Archive for June, 2009

First of all I am not promoting any automated giddy gadget and this will not cost you one red cent.  This post is straight up as to how I added 5,000 plus followers on Twitter in two months.

I wrote a post last month about how I had started to build my Twitter followers list from a paltry 200 to 300 followers using @ALLTOP for locating quality tweeple to follow.  You can read the previous post here:
How to Get Targeted Quality Followers on Twitter

Well I still do that because ALLTOP.com is a directory of high quality websites in all fields of interest and once your site is accepted into their directory they grab your RSS feed and keep updating every time you post.  They do not accept everyone but if you want good ranking and to see your site improving with more subscribers you should submit to ALLTOP if you think you have what it takes.  They are looking for a few good Blogs.  Because an actual human being goes out and verifies each website for content quality you can be assured that these sites are the best in their field.  So find their Twitter name, follow them, retweet some of their posts and then most important, follow their followers.

So lately I am using another well known resource to find things to tweet about.  I use StumbleUpon regularly to find things that interest me and then I copy the title of an article from the Stumbled website and paste it into the Twitter message box, go back and make a tinyURL from the address line and copy that in to Twitter and there you have it.  You have just tweeted something of interest to your followers and very often many of them will retweet that post to their followers and suddenly you will have new tweeple following you.  Not to mention that you often get a thank you from the original article poster when they get a message that you tweeted about them.

Now how to break through some of the Twitter built in stumbling blocks.  Twitter likes to see your twitter messages as being of value.  Following the above they will be.  Then they do not want to see automated programs trying to game the system, though many of these do work you stand the chance of doing one wrong move and suddenly you will be banned.  Not worth the chance to me, so I use manual tried and true methods.

I usually follow anywhere from 50 to 200 new tweeps a day, selected with care from other followers lists.  If they are using the default image I usually do not follow them, not that I am elite or anything it is just that they are not likely to be a sophisticated Twitter user yet.  If they do not bother to upload an image than I usually pass them by unless I know them.

By selecting your followers manually you can avoid “some” of the spammers and porn idiots.  If you use an automated follower tool they will be in your list and then your followers might be apt to place you in the ranks of the crappy tweeples and you do not want that.

When you get up near 2,000 followers you want to go in and drop your list of people that you are following down below your followers count.  That way Twitter will not hold you back from going beyond 2,000.

Once you have over 2,000 and less than 4,000 followers you will do best to keep the ratio of following to followers to about + 10% or less.  Then once you are over 4,000 it seems as though Twitter will let you follow as many as you want every day, but I still keep to my 50 to 200 and my list just keep growing and growing.  I am now over 5,500 and many of them come in organically on their own.

Please Stumble this post:

Oh and with the StumbleUpon trick your followers will think you are a genius.  So go for it.

I’m Rich

Blogging Make Money using Cybers eBay Plugin for WordPress.  Cybercoder who we discussed at length in a previous post makes a lot of money using automated eBay affiliate offers on some of his niche blogs.  He created this out of raw PHP code for himself and then recently released the code in the form of a plugin that you can download and get started right away making money with eBay.

You do not have a dog in the fight so to speak because the plugin just goes out to eBay and finds appropriate offers to match your keywords and you receive instant PayPal income when the reader makes the purchase.  No pain, no strain, no shipping, no handling, no work at all on your part.  How sweet is that?

Here is a screenshot image of how the Blog post would look:

It really is pretty cool and is absolutely a perfect money maker for all you niche marketers.

It is available at the very low price of only $17.00 which will be a mere pittance compared to the income it can make for you.

Just go ahead and click the “Buy Now” button and you will be up and running in a few minutes.

When I was a kid I grew up in dairy farming country.  The people that owned and operated these family businesses were the true salt of the earth in my opinion.  There are not many businesses where you get to work 7 days a week, 365 days a year with backbreaking labor, toil and sweat just for the opportunity to have some bulk milk buyer pay you what ever he wants at a rate that he sets according to the butter fat content of your milk delivery for the day.

Image courtesy flickr CC

At age 13 I worked on one local farm, boarded out as they say, for one summer season and decided I would have a career in electronics.  One thing that I remember vividly was when a man in a suit and hat stopped at the farm one day, suits and hats were a rarity around those parts, and he made a deal with the farmer to paint a huge advertising sign for his clothing company in the nearby city on the end of the barn.  My farmer boss was very excited to gain $20.00 per year in payment and he chuckled to think that from now on he would never have to paint that end of the barn.

Well that was a paid ad wasn’t it?  There were also little Burma Shave advertising signs along the road that you could read one sign after the other as you were moving and they were cute little rhymes which ended with the Burma Shave sign.  You might also remember seeing handbills or posters plastered all over blank wall spaces around construction projects.  Well those were free ads weren’t they?  You might have seen a sign that said “Post No Bills !”  Well what that meant was the property owner was sick and tired of offering his real estate to non-paying handbill advertisers.

Image courtesy flickr CC

So I am sort of wondering if we in the Internet Marketing business can gain anything from these older but similar situations.  You as a publisher own real estate.  Your real estate consists of from say 200 to 300 square inches of space on a video terminal.  You generally have some appropriate graphics and images that fit the theme of your website design, and then you have a body area where you write articles and include images or graphs and such.  Then on one or two sidebars you have some column advertisements that you provide “Free” real estate for, as in no cost to the advertiser, and the only way you can make any money is if someone clicks on that banner and then makes a purchase, and then trusting upon the integrity of the affiliate advertising manager, and sometimes I wonder, you will be paid a paltry sum of a commission for the transaction.

Well I do this on over a hundred websites, but I am not happy with it.  We are giving up space on our sites to increase the brand awareness of the advertiser even if no one buys, don’t we?  A better method would be to charge a minimal insertion fee that could be equated to a value compiled from say your traffic metrics or number of average views per month.  Would the advertisers be apt to go along with this?  Not a chance!  Not a chance that is unless we could all join in and start demanding at least some type of compensation for furthering the advertisers brand awareness.  It is only fair even though I doubt will ever happen.

Image courtesy flickr CC

So if you are torqued off about this you might want to consider inserting ads for your own products and kick the cheapskate squatters off your property.  Evict them for non-payment of rent.  Come up with an eBook,or sell crafts you make, or the Brooklyn Bridge, something, anything at all that you can call your own and that you will make 100% of the profit on.  Maybe if enough publishers started doing this to enough of the freeloading advertisers they might get the message.  What say you?

CSS Text Size is set in your WordPress theme to whatever size and type style the theme designer decided to use.  In most cases the only thing that you can do to call attention to a specific word or sentence is to highlight the word/s and use either “bold” or “italic” from the toolbar.  In your Blogging Make Money effort there will be times that you will want to use these instructions.

Have you ever wondered how to mix various sizes within the same post? Well I have and have also searched a few times on Google for how to do this but never came across the right answer, or rather never found one that I could understand.

So this morning I was on a Skype chat with my friend, and PHP / WordPress guru, @Cybecoder otherwise known in the world as David Cooley.  I posed this question to him and got simple one or two word answers, he likes to kid around, and then I realized he really was telling me how, but he wanted me to discover it for myself.

Dashboard View

At first I was not asking the question properly and he was instructing me how to go into the CSS and change things like:   font-family:Geneva, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; but then I explained that no, I meant how to “mix” font sizes, now that’s a different story.

So the words went from something like this; “CSS,” “visual editor,” “pick them,” … yeah, then what? “Highlight text,” “use toolbar,”  “format”…  Crap, I still didn’t get it.  So after clicking everything I could find on the toolbar it suddenly dawned on me that if you click on the kitchen sink, farthest icon to the right, a drop down box shows up that you can select the font size in by selecting from the examples shown, such as Heading 1 through Heading 6.

So in the two pictures you will see how easy it is to change or mix the “CSS Text Size” in a WordPress Post.
1 – visual editor
2 – toolbar – kitchen sink
3 – highlight text
4 – dropdown box, select Header size.

Final Published View

So after finally learning this I figured I would share it because I doubt that I am the only non-programmer programmer that has to be forced into learning all this goofy junk just to get their words across to their readers.  If you have read other articles on this Linkmoney.org Blog you will realize that I am “NOT” a programmer.  I hate programming!  But I must admit it is kinda fun when you do learn some new little tricks like this one.

Now if any of you readers need help with your WordPress Blog or theme just ask David.  You can follow him on Twitter @cybercoder or go to his website at www.cybercoded.net/ , where his byline is “Helping others with their WordPress, PHP and Online Presence.” Cybercoder is the best and if he only works on your problem for five or ten minutes that is all he charges you for.

Let’s hear from you readers.  Does Blogging Make Money for you?  If it does you will need to know some of these little tweaks along the way to make your point.  Do you have anything that you can add to this subject?  Even if you just want to tell me how much of a programming idiot I am that’s OK too.  Please leave your comments and suggestions.

After all we only can learn from people like you that know how.

I’m Rich

You ask, How can Blogging Make Money?

It’s a lot easier than you might think.

In these uncertain times, people who blog professionally
are more certain of their security than people who work
for someone else.

You can make part-time or full-time income from blogging!

(Even if you don’t know the first thing about it)

Learn how to set yourself up to earn a great living as a
popular blogger on the following page:

Click here for Blog Success

You have my word that this works!
Rich Hill – Linkmoney.org

P.S. – One of the bloggers you will be learning about makes
over $40,000.00 per year blogging about her daily life and
family!

Don’t miss out on your Blog Success

Do you get sick of the hype about all the free traffic generators to use for Twitter? Well here is another one, only catch is this one won’t cost you any money! Did you ever notice how Linkmoney, (link and money) seem to go so well together? (Andy Rooney)

The usual thing to do with a Twitter account is to write catchy little twips that will grab the reader’s attention so that they will click on your link right? OK, so if your are a genius with a razor sharp wit you can keep the energy level high and generate new stuff every few minutes and each one of your posts just might grab a new visitor to your Blog or to purchase your giddy gadget-du-jour.

What happens after the scroll? Your pin point sales pitch is gone, as in gone, gone, gone. Sure it might have grabbed a couple of people but once it has scrolled off the radar range you have to dream up some new piece of wisdom and wit to do it all over again, right?

Well no longer boys and girls. Here is a way to rejuvenate your Blog, drive new traffic to your website and it is as easy as 123. You already have your tweet posts right at your fingertips! You are a blogger, right?

You already created some wonderful short clip words of wisdom for your Blog post titles, right? Here is what you do.

Open a text editor and go to your Blog. Click on each Blog post title then take your little mousey and highlight the title, copy, and paste it over to the text editor. Then make a tinyURL for the Blog post URL and copy and paste that over to the text editor. Voila! You now have a tweet that is ready to post.

If you do not have a tinyURL tool of choice, go get one. Google will show you where. I prefer to use the tool at XR.com because it is one of the shortest ones out there. Bit.ly is another, it does not matter which URL shortener you use the object is to get the link to be as short as possible to save some of your 140 character Twitter post.

So now go through your whole Blog and create a title and a link to each of the posts. I know you all created catchy titles when you wrote the Blog posts so these will be sure to be winners on Twitter as well.

Now when you fill that text file with dozens of tweet posts you will have plenty of ammunition to use when ever you want to give a tweet! That is the manual way of course but see what’s next for the Piece-de-resistance!

Here is the free tool that will post these messages for you on a scheduled time program that you define. Use http://feedmytwitter.com. You just log in using your Twitter user name and Twitter password and it is very easy to set up.

My Account: (meaning your account)
Current Status: (running or stopped – you select)
Post Random Tweets: (you select the schedule anywhere from two minutes to hours, day, week, month or whatever.)

Message: (empty text box where you copy and paste each of your tweets that you created on your text editor. Yes you have to do them one at a time, but this is the last time you will have to do it.)

Once they are all pasted in, go down to the bottom and hit “SAVE” – Go back up to the top and hit the “START” button and walk away whistling Dixie!

You are now keeping your brand on Twitter 24/7 and with enough titles that get published randomly your followers will not get upset with you because each of your tweets has a purpose and meaning.

Besides all of that you are now freed up to just occasionally use some of your witty barbs that you are so fond of doing. More is better and it will surely just add to your mystique and your followers will marvel in how intelligent you are.

Oh, and by the way, there is no cost for using Feed My Twitter, honest. Now just watch your social traffic pick up and your followers will increase also.

Do you know of any tools like this that you can recommend to get your message out to millions of people?

Leave your comment or suggestion below.

Oh, and Follow me on Twitter: linkmoneydotorg

Author: Nicole Munoz

Oh, the price you’ll pay when your boss finds out you had to fire yet another project manager for not meeting a deadline! What can you do differently next time? Outsource! The benefits of outsourcing are endless because they allow a company to hire out a specially-skilled employee with no strings attached. This means that a full-time staffer doesn’t need to be hired for each function of the business. The overhead is dramatically reduced and a business can still get superior quality work at a fraction of the cost!

There are many companies that offer outsourcing services including startrankingnow, odesk and rentacoder. The goal of these companies, and others like them, is to provide an array of specialized services. Some offer software programming, web development, content writing, customer service, and even marketing folks. All you have to do is decide what services you need, find the right person for the job, and they’ll get the job done. It makes hiring a team of experts one of the easiest and most profitable actions you can take to benefit your business!

There are several great tips for helping an outsourced project go according to plan and to get the results you’re looking for. First, make a 1 page project summary for the team (or individual) and let your expectations be known. This will outline exactly what goals you want accomplished and what you need from them during the project’s lifespan. Next, be sure to set a clear budget and include a timeline of dates for when your project’s mini-goals should be completed. Finally, provide clear and measurable goals, sometimes referred to as check points, to help determine if the project was completed to your expectations or if it has fallen short.

Even better than written documents that outline your goals and expectations, why not create a detailed step-by-step PDF, Power Point presentation, or Camtasia video to explain the precise steps and procedures to get the project done? These programs are powerful tools that can illustrate the benefits of your product or service and can serve to clarify your project expectations, can give direction to the tasks, and will specify how you want your message to be told. Pictures tell a thousand words and with these 3 programs you can do just that by really driving home your budget, timeline, goals, and what you anticipate the end result to be.

The bottom line is that outsourcing provides you with any type of team member you need. It gets you right to the source of the expert help you need without the expense of hiring another full-time staffer. Simply hire a well-qualified service provider that has already had years of experience. Remember to clearly and concisely outline projects and goals for your virtual team so they have clear direction and can meet your expectations. If it doesn’t work out, there are plenty of other freelance prospects to turn to. With these tips in mind, you’ll avoid that “walk of shame” to your boss’s office to report that another person had to be fired for letting a client down.

About the author: Nicole Munoz is the owner of Start Ranking Now, an SEO outsourcing company that provides articles, blogs and SEO ranking expertise. She also conducts SEO training in San Diego and is a Social Media Expert.

You all know that “Content is King” right?

Here is an absolutely FREE (as in, no charge,) place to get, or give, Free Content for your Blog or eBook.  This project was one of the best ideas that was ever dreamed up by “The Idea Lady”, Cathy Stucker.

The site is called: Blogger LinkUp and the byline is “Get Content – Get Links.”  I found Cathy on Twitter where she is known as @CathyStucker.    You will want to read her Blog post on her personal website about how she prefers to use Twitter, and after reading her explanation you should not be upset if she does not follow each and every one of you.

So here is the way Blogger LinkUp works.  Sign up with name and email, get a user name and that’s it!  Then usually once a business day you will find an email in your inbox from Cathy that is simple and straight to the point.  She lists people that are willing to write free content for your own use, with the subject matters defined, and whether or not it is totally new content or if it has been published previously.

Then there also is a list of requests for content wanted, where you can post your own needs and wishes for a guest post authored article and subject.  I have received two very well written articles for two of my Blogs and now I am in the process of  posting my willingness to write for someone else in return of the favor.

So what is the benefit you ask?  Well it is quite simple, sometimes you get in a rut with your Blog writing style and a little injection of new blood from another author might be just the shot in the arm that you need to spice up your readership.  Someone new that is writing about your favorite subject will be sure to have a different slant of view than you do and your site will benefit from it.

What does the writer gain in return you also ask?  Well they get to feel good about helping someone out and they get to give their opinion on the given subject and best of all they get a free backlink that is inserted in the published article.  It’s a win win and remember “Content IS King”!

So go on over to Blogger LinkUp and register for a user name.  It is non-fattening and good for the digestion.

Rich