My Blogs Had a Facelift!

I was never a fan of the new magazine style blogs and confess to even providing some negative feedback to those who used them primarily because bloggers go so OTT that you can’t find anything on their blog.

That said, there are those using better quality versions of the magazine style type blogs and for a number of reasons, I decided to give it a try.

My initial intention was the use the Revolution Theme and while the final decision hasn’t been made to ditch it just yet, someone recommended the One Theme and in a weekend, I put my blog back together again.  So, if you visited my blog over the weekend and it looked a mess, sorry!  The work needed to be done and I decided to build it on the fly.

There are some great features about Semiologic that I’ll miss and when they come out with their new magazine style, I may revert to Semiologic but for now, I wanted a few more elements such as a decent size video in the sidebar that I couldn’t do with Semiologic.

I’ve already been asked to do a review of the One Theme and just as soon as I’ve done my membership site which, uses the One Theme, I will do a full review.

What I can tell you right now is that if you want more control over your blog with a magazine style layout, I recommend you take a close look at the One Theme.

If I’m honest (which I am!), I don’t think it’s quite as sophisticated looking as the Revolution Theme … now don’t shoot me guys, this is just my humble opionion.  There are also some really cool features that I loved in the Revolution theme but the truth is, the more sophisticated the theme, the more coding required to get what you want.  The One Theme on the other hand will give you all the necessary features and more for creating a great looking blog in less time.  And, they are adding more new features with each release.

They may even knock spots off the Revolution Theme in time, “who knows!”

Oh, and you ought to go check out their video … these guys know how to create videos that sell!!

Look out for some new marketing tips videos from me in the future.

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Blog Marketing Works For Getting More Sales And More Clients

Blog Marketing is about getting more exposure for your business or for what you’re selling and it’s more than just about getting lots of traffic.

What’s the point of traffic if you can’t convert them into sales right?

In terms of blogging and blog marketing, my main focus is helping people who already have an offline business get their business online.  So, the initial focus is on attracting more clients and, making more sales whilst we strategize for how to get passive income from information products, based on their service.

For weeks now, I’ve wanted to talk to you about one of the ways a client of mine is approaching blog marketing but, until now, I’ve had to bite my lip ….

Gavin Ingham of www.GavinIngham.com is a sales trainer and motivational speaker and since building his blog last year, Gavin has been consistently blogging and making his presence known online and then earlier this year after each show of Sir Alan Sugar’s “The Sales Apprentice,” Gavin sat down and wrote a review of the program for his blog.

In fact, I know that on one occasion, Gavin was so tired, he didn’t do the review but woke up to about 25 emails asking “where’s the review of last night’s show?”

Don’t you just love it when your readers beg you for more content!

Anyway, I digress … As a direct result of Gavin’s reviews, two of the Apprentices have been in touch with him about partnering on a project or two.  You can see Gavin’s post, The Return of the Sales Apprentice for more information.

The real point I want to make here though is that blog reviews extend beyond trying to make a quick buck from an affiliate product.

It seems to me that small business owners, entrepreneurs and independent professionals are still a little slow adapting to blogging and blog marketing.  It’s not seen as a serious business building tool by some and others just complain that they just don’t have time to blog - these are generally those that don’t have time to build their business either.

Now, don’t get me wrong, if you’re marketing online and doing great with the online strategies you’re implementing, then blogging may not have to be a serious consideration to you right now.  I will say however that I personally believe in the long-term, if your competitor is blogging and you’re not, you’ll lose out.

But back to my business of reviews …

I think Gavin’s approach of reviewing The Sales Apprentice program after each show was not only an excellent idea and credibility booster, indirectly, he was making more sales.  He’s a professional speaker and he’s selling himself essentially in selling his services.

But, he didn’t need to litter his blog posts with links to products or even his services.  He just provided an honest and frank review, gave away some great sales tips and not only do I know he has been booked for speaking gigs as a direct result of these reviews, he’s now been contacted by two of the apprentices theselves.

Dave Taylor of AskDaveTaylor.com told a true story last year of a lawer who didn’t have a blog but left a comment on Dave’s blog.  The comment was read by either a news reporter or authority in a large organization (can’t remember for sure) but the result was that he landed himself in a very high position job.

One comment and no blog but one helluva reward at the end … can’t be bad for a few minutes work.

So, what business are you in and what can you review to get some more exposure for your business?

Is it the last book you read?  Maybe the last ad you saw on TV, a seminar you attended or even a company review that would help your readers see you as a potential giant or even giant in your field?

As a service professional, you are seeking authority and credibility because people buy from those they know like and trust and I’ve proved over and over again that blog marketing works for getting clients and making more sales and isn’t just limited to selling $29 eBooks.

In my blog post  Easier To Sell A Product Than Your Services Online, I pointed out technically, it’s harder to sell your services online than a product … so many will tell you anyway but most of my clients are acquired as a direct result of my blog and, my services cost way more than the average information product that is launched online.

So, if you’re looking for more clients, if you’re looking to make more sales and if you’re trying to sell products, I highly recommend that you add blogging to your marketing mix sooner, rather than later.

To Your Success,

Blog Marketing Tips and Insights
www.trishjones.com

Going Full Feed Ahead …

Why I’ve Changed My Stance On Publishing Full Feeds

I received a very nice email from one of my subscribers this evening asking why I had decided to publish only the links to my post rather than the entire article.  

My response was simple really … “I was experimenting” since I wasn’t sure which format gave the biggest benefit.

In truth, I had noticed that whilst I received way more trackbacks from suspicious sources when publishing full feeds, my RSS subscriptions increased.

For those of you who read my blog via RSS reader, you’ll be pleased to know that I’m going forward “Full Feed Ahead” from now on.

So, what changed my decision?

Two blog posts really, one from Marie Langer at http://www.marialanger.com/2007/01/31/full-text-vs-summary-feeds and of course, it wouldn’t be right to make such an important decision before going and checking the site of the “Mighty Blogger,” Darren Rowse.  I had already made up my mind prior to reading this blog post, but this was the clincher.

I’m satisfied that whilst there are some negatives to publishing full feeds, the benefits far outweigh them.  Since I don’t sell ads on my site at the moment, it’s not such a big deal to me to get people to the site but besides this, I’m of the opinion that when subscribers are ready, they will come!

If you’re a blogger and you’re either sitting on the fence about publishing full feeds or, you’re adamant that your subscriber just has to be satisfied with the Feed format you decide to serve up, it really would be worth your while checking out the above posts.

Best,