You probably run WordPress because you want your site to rank well on Google. That makes you smart -- WordPress is GREAT for that. Well, what would it be like to watch your Google ranking creep up and up every day for a while... ...and then to watch your rankings, your traffic, and your site's profits steadily decline to near zero? Well, it can happen when Google realizes that your posts and pages are STALE... Continue Reading

When was the last time you read a press release? Let's face it. The majority of press releases issued by companies are totally boring and uninteresting. Why is that? Certainly Company X is excited about their new product and they can't wait to tell the world about it. But why should a blogger or media outlet care about Company X's new product or service? Unless your company's name is Apple, odds are you will have... Continue Reading

You've hopefully heard that the point of social media sites like Twitter and Facebook isn't just to amass followers. You could have totally healthy numbers and still not see much of a return in terms of sales or clicks or engaged readers. So if the goal isn't just numbers, what is it? Some of the signposts that you are doing things right: People retweet your tweets. People comment on your blog posts and on other... Continue Reading

In order to be successful online, you have to put yourself out there. Running a business online is a very public endeavor, and it differs from running businesses in the past in that you can't just hide behind your storefront or LLC. These days, people want to know exactly who they're dealing with, and social media marketing works best when there is a face and a name. So you steel yourself and start making your... Continue Reading

You are probably catching on to the fact that I am not promoting many products these days. That's because most products and services coming out are not worth promoting. When you see the proliferation of traffic products, social media products, list building products and all the other rehashed same-old, same-old coming out, I'm sure you'll agree that there aren't many original ideas out there right now. So when I DO have something to share with... Continue Reading

What would you do if you were God? We're talking about the Supreme Being; the Almighty; the Alpha and Omega; the Big Cheese; the Head Honcho; the Man in the Sky. You get the picture. Many of us behave as though we are God. We erroneously think the world revolves around us. Trust me, I've been there before. But if you had all of eternity on your hands and were just hanging out by yourself... Continue Reading

Starting your own online business is a lot like a long journey. You will need perseverance, stamina, and some faith, and you will reach your goals. But lots of people burn up all of their energy right out of the starting gate. Have you ever gotten really excited about a business idea or an online mentor, thrown a lot of money at it, and then never done anything or really learned anything from it? There... Continue Reading

Still sitting on an idea for a blog without having done anything about it yet? It's probably time to get rolling. Get some hosting, buy the domain, and find a theme you like (we're partial to Socrates), and you're ready to start in on the content. But before you jump in, here are a few things you should be ready for before going live with your new website: Continue Reading

If you are an online business person with multiple websites, you know that keeping tabs on all of them can sometimes be a tangled nightmare. After all, websites do best with regular (read: daily or near daily) maintenance and updating, and keeping track of when you've done what on which site can be a challenge for even someone who was born organized. Now there is an exciting new option to help you manage your sites... Continue Reading

It's not always easy to put yourself out there and develop the online presence that is going to be so essential for the success of your business. If exposing yourself and your ideas to the unwashed Internet masses sounds like a nightmare of privacy concerns and defenselessness, you are definitely not alone. But, counter-intuitive as this may sound, in the end it doesn't have to be about you. Instead of hiding behind your fear, start... Continue Reading

The following email was sent to me by one of the creators of The Internet Marketing World Cup. I told them I would consider updating my previous blog entry based on what he shared with me. After further consideration, I thought I would just let IMWC's point-of-view speak for itself. With that said, here is the entire email sent to me. It is thoughtful and I admire the IMWC team for proactively contacting me and... Continue Reading

What's the real secret to getting things done? While much of the answer lies in things like motivation and daily habits, you also can't ignore the value of the tools you use every day to do the work. We polled our staff to find out what's running on their machines here at the office and at home. What we found is that our office has some universal solutions, and then seemed to split departmentally. So... Continue Reading

(Written by guest contributor Tim Golen) A few months ago I got a new laptop. It had nothing but Windows 7 installed on it. The first thing you always have to do with a new computer is to install all the software that you need to be productive. An office suite is one of the key pieces of software that just about any business person needs. The ability to create word documents, presentations, access email... Continue Reading

What's the real secret to getting things done? While much of the answer lies in things like motivation and daily habits, you also can't ignore the value of the tools you use every day to do the work. Continue Reading