Smart Passive Income #251 - Being Everywhere

This blog moved to a new location, please visit us at http://ramble.m2m.at.
 
... we know already that Pat recommends bloggers to mingle with YouTube ... but that is not enough for Pat, you should be everywhere!

Pat's seven ways to heaven/hell:

• Leave your comfort zone ... only you are limiting yourself ... (of course there is a reference with an affiliate link to Tim Feriss's book The 4-Hour Work Week)
• Be consistent ... it helps people to recognize you as brand whether you are on twitter, FaceBook, or on your blog ...
• Use other forms of media ... videos, eBooks, real-paper books, ...
• Use social networks ...
• Write guest posts on other blogs ...
• Deliver quality content ...
• Create fans ...

... actually ... there is nothing Pat has not already told us in the past ... and what those seven items have to do especially with "being everywhere" slips my grasp ... but that's why Pat is a marketing mastermind, and I am not :(

Smart Passive Income #247 to #250 - YouTube for Bloggers & Income Report

This blog moved to a new location, please visit us at http://ramble.m2m.at.
 
Pat advises that all bloggers should be on YouTube. If you follow his advise you should

• provide quality content
• provide quality videos (1280x720 ... please note that HD does not actually mean that your video is high quality, it's just it's size ... don't just upscale your video ...)
• be different ... don't upload the same stuff others do ...
• don't be afraid ... the worst that could happen is that you are getting sued for copyright infringement ... so please upload only content you own the rights to do so ...
• add a watermark to your video ... not to ensure your copyright, but that people know who's content they are watching, and maybe want to visit your site/blog ...
• start with an overview ... which allows your viewers to stick around for the interesting parts ;) ... otherwise they might run screaming away after the first ten seconds ...
• add calls to action ... you know the "buy now"s and "click here"s ...
• use screen casts ... (don't forget the copyright part!)
• add an intro, outro and music ... but don't go overboard ...

... and he continues:

• be concise ... 10 minutes is enough ...
• split your video into (multiple) equal parts if it is longer ...
• embed the keywords in your title but make sure it still makes sense ...
• start the description with the URL of your blog
• use keywords as tags
• add an additional tag to link all your videos, e.g. using the name of your blog ... "passive income" might be to general, but "smart passive income" or "spi" might be nice ...

... and he continues further:

• place the video inside your blog
• post links to your blog/video to all possible social-media platforms
• use your video in comments to other popular (of course suitable/similar) videos
• add annotations to your video, e.g. a call to action ...
• make sure to choose a suitable thumbnail for your video ...

... and we reached July 2010 ... Pat's income for June 2010 tumbled down nearly 3.500,- USD ... to about 13.000,- USD ...

Smart Passive Income #246 - Recap Webinar

This blog moved to a new location, please visit us at http://ramble.m2m.at.
 
Pat recaps his experience from his first webinar.

• Pat liked the tool/service he used -> GoToWebinar ... note it's an affiliate link ;)
• back then (June 2010) ... GoToWebinar ... was not that awesome for Macs (it is by now)
• ... not everybody who registers, does actually participate ... to maximize the number of participants, send reminders, define a fixed time for your webinar (including time zone), don't let them know that there will be replays (should you plan to run replays) ...
• make sure your your audio is perfect (note telephone quality is NOT perfect!) ...
• limit the time of the webinar (3 hours is bad, 1 hour might still be bad, be short and concise)...
• present the webinar in advance to a friend ...
• prepare a printout/handout in advance ...
• involve your participants ...
• expect problems ...
• have fun!

Smart Passive Income #245 - Optimize your Error Page

This blog moved to a new location, please visit us at http://ramble.m2m.at.
 
Pat - marketing mastermind - knows even to use 404-error pages ...

An 404 page or any other error page is a website that appears in your browser when you mistype a link, if a link does not exist any more or any other problem appears ...

Normally you get something like:

Oops! We couldn't find what you were looking for.

 ... but because the appearing page is nothing but a web page, you can adjust its appearance ...

• Change the text, give more detail, be nice ...
• Add a search function ...
• Add links or excerpts of your most popular posts ...
• Add links, excerpts, or even the complete resent posts ...
• Add links to categories and tags of your posts ...
• Add an opt-in form for your newsletter ...
• Add advertisements for your products, promotional material ...

However, make sure your visitors still knows that the page she/he sees, is an actual error message ...

Smart Passive Income #244 - Checklist ... after you publihsed your post ...

This blog moved to a new location, please visit us at http://ramble.m2m.at.
 
Pat refers to an interesting blog post on what to do before publishing a blog post ... now he lets us know what to do afterwards:

• Reread your article ... you can still change errors your find ... and seeing it live increases the incentive to find them ...
• Reread your article again ... and check for formatting and spacing errors ...
• Tweet ... let people know you posted your article ...
• Let people know on Facebook ...
• ... use any other social-media platform you know ...
• ... and there are social bookmarks ... use them ...
• Respond to comments on your post ...
• Thank people who retweet and repost your article ...
• Comment on your comments ...
• Add transcripts for video and audio blogs ...
• Rewrite and summarize your article for marketing ... (Facebook) ...
• Check the stats on your traffic, click throughs, sources ...

Smart Passive Income #243 - How to Spam

This blog moved to a new location, please visit us at http://ramble.m2m.at.

Imagine, you have a newsletter, you send it to your subscribers, and nobody opens it ...

... Pat has advise ;)

But first, let's increase the suspense ...

What's the reason, your subscribers don't open your mails?

• it's the size of your list ... the bigger the list, the smaller the rate of subscribers opening your emails ... well, don't know about that one, I would say this is a duplicate of the following issue:
• it's the quality of your subscribers ... meaning that people subscribing to your newsletter  should really want to receive emails from you. So be honest, did you trick them into subscribing ... e.g. by exchanging their email address for a freebie?
• it's the subject of your newsletter email ... well, yesss ...

... and now the big advise ...

... the suspense has reached it's maximum, please wait at least ten seconds before reading the next line to enjoy the tension ...

Resend the email to everybody who did not open your email

... and that's what I would call spam ...

... to make it look less like spam:

• ... wait a couple of days, before you resend your mail (Pat's magic number is 4 days)
• ... change the subject line ... that's foul ...
• ... tell your subscribers that this email is a resend ... ok, that's fair ...

Smart Passive Income #235 - Goals & Numbers

This blog moved to a new location, please visit us at http://ramble.m2m.at.
 
We heard already goal setting is essential ... It works even better using (realistic) numbers ...

Why goal setting is essential?

... because you get a direction where to go next, you can focus on what to do and are less likely to get lost ...

Why do numbers help?

... because you can measure where you are, see your achievements ... that's why you should choose realistic numbers ... to high and you get demotivated, to low and you will never reach the stars ...

... by the way, dates, when to reach a goal, count as numbers, too ...

Smart Passive Income #224 & #225 - Magic Bullet & 10 Secrets on Working at Home

This blog moved to a new location, please visit us at http://ramble.m2m.at.

Another guest post, this time by Glen Allsopp. There is no other magic bullet, but YOU. Meaning, don't look out there for hidden secrets, just do it ...

... and Pat shares ten secrets on working from home:

• eat a good breakfast, ... because breakfast is king ...
• exercise regularly, ... yeah we know that one, and hardly follow it ...
• take breaks, ... see above ...
• don't check your email with your phone, ... agreed ...
• use natural sunlight and good lighting conditions, ... ok ...
• use good ventilation, ... don't wither in your own smell ;) ...
• get dressed ... we had that one recently ...
• get a good chair ... I guess that means working in your bed is out of the question ...
• enjoy what you are doing ... well, yes ...
• get enough sleep ... good night ...

Smart Passive Income #219 - Punkt vor Strich

This blog moved to a new location, please visit us at http://ramble.m2m.at.
 
Pat is a master taking a concept from a completely unrelated subject and finding a way using it for passive income or marketing respectively ...

This time he uses the mathematical concept "Punkt-vor-Strich" (sorry I could not find the English expression, but it does not really matter anyway ... if you know, let me know).

The Result

There are four key elements you should consider for all of your online activities (in this very order):

1. Intention ... know what you are doing and why ...
2. Content ... value is king ...
3. Design ... design matters, you do not want to scare your visitors away ...
4. Follow through ... (a golf metaphor?) well, just keep going ...

Smart Passive Income #209 - Why my Blog Sucks

This blog moved to a new location, please visit us at http://ramble.m2m.at.
 
Pat reaches through time and space and lets me personally know why my blog sucks:

• no professional looking domain name: m2mtech.blogspot.com
• no favicon: ... well I could check if it is even possible to use one of my own on blogger ...
• no permalink structure: ... HA, blogger provides this for free ;) ...
• unnecessary plugins and widgets: ... again HA, ... actually I haven't looked at what the design looks like for quite some time, could be there is really something unnecessary ...
• an RSS counter: ... I don't think a have one?
• no video: ... true, I don't really like them, and you really wouldn't like to watch me ;)
• no format, pictures, ...: Could you please tell me why to add a picture which has nothing to do with the content?

So, come on, give it to me, let me know why this blog sucks! Pat really took the effort to reach through time (about four years in the past) and space (around half the globe), go on, you can do it ;)

Smart Passive Income #200 - Work Schedule

This blog moved to a new location, please visit us at http://ramble.m2m.at.
 
Pat really likes superlatives. So it comes he had his most important conversation ever ... It was about the question:

Why should you have a forced work schedule, when you have the freedom to work whenever you want?

Without a fixed work schedule

• it is hard to know when you are "busy" working and when not ...
• work is never done for the day, and open ended ...
• when you do actually work is completely random ...

Which might not only be a problem for you (if it is one), but also for those around you (family, ...).

The solution, create a schedule and separate work from non-work stuff ... which is easier said than done. Pat "solved" the problem by settings fixed working hours dedicated to special work topics. He also separated work from non-work by using separate computers e.g. his work computer does not have access to his private eMails and vice versa ...

Smart Passive Income #193 & # 194 - Guest Post & Tips

This blog moved to a new location, please visit us at http://ramble.m2m.at.
 
... a guest post from Jackie Beck, on what can go wrong, and what to do instead ...


... and Pat has another ten tips on how to improve your blog/site/business:

• Re-Evaluate your goals
• Check your homepage like you would visit it for the first time.
• Check for crawl errors in your logs or with Google's Webmaster Tools.
• Grade your website (using a tool which does not exist any more ;) )
• Ask questions.
• Shoot a video.
• Thank your customers/subscribers/readers.
• Test, test, test, ...
• Turn off distractions.
• Follow up with your audience (duplicate?)

Smart Passive Income #175 to # 179 - Affiliate Marketing & Traffic Stats & Screenshots & New Car & Blog

This blog moved to a new location, please visit us at http://ramble.m2m.at.
 
Pat's eight principles of effective affiliate marketing:

• It starts with the first impression ...
• Promote only products you are familiar with ...
• Describe the product ...
• Focus on the content not the links ...
• Share your experience using the product ...
• Don't promote to many similar products ...
• Prefer high value (in sense of affiliate revenue) ...
• Collect your links on a resources/tool page ...

Pat likes to study his traffic stats (however he does not tell what to do with the result ...) ...

... your screenshot should "pop out" of the page ...

... he seems really want a new car ...

... if you want to make money with a blog Pat suggests to skip advertising and instead go for an ebook (developed from your blog), a real book, membership sites, courses, or other "real" products ...

Smart Passive Income #168 to #174 - It's a Boy & Tips to Get More Time & Un-Goals & Newspaper & Make Over & Income Report & Questions

This blog moved to a new location, please visit us at http://ramble.m2m.at.
 
... more personal information: K**** F****, born December 24th 2009 ... nevertheless congratulations ...

... and because we are not able to create more time, Pat has suggestions to use the time we have more efficient:

• Work when you are most efficient
• Use dead time (e.g. when driving, eating, running, ...)
• Skip time wasters (e.g. TV, video games, Facebook, Twitter ...)
• Organize yourself and find strategies which allow you to be more efficient ...
• Love what you are doing ...

... and suitable for New-Years resolutions, don't only think about what you want to do but also what you do NOT want to do ...

... some history delivered from newspapers ... (strange Pat did not mention newspapers to be time wasters) ...

... Pat's site gets a make over ...

... his income for December 2009 is up nearly 1.500 bucks to 10.000,- USD ...

... and a couple of questions to improve your blog:

• Is your content work sharing? no
• How are you encouraging comments? maybe
• Is it easy to share your posts on social bookmarking sites, Twitter, or Facebook? yes
• Is your content worth reading? hardly
• Did you ask your readers? yes, what do you think?

Smart Passive Income #167 - Marketing Forums & Advise

This blog moved to a new location, please visit us at http://ramble.m2m.at.
 
Pat introduces five forums targeting online marketing. One of them is only available for a small subscription fee. Another one seems to have changed it's name in the last four years (at least the link forwards to another site) ...

Should you like to participate there, Pat has some advice on what to do and not to do:

• Don't just join to promote your own sites ... 
• Use your signature to promote your site (combining this with the advise above, it seems you should guerrilla marketing) ...
• Read the rules before posting (you will be the first one) ...
• Search before starting a new thread (you will be the first one, too) ...
• Help other people in need (you will be among a view) ...
• Don't loose yourself in the forums (you will not be the only one) ...

Smart Passive Income #161 to #163 - Income Report & Reading List & Affiliate Marketing

This blog moved to a new location, please visit us at http://ramble.m2m.at.
 
Pat's income for November 2009 is down another 100 bucks, but still at 8.500,- USD.

... and suitable for the Christmas vacation he provides a list of reading/listening/using/doing suggestions.

 ... and he explains three types of affiliate marketing:

• unattached affiliate marketing - where you (or the affiliate provider system) just add randomly affiliate links to your page, hope that somebody clicks on the link, buys the product and makes you some money ...
• related affiliate marketing - where you choose the adds related to your site/topic/content, which is more targeted and suited to your visitors ...
• involved affiliate marketing - where you "truly" believe in the product you are "selling" and create a story around the affiliate link which "should" make clicking and finally buying unresistant ...

Smart Passive Income #148 - Stop Procrastinating

This blog moved to a new location, please visit us at http://ramble.m2m.at.
 
Glen Allsopp posted a guest post on Pat's blog, defining the turning point of his online career, when he realized that it is more important to actually do something than reading about it, or investigating on how to to it in the most optimized way ... He advises to note down everything you to and then check what was useful and what wasn't ...

Smart Passive Income #147 - Tips for better Writing

This blog moved to a new location, please visit us at http://ramble.m2m.at.
 
Pat's tip to write better articles:

Do not write for yourself, but for a specific "imaginative" audience.

 Imagine your reader and be as specific as possible:

• What are their names?
• How old are they?
• What do they for a living?
• Where do they live?
• Where do they come from?
• What are their problems?
• Why should they read your article?

 Write to help them, to solve their problems!

Smart Passive Income #146 - Reasons to use Passive Income

This blog moved to a new location, please visit us at http://ramble.m2m.at.
 
But recaps how passive income works in a video presentation (Remember: Setup a product once using an automated process to sell it ...) and he stresses why it's the proper business model for him:

• It's cheap and easy to setup
• It's low risk
• You do not have to add additional work once the process is setup
• It works parallel to a nine-to-five job
• It works 24/7
• It's easy to test new strategies
• You can use multiple passive income streams
• You get more time and freedom 

... and he provides his #1 Adsense tip: Not to use Adsense, but search for people willing to advertise on your site for yourself ...