Friday, 5 December 2014
Wednesday, 3 December 2014
5 U.S Bloggers Who Have Made Millions From Their Blogs
As the popularity of online information sites increases, many people have been able to make a lot of money from compiling a blog. The money usually comes from advertising on the site so that people who read the blog will see the ads.
In fact, so much advertising has been moved to blogs and content web sites that many newspapers are finding it increasingly difficult to attract the amount of advertising that they once did.
Many people are abandoning traditional print forms of media and getting all of their news and information from blogs and other news websites.
Meet The Bloggers
Here are just some of the people who have made a lot of bucks by blogging ...
Pete Cashmore – Mashable.com
Pete Cashmore focused on his home town of Aberdeen in 2005. Now he has followers on Facebook and Twitter and is reportedly in talks with CNN and amounts of up to $200 million have been rumored.
Perez Hilton – PerezHilton.com
Perez Hilton’s blog on celebrity gossip has 300 million hits each month and he is making big money indeed.
Ariana Huffington – HuffingtonPost.com
Adriana Huffington’s more traditional news site blog is proof that news is still popular, but that it has moved from print to online.
John Chow – JohnChow.com
John Chow runs a blog showing people how he makes money online, his blog attracts over 200,000 users per month and reportedly generates him over $40,000
Brock Hamilton – 101WaysToMakeMoney.com
Brock Hamilton started a blog in 2010 called 101waystomakemoney.com and built it up until it was generating upwards of $50,000 to $60,000 per month in revenue. He then sold it for an undisclosed 7 figure sum.
Of course there are thousands of blogs out there that make little or no money, but this list just goes to show you what is possible with the right combination of a good idea and the persistence to see it through.
What are you waiting for?
If you want part of the advertising action that is being spent on the web start thinking about creating your own blog today and research ways of getting advertising. Of course a niche market is always best - think of a passion or topic you would love to write about and create a domain name, sign up for web hosting and for under $20 you could be on your way to your first million dollars ...
Monday, 1 December 2014
A Great Name Tells You More Than Just What The Company Does ...
When naming something, it is
human nature to want to describe what you are naming. This is, of
course, the most direct route to relevance.
Many
historic and well-known companies have names that describe what they do or
make. For example: International Business Machines, Minnesota Mining and
Manufacturing and Kentucky Fried Chicken. While these descriptive names may
have brought comfort to those who did the naming, the names were
short lived. All three of the mentioned examples have now turned to acronyms:
IBM, 3M and KFC.
Instead
of considering names that simply describe the brand, find ways to creatively
think about how a brand behaves. A relevant name can convey a brand’s engaging
personality, express something interesting about the product or service, or it
can be geared toward the intended audience and relate to cultural contexts.
Take, for
example, Puma. It’s a name that symbolizes the idea of strength and speed. This
helps connect the audience with these symbolic ideas rather than with a brand
name that only evokes shoes.
Brands
that only communicate functional benefits using descriptive names miss an
opportunity to develop a stronger bond with customers. A strong, insightful
name tells a story that metaphorically relates to the product or company.
To get
past the desire for a descriptive name and step into a creative zone, here are
some suggestions to get through the pain of relevance:
1.
Consider names that are suggestive of what the brand does or its
philosophy, instead of attempting to describe exactly what the brand will do.
2. Look
at modern brand names and consider them first as words, and then as brand
names. How does “Apple” describe computer hardware, music or cell
phones?
3. Add an
appropriate descriptor after the brand name to make it feel more natural and
comfortable in the early stages of using the name. For example, “Apple
Computers.” Then, when the brand grows up, the descriptor can be dropped.
4. Say
the name to people to get their reaction. Are they curious, offended, confused,
intrigued? If they are left with a desire to know more, the brand name is on
the right track. If they are bored, confused or offended, the name may require
more thought.
When
stepping into the creative zone, keep in mind that a great name does more than
communicate what the thing is or even convey its personality. It sets the
foundation for the customer relationship, establishes leadership and separates
the business from the competition. Naming is both the art and science of
knowing the origin and esoteric meanings of words, the emotional reactions to
certain sounds and the visual expression of a name.
If, in
the end, it’s still a struggle to find a brand name with a suggestive or even
arbitrary name, remember that a brand changes over time and as it takes on new
attributes, whatever name is chosen, it will eventually fit with how the brand
evolves over time.
Friday, 28 November 2014
Conquering Fear To Start Your Own Business ...
In just 3 minutes, marketing expert Seth Godin explains why we are programmed to fear failure ... and that the only person stopping you from starting your own business is YOU ...
Wednesday, 26 November 2014
Selling Is About Human Connection ...
The thing I found the most interesting about his approach to getting more business, was that it focused much more on getting 'out there', nurturing relationships, interacting with people face to face, putting energy into actively marketing your business offline, as well as online.
He talked a lot about your energy representing you and that is it your energy and your passion that people will buy in to. He said "selling is about human connection". You don't always get that online !
He also said that if you want your business to grow more, you've got to make room for it ...
It is important to be laser focused and to say no to things that are not the best use of your time. Delegate jobs that you don't need to do, or are not your strengths or just drain you.
And invest time in your existing clients - that is where most of your referrals will come from.
Check out his business growth programme at www.thebusinessbooster.co.uk
Monday, 24 November 2014
Wear The 'Failure Scars' With Pride
So many great speakers at the Southampton Business Show last week. If you are starting up in business, or want to grow your business, I think it's really important to look to others who are already doing what you want to do. If you can get a mentor - fantastic - but at the very least grab every opportunity to get inspiration from those who have made the journey, made the mistakes, worked through the tough bits and are now willing to share their stories, tips, advice and experience.
Brad Burton walked out of his job £25,000 in debt. He started up a marketing business, but had to deliver pizzas at night to keep the business afloat. Nine years on he is the founder and Managing Director of 4Networking, an award winning author of three business books and a sought-after motivational speaker.
The keys bits of advice he shared with us were :
- Work at 100% - most of us are actually operating at around 50%
- Believe in yourself 100%
- Insufficient funds when starting a business is OK ... insufficient desire is NOT !!
- Your past does not define you, don't keep living that story
- Making mistakes is fine and, ultimately, they are what will enable you to be successful, so ....
- Wear the scars with pride, and
- Keep focused on your destination - both in life and in business
Make today a great day !
Thursday, 20 November 2014
Think Running A Business Is Tough ? Imagine Losing Your Eyesight Whilst Setting Up Your First Company ....
I attended the Southampton Business Show yesterday - and what an inspiring (and informative) day it was. I managed to get along to 8 of the 10 talks ... and had the pleasure of hearing inspirational entrepreneur Liz Jackson MBE share her extraordinary story from start-up to appearing on Channel 4's 'Secret Millionaire'. She lost her eyesight whilst setting up her first company, Great Guns Marketing, but did not lose her vision to become a success in business and to make a difference.
She said that "achieving big dreams means stepping outside the comfort zone, doing things you haven't done before, to get results you haven't got before !
She also said it is important to start every day with your glass half full. She starts every single morning by thanking God for all the wonderful things she has in her life.
And her three top tips for entrepreneurs were :
DON'T RELY ON LUCK - there is no such thing ! Concentrate on what you can do and what you have - not on what you can't do and don't have.
GRAB OPPORTUNITIES - and don't let go. Don't quit. Learn from your mistakes and grow. Sometimes it will be painful, it is not for the faint hearted.
DON'T BE A 'NEARLY' PERSON - and she told a story of a man at a networking meeting who said to her "me & the wife nearly bought a boat last year and sailed around the world". "But" she said "he didn't. He didn't buy a boat. He didn't sail around the world. And one year later he's still telling people about something he DIDN'T do" !
Make sure you start every day with a glass half full, and make today a great day ...
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