Blog - Improve Your Digital Marketing IQ!

Dec22018 by MikeNo Comments

Why Have a Website Favicon? 2 Reasons

Why Have a Website Favicon? Let's dig into that. A favicon, as you probably know, is the little image on the left side of your browser tab. It looks like this: How could this teeny little icon, which is extremely small in file size, help your website? In order to think through that, let me ask you two questions: Which is easier to identify with? Sites with Favicons: Sites without Favicons? If it were me, I would use a favicon as a form of Brand Recognition if for no other reason. It's a competitive world out there. What happens when someone tries to access a web page that doesn't exist? The site returns a "404 Error". This essentially means "hey I looked around but, really, there's nothing there". Now,…

Nov52018 by MikeNo Comments

Where Should I Form My LLC?

LLC Formation

Where Should I Form My LLC? Here's how I decided. (The following is for informational purposes and is not legal, tax, or financial advice) In keeping with my vision to help you with continuing blogger education, today I want to provide you with some actionable information about starting an LLC for your online business. When you set up an LLC (Limited Liability Company) for your business, you have many decisions to make. One of those is choosing the state you form your LLC in. For most, your home state is usually the obvious and best choice. Yet you still hear about Nevada, Wyoming, or Delaware. Why? Favorable treatment of corporate income tax and affordability are common explanations. But does this apply for small business owners? In most cases, corporate taxes…

Nov52018 by MikeNo Comments

Food Bloggers Favorite Kitchen Tools (2018)

Food Bloggers

Food bloggers favorite kitchen tools. You know they have 'em. Why? Because they work! A food blogger cooks, a food blogger eats, a food blogger's workshop is their kitchen. None of them are going to skimp on the equipment they use. "The right tool for the right job" my father always said. It goes for workshops and it goes for food bloggers. What kitchen tools do food bloggers prefer? I scoured the first page of Google for "food bloggers favorite kitchen tool" and built a list of the results. It's a long list. My hypothesis was that each blogger would have a list borne of experience and wouldn't recommend them if they weren't invaluable. So, what did I find? Food bloggers have a core set of favorite kitchen tools, and…

Oct262018 by MikeNo Comments

Blogging Statistics

There's an old saying that figures lie and liars figure. Data is hard to trust sometimes, but when you get a well constructed and documented article about blogging statistics, you gotta dive in and see what it says. That's what I'm sharing with you today. The Big Blogging Survey from BlogTyrant is just such an article (reference below). Ramsay Taplin, who's been "dabbling with money making blogs" for a long time, surveyed 350 bloggers about goals and challenges. What he came up with is very enlightening and led me to several observations and questions. Here are my impressions. See what you think as I walk through the ones that piqued my interest. I'd love it if you'd share your thoughts with everyone in the Comments below! The Survey Results Blogger age distribution…

Oct202018 by MikeNo Comments

Better Email Subject Lines

Email Subject Lines

Did you know that you can craft better email subject lines and improve open rates ? Open rates for any emails you send out are crucial, but especially important when you consider better email subject lines for sales prospecting. First, let's think about email subject lines. Ever get one like this? A subject line like this fails the primary objective of a good subject line - to take the reader from their inbox to your content. To actually have someone read it. In order to actually make that transition happen, you need to introduce your reader to the email in a catchy, brief, informative way. The hook. Without the hook, the reader moves on. Your hook - your "hey you need to read me because it will make a positive…

Oct132018 by MikeNo Comments

Using Pinterest for your Affiliate Links (2019)

Affiliate Marketing, Pinterest

I want you to use Pinterest for your affiliate links. Let me show you how. As you know, one of the more traditional ways to use your affiliate links is on a resources page. However, Pinterest has a distinct advantage. Quickly, here's why: Audience demographics. Check out these facts (source sproutsocial.com) 50% of Pinners make a household income of $50k+, and 40% have $100k+ in 2018 it’s fourth in popularity, behind YouTube, Facebook and Instagram - BUT 29% of US adults use Pinterest Half of millennials use Pinterest every month Their article has more data, but you get the point, right? Get this - 93% of Active Pinners Said They Use Pinterest to Plan for Purchases Since 2016 Pinterest has allowed you to use your Pins for affiliate sales, so…

Oct32018 by MikeNo Comments

Quality Backlink Sources

Backlinks

This site is all about educating and sharing. I know a little about a lot, and as you've seen in my posts I like to send you to places where people know a lot about a lot! Brian Dean, yeah... he posts excellent stuff, and recently he updated (in a big way) his post on Untapped Backlink Sources. I want you to take a look at this. It's quite long but it's some of the best stuff you'll find on the subject. Getting quality backlinks is a key way to grab Google's attention So, it's also a key way that you can improve your search engine ranking. Here's the thing, and Brian states it clearly: "Search engines consider backlinks “votes” for your website and content, which can improve a site’s…

Sep292018 by MikeNo Comments

Boost Your Content Marketing Strategy

Marketing Strategy

If you've been doing this online business thing for a while, it's probably time to boost your Content Marketing Strategy. Level-up time! I've covered promoting your content on this blog before, but did you know there's a formula for getting your reader's attention and moving forward toward a purchase? It's not something up-and-coming either. It's been around quite a long time, but it's not usually applied to blogging or digital marketing. Oops. You should learn how it works Why? Because it can help you engage, persuade, and convert your readers into buyers. Meet AIDA. It's an experience funnel. Ryan Johnson (Ramit Sethi’s Sr. Editorial Director) tells us it’s one of the “fundamentals of sales. Use the AIDA formula (Attention, Interest, Desire, Action) to make sure your funnel will move people from…

Sep292018 by MikeNo Comments

Creative Small Business Ideas

Business Ideas

Need some creative small business ideas? If you're not sure what your business idea should be, let me ask you a question... Do you ever sing in the shower? Be honest. Yeah, ya do. Do you realize that the shower can actually be an inspirational place to come up with business ideas? There are a number of ways to poke your brain into figuring it out. When you start a business from home, there so many decisions to be made, and one of them is what your business will actually be about. It comes easy to some people, but most of us have to work on this for a while. If you're venturing into entrepreneurship, don't be a "wantrepreneur". You need a solid business idea, and not just something that…

Sep282018 by MikeNo Comments

Promote Your Posts (5+ Places)

Content Promotion

You want to promote your posts. Well, there are many ways to do that and you can probably think of some right off the bat. For example: Mention them in group forums Talk about them on Facebook and point back to your blog Tweet about them and link to your content Tell friends about what you published All good, except they all point back to the same place - your website! You already have a certain sized audience there, why not go big? So how can you increase the reach of your content? Think about this... what if your content showed up other places besides your blog? You also need to promote your posts in places with quite a different reach! It's a big world out there... How do you…

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