentfrom SMS
A subject box
Up to and including 20 characters
Big message content
1000 characters available
Adding an image
Under 450 KB in GIF, Jpeg, MP3, and MP4
Includes a call to action
Make them click
Website linking
With tracking
Opt-out clause
Legal requirement
That's a whole host of opportunities
Therefore you have a lot more marketing ability with a whole host of character in your message.
First up let's look at the subject line. This is important because it must draw the reader's interest in a fraction of a second. Some that have been proven to work include;
Win a free trip! (18 characters)
30% off Winter Sale (18 characters)
Buy 1, Get 1 Free (16 characters)
Don’t miss this! (16 characters)
It’s Happy Hour! (19 characters)
Exclusive VIP Invite (20 characters)
You’re invited! (15 characters)
Here’s your gift (16 characters)
However, it must relate to what you are doing and with the customer in mind.
Now your very long message
While you have 1000 characters to play with you are targeting time-pore readers who are looking for action. Therefore it is recommended to cut down to less than 300 characters for your message.
However, this is said without considering the recipient. When you are targeting a small market with a high interest in your product they may want a lot more information.
For Instance, BMW announced today an M3 production 5 series off-roader. ( fact due in 2023) Hey, I want specs and results and I will read as much as you can give me. Yes, it is Porsche fast and leaves the Mercedes in the high-priced petrol fumes.
On the other hand, it may just be that Thailand now beckons Holidaymakers with new fares that you are not going to list out. short and sweet.
Your image tells a thousand words
If an image tells a thousand words then put it to work. My New M3 Beema screaming a bend at the local race track is going to get me all hot and flushed. Whereas an idyllic beach scene in Thailand will be something to think about and surprise my partner with one day.
Remember the image must show on a mobile phone so keep it down in size and reduce the number of colors to get a better rendition.
Font sizes and style need to stand out
Then complete the job with a call to action
Be the first to Register for a BMW test drive.
30% savings on Thailand today only
Your call to action must really try to elicit a response. Make them take an action or complete the process. Therefore it must be compelling.
We all want to know who is really into that so a follow-up can be created. Remember this is hard-selling at its best, Grab their attention, gather interest, create desire and close them. No fooling around we want results, not statistics.
Use a contact page
A unique link to a website (if applicable): many offers tracked links to report click-through rates and to segment those who clicked. Make sure you take them to a mobile-optimized landing page.
And last of all the legal requirements of the Opt-Out
Even this can be customized to ask why they are leaving. It also offers the chance to reconsider hitting the delete button.
All MMS marketing services allow you to set a custom URL opt-out. This allows you to opt-out by providing an additional incentive or to get more feedback on why your customer is unsubscribing.
MMS and SMS are different for marketing and returns but both deliver action
An MMS is really asking for action
For this reason, a mass broadcast is an overshoot, and having a select, interest group database will give you far better returns.
The BMW base will be high-income, mostly male, in the age group 35-55 that have had a Beema before. It is no good targeting young mothers scrapping to pay the grocery bill.
Thailand is both sexes, aged from 18-45 that are travel orientated.
Whilst I have made these up for a general comparison I am sure you will get the idea.
Messages by SMS or MMS are not forever
The good thing about short messaging is that it is a direct response media. You may hit an email to save for later however short messaging solicits an answer, now, not tomorrow, or next week. This makes it easy to do a sample broadcast and analyze the results. Changes can be made if it does not work.
When your sample fails then find something to trigger action so you have a chance of success.
Conclusion
MMS is an underutilized media that can have substantial results for the right campaign. Results are the measurement that matters and that is the target we aim for. Clicks don't buy cars people do.
Cost per action can be extremely good with a justifiable return on any campaign therefore it easy to convince interested parties that the expenditure is warranted.
Stand out from the crowd with MMS marketing by delivering visual messages directly to your customers. With an average 11% click-through rate, MMS campaigns help improve customer engagement. Burst SMS
I don't want to be evasive here however the answer is the one that best suits your personality. There are just so many opportunities, which is not unlike the real world, however not all of them alighn with you.
Therefore the way to go is to think about what you would like to do and then start to narrow it down.
Put your thinking cap on and list out all your positives and negatives and come up with a broad answer. If you hate selling that is ok, you don't need to sell. When your writing and grammar are bad then stay away from blogs and Newsletters For the shy and retiring types coaching won't be your thing For the artists among you then building Websites could be the go. The technical people may move to SEO When you want to open your own shop that's ok Affiliate marketing may tempt you. Taking surveys may be your go or perhaps Debtor collection.
In fact in my territory alone there are 698 listed work-from-home jobs so I am not going to list them all.
How to supplement income from home with time and expectation
Find an allocation of time and expectations
If you have a spare hour a day when the kids are in bed and your partner is asleep in front of the TV find a suitable role.
When you have a spare eight hours a day you will be able to achieve far greater results.
The next thing to do is estimate the income you want to achieve and then build a reasonable case study. If you only have an hour a day you are not going to make a living wage, however, we all have our individual goals and that might be your satisfaction level.
If you set an hourly rate and multiply that by your working time you can gather an idea to base a starting position.
When you are a skilled person, as a sports Doctor, maybe $80 an hour is an acceptable goal however doing surveys may be $3 an hour but that could be the extra $100 a month that makes a difference to your life.
It is important that where you start is not where you will finish. As you grow your skills and understanding of your chosen role new opportunities will emerge and the money issue should rise with you.
How to supplement income from homeby increasing your skills
Get some training and enhance your skills to achieve higher results
For the more mundane or low skills jobs not a lot of training is required. Just jump right into doing surveys, as an example, and you will make some money.
However, the lower the skills required the less the income potential. So don't set the bar too low at the start.
There are also jobs that build a perpetual income. Say you write a training course on making the best Pizza bases in this world. Writing the course will take many unpaid hours however sales may follow over many years. This is the make money while you sleep dream.
Residual income does not come from hourly paid work it comes from investing in the future of yourself and the production of a product that someone wants and will be willing to pay for.
Beware of the promises that appear to be genuine but unrealistic
When you enter this arena you are fodder for the scammers. Unfortunately, they can be very shrewd operators that foster to your weaknesses. They will promise Movie Star rewards for doing work that requires no experience and just a small amount of time.
First of all, they will entice you with a $9.99 plan. A sum we can all afford. However, if you upgrade to the $49.95 plan you will achieve greatness overnight. Furthermore, you can triple this income by investing just $99.99 more. This can go on up to thousands of dollars with wonderful promises and the allure of instant wealth. They get wealthy you get scammed.
They may have a money-back guarantee but try getting it as they change to a new plan and a new audience.
My rules are always to try before you buy. Search online reviews And use the old adage “if it sounds too good to be true it probably is.” Check and double-check and use the free trial option.
If there are a lot of scams what is an acceptable base to start from
Naturally, this depends on the direction you want to take. For everything internet, I recommend the FREE starter training at Wealthy Affiliate. They will offer countless opportunities that you may wish to follow and all the skills you will require to be a success with online opportunities. Read about people just like you and communicate with them to get honest feedback. They will range from late teens to mid-eighties so someone in your demographic. You can talk to the high achievers and follow their training to emulate what they have been successful at. Everything is there to start your journey.
This provides a trial period where you pay no money, all the training you need, and a direct path to a secure future of your choosing.
How to supplement income from home and build a future
Other ways to build an income
Some of you will say that you need personal one-on-one training to help you get to the destination quicker. It is available however it is not all good. You can tour YouTube for hours looking for opportunities that suit your style and needs.
I have used and recommend a guy that takes you from a new to an active achiever with a paid course. Roy Carter the island recluse makes your life simple.
However, Roy does not take just anyone. You need to prove that you are suitable for making money on the internet before he will try you out. However when you come with my recommendation you have a head start.
Providing outsourcing for time pore businesses
The range of opportunities here is endless. It could be telemarketing , all sorts of accounting functions, managing Social Media, collecting debtors, writing blogs, creating newsletters, sending emails and onand on.
The way to this style of opportunity is door knocking local businesses. Putting yourself out there and creating opportunities. If you don't ask you don't get, a simple answer.
More and more people working from home
Covid has certainly pushed this into mainstream. Businesses realise that there are many benefits from having home workers with increased production and less cost generate first class work. As a home worker there are also many benefits that we have. No travel time, no office chitchat, flexible hours and unsupervised activities in ourcasual dress and messy hair
Conclusion
No one can create a future for you except yourself. Doing this by understanding what you want to achieve and the remuneration required is the start of all journeys.
I have not tried to find you a job instead I have told you how to get one.
Now it is up to you.
How to supplement income from home by Peter Hanley
It might not sound right however it can save you a lot of money. Let's start with Pareto's 80-20 rule. This applies across so many areas that it can not be ignored and has been proven many times over.
20% of your customers will give you 80% of your business. These are the ones that you should bow and scrape to so that you survive a lasting relationship.
On the other side of this coin, 20% of your customers will be responsible for 80% of your expenses. You will spend time trying to placate their small issues and bowing to their demands and they spend very little.
Cull the marketing list
By concentrating on the bigger spenders you can increase sales and return by just a small change. Ok, you could have some promising people in the bottom dwellers that you can pull out but the rest of them are left to their own terms.
Your time is taken in serving small quantities and those time-consuming, often complaining and return-orientated buyers drag you down
The delighted customer may still be in the un-loyal group. What your customers want is satisfaction and ease of transaction and loyalty will follow.
A survey by Harvard Business Review found that;
Twenty percent of the “satisfied” customers in our study said they intended to leave the company in question; 28% of the “dissatisfied” customers intended to stay.
Harvarb business review
Further to this was a study by Bell corp that found The number one cause of undue effort for customers interacting with contact centers is the need to call back …
Issues are not fixed on the first call, they lag on and create dissatisfaction.
Where to start deleting customers
First of all, any income is good income so we don't want to be too rash in our decision process here.
If you have an email list or newsletter list, ( if not you should have) then look at those that never open a mail and make a decision to cut them. These are people that are either just not interested or the person opening the mail cleans out anything not relating to the day's activities. This is a process in the medical field where reception gets the mail and makes a decision for the Doctor or Dentist etc.
Without offering a substantial bribe you are not going to get past them, so give up and delete them from the list. This will save you money and provide more accurate statistics.
Small value accounts can be let go
Next is your list of account customers. 20% will be occasional users and often for small amounts. Managing your accounts has a high-cost value so stopping a few of these will save you money. You may lose a few but they are not making you rich, in fact probably pore so fret no more.
If you are a bit shy on this consider applying a $10 a month account fee and they will make the decision for you.
Controling support lines
The major retailers woke up to this a long time ago. They traditionally required a lot of proof when goods were to be returned. Now they just accept there will be a level of returns and replace or exchange without a fuss.
However when you find those that exploit the system, and there will be some, making their life hard will be akin to pushing them out the door. Problem solved
When the delivery cost is too high the customers leave
This is particularly so for small-value purchases. However, are these buyers consistent in small value sales and just working the system. It is usual that the same offenders continue the practice time and time again. Creating a price barrier will upset them and more than likely have them try elsewhere.
Delivery costs can be a killer for small-value orders. Ensure you have procedures in place to control the way this pans out.
Stop trying to impress bad customers and cut them loose by controlling your money
Carrying debtors means an investment in money
A small group of your customers will run the payments out well past the 30-day threshold.
In my experience, these are generally businesses that stand a high chance of not being able to pay at all and causing a loss carried over several months of purchases.
They may be well-intentioned however it is funds that you need to invest to carry their credit and funds that could be better spent elsewhere.
But what can you do?
First of all, stop the credit line at a certain time and lessen your loss. Apply a healthy late penalty that they must pay Ask them to find a loan account to carry out the late payments. Suggest they take their business elsewhere.
These accounts cost you money. not only in the carrying cost but management cost and taking your time away from more important matters.
If you start hard and fast with your rules you will gain respect. The softer you are the harder your customers will work against you and change will be difficult.
When you give customers a break it will bite you
I am a softy at heart and always have an ear for the hard-luck stories. In my many years in business, these are generally the customers that leave me out of pocket.
These individuals will always have a future filled with promise that rarely materializes.
Just this year I will write off half a dozen customers in this exact position. All good people with good intentions but the reasons they are where they are are the same ones that stop a future. Making excuses for them is generally just avoiding the hard decisions.
That is why I advise in setting rules early in life and sticking rigidly to them for both your customer's benefit and your peace of mind.
Conclusion
Don't avoid these confrontations in the name of goodwill or whatever your excuse to avoid the issue.
Cull your small customers Manage the return policy Fix the supply lines Wipe out doubtfully debtors install rigid rules and follow them.
You are not a charity so don't act like one.
Stop trying to impress bad customers and cut them loose by Peter Hanley
In my late youth, I had a sales manager that would teach me the hard way. If you made an error it was returned to you to fix. Even simple issues were sent back. One of these was my expense account. Being young I was always waiting anxiously on the return Of money I had to outlay. When this would bounce the delay would be a couple of weeks as I lived out of town. All my protests were met with the saying.
” That which is not checked is not done”
To this day I am not sure whether I love him or hate him for instilling in me a degree of perfection.
Does Google care about your writing mistakes?
He sure does. Google absolutely loves good grammar and spelling. Poorly written work will never rank and will reside at the end of many pages, never to be read.
Indeed, the use of word check, or Grammarly helps however they are far from perfect and need to be revisited. I find Grammarly sometimes fails to make the changes as you write so you end up with a lot of bad words.
One of the word tools is essential unless you are up in the excellent class a place where not many of us reside.
Check your spelling several times and make sure it is correct
Being confused with English/ American spelling
As an Australian, I use English, English however, I market in THe US so I have a dilemma with many words. They are not misspelled, as such, and I think the Americans take the easy road to spelling. Example Color, Colour. Both are the same but different. Most of the programs are US-based so they demand you follow their protocol. Generally, I have given in however your predominant market should be the one used although in my case US spelling has won the race.
Broken links are a Killer
Links change, become obsolete, and companies make alterations all of which will affect your page. There are many plugins and programs to keep a check on these and it is imperative that you keep up to date.
I use a LINK management tool to monitor my pages. If a change is needed you do it in one place and it changes every page. Pretty Links will also monitor your traffic giving you ongoing statistics. I recently had a Supplier sell out the business and close it down. Having nearly a thousand blogs and their link spread throughout a whole range really blew up the system
Using page buildersand not WordPress direct
This is an easy way to get better results because the programs are designed to help you. This would include Hemmingway an easy program to use. Wealthy Affiliate has a built-in writer as do so many other similar plans.
I prefer a more direct approach however using these page builders teaches you a bit about English as you plod through the exercise.
Certainly, something that should be tried by all new users.
You may find it very hard to get past a lower grade however that reflects easy-to-read material.
Getting your blogs checked and will it make a difference but forget self.
Writing about yourself is not a good policy
When readers are looking for answers or solutions they don't really care about you and what you do. Therefore filling pages with your wonderful exploits and how well you have achieved them does not grab the readers' interest. Yes, you can use examples and I am guilty of this from time to time to show what can happen however you should keep it limited and focus on the reader.
Did you answer a question or solve a problem?
You are writing a blog to answer a question, solve a problem or settle a dispute. You are not writing a book of fiction so think about your structure.
The answer may come early in the writing or well toward the end and it relates to the question. What year was Elvis born? Answer 1935 on the Eighth of January A simple easy answer.
What was Elvis'd best work?
Some will say it is early Jailhouse rock others his movies and some even the later crooning. We are building a story around Elvis and will come up with a summary at the end.
A product review may compare several products and make a buying suggestion at the end something else may have an opening image.
Getting your blogs checked and will it make a difference with images
Consider your images and their effect on the page
This is an important part of your page audit.
1) Do the images relate to the writing if not get rid of them?
2) Are they the correct size and will they work on a Mobile device?
3) Do they take over from the article and downplay the writing?
4) placed in the center or sides of the writing. ( personal issue)
Images are there to draw attention and not form a major role in your writing.
Page speed on opening is a major SEO implication. In fact so much so I stopped using a leading image as suggested by WordPress. The images slowed the page down and served no other important role
Getting your blogs checked and will it make a difference depends on the Who.
Who is best to check your work?
None of us can afford high-priced audits so we need to go with someone that has a reasonable grasp of the language. However not everyone makes a good writing auditor. For instance, I tend to speed read so I don't pick up many spelling mistakes. However, my wife a perfectionist combs through the material with a sharp eye and makes changes as she goes.
However, when my wife wrote a book Her daughter took the aggressive role and found things we would never see. You can find people on places like Fivver that will do it for just a small fee but do they understand your writing. It may just be too hard for them.
It is not a big job. A typical 1500-word post is read in under 10 minutes by the slowest of us. Add a few alterations and it is not all that time-consuming, unlike the original construction.
Of course, you can review your own work and I have done this for many years. I need the help of a program that highlights the errors and provides me with change options so it is not all that tedious.
Getting your blogs checked and will it make a difference with Authors
Authors generally use several sources of editing
A book needs to be correct to take a life of its own. Mistakes are simply not allowed and therefore several different auditors may play a part in gaining a finished product.
This checking is not taken lightly and needs to be thorough and accurate down to the smallest detail. As a blogger, I use general punctuation. Just enough to get my message across but not down to the finest detail. In a book, you must adhere to all the rules and do it properly. Pick up a book now and read the writing, follow the punctuation and see just how much you are missing.
Research is another area of specialty. Are your links going to the correct location, is your reference material current could you have used something else. All relevant questions to achieve a high-quality production.
Keywords should also get a word in here. Have you chosen the correct keyword or phrase that will get you a first-page position? If not make your changes early so as to not disrupt the passage to the top.
Conclusion
I hope you found very few errors whilst reading this summary. We try hard for perfection however it does come with time and effort. We are taught to churn out material as fast as possible and ignore quality for some time, however that theory does not hold forever.
There comes a time when quality is everything and nothing else matters. So if it is not checked it is not done.
Getting your blogs checked and will it make a difference by Peter Hanley
