Today's edition of Q&A Tuesday is about tapping the power of blogging to promote yourself and/or your business. When was the last time you got your fingers all dirty reading the classified section of the newspaper? Do you even use the phone book's Yellow Pages anymore? I don't know about you, but I usually end up recycling phone books the day after the mailman drops them off! The power of the Internet has changed the way traditional businesses need to reach their customers. More and more are turning to blogging as a way to build and grow their business.

Your Question

Jim from Demystifying Internet Technology writes and asks:

About ezdiyelectricity.com, the most recent 'Weekly Buzz winner'. Is this really a blog?

Thanks for your question Jim! I would definitely consider Wayne's site about Do It Yourself (DIY) Electrical work a blog. I think its a great example of a blog used to promote one's self and one's business. He has a fancy cover page that highlights some of his best content, so on the surface it may not appear like a traditional blog. Darren Rowse of ProBlogger fame has the same format. When you look into Wayne's site a little deeper, he has how-to articles, product reviews, and answers to readers' questions. Yes, I would say this is a very informative blog - just not in the sense of the "personal diary" type of blog often found on free blogging platforms like Blogger.

Wayne is doing an excellent job at using blogging as a form of advertising his business and his services. When it comes to using online media to earn a living, the majority of wealthy online entrepreneurs will tell you that they don't make a lot from their blog directly. Rather, their blog is a platform for them to promote their "brand". In this case, Wayne's brand is his experience as a Master Electrician. I had a discussion about this with Buzz Marketing expert Dean Hunt a while ago, who said:

My blog is very different to most other [make money online blogs]. My biggest revenue generator is actually my brand. I use the blog to build my brand (my name) and I provide services due to that reputation. I have no adverts on my blog, no adsense, no affiliate links etc... I make 6 figures from my services, so $10,000 a year from adsense has zero appeal to me, I prefer to keep my integrity.

Dean and Wayne both do an excellent job of demonstrating their value to potential customers through their blogs. Neither of them care as much about advertising revenue as they do about building a network of readers that have the potential to someday become paying customers. They focus on providing legitimate content that demonstrates that they are an authority on within their respective specialties. This shows potential consumers that they have the knowledge and the skills that are worth paying for. They are giving people as "taste" of what they offer. This is certainly far more effective than a two sentence ad in the phone book Yellow Pages. It is "Business Advertising 2.0".

In addition to providing regular and relevant content, Wayne has taken a few a additional steps to better position his blog to help grow his business. Specifically, he has

• Secured his own effective and persuasive domain name
• Hosts his own blog on the WordPress framework
• Has tailored a custom theme to effectively and aesthetically highlight his business

I will be covering each of these topics, and many more, in a tutorial I am working on that offers a complete guide to WordPress for beginners and experienced bloggers alike. Be sure to sign up for my feed so you don't miss the start of this exciting series.

My Question

Do you use blogging as a way to promote your company or business? If so, how has it helped you? We'd love to hear some more success stories!

Thanks everyone!

Jeff

Welcome to another edition of Q&A Tuesday, the post where you ask a question of me and I ask a question for all of you! Today's question has to do with the differences between WordPress and Blogger and whether you should host your own blog.

Your Turn

Today's question comes from Aaron (who didn't leave a blog URL. Aaron - shoot me a message if you want a link to your blog!). He writes:

I am using Blogger, would you suggest using WordPress blog to run my bog?  I really do not have a preference.  I have a few others who are using word press, but I wasn't sure there was a huge difference.  However, if there is a difference I would definitely switch.

Great question Aaron! Blogger is a good place to start if you have no idea about what this whole blogging thing is all about. It is simple and easy to use. If you only plan to have a small blog that gets updated infrequently and don't care about getting much traffic, then Blogger might be a way to go.

But who wants that! We all want our blogs to grow huge and attract tons of visitors, right? In that case, I highly recommend WordPress. It is the most popular blog engine for a good reason. WordPress is far more powerful than Blogger and allows you to have much greater control over your blog. Here are a few reasons why I really like WordPress more than Blogger:

• Tons of existing themes - There a thousands and thousands of blog themes for WordPress. You can search the net and find one that suits you and it could be a long time before you run into another blog with the same theme.
• Gigantic collection of plugins - WordPress is HIGHLY extendable with its Plug-In architecture. Already powerful as it is, WordPress can become even more powerful by installing any number of plugins. The All In One SEO Plugin, for example, makes your blog more search engine friendly so you rank high on search results!
• Huge user base - Tons of people use WordPress. If you ever need help with your blog, there will be no shortage of people who can point you in the right direction.
• Open source software - The code for WordPress is Open Source, which means there is a large group of developers that are always working on making it better. If you are tech savvy, you can even dive into the code and change things around yourself.

Another reason I dislike Blogger is the very annoying navigation bar at the top. Too many times I visit a Blogger blog and the damn page is stuck waiting for the navigation bar to load (or it has too many widgets on the page, but that is a topic for another day!). I have talked with a number of big name bloggers that openly admin that they simply ignore all requests and never link to bloggers with free Blogger accounts. Being linked to by a big name blog is the best way to grow your blog! You should do whatever you can to avoid pissing off your users and people who might want to link to you. Having a Blogger blog does not help your case.

If you are not ready to pay for a hosting account yet, I would suggest starting with a free WORDPRESS blog at WordPress.com. Only use this until you get the hang of it. Once you know what you are doing, you really should have your own hosting account to host your blog. It is not as scary as you might think. Simply go to GoDaddy.com, get your own domain name, sign up for the cheap Linux hosting account for $4 bucks a month, and have them install WordPress. I am not kidding...the whole process can be done in about 15 minutes (or less). When you have your own domain name and host your own blog, you will be amazed how much more seriously people take your blog. If you don't like paying the $4 bucks a month, just slap some Google Ads up there and pretty soon the blog will pay for itself (and then some!).

Good luck. I hope this has helped some of you beginners out there!

My Turn

In real life I am a software developer and would like to start focusing on some of my strengths in up coming posts here at BuzzMyBlog.com. I am planning to do a VERY extensive, multi-part tutorial on WordPress. I will cover topics like installing WordPress, using PHP, Cascading Style Sheets (CSS), and theme design. My goal is to write the tutorial from the perspective of a total beginner. I firmly believe that anyone can and SHOULD learn how to customize their own blog. My tutorial will guide you through this step by step. I am starting to put together an outline now, but my question for you guys is this:

What specific topics would you like to see covered in this tutorial? What would you like to learn more about?

I appreciate all of your comments and feedback. Be sure to sign up for my RSS Feed so you don't miss out on some of the amazing tutorials I have planned!

Thanks!

Jeff

Time for another edition of Q&A Tuesdays where I answer a question of yours and you (hopefully) answer a question of mine. Today's topic has to do with Affiliate Marketing on niche blogs.

Your Turn

Grizzly Adam of EpicRiding.com writes and asks:

What do you think is the best way to monetize an existing blog, within an already small niche?

My response to Grizzly is:

Hi Grizzly. I would be very surprised if you couldn't find an affiliate program in your niche that will allow you to make money recommending products you like. Try doing a Google search for "<my niche> affiliate program" and see what pops up. You might find a product you actually like. Something you won't mind writing about and can get paid by referring users for.

I have read your blog a number of times (I love mountain biking) and I know there are tons of programs you can join to make some money from your blog. One Affiliate Program I have been using lately is ShareASale.com. A quick search of their programs turned up 42 different Outdoor Recreation affiliate programs! You can sign up to refer your readers to places like Mountain Plus Outdoor Gear, OutdoorsPro.com, and many others. Just select a program and join it. Then, whenever you even mention a piece of gear in a blog post, just make it a link and you will get paid a commission anytime someone orders something via that link (within the next 120 days!).

I really like the main header image of your blog. You are already displaying logos of brands and gear that you like. You are giving them free advertising! Try reaching out to them and seeing if they have some kind of referral program or will pay a small monthly advertising fee. You might be surprised - all business like to (need to) advertise. If they don't, then make those images a hotlink to one of the affiliate programs from ShareASale or something. 

Your niche might be small, but I think it could be VERY lucrative. I know that I personally spend a boat load of money online for outdoor gear! Good luck!   

My Turn

I have had some good success using ShareASale.com and Commission Junction affiliate programs. I have heard some mixed reviews about them though and don't really know how they compare to some of the other affiliate networks. For the most part, I don't believe there is a single network that is best. It just depends on the individual programs. But in general, what Affiliate Networks do you like the most and why?

Thanks!

Got a question for the Tuesday Q&A? Send it to me!  

Jeff

I don't normally have much time to write on Tuesdays. So instead of writing nothing at all, I thought I would open it up to you guys for a little Q&A. As you can expect here at BuzzMyBlog.com, I am going to do things a little differently though. I am going to answer some reader questions first. Then, instead of pretending to know all the answers, I am also going to reach out to you guys with some questions of my own. Sounds like fun, right?

Your Turn

Alex from the Commentator writes and asks:

I've been reading about the Rich Jerk. I've even contacted a few people who claim it works. My research essentially leads me to believe that it does work but it's info that is readily available. But for a useless newbie like me $10 is tempting. Any thoughts?

My response to Alex is as follows:

Hi Alex. I think your research is right on target - it probably is information that is already available. Whenever I see stuff like that, the first question I ask myself is "if he is making so much money, why does he need to sell his secrets for $10?".  I think in reality, he is making money by selling nothing but the promise of making money.

If you are serious about making money online, there is plenty of free information out there. JohnCow.com is in the middle of a month long competition with GarryConn.com to see who can make the most money. They are sharing everything they do with their readers - for free. Another good source of information is ZacJohnson.com, who does really well making money online. All three of these people I mention are very friendly and accessible. If you have any questions, you can just ask them.

Meeting people who are successful is the way that I prefer to learn things when it comes to anything online. Still, if you won't miss the $10.00 - go ahead and buy the Rich Jerk program. My guess is that you will eventually conclude that all the information is either obvious or freely available elsewhere.

My Turn 

I have been contacted a few time by Kontera who want me to try out in-text advertising on BuzzMyBlog.com. You've seen these before - they look like links but have a double underline under a few select keywords. When you mouse over these special links a little popup dialog appears with a links to paid advertising. As you may know, I am very careful about maintaining the integrity of my blog, so I am on the fence about trying this out. On one hand, it could be a good source of revenue without too much "in your face" advertising. On the other hand, I have heard that it slows down your blog and could affect other important things like PageRank. What do you guys think? Should I try it out? Have any of you had any experience with Kontera, good or bad? I suppose I could always give a test run and let you know how it works out. What are your thoughts? 

Thanks!

If you want to be included on a future edition of the Q&A (along with a nice link!) feel free to contact me with your questions.  

Jeff 

No...this is not one of those awesome Bartles & Jaymes commercials from 1986. I want to take a quick second to say a sincere thank you for all the wonderful emails I have received from my readers over the past few weeks. I have been totally up front and honest with everyone about not being an expert at blogging or making money online. Yet I continue to receive amazing emails from people asking advice or simply letting me know that they enjoy my blog. To me, these emails are definitely the most enjoyable part of blogging. And to that I say....Thank You For Your Support.

As I mentioned, I am by no means an expert. Yet if I can help out in any way, I am very happy to do so. Many of you may be familiar with my Ask A Pro feature here at Buzz My Blog, where I collect helpful tips from A List bloggers. I am not an A List blogger (not yet!), but since the emails keep coming in, I thought I would share some of them with the rest of you in a new category called Ask Jeff. I can't guarantee they will always be helpful, but if you want my honest opinions I am glad to offer them.

This email from Lori stood out in my inbox this morning. Lori is a very new blogger that wants to blog about the pleasures of writing. She writes:

Jeff, I have so enjoyed reading your blog site.  I actually wanted to do data enty for rebates and somehow stumbled onto this.  So, I really have no idea what I'm doing.  When asked what I wanted to blog about I chose writing for pleasure.  Now, I feel very silly, because I really don't know what I am doing.  I would appreciate you looking at my blog  http://writingforpleasure.blogtoolkit.com/  and tell me the truth....do you see any interst in this subject???  Thanks Jeff...I've learned more from reading your blog than anything I can find on adsense!!!  Lori

Wow! She learned more from reading my blog than anything she could find on AdSense! I'm surprised, but grateful for the comment. Thanks Lori! I was happy to give her a quick reply with my honest opinions. Here was my response to her:

Hi Lori!
I am glad you enjoy my blog. Getting emails like this from my readers is what I enjoy most about it. I hope to see you on my blog often.

I checked out your blog and it looks like you are just starting out. Good for you! The best piece of advice I could give you is to just stick with it. It is amazing how quickly you will pick things up just by doing it. Also, you will meet plenty of other bloggers along the way who can be a great help (like me, I hope!). The one thing that you really have going for you is that you chose a topic that really interests you. I cannot stress how important it is. Many people start blogging about topics that they have little interest in or don't know much about in hopes of making a quick buck. If you truly enjoy writing and reading, than stick with that topic and write about things that are important to you. There are millions of people out there who probably enjoy the same things. They will find your blog eventually.

If you enjoy reading books, you might consider offering book reviews on your blog. This has the potential to create a great discussion on your blog about the book you are reviewing (just don't spoil anything for anyone!). My wife was an Enligsh Lit major and she loves finding blogs with a good discussion on books. You can also sign up for the Affiliate Program at Amazon.com and get paid a commission for anyone that buys a book via a link from your blog! Why not make a few bucks, right?

As your blog grows, you might want to consider getting your own domain name and hosting plan. This gives you more control over your blog and allows you to customize it however you want. I am not familiar with BlogTookit, so I don't know how powerful it is. I do know that GoDaddy.com can get you set you up with a WordPress blog with your own domain (www.loriday.com might be available) in about 10 minutes for about $4.00 a month. Just FYI...WordPress is the platform that about 95% of bloggers use. Check out my BuzzWorthy Services page for links that might help.

Let me know if you ever have more questions. I'm happy to help if I can. Good luck with your blog!

Jeff

I hope my message was helpful to Lori. I appreciate her email so I was happy to respond. I appreciate everyones' email. Thank you again. Feel free to reach out to me if you ever have a question. I may not be the best person to ask, but if I can help in any way, I will.

Stay tuned for more exciting things here at BuzzMyBlog.com. Next week I will continue with my Blog Monetization series. Next week my goal is to publish steps 2 and 3. I hope you will check it out.

Have a great weekend!

Jeff