Anyone with experience in MLM, Network Marketing, or Direct Sales knows what a Google slap is.  If you don’t, take a moment and google “Google slap” and get up to speed before proceeding here.

“I’ve been Google slapped again” became an altogether too familiar scream around my house lately.

Now, the point of this blog post is not to argue the validity of the latest Google slap on affiliate marketers and “make money” opportunities, but to point out that good things comes from even the darkest clouds.

Here’s my story….

I fell in love with Google Adwords.  I started advertising on Google over a year ago, and the leads came in at breakneck speed.  Costly?  Sure, but I received extensive training from some very well respected Google authorities.   So I knew what I was doing, paid a reasonable cost, and was a very happy camper.

Then I got slapped, and slapped again, and again.  Every time I made changes in my campaigns to adjust to the latest slap, I would no sooner get traffic back up and leads coming in then…. BAM! I would get slapped again.

It was difficult, but the upside was so damn high.  So I kept adjusting and moving forward.

I was hooked!

At least I was until the latest slap a few weeks ago, when Google decided to make Affiliate Marketers lives a living hell.  My impressions went to ZERO overnight, and I received that dreaded “You are suspended from Google” email.

Now what? I mean, if Google was against my entire community, what hope was there, right?

WRONG!

Hope rose anew from the fact that the Google suspension has forced me to “back to my roots”, back to the methods of marketing that I had abandoned, things like social media, article marketing, press releases, blogging…. all basically forgotten and left for dead as I discovered what I now call…

The Crack Cocaine of Internet Marketing... Google Adwords

I got caught with my pants down.  I got so enamored with the instant gratification of Google that I left everything else behind.  I had forgotten all the free and low cost leads I used to get before I became addicted to Google.    Even though I consider myself an experienced marketer, I broke the Golden Rule — never put all your marketing eggs in one basket.

Fast forward a few weeks.  Still feeling the sting of less lead flow, but I am now detoxed from Google and life continues on.  I’ve found that I have a renewed passion for writing good solid articles that deliver something valuable to people.  I have returned to blogging with a similar passion.  Videos are in the making, and the leads are coming back.

Yes, I have moved over to Yahoo and MSN (Bing) like most others who’ve been slapped, but I’ve done so with the full understanding that I need to diversify my marketing. So now, instead of focusing 95% of my marketing efforts on PPC advertising, I am adding in a mixture of articles, press releases, blogging, Squidoo, Hubpages, and video marketing.

And oh yeah… I have officially started Twittering (or whatever a person who uses Twitter is called)!

Follow me!

My take home message folks?

Marketing on the Internet is just like Investing —>

Never put all your efforts in one place… diversify, diversify, diversify!

Til next time,

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Happy Labor Day weekend to all my US readers.  It’s the end of the summer and time to get geared up again and get down to the business at hand.

Blog spamming us annoying. You now what I mean — the ridiculously spammy comments that people leave on your blog, some of which can be downright crude.

Another problem many bloggers face is spammy user registrations.  Most bloggers  grant their readers permission to register freely on their blog and are then plagued by fake users automatically created by spammers.   These fake user registrants often have a “.ru” email suffix.

Unfortunately, it’s something that all bloggers have to deal with.

It can take a lot of time to manually go through and delete spammy comments or fake user registrations.  I have found 2 great Wordpress Plugins that have halted these spammers in their tracks.

• Akismet – A plugin which identifies and blocks comment and trackback spam on blogs.  It is available for use with Wordpress, Yahoo, and other blogging platforms.
  

• Sabre – Sabre is an acronym for Simple Anti Bot Registration Engine. It’s a set of counter measures against spam registration on your blog.  In its simplest form, Sabre allows you to include  a “captcha” in the user registration form.  There are other, more complex conditions you can place on user registrants, but usually the simple captcha solution works fine.

You can install both of these Plugins on your Wordpress blog simply by going to the Plugin interface and searching for each of these plugins by name.  You will then be able to install each plugin directly from your blogging site.

Here’s to keeping the World SPAM FREE!

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It seems about one a year, us blogging afficionados start to hear the beating drums off in a distance, announcing the beginnning of the end for bloggers everywhere.  It’s become a yearly ritual.

This time, some people have been making the case that, with the growing popularity of social media outlets like Twitter and Facebook, there is no need to continue blogging in the traditional sense.

Is blogging still useful?

I strongly disagree, and it has everything to do with creating a lasting online presence with content that adds value to the marketplace.  I mean REAL, solid content that people can take and use to help them grow.

You don’t get that in Facebook and Twitter.

To continue this debate, I’m going to send you to one of my favorite copywriting blogs, Copyblogger.com.

As usual, Brian Clark has hit the nail on the head.

Head on over to Copyblogger.com.  ENJOY, and have a great weekend everyone.

To your success!

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As most of you now, I am a strong believer in Content Marketing — delivering high quality, killer content to your audience as a way to gain a following, and ultimately, sales.

I have been asked by several new bloggers and article writers …..

But HOW do I make SALES with my CONTENT?

Great question, and to answer it, I am going to link you up to one of my all time favorite blogs… Copyblogger.

This is definitely a blog that will make it worth your time to subscribe (along with mine, of course) 

Here is the link to a terrific post in Copyblogger, “How To Use Content To Find Customers.”

Enjoy, and have a great weekend!

To your success!

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I think we’ve all asked this question of ourselves at one time or another, especially when new to the industry.

After all, there are over 133 million blogs out there, and countless other people more qualified to write about network marketing than me.

So why do I get so many readers and followers?  It’s simple.

I’ve discovered “my angle”.

My blog is distinctive because it’s written with ZERO HYPE.  In fact, I’ve removed all the banners on the sidebars because they looked too “hypey” (even though I have used the products and can vouch for their worthiness).

And I have found that this angle is refreshing for a lot of people.

For more tips on finding your unique perspective on which to blog, read

“Why Should Anyone Read Your Blog”.

And while we’re talking about Blogging, how do I continue to improve my blog?

By reading other experts blogs about BLOGGING.

Here are my 3 favorite Blogs on Blogging and Writing:

• Copyblogger
• Problogger
• DailyBlogTips

I subscribe to all 3, getting new posts delivered directly to my inbox.  A great way to start each day!  I suggest you do the same.

Oh, and you should definitely subscribe to one more blog.  It’s one of the best out there:

The Truth and Nothing But the Truth, by some guy named Dr. Bob.

I’ve heard he’s excellent (haha).

Do your research, figure out “your angle”, and get blogging.

It’s one of the best ways to start branding yourself online.

To your success!

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Social Marketing is the new darling of the business world.  You’ve all undoubtedly heard about it:

MySpace, Facebook, Blogging, Twitter, and Social Bookmarking.

But what does it all mean?

Who is using it and how are they using it?

Does it really help grow your business?

I just received an email from Michael Stelzner, author of Writing White Papers:  How To Capture Readers and Keep Them Engaged. 

Michael sent me a link to his new white paper, “Social Media Marketing Industry Report.” 

Very cool stuff here, guys.  A must read.

Among his findings:

• Most marketers are NEW to social marketing, having only been using it for a few months or less
• The number one advantage to using social marketing is, not surprisingly, generating exposure for your business.
• The top 4 social media tools were (in order)
  • Twitter
  • Blogs
  • Linkedin
  • Facebook

There were many more interesting findings.  It’s definitely worth your time to check it out.  To read the complete study, go to:

http://www.whitepapersource.com/socialmediamarketing/report/

If you wish to follow Michael on Twitter, go to http://twitter.com/mike_stelzner

To your success!

Dr. Bob Clarke

How Does Dr. Clarke Make HIS Money Online?

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Get Ready…. Get Set….. BLOG!

Welcome to Day 29 of the “30 Tips in 30 Days” Holiday Blog Special.  If you’ve missed any of the previous tips from this month, go to the Business and Marketing Tips category on the right sidebar.

Blogging — there may be no better way to start branding yourself.

Why?  Because it’s written by you, with your own personal flavor.

How to get started blogging?  It’s unbelievably simple.  Everything is done for you except the ideas.

I usually recommend for my new team members (with no prior blogging experience) that they choose either one of two blogging platforms:

• Blogger – simple format and structure.  Great if you want to promote your business in your blog.  Not very flexible in terms of themes and plugins.

• Wordpress.com — the beginner’s form of Wordpress, this is a great blogging platform that allows a lot of flexibility in terms of plugins and themes.  But one word of warning – DO NOT blatantly promote your business or product on Wordpress.com — they will DELETE YOUR BLOG.  Take it from experience!

There are more advanced options for those with more expanded blogging needs, but that is beyond the scope of this post.  For further information, I recommend you go to Wordpress.org.

The best way to discuss how to get started blogging is to answer the most frequently asked questions I get from my new team members:

What should I talk about? What shouldn’t you talk about is the better question.  You can talk about anything, but my advice to new bloggers is always the same — MAKE IT PERSONAL.  Make it about you, your experiences, your dreams, your goals.  Make it about something new you learned today.  Make it about a book you read, or a movie you saw.  Let people get to know you.

But if I talk about me, how will they know about my business? Let’s back up for a minute.  You DO have a choice.  You can go to Blogger, set up a blog, and promote your business like your life depended on it.  Or you can promote YOURSELF by letting people get to know you.

I prefer the latter, although I have 2 blogs, one for each purpose.

If you get stuck for something to talk about, discuss the latest mindset book you are reading (you should always be reading one) and how it relates to your life, dreams, or goals.

How will they find your business?  Next question.

What do I put in my profile (or the About Me section)? THIS is where you can get people to take  a look at your business.  Tell more about yourself, the story of how you got to where you are today, and provide a link to your primary business (or wherever else you want to send them).

People naturally want to see who is writing this great blog, so don’t skimp on the profile. You would be surprised how many people click on my profile to see who I am.  I do it all the time when I read someone’s blog.  It’s human nature.  It’s also where you’ll get them to look at your business.  TIP:  ALWAYS include a picture in your profile.  People want to see the real you, not a caricature.

How will people find my blog? Great question.  In the most basic terms, the answer lies in writing good content on your blog.  But you can help the process along.  Every time you write new content on your blog, you should “ping” it.  This means notifying one (or all) of the blogging index tools that you’ve added to your blog.

I prefer either Technorati.com or Pingomatic.com.  Either one is very simple to use, and each will notify all the other index tools that they should index your blog.

One more tip:  Make sure you have a way for your readers to subscribe to your blog. The most common way to do this is to have a Subscribe feature on your blog (Technorati is a favorite here).  It comes standard on Blogger, and you can add it to your Wordpress.com blog with little problem.  Just make sure you do it.  This way, people can subscribe to your blog, get notified of new posts, and you’ve got yourself a loyal follower.

How often should I blog? There is no standard answer for this, but I usually blog at least 3-4 times per week (unless I’m doing a Blogging Special, where I blog EVERY DAY!).  The key here is consistency. Set a schedule and stick to it.  Once a week, twice a week, whatever you choose. But stick to a schedule, or you’ll find yourself going weeks between blogging posts, and your momentum is lost.

That’s the key folks — Build Momentum with your blog.  That comes with adding content on a regular basis, and keeping your readers interested in what you’re saying.

Blogging can be a very efficient and, at times addictive way for you to develop a loyal following and get free leads for your primary business opportunity.

If you like to write and you enjoy sharing, Blogging may be just what you are looking for!

To your Success!

Remember I said I had 2 blogs?  Check out my new blog on Blogger.

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