Squidlog.net » make money online

Making the Most of the Winter’s Blahs

lakeerieartists — Fri, 29 Jan 2010 21:01:30 +0000

Too Cold for the Beach

For many of us, including myself, winter is a tough time of year. The incessant frigid cold weather is taxing on our bodies as well as on our psyches, making it even harder to just get out of bed. Then we have to go and put on several layers of clothes, and a coat over that just to leave the house.

January, too, can be a depressing letdown after the huge buildup to the Christmas holiday season, especially if you earn money from sales during the holidays. All of the energy that you expended leading up to the holidays, takes its toll in January.

And you are not the only one. Many people take a few weeks to recover from the holidays, often making January a sluggish sales month.

However, if you are goal oriented and smart, January and February are a huge opportunity to build up your resources, lenses, blogs, and other online money earning accounts while you are inside next to the fireplace. (Make sure to stay far enough away to keep your laptop cool.) If you spend the first few weeks of the year strategizing your year, and writing your articles, lenses, and blog posts 4 to 5 months before they need to produce, you will allow your work to percolate, and gain authority and backlinks in time for real money to be made.

Visualize yourself on the beach this summer, while your summer travel lenses are making you money while you are sunbathing. Summer travel lenses that you wrote in February, I might add. This is just an example of course, as you can come up with numerous topics to write about for every season of the year.

My point is really two points. One–take advantage of the slow time to rev up your income earning potential by writing, backlinking, and writing some more. Two–write your articles way ahead of the time they are apropos to allow them to mature so that the right people read them when they are ready to buy. In other words, plan ahead.

I started as a Squidoo lensmaster in June of 2008, and it is only in the last six months or so that I realized the value of time in the online money making equation. The longer you stick with it, the more you write, and the more good sites you write on (including your own blogs), the more you get noticed, followed, fanned, the more income you will make. Each item you create adds to your repertoire or resume, just like any other type of work that you do. Even more so, if you link the items together in a network.

So let your space heater run next to your feet, and the cold wind blow, while you create income for yourself that will pay off in the next few months.

On a similar note...

Giant Squid Open Mike 9/14/09 Review | The New Age Of Internet Marketing

mukunda22 — Fri, 18 Sep 2009 18:11:17 +0000

The New Age Of Internet Marketing may actually be going back to ancient teachings such as the Golden Rule: Treat others as you want to be treated and then step that up about 100 notches.

Do what you love and what you are passionate about and the money will follow. But we all know that there are many in the world who have made their fortunes doing exactly the opposite of what they love.

Money can’t buy you love. But does Love buy or guarantee you money?

Inspiration and passion is a magnetic force that draws to you the people and events that align you with your destiny. Promote yourself even as you promote your product. Much was said about people trying to make a fast buck on the internet today. But hiding behind your product with a fast talking rap about making thousands of dollars in 30 minutes has lost the interest of almost everyone I know on the internet.

Suffice to say that the new era of marketing in all walks of life is to share what it is you love, what inspires you and what you are enthusiastic about. Share what it is you have experienced.

And by all means, have fun while doing everything that you do.

Chef Keem and Squidster were the guests on this show. They announced the future of Squidlog, the Squidoozine that has become popular for Squidoo Lensmasters as well as those not affiliated with Squidoo.

The future of Squidlog is to create a single membership hub where members can learn all things about Internet Marketing, at a place they already trust to deliver solid information. This new hub will also be a community of people who largely know each other, because of the relationships already established over on Squidoo, and elsewhere, on Internet forums and communities.

This community will prevent many from giving up too soon in their pursuit of online business success. There’s a learning curve involved with what we do online, and a danger of veering off the path you have chosen for yourself by following some “get rich quick scheme.” The community has great potential to keep a serious person on task with their goals and their business plan.

Online marketing success is a process. A solid foundation can be built through the vehicle of a community that Chef Keem and Squidster envision. Instead of searching a hundred different places to find the information I need to build my internet presence, I will find it on the Squidlog Membership site.

Chef Keem wants feedback from his Squidlog and Squidoo friends as to what it is they would like to see on the membership site, but the idea so far includes tutorial screen captured videos that teach a series of skills, as well as built in one on one consulting and coaching services, and a forum where members can share their expertise and support.

In addition, our new home for all serious online marketers will provide hosting and domain registration services, PLUS the much-needed relevant support, and serve as a powerful “Mother Network” for many recently developed focus groups on Ning and similar other sites. This will open the doors for invaluable across-the-platform support, while allowing each individual network to be managed independently.

What we learn here will apply to internet business in general, not just to the art of Squidoo lensmaking.

The marketing trends of the future involve less affiliate marketing, and less Google ad word revenue, and more of a need to teach local business and municipalities how to streamline their efforts to achieve their community goals. This could be the new role of online marketers as they bring their virtual wares to the so called real world.

At the end of the show, Pot Pie Girl showed up in the chat room. And she said she would be a guest on Giant Squid Open Mike on 9/28.

I look forward to meeting her. She had a great energy that I noticed right away, and everyone is excited to see what she has to say.

Thanks to Chef Keem and Squidster for being gracious guests on the show 9/14. We look forward to see what you have in store for us on Squidlog.

Please join us next week 9/21, on Giant Squid Open Mike Monday when our guests will be Home Schoolers On Squidoo!!

Join us on 9/22 on Moon Moo & You: The Collective Wisdom when our guest will be Dr. Leonard Laskow, author of “Healing With Love.” He is a genuinely loving man who teaches “Opening To Oneness Through Love.” He is one of my mentors and spiritual teachers.

On a similar note...

The Top 5 Tips About Making Money Online I’ve Learned From Wall Street

Chef Keem — Tue, 26 May 2009 23:20:48 +0000

Who would have thought that Wall Street can teach us so much?

Top 5 Wall Street tips for online marketing

Lie as needed – ethics won’t get you anywhere.
Be ruthless and greedy – it’s never enough.
Be in a hurry – getting rich quickly is our goal.
Don’t waste time on a solid business plan – hire experts for damage control.
Automatize everything – eliminate personal customer support.

Of course, these guidelines show what not to do, right?

I mean, look what happened to Wall Street…

So, what exactly will create a solid online income for me?

Honesty, authenticity, integrity.
Generosity, helpfulness, compassion.
Patience, thoroughness, serenity.
Research and planning.
Remarkable personal service.

Combine these points with unique, useful and updated content (UUU) and the dough will rise. (Sorry, I’m a baker!)

While everyone talks about Wall Street Bonuses – here’s how we get ours:

Show your (real) self.
Share yourself.
Participate in the community.
Ask for help.
Praise your peers.

Don’t worry about proper business attire…

What else do we need? May I have your input?

Thank you for sharing the image, chanc!

[ratings]

On a similar note...

The Top Five Principles Of Effective Persuasion. Free E-Book!

Chef Keem — Sun, 24 May 2009 18:26:39 +0000

Whether we make Squidoo lenses, write blog articles, or create niche websites to make money online – we all dream about thousands of visitors spending enough time on our pages so our sales pitch can have the desired effect:

Persuasion to engage, respond, buy!

After months (or years) of hard work, we see some improvements in stats and conversions yet our dream is still a work in progress. We get frustrated. Not even the latest $199 e-course could make our dream come true.

We ask ourselves – are we not smart enough for online work? Are we too old (speak: non-geek), untalented, slow-tech, afraid, or even too conscientious for this cut-throat online marketing business?

Let’s take a deep breath and consider a complete paradigm shift – back to the basics…

The Similarities Of Marketers And Customers

Unfulfilled dreams
Wants and needs
Fears of the unknown
Distrust of strangers
Guilt over past and future failures
Financial insecurities
Battered self-esteem
And more…

So, we’re all in the same boat, right? Cautious, nervous, stressed, needy humans and global neighbors, no less.

Giving = Persuasion

The art of giving is nothing but the realization of the universal laws of giving/receiving and cause/effect. Whether we call them spiritual laws or rules of thumb – we know the routine: as we give so shall we receive…somehow, somewhere, sometime, for sure. And every action we take will be followed by a reaction. Scientific laws – no “New Age Mumbo-Jumbo”, mind you!

Bonus insight: in order to receive, we need to give first – forgive.

Spiritual Laws are our rightful heritage – NOT some form of unethical scheming or immoral manipulation!

What Is “Persuasion”

Short answer: a logical consequence – a reaction to our action.

We recognize our customers’ needs and wants
We take action to fulfill those requests
We reap our rightful compensation

Persuasion is a built-in, automatic effect when we engage the cause of giving!

The Top Five Tips Of Highly Effective Persuasion

Going back to our list of similarities between marketers and customers, we find our mission statement as online entrepreneurs, which cannot possibly fail to guarantee our success – whether we’re young or old, fat or skinny, high-tech or slow-tech:

Support and encourage your customers’ dreams
Share yourself and explain away their guilt over failures
Compassionately work with them on their fears
Acknowledge their suspicions
Become your customers’ ally. Join them in their struggle.

Isn’t this what loving parents practice with their kids, great teachers provide for their students, and friends give to one another?

This post was inspired by a free e-book from TV producer and marketing consultant Blair Warren. Get your copy here – you don’t even have to give out your email address.

In this context, I recommend a delightful NY Times article by Ben Stein. He tells us how a summer job as a shoe salesman taught him how to sell…

[ratings]

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A Drumroll For Niche Marketing Done Right: LM luvmyludwig!

Chef Keem — Sun, 12 Apr 2009 05:35:15 +0000

Crystal Touchton’s profile page reveals that she’s rated 263 lenses, favorited 156, and created 33 lenses from scratch – between January 8, 2009 and now. Wow! Great productivity and generous community involvement, Crystal!

And, yes – “luvmyludwig” refers to her drum set. Remember Ringo? (Hint: He didn’t have much time for camping trips…)

Ah! Camping – the keyword! (Am I jumping too wildly? Crystal – Ludwig – Ringo – Camping – Huh?)

Thing is, Crystal knows how to bang on her Ludwig drum set and how to organize a camping trip to Octopussy’s Garden. Or anywhere else – without the usual disasters.

Crystal is an expert camper and she shares her tips in a series of relevant lenses. She also found a fabulous camping guide in e-book format on (gasp!) Clickbank. She bought it, evaluated it, and now she markets it. A perfect synergy!

I’m impressed with luvmyludwig’s “camping campaign“. I think it is a great example of niche marketing done right:

Testing different search terms in a series of related lenses
Offering unique, useful and relevant content in every lens on this topic
Linking all lenses together for a powerful SEO strategy
Pitching a personally-tested product in the field of her expertise

I’d call this banging the drum with authority!

(And using Squidoo the right way to make money online.)

What do you think?

[ratings]

On a similar note...

Which Idiot Buys E-Books If You Can Learn Everything For Free? I Do.

Chef Keem — Sun, 29 Mar 2009 22:10:40 +0000

Seasoned Squidoo lensmasters advise us: “Don’t spend any money on ‘How to Squidoo’ e-books (or any SEO/online marketing/work from home tutorials, for that matter) – everything you need to know is available for free!”

Let’s take a closer look at this statement: It’s true! But…

It’s also true that we can learn a lot about being car mechanics, therapists, business consultants, chefs, neurological surgeon astronaut midget tossers and whathaveyou – without spending a single one of our wrinkled greenbacks!

“Wait!” you say, “It would take me years to find and assemble all the necessary materials, separate the need-to-knows from the unimportant stuff, break it all down into digestible chunks – especially in the case of the midget tosser rocket doc!”

Good point! We rely on other folks to do the ground work for us so we don’t have to waste our time with it. We use trade schools, community college classes, car engine manuals, step-by-step patio-building instructions, detailed cook books, relationship courses, etc. – ALL THE TIME! But…(again!)

We’re smart. We’re not fooled easily! We do our homework before we buy.

We know what we want and we research our options. Reviews, reports, ads, books, TV shows or websites tell us who the experts are. Then we spend happily $20, $50, $100 or more, because we know that the time we saved is worth so much more than the purchase price of our shortcut to expertise.

Why do we hesitate – no, make that: why are we suspicious about the value of “How to (make money with) Squidoo” materials for sale? Three reasons…

So many of them are out there – we don’t know which one is right for our needs
Some are low quality versions with little content that is easily available with minimal effort
We don’t know enough about the integrity of the authors and their true expertise

And I think there’s a fourth, very important reason:

We don’t know exactly what we want.

What to do? Let’s get real clear first on our goal(s).

Do we want to create brilliant content pages for the sheer pleasure of it?
Do we need to write in order to get things off of our chests?
Are we building lenses to introduce ourselves to the world and make new friends?

For these or other non-business-related ambitions we can find tons of free tutorials on Squidoo, SquidLog (of course), blogs and other websites. We’ll see great results within days or weeks.

Or, are we trying to make money online? Here, it gets a little more complicated.

Are we trying to sell things we make – art, cookies, our own e-books?
Do we prefer to sell other people’s stuff through affiliate marketing?
Is article writing our “thing”? Blogging? Niche sites? Product reviews?

My hand is up! I confess…

I’ve been trying to do ALL these things over the first year of my online activities!

Bad idea. Didn’t make much money either. Needed to decide, streamline my activities and focus my studies!

What do I really need to learn to realize my dream of online income?

SEO, keyword strategies, tagging?
Copywriting, effective presentations?
Email lists, pitch pages?
Niche research, content creation?
Blog concepts, AdSense, affiliate programs?
Pay-per-click, pay-per-wink, pay-per-burp?

Don’t get me wrong – I won’t regret a minute of my lensbuilding, forum chats, Squidoo volunteer activities, blog hopping or lens browsing. It all got me to where I am today – I know what I want and how to monetize it. And…

I will use all the help I can get – as far as I can afford it!

So, yes – there are monster packages available for $1,000 – $2,000, or more. Not for me, though. $100 or less is my range, and I buy only from folks I completely trust! I need to have a personal relationship (pure platonic, of course!) with my online teachers. Ideally, I’ve seen them interact with others (and me) in a helpful way and with no monetary gains at stake. And, I need to have prove that their system worked for them!

Here are some recommendations:

For income creation through affiliate marketing using Squidoo and other free resources, I’m happy to pitch with utter confidence: “One Week Marketing Course” by PotPieGirl. This 5-book tutorial (my review here!) is underpriced at the regular cost of $47. (I’ve made my investment back, many times over.) From now until 12:01 AM, April 1, 2009, OWM is offered at HALF PRICE, for only $23.50! But only through THIS LINK! If you want to benefit from Jennifer’s 2-year experience in making affiliate marketing money on Squidoo – ACT NOW! Make sure you use this special link for the 50% OFF deal!

(Full disclosure: I’m an affiliate partner of PotPieGirl’s course, so I make a few bucks through your purchase. Thank you from the bottom of my heart for your purchase through this page! However, my recommendation is based on my great experience with OWM. That’s why I like to spread the word.)

More non-affiliate recommendations:

For e-book creation and marketing, check out “Desperate Buyers Only” by Alexis Dawes, $77

Naomi at IttyBiz is a highly-respected small business consultant and her “SEO School” has become a classic among online entrepreneurs ($39). Get to know this lady and look at her fabulous blog.

[ratings]

On a similar note...

Incredible Opportunity! One Week Marketing Course Half-OFF!

Chef Keem — Fri, 27 Mar 2009 19:33:15 +0000

Don’t miss this, friends!

If you have ever considered buying PotPieGirl’s fantastic Step-By-Step Action Plan to finally make money online – here’s your chance to get the entire One Week Marketing Course (5 books!) for HALF the regular price!

It’s now only $23.50!

Only 2 days left – until 12:01 A.M., April 1, 2009!

And only through this link:

One Week Marketing Stimulus Offer!

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How to Write with Authority (and Make Money Online)

Chef Keem — Wed, 18 Mar 2009 02:46:03 +0000

I must have done something right: Margaret from Alaska ordered 3 boxes of my Espresso Sea Salt Caramels from my lens and when I asked her how she had found me on the web, she replied (so very kindly):

“O’golly – a year or so ago I had experienced salty chocolate truffles (purchased at Central Market in Poulsbo, WA) …. and this past Friday night I was at a friend’s house for dinner (and the husband said he liked salty items) … so I went home & googled salt chocolate truffles – your website was offered & I have to admit your site weaves a story anyone who is looking for playfulness and joy in their life would want to be a part of. So even though you provide the recipe, I didn’t think twice about ordering the “real deal” made by you.”

Wow! Not only did Margaret respond to my request – she even told me the whole story around it and gave me a compliment to boot. How generous of her!

One of the most authoritative blogs on the web, Copyblogger, features a post on

“How to Write with Authority for a Loyalty-Starved Market”.

Sharice Jacob tells us that people are tired of fluff, hype, and “know-it-alls”. We like confident authors who radiate an “air of credibility and honesty”.

She explains several important points – crucial to our success as writers:

Share your expertise – people are looking for leaders
Explain things in a direct way
Talk about your own experience
Keep your promises
Be open to feedback

When Margaret wrote back from Alaska, I knew that she’d found some of these personal elements in my lens. That’s why she ordered my candy.

And that’s how I made money online.

I invite you to read the whole post…

Wild authority

[ratings]

On a similar note...

Chef Keem's review of "One Week Marketing" by PotPieGirl

Chef Keem — Fri, 27 Feb 2009 21:47:40 +0000

Our trusted and beloved lensmaster, PotPieGirl, has written a very good e-course about making money online, utilizing Squidoo and other free resource sites.

I bought it.

I use it.

I make money with it.

I love it!

Several lensmasters have bought OWM through my original review page: Squidoo – a good investment?

You have asked the obvious questions:

Why spend money if I can learn everything for free on Squidoo?

Don’t I know most of this already?

Come on, Chef – tell me your honest opinion about OWM. Is it really worth it?

Here are excerpts of my responses:

“You can learn anything you need to know about internet marketing – for free. PotPieGirl did it. It took her about a year and a half, working her butt off every day, into the night.

This is where the value of this course comes in – we don’t have to spend 18 months to research and study and fail and start over, etc., as PotPieGirl did. She gives us everything she knows in a concise form, with action plans and step-by-step instructions, so we can start immediately with our campaigns. Not bad, huh?

Even if you don’t want to get too deep into affiliate marketing (like myself, as I’m building my own brand), OWM gives you amazing tips in regard to more efficient Squidoo lens building, so you get found better online.

PPG never says that it’s an easy overnight success to make money from affiliate marketing. It takes work, time, and commitment. If you are willing to do the work, this course is a truly great investment. In addition, PPG is very accessible. You can always ask her questions, and she shares a lot of support through her blog. You won’t find this kind of support with many other such products.

To sum it up – the cost of the course might save you a year’s worth of work, if you’re serious about making money online through internet marketing.”

_________________________________________________________

One of our most prolific Squidoo lensmasters replied:

“Thanks, Achim. I guess that’s pretty much how I assessed it from what I’ve read. Sometimes when I invest in products like this I think, “I could have written that,” but it sounds like Jennifer might have some really good tips that I don’t have, probably worth the price of admission (so to speak).

Still thinking about it but leaning more and more towards the purchase.”

______________________________________________________________

I offered these thoughts:

“Sometimes, even though we know part of the offered program already, the insights and methods of a proven successful operator help us to “bring it all together” – our existing knowledge and new information.

We tend to get stuck with what we’ve learned on a certain path, leaving not much room for flexibility. You know how we sometimes need to get away from it all to gain a new perspective.

With OWM we have a proven method with exact steps to follow regardless of how our personal learning experience has pressed us into a narrow evolutionary path. For most of these steps we don’t really have to think too much for ourselves but just follow the guidelines and “do the work”.

The time we spend doubting ourselves, trying different methods, studying other people’s instructions and recommendations, is probably worth much more and wasted in huge proportions compared to the relatively low cost of this course.”

______________________________________________________________

This lensmaster has been a Squidoo member since April 2007, belongs to our prestigious Giant100 Club, and serves in the current Squid Angel Team. Here’s the response:

“That was a great analysis and explanation. I guess you could say her method might knock me smack out of my comfort zone, which would be a good thing.

Going to go order right now. Thanks!”

I strongly suggest you explore this great opportunity to become a master online marketer yourself. Download the free 18-page ebook for more info. Click on the image and you’re on your way…

Another voice from our community:

“Dear Chef,

Last week I read your review/endorsement for PotPieGirl’s e-book The One Week Marketing Plan. I bought a few e-books when I first started on Squidoo, but was very unhappy with what I got.

I really like your lenses and I believe you’re an honest shooter so I took a chance and bought Jennifer’s book. While I don’t agree with everything she proposes, I learned a great deal. My lenses are more focused and traffic is up.

I would not have bought the book without your endorsement. I just wanted to say thanks.”

Good luck to all of you!

-Chef Keem

On a similar note...

How to Simultaneously Get Your "Ex" Back, Make Millions and Lose Weight Overnight – with Acai Berries (Free Samples!)

Chef Keem — Fri, 30 Jan 2009 16:49:05 +0000

CLICK HERE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! YOU OWE IT TO YOURSELF TO TRY THIS!!!!!!!! DON’T MISS OUT ON THIS LIMITED TIME OFFER!!!!!!!!!! BUY NOW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
(And then – for good measure:) CLICK HEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEERE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Meanwhile, these things are funny. Yet, every day we see new lenses like this pop up. What are they thinking? I mean – WHAT ARE THEY THINKING??????????????????

My guess is – some people discover “internet marketing” through online hype and get caught up in the artificial excitement. Then, they copy. And paste. Like millions of others. How remarkable is that? Not.

My own, seemingly unrelated life experience serves as a metaphor for this kind of behavior. After years of indulging my alcoholism, I finally sobered up. I finally “got it”. Unfortunately, I also became an instant “missionary”. I went on a “crusade” to save ALL souls around me – not realizing that most of these folks were already light years ahead of me, in terms of personal development.

What can I learn from this?

Whenever I find something new that excites me so much that I want to tell the world about it – I don’t. I stop, breathe, and “google”.

What’s “out there” already, on my life-changing discovery?
Let’s look for negative reviews of the subject at hand.
Who are the authorities on this concept? How many are there, how often do they write about it, how up-to-date is the available information?

This method of pausing, thinking, planning, and researching before publishing can (and should) be applied to all online projects – Squidoo lenses, forum posts, blogs, ezine articles, etc…

Too often I went public too soon. My audience yawned: “Welcome to the club, friend. It’s about time you got here…”

P.S.: CLICK HEEEERE!!! to “Make Money Online”, and HEEEERE!!! to “Forget about it (and make even more!)”.

P.P.S.: Let go of your “ex”, be happy with your current weight, and don’t eat any unripe berries (free, or not)!