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A reoccurring theme on this site is money – specifically of the “how to” variety. So today’s post provides you with another resource to check into – a how to get paid to blog. This can be (and is) lucrative for many. However, that said, you should be aware that Sponsored Blogging (Is) Not As Easy As It Seems.
A quick check of Wikipedia reveals numerous facts you should be aware of: (more…)
I’ve been meaning to write this post for several days now, ever since I read an article in our Las Vegas Review Journal dated Monday, February 16th. In fact, it’s been sitting on my desk just waiting for the right moment to go from paper pile to post.
What really caught my attention was the headline, “Cultural differences: Economic values may explain why businesses owned by Chinese-Americans are faring well in the recession.”
We see all too often people pulling away from the very thing they should be doing during down times or slow times or tough times – especially online. The energy exerted to build a business is tamped down (or shut down) in the hopes that somehow, magically, sales will continue – in spite of no advertising or marketing.
“The fortunes of a newspaper published out of a second-floor Chinatown Plaza office may give us insight into differing attitudes about money and ways of surviving tough economic times.
In a time when a 162-year-old national news chain such as the Tribune Co. file for bankruptcy protection, the Las Vegas Chinese Daily News is actually growing, fueled by an increase in advertising. The paper has gone from 16 to as many as 36 pages since printing its first copy five years ago.”
The article goes into further details by defining how different cultures view our current times; “…many Chinese business owners consider a time of economic stress a time to spend money on advertising.”
This advertising “outlook” is considered to be a definite separation of U.S. and Chinese cultures. Where the former sees nothing but doom and gloom when it comes to doing business, the latter are taking advantage of great rates and exceptional deals. These factors also attribute to the fact that over 20,000 valley residents of Chinese heritage are surviving the highest unemployment rates in a generation.
“Chinese attitudes about money include the notion of saving profits and growing slowly, instead of leveraging long lines of credit and expanding rapidly, several business owners said.”
Now here’s the best part, and what I’d really like you to come away with (having read this post… thank you):
“The Chinese rely more on what is known as a relational economy, compared to Americans, who function more in a “me economy.” The Chinese system is based more on, “I do something for you, you do something for me,” with everyone being on the same level.”
Sounds a lot like the Golden Rule applied with a fine paint brush to the art of keeping customers coming back by treating them right.
So if you’re asking yourself, “Is now a good time to slow down with my marketing and advertising?” we think it best to tell you the answer is no.
Recovering lost ground is costly.
Instead, plan and budget for an amount comfortable (and affordable) for you in today’s economy. Be it $10 or $1000, keep your business plans afloat and keep them growing.
We’ve said it before and we’ll keep on saying it. The internet waits for no man, woman, or child. Let up for even a tiny bit of time and your competitors are going to sweep right over you.
Your wise move is again budgeting. Keep your ads out there, continue investing your time and energy, too.
These rough times will not last forever, even if (in the moment) the light at the end of the tunnel doesn’t shine very brightly.
Stay on top of what you’ve been doing, and when the sunshine hits, you’ll be well positioned – ahead of your competition – in the months and years to come.
I’m going to go out on a limb here and say that Google’s page rank is finally meeting its (long overdue) end.
I don’t know how many pages I’ve visited of late that get decent (or boatloads of) traffic yet have no or very low PRs. In reverse, you’ve got the huge PR website, yet you can easily tell (via add ons, etc.) that no one knows they even exist.
For further proof, head to the Google search itself. Type in anything you want (I typed in “latest news google pr“) then start scanning and researching the leading results. For my particular phrase, front page results reflected posts and web pages posted last month to several years ago. I did check the “pr” and “alexa” for many of them. No surprise to find that front page results included sites without any PR at all – along with some with traffic so minuscule anyone would be shaking their head over “why the front page?” (Maybe our accompanying illustration helps reinforce the head scratching, mind boggling way this is all “determined.”)
It’s fact – while there are popular sites (depending on what you type) like WebMD or Amazon in your search results, you always find within those same front page results websites with no PR and a variety of traffic (low to high).
So I’m going to go further out on that limb to say that I think when it comes to choosing “traffic versus Google PR” that anyone in their right mind would opt for the traffic, right?
Boatloads of traffic!
The Google PR used to be a badge of honor, and many a webmaster or seo expert sweated bullets over this one. Maybe some still do.
However, even the folks at Google cannot or will not tell (or do not know) whether PR really means a hill of beans in the end.
What prompted this post was an inspection this morning of my ezine advertising website.
At one point in its so far 7 year history, it achieved a traffic rank of under 21K and held onto a PR 4 (for this type of niche this was outstanding). Then along came one of those infamous algorithm changes and now… well this morning on my end of the world there is no PR on the site. Zip, zilch, nada.
Now it could be the folks at Google are in some cycle doing updates again. Could be the poor thing just lost out in this latest round of bids for ranking. Be that as it may, thankfully it does sit on the front page for many of the distinct keywords necessary for folks to find it. And that’s what counts.
Google plays with their algorithm so much and so often, you could easily drive yourself insane figuring out your next move. Running around in circles trying to please or appease, you’ll not only get dizzy, but allow much of your competition to race right past you.
What should you be working on? Words. Content. And more importantly, in SEO terms, keyword content. You do have to know the difference between appropriately working those keywords into your content (and which ones are really going to be any use to you in the first place) and cramming them into metas and content like there’s no tomorrow. Do not be short sighted nor mislead by shady tactics.
The time is ripe for the rest of the world to just “do their own thing.” Work your website or blog the way you wish to work it (and start having fun for a change). Go for the gold, go for traffic. Let’s also hope that Google drops this antiquated ranking platform very, very soon.
Rarely do Scott and I sign up for anything. Frankly, we’re way too busy helping other people market and advertise to take on additional 3rd party offers that also need telling about.
However, we’re making an exception for this one:
At the moment, during prelaunch it’s absolutely free to sign up. Listen to the short video and/or read along as the presentation happens at the bottom of the screen.
What it is is a large “must have” package of marketing tools.
The founders of Getresponse (Implix) and other major players are involved.
The tool we’re most interested in, which will come with the package, is the “gotomeeting” type service. We’re in sore need of something like this for training.
But that’s just one of many “must have marketing tools” with, of course, the added benefit of making residual income from a program that provides not junk, but real tools everyone needs to market effectively online!
We have many of them, but it turns out that by packaging them up come January 6th, when the program launches, we’ll be saving a ton of money, too!
So stop what you’re doing and go take a few minutes to get yourself positioned for this wonderful program launching at the New Year.
Free PreLaunch Signup Click Here
Here on OIMS while we gather intel on the best and brightness ways to internet and social media market your website, we also do have numerous services geared to fixing the problems so many face.
The use of cold calling, direct mail, and randomly harassing people by telephone quickly allow you to discover (if you don’t go broke first) techniques that don’t work or require so much work there’s no fun left to promoting your business.
Unlike these time consuming, futile (and often ineffective) methods, online seo marketing coupled with the proper amount of social marketing, with more than a dash of ezine advertising thrown in, pull customers to you.
Yes, it takes the proper know how and use of the right tools, software, methods, and techniques to make it happen. That’s why we’re in business – to handle your seo and social media marketing. Or to quickly bring you up to speed, even train you to take over, if that’s your goal.
So, was it really coincidence that today Scott found this video? We think not.
No, the video is not ours, but it does represent everything we can and will do for you! Slide past the 10 years plus we’ve been online and start off your New Year right with the most practical ways to market…
OIMConsulting – Market For Me
Whole Hog Blogs
My Wizard Ads
… online and effectively!
Happy Holidays!
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