Brandon Koon Blog

If you’ve ever wondered how some people really make money from their blog, it takes a little more legwork on your part.

Yes, there are the affiliate programs as well as online marketing companies that pay you to blog about different products and services.

Then again, you can eliminate the middle man and keep the profit for yourself.  Yes, there is one online marketing company that takes 50% of what an advertiser pays to have a link and relevant text (sometimes up to 400 words) placed on YOUR blog.

And unlike some content management services (CMS), you get no byline or residual, just a one-time payment that could be as little as $5 per blog post.

Some of these marketing companies may even pressure you to place ads that have nothing to do with your brand that you have worked hard to create and maintain.

While you may see this as a cup of coffee at your favorite franchise, you are actually killing your brand by accepting all of these ads.

Oh yeah, the best part is that you may have to wait at least a month to receive your money, depending on who is remitting payments.  I’ve even had to remind people that they forgot to pay me.

Taking Control

Now if you have decent traffic or a good number of social media followers, you can solicit prospects with a simple letter.  O,r if there is a product that you already use and have reviewed it a few times, then you can reach out to the marketing contact of the company and negotiate a deal on your own terms.

Some may want for you to keep the post up for as long as 30 days or on the main page for a certain number of days.  If you’re a daily blogger, one solution would be to increase the number of visible entries per page.

The First Contact

Before sending an email to the owner of the site, you want to gather data about your brand.  The purpose is to present to them what it is you can offer them.  Does your site have a lot of visitors?  If so, how many? How many Twitter followers do you have?  What is your Alexa page rank?  What associations do you belong to? Every little bit of information you can present helps a great deal.

When you have all of this together, you can do one of two things.  If your data exceeds one letter-size page, then list everything but keep it separate from the initial letter.

In the letter, you want to get the name of the site owner or person in their marketing department. After the salutation, you want to describe who you are, what your brand is about and that you are interested in having them buy space on your site in exchange for more exposure.  You can include about 3-4 of the benefits or if you have a separate sheet, offer to send this data in a follow-up email.

The Response

There is a chance that your letter and information may be forwarded to an outside marketing company and they could be a little discriminating when it comes to compensation or whether your brand would be compatible.

Don’t fear as some companies may offer freebies in lieu of monetary compensation.  You may be asked to participate in a campaign for a product that is not yet on the market.  If your brand is new or rebounding, then don’t be too eager to negotiate for money.  This could also be a test to see how well you deliver first.

You also may need to adjust your approach but keep it simple and without buzzwords as this can be a little too aggressive or come off as spam.

Growing up, you probably knew of someone that had a “reputation”.  Why?  Because they were usually quiet, mysterious and probably new to the neighborhood. Yet, when you got to know them, they were probably one of the coolest people you’ve ever met.

Working online is somewhat similar.  Unless your brand is already known within a particular industry, then getting people on board can be a little tricky at first.

Creating a Level of Engagement

As a business owner, you’re responsible for the creation, distribution and marketing of your product.  You may even take on accounting duties as well.

While this is common with most small businesses, you also have to be your own PR (public relations) person.

Though you can hire a blogger that’s experienced in marketing and communications, you may want to take a stab at the process before you begin to go through portfolios.

In the meantime, if you don’t have a basic analysis of your customer base needs, now’s the time to find out what type of content you can place on your site that they will find entertaining or useful.

Whether or not you use a blogger/ghostwriter, you should find a voice that will convey best who you are and one that represents the product or service.

Also, don’t be afraid to develop a rapport with your viewers.  Answer their inquiries, if you have additional information or resources to share, provide a link.

Keep communication open and positive as often as possible, especially when you are in the beginning stages.

When Bad Things Happen

A customer says they ordered 12 of an item but only received 10 or half of what they ordered was damaged or inoperable.  They’re hot and you have to fix it, even if it cost you your inventory, shipping expenses and time you may not have.

In business, it happens and the best way to ensure that a bad transaction doesn’t ruin your reputation is excellent communication from the start.

If you’re not in the habit of thanking customers for their purchase, then you may want to start.  This way you can leave your contact information, should they need to reach the person who’s responsible for sending out the order.

Keep detailed records of each action taken to remedy the situation, including dates, confirmation number and their response.  This way, if they post a negative online review, you will have arsenal to defend yourself.

Be Your Own Cheerleader!

When someone says something nice or positive online, post a link on your blog or website.  Even if it’s in print, scan and post as a low-res JPEG so that it can easily be read online.  If you sell through e-merchants like Amazon or Etsy, keep open communication with your customers so that they will feel confident buying from you again.

Even if you operate your own shopping cart through your internet service provider or host, you can create your own short forms where customers can describe their experience.  This will also help you in creating your next promotional campaign or better target your services.

So don’t get caught in the trap of being stuck behind a monitor for hours.  Take the time to get to know your customers and prospects as it will be one of the best investments you will make in business.

Growing up, you probably had a job at a fast-food or retail chain and your boss got on your case about letting customers know that free shakes come with that order. Or, if they buy one pair of glitter shades, the hot pink ones are half-off – today only.

Such wonderful memories they are but this was to get you ready for the world of moving units in business.  Yes, you were probably that employee or boss who wondered why things must be so hard when one small order of fries will not make or break the company.

Yes, that burger clown on TV has a crazy advertising budget and can afford to give away meals to many people before there is an actual loss.  Same goes for that retailer that wants you to create that sense of urgency by implying that the stock is low on a sale item, even though there are more than a few dozen in storage.  And as far as the remaining items go, you knew that they would be marked down to nearly $0 the following week.

Now you’re the one in charge and though you don’t want to twist anyone’s arm, you’ve got bills to pay or worse, you’re working on a credit extension now.

In the online world, there are many business advantages and one of those is that digital items need no storage, other than your hard drive.

So isn’t this more reason to seize the opportunity?  For one, if you don’t ask then you won’t know if your customer wants to buy this extra item at 50% off – TODAY ONLY.

Say you have a series of online articles related to your industry.  Not only do you collect a residual (pay-per-click, or PPC) but since you (hopefully) own the rights, you can tailor them to a particular audience, throw in some graphics and call it an e-book.  Charge $10 (or more) from your site but when you buy ‘X’ product; you can get the book for only $7 as part of a “bundle deal”.

Those big corporations had to start somewhere and most likely used these tactics and more to get ahead.

Another example would be a bookkeeper that is experienced in consumer finance.  Though she makes a nice living preparing taxes during the early part of the year, she’s noticing more business from brand-new small businesses that need to file taxes quarterly.  Most of these people are former 9-5ers who’ve been laid off or decided to strike out on their own.  All they know is to get a weekly check and spend it.

So our bookkeeper decides to reach out by creating a series of e-books based on her revenue-based blog.  These are entertaining yet informative articles that let people know how to spend wisely while transitioning, how to make small investments and find resources that pay more interest than the usual bank savings account.  The bookkeeper can also double her money by placing advertisements from other companies in the book where she already has an  affiliate account. She gives one book away with every referral or new customer and often people return for more unaware that the same information can be found online for free.  It’s only her level of  candor that makes it a great match for her audience.

Sell, sell, sell.

If you remember that curiosity killed the cat, you should also realize that cats have nine lives.  Sounds a little silly but it does apply to your brand when trying to rebound from a dry spell or giving your image a little oomph.  Being nosy and taking time out to observe and make notations can make a huge difference in your profits.

You know that cats tend to be very quiet, sneaky and are serious observers.  In fact, you may have a funny story about a cat walking up on you when it was the least expected.  Maybe you were caught cheating on your diet, your mate or just up to no good.  And you probably were very happy that the cat couldn’t tell others about what was witnessed, that’s where the similarities end.  The more words you use to communicate, the better.

Getting Up is Half the Fun

If you are a person that runs from a challenge, let me tell you that you may want to invest in some fight gear now – gloves, shoes and maybe a raw steak – because you will have to make some decisions that could make you or break you.  That is unless you take the time to work out the kinks.  But you can look forward to getting knocked down at least once while running your online business.

Start with the Basics

Using a keyword tool will help you a great deal, especially if you have a blog or e-zine that is online.  A great one can found at Google (Go to Products>Adwords>Tools and Analysis>Keyword Tool), Word Tracker and others.  Most of these are free though paid options are available but for now, you just want to find keywords relevant to your brand.

For instance, if a person were to call their business “Fancy Feline Footwear”, it may get some attention with the right marketing but very few people are looking for ‘feline’.  Most users want something for their ‘cat’, so this is a term you will want to make part of your search engine strategy.

Wander into Opportunities

You will have times when all of your orders have been fulfilled, you’ve blogged and maybe done some article marketing or bookkeeping and now you’re surfing around the net.  What are you looking for? Recipes?  Celebrity gossip?  How about looking for opportunities that will help you make money? 

If you believe that you have the perfect e-book in mind,  the discipline to teach an online class or just want to look into work-for-hire (WFH) opportunities such as writing sponsored posts for other companies or participating in marketing opportunities where you will be given a product to review and write about.  You can also find out how Pinterest can work for your business,  since it is the new social media craze.  Look directly into these opportunities and begin to do research on those companies that will allow you to make money while you retain your rights.

Your podcast can be converted into a video and uploaded to several video sharing services and if you haven’t sent your podcast to Podcast Alley or other podcast directories, get on it now.

Same goes for your social media accounts.  If you have not created a Facebook page or Twitter account for your business, get started and use the keywords found, update it with fresh (and relevant) content so you can become eligible for marketing opportunities in your industry.

Writer’s block is real and very frustrating. Some people take some time away from the monitor. Others may use writing aids such as a thesauri or my favorite, the Synonym Finder.

Then again, you can just “steal” it.
Many businesspeople from all walks of life will admit that their brand was “inspired” by another person’s works, especially those in the media.
Let’s see for ourselves.

• The majority of the Food Network shows are based on a program by the late Julia Childs.
• The artistry of Justin Bieber was inspired by everyone from the Beatles (funny hairdo upon debut), David Cassidy/Donny Osmond (singing style) and Usher (his mentor and fellow pop musician).

Even the vehicles we drive are inspired by another manufacturer that is known for a more luxurious product.

Truth is, can you blame these people for copying a winning formula? Well, when publishing online, Copyscape can flag you for infringement and should the originator of your words discover you, they can send a cease-and-desist letter via their attorney. And you’re back to square one with your block.

Getting the Goods
Most people become “inspired” by watching their favorites. While seeing them on TV or movies, hearing their music or reading their works, many get ideas they can use in their online brand.
For example, gloves can make a statement. Some may use them as part of their business logo, they transfer easily. If you’ve ever heard of the white glove treatment (impeccably clean) or even “the gloved one” (the late, great Michael Jackson) and even opera gloves are considered a sign or elegance as most women wear them to formal events and high-end performances (though they do make an occasional appearance at a male-oriented rock concert) then you realize that using a glove can be in a class by itself.
Be a Copy Cat
In marketing, a swipe file is a collection of promotions that can be used to create an entirely different product. In laymen’s terms, it can also be called a mash-up of ideas. So while you are watching your favorite medium, you can note little things that get attention.

If you are an aspiring recording artist, you might find MJ’s glove, David Lee Roth’s karate-style dance moves and Eminem’s play on words interesting enough to integrate into a brand that’s sure to separate you from the competition.
Same goes for writing content for your online brand, you can be inspired by campaigns or words from the past but don’t copy them word-for-word. You will lose credibility, may be named in a lawsuit and you have to ask yourself, does this really represent you?
Example – You are the maker of the best vegan food products ever. Everyone who has tried your creations says they are so good that they can’t tell the difference between your veggie patties and an all-beef hamburger patty.
Though using “Where’s the beef?” in your marketing campaign may be fitting, the truth is that unless you want to be known for being named in a lawsuit by the Wendy’s burger chain, don’t do it.

Article Marketing Companies are Watching Too
If you are a person who utilizes content management systems (CMS) as a way to market your brand, it’s best to take your time and write something original instead of copy someone else – even if that someone else is YOU. In recent, a growing number of content companies that pay via Google Adsense are using Copyscape and other content duplication software to find out if your article on the ‘benefits of organic goat milk for skin care’ can be found elsewhere. Even if you change a few words around, you may not be able to publish it elsewhere. If you do, don’t be surprised if it’s a place that doesn’t have a monetary compensation program.
This is why it’s important to be aware and get plenty of rest, so that your thoughts and ideas will be fresh most of the time.

There are no secrets. You don’t have to pay some company you know nothing about. There are no tricks.
Every year many people start an online business with a good idea as to what type of product or service they represent, who their target audience is and where they want to be seen. How they will go about that may be a work in progress as well as why getting a high Google ranking is important.
And very necessary.

According to search optimization expert Don Kaufmann, here are the top five ways for your blog or website to get a higher rank on the number one search engine.

1. Add fresh content often. This can be information about your industry, something entertaining that your audience can relate to or you can hire a ghost blogger to fill when you are unavailable. Even if all you can only post weekly, it is better than bi-weekly, monthly or whenever you feel like it.
2. Post videos. If you do not have a Google or YouTube account, get one now! YouTube is the number one video-sharing and it is for this reason they have been acquired by Google in recent. Though there are many uploaded videos, you can share videos that are related to your industry. Even if all you have is a short podcast, use Movie Maker to import some interesting visuals. Once you edit, upload and tag it with the appropriate search terms, link to your Google Adsense account and begin generating revenue.
3. Use longer copy. This can be debatable to some, especially if your blog or web page uses smaller (12 or less) fonts. You can either break long text (more than 400 words) into separate posts or use fonts larger than 14 and/or make your text bold.
4. List you blog or website with the top online directories and sub-directories in your industry. Though many experts stress submitting your site to the Open Directory Project as the first step in promoting it, there are still many directories that will be of use as well. Search engines like Yahoo and Google, as well as specialized search sites like Eco-living, sports or any niche industry.
5. Use badges and icons from credible organizations. Are you a member of a professional organization? Or a long-time member of the Better Business Bureau? Even if it’s a small online group, having an affiliation with a similar or known organization will get people more acquainted with what your brand is about.

So you see, this is nothing that some person overseas can do without knowing anything about your brand or what you’re about. While you can pay an outside contractor to do some of these tasks, you may find it easier to do this yourself and save a few dollars, especially if you’re just getting started or have limited resources.
Finally, being easily found and high ranking will also make it easier to participate in revenue marketing campaigns. Once you find a couple of companies to work with, then you can have an easy side income.

“You suck!”

“I hate this blog.”

“This blog keeps saying the same thing over and over.”

These comments may be common on your favorite blog that speaks of less serious matters such as celebrity gossip, light news or sports.  While this may not be a great thing for a blogger or owner (in most cases, both titles belong to one person), they can take it one of two ways – either by ignoring the comments or seeing them as an opportunity.

Ignorance is Expensive

Yes, you can choose to ignore the comments as they may have hurt your little feelings and you feel that you may go “off” and lose your audience in the process because it sounds unprofessional.  Unless you keep your content interesting, they’re going to leave anyway.

In business, everyone that’s part of your demographic counts as these are the people most likely to care about what it is you have to offer.  If you run a review that speaks of restaurants that specialize in steaks, you’re not going to want to advertise to people that may be members of PETA or other animal rights group.

This is why taking the time to have an effective marketing strategy is important.  Despite what some “experts” may tell you, telling everybody who’s on Facebook or Twitter is a waste of time.  If you’ve taken the time to create a niche brand as opposed to a general interest (think spicy vegetarian or vegan products versus new frozen food products by everyday manufacturers), then why chance losing something this valuable?

In other words, why waste time creating another campaign and waiting for traffic to build?  While it’s great to have a reserve campaign as marketing is a never-ending process, there is no reason to start new when your numbers are steadily dropping or you are seeing more comments like above.  Stop crying, put on some steel draws and deal with it.

Opportunity Doesn’t Always Knock

Don’t you hate when you’re at home relaxing and there’s someone who just barely taps the door?  It may not occur to them to ring the doorbell or maybe you door is solid like an oak tree.  Yet you feel good when it’s someone you haven’t seen in a while or positive news you weren’t expecting.

Now if you were asleep, on the phone or had the TV turned up, chances are that you would have missed the person  or whatever.  They may come around again, and they may not.

Same goes for blogging, if you write too infrequently, not enough or worse, content that contradicts your brand, you could be committing e-suicide.

Like anything else, when someone takes the time to reach out to you, listen carefully.  While you will never please everyone in your viewing demographic all the time; if complaints or negative feedback are frequent, now’s the time to take action.

And with the market becoming more competitive, it most likely will cost you more money and time than when you first started.

Of course, you know that not everyone who decides to start an e-business in January will still be in business by June but why put yourself through the trouble?

Facing the Naysayers

Now that you’re in uniform or at least have a brave face on, the first thing is to read the complaint.  Is it really hateful or are they telling the truth?  We all know that the more popular a blog gets, the more people will make comments, positive and not.  Some commenters get a little too technical (Is it really yogurt or yoghurt?), fanatical (What’s Beyonce’s real age anyway?) or they may just be abrupt in telling you that you didn’t do enough research or your information is dated.

In this age of evergreen content, it’s easy for a blogger to look up information from an online source and realize that it’s more than 10 years old.  In that time, an industry could have changed greatly.  Or, their source may have been biased and the blogger is not experienced enough to know the difference between speculation and the facts.  Don’t be afraid to edit information so that you will be protected from a lawsuit or monetary loss. Remember too, that drops in traffic or too many negative reviews can affect your standing with marketing campaigns.

Once you realize that the damage may be on your part, post an apology, correction or have a promotional giveaway (or better, all of the above).

If you’ve ever heard the expression, ‘Keep your friends close but your enemies closer’, that holds true, even if the competition are your actual friends.
It happens and many who have been in business for a while find ways to remain successful while maintaining healthy relationships with others in a similar business.
Find Them and Memorize Them
Some new online business owners may feel that their concept is really unique and stands out from the competition, especially those businesses that deal with visuals as their product. Chances are very strong that they are more wrong that leather in the summer.

One popular online business is retail, and yes, there is competition. In some cases, heavy competition as getting the initial inventory and necessary paperwork may cost little to nothing and unlike real estate; there is no required license to start a legitimate business.

So while it takes a special person to successfully sell a property, setting up an online shop can be done in as little as half an hour. While you may have an excellent promotional strategy, visitors may know about someone that offers the same thing but with perks.

Here are some places you can locate the competition –

• Better Business Bureau
• Clients
• Industry periodicals
• Libraries
• Networking
• Online forums
• Search engines
• Trade shows
• Websites
• Yellow pages

Staying Ahead of the Enemy
Not quite like the schoolyard bully as you don’t want to avoid the competition entirely. Here’s a great example below –
Sarah and Kelsey have been best friends since grade school. They both went to fashion design school in hopes of opening a boutique in an industrial district (cheap rent and this area was slowly becoming the “in” place for their target). Once they graduated, they found that their styles were like oil and water, so they opened smaller e-stores that were similar in design and selection.
Though the individual stores made decent sales on their own, the truth was that they sold the same items – only the colors may have been different. They even noticed newer grads from their alma mater as well as career-changers that were getting in the boutique biz. Sarah had an idea.
She would contact a DJ friend of hers to come in during peak periods to spin a few records and sell his mixtape, which sold fairly well. On the website, she set up a music player that would play samples of the mixtape. After a couple of requests from out-of-town clients, she placed it on the shopping cart page. After a while, she was able to make this arrangement for aspiring DJs in the area and she was able to hold fashion and art show.
Two years after their separation, Sarah was able to buy Kelsey’s shop as a second store. And though some of the newer stores tried the same idea, their execution was not as cost-effective as they did not use a barter system and used strangers that demanded pay.

___

Once you note what the competition does – that you could possibly do better without losing money – or, does not do that may be an added feature, find the least expensive ways to make this part of your image.

Slander in the Name of Love
In all communication, keep things professional. Never speak ill of the competition (though it’s more than OK to emphasize what you DON’T do) unless you know for sure that they are retiring from e-commerce altogether in the near future.

One person who started a successful blog some years ago, found herself in pretty hot water as she described, in great detail, the inner workings of the publishing industry. She had no shame in naming names and describing incidents in full detail. Even those who could care less about the industry, loved to hear the dirt. While she used a pseudonym, it was still easy for others to find her via IP address. So when it came time to lay off staff, she was one of the first to go and there were initially no job prospects in the industry.

Surprisingly, she promoted her blog, networked with others and landed some freelance work before deciding on law school.

While forum posters can say what you allow to be posted, take the upper hand and use more energy promoting what you can bring to your demographic.

You may not have an auto-tune single that’s being played non-stop on iTunes or were rejected for the next big reality TV show (maybe it’s a blessing) but you can use your online profile to get traffic to your blog or website.

Let the people get to know the  ‘you’ that you want associated with your brand.

Let’s look at two ads for the personals and you can judge as to which will stand the test of time.

• Just gorgeous with perfect physique, loves cats, dogs, emus and you.  Hobbies include skydiving, camping, gourmet cooking, stamp collection and hanging with my friends when I’m not with you.
• Average-looking person who loves to stay at home, watch the news and play solitaire – even on weekends and holidays. 

While the second ad may be the most realistic, don’t be surprised if you found that more people were intrigued by the first ad.  Some curious enough to click any link that leads to pictures, landing pages or even a virus that would take professional to get rid of.

Drafting the Online You

The beauty of this is that you don’t have to tell your life story nor do you have to be all about business.  If you are a single parent, whether male or female, there will be many that can relate to any struggles you may have outside of your brand.  Same goes for pet lovers or people dealing with personal challenges.

However, you will want to craft an image that people take seriously.  What you may have seen is some people list every single credential and degree they have ever earned in life.  If a person is a lawyer now, the public does not need to know about their associates’ degree in Office Technology.

Same goes for majors that are not relevant to the brand.  If you are using an online image to get into the increasingly-competitive world of culinary arts, we don’t need to know about your degree in accounting unless you want to use this as a way to advise others on budgeting who may want to start a catering business.  Otherwise, if your specialty was corporate accounting, you can leave it off your profile.

List what is necessary in order to be taken seriously, and then finish with associations and personal information.

Determine How Much You the Public Should Know

If you use the 30-second, or elevator, pitch you should be able to squeeze in enough relevant information but in case that does not work, here is a practical formula to apply to marketing campaigns.

1. Engage your audience first by relating to their problem or reason they would want to visit your site.
2. Describe what it is you do or the purpose of the product.
3. Finish with how what you have will benefit them.

Say it in 10/25/100 words

Sometimes you may not want to copy your mission statement on your business or marketing plan.  Or you have a catch-phrase that is hard to remember every single time, especially when on the road.

When applying for marketing campaigns and social bookmarking and networking, you will be asked to talk about who you are.  Though you may be comfortable describing your brand in a few little words, the powers that be of the marketing program may want for you to use close to 100 words – sometimes more.

By crafting and saving to your hard drive, three versions of what your brand is about, you can always save yourself the anxiety and possibility of forgetting.  Here is a template that can be adjusted accordingly.

10- Mission statement, the benefits of your product or service or a blurb about your credentials

25 – Mission statement, intended demographic, product or service benefits and credentials

100 – This may be the place to speak in the first person.  Look at other bios and see how they are structured.  However, name your benefits by the second or third sentence so that it will be seen in engine searches.

We recently hosted 2 blogging training webinars and we’ve had some
great feedback and comments. Usually the recorded version is for
members only but since you are my internet friend and have been reading my
posts, I want to let you have access to it.

Learn how to get 5-10 leads per day from your blog..

If you’ve wanted to set up a blog and didn’t how, then you need
to watch these videos.  You will see how to do it step by step.

Blogging 101: http://www.brandonkoon.com/bloggingwebinar.html

Blogging 102: http://www.brandonkoon.com/bloggingwebinar2.html