Review: Blog Writing Service - Water My Blog?

This is a Sponsored Post written by me. All opinions are 100% mine.

So you have a business, your website is going strong, and you’re working on your SEO and other marketing to get more traffic to your site and take your business to the next level.  You’ve heard that everyone needs to have a blog.  You’ve heard about all the benefits of blogging, from delivering valuable content to your users, customers, subscribers, etc. to improving your search engine rankings.  You’re sold on the benefits, but where are you going to find the time to crank out regular blog posts?  After all, one of the things you’ve learned is that the key to blogging successfully is providing quality content on a consistent basis.

This is the dilemma for a lot of people.  Blogging is a tremendous tool for your business, but it takes a focused effort and a lot of time that many of us just don’t have.  Add to that the fact that many people just aren’t writers and have a hard time coming up with interesting topics much less presenting them in an effective way, and it can all seem very overwhelming.  Well, fear not!  There is a solution to all these challenges, and it’s an easy, affordable solution that you can implement immediately.

Introducing WaterMyBlog.com
WaterMyBlog is a blog writing service like no other.  While it’s popular to hire virtual assistants, freelancers and ghost writers to fill blogging needs, all of those are missing a key element.  They’ll provide regular content, and it might even be written very well, but what are the chances these sources are SEO experts?  Pretty slim.  That’s what makes WaterMyBlog.com different.  This service provides quality blog posts based around your chosen key words, written in a way that serves to greatly enhance your SEO efforts.

How it works
Getting started with WaterMyBlog.com is easy.  First, you’ll provide them with the key words (5-10) you want to optimize for.  This is of course very important, because these words (topics) will end up being the focus of the blog posts they write.  If you need help determining the best key words to rank for, they have SEO experts on staff to help you out.  Next, they connect their software to your blog.  It works with all the popular blogging platforms, so no worries there.  This gives them the ability to directly upload your blog posts once they’re approved.  Once their software is integrated, their researchers get busy using their news aggregators to create a plan that will ensure your blog is relevant to readers and to the search engines.  After the research is done, all that’s left is writing your posts.  The writers at WaterMyBlog.com are called Gardeners, and they will use the information they’ve learned from the news aggregators to create quality, SEO-relevant posts, which will be submitted to you for approval.  If you want changes, you can edit the post yourself or ask for the changes you want.  Once it’s done to your satisfaction, your post will automatically be posted to your site.  It’s that easy!  You’ve saved tons of time while reaping all the benefits of adding outstanding blog content to your site.  And the pricing for all this is outstanding.  You’ll pay no more than $13 per post!  They also have some great promotions running right now, like a one-month free trial!

While they aren’t the solution I’d recommend for pro bloggers who make their living off their blog, WaterMyBlog.com is a great solution for anyone with a primary product or service looking to add a blogging component.  So if you understand all the benefits of adding a blog to your site but haven’t had the time to do it, or if you’re already blogging but are looking for an inexpensive way to free up all the time it’s taking you, OR if you just want to make sure your blogging efforts are paying off with proper SEO, take a look at WaterMyBlog.com.

How to Not Be a Twidiot - 4 Twitter Personas to Avoid

Do you have a Twitter account for your business?  If you said yes, good for you!  Twitter is an outstanding tool to connect with customers, drive traffic to your site, meet colleagues and industry experts, and much more.  In fact, when used properly, you can get more mileage out of Twitter than many paid marketing methods.  It’s that “when used properly” part that too often trips people up.  The only thing more surprising than the number of businesses not taking full advantage of this fantastic - FREE - tool, is the number of businesses doing it completely wrong.  Some businesses just need a little tweaking to perfect their Twitter efforts and really make them pay off.  And that makes sense.  Twitter isn’t something we’re born knowing how to master, and there is somewhat of a science/art to really getting it right.  On the other hand, some people are just Twidiots.  And while we’re sure none of our readers fall into this category, below is a rundown of four Twitter personas to avoid if you want your Twitter account to do you any good at all.

The Unfocused Aggregator
There are people who have made a living by being aggregators.  These are the accounts like @mashable and @Alltop who simply find articles, blog posts and interesting stuff out on the web and post it on their Twitter feed.  There isn’t necessarily a common theme or focus, and there doesn’t have to be - it’s what we expect from them - it’s their job.  On the other hand, there are Twitter users who claim to be consultants, bloggers, or “experts” in a particular area, and all they do is re-tweet other people’s stuff - with no particular focus.  A tweet of an article on saving the whales will be followed by a link to a recipe for ice cream and another tweet about making money in affiliate programs.  While it’s important to “mix it up” a bit and sometimes re-tweet relevant content, if you have a business, you ought to have something to say beyond just re-broadcasting other people’s stuff.

The Ghost
Perhaps the most perplexing persona out there is the ghost.  What’s amazing is that some of these accounts with no bio and few or no tweets at all have thousands of followers.  An argument against the auto-followback perhaps.

The Deadbeat
You’re busy.  We know that.  But if you’re going to have a Twitter account at all, you might want to tweet something out more often than every few months.  Twitter works when you work it.  The great thing is that with tools like HootSuite, Ping.fm, and CoTweet, you can automate a certain amount of the process, so you don’t get stuck for hours a day making it work.  In fact, an hour or so per week is all it really has to take, so there really is no excuse for not capitalizing on Twitter’s potential.

The Self-Centered Seller
Want to appear obnoxious and really turn off your followers?  Take on the persona of the self-centered seller.  Like a cheesy, pushy salesman at a networking event, this Twitter amateur only talks about himself and is only interested in pushing whatever he has to sell on whoever happens to be listening.  These people absolutely do not understand what Twitter is all about.  With no interest in building relationships or adding substance to the conversation, their Twitter feeds are broken records of “Click my link and buy my stuff” over and over and over.  It’s not only unprofessional and obnoxious, but it doesn’t work, so it’s pointless.

There are a few other personas that don’t work well on Twitter, but these are some of the most common.  What really works is having the desire to connect and build relationships.  If that’s in your mind while creating your Twitter persona, you can’t go wrong.  What has worked - or not worked - for you?  Share with everyone in the comments!

3 Things You Thought Mattered - And What Really Matters

There’s no denying that the Internet, including Social Media, has significantly changed the way people do business.  The attitudes of customers as a whole have shifted, and the power is moving into the hands of those customers more and more every day.  While some of the changes brought about by the move to online communications are more obvious than others, what’s clear is that the companies that will thrive going forward are those that learn to adapt their thinking as the business world changes.  If you’re a student of old-school business and marketing, you might still be clinging to some outdated beliefs about what’s important in your business.  To help illustrate the shift we’re talking about and provide some pointers on how to deal with the changes, following are three things that just don’t matter as much as they used to, and what really matters today.

1. Quality - What? Quality doesn’t matter?  Of course it does.  Quality is more of an expectation now though.  What that means is that you can no longer tout your product or service’s quality as the primary reason for doing business with your company.  You need to go beyond quality.

2. Price - Like quality, price is certainly important to some extent, but competing on price alone just won’t cut it.  If you’re the low-price leader, and that’s all you’ve got going for you, you’re in trouble.  With advances in manufacturing processes and the continued move to inexpensive, overseas solutions, “cheap” is easier to come by than true differentiation.

3. Testimonials - Have some customers who love you?  Guess what - so does your competition.  While there’s nothing wrong with displaying testimonials on your site, don’t expect them to be the thing that swings customers your way.  First of all, we’ve all become a little distrusting of testimonials.  Secondly, customers know that testimonials from a company are like references on your resume: You’re only going to list those you know have something great to say, so how much do they really matter?

What matters today…

1. Simplicity - Customers want processes to be simple.  This goes for every step of the customer experience, from ordering to paying, from shipping to customer service issues.  Make things too complicated, whether it’s with your order process or how people use your product, and they’ll go elsewhere.

2. Innovation - More strides in innovation have taken place in the past 20 years than in the previous 100, and we’re all eating it up.  People love the latest and greatest, and if it makes them look cool, all the better.  If your products and processes offer a new or better way of doing things, you’ll attract customers and keep them coming back for more.

3. Honesty - One word that has become more than just another buzzword lately is “transparency.”  It’s no secret that our current economic condition is at least in part due to a lack of transparency, and people are fed up with it.  Even a hint of impropriety or dishonesty will have your potential customers running for the hills.  People have always wanted to be treated with honesty, but today more than ever, they’re demanding it, and looking out for any chinks in the integrity armor.

4. Straight Talk - This goes along with honesty, but it’s a little different.  Straight talk has to do with getting rid of all the games that companies often play.  For example, when a guarantee or discount is offered, but the little asterisk next to the headline refers to a litany of conditions, restrictions, and limitations, it quickly deflates any excitement the original offer created.  This also goes back to the simplicity point.  Straight, simple talk is what will win customers over now, not perceived tricks and scams.

The companies that survive and thrive in the economy of today and the years to come will be able to identify these and other changes in public wants and needs and adjust their game plans accordingly.  Those that can’t or aren’t willing to adapt on the fly will simply go away.  It’s survival of the fittest, and the fittest in business are those who evolve the most efficiently.  What are your thoughts?  We’d love to continue the conversation in the comments section!

20 Tips for Writing Great AdWords Copy

Make no mistake. Copywriting is the glue that holds an AdWords campaign together. You can have the right keywords, place the right bids, and even have great products and services, but if you don’t have powerful copy, your campaign stands little chance of being successful.

When it comes to writing AdWords copy, there are 2 main components: copy for the ads and copy for the landing pages. Below, you’ll find 20 tips that will help you improve your copy so you can get more clicks and more conversions.

PPC Ads

1.       Use strong words- Searchers need to be snapped out of their passivity. You need to sell them some sizzle. Use powerful words that grab their attention, like: free, guaranteed, discover, today, limited time, improve, increase, exclusive, and you.

2.       Place keywords in the right spots- When you include keywords in your ads, the keywords searched for will be bolded in your ad copy. This allows your ad to get noticed. Include keywords in your headline, ad copy, and even display URL.

3.       Sell the benefits- The only thing customers want to know is what’s in it for them. How does your product or service benefit them? Explain this clearly and briefly.

4.       Have a strong call to action- Searchers need to be motivated to click on your ad. Simply put, you need to tell them what to do. Your call to action should be simple and clear, like “Get Your FREE Consultation Now!”

5.       Include your USP- What makes you different from the competition? What’s the one reason people should buy from you? Focus on your unique characteristics to make your ad different.

6.       Harness the power of ellipses- Those 3 simple dots can entice readers to click on your ad to get more information. For example, “Read This Before You Hire a Houston Electrician…”

7.       Try keyword-rich display URLs-I mentioned it earlier, but it’s worth repeating. Instead of using a generic URL, try putting the target keyword in there, like this: www.yoursite.com/keyword. I’ve seen many split tests where this simple change garnered a lot more clicks.

8.       Include seasonal offers- Seasonal headlines make your ad feel current and relevant. They also create a sense of urgency. Even if your product isn’t seasonal, you can still use this technique effectively. “Home AC Installation Memorial Day Sale. Free install on all orders.”

9.       Ask a compelling question- A question can grab the searcher’s attention and help make your ad more interactive. “What’s the secret to making $10,000 in 2 weeks?” Or “Want to get out of debt fast?”

10.   Always be testing- Never stop testing out different versions of your ads. The smallest changes can make the biggest impact.

Landing Pages

1.       Start with a strong headline- The headline is the first thing someone sees after clicking on your ad. This is your chance to hook the new visitor and to keep them moving forward to conversion.

2.       What is a conversion?-Speaking of conversion, what do you consider a conversion? Do you want people to place an order now? Do you want them to schedule an appointment? Sign up for your newsletter? Identify this action so you can measure the results of your AdWords campaign.

3.       Keep your call to action short and clear-Now that you know what you want people to do when they come to your landing page, you need to tell them to do so. Conversion determines call to action. Also, try repeating the call to action about once every screen view so that people can always take action no matter where they are on your page.

4.       Use bullet points to highlight key benefits-Online users tend to scan content rather than read it word for word. By placing the most important information in bullet points, you make it easy for the reader to instantly see what’s in it for them.

5.       Place the most important information above the fold-According to a recent Nielsen study, people spend about 80% of their time above the fold on websites. In other words, they don’t like to scroll down. So, put your offer up top where everyone sees it immediately.

6.       Start paragraphs with main idea-To further accommodate scanners, you should start each paragraph with the most important information. This helps to put the key points up front, rather than burying them where most people won’t read them.

7.       Include testimonials- Online customers have their scam detectors turned all the way up. They don’t trust you. But they do trust their fellow customers. Use testimonials from satisfied customers to gain credibility.

8.       Eliminate risk-Again, customers are always fearing they’ll be scammed and ripped off. That’s why you need to remove as much risk as possible. Offer a strong money-back guarantee that helps them feel they have nothing to lose.

9.       Beware of choice paralysis-Too many choices actually cause the customer to get overwhelmed, making no choice at all. Don’t give landing page visitors a lot of options. Keep it simple!

10.   Always be testing-Just like with your ads, landing pages also need to be tested. Try testing out slight tweaks to see what you can do to get more conversions.

What are some other AdWords copywriting tips you’d add to this list? Share your best tactics by leaving a comment.

Great Royalty Free Images - Why They Matter, and Where to Get Them

We’ve all heard the cliché, “A picture is worth a thousand words.”  While it’s an overused phrase, the reason it’s used so much is that it’s absolutely true.  Pictures communicate to us better than words alone can.  They elicit feelings and emotion; they can explain complex concepts at a glance; and they can make an otherwise boring website come alive.  That’s why many of the best and most professional blogs you find will include a picture with each post.  Finding the right picture to go with your articles might add a few minutes to the time it takes you to create a post, but the extra time is well worth it.

There are some important guidelines to remember when choosing images for you site or blog though.  If you want to make an impact, not just any image will do, and there are legal considerations to take into account as well.  While it’s not always easy to find the right image to go with a post or page on your site, taking a little time to make a conscious decision about your images is important.  Some titles lend themselves to easily finding an image.  For example, a title like, “10 Great iPhone Apps,” would be easy to find an image for.  Just look for a good picture of an iPhone!  But even then, a picture of an iPhone with the screen full of apps communicates your post’s message better than a guy holding an iPhone might.

As for legal considerations, it’s important to know that not every image out there on the net is fair game.  In fact, unless you have express permission to use an image (permission from the actual owner of the image), it’s not ok to post it on your site.  There is a misconception by some that as long as you give credit somewhere on the page, you’re in the clear.  This is not the case.  In some cases, an image owner who has shared an image on a photo-sharing site, like Flickr, will attach a creative commons license to his or her photo and specifically say that it can be used with attribution (credit given).  This is the only case where a simple mention of the image owner is enough to make its use legal.  In other cases, an image owner in the same situation will give full rights, without attribution, which allows you to use the image freely in whatever way you want.  This is more unusual, and the images you find with this kind of license aren’t always very useful, but they do exist.

The bottom line on image permissions is that you can only use an image on your site in one of three cases:

1. You have express permission from the image owner. (Might or might not require attribution)
2. You purchased the right to use the image.
3. You are the image owner because you took the picture (or created the graphic).

Note: Even in the first two cases, there might be restrictions as to how you can use an image (i.e. commercial use vs. personal use), so watch out for that as well.

Ok, so now that we’re clear that images are important and what’s ok and not ok legally, where do you find great images for your site?  There are a lot of free and paid sources to consider for quality images. Here are some of the best:

Paid Sites

iStockphoto - iStockphoto is the internet’s original member-generated image and design community. You get easy, affordable inspiration with millions of safe, royalty-free photographs, and more.  You have the option of signing up for a subscription, or using their pay-as-you-go plan.  Generally, images will end up costing you from $.99 each and up, depending on the image size and your plan.

Shutterstock - Shutterstock is the service we use for Blogtrepreneur.com, and our sister site, YoungEntrepreneur.com.  They boast being the largest subscription-based stock photo agency in the world, and they provide a massive library of high-quality, unique images.  You have a choice of their 25-a-day subscription, which allows you to download up to 25 images of any size each day (costing as little as $.33 per image on the one-month plan, if you max it out for one month), or you can choose their on-demand plan, which will end up costing you about $4 - $10 an image, depending on your needs.

Corbis - This site is a little more artsy and fairly pricy.  They have a very attractive UI, for what that’s worth, but you’ll pay from $15 and up per image and a lot more if you plan to use the image in print.  Rather than a subscription model, you pay per image, and the fee varies widely, depending on how you plan to use the image.  If you’re publishing a magazine or a site where you want celebrity images or very high-end graphics, Corbis might be a good match.

Getty Images - Getty is the leading provider of digital media worldwide.  Like Corbis, they charge by the image, and for royalty-free images (the kind you’ll most likely want to use), you’ll pay upwards of $10 for a small image (170 px square) and $25 or more for a 230 px + image.  The only advantage to Getty is that they have very high quality images, and a lot of them.

Free Sites

Flickr Creative Commons - If you don’t want to pay for images and don’t mind weeding through a lot of pics to find the right one, Flickr’s creative commons area is a great resource.  They list six degrees of creative commons licenses with explanations of each.  With as many as 40 million+ images for a given license type, you’ll surely be able to find something worth using.  Be careful though. If an image looks like it’s a pro shot, it might not actually belong to the person who uploaded it, and you might get a nasty email from the actual owner!

Stock.XCHNG - This site was recently bought by Getty Images but has been around since 2001. They offer free stock images of pretty good quality.  It will be more difficult to find just the right image on SXC than on one of the paid sites, and the images are generally from amateur photographers and illustrators, but you might have an easier time than sifting through a million results on Flickr.

Google and Yahoo image search - Here’s where you have to be careful.  You’ll find millions of results for any image subject you’re looking for on both Google and Yahoo, but chances are, you won’t have permission to use them.  If you do find a great image using this method, try asking the site owner where the image is displayed if you can use it.  As long as they’re the actual owner of the image, they might not have an issue with it and just ask that you give them credit.

Hopefully this post gives you some good ideas and resources for adding images to your site and blog.  There are a lot of other image resources out there too.  Which ones do you use?  Share them with us in the comments!

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