NEPA BlogCon 2015: Master Deck

Editor's Notes

1. From the time we’re very small, many of us watched parents go off to a j.o.b. They came home tired and exhausted. Complained about their boss, their paycheck, that stupid coworker that said that stupid thing yada yada yada   They were miserable.   And they assumed that misery was what it meant to be a responsible adult working in a j.o.b. Right? Wrong.   What if you could earn a full time living doing what you love … and loving what you do. Would you do it?   Would you give up the boss and the gray cube and the 9 to 5 hours that never let you get enough sleep?   You’re hear today because you are a blogger. You have a passion. There’s a fire in your belly telling you to CREATE. Telling you … that you are ready to profit from your passion.   Who wants to learn 6 Secrets to Getting Your blog off the ground? Who wants to join me and take the pathway to profits?   Let’s get started …
2. According to WordPress.com, There were 18 million 300 thousand 7 hundred and 71 new blogs created in 2014. 18 MILLION.   That’s a lot of competition.   In 2013 the number one topic of new blogs that were created was Photography. With 18 million blogs adding to the noise … do you think you’re Photography blog is going to stand out?   Not these days.   Not unless you ….
3. For the gardeners in the room, you can’t just have a garden blog anymore. It’s time for you to launch “The Purple Carrot Collective” where you will discuss everything and anything related to growing world class …. Carrots.   And yes, picking a niche is difficult.   But in order for you to truly stand out, you’ve got to offer a Unique Value Proposition that will immediately draw your audience to you.   So, I know you can do this.   Who wants to hear more good news?
4. We’re going to do a little math together. Kevin Kelly from The Technium introduced a theory that stated if you have 1,000 true fans who each give you $100 per year you will earn $100,000 per year.   Is that a decent salary? Before you answer, note that only 6% of adult Americans in Unites States will achieve this level of income.   I’ve got more good news…
5. 78% of people in developed countries have access to the internet. Do you think that you can find 1,000 of them that are interested in Purple Carrots?   I think you can.   Let’s think this through a little bit more… What if, instead of $100 / year, we just asked those 1,000 purple carrot supporters for $10 / month?
6. You can earn a profit by turning your brilliance into more content … and creating a membership site.   Don’t overthink how much value you actually need to provide members. You have so many options here that it’s incredible –   Ask vendors for first-time-buyer discounts Turn old blogs into more detailed blogs Create member-only printable graphics Sponsor a forum or group to encourage engagement   Membership sites are even more successful if you have a hobbyist blog. One very successful colleague had a hobby blog to support her running called, Mommy Run Fast.   She transitioned this into a membership site – a no brainer for the thousands of women already following her – and then created coaching programs for her running and nutrition expertise.   Hang in there … we’re going to think even bigger.
7. Now that you’ve established yourself as the purple carrot guru, and have a healthy amount of traffic to your website as well as engaged fans, it’s time for you to sell the space around your blog.   Blog advertising has long been a staple of the blogging industry. But with 18 million plus blogs popping up per annum, the rates get lower and lower while the expectations of traffic get higher and higher.   So, you need to think outside of the box and also target your ideal advertisers in a smarter, more thorough way than others.   Think about the people in your purple carrot world who have the absolute best chance of benefiting from exposure to your audience … are they:   Gardening supply stories Rabbit fence manufacturers Compost machine makers Heirloom seed producers yada yada yada   Now cyber stalk them with good old fashioned Google and ask to speak to them. If you can think of a list of 100s, go ahead and send a sales letter via their website.   Make a list on Twitter and follow each and every one. Look on your LinkedIn and find out who you know that knows them…then start harvesting those leads by getting on the horn and telling them why your followers need their products.
8. The trap I do NOT want you to fall into is thinking that you don’t have a huge value to these advertisers. Oh, I’m just a carrot lady.   No.   You are THE purple carrot lady, leader of an organized community of carrot lovers. You put your time, energy, effort, sweat, and tears into building this fan base …   And you will Tweet this audience Mention them in a newsletter Show photos of the product in use Share blogs at least 10x each, etc.   You must think positively and GO FOR THE NO. That’s the worst they can say. And you will tell them that you’ll ask again in a few weeks once they’ve had time to regret their poor decision….nicely!   Ok – time to grow  
9. There are more options to make a profit than you’ve ever imagined!  
10. - That’s what you get Michelle for putting a “sponsored” slide in the slideshow
11. 1. Blog Awareness – how can people find you? Describe example of finding a shopping blogger 2. Are you on Facebook/ Twitter? That’s great, but are people “aware” of you there? 3. Is there an easy way to contact you? Facebook messenger, an actual number, track record of replying to tweets/posts? 4. So you’ve been reached out to by a member of “the mainstream media” “the press”��what now? For that, enlisted some friends…
12. I asked a simple question to a couple of people – what do you think of NEPA Blog Con Co-founder Michelle Davies… here’s Tom Clark’s answer
13. And here’s Joe’s
14. Now Jon Notice his concise response. Did he plan ahead what exactly he was going to say – maybe. But he had a general idea of what to expect. Questions like “for those who don’t know, what’s going on here?” Once you’ve been interviewed, the reporter is going to take away an impression of you – were you a good interviewer? Were you friendly? Were you easy to work with and set this up? If you’re put in the good column – you’re set. You’ll be one of the first calls next time there’s a story where you have a strong connection. Reporters will often end with “That’s all the question I have – is there anything else you’d like to add” THAT’S YOU CHANCE. IS THERE SOMETHING THEY FORGOT TO ASK? IS THERE SOMETHING COMING UP IN THE FUTURE THAT YOU THINK THEY SHOULD KNOW ABOUT?