ClickNewz! Internet Marketing Blog » Online Reviews

This Woman Is Crazy!

Lynn Terry — Sat, 10 Dec 2011 02:04:55 +0000

Yes, I’m referring to Nicole Dean (left). And when I say she’s crazy, I mean crazy good at what she does.

I’ve had the pleasure of getting to know her as a friend, and spent time with her offline. But I also study what she does online, and take EVERY opportunity to pick her brain.

There are two things I want to share with you. And you may be aware of them both, but if so – I’m not sure if you’ve taken action on them yet? Either way, you’re sure to take something away from this quick note…

First, she’s an awesome affiliate program manager. That’s because she used to be a professional Affiliate Manager. If you haven’t yet signed up for her program (her products are awesome, by the way!) you can check it out here:

www.ilovemyaffiliates.com

Two things: she’s GOOD to her affiliates. You’ll be well taken care of, and recommending quality products. AND, she sets a GREAT example of how to run an affiliate program. So if you have an affiliate program of your own and are looking for some pointers on how to communicate with your affiliates (to increase sales)… get on her affiliate list and pay close attention.

The other thing I wanted to share with you is that she has a course on blogging that is only $17. It’s called Blog CPR. Nicole has more than 7 profitable blogs, and if you follow any of them – you’ve seen firsthand how great she is at putting out good content (and monetizing it!).

If you’re struggling with your blog, I highly recommend you check it out.

$17 is a small investment for turning things around and getting more traffic and revenue. Check out the Blog CPR web page and decide for yourself. You’ll really enjoy the content, and you’ll be learning from someone that is actually DOING what they teach. (Which is rare.)

I know some of you are already affiliates for Nicole Dean, and some of you have taken her Blog CPR course. I would love to hear your thoughts on both or either. If you had to name just ONE thing you’ve learned from Nicole, what would it be?

Best,

p.s. There are no affiliate links in this post. Yes, I’ve lost my mind. LOL.

Video Marketing Problem: Solved.

Lynn Terry — Mon, 31 Oct 2011 13:18:01 +0000

You’ve probably heard it many times before – YouTube is the number two search engine behind the mighty Google.

When you compare the amount of content on YouTube vs. what you’ll find for any given search term on Google, there is really no comparison: being found on YouTube is wayyy easier than Google.

Video Marketing should be a strong part of any online marketing strategy to bring traffic to your offer or website. Period.

If YouTube tells us one thing it’s that people love to watch videos.

And they love sharing them too…

Also, video info products are certainly the most popular digital products around so, if you are a product creator, you should definitely be making videos.

And then there’s marketing. Video sales letters found at the top of a text sales letter are the one-two marketing punch which enables you to satisfy the lookers and the readers all in one fell swoop.

But there’s just one problem – videos are a pain to make!

It’s technical, and if you’ve ever made any of your own videos you know exactly what I’m talking about…

My friend Oliver, who I met a couple years ago at a marketing seminar, has done us all a huge favor. His first career was in the film and TV business in Toronto, before he became a copywriter. Fate smiled on Oliver when video marketing became popular in the last few years – he was suddenly able to combine his previous career with his present one by making marketing videos for his clients.

“I love putting on a show,” says Oliver. “That’s what marketing is for me – getting people to engage with the content and then giving them an irresistible call to action.”

Oliver uses a specific video making process for online videos that can be used for YouTube videos, affiliate marketing, membership site content, launch videos, and video sales letters.

“Most video courses are too technical and it takes too long to finally make a video. I know people hate technical stuff and they want their cool video playing online yesterday – so in Speedy Web Videos, I just tell the user exactly what to do to get professional results quickly. And by that I mean the exact settings on the software so that there’s never any guessing.

Also, I use cheap software and there are many free software options that I tell you about. I offer free support but I hardly ever get anybody asking questions because the instructions are very clear and very easy to follow for the video newbie.

Once you follow the Speedy Web Videos workflow a couple of times, it becomes second nature and you can produce super cool videos any time you like, for any purpose be it marketing or premium content.”

Thank you, Oliver!

Another thing I like is that Oliver does not drip the content. You get it all right away and this gives you the opportunity to see if it’s right for you, so there’s zero risk. (Oliver tells me he’s never had a refund!)

“I think people see the value right away and it’s a done deal because with one look, Speedy Web Videos is clearly a fast and easy way to produce cool videos within a couple days of purchase.”

What I Really Like About Speedy Web Videos

I’ve had several types of video marketing on my mind lately. From how-to screencasts to a video podcast series, and even photo slideshows (for the travel part of my new niche blog).

Speedy Web Videos couldn’t have come at a better time for me! After checking it out, here are a few things I personally love about Oliver’s SWV training:

I know and trust Oliver (and know how good he is at videos!)
You never have to get in front of a camera to make awesome marketing videos.
You can use all FREE software to create these videos.
It’s CHEAP! The entire training series is only $37

Oliver is not just some guy who learned how to make great videos and then created a tutorial about it. He went to film school and has over 10 years experience in the industry, including award winning videos.

Video Marketing Ideas include: membership content, book trailers, product reviews & promotions, video podcast, high value info products you can sell, how-to videos that serve your market and encourage product sales.

There are tons of higher priced courses out there on Video Marketing. Does that make them better? Not necessarily. Check out Speedy Web Videos to see what all you get for only $37 – and to see live examples – you’ll be impressed!

And of course there’s a Satisfaction Guarantee. I’m off to dig in to some more of the training videos myself, so I can finally get my list of video content ideas DONE…

Also See: Free Video Marketing Tutorial

Best,

Checklist: Daily Affiliate Tasks

Lynn Terry — Tue, 13 Sep 2011 23:03:02 +0000

Last month I signed up for Susanne Myers Daily Affiliate Task. She’s a niche affiliate marketer, and had great success online outside the IM niche well before she started sharing her methods publicly.

Susanne has been doing Affiliate Marketing for 7 years, and earning a full-time income for more than 5 years.

The purpose of Daily Affiliate Task is to allow you to watch over her shoulder and see exactly what she does and how she does it.

Knowing that we all do things differently, I was interested to check out Susanne’s checklists and methods myself.

I’m always studying other marketer’s strategies and examples for new ideas to test. When I saw that she was practically giving it away for only $10/month, I thought I’d share this with you – along with a detailed review…

The main goal behind DAT (Daily Affiliate Tasks) is to help you consistently work on your business at least 30 minutes a day. And as I’ve discussed recently, this type of consistency in your online business is KEY.

DAT is for people that already have a website/blog up & running, and preferably a mailing list, but she does give you a bonus PDF in Week 4 on how to set one up.

Daily Affiliate Tasks – What To Expect

Each week, starting on the day you sign up, you receive a PDF File for that week’s daily tasks. The weekly task lists are given in an order that makes sense, working from one step to the next with each week’s new tasks.

For example, Week One was about content creation ideas and came with a checklist and planning sheet. Week Two is about promoting that content, telling you how and giving you daily tasks to get it done. In each download she gives you creative ideas, the WHY behind what she does, and also resources she uses herself.

So far I have found Susanne’s Daily Affiliate Task to be a great product for those who need help staying on task with their affiliate marketing. And it’s super affordable! Like I said, each week comes with a task list so you can stay on track.

The key is to download the file she sends you each week, and commit to the simple checklist provided. You’ll get to follow the exact same steps Susanne has followed (and still uses) that helped her make a full time income online in Affiliate Marketing for the last 5 years.

There’s nothing complicated about it. There’s no rocket science to anything that Susanne does, or that I do myself, to make our websites profitable and successful. It’s all in consistency, and in doing a few simple things that *every* blogger or website owner should be doing.

Unfortunately most people quit at “a little of this” and “a little of that” and blame their lack of success on anything from scams to bad niche selection.

If you want something to follow, something to keep you accountable to becoming consistent with your site growth & marketing strategy, Daily Affiliate Task is for you.

I’ve enjoyed watching over Susanne’s shoulder and seeing the different ways she works on her affiliate sites. Like I said, we all do things differently, so it’s cool to pick up tips & ideas from others that are doing well online too.

GeoSurf Review: The GeoTargeting Toolbar

Lynn Terry — Mon, 12 Sep 2011 14:52:12 +0000

This week I had the opportunity to check out GeoSurf, which has quite a few interesting features. It allows you to surf by location, for GeoTargeting, which is great for local ad campaign management among other things.

Another interesting feature is the Mobile Emulator, allowing you to view your website – or your ad campaigns – from a variety of mobile devices. All from the comfort of your home office. Or in my case, from the laptop on my back deck.

There are several great uses for GeoSurf such as monitoring targeted Facebook Ad campaigns, or viewing Search Results & PPC ads based on specific locations…

I started by installing the GeoSurf Toolbar for Firefox, which only took a few seconds:

Most interesting to me personally was the change in organic Google search results based on your location. For example, using a post on my niche site, without the toolbar I rank at #6 and #10 for “julian bakery review” in Google. If I change the location to San Diego, CA my post is not in the Top 10 results at all.

But I still rank in the Top 10 for “low carb bread review” here, in New York AND in San Diego. The difference? Julian Bakery is located near San Diego (in La Jolla).

The toolbar works super fast, making it easy (and fun!) to switch between countries or states and view the various results.

Inside GeoSurf you’ll find a variety of options. The image to the left shows you the navigation from your admin panel.

The mobile emulator allows you to see what your sites or pages look like on various mobile devices – from a Droid 2 to an iPad or a Blackberry.

Not only can you see how your pages display (and that Google +1 buttons don’t appear on mobile devices – but that’s another post/rant for another day, lol), but you can also view mobile ad campaigns.

GeoSurf has proxy servers in 80+ global locations, and most impressive is the speed and security of the service. It’s particularly useful for Local Marketing, monitoring & profiling your competitors, and researching new geotargets.

The toolbar is ideal for media buyers that target different locations with variations to ad campaigns. Until GeoSurf, while possible it was very difficult to double check that your ad campaign targeting the UK linked to the correct landing page with the payment option in pounds. And that your campaign targeting the US linked the payment funnel for US dollars. GeoSurf allows you to catch these errors that you otherwise wouldn’t be able to see from your home location.

GeoSurf Pricing

They have a free trial if you want to give it a whirl. Plans start at $29/month, but that Starter Plan only allows you one location for proxy surfing. The Basic Plan, at $59/month, offers you three.

GeoSurf is ideal for Local Marketing experts that provide services to clients, as well as marketers and affiliates that geo-target ad campaigns. If you do any type of geo-targeting at all, for yourself or for local clients, it would be well worth the price.

While I don’t currently do any geo-targeting, I have to admit that GeoSurf was fun to play with! Especially to analyze certain search results, and also to see the various Adsense ads that display for different locations – and even countries.

Enlightening to say the least!

Your Thoughts?

If you’ve tried GeoSurf yourself, I would love to hear your thoughts. How are you using it, and what do you like most about it? If you haven’t yet tried GeoSurf, what interests you most about this type of proxy surfing, and how would you most likely use it to improve your online marketing strategy?

Best,

This post was sponsored by GeoSurf. If you are interested in sponsoring a post on ClickNewz about your website or product, contact me for details.

The Blogger’s Guide to Online Marketing

Lynn Terry — Fri, 02 Sep 2011 13:26:33 +0000

Have you heard all the buzz about the new release by Problogger this week, titled The Blogger’s Guide to Online Marketing?

It just came out this week, and it is currently on sale for 50% off during this initial release phase.

I decided to check it out. Given the discounted price and everything it includes, it was too good to pass up.

This is great timing (!) because as you know I have recently taken an interest in finding ways to better connect with my market and with brands on my new niche affiliate blog.

This guide is right on target – helping you dig deep into your brand, your niche, your customers and your competitors. It also covers the best ways to connect with brands & advertisers for long term profitable relationships…

Practical 31-Step Guide to Marketing Your Blog

The Blogger’s Guide to Online Marketing was written by the Web Marketing Ninja, a big part of Darren Rowse’s Problogger team. In addition to the guide, you’ll find that it’s actually bundled as an entire blog marketing kit – complete with a library of 21 templates and examples for hands-on application of the strategies you’ll learn.

I’m actually mentioned in it – twice!
That was an unexpected surprise.
You’ll find those mentions on pages 7 and 77.

Want to dramatically improve your blog’s traffic & revenue?

If you aren’t making money with your blog now, you should be after putting these 31 steps into practice. But this guide isn’t JUST for newbies. In fact, I purchased it myself – and I’ve been blogging for 8 years now (as of August 2011).

Is this kit for you? It’s for you if…

You’re interested in monetizing your blog(s).
You want to take things to the next level in your business.
You’re looking for fresh ideas to market your blog & increase revenue.

It’s no secret that Internet Marketing practices change every day. But many of the strategies in this guide, like: writing your elevator pitch (important!), selling to and managing your advertisers, organizing and planning products & promotions, making PR contacts, and more – will never go out of date.

Would I recommend this guide? Yes!

I love the way this guide (and kit) is laid out. There are 31 steps, and it’s similar to Darren’s 31 Days to Build a Better Blog where you could follow along for 31 days if you wanted to do it that way. Each chapter is very detailed with tips, examples and specific steps to build a more profitable business with your blog.

They have really over-delivered with a huge resource library that comes with the guide. In the resource library you’ll find:

Affiliate Performance Measurement Tool
Sales Page Templates
A Product Planning Worksheet
Product Launch Checklist
Mind Map
JV Email Template
PR Email Templates
… and a lot more!

It’s all about understanding your market, your brand – and how your market perceives you. This is core marketing strategy that many “marketing guides” skip over altogether. Arguably the most important aspects of your business, and what makes the difference between “blog” and “blah”.

(You know exactly what I’m talking about – it’s that “stuff” that makes some blogs take off, while others never do!)

As I mentioned earlier, the timing couldn’t be better for me personally. My newest niche affiliate blog is coming up on it’s 90 day anniversary in a few short weeks. At only 2 1/2 months, it’s already doing GREAT – in profit, traffic is steadily growing, seeing nice social media interaction, etc. That said, I know I’m missing some key things that could help me really take it up a notch or two. I aim to dig into this guide and see how I can apply these professional strategies to my new business.

Yes I’ve been blogging for 8 years, and do very well with it, but that’s because I am always learning.

My advice: don’t just read this guide and look over the resources. Take Action on each of the lessons, and move on from one to the next at your own pace.

By putting what you learn into practice (as you go!) you’ll be able to make dramatic improvements in shorter time.

If you’re ready to take your blog to the next level, and dramatically increase your traffic & revenue, be sure to download a copy of The Blogger’s Guide to Online Marketing (and the complete kit) while it’s on sale for 50% off…

Click here to see an outline of the topics & the resources included:

As I work through this guide, and all of the tools & templates it comes with, I’ll be sharing updates & ideas with you here. If you’re reading along on your end, we can brainstorm ideas & share results together!

I would love to hear your thoughts on this guide, and all of the resources included with it, once you’ve had a chance to check it all out…

Best,

p.s. Click Here To Get Started The price will increase soon, by double (!), so make sure you get this entire Blog Marketing guide & kit while it’s still on sale

Review: Get Rich Click by Marc Ostrofsky

Lynn Terry — Fri, 05 Aug 2011 14:03:35 +0000

ClickBank recently sent me a copy of Get Rich Click!: The Ultimate Guide to Making Money on the Internet by Marc Ostrofsky.

It looked like a good read, and I’m always on the lookout for a book I can recommend to my offline friends that are interested in learning more about making money online.

I flipped through it, and my first impressions were that it was very well organized and easy to read.

It has a nice clean layout, includes QR codes – all the makings of a book I expected I would really enjoy and probably recommend.

I enjoyed the introduction, and even reading all the endorsements – many of which were written by people I know. A good sign, right? So far so good.

When I first started reading Get Rich Click I settled right in and really liked it. I got creative ideas left and right during the first chapter, less from the content and more from the topic – which was “the get rich click mindset”…

But then, after such a great start and with creative inspiration flowing, the second chapter just completely lost my attention. I had started Chapter 2 on my flight to Colorado Springs, and I admit I was a bit tired, so I went back and read it again just to be sure. The topic was “Reverse E-Commerce”, which is not a model I’m fond of.

Chapter Two

Reverse E-Commerce basically means selling products or services you don’t actually have on hand. One of the examples was to go to a flea market or wholesale warehouse and take photos of products, then list them online at eBay and Craigslist. Then go back and purchase them to fill your orders.

Um, what if you couldn’t find those same products again – or the quantity you needed to fill your orders?? NOT something I would recommend.

Also, many of the “success stories” for this model were OLD. Back in the 90′s when eBay was HOT, or early 2000′s when things were different. Most of the stories shared were at least a decade old, which is ancient history in Internet terms.

I worried these stories might inspire people who are new to Online Marketing, only to disappoint them when they found those markets or models have changed.

Especially if they invested a substantial amount of money.

Being the “middle man” where you don’t actually have the product in your posession… is risky business. Even if it is your best friend and you’re selling his car for him online (page 21).

Chapter Three

The third chapter is all about search marketing. Honestly, it didn’t do a good job of pulling me back in after the second chapter. I found some of the wording to be off, making it sound more complicated than it should.

Or in some cases, the wording was just plain confusing.

For example: (page 33) “Off-page factors are ways to affect your ranking that don’t appear on an actual web page.”

There were only two factors listed, which DO in fact appear on “an actual web page”. They were Links and Directory listings. Confusing.

There were also other points on search engine marketing that I simply did not agree with, and don’t think would be helpful for someone new trying to learn how to “make money on the internet”.

Page 36

But it was Page 36 that finally had me shaking my head and ultimately made me put the book down and just stop reading.

On this page are “7 Tips For Keywords”:

1. Understand how search engines allow you to use Keywords
2. Understand how many times you can use a Keyword on a page
3. If you use redirection technology, it should facilitate and improve…

(Redirection technology? Facilitate? What does this have to do with “Keywords” and what in the world is he talking about??)

Tips 4 & 5 were also about “redirection technology” . Tip 6 was “Do not submit pages to the search engines too frequently.” (My advice: don’t submit pages to search engines period)

I personally don’t think “understand how” is a tip. How is a person supposed to understand how exactly? Wasn’t that the point of the book – or at least this chapter? Blah…

I didn’t waste another minute turning another page.

Maybe I cheated myself out of some interesting chapters or ideas. But he totally lost my interest in Chapter Two, and sealed it in Chapter Three.

I was hoping this would be a book I could recommend to some of my offline friends that want to understand ways you can make money online. To the people who truly need an “ultimate guide to making money on the internet.” But it’s not. Period.

And this is a New York Times Best Seller?

Recommended and promoted by ClickBank?

I was seriously disappointed…

Books I DO recommend

While they are not an “ultimate step-by-step guide to making money online”, there are two books that I constantly recommend to entrepreneurs – both online and offline. In my opinion these two books combined really give a clear picture of where we’re heading, and the huge potential involved.

Anyone with even a sliver of “entrepreneur” in them somewhere will get tons of creative inspiration from these books, with lightbulbs going off left and right:

Crush It! by Gary Vaynerchuk

Socialnomics by Erik Qualman

And of course I am publishing a book this year, specifically on the Niche Affiliate Marketing model that I use myself.

If you’re interested, you can get on the notification list.

Best,

Create Your Own Q&A Site with Answerbase

Lynn Terry — Mon, 11 Jul 2011 14:00:30 +0000

A great way to encourage user-generated content is to start your own Q&A site, or add a public Q&A section to your current site.

AnswerBase offers Q&A Sofware which they’ve been serving to enterprise clients for the last few years. But they have recently launched a version that is available to websites and businesses of any size.

The major benefit of having user generated content, especially Q&A type content, is the potential for a dramatic increase in organic search traffic…

The AnswerBase software is already highly optimized, giving you an advantage out of the box. Each question that your readers post creates a new page, which is optimized for the questions other people with similar issues are searching for online at the major search engines.

A couple of examples that use AnswerBase, that you may recognize, are:

Edmunds Answers http://answers.edmunds.com

DexKnows Answers http://answers.dexknows.com/weddings

Highly Customizable & Easy To Set Up

You can set up a Q&A site in a matter of minutes, using simple tools they provide for set-up and customization. You’ll have a choice of three different layouts where you can adjust the color scheme, upload images, and even tweak the CSS if you like.

On the professional level plans (and higher) you’ll have access to widgets you can embed on your current website or blog to help engage your current visitors, and drive traffic to the new Q&A section.

It also include a mobile site version, making it compatible for smart phones and other mobile devices.

The administration panel gives you (and/or your moderators) easy access to manage the Q&A community, moderate the content, and monitor activity through detailed reports.

Several Low Cost Plans Available

There are several low-cost plans ranging from $15 per month for the basic plan, to $200 per month for the most advanced. They also offer a 15-day free trial, with no credit card required, if you want to give it a test drive and see if it’s a good fit for your website or blog.

To learn more about AnswerBase, visit the website and also read their recent Press Release here: Answerbase.com Brings Enterprise-Grade Community Q&A to Businesses of All Sizes.

There are a lot of ways you could put this to good use. From a moderated FAQ section, to an open discussion and community for your niche. User Generated Content is highly engaging, and also very valuable for organic search growth. Not only does it add more optimized pages to your domain, it also increases your site size and improves your overall site theming.

I would love to hear your thoughts, and ideas you have for creative uses of this software! A Social Q&A site is a great alternative to the traditional “discussion forum” option – with a lot more advantages.

The layout alone gives you more options than a traditional forum. It also has an RSS feed, giving you an additional marketing medium – from submitting to RSS directories, to building a list by offering email updates/digests through a “blog broadcast” type feature in your mailing list manager.

Users also enjoy leader boards and ranks, which is an incentive to participate – and makes your site more “sticky” (keeping them on your domain longer).

They can also create an “Expert Widget” and add it to their site or blog, improving their own credentials – and also providing a valuable link back to the Q&A section of your site.

Like I said, I’m anxious to hear your thoughts & creative ideas!

Best,

This post was sponsored by AnswerBase. If you are interested in sponsoring a post on ClickNewz about your website or product, contact me for details.

What is SwagBucks? Tips for Getting Rewards

Lynn Terry — Sun, 03 Jul 2011 22:12:27 +0000

Join Swagbucks.com and earn 1,000s of free prizes, for doing the things you do every day.

Register Today! You’ll earn 30 SwagBucks just for registering!

You’ll also earn 10 more SwagBucks for downloading the toolbar, and 15 for uploading a profile picture (I chose the latter – I don’t run toolbars).

I’ve never messed around with reward sites, but I heard about SwagBucks recently and noticed quite a few of my friends “liked” it and were using it… so I decided to register and check it out.

Swagbucks.com is an online portal dedicated to helping you earn digital dollars called “Swag Bucks”, which can be redeemed for exclusive Swagbucks.com merchandise. Things like PayPal and Amazon gift cards, toys, clothes, collectibles, games, electronics and more…

Swagbucks.com is a 100% free, no strings attached, free prizes, no shipping charges, no membership fee’s. Swagbucks.com has already rewarded over a half million users with Amazon.com gift cards, and all kinds of exclusive prizes, to members across the United states, Canada and UK.

SwagBucks Tips for Getting Rewards

There are simple tasks you can do to earn lots of SwagBucks. I was just looking over the list and saw an easy 120-140 SwagBucks I could earn by choosing a best search result or giving feedback on a website – just a couple of examples.

That alone, in just the first few minutes of signing up (which gave me 46 SwagBucks), would take me halfway to earning a $5 Amazon Gift Card. That’s one of the more popular rewards to redeem, by the way – along with the PayPal gift card, since it’s accepted practically anywhere online.

There are tons more ways to earn SwagBucks including playing games, taking quick surveys (just answering a single question, even), surfing the web, taking advantage of special offers, etc.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Swagbucks.com – The rewards site that works

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Have you tried SwagBucks yet? I would love to hear your thoughts!

Best,

Maybe This Will Calm The Controversy…

Lynn Terry — Fri, 27 May 2011 23:09:07 +0000

A few days ago I shared a discount tip for Popup Domination that resulted in a bit of controversy, and a lot of discussion.

You can see that my follow-up post about it already has 137 comments (and growing):
Are You Disappointed?

One of the major concerns that kept coming up in the comments was my proposed use of “slimy pop-ups”, or my intentions with the Popup Domination product.

I have some before and after examples to show you today, after playing around with the program a bit. I think you’ll be impressed at how I’m using the product, and the end result in these live examples…

New In-Line Subscription Form Below Blog Posts

See the image in the top right corner? That’s a screenshot of my new subscription form here on ClickNewz, which you’ll find at the end of each blog post. Scroll down to the end of this post and you can see it live.

MUCH better than the drab grey (practically invisible) subscription form that was there before, don’t you agree?

That was example #1… (so far, no pop-ups!)

Fresh New Landing Page For My Upcoming Book

I wasn’t happy with the way the web page looked for my upcoming book. I had a standard Aweber opt-in form on the page, but it didn’t align correctly in some browsers (*cough* IE *cough*).

It was also very plain… especially compared to the new page I designed using Popup Domination. Again, no pop-ups used – just the graphics.

On the left you see the original site. On the right you see the new landing page. You can click either one to view the actual pages in a new browser window:

That was example #2… (and still no pop-ups!)

* * * * * * * * * *

Another Landing Page Converted…

Next, I decided to work on the landing page for www.EasyUniqueContent.com since this is the next product I am coming out with. I’ll give you another before & after set so you can see the difference:

If you click through you can actually visit each of those pages. The “before” page is a bit jacked now as I updated my opt-in form to Aweber’s new code and it messed up my formatting. Not that there was much to mess up there anyway.

I would love to hear your thoughts on all three of these before & after examples with new on-page forms. Do they appeal to you more? Would you be more likely to opt-in to either of the new pages vs their original pages?

Your feedback is welcome, as always.

I have a 4th (new) subscription form going in at the top of the ClickNewz Forum, though it’s not live yet. But it may be by the time you read this…

This package was a steal at $47 for the PSD & CSS files alone, as well as the script to create different layouts and color variations. Of course, you can still get it for only $37, which is an even better deal than I got.

I hope this helps you understand why I could care less about the sales copy, and grabbed this package at the sales price without a second thought – and without any actual intention of creating “pop-ups”.

Best,

p.s. You can still get the discount I originally shared, which is a $37 download instead of the usual $77. All you have to do is go to the sales page, then close the window without ordering. You will be given a chance to purchase it for $37.

This time I will warn you: there are typical “Internet Marketing” tactics, sales copy & one-time-offers involved. If you don’t care and you want to create cool lightboxes or super-nice subscription forms, grab it while you can!

Fun New Social Q&A Site For SEO

Lynn Terry — Sun, 15 May 2011 14:33:09 +0000

I had the opportunity to check out and review a fun new SEO Q&A site called SEOnky.

It’s an interesting site – the developers have a great sense of humor. LOL.

It’s new, it’s a very focused (targeted) social community. It’s tied in with other social media sites such as Facebook and Twitter, so it has the potential to give you viral exposure for your expertise.

And did I mention they’re giving away an iPad as part of their launch party??

Like I said, the site is new and just getting off the ground. That could actually be a great opportunity for a few select people to step in and make a nice splash!

In the screen shot below you’ll see some of the current seo questions & answers featured on the main page:

I set up a profile myself, which you can see here:

http://seonky.com/users/9/lynn-terry

See that pretty little backlink to ClickNewz on my profile page?

In addition to the backlink, and the potential for viral social engagement (if you have search engine optimization techniques to share), you can win a shiny new 16GB Wi-Fi iPad just for joining and posting!

You can learn more about the drawing, and how to enter, at:
http://seonky.com/pages/winIpad/

Social Q&A sites are a great way to get backlinks, engage your target market and establish yourself as a market leader. If SEO is not your expertise, this fun new site may be a great way for you to just get some of your top SEO questions answered.

Either way, it’s definitely worth checking out. And you may just win an iPad!

Check it out, ask a question or maybe answer a few, and let me know what you think. I would love to hear your thoughts. I’m curious too if you make it a practice to participate in Social Q&A sites like this one, or like Yahoo! Answers?

And if you choose to sign up, be sure to put the link to your SEOnky profile when you comment below.

Best,

This post is sponsored by seonky.com via Sponsored Reviews

Do You Ignore Email Marketing for Your Blog?

Lynn Terry — Sat, 14 May 2011 19:35:11 +0000

Maybe you don’t feel like you’re “ignoring” email marketing, but let me ask you another question: Does the Email List for Your Blog… Suck?!

(are you 100% sure of your answer?)

I actually thought I was doing a pretty good job with my own Blog Email Notification… until I read List Building for Bloggers, that is.

I discovered a whole slew of cool things I should be doing. Things that will immediately increase my opt-in rate, increase my click-through rate, and the biggie: increase engagement and conversions! The cool thing is – they were all super simple things I could easily implement…

Note: We have an exclusive coupon code for this guide!
Download it for only $14.95 using the code “clicknewz”

List Building for Bloggers

I downloaded this guide a few days ago, as it fits in perfectly with my theme of List Building this month. I thought I would give it a quick review to see if it’s relevant, and pretty much expected a standard ebook. (I read a lot of them.)

For less than $25 I can always be sure to get at least one tip or resource that is worth 10x what I paid, and often learn something from their model or follow-up.

This particular guide though… totally exceeded my expectations!

I wasn’t familiar with the author, Phil Hollows. He is the founder and CEO of FeedBlitz, and has also been blogging since 2003.

My first thought was that the guide would revolve entirely around the FeedBlitz service, which may not suit me since I use Aweber.

But that wasn’t the case at all. I found the entire guide to be relevant, regardless of which email management solution you’re using. (thumbs up for that, Phil!)

I’ve been managing email lists for more than 10 years, and blogging for almost 8 years. I’m no newbie to either publishing medium…

I decided to print the guide out and give it a read on the back deck. ->

I caught (friendly) flack for that on Facebook – shame on me for not reading it on my shiny iPad! LOL

But I was really glad I printed a copy once I started reading it, and realized how many notes I was going to take.

I made tons of actionable notes and highlights in the guide! Like I said, what started out as a simple review… totally exceeded my expectations. Even as an experienced blogger & marketer.

At the same time, it’s very “newbie friendly”.

I should think, for a writer in our space, that’s not so easy to accomplish. Phil has a great (!) writing style though, and this is one of those odd non-fiction books that is actually a page-turner. Also not easy to accomplish.

It’s a very easy read, enjoyable even, and I can’t think of a single blogger this guide wouldn’t suit. From the casual blogger to the professional blogger, from the newbie to those with years of experience under their belt, this is a must-read for anyone blogging in 2011.

Praise for the List Building For Bloggers guide came from top leaders in the industry, including Seth Godin and Denise Wakeman among others. Seth Godin even wrote An Appreciation at the beginning of the guide, where he said:

“Email is ten times more impactful and responsive than just about any form of media ever developed.” … “Phil Hollows is a mensch, and a generous one. In this book, he’s sharing a ton. Stuff he learned the hard way. Ignore it at your own peril.” -Seth Godin, page viii

It’s Easy To Ignore Email Marketing

It’s very easy to ignore your email marketing strategy. Particularly once you set up the basics and have it running on “auto pilot”. As a blogger you probably added a form, set up a confirmation message, and let your mailing list manager do the rest (send out your blog posts on a schedule).

It’s also easy to focus on other things, or get caught up in social media instead of paying (special) attention to your email subscribers. Phil really knocked me over the head with that one!

You’re not alone. That’s the reason I’m hosting this entire series on List Building, and why I am revisiting my own strategy to see where I can spruce it up a bit.

I have to say, reading Chapter One alone really got me excited about email marketing all over again. It made me realize what was lacking, how EASY it was to fix, and just how important my mailing list is to my business…

What’s Inside (A Sneak Peek)

Since Phil doesn’t show the Table of Contents on the order page, I’ll outline it here for you real quick. You’ll be amazed at what all he covers in his guide for the price!

Here goes (and pardon the caps, I copied only the chapter titles – without subchapters – from the TOC straight out of the guide)…

WHY AREN’T EMAIL LISTS EXTINCT IN THE AGE OF SOCIAL MEDIA?
LISTS, EMAIL MARKETING AND YOUR BLOG
EMAIL FACTS, FEAR AND MYTHOLOGY
FIVE KEY STEPS TO GROW YOUR BLOG’S MAILING LIST
ACCELERATING LIST GROWTH
IMPROVING ENGAGEMENT
GETTING TO THE INBOX AND AVOIDING THE SPAM TRAP
CAN-SPAM CASE STUDY: BEING LEGAL IS NOT ENOUGH
MAILING LIST UNDER-PERFORMING? 13 OPTIMIZATION TIPS TO USE NOW!
AUTORESPONDERS: WHAT, WHY AND HOW
INCENTIVES: THE RISKS OF OFFERING REWARDS
SEVEN TOP LANDING PAGE TIPS
FROM FAN TO SP*M: ANTI-SOCIAL NETWORKING
ARE YOU IN THE THREE DANGER ZONES OF SPAMMINESS?
HTML EMAIL DESIGN TIPS
ONE BLOG, MANY LISTS, MUCH SUCCESS
THE PRIZES AND PITFALLS OF PERSONALIZATION
PRACTICAL PERSONALIZATION: BIRTHDAY LISTS
CASE STUDY: LINKEDIN 100 MILLION USER EMAIL
CHOOSING A SERVICE: DIY OR OUTSOURCE; FREE OR PAID?
A CASE STUDY IN THREE ACTS: ZOMBIES!
BONUS CHAPTER: HOW TO USE TWITTER FOR REAL-TIME LEAD GENERATION
THE TOP TEN EMAIL POWER TIPS: TWO WEEKS TO EMAIL HEAVEN

http://www.listbuildingforblogs.com

It’s broken up nicely into sub-chapters in each of those sections as well, which I didn’t include titles for. I have to leave a little secret stuff for you to discover on your own, you know.

I could rave about this brand new guide all day long, but I’m actually off to start implementing all the creative ideas and cool notes I took while reading it!

I’ll close by saying… this is it.

Forget old school “internet marketing guru” style training on building your list.

THIS is the guide you need for “Email Engagement” in 2011. It discusses your mobile readers, social media, tips that actually make your readers *like* you (instead of report you – lol). I am very impressed with the depth and accuracy of this guide, and highly recommend it to every blogger.

Ready to dig in? Download List Building For Bloggers

Note: We have an exclusive coupon code for this guide!
Download it for only $14.95 using the code “clicknewz”

Best,

Lenovo ThinkCentre Winner Announced!

Lynn Terry — Tue, 03 May 2011 11:20:05 +0000

Congratulations to @CharityCason of Web Marketing Atlanta! You are the winner of the random drawing for a Lenovo ThinkCentre M90z 23″ HD Touch Screen all-in-one desktop computer.

A BIG thank you to everyone that entered and shared the contest!

Be sure to enter the other contests & drawings happening around the web for this same system. See the list & dates of each at the end of this post. Good luck!

Your Chance to Win a Lenovo ThinkCentre!

Lynn Terry — Fri, 29 Apr 2011 21:27:08 +0000

This is your chance to win a Lenovo ThinkCentre M90z 23’’ HD-ready Touch Screen all-in-one desktop computer!

Lenovo is currently doing a blog outreach program, and they are allowing each blogger involved to give away one of these super cool systems.

One of the features I didn’t share in the video (oops!) is that there is an on-screen touch keyboard.

It stays over to the left at the very edge of the screen, and you simply tap it to bring it open. It also works with a stylus pen.

This system would be super cool with a swing arm mounted by a chaise lounge or big comfy chair & ottoman.

That way you could swing it out of the way, or in front of you at a comfortable level and tilt to work on it like a giant iPad.

All you have to do is a leave a comment below between now and May 2nd, 2011 (10pm Eastern) – specifically with your thoughts on the ThinkCentre M90z – and you’re entered to win!

At 10pm Eastern on May 2nd I will do a random drawing from all of the comments about the ThinkCentre M90z on this post, between now and then. One entry per person, multiple comments do not equal multiple entries. YouTube and Facebook comments do not count – you must comment here on this post (below).

Be sure to use the correct email address and Twitter ID when leaving a comment below. I will contact you via Twitter if you win the drawing, and email you to get your shipping address for the prize.

Once the drawing is over and a winner is selected, the shipping details will be sent to Lenovo. They will ship your prize to you directly.

Good luck!!

Best,

———-

Product Details

Thinkcentre M90Z – Personal Computer – All-in-one – 23 Tft – Core I5 – 650 – 3.2

Lenovo ThinkCentre M90z 3429A3U Desktop Computer. 1 x Core i5 i5-650 3.2GHz. All-in-One 3429A3U Desktop Computers. 4GB Ram. 64-bit Operating System. 500 GB Hard Drive.

———-

Other blogs participating in this giveaway are listed below, along with the dates their contest will be running:

Richard Byrne	Free Tech 4 Teachers	14-Apr	18-Apr
Ilja Coolen	Ilja Coolen \ ICSS	15-Apr	19-Apr
Ellen Hwang Kim	Physician Mom	16-Apr	20-Apr
Thuc Huynh	Scrubd In	17-Apr	21-Apr
Kathy Schrock	KathySchrock’s Kaffeeklatsch	18-Apr	22-Apr
Steve Hargadon	Steve Hargadon.com	19-Apr	23-Apr
Jose Picardo	Box of Tricks	21-Apr	25-Apr
Clinton Fitch	clintonfitch.com	22-Apr	26-Apr
Miguel Guhlin	Around the Corner	23-Apr	27-Apr
Ben Rimes	Tech Savvy Ed	25-Apr	29-Apr
Ramon Ray	Small Biz Technology	26-Apr	30-Apr
Fritz Switzer	Ablet Factory	27-Apr	01-May
Lynn Terry	Click Newz	28-Apr	02-May
Jeff Powers	Geekazine	29-Apr	03-May
Michael Gorman	21st Century Education Technology	30-Apr	04-May
Lee Kolbert	A Geeky Mom’s Blog	01-May	05-May
Marsha Collier	Marsha Collier’s Musings	02-May	06-May
Tawnya Sutherland	VA Insiders Club	03-May	07-May
Michelle Mangen	The Virtual Assistant	04-May	08-May
Jake Ludington	Jake Ludington’s Media Blab	05-May	09-May
Terri Stratton	Mobile PC World	06-May	10-May
Scott McLeod	Dangerously Irrelevant	07-May	11-May
Bud Hunt	Bud the Teacher	08-May	12-May
Kristi Hines	Kikolani	09-May	13-May
Eric Krebill	Geeks to Go	10-May	14-May
Chad Lehman	chadlehman.com	11-May	15-May

———-

LinkShiftr: Link Tracking for Internet Marketers

Lynn Terry — Fri, 29 Apr 2011 00:24:23 +0000

This week I had the opportunity to check out a link tracking and conversion tracking tool for online marketers called LinkShiftr.

LinkShiftr allows you to track ALL your marketing campaigns from one simple online dashboard.

Some of their features are particularly useful for split testing, and/or for social media marketing campaigns. They offer a URL shortening service with all the control of creating your own redirect links…

Common Link Tracking Methods & Issues

I generally create my own redirects using domains, or using PHP/HTML page directs. For example, http://www.clicknewz.com/hostgator.htm is a redirect file that redirects the click to HostGator via my affiliate link. You can test it to see how it redirects.

That .htm file is hosted on my server (created in notepad and uploaded).

While that file does show up in my site stats, I literally have to dig through tons of data to find it – and I have to know what I’m looking for. Meaning I have to remember all of my redirect file names.

Redirects set up through your .htaccess file (another option) offer you no stats – and the same goes for domain name redirects. As an affiliate, you often have to rely on the stats in the merchant’s affiliate control panel.

LinkShiftr Offers Link Tracking *and* Conversion Tracking

If you walk through the Tour at LinkShiftr, you’ll see that they offer a variety of features. The first one that caught my attention is the URL shortener. For example, a long (ugly) affiliate link could be turned into a shorter URL such as:

http://lin.sh/4p9 (example only)

I’m not really a fan of URL shorteners, and prefer to create my own – for branding purposes. This is the reason I use the Post ID in my permalink structure here at ClickNewz. That allows me to link to posts on Twitter for example, using just the domain & Post ID. This post would shorten to www.clicknewz.com/2727/ (short enough to use on Twitter and still retain my branding).

As I continued through the tour, I discovered that I could continue creating my own redirects (like clicknewz.com/hostgator.htm) and still use those with the LinkShiftr service. Sweet!

The main perk to the service is having everything in one place: in an online dashboard. This means you can access your links and stats from anywhere, from any device – unlike software programs that are often limited to a single computer.

With LinkShiftr I could log in from my iPad while at a conference, and add a new link – or check conversion stats on an active campaign.

If you’re an affiliate, you will probably only use the link tracking and split testing features. If you are a merchant (sell a product online) you’ll also use the conversion tracker.

As someone who is both, I really like this service. Particularly, like I said, having ALL of my links in one place that I can access from anywhere.

I would definitely use the option to create my own redirect links, and I would do that for two reasons: 1) for branding, and 2) because I like to retain control of all my properties. If something goofy happened to my account, I could manage the redirects from my own server.

The split-testing feature is really sweet too. You can create a link that rotates between multiple offers, and then see which performs best. Merchants can rotate between pages and track conversions. As an affiliate you might create one ad or promotion, and then track which offer appeals most to your market.

You can see all of the features here: http://linkshiftr.com/features

I would love to hear your thoughts on this service. They offer a
2-Week Free Trial, and it’s only $15/month for unlimited access.
Is this something you might use, or at least try out?

Best,

This review is sponsored by LinkShiftr. If you would like a detailed review published here on ClickNewz see stats & advertising options for details.

My 3 Favorite Griffin Products

Lynn Terry — Mon, 25 Apr 2011 08:00:28 +0000

I have become a big fan of Griffin products for both my iPod and my iPad. They make tons of cool stuff from Android cases to iPad stands, and just about any accessory you can imagine. They are one of the largest providers of accessories for personal computing and digital media.

Griffin Technology is worldwide, but based in Nashville – which is close to home for me. They also employ Dave Delaney as a Social Media Coordinator, who is the man behind our growing Nashville Geek Breakfast event.

I became of fan of Griffin products way before I realized they were local, or that we had a mutual friend (Dave). In the last year I’ve added both an iPod Touch and an Apple iPad to my office full of gadgets, and I’ve shopped everywhere for proper cases & accessories.

While my favorite iPad Case is still the Marware Ecovue, I recently purchased a
new iPad stand from Griffin that I absolutely LOVE. It’s called the Griffin A-Frame Tabletop Stand for iPad which you can see to the right (or in the video).

It’s sturdy but lightweight, so great for portable use when you need *real* support.

Trust me, you don’t want to use a flimsy stand for your expensive iPad…

For those that use a shell case on your iPad, I tested it and it will fit into the stand with the case on just fine. While I love my Marware Ecovue case, particularly for traveling or just being on the go here locally, it’s nice to have the iPad out and available on my media desk while I’m in the office.

Awesome product. Great price.

Next on my list of personal favorites is the armband for my iPod Touch:

Griffin Aerosport Xl Armband Case
(See all MP3 Player Armband Holders)

I won the iPod Touch in an affiliate contest last year, and wondered just how much I would use it. It turns out, I use it A LOT.

The armband is perfect for running, walking the dog, or when I’m at the gym. It doesn’t slip, it holds the iPod very securely, and it has a hidden pocket on the inside if I need to carry cash or a key with me. Very nice!

I often wear my iPod on my arm when walking, with my earbuds in, even if I’m not actually listening to music. It cuts out a lot of background noise (I have *good* noise canceling earbuds) and if someone speaks to me… I just give them an “sorry, I can’t hear you” shrug. Works every time.

Last but not least is my handy dandy
iPod case. It’s the Elan Passport Metal
Folio for iPod Touch. It’s black leather, lined with microsuede on the inside.

It’s a very stylish little case, and perfect for travel – or for throwing in your bag and having your iPod with you everywhere you go. It keeps the screen from getting scratched or shattered, and is a lot easier to hang onto than a slick little naked iPod!

(See other Audio & Video Accessories)

So there you have it! Those are MY top three Griffin picks…

What are YOUR favorite Griffin products?

Best,