Coffee Break Blogging

Here's the description for this episode... In this episode, David talks about why he has made the decision to walk away from the tech site (PCMECH.COM) which got him started in this business, and he has been operating for the last 16 years. It is a time to move forward. David gives the background and the thought process leading up to this... in his own words. I have already written a post talking about this, but I thought I would detail some more specifics about this my talking directly about it in the podcast. I am also going to let my PCMech.com audience know about this particular episode, so if you're coming over from there - WELCOME. In episode 24, you'll learn about... The background of PCMech and what's happened to it for the last few years Some "behind the scenes" info on the tech niche, and how PCMech has been operated lately. The MOST IMPORTANT lesson I have learned though this. Why you DON'T have to continue running with everything you've started Why you should build to sell - even if you don't i

In my years of helping bloggers monetize and build businesses, I've seen a host of common pitfalls. Unfortunately, too, I know that MOST people who embark on this journey won't make it. Why is that? Is it because of a lack of information, or marketers misleading them? Or is it something else? Well, I'm here to tell you that is almost all cases, the reason the online business doesn't succeed is because of certain bad habits or mistaken viewpoints of the person trying to do it. In this episode, I talk about 10 of the most common pitfalls that will ultimately lead to failure to build a business. Are you doing any of them? In episode 23, you'll learn about... How money is REALLY made online (or offline) The activity you're doing right now that you have to limit... otherwise you'll never get the necessary work done. How preparing for success can be taken a little too far How a fear of selling really gets in the way Why you can't assume you know what people really want. Why spending money is necessary in order to

Not long ago, I was looking for a local contractor to do a little work on our home. So, what did I do? I went and searched Google for local contractors who would do what I needed. I came up with several potential business and then I checked out their sites. And I noticed something... Their websites SUCKED. As a person who does new media marketing and knows the power of it, I saw a TON of glaring holes in their marketing. But, here's the question... Does a local "brick and mortar" business really need a blog? Should they be interested in online marketing? If you're a plumber, a dentist, a chiropractor, a lawn service - whatever it is - should you be blogging and doing online marketing? In episode 22, you'll learn about... Why a traditional business can most definitely benefit from a blog. How your website can attract leads - or scare them away - in an instant. Why even a traditional business needs an email list - and you should go about building it. What to send to your email list if you're in a "regular" bus

Since the beginning of 2014, I've been pretty regular about posting new videos to the video blog. Since I've done that, I've had some people (surprisingly) think that my setup is a lot fancier than it is. So, in this episode of the podcast, I break down the entire process I use to make these videos. I share the setup, the idea phase, the equipment, the entire process of actually recording them, etc. This episode is a little bit longer than the others, but it is insanely practically (if I do say so myself). :) In episode 21, you'll learn about... Why I stopped making videos in my car How I come up with and track topics for my web videos (and other things) The exact equipment I'm using for my videos The entire process, from beginning to end, I use to make every video blog entry How I use my 3-piece lighting kit How I got my video intro done Much, MUCH more This episode was very practical, so for that reason I mentioned a lot of tools.

In school, we're taught a lot of different rules about writing. We're taught different formats, different rules, and all kinds of grammar rules. Well, the good news is that you can toss most of that out the window when it comes to your blogging. In this episode, I talk about 5 specific aspects of effective blogging that just might piss off your English teacher. If you want your blog posts to be more effective, or you want your blogging to take less time, then listen to this episode now. In episode 20, you'll learn about... Why academic writers make crappy bloggers (most of the time) What paragraphs in blog posts have in common with comedic timing What happens when you use big fancy words in your blog posts How you should view people who point out typos and grammar issues in your blog posts What the true purpose is of all your blogging This episode was a lot of fun to record. I hope it is as fun to listen to. :)

Selecting a niche to blog in is perhaps one of the first decisions you will make. And it is a pretty important decision. Thing is, many bloggers have already been blogging in a particular niche for some time and they still have this nagging doubt about their market. Perhaps you're there. Maybe you're disappointed with the traction you're getting with your blog and you wonder if you are just in the wrong niche. In this episode, we talk about the 4 indicators that you've hopped into the wrong niche for your blogging efforts. In episode 19, you'll learn about... The 3 factors which businesses are made from. Why competition is actually AWESOME What you should do if your niche only has physical products and no information products What you should do if you're running out of post ideas Whether gaining no traction really means you're in the wrong niche

When it comes to making money as a blogger and online entrepreneur, we mostly think of information marketing. Thing is, the perceived value of information isn't what it used to be. We live in a world today where information solely for the sake of itself is a really hard thing to sell - and the perceived value of it in some markets is heading toward zero. So, what will your prospects pay the most money for? In this episode, we talk about 5 different things that your prospects will spend the most money for. Add these into your products and you can make more money. In episode 18, you'll learn about... 2 reasons why the perceived value of information is decreasing How information is really a lot like the U.S. dollar right now. :) What you're REALLY selling when you make any kind of product offer. Why low priced products aren't the stuff on which businesses are built. 5 things you can add to your products to increase their value.

It is common advice to hear... that the first priority of your blog is to build your email list. Cool... we got it. But, what is the SECOND priority? What is the one that so many people seem to forget about? It has everything to do with higher conversion rates and a more effective blog marketing strategy overall. It is email list segmentation. In episode 17, you'll learn about... The most effective way to get new email subscribers Why emailing your whole list every time is... well, rather dumb. Ways to segment your list. How to actually go about segmenting your list Some of the powerful marketing ideas you can implement using list segmentation. How your blog is really an extremely powerful tool for segmenting your subscribers. Also mentioned in this episode was one of my past posts: The Essential Guide To How To Build Your Email List [The List Building Formula].

Much of what bloggers do these days they do because they see everybody else doing it. It is a big game of "follow the leader"... or in this case, "follow the guru". But, sometimes when everybody else is zigging, it is a good time to zag. And in this episode of The Blog Program, I ask the question... Is the blog sidebar dead? My readers have probably noticed that in the last few months, I have gone to a no-sidebar layout here on BMA. It started out with just my feature posts - all of which were published in full width. Then, toward the end of 2013, I went ahead and flipped the switch to ditch the sidebar throughout the entire site. I did bring back a mini floating sidebar just to make a few shortcut links more easily accessible, but the traditional sidebar definitely doesn't exist here at the Academy. In episode 16, I talk about why exactly I made this switch. I talk about: What people usually put into the blog sidebar... and could it go anywhere else? Why I believe the sidebar might actually get in the way o

Sometimes it is valuable to step back and look at the big picture. And in this episode of The Blog Program, that's exactly what we're doing when it comes to the state of blogging. See, if you stay in a bubble, then you'll just keep on doing things the same old way. And if the world is changing around you, you won't keep up. I know this more than most. Not only have I been doing this long enough to see just how much things have changed... but I also know what it is like to stay in a bubble and not adjust to change. I got sorta good at that last year. ;) In this episode, we step back and look at the trends - and what they mean for us as content creators. I talk about: How Google's search changes have affected the world of blogging. Why old-school link building is dead. Why sticking to written blogging only is a loser's proposition. What its going to take to stand out in the noise. How we're moving into a "pay to play" environment, and what this means about building your OWN platform. Why email delivery rates h

In this episode, David comes back from never, neverland with Episode 14 of The Blog Program. 'Bout. Damn. Time. :) Actually, this was a decision I made while I was in Las Vegas recently, for the New Media Expo. While I can't remember exactly how many years I've been going there, it has to be at least my FIFTH time attending this conference. And I can tell you... Never before have I seen so many podcasters. Not only that, but many of my acquaintances in the business who were not podcasting are now... podcasting. Lewis Howes is now podcasting. Amy Porterfield is now podcasting. Pat Flynn is going to be starting a second DAILY podcast. Jason and Jeremy from Internet Business Mastery are flirting with the idea of a daily show (at least judging from a recent survey they ran). Listening to Cliff Ravenscraft and John Lee Dumas talk about their podcasting and trends also has me convinced that I'd be an IDIOT not to get regular about my own show. And, so it is. :) And, we usher in 2014 with episode #14. A dose of iron

One of the biggest things which differentiate a successful content marketer from the usual (broke) blogger is that he/she strategically plans their content in advance. When you plan your content in advance - even for as much as a quarter ahead of time - it allows you to ensure that your content serves a real purpose and isn't simply there to meet a quota self-imposed. In the last few posts, I have been talking about planning your blog content in advance. But, today, I wanted to "recap" it in a brand new episode of The Blog Program. In this episode, I talk about editorial calendars, and why you may want to consider pre-planning your blog content for as much as 3 months in advance. In this show, we talk about multiple reasons why strategic planning of your content is far better than "flying by the seat of your pants" (which is what most bloggers do.). We also go over a 6-step process to brainstorm and develop your editorial calendar.

It takes certain tools to run an online business, and there are choices that need to be made. In this episode of The Blog Program, I get into some of the behind-the-scenes nitty-gritty details of what makes an online business tick. Specifically, we'll be talking about email marketing, and why after YEARS of working with Aweber, I decided to switch away from it and make the move to Office AutoPilot (aka Ontraport). This was a pretty big move for me, and one which isn't going to be applicable to everybody in my audience. However, this episode will be a good one for those of you who... Are running established online businesses and find yourself getting frustrated with some of the limitations of your current software, and feel you're leaving money on the table because of it. OR... You're still fairly new, but are still interested in some of the considerations that go into an online business as it grows. This episode covers such topics as: Why I've been recommending Aweber over Mailchimp for my readers 8 differ

I have been talking about Ten Minute Pages lately. It is no mystery that it is something I recommend to much of my readers and listeners. But, aside from the solution itself, there is also a business behind it. And around here, that topic interests me. We're all working to build and expand our businesses, and I find that there are usually certain common elements that entrepreneurs master before success comes. So, I decided to invite Kyle Graham, the creator of Ten Minute Pages, to come on The Blog Program. As of this recording, he was in the middle of his official product launch - which is always a pretty CRAZY experience (anybody who has done one will attest). In this interview, we go behind the scenes into the growth of a software business online. This interview covers such topics as: What its like being in the middle of a product launch The "aha moment" which suddenly lead from years of mediocre performance and client work... to the creation of Ten Minute Pages and really rockin' How important picking th

One thing all blog owners want is TRAFFIC. It is one of those things that nobody thinks they have enough of. And, for brand new bloggers, it can seem like the hardest thing to get. In order to get traffic, you have to PROMOTE. But, what exactly do you do? What do you do to get the word out? How do you let people know what you're doing? How do you build leverage? In this episode, you'll hear about: Why you need to stop tweaking your blog. What it really means to create "good content". Why content creation should represent a minority of your blogging schedule. How most bloggers are grossly under-utilizing social media. How to alleviate all doubt about what content you need to be writing right now. ... and more. :)

After what SHOCKINGLY turned into a 9-month hiatus, The Blog Program is back! And, David has his tail between his legs, asking for forgiveness. ;-) Actually, in this episode, I sit down and talk about where my efforts have been for the last many months with Blog Marketing Academy. Go behind the scenes with me as I talk about some of the projects I have been working on to "clear out the underbrush" from years of business, and put some order into things using SYSTEMS. In this episode, you'll hear about: The real reason why this podcast hasn't come out in over 9 months. My conversion from Aweber to Office AutoPilot... and why. My thinking behind the "daily videos" (which aren't so daily anymore) My switch to the Genesis Framework... and why. Why I stopped using Wishlist Member (although I still love it), and switched to something else. The BIG bottleneck to my business over the last many months, and what I'm doing to solve it. I hope you enioy this one. It is long overdue.

When you go online with your blogging, one of your goals is to… get famous. Now, we might not be talking about celebrity famous. Chances are, we're talking about achieving recognition within your particular niche or field. After all, to earn business online, you need to become known. Laura Roeder, from LKR Social Media, comes on The Blog Program to discuss the idea of creating fame. Laura discussed the "big idea" which is necessary for creating fame, and how to go about getting out there into your marketplace even when you're starting from scratch. In this episode, you'll learn about: The importance of picking a kind of content to focus on (and how this can save you a lot of needless legwork, too) How to arrive at your "big idea" which will separate you from your competition. Her recommendation for post frequency How do you pitch a guest post do a larger blog (even if you feel like you're a bit of a nobody in comparison) How to get interviews (and how Laura got herself onto my show ;) ) Some of the changes L

You've likely heard the phrase many times now: "The money is in the list". And, it couldn't be more true. Your email list is the most important asset you have. So, in this "reverse interview", Srinivas from BlogcastFM interviews me about email marketing and list building. In this 40 minute interview, a number of topics are discussed such as the importance of list building, how to interact with the list, why ebooks are not as effective as list builders, and much more. In this episode, you'll learn about: Why building a list is so important (as if it wasn't obvious) ;) Why your email list growth is your most important metric, and FAR out-weights trivial concerns like # of Twitter followers, or even blog comments. How I personally raised my email open rates by close to 3X My internal thinking for creating the 30 Day Blog Transformation Challenge to build my list How (and why) to get your list subscribers to interact with you. How to drastically improve your emails to your list by focusing on a single person. Wh

Bloggers often get hung up on the smallest things. Many times, things they probably shouldn't even be doing anyway. In this episode, I bring on a good friend, Chris Ducker from Virtual Business Lifestyle. Chris is an expert on outsourcing to the Philippines. We break down all the in's and out's of outsourcing, how it works, what you can have them do, how to find them, what to pay them - etc. You don't have to do everything yourself… and having somebody to help you is much easier than you may have realized. In this episode, you'll learn about: What kinds of things a blogger could have a VA do for them. What NOT to have your VA do for you. How to avoid pitfalls and growing pains with your first VA. How to actually find and hire a VA in the Phillipines. How to deal with concerns about whether a full-time person is overkill for you. How to go about training your VA on how you want things done. Cultural traits of people in the Phillipines, and how it compares to other countries. What to pay them. And this time,

In all the talk about themes, plug-ins, retweets and pings, it is easy to lose sight of the TRUE purpose of a blog. And that purpose is COMMUNICATION. Might seem obvious on the surface, but seeing how a lot of people blog, they don't really get it. In this episode, David breaks down exactly what this means and how it should impact what you do on your blog. The end result? An audience that actually pays attention to your content and responds to it. And ultimately... buys from you. In this episode, you'll learn about: Why most bloggers don't get ANY reaction from their blog posts. Why thinking of your blog like a magazine is a mistake. The communication sequence - broken down into components. Why acknowledgement is VERY fundamental to your success online. Specific tactics in order to "train" your audience to respond. What this all has to do with marketing and making sales. I hope you enjoy this episode. I was a little late on getting it produced. I encourage you to take the message of this episode to heart. A