How To Write Blog Posts People Actually Want To Read

Regardless of the industry you’re in, blogging is a vital part of any businesses online success. However, a blog is only valuable if it generates traffic and interest from others. Is your blog putting others to sleep? Or worst, not generating much traffic? Well, there are probably a few problems with your blog posts. Lucky for you, these issues can be easily fixed. Here are some tips and tricks on how to write blog posts that people actually want to read:

 

Regardless of the industry you’re in, blogging is a vital part of any businesses online success. However, a blog is only valuable if it generates traffic and interest from others.

 

 

Is your blog putting others to sleep? Or worst, not generating much traffic? Well, there are probably a few problems with your blog posts.

 

 

Lucky for you, these issues can be fixed easily. Here are some tips and tricks on how to write blog posts that people actually want to read:

 

 

People Judge Blogs By The Title

 

People always tell you, “Don’t judge a book by its cover.” Nevertheless, people still do it anyway because it’s our natural response. For blogs, people judge your blog based on the title.

 

 

Is your title doing enough to lure readers in? If I asked you to tell me what your blog article was about in 10 seconds, that is what your title would be. Blog posts and content spreads through the title.

 

 

If your title puts people to sleep or doesn’t hook readers in, you won’t get much traffic to your blog. Make titles for your blog articles that will actually make people interested in what you have to say.

 

 

The Basics

 

There is no quicker way to lose an audience for your blog if you have basic errors within your posts. Before you publish your post and promote it, do the following:

 

– Spell Check

 

– Grammar Check

 

– Check All Links

 

– Check Flow Of Sentences

 

– Make Sure Content Is Relevant To Post

 

These are the very basics of crafting successful blog articles. Everyone makes typos, spelling errors, and other mistakes, but your readers shouldn’t have to see them! Proofread and revise your blog article before publishing it.

 

 

Bring Immense Value

 

People read blog articles because they’re looking for insight on some sort of topic. Your blog articles MUST bring immense value if you don’t want your readers to fall asleep.

 

 

Many bloggers cover the same basics over and over. That’s great, but your audience is probably not interested in hearing about the same thing 10 times. Target your audience and share expertise that can help them.

 

 

Knowledge is a big part of success in life. If you can deliver knowledge through your blog articles to others, you will have an audience for life.

 

 

Use Interesting Images

 

One of the biggest things I have learned from blogging is the importance of image choice. Going through the comments on my blog, about 40% of them mention something about the images I have used for a blog post.

 

 

People are very visual, especially in the era we are in today. Spend some time to find images for your blog posts that may be entertain or engage your audience further. I always try to find images that compliment the content in my blog articles.

 

 

Quality Over Quantity

 

The great part about blogging is that you don’t have to follow any rules. You can write an article that’s a paragraph long or something that’s 10 pages long. This isn’t like college where your Professor gives you a minimum word count.

 

 

With that said, the length of your blog articles should solely be based on the quality of your content. I can probably write a book about how to write blog posts that people actually want to read, but not everything would be high quality content.

 

 

Thus, I shrink it into less than 1,000 words and craft it into a blog article. People fall asleep when you overdose them with information. Give them the best information you have so that they stay engaged from start to finish.

 

 

Organize Your Posts

 

Have you ever gone to a blog and it’s a cluster of words all over? The moment I see that, my brain starts to get cramps. I immediately exit the blog and never go back again.

 

 

People like to read things that organized. Take my blog as an example, I have lots of text/words but when you first land on my article, you aren’t overwhelmed.

 

 

You look at it and you see bolded titles, nice organized paragraphs, and easy to understand content. People are up for the challenge of reading my blog articles just because it looks organized.

 

 

Conclusion

 

Writing great blog posts doesn’t happen overnight. It takes a lot of patience, experimentation, and persistence to be a successful blogger. These tips should set you off on the right path though!

 

 

10 Things Successful People Do That Others Don’t

Overnight successes never really happen overnight. Over my few shorts years of being an entrepreneur, I’ve got to meet a lot of other successful people. If you meet 5 of these guys for 5 minutes, you will automatically know the common traits they share. Surprisingly enough, I’ve seen that these common traits are shared almost universally by all successful people. Successful people do things that others aren’t often willing to do. Here are 10 things successful people do that others don’t:

 

Overnight successes never really happen overnight. People all judge outcome, but never the process leading up to the success.

 

 

Over my few shorts years of being an entrepreneur, I’ve had the privilege of meeting a lot of other successful people. If you meet 5 millionaires for 5 minutes, you will automatically know the common traits they share.

 

 

Surprisingly enough, I’ve seen that these common traits are shared almost universally by most successful stories. Successful people do things that others aren’t often willing to do.

 

 

Here are 10 things successful people do that others don’t:

 

 

1. They Dream & They Do

 

Anyone can be a dreamer. It takes a special someone to be a dreamer and a doer. Successful people are always doers.

 

 

They dream great things, but they know it won’t happen unless they put it into action. Successful people always dream and plan hard before wasting little to no time to put their ideas into action.

 

 

2. They Grind

 

Successful people work hard, very hard. They’re willing to grind and put in long hours without any return.

 

 

Most people think they should be getting paid immediately after putting time into something. It’s not their fault, society has raised us this way with the ‘hourly wage’ system.

 

 

However, entrepreneurship isn’t an hourly wage type of job. It’s a long-term commitment. You work your ass off for free for the next 2 years on the hope that it will pay off 5 years later.

 

 

Successful people are willing to put in as much time and effort necessary to succeed. They work long nights, stay focused, and never give up.

 

 

3. No Excuses

 

Excuses don’t exist in the books of successful people. Great people don’t make excuses, they take accountability.

 

 

Successful people will always step up to the plate and take accountability in any situation (no matter how bad it may be). They are willing to take blame because they know they will bounce back.

 

 

4. Mindset

 

Successful people already knew they were going to be successful. They set goals and meet them.

 

 

Success is a mindset in many ways. If you want to be successful, you need to tell yourself that there is nothing in the world that will stop you from doing what you need to do.

 

 

5. They Take Risks

 

No risk, no reward. That’s a basic lesson of life. Successful people know they have to take risks and many of them have taken huge ones to get where they are today.

 

 

Whether it’s dropping out of school to pursue your dreams or quitting your 9 to 5 job, successful people take risks to make their dreams come true. When they take risks, the pressure elevates and successful people are clutch.

 

 

6. They Never Stop Learning

 

Once you receive your degree and graduate from high school or college, that is only the beginning of your education. In my opinion, school teaches you more how to learn rather than set you up with education that will last your whole life.

 

 

Education is something that never dies. Successful people know that and are always willing to improve their knowledge base.

 

 

7. They Sell

 

In order to make money, you must be selling something. Whether it’s a product, service, tool, feature, subscription, or yourself……you’re selling something.

 

 

All successful people have sold a fair-share of something to get where they are. You need to adopt the skills necessary to be a successful salesman in the world today. The more you sell, the more money you make.

 

 

8. They Do It For More Than The Money

 

Successful people have always told me, don’t do it only for the money. The money is nice because who wants to cry on the side of the street when they can do it in a Mercedes, but it’s not everything.

 

 

Your motivation needs to come from something deeper than your love of money. Find something you’re passionate about and a really good reason why you want to do it!

 

 

9. Strong Discipline

 

Successful people discipline themselves. They know in their heads that success won’t come easy. They whip themselves to make sure they’re doing what they need to be doing.

 

 

Should I spend a day hanging out with my friends or should I use that day to continue working on my venture? Successful people are able to fight off these thoughts and would use the day to work on their venture.

 

 

10. They’re Hungry

 

Many successful people will tell you that they were really passionate about changing their lives and becoming financially free. They may have literally been hungry or may have grown up in an environment where money was scarce.

 

 

Regardless of the reason, successful people are hungry. They’re never satisfied by the tastes of success and continue working hard until they reach the end of their goal. When you become satisfied, you never grow. Successful people are always hungry to achieve more!

 

 

Conclusion

 

As you can see from the article above, these are quite a few of the most common characteristics many successful people around the world share. Success comes to those who truly want it. Share some things you’ve noticed about successful people below.

 

 

photo credit: Paxson Woelber via photopin cc

Simple Ways To Make Your Small Business Look Big

Many people run small businesses around the world. However, everyone wants to create a big business or at the least make it look big. Regardless of how many employees you have or what your business does, there are a lot of things you can do to make your business look bigger. Making yourself look bigger helps you compete with larger companies and go after high-end clients. Here are a list of simple ways to make your small business look big:

 

Small businesses are run by millions of people all around the world. However, everyone wants to create a big business or at the least make it look big!

 

 

Regardless of how many employees you have or what your business does, there are a lot of things you can do to make your business look bigger. Making yourself look bigger helps you compete with larger companies and go after high-end clients.

 

 

Here are a list of simple ways to make your small business look big:

 

 

Solid Website

 

Design and develop a solid website. We’re in the 2000’s now and everyone uses your website to judge who you are and what you do.

 

 

The nicer the website, the better impression you make on potential customers. Spend some good money and time to create a solid website for your business.

 

 

Make sure your website outlines who you are, what you do, and conveys the vision you want others to believe in. The better the website, the easier it is to make your small business stand out.

 

 

Phone Lines

 

There are tools like Grasshopper that enables entrepreneurs and small business owners to create virtual phone systems for low prices.

 

 

These virtual phone systems allow you to add multiple departments, create a automated message, and do many other great things. When customers or others call your business, they automatically picture a big office with many people.

 

 

People perceive high-end phone systems like that to represent big companies. It’s a cost-effective and creative way to convince others that your business is a lot bigger than it really is.

 

 

Build Credibility

 

Big business are big because people know they’re trustworthy. One of the quickest ways a small business can build credibility is through the press.

 

 

The press doesn’t care how big your company is, they care about how relevant your story or business is to their readers. Websites like TechCrunch, Mashable, and thousands of other outlets feature small businesses all the time.

 

 

All you have to do is pitch your story to these outlets and see if they pick you up. If you are featured on any of these outlets, use their logos on your website and/or any promotional material. People automatically assume you’re a big business when they see things like this.

 

 

Brand, Brand, and Brand

 

Big businesses know the process of growing their company. They know it so well that they were able to successfully become a big business by employing some of the strategies. Here’s the 3 step process:

 

1. Market to your target audience

 

2. Brand to your target audience

 

3. Start focusing on sales

 

 

Big businesses have prospective customers come to them every single day. Why? The business has done a great job of marketing and branding their business to the target audience. From there, the customers come to their door and it’s easy to start selling.

 

 

As a small business, there are many affordable ways to brand your business. Social media marketing, attending local events/conferences, and creating partnerships with other businesses in your area are just a few of the many possibilities. It’s much easier to acquire customers who have already heard of you.

 

 

Office Address

 

Believe it or not, a lot of people will try to see if a business has an office address or not before doing business with them. Office addresses signify an established business that has a team of employees working there.

 

 

However, it’s easy to give people that impression without really doing it. Nowadays, you can purchase virtual offices (which don’t have the annoying P.O. Box # sign) for very affordable prices.

 

 

Stick the address into Google Places, Yelp, your contact page, and anywhere else. Now customers are immediately going to feel more comfortable doing business with you just because they know you exist somewhere.

 

 

Social Media

 

Before anything, create a social media account for your business on all the major social networking sites. From there, add the social media buttons to your website or blog.

 

 

That’s just the beginning of it though. Lots of customers snoop around the social media sites of other businesses to get a better idea of how big they are. Big businesses have big buzz on social media.

 

 

Make sure your social media accounts are filled with consistent posts, a community of people, and an appropriate profile that fits your brand.

 

 

Public Speaking

 

This is a great technique to make the speaker and the business seem big. Look for industry events where you can provide great expertise. Find these events, apply to be a speaker, and see if you get accepted!

 

 

If you do, you get to broadcast your ideas and expertise to a large audience of people. This automatically makes you (the speaker) and your business seem bigger.

 

 

Once the event is over, simply write a blog article or spread the news through your website about your speaking engagement. Clients will be impressed to know you spoke at a big event or that your business was represented there.

 

 

Conclusion

 

With technology, there’s a lot of things small businesses can do to glorify themselves. If you want to hang with the big fish and close big deals, you need to seem bigger than you really are. Share any ideas or tips you have used to make your small business look big!

 

 

photo credit: Tambako the Jaguar via photopin cc

5 Things You Should Know Before Starting A Business

Starting a business nowadays is just the sexy thing to do. Entrepreneurs are in the spotlight and everyone wants to give it a go! It’s more than the glamour and fancy websites to start a successful business. While anyone can start their own business, it takes a lot of learning and wisdom to create a lasting one. Here are 5 things you should know before starting a business:

 

Starting a business nowadays is just the sexy thing to do. Entrepreneurs are in the spotlight and everyone wants to give it a go!
It’s a great thing and it’s one of the best times to be an entrepreneur. Unfortunately, it’s very tough to become a successful entrepreneur overnight. It takes more than a slick name and fitted suits to start a successful business.

 

 

While anyone can start their own business, it takes a lot of learning and wisdom to create a lasting one. Here are 5 things you should know before starting a business:

 

 

1. You’re Going To Work More Than You Have Ever Before

 

The biggest thing people never see is the time and effort entrepreneurs put behind their businesses. Everyone sees the result, but rarely ever the process behind the result.

 

 

Business owners put hours and hours of time and effort to make their venture successful. Often times, they go unpaid during this time. If you want to start a business, you should know that success isn’t easy and requires a lot of hard work.

 

 

You will need to be fully devoted and committed to your venture to be successful. Long hours, late nights, and more effort than reward are just a few things every business owner goes through at some point.

 

 

2. Good Luck On Your Billion Dollar Sell Out

 

I’m never one to set limits on anything I do, but I see too many business owners expecting ridiculous things. It’s great to think big, but you must have a plan behind it. I’ve heard way too many business owners expecting to sell their company for billions overnight.

 

 

While it’s a great goal to have, it needs to have a plan of action behind it. Think big, but plan bigger. Don’t expect to make a ton of money overnight like Instagram because it’s rare and requires a lot of hard work.

 

 

3. Don’t Be Afraid To Fail

 

1st time entrepreneurs cannot expect success instantly. If your successful on your first shot, that’s great but most of the time it doesn’t happen! 75% of startups fail within the first 6 months.

 

 

That’s just pure facts and facts cannot be disregarded. However, failure isn’t a bad thing. Failure is part of many business ventures and it is one of the best learning experiences possible.

 

 

Fail fast, fail hard, and learn from it! Many businesses have attributed their biggest success immediately after they saw their biggest failure. Successful entrepreneurs know how to embrace failure and bounce back!

 

 

4. Ideas Don’t Mean Shit

 

Take it from someone who has wasted thousands of dollars on patents, ideas do NOT mean shit. Stop worrying about someone stealing your idea and starting focusing on how you plan to execute it.

 

 

Bypassing patents isn’t a very difficult thing to do. Your idea really doesn’t mean anything (just ask any investor) until you’ve done something with it.

 

 

When Facebook had launched in 2004, a competitor “Friendster” already had 3 million users. Facebook executed better and became the biggest social network in history. Great execution and success will meet no matter what!

 

 

5. You Aren’t Going To Capture 15% Of Your Market Share

 

All entrepreneurs at some point do some math and come out with unbelievable projections. Don’t worry, it’s happened to all of us. As soon as you do that, erase every memory of that from your mind.

 

 

Customers are hard to get. Customers cost money. Customers are needy. When you put these 3 key elements together, you’ll understand that your projections aren’t close to what you’ll be profiting.

 

 

Before you start a business, have a plan to acquire customers and a plan to service them. Great businesses sell great products and deliver better customer service. Use that model to accelerate your business!

 

 

Conclusion

 

As you can see, starting a business isn’t a walk in the park. There are a lot of challenges that entrepreneurs face when trying to climb the ladder through the business world. These are just 5 things you should know before starting a business!

 

 

photo credit: laverrue via photopin cc

5 Big Business Lessons You Can Learn From Jay-Z

Growing up, Jay-Z has always been the man! Ever since hearing his first song 99 Problems, I loved everything about him. However, Jay-Z is more than just a great rapper/musician. He’s a business mogul and probably one of the smartest businessmen in the world today. Here are 5 big business lessons you can learn from Jay-Z:

 

Growing up, Jay-Z has always been the man! Ever since hearing his song 99 Problems, I loved everything about him.

 

 

However, Jay-Z is more than just a great rapper/musician. He’s a business mogul and probably one of the smartest businessmen in the world today.

 

 

Here are 5 big business lessons you can learn from Jay-Z:

 

 

1. Brand YOU

 

“I’m not a businessman, I’m a business man!”

 

I’ve heard a lot of great quotes, but this is probably one of my favorite ones all time! Jay-Z understands that all his revenues and profits would falter if his name wasn’t attached to the business.

 

 

Jay-Z successfully created an enormous brand around himself. Wherever Jay-Z chooses to go, the opportunity to make money follows him.

 

 

Lesson: Branding your business is important, but it typically doesn’t last forever. By branding yourself, you take your name with you everywhere you go.

 

 

2. Get Mentored & Be A Mentor

 

Jay-Z didn’t become a successful business mogul overnight. He received lots of mentoring from a lot of other great minds that helped him reach where he is today. Jay-Z was mentored by Clark Kent, Damon Dash and others who helped him tremendously.

 

 

Jay-Z knew the opportunity to speak with his mentors was rare, so he used every minute of it to soak up as much information and knowledge as he could. He put that wisdom into action and instantly saw results.

 

 

Lesson: Regardless of where you are in life, always look up to people better than you. The advice, wisdom, and information you can learn from others can take you far.

 

 

3. The Art Of Negotiation

 

If you can’t sell, negotiate, or close deals……business will be tough. Jay-Z grew up as a drug dealer, which taught him how to hustle and negotiate with the best of them.

 

 

When he stopped dealing drugs, he took his negotiation skills with him. These highly prized set of skills that Jay-Z possessed has helped him greatly to make big leaps in the business world.

 

 

Lesson: Business is all about sales and negotiation. You can do everything right, but still be broke if you can’t sell. Learning to negotiate and close deals is VERY important and you only get better by practicing.

 

 

4. Data Rules

 

“Men lie. Women lie. Numbers don’t.”

 

Jay-Z is one of the all time best-selling recording artists in the world. However, he still gets challenged very often by others.

 

 

HIs response is always the same. Check the data, facts, and statistics. How many records have I sold and how many have you sold? That usually shuts everyone up.

 

 

Lesson: Nobody can argue with pure statistics, data, and facts. The strongest argument is one that is concrete. Business evolves around data and numbers so use that to your advantage.

 

 

5. Focus On The Money

 

Jay-Z has always had a knack for making money. You give him anything, he will find a way to make you a dollar out of it. In that way, he’s very similar to me and that skill can take you very far with many people.

 

 

Jay-Z has always focused on the things that will make him money. Whether it was dealing drugs, making music, selling clothes, or any of his other business ventures, he went after the ones that were making him money.

 

 

Lesson: You’re only a business when you start making money. Making money, revenue, and profit should be one of your primary goals. If something is making you money, stay focused on that rather than looking for other ways to expand and grow.

 

 

Conclusion

 

As you can see, Jay-Z has a lot of experience and skill in the world of business. It’s often easy to overlook musicians, but many of them have a lot of business-savy which has helped propel their success.

 

Why You Should Put College On Pause And Pursue Your Dreams

Many of you may not know this, but I’ve decided to put my college education on pause…..momentarily. I’ve decided to take the Spring semester off while I focus my attention solely on my businesses. With numerous business trips, speaking gigs, and other events going on this semester, it would be impossible for me to juggle both. However, I had a lot of other reasons why I decided to take the semester off. If you’re an entrepreneur struggling to balance school and your business, here are a few reasons you should put your schooling on pause.

 

Many of you may not know this, but I’ve decided to put my college education on pause…..momentarily. I’ve decided to take the Spring semester off while I focus fully on my businesses.

 

 

With numerous business trips, speaking gigs, and other events going on this semester, it would be impossible for me to juggle both. However, I had a lot of other reasons why I decided to take the semester off.

 

 

If you’re an entrepreneur struggling to balance school and your business, here are a few reasons you should put college on pause:

 

 

1. Opportunities Are Once In A Lifetime

 

My main reason to put schooling on pause was because opportunities don’t last forever. In business, timing is your best friend. If you pick the wrong time, your competition may beat you to the spot, the industry/market may collapse, or the opportunity may simply be lost.

 

 

School is something you can always go back to. The chances of a hurricane hitting your school and deleting all your units is probably not going to happen. The chances of the great business opportunity being captured by someone else is a lot higher.

 

 

You can always go back to school, but you can’t always get opportunities back.

 

 

2. Always Jump At The Chance To Do Something Great

 

Not to badmouth a college degree, but it’s not something GREAT. The majority of people follow the traditional college degree path and look to live a life where they work for 40-50 years earning a decent salary.

 

 

As entrepreneurs, we hate hearing the word average or decent. We want to be GREAT. If you have the opportunity to create something great and possibly become financially free for the rest of your life, jump on it.

 

 

3. New Type Of Learning

 

You can learn things in many different ways. In this case, there are two ways you can learn. You can sit in a classroom environment and listen to professors all day (like you’ve been doing all your life) OR you can live and learn.

 

 

By living and learning, I mean to say that you have the opportunity to apply yourself. You learn as you do and I truly believe that’s the best type of education out there.

 

 

4. Use Your Hunger and Motivation To Your Advantage

 

I truly believe the younger you are, the hungrier and more motivated you are. I’ve been lucky enough to connect with tons of young entrepreneurs around the world and I always notice one thing.

 

 

They all desire to be the best and love to learn. Use your youth to your advantage and start early!

 

 

5. No Risk, No Reward

 

Skipping a semester or two of college is a risky endeavor. Lets say things don’t go the way you planned, you may have lost 6-12 months of time you could have spent getting closer to your degree.

 

 

However, was it really that risky considering the amazing experience you probably had? You get to pursue your dreams, live life your way, and create something you’re passionate about. The upside is huge. Your company may become successful and you may become financially free for the rest of your life.

 

 

Conclusion

 

From one young entrepreneur to others, college degrees are not essential to your success in the business world. Take a chance, chase your dreams, and see where it takes you. Worst case scenario, you failed but learned a LOT and had the experience of a life time!

 

The Mathematics of Entrepreneurship

Here’s an infographic on the mathematics of entrepreneurship. So many people are fixated on failure, but rarely ever wonder why startups are failing. This infographic goes in depth to show you why people fail and how many people really fail.

 

Here’s an infographic on the mathematics of entrepreneurship. So many people are fixated on failure, but rarely ever wonder why startups are failing. This infographic goes in depth to show you why people fail and how many people really fail.

 

 

Failure is something that we should not shy away from, but rather embrace. Failure is an event, nothing else. Failure doesn’t define a person or business, it defines somethings that happened on a certain day at a certain time.

 

 

We all have bad days, failures just another bad day. You can wake up the next morning and bounce back or you can dwell on it. It’s the successful entrepreneur that wakes up and bounces back.

 

 

The successful entrepreneur also shares a variety of qualities, which are listed below:

 

 

Passion, Perseverance, Persistence

 

The 3 P’s. It is very difficult to be successful unless you strongly possess the 3 qualities listed above.

 

 

Dream Hard

 

It takes a special person to inspire others. You must step back, look at the big picture, and inspire others to believe in your vision. Be imaginative, creative, and think BIG.

 

 

Empathy

 

Great entrepreneurs build meaningful relationships where they feel and understand what customers and employees do.

 

 

 

Advice

 

Successful entrepreneurs know the value of advice. They aren’t afraid to ask for help when they needed and they’re more than happy to share their wisdom when they can.

 

 

Fair

 

Whether you’re dealing with customers, vendors, employees, or anyone else, entrepreneurs are always logical and fair.

 

 

Influence

 

Entrepreneurs never force their will on others. They have a sort of charisma that influences everyone around them.

 

 

Work Ethic

 

Every successful individual has put in tons of hours to get where they are today. People look at the event (the outcome), but rarely dive into the process.

 

 

Knowledge

 

You must continue learning and build your knowledge base every day. A degree is a good foundation, but it does not mean you can stop learning. Education never stops!

 

 

Flexible

 

Entrepreneurs never fixate on anything. They understand that to be successful, you must pivot and be flexible to try new things. They dwell on nothing, approach everything with an open mind!

 

10 Big Benefits of Blogging

A question I often get asked is, “Why Blog?” Unfortunately, when I do get this question, I simply cannot answer it with one short sentence. This is because there are just too many benefits to mention about blogging. Thus, I’ve decided to write this blog article to explain why blogging is so beneficial to entrepreneurs and business owners. Here are 10 big benefits of blogging.

 

A question I often get asked is, “Why Blog?” Unfortunately, when I do get this question, I simply can’t answer it with one short sentence.

 

 

This is because there are just too many benefits to mention about blogging. Thus, I’ve decided to write this blog article to explain why blogging is so beneficial to entrepreneurs and business owners.

 

 

Here are 10 big benefits of blogging:

 

 

1. Become A Better Writer


Most entrepreneurs and business owners have been out of school and rarely ever work on their writing skills. When you blog, you are subconsciously improving your writing skills.

 

 

Becoming a great writer can come in handy for numerous purposes. It makes you far more effective when dealing with clients or customers and it enables you to write crafty responses to others.

 

 

2. People Know Your Name

 

One of the biggest benefits of blogging is that you’re able to build a name for yourself or your business (depending on which one you blog under). Branding is something businesses pay thousands of dollars a year for, but blogging enables you to do it for far less.

 

 

If you write great content on your blog, people will appreciate you for that. It’s an easy way to brand yourself or your business by getting your message out to a massive audience, without spending a massive amount of money.

 

 

3. Builds Credibility and Authority

 

It’s one thing to talk about it and a whole another to write about it. When I launched my first company, I said a lot of great things but few people believed me because I lacked credibility.

 

 

I found my weakness and made it my strength by writing an effective blog under the company name. Suddenly when people searched my name or information about my company, they were ‘WOWed’ because I backed up what I said with real information.

 

 

4. Builds A Community Around You

 

Blogging enables you to build a community around your business or yourself. Many people think that blogging can make you more money and it can if it’s done right. Your purpose for blogging SHOULD NOT be to increase sales in your business.

 

 

Your goal is to give out free information, help others, or do something else along those lines. When you build a community of active individuals who trust you and look upon you for advice, your sales will automatically increase without you having to push your product.

 

 

5. You Learn A Lot

 

Blogging has been one of my biggest educators in business. Before you can write well, you must read a lot. Whether it’s reading other successful blogs or books in the business field……you’re reading something!

 

 

Great bloggers suck up knowledge like a sponge. Whether you realize it or not, you will automatically learn more about your industry and the topics that you blog about.

 

 

6. Ability To Review and Recap

 

Another great aspect of blogging is that you get to spend some alone time thinking, reviewing, and recapping everything going on in your business. It takes time for me to figure out what topics I want to blog about.

 

 

I usually blog about topics or things that excite me, taught me a lesson, or can help others. Regardless of what the topic is, I always take some time to think about everything going on in my businesses, which often leads to great discoveries.

 

 

7. Keeps You Ahead of the Competition

 

If you’re blogging and consistently pushing out information into the web sphere, you’re probably getting ahead of your competition. Here’s how you get ahead of the competition:

 

– More backlinks for your website.

 

– Nonstop branding for your business without much money being spent.

 

– Makes you more credible than the competitors who don’t blog.

 

 

8. Best Way To Network Online

 

Blogging is one of the best ways to network online without ever getting up from your chair. We’ve all been to conferences, mixers, or other ‘networking’ events that have been extremely tedious and tiring.

 

 

Blogging is a great way to substitute all that, while still establishing very meaningful connections. Write great content, share it with the world, and see how many people you really meet.

 

 

9. PR and Media Connections

 

I’ve had many influential people read my blog and give me a vote of confidence. Blogging has not only enabled me to spread my messages all over the world, but it brings me a ton of great connections.

 

 

It has enabled me to meet some great journalists, reporters, entrepreneurs, and others who have drastically helped me. Quite a few of my blog articles have been featured in Radio Shows, Magazines, and other media outlets creating a lot of buzz for me. You never know how far one blog article can go!

 

 

10. Written Journal

 

Something many people don’t realize about a blog is that it’s a written journal or diary that’s shared with the public. Often times, I forget some of the content I’ve written about myself.

 

 

Instead of having to research from the beginning, I can simply visit my blog and find the information I need. It’s easy to refresh my memory and my blog is a platform to see how much I’m growing on a month-to-month basis.

 

 

Conclusion

 

As you can see, blogging has a lot of benefits. The biggest concern people have is the time that it takes to write blog articles. As an entrepreneur running numerous startups, speaking at conferences all over the world, and doing many other things – I’ve managed to find time for blogging.

 

 

Make blogging one of your top priorities and it will always find time in your life. You don’t need to spend a lot of time on it, just enough to push great content. I write 3 articles a week and use approximately 5 hours each week on my blog.

 

 

photo credit: Mexicanwave via photopin cc

The Golden Rules For Running A Successful Online Business

The world wide web has truly made it possible for anyone to start a business. Today, it’s easier than ever to create an online business with resources available everywhere. With all that said, 9/10 online businesses fail within the first 3 years. While it’s very easy to start an online business, sustaining it is extremely difficult. Here are some golden rules for running a successful online business:

 

The world wide web has truly made it possible for anyone to start a business. Today, it’s easier than ever to create an online business with resources available everywhere.

 

 

With all that said, 9/10 online businesses fail within the first 3 years. While it’s very easy to start an online business, sustaining it is far more difficult. Here are some golden rules for running a successful online business:

 

 

1. Websites With User In Mind

 

Every business serves a purpose. Your website needs to serve the same purpose your business does. Very few website owners ever think about the user or visitor when designing and developing their website.

 

 

I did the same thing with my first two websites before people told me how bad the user experience was. Build a website that helps users achieve their purpose. Make your website clean, simple, and well-organized for visitors.

 

 

2. Have A Business Model

 

30% of online businesses fail because they DO NOT have a business model. Acquiring a million users and reaching out to advertisers isn’t a strong business model. The chances of you signing up 1 million users in 3 years is very low.

 

 

Before you create an online business, find a way to make money now. Come in with a clear plan to monetize your site so that you can survive on a month-to-month basis. Facebook was a one-of-a-kind success and it’s very unlikely for another website to follow the same path they took.

 

 

3. Launching Is Just The Beginning

Before a website goes live, there is a lot of work that takes place on the backend. Many people tend to take a sigh of relief once they launch their website. Success isn’t going to come knocking on your door.

 

 

Once you launch your website, you should be working twice as hard as you were before. Your website is only going to be successful by the effort you put in to market and grow your online business.

 

 

4. Honeymooners Always Fail

 

Honeymooners are individuals who love creating businesses. It’s fun to build a website and launch it, but that’s not enough. If you’re creating a new online business, do it for the long haul.

 

 

Don’t just be passionate about it until launch day and then snooze your way through. Find an idea or business you are strongly passionate about and are willing to stick with for more than just a few months.

 

 

5. No Marketing, No Money

 

Great ideas do NOT mean shit. Excuse the language, but it’s true. You could have a billion dollar idea, but if nobody sees it……it’s worth nothing. Before you build an online business, have a clear strategy on how you plan to get your website to market.

 

 

It’s not just enough to have a marketing plan because that doesn’t always necessarily equate to revenue. Create a 3 step plan all the way from branding to marketing to generating sales.

 

 

Conclusion

 

Launching an online business is easy, but making it successful is extremely difficult. By following these golden rules, you will be sure to increase your rate of success with an online business!

 

 

photo credit: DaveLawler via photopin cc

5 Big Business Lessons My Little Brother Taught Me

Meet my 7 year old brother, Justin. He’s accomplished quite a bit in his young career. Since I live with him, I naturally hear him ramble about random stuff and observe his activities from time to time. Surprisingly, he’s taught me some really BIG lessons about business that I want to share with you. Here are 5 big business lessons I’ve learned from Justin.

 

Meet my 7 year old brother, Justin. He’s accomplished quite a bit in his young career. He reads at the 3rd grade level (only in 1st grade), is the reigning student of the year, and managed to beat Halo 3 all by himself.

 

 

Since I live with him, I naturally hear him ramble about random stuff and observe his activities from time to time. Surprisingly, he’s taught me some really BIG lessons about business that I want to share with you.

 

 

Even though he’s only 7 years old, he still has his own goals and achievements. Here are 5 big business lessons I’ve learned from Justin:

 

 

1. Don’t Ever Take No For An Answer

 

When my brother was younger, he would ask for things and my parents would say ‘No’. He would ask each of us, then cry, and finally throw a tantrum. He quickly realized that no matter how bad he wanted it, he wasn’t going to get it.

 

 

Suddenly one day, I saw a change in his demeanor. He asked for cookies and my mom said ‘No’. Typically, he would come and ask me if I would give him cookies, but this time he did something very different.

 

 

Instead of asking me, he began climbing the dishwasher. From there, he climbed the kitchen counter and slowly balanced all the way to the cupboards. He got on his tippy toes and reached to the top shelf until he got the cookies.

 

 

There were a lot of things that could have happened in that sequence, but he didn’t let anything stop him. He wanted cookies and that’s all he would settle for.

 

 

Lesson: Whether you’re an entrepreneur looking for funding or an employee trying to get a raise, don’t take NO for an answer. If you don’t get funding from someone, go find it from some other source. If you don’t get that big promotion at one company, find another company who values you.

 

 

2. Have An Annoying Thirst For Knowledge

 

Little kids are great until they learn to talk. When Justin learned to talk, he drove me insane. It wasn’t that he was trying to be annoying, but he would ask questions about everything.

 

 

I was often busy or had other things to do, so I would brush him off. However, the times when I did give him an answer, he never forgot what I told him. He understood that I didn’t answer very many of his questions so he MADE sure to remember the answers I did give him.

 

 

He sucked up information like a sponge and he continued to want more. He’s a huge basketball fan, but he knew nothing about the game, players, teams, or sport. Fast-forward 8 months and he can tell you how many points Kobe Bryant has had in career as of yesterday.

 

 

How did he learn all this information? It wasn’t me handing him out facts, because I don’t even know as much as he does. He spent time reading ESPN box scores, watching YouTube videos, and looking at pictures. He was hungry to learn!

 

 

Lesson: No matter how old or young you may be, you need to find your passions and be hungry to learn all about it. Whether it’s getting 5 minutes with your mentor or a chance to listen to a keynote, suck up as much knowledge as you can.

 

 

3. Keep Trying Until You Succeed

 

Growing up, I was a video game nerd. I dominated all the sports and action games. Recently, my brother has become the video game nerd I once used to be. For some reason, he thinks he can beat me at NBA 2k13.

 

 

He knocks on my door everyday begging to play me. I’ve probably played him over 100 times in the last 1 year and beaten him every single time. What amazes me is that he never gives up.

 

 

In fact, he tells me that he will continue playing against me until HE BEATS ME. While I laugh it off because it’s really not going to happen, I do admire his persistence. Most people would try 5-10 times before giving up.

 

 

The thing that’s even better is that he changes his formula each time. He’ll pick a new team, get a new player, or even try a new approach to beat me. He understands that he can’t beat me playing the same way, so he continues improving himself.

 

 

Lesson: In business, failure is far more prominent than success. Failure is an event and nothing more. It doesn’t define your company or you. If you fail, come back with a new plan and be better than the last time.

 

 

4. Don’t Lose Your Imagination

 

My brother is the most imaginative person in the world. He comes up with insane stories and has a very open mind. Many people I meet in the business world have put their creative intuition aside.

 

 

Justin is passionate, creative, and uses his imagination. Whether it’s a story for a project or just something to do out of boredom, his imagination is unbelievable. Staying imaginative can never harm you!

 

 

Lesson: Never let your creative drive be put to rest. Creativity is something that is a crucial aspect of every business and often times imagination is what sets a company apart from the others.

 

 

5. People Want To Be Led, Not Controlled

 

When my parents ‘force’ my brother to do something, he gets upset and resists. You tell him to brush his teeth or to take a shower, he runs away and tries to delay it as much as possible.

 

 

However, if you tell him to brush his teeth with you, he’s far more open to it. He loves being led and even joining in with you, but he doesn’t like to be forced into doing things alone. Naturally, this is how everyone feels!

 

 

Lesson: The biggest part of a business is the way you manage other people. Nobody wants to be the employee that takes orders constantly. People love to work together with bosses and colleagues to reach a common goal. It’s not always the action that needs to change, but rather the perspective.

 

 

Conclusion

 

As you can see, my 7 year old brother has taught me a lot. I didn’t realize this until very recently when I put the pieces together. Do you have a younger sibling or child that has taught you some business lessons?