Category: Online Marketing

Bob Bly Shows Us How

Bob Bly is the author of more than 70 books including The Complete Idiot’s Guide To Direct Marketing (Alpha Books). Bob has been dubbed “America’s top copywriter” by McGraw-Hill and praised by legendary ad man David Ogilvy. With a 30+ year track record as a top freelance copywriter, when Bob writes, people listen – then they move on his Calls to Action.

In his famous book, The Copywriter’s Handbook (Henry Holt & Co.), Bob shares, among many valuable things, his inside experience with over 100 top-notch clients: writing headlines that get attention – and then draw the reader into the body copy. The excerpts below are tips directly from this rich book.

Powerful Headlines

Bob quotes David Ogilvy, author of Confessions of an Advertising Man:

“The headline is the most important element… It is the telegram which decides whether the reader will read the copy. On average, five times as many people read the headline as read the body copy. When you have written your headline, you have spent eighty cents out of your dollar. If you haven’t done some selling in your headline, you have wasted 80 percent of your client’s money.”

The very same concept applies to Blog content. According to Bob, when readers browse headlines, they want to know: “What’s in it for me?” The effective headline tells the reader: “Hey, stop a minute! This is something that you’ll want!” As mail-order copywriter John Caples explains, “The best headlines appeal to people’s self-interest, or give news.”

Good Headlines Have Very Specific Jobs

Bob explains that your headline can perform four different tasks:

1. Get attention.

2. Select the audience.

3. Deliver a complete message.

4. Draw the reader into the body copy.

Bob gives crystal clear examples of how headlines perform each of these jobs:

1. Good Headlines Get Attention

We’ve already seen how headlines get attention by appealing to the reader’s self-interest. Here are a few more examples of this type of headline:

• “Give Your Kids a Fighting Chance” – Crest
• “Why Swelter Through Another Hot Summer?” – GE air conditioners
• “For Deep-Clean, Oil-Free Skin, Noxzema Has the Solution” – Noxzema moisturizer

Another effective attention-getting gambit is to give the reader news. Headlines that give news often use words such as new, discover, introducing, announcing, now, it’s here, at last, and just arrived.

• “New Sensational Video Can Give You Thin Thighs Starting Now!” – Exercise videotape
• “Discover Our New Rich-Roasted Taste” – Brim decaffeinated coffee
• “Introducing New Come ’N Get It. Bursting With New Exciting 4-Flavor Taste.” – Come ’N Get It dog food

If you can legitimately use the word free in your headline, do so. Free is the most powerful word in the copywriter’s vocabulary. Everybody wants to get something for free.

• “Free New Report on 67 Emerging Growth Stocks” – Merrill Lynch
• “Three Easy Steps to Fine Wood Finishing” – Minwax Wood Finish
• “How to Bake Beans” – Van Camp’s

2. Good Headlines Select the Audience

If you are selling life insurance to people over 65, there is no point in writing copy that generates inquiries from young people. Here are a few more headlines that do a good job of selecting the right audience for the product:

• “We’re Looking for People to Write Children’s Books” – The Institute of Children’s Literature
• “A Message to All Charter Security Life Policyholders of Single Premium Deferred Annuities” – Charter Security life insurance
• “Is Your Electric Bill Too High?” – Utility ad

3. Good Headlines Deliver a Complete Message

According to David Ogilvy, four out of five readers will read the headline and skip the rest. If this is the case, it pays to make a complete statement in your headline. That way, the copy can do some selling to those 80 percent of readers who read headlines only. Here are a few headlines that deliver complete messages:

• “Caught Soon Enough, Early Tooth Decay Can Actually Be Repaired by Colgate!” – Colgate toothpaste
• “Gas Energy Inc. Cuts Cooling and Heating Costs Up to 50%” – Hitachi chiller-heaters
• “You Can Make Big Money in Real Estate Right Now” – Century 21

4. Good Headlines Draw the Reader into the Body Copy

Certain product categories—liquor, soft drinks, and fashion, for example—can be sold with an attractive photo, a powerful headline, and a minimum of words. But many products—automobiles, computers, books, records, home study programs, life insurance, and investments—require that the reader be

given a lot of information. That information appears in the body copy, and for the copy to be effective, the headline must compel the reader to read this copy. To draw the reader in, you must arouse his or her curiosity. You can do this with humor, or intrigue, or mystery. You can ask a question or make a provocative statement. You can promise a reward, news, or useful information.

• “The $5 Alternative to Costly Plastic Surgery.” The reader is lured into the copy to satisfy her curiosity about what this inexpensive alternative might be. The headline would not have been as successful if it said, “$5 Bottle of Lotion Is an Inexpensive Alternative to Costly Plastic Surgery.”
• “If You’re Confused about Buying a Personal Computer, Here’s Some Help.” You’ll want to read the copy to get the advice offered in the headline.

Read more about Bob and see how he applies his own advice in examples of his own blog posts. Thanks, Bob, for mentoring us!

For more resources, see the Free Management Library topic: Marketing and Social Media.

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ABOUT Lisa M. Chapman:

Lisa M. Chapman serves her clients as a business and marketing coach, business planning consultant and social media consultant. She helps clients to establish and enhance their online brand, attract their target market, engage them in meaningful social media conversations, and convert online traffic into revenues. Email: Lisa @ LisaChapman.com.

Ms. Chapman’s book, The WebPowered Entrepreneur – A Step-by-Step Guide is available at:

• Amazon.com: http://bit.ly/AmazonTheWebPoweredEntrepreneur
• Barnes & Noble: http://bit.ly/BNTheWebPoweredEntrepreneur

Create a website that super-optimizes

What factors should you build into your website to get found online? When marketing online, it’s tough, because search engines try to keep us guessing. Every search engine has its own ‘algorithm” – the factors that weigh heavily in ranking your site for the Search Engine Results Page (SERP).

But when it comes down to it, there really are only so many factors that makes sense and deliver excellent results for a given search. The marketing experts at webconfs.com have compiled a Best Practices Checklist for designing a high traffic website. I am delighted to share the summary of the top factors:

Keywords in the <title> tag

The <title> tag (or Meta Title) is the TITLE that shows up on the SERP – it’s considered the most important element that entices the searcher to click on the link to the website. You need to CAREFULLY select the 65 characters (limit) that describe the website. Use your most important keywords at the beginning.

Keywords in URL

This was more important to Google searches in the past, but is still a factor in other search engines’ algorithms. Keywords in the URL must be supported by keywords in the text.

Keyword density in document text

Use your most important keywords 3-7% (for every 100 words, use the keyword 3-7 times). Density over 10% is often viewed as ‘stuffing’, which could be the basis for LOWER ranking if used excessively throughout the site.

Keywords in anchor text

Use your top keywords in the text of your links. It is the text that shows up when you scroll over the link or other element.

Keywords in headings (<H1>, <H2>, etc. tags)

An important place – be sure that keywords in your headings are supported by those same words in the text.

Keywords in the beginning of a document

These also count, though not as much as anchor text, title tag or headings. However, they are still very important as support. They must match or the algorithm will suspect that the site is not really about those keyword topics.

Keywords in <alt> tags

ALT Tags are invisible descriptions of images. If you have images on your page, fill in the <alt> tag with some of your top keywords – about the image.

Keywords in meta tags

A meta tag is a tag (that is, a coding statement) in the Hypertext Markup Language (HTML) that describes some aspect of the contents of a Web page. Less and less important, especially for Google. Yahoo! and Bing still rely on them, so if you are optimizing for Yahoo! or Bing, fill these tags properly.

Keyword proximity

Keyword proximity is applicable for keyword phrases that consist of 2 or more words. Keyword proximity measures how close in the text the keywords are. It is best if they are immediately one after the other (e.g. “dog food”) where the term ‘dog food’ is a keyword phrase.

Need SEO Background Info?

If you need more information on particular sections of the checklist, you may want to read Webconf’s SEO tutorial, which gives more detailed explanations of Keywords, Links, Metatags, Visual Extras, etc

How competitive is YOUR SEO challenge? Tell us about it.

For more resources, see the Free Management Library topic: Marketing and Social Media.

.. _____ ..

ABOUT Lisa M. Chapman:

Ms. Chapman’s book, The WebPowered Entrepreneur – A Step-by-Step Guide is available at:

• Amazon.com: http://bit.ly/AmazonTheWebPoweredEntrepreneur
• Barnes & Noble: http://bit.ly/BNTheWebPoweredEntrepreneur

Lisa M. Chapman serves her clients as a business and marketing coach, business planning consultant and social media consultant. She helps clients to establish and enhance their online brand, attract their target market, engage them in meaningful social media conversations, and convert online traffic into revenues. Email: Lisa @ LisaChapman.com

How online campaigning enhances election results

The basics of using social media in political campaigns is not that much different than using social media for individuals or businesses. Ultimately, you’re posting content in order to engage a defined audience and get them to embrace something.

Does it replace traditional political campaign tactics?

Your political social media campaign is important – but does NOT replace traditional political campaign marketing. Social media campaign marketing should enhance, not replace your offline campaign. It’s still enormously important to get your message out there in the traditional ways – flyers, door hangers, yard signs and position papers. Your message and your position on the issues become the basis of your social media campaign. No, it does not replace your offline campaign, but it sure does strengthen it – and expand its reach. A candidate with an effective online campaign clearly has a competitive advantage over one who doesn’t.

Politicians are naturally good at social media campaigns

Political campaign candidates have exceptional qualities that make them a natural success at social media and networking. They’re individuals who are highly dedicated and have a strong sense of place and purpose. Politicians are generally great at connecting – sharing information and helping others. When strong opinions and multiple voices are involved, political candidates are good at cutting through the clutter and deflecting negative feedback.

The goal of an effective online political campaign

Your overarching goal for social media during your campaign (and afterward!) is to activate lively engagement with and among your constituents. You will:

• Spread awareness of your campaign

• Make it easy for supporters to follow your campaign and messages

• Interact with supporters (and opponents!)

• Coordinate events

• Raise money

• Get out the vote (GOTV)

• Reach a larger audience

Should you pay for online political marketing?

While it’s easy to pay to market your political campaign online, it is definitely preferable to engage your supporters to spread your messages for you. The influence of their reach, credibility and trust far outweigh anything you could pay for.

The future of elected government will likely be measured by Likes and Followers – as well as votes.

Do your local political candidates use social media effectively?

For more resources, see the Free Management Library topic: Marketing and Social Media.

.. _____ ..

ABOUT Lisa M. Chapman:

Ms. Chapman’s book, The WebPowered Entrepreneur – A Step-by-Step Guide is available at:

• Amazon.com: http://bit.ly/AmazonTheWebPoweredEntrepreneur
• Barnes & Noble: http://bit.ly/BNTheWebPoweredEntrepreneur

Lisa M. Chapman serves her clients as a business and marketing coach, business planning consultant and social media consultant. She helps clients to establish and enhance their online brand, attract their target market, engage them in meaningful social media conversations, and convert online traffic into revenues. Email: Lisa @ LisaChapman.com

Killer ways to improve your LinkedIn profile

Michael Stelzner has a great gift. The social media marketing tips he shares through his Social Media Examiner newsletter are valuable, concise and easy to apply. That’s why I’m eager to share the wisdom of Debra Eckerling, one of his expert authors.

If you want to stand above the crowd on LinkedIn, here’s what you need to do:

#1 – Possibly the most important part of your LinkedIn profile, your headline is your hook. It should be memorable with a hint of a tease that makes people want to read more. He gives you a link to 10 examples that help you stand out from the crowd.

#2 – Now that you’ve gotten your readers’ attention, cast a spell on them with a detailed profile summary that gives a glimpse into who you are. Three examples help keep you on track.

#3 – Your job history should be more than just a list of paid positions. As with the summary, it should be written with your audience in mind. It should also have all of the bells and whistles that highlight your experience. He also talks about 7 ways your LinkedIn Profile and resume should differ.

#4 – You know the old standby, “Do unto others…”? Well, endorse others and they’ll likely endorse you, too! Endorsements validate your experience and accomplishments. Take an active role to make sure you have recommendations from a variety of people. Also included: 6 things you should know about LinkedIn recommendations.

BONUS: The Perfect LinkedIn Status Update can bring desired attention to your profile. Jennifer Burnham and SalesForce show that whether you’re sharing news, trends, products or just your opinion, thoughtful and targeted status updates can help you solidify your expertise.

For all the details in each of these categories, you’ll want to go to the Social Media Examiner article. And I’d highly recommend subscribing to Social Media Examiner. I’m very selective, but I wouldn’t miss it.

For more resources, see the Free Management Library topic: Marketing and Social Media.

.. _____ ..

ABOUT Lisa M. Chapman

Ms. Chapman’s book, The WebPowered Entrepreneur – A Step-by-Step Guide is available at:

• Amazon.com: http://bit.ly/AmazonTheWebPoweredEntrepreneur
• Barnes & Noble: http://bit.ly/BNTheWebPoweredEntrepreneur

Lisa M. Chapman serves her clients as a business and marketing coach, business planning consultant and social media consultant. She helps clients to establish and enhance their online brand, attract their target market, engage them in meaningful social media conversations, and convert online traffic into revenues. Email: Lisa @ LisaChapman.com

 

 

 

 

 

Follow the 4-1-1 Rule

Need fresh content ideas? Who doesn’t? By using the 4-1-1 Rule, you will attract and engage your target audiences, give them value, and come out the winner!

The 4-1-1 Rule was coined by Tippingpoint Labs and Joe Pulizzi of the Content Marketing Institute. The rule states:

“For every one self-serving tweet, you should retweet one relevant tweet and most importantly share four pieces of relevant content written by others.”

Why? Because when you lift someone else up by circulating their content (with appropriate credit and links), you create a win-win-win. The original author wins by gaining more exposure, your reader wins by receiving valuable information, and YOU win in many ways.

How You Win with the 4-1-1 Rule

First, you establish yourself as someone who acknowledges and helps others. Immediately, and in the most important way, you create a very positive impression. If you help others, you must be a generous and trustworthy person, right? Second, it will come back to you. The individuals you lift up (and others) will notice, and you will be lifted up. It may not come from the same individual, but it will happen. That’s how it works. And Third, you create for yourself a value system of helping, not selling.

Since your postings will likely be searched by search engines, think of ‘helping’ when you sit down to write your posts. This is an important aspect of your SEO (Search Engine Optimization) strategy.

Your SEO Strategy

The effectiveness of your SEO strategy – getting found online – depends on how well you know and appeal to your Target Audiences. Spend clear-thinking time to profile your Target Audiences by listing:

• 30 of their pressing needs
• 20 unique problems they face
• 10 of their issue-related likes and 10 dislikes
• 25 top questions they have

… the answers to which are information topics they would search for, and be eager to read and pass on to others. Now find others’ content or write your own.

Apply the 4-1-1 Rule

Try to apply the 4-1-1 rule to your posts on all content platforms and social networking platforms. It certainly works with blogs, LinkedIn and Facebook.

As Jay Baer says, “If you sell something, you make a customer today, but if you genuinely help someone, you create a customer for life.”

Where do you find content of great interest to your Target Audiences?

For more resources, see the Free Management Library topic: Marketing and Social Media.

.. _____ ..

ABOUT Lisa M. Chapman:

Ms. Chapman’s new book, The WebPowered Entrepreneur – A Step-by-Step Guide is now available at:

• Amazon.com: http://bit.ly/AmazonTheWebPoweredEntrepreneur
• Barnes & Noble: http://bit.ly/BNTheWebPoweredEntrepreneur

Lisa M. Chapman serves her clients as a business and marketing coach, business planning consultant and social media consultant. She helps clients to establish and enhance their online brand, attract their target market, engage them in meaningful social media conversations, and convert online traffic into revenues. Email: Lisa @ LisaChapman.com

Amie Valpone’s Healthy Apple comes close

Clearly, when it comes to website layout, no one-size-fits-all exists. But some are ‘more perfect’ than others. Here’s one that gets raves for achieving a whole lot in an efficient, very effective way: TheHealthApple.com. Kudos to the designer, Zesty Blog Consulting and the owner, Amie Valpone, for working together on this first-rate website design. They clearly teamed up to express Amie’s passion and business offerings with a design that works behind the scenes, too.

Healthy Apple may not be all that you want or need, but I’d like to point out the components that make it especially:

• captivating,
• user-friendly,
• sticky,
• SEO optimized,
• social media optimized, and
• of tremendous value to the visitor.

When considering changes to your site, consider each of these:

1. Awesome header photo, together with the brand name “Healthy Apple” and tagline “Your guide to clean eating” accomplishes the 2-3 second rule: visitors immediately know what this site is about, and they get a quick, positive first impression.
2. In the next 2-3 seconds, this site gives the visitor reasons to stay – reasons that are important to the visitor (not a description of what the site is about). These reasons are: a.) the enticing title of the blog post OR b.) the free download offer. By this time, if the visitor isn’t interested, they know they’re on the wrong site. No wondering what it’s about.
3. The free download offer is positioned above the fold, and is clean, asking only for an email address. It uses the word Free (very powerful – many, many people search using the word Free.) This is the perfect ‘call-to-action’ that builds the email database. I would add a note underneath: “Your privacy is important to us. We NEVER share your information.”
4. Amie personalizes the Home page by including her picture next to the link to her Facebook page and Like button. I think this is simple and brilliant. It creates a connection and first level trust.
5. This site does not over-use links to social media. The Home page makes it easy to share on Facebook, with links to other platforms nearby (Twitter, Pinterest, etc.)

Now, scroll down and explore the rest of the Home page:

6. The blog content contains a plethora of keywords which are presented in the body as links, bolded and underlined. Search engines clearly understand what is important on this site and will be recognized in search engine results pages (SERPs) because of it.
7. In the blog posts, Amie consistently refers to other posts for related information. VERY user-friendly and promotes intense ‘stickiness’ (visitors stay on the site.)
8. On the right, another very friendly picture of Amie and a short bio – this further connects the visitor and builds her credibility as a Subject Matter Expert (SME) and builds trust.
9. Beneath that, quick links to her media presence. Visitors increasingly learn that she is recognized by the industry as a SME. A glance at the Media page will blow you away – she’s everywhere in the media! I would consider adding a media kit – downloadable information and pictures for the media to use when quoting her.
10. Further to the right, quick links to an extensive list of more compelling content – with EXCELLENT TITLES that include keywords. This is absolute search engine CANDY – especially ‘Categories’ and ‘more apples’.
11. ‘more apples’ is a friendly heading, used instead of ‘Previous Posts’ or something similar. The list is fabulous – visitors will find everything they’re looking for, Amie gives enormous content value, and search engines will bring new traffic. With this list on the Home page, it’s clear that the target audience will share, if they’re in that mode. (See the ‘share’ buttons on the lower left – excellent placement.)
12. At the bottom, short intro to recipes – more keywords and phrases, as well as pleasing content for the visitor.

User-Friendly

Not surprisingly, TheHealthyApple.com was built in WordPress. It can be easily changed and updated by Amie or anyone on her staff. The ‘About’ tab is second from left at the top, and the information about Amie is complete and engaging. Notice that the links to blog posts are repeated on this page. In fact, the entire right side is repeated on all pages of this site, with only the content in the left column changing. So visitors have easy access to all of Amie’s posts. Very user-friendly.

I could go on and on, but want to point out one last, important item. Amie invites comments, and answers them immediately. This encourages user-engagement and Brand Ambassador-ship (her audience tells others about her site.) Her audience enjoys asking Amie questions, and actually getting genuine, meaningful answers. I strongly suspect that the comments are moderated, meaning that they do not post until she approves them, then has the opportunity to answer instantly. This gives her control over the quality and appropriateness of the comments.

What would you add to enhance this site? Do you have other examples of close to perfect layouts?

For more resources, see the Free Management Library topic: Marketing and Social Media.

.. _____ ..

ABOUT Lisa M. Chapman:

Ms. Chapman’s new book, The WebPowered Entrepreneur – A Step-by-Step Guide is now available at:

• Amazon.com: http://bit.ly/AmazonTheWebPoweredEntrepreneur
• Barnes & Noble: http://bit.ly/BNTheWebPoweredEntrepreneur

Lisa M. Chapman serves her clients as a business and marketing coach, business planning consultant and social media consultant. She helps clients to establish and enhance their online brand, attract their target market, engage them in meaningful social media conversations, and convert online traffic into revenues. Email: Lisa @ LisaChapman.com

Guide your Business Marketing

Are you an Information Junkie? I certainly am. I find myself online searching and researching, sometimes going down rabbit holes that are really just wild journeys off the beaten path.

I find sites and authors with marketing information that interests me, I click on links, switch tracks, click on more links and before I know it, I don’t even remember what I was looking for in the first place. But it was FUN!

Infographics for Marketing

Especially captivating in my online travels, I sometimes hit upon what I call the “motherlode” – a pocket of information that is just jam-packed with concise, meaningful, practical, valuable content that is actually worth saving. That’s why I’m sharing this post with you. It’s the motherlode of online marketing infographics.

“Ten Awesome Infographics to Guide Your Marketing Plan for 2014” is a post written by Belle Beth Cooper, Content Crafter at Buffer. Here’s a summary of Belle’s ten best (in her own words):

1. 20 Captivating Marketing Statistics that will Drive 2014

This infographic from WebDAM looks ahead to 2014 to explore the trends and changes we can expect. One statistic that really surprised me was about the growth of internet advertising: by 2015, this will make up almost 25% of the entire ad market.

2. Email Cheatsheet

Marketo‘s email marketing infographic has some really interesting stats, including how the time you send an email affects the open rate. One that jumped out at me was that 75% of smartphone owners say they are highly likely to delete emails they can’t read on their phones.

3. How to Increase LinkedIn Engagement by 386%

This infographic from Quick Sprout has some really handy tips for getting involved in LinkedIn. It includes useful stats like 60% of LinkedIn members are interested in industry insights and posting on weekday mornings will help you to reach more people.

4. Tumblr Numbers: The Rapid Rise of Social Blogging

In case you thought social blogging was dying, this Mashable infographic will clear things up. An interesting point about Tumblr’s userbase is that the demographics are almost evenly split between male and female users.

5. Infographic: The Lifecycle of a Web Page on StumbleUpon

StumbleUpon has been around for a while, but I didn’t know that much about how it worked. This infographic from Column Five Media breaks down the lifecycle of a web page on the service and sheds light on some interesting stats. For instance, 51 pages are added to StumbleUpon every minute. That’s a lot of content.

6. The Ridiculously Exhaustive Social Media Dimensions Blueprint

This infographic from Tent Social is a more practical one which will hopefully come in handy for your marketing efforts in 2014. It includes details on the dimensions recommended (or required) for images and videos on each social network. And it’s being constantly updated, so it’s a good one to save as a reference.

7. Geosocial Universe 3.0

Geosocial isn’t quite on the tips of our tongues these days like it once was, but it’s still a big part of how we use social media—particularly from our mobile devices. This JESS3 infographic explores the Geosocial Universe and looks at what services are popular and growing, and what percentage of their users are on mobile.

8. Social Media Shortcuts

Another practical infographic—this time from the team at quintly. This one includes some handy, time-saving shortcuts for Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and Google+.

9. Blogging statistics

Some of the most interesting stats about how the blogosphere operates and more interestingly, how much money the biggest blogs generate every year. Here’re some great tips to get your blogging up to date.

10. 25 Awesome Content Marketing Tools to Use In 2014

Looking for the best content marketing tools in 2014? We’ve got you covered! Here’s a terrific list for you to make finding the best tools the easiest with a concise overview of all of them.

Do you have additional suggestions for timely marketing Infographics?

For more resources, see the Free Management Library topic: Marketing and Social Media.

.. _____ ..

ABOUT Lisa M. Chapman:

Ms. Chapman’s new book, The WebPowered Entrepreneur – A Step-by-Step Guide is now available at:

• Amazon.com: http://bit.ly/AmazonTheWebPoweredEntrepreneur
• Barnes & Noble: http://bit.ly/BNTheWebPoweredEntrepreneur

Lisa M. Chapman serves her clients as a business and marketing coach, business planning consultant and social media consultant. She helps clients to establish and enhance their online brand, attract their target market, engage them in meaningful social media conversations, and convert online traffic into revenues. Email: Lisa @ LisaChapman.com

Does Chris Brogan Know How?

I subscribe to Chris Brogan’s weekly newsletter. But he doesn’t really call it a newsletter. And it comes out every Sunday morning. First thing. That’s why I find it so intriguing. It’s not on a business day, so it’s more personal. He always uses my name in the first or second line. And he spends a moment connecting in conversation – consistently talking about the different teas he likes – is drinking now as we speak, or how we’re sitting down to have a relaxing moment to chat (except that we don’t get to talk.)

Chris positions himself as TRANSPARENT. That’s why when he sells something, it doesn’t really feel like he’s selling. He’s promoting himself in a way that doesn’t FEEL like promotion. In fact, he wants each and every one of us to feel that he’s accessible and trustworthy (I think we trust people when they disclose stuff about themselves and act in a humble way. That’s what Chris does.)

And when he started selling ads in his newsletter, he was totally upfront about it, even asking his readers where the best position is. Are they better placed at the beginning? At the end? Middle?

Chris promises to answer all emails. So I sent him one. And by gosh, he responded. Not only did he respond, but he thanked me for contacting him – twice! And he really truly IS transparent. Here is the list of disclosures on his website:

Chris Brogan’s Disclosures and Relationships

• I am President and CEO of Human Business Works, a business design company.
• I work for New Marketing Labs, LLC, a social marketing and media company, and the Pulse Network, as Entrepreneur in Residence.
• I am co-Founder of PodCamp, an unconference series.
• I have written for Entrepreneur Magazine
• I write for SUCCESS Magazine
• I have written for American Express OPENForum
• I am an advertising partner for Federated Media. (Check there if you want to place ads with me).
• I am on the Advisory board for Hubspot
• I am on the Advisory board for IZEA
• I am cofounder of Third Tribe Marketing (affiliate link)
• I sometimes use Amazon Affiliate links to point to books I’ve reviewed.
• I’m an affiliate for Premise (affiliate link)
• I’m an affiliate for Screenflow (affiliate link)
• I’m an affiliate for Aweber email service.
• I’m an affiliate for Mark Dykeman’s Unstuck (ebook)
• I use Skimlinks to monetize some product sales on this site.
• I am an affiliate for the Genesis WordPress theme.
• I am an affiliate for Hootsuite.
• I am an affiliate for Fill Your Stadium.
• I am an affiliate for 1automationwiz.com
• I am an affiliate for Fear to Fuel
• I am an affiliate for Chris Pearson‘s DIY Themes site for the Thesis WordPress theme.
• I am an affiliate for Inmotion Hosting for sites other than chrisbrogan.com
• I am an affiliate for the Standard WordPress theme.
• I am an affiliate for Chris Garrett’s Guest Posting ebook.
• I am an affiliate for Teaching Sells, from Brian Clark (Because I think the product is worth it).
• I am an affiliate for Scribe SEO, also from Brian Clark (but am still getting the hang of using it).
• I am an affiliate for Chris Guillebeau’s Empire Builder Kit, because he’s good people.
• I am an affiliate for Rapid Videoblogging
• I am an affiliate for Beyond Blogging (because I’m in the book).
• I am a proud affiliate of Tourism Currents (because my friends Becky and Sheila put a lot of work into it).
• My site hosting is sponsored by Rackspace Cloud (*and* I’m an affiliate for them, now).
• I am an affiliate for The Biz Web Coach (Jim’s a friend)
• I have occasionally put affiliate sales links in posts older than 10 days. If they are explicit ads for a specific product, they are products or services I endorse. Those links are explicit.
• If they are Google Adsense, it’s whatever Google thought was relevant.
• I took money for an ad from CEA
• I took money for an ad from eBillMe
• Pure Digital gave me a Flip video camera to review.
• Nikon USA gave me a D60 to review (later to purchase).
• Nikon USA gave me a D300s to review (so far).
• Garmin sent me a Nuvi 200 to review (to be returned).
• BatchBlue gave me an upgraded account to review.
• FreshBooks gave me an upgraded account to review.
• Saddleback Leather sent me a messenger bag to review.
• Kodak sent me a Zx1 to play with, and then the new one .. forget the name.
• Hanes paid for a trip to Walt Disney World for me to meet and talk to them about their products and efforts.
• I am sent NUMEROUS books to review. I’ll only review the ones I like, unless I suspect you might like it, too.

This is quite a disclosure list! Did you notice all the affiliate relationships? He probably wouldn’t have them if they didn’t make him money. You know, in my opinion, all these things are working for him. And he’s willing to disclose much more.

How to Make More Money

So what does it have to do with Making More Money? Well, Chris’ newsletter this week is entitled, “How to Make More Money”. The very first line starts with: “I’m so happy, Lisa!” – remember, using my first name right away. But enough about that. Chris sells a course for folks who work hard online but don’t make the money they hoped to make. It’s called “Mastering the Digital Channel.”

Maybe it’ll help you make more money. Thank you, Chris. I hope it’s a cash cow for you, too.

For more resources, see the Free Management Library topic: Marketing and Social Media.

.. _____ ..

ABOUT Lisa M. Chapman:

Ms. Chapman’s new book, The WebPowered Entrepreneur – A Step-by-Step Guide is now available at:

• Amazon.com: http://bit.ly/AmazonTheWebPoweredEntrepreneur
• Barnes & Noble: http://bit.ly/BNTheWebPoweredEntrepreneur

Lisa M. Chapman serves her clients as a business and marketing coach, business planning consultant and social media consultant. She helps clients to establish and enhance their online brand, attract their target market, engage them in meaningful social media conversations, and convert online traffic into revenues. Email: Lisa @ LisaChapman.com

@NFIB – National Federation of Independent Business

NFIB (“The voice of small business”) is America’s leading small business association; promoting & protecting the right of its members to own, operate and grow their businesses. NFIB started out small. One man, Wilson Harder, founded the organization in 1943. Harder began with a home office and sold the first memberships to his neighbors. Harder’s vision was to give small and independent business a voice in governmental decision making through policy advocacy.

Today, they help businesses grow and flourish in many ways, including helping business owners with marketing and advertising. Recently, one of their articles caught my eye and I think you’ll enjoy learning about the companies that’ve been helped.

According to NFIB’s article, “Using Instagram, small business owners can instantly put a face to their businesses’ name—and watch their customer relationships and sales flourish as a result.”

Instagram’s developers describe their platform as a “quirky,” “fun” and “beautiful” way to share photos: You can snap a picture on your mobile device, apply a vintage-inspired filter, and then instantly push that content out to multiple social media channels simultaneously.

But beneath the app’s playful appeal is a powerful way to market your services and connect with customers. Using Instagram, small business owners can instantly put a face to their business —and watch their customer relationships and sales flourish as a result

Three business owners explain how they have adopted Instagram as a marketing tool.

Build Your Brand

Michael Satterfield, owner of Morgan’s and Phillip’s, an automotive-inspired apparel retailer, uses Instagram as a window into his business as well as his life. Satterfield’s Instagram feed reflects what is important to him on a daily basis. For him, that includes his dog and grilled pork burgers as much as it includes the T-shirts he sells.

He insists that when people feel personally connected to a brand, they’re more likely to “follow” your business on Twitter and Instagram and “friend” you on Facebook. Each social media channel is another venue to advertise your product.

“We just posted new shirts for summer,” Satterfield says. “And we’ve already gotten ‘likes.’ It’s a great way to showcase things, especially if you’re a visual-based company.”

Share Your Expertise

Valeen Parubchenko, director of Private Picassos, which provides private art lessons in New York City, uses Instagram to document her students’ art projects from start to finish. Many of her business leads come from parents sharing and commenting on the photos, as well as people who happened to stumble across them in a search.

“I don’t do any paid advertising, so it’s a way to encourage your client to do the marketing for you,” Parubchenko says.

Harness the Power of Hashtags

Hashtags, which look like the pound symbol, corral search results into relevant categories and conversations on Instagram’s website. For instance, Satterfield may include the tags #classiccar or #hotrod along with the tag #morgansandphillips, so people who are searching for photos of classic cars will stumble across photos of his automotive-inspired apparel.

“Direct sales will come from using the correct hashtag,” Satterfield says. “When you log in, you’ll be notified if you have comments [on the photos]. Maybe people are asking when or where [the product] is available. Instantly reply to those and point people to your website, where they can buy the shirt.”

Meghan Ely, owner of OFD Consulting, a wedding consulting firm, uses hashtags to connect with her industry peers.

“I might be at an industry event or a conference and I’ll upload and tag a photo [from the event] with the appropriate hashtag,” Ely says. “That way, I can find clients and colleagues who are doing the same thing I am.” This type of real-time photo sharing can spark a conversation, deepen current colleague and client relationships and let potential clients know that you’re keeping up with trends in your industry.

Have you tried Instagram?

Thanks to National Federation of Independent Business for content

Instead all of us feel targeted. We have a bullseye on our backs. I thought the “do-not-call-list” was bad enough to put telemarketers on notice to leave us alone. We can mark unwanted emails as spam. We can ignore ads on Facebook, MySpace, Google Plus and many more personal social networks. We can still see solicitations on professional networks like LinkedIn or GovLoop that don’t concern us or ever will. Let’s not forget Twitter. Easy to forget, but an awesome powerhouse. Even the networks hound you to death. Buy the professional package so you don’t see the ads. It’s the same with the apps. Using social media effectively is using those ads in part.

My first experience with hiring someone to use the social media to help me market my novel was a disaster. Turned out, I actually have more contacts of my own and those are probably the ones she contacted. I know there are good people out there who specialize in this rather new marketing, and are willing to train others. I only wish there were others who would take your product and for a reasonable price and social market it for you. That, of course, is me being too stubborn to learn something new. It happens with “old dogs” like me.

I have an real “old dog,” but she never liked to be taught anything so she taught herself. For the most part, these are good things. Butterscotch, our Golden Retriever, (when she was young and spry) taught herself to climb up into the kids wooden playset and come down via the slide; also, she would leaped onto the trampoline. All this was in effort to escape being around dog number two, Ranger, an English/Canadian standard, Labrador Retriever, who was heavier than her and couldn’t follow. He was annoyingly different I suppose. Neither would harm each other or humans. Rodents, birds and other yard critters beware. With social media giants, I feel like a critter.

This happens with young dogs, too, in terms of social media; however, I must admit I use social media too even here but not nearly enough to make a nuisance of myself. Young dogs, businesses and services, are shotgunning their products to the general public without any sense or direction. Some are losing friends over it and some would lose relatives, but you can’t because they are family.

I remember in sales that you had to sell to your grandmother. Now, you are! Literally. It’s utterly ridiculous. Unbeschreiblich! (We’re taking a German exchange student in. Couldn’t resist.)

We need trainers to make the process easy (not just market it that way), with ongoing support, or provide less expensive services we can use to sell our wares via the social media. It seems everyone wants to be a trainer these days. Sell services and in your spare time sell training, too. Right? See my last two blogs. Businesses, small companies and nonprofits used to buy ads. Public relations and marketing were different, too.

I know I seem to be taking the non-trainer side, but, in part, here is the problem:

• First, the training content doesn’t stay with you. It’s too fleeting and the information sites change all the time.
• Secondly, it may already be dated. You won’t know until you try.
• And thirdly, trainers have businesses organizations gasping for air, and that is a character issue with me and should be for everyone.

Put it in Biblical terms if you like: thou shalt not prey on businesses if you can’t truly help them or tell them someone who can. The businesses and other organizations are already gasping for air. Now, I’m not talking about the huge corporations who have social media geniuses on staff, but the smaller companies, nonprofits and government entities that might hire you as contractor.

Here’s what I’d like to see (and I can’t believe I’m saying this): we need more affordable direct services that work with training to keep up with trends. Not a one-time training shot that’s easily forgotten or absorbed and used by the time the general sites have changed or techniques have been disallowed. Hence, we need ongoing assistance. Smaller companies end up hiring someone to be in-house not nearly as qualified as they should be to do the job a trainer “trained” them to do.

Everyone wants to make money and I believe everyone should be paid fairly for their service or product. This economy isn’t terrific, especially for smaller businesses that can’t absorb the losses like the larger corporations. We need the smaller businesses, too. So, make friends, not enemies. So, you don’t get rich or make what you made when the economy was better. You will later, and save your self respect. I know I talk a lot about survival of the fittest, but even that comes with a moral code and strong character. Your friends will be there when you need them.

I welcome an opposing view. I gladly welcome a social media trainer or someone who sells services to be a guest writer; however, this is an opportunity to sell your products or services generically. You don’t sell your particular services or products, but everyone’s, to include yours. You don’t have to name names. It’s not a paid gig, but you will have a link to you and your company and we hope you link back to us. Interested readers are mostly to go to your website for more information.

*Just a short note to let you know I have shut down my website and re-named my Acting Smarts blog to Shaw’s Reality, which reflects my more eclectic writing these days and I use instead of my website. Still doing some acting, directing and performance criticism; however, I am more involved in writing these days and want to focus there. I promise straight talk and not to encrypt or decrypt, or be cryptic about anything on my site, which is meant to enlighten those who read between the lines. Harry’s Reality is still on sale at Amazon will be available through all other ebook distributors and directly through Smashwords in all digital formats after September 30th.

Happy training.

For more resources about training, see the Training library.