Who says Windows users are not creative? Over in the Jungfernstieg section of Hamburg, Germany, a group going by the name of “.WAV Collective” decided to vandalize a soon-to-be Apple Store. The team casually went up to the building posing as construction workers, cordoned off a work site, and proceeded to screw pre-made panels, forming a Windows logo, to the side of the store’s black veil. And they did it all in broad daylight.
While I’m sure Bill Gates will be laughing his ass off after seeing the video, I doubt this piece of work was sponsored by Microsoft. As for the .Wav Collective. Maybe you guys should have blurred out your faces in the video? I’m sure Apple has a warrant out for your arrest right now.
WordPress founder, Matt Mullenweg, was in Seattle today and decided to call a snap meetup of Seattle area WordPress users. All it took was a single blog post on Matt’s blog for over a dozen people to show up. And here I thought I was the only one with that kind of pull. The short notice meetup was held at Pike Pub & Brewery near the Pike Place Public Market. The last time I was in the Pike Pub was in 2007 for the World Cyber Game media party.
Matt Mullenweg is a great guy to hang out with. In addition to creating the best blogging software in the world, Matt is also on PC World’s Top 50 People on the Web, Inc.com’s Top 30 under 30, and Business Week’s 25 Most Influential People on the Web. In addition to WordPress, his company also owns Akismet, Gravatar, VaultPress, IntenseDebate, Polldaddy, and more. Matt’s sites reach over half a billion people every month.
It was nice to network with other WordPress users and talk to Matt about the future of blogging and WordPress. I even got a scoop from him: VaultPress is now open to everyone. Go sign up!
I wasn’t expecting to do a follow up to my post on how to ask for what you want but I guess many people just don’t get it. I got up today to over a dozen emails like this one.
Hi please could I have a mac book air ? I really want to start a blog ( I’ve been following yours for the last year) but my family can’t afford my own laptop ( we only have a toshiba that is 11 years old ) yes I no ancient . I would be very grateful. I would love to be given the chance to show what I could do. Really hope you reply thanks
Before you go sending off an email like the above (and getting rejected), ask yourself if you’ve answered the number one question the receiver wants answered.
What’s In It For Me?
Neil Patel didn’t give me a Macbook Air because he was such a nice guy. He gave it to me because there’s stuff that I can do for him that is worth far more than the cost of an Air. Trade shows like the Affiliate Summit don’t give me $10,000 of passes every year out of their goodness of their heart. They do it because of the coverage I provide. If I didn’t blog about the event, what do you think would be the chance of me getting another free pass next year?
When someone comes to read your blog or subscribe to your RSS, they’re not doing it because you’re such a great person. They doing it because there’s something in it for them. Ever wondered how some small time bloggers manage to secure interviews/flavors from big time bloggers? They did it because they answer the question the big time bloggers had when the email came in – What’s in it for me?
I like to think readers comment on this blog because they want to add their views. However, I know the real reason is because they’re trying to get traffic back to their blogs and get on the Top Commentators list. Most people do things because it’s to their advantage to do it and they get something for it. People don’t get up to an alarm clock, deal with rush hour and slave away at a job because they love their boss. They do it because it makes them money. People are not going to read your blog because they love you. They’ll read it because there’s something in it for them.
What’s in it for your readers if they read your blog, sign up for your RSS, subscriber to your newsletter, follow you on Twitter, etc.? If you can’t answer that question, then you have the answer as to why you are where you are right now.
You Want To Get, You Got To Give
Matthew 7:7 states, “Ask, and it shall be given to you.” But, Luke 6:38 states, “Give, and it will be given to you.” If you want something from someone, you have to consider what you can give in return. I have received over $100K of free stuff in the past five years, but I guarantee you I’ve given back more than $100K in return.
The next time you decide to ask me for a Macbook Air, put yourself in my shoe and ask what’s in it for me? Why should I send a Mac Air to you and not the other dozen begging emails? You have to ask for what you want, but you get what you give.
My friends over at Aweber have created a cool get started guide to email marketing. The 19 page guide walks you through the entire process of setting up a list and auto responder sales funnel using Aweber. If you’re new to Aweber, this is a great way to learn the system.
Best off all, the guide is 100% free. You don’t even need to opt in to any email list to get it. Here is the direct download link.
Try Aweber for Only $1.00
If your blog doesn’t have an email list, you are leaving a ton of money on the table. My mailing list is the number one reason why my blog makes income that it does. Aweber is the best email service I have ever used. Their feature set is beyond anything else in the industry.
Aweber offers a $1 trial account for all new customers. The account is just like a normal Aweber account and includes unlimited email campaigns, newsletter, broadcasts and follow ups. It’s a great way to test drive Aweber to see what it can do for your blog. Your satisfaction is guaranteed. If you find that email marketing is not for you, contact Aweber within 30 days and they’ll give you the $1 back.
I live by the philosophy of why pay for something when you can get it for free? After all, it’s not what we make that’s important, it’s what we keep that matters. Over the years, I’ve received over $100K of free stuff. How did I do it? I asked for it.
You Don’t Ask, You Don’t Get
The first rule to getting what you want is to ask for it. However, most people don’t do this. You don’t ask, you don’t get. I guess for many people, it’s better not to ask than it is to ask and get rejected. If you ask and get rejected, you’re not worst off than before. I don’t like getting rejected either but that’s no excuse for not asking.
I used that mentality during IZEA Fast when I asked Neil Patel for a Macbook Air. He asked why I needed one and I explained to him that it would be for my wife. She has a 17″ laptop and I was tired of carrying that around during our trips. He thought for a few seconds and then said, “OK.” You don’t ask, you don’t get.
Do not let the possibility of rejection prevent you from asking for what you want. Have you ever seen a super hot girl with an average looking guy and wondered how the hell he pulled that off? Chances are he was the only one who asked her out because everyone else was too scared to.
The most common sales and marketing mistake is not asking for the sale. The sale rep can do every other step right but the customer will walk out the door because the rep forgot to ask for the sale. Like a guy asking a girl out, many people in sales are scared to ask for the sale and as a result, ends up with no sale.
Asking for what you want is just the first step. The second step is figuring out the best way to ask.
How To Ask The Right Way
A while back, a couple of friends wanted to attend Ad Tech San Francisco but didn’t want to pay the nearly $2,000 it takes to get a full conference pass. Since both friends ran blogs, I told them to email Ad Tech for a press pass. The friend with the bigger blog applied and was rejected. The friend with the smaller blog got approved within an hour of sending the email.
Why was the bigger blog rejected and the smaller blog approved? The answer becomes clear once you read the emails each site wrote. Here is an excerpt from the bigger blog.
I was hoping I could receive a free press pass to the San Francisco Ad:tech conference. I am a web entrepreneur and blogger, and would be covering the event from my popular blog which has an RSS readership of over 1,400.
It will be my first conference ever attended, so I am a bit unsure as to how the process for press passes goes. Would I be correct so assume that it would be equivalent to the Full Conference Pass?
And here is an excerpt from the smaller blog.
Hello this is [insert name] from [insert blog] and I need a press pass to cover Ad:Tech. I was notified by ValueClick and Google about your show. They said we should check it out.
Our site covers [Insert fluff here]. See you in San Francisco.
The bigger blog made several mistakes. The first mistake was he wasn’t sure of himself. Instead of saying, “I need a press pass,” he was “hoping” he could receive one. His other mistakes were saying his blog was “personal” and admitting he was a trade show newbie.
It’s All About Posture and Control
In the PR business, perception is everything and service will always go to the site or blog that the PR rep perceived as better for the show. If you come across as unsure of yourself or on the verge of begging, you can bet your bottom dollar you won’t be getting an invite. The last thing a PR rep wants to deal with is an inexperienced newbie at her show.
It’s all about posture and control. If you wanted to be treated like a somebody, then you have act like a somebody. While it might seem the best way to go about asking for something is to be really nice about it, in real life, being nice usually puts you in last place. This is not to say that you should be a mean bitch. That would be stupid. What it does mean is you should project an image of good posture and control.
When I want something, I assume the position that I am going to get it. Instead of asking, can you, would you or could you, I like to say I require, send it to, put the following names on the party list. People like to see confidences. It’s a natural magnate. An email that display it will always be put in front of an email that is timid.
The 2011 Epic Direct Publisher Challenge is over and the winners have been chosen. Were you one of them? This year’s challenge winners will be given an all expense paid trip to LA to party at the Playboy Mansion. When it comes to throwing an affiliate party, no one does it better than Epic Direct. Here’s the itinerary:
Thursday July 14th VIP dinner for top 5 performing publishers with Epic Executives.
Friday July 15th Daytime: A “secret” event for all qualifiers and attendees. Evening: Welcome Cocktail Party
Saturday July 16th Morning: Brunch at the W Afternoon: A summer bash at the Playboy Mansion from 3pm till 7pm. Activities include Volleyball, lounging in the pool, open bar and cash prizes for various games will also be awarded by Playmates. Evening: After-party, at secret, exclusive undisclosed location.
If your Epic Direct publisher ID is on this list, then you’re heading to the Playboy Mansion for the party of the year.
There is still the matter of selecting the winner video contest. Once Epic announces that winner, I’ll post his/her name and the video that won it. See you at the party!
This is a follow up to my blog video on how to SEO your blog post. You should watch that video first before viewing this one. How to write SEO title for your blog post explains the process I go through in order to come up with a great SEO friendly blog title.
Like most of the things I do with my blog, I don’t pull blog titles out of thin of air. Instead, I use a WordPress Plugin call Keyword Winner to help me research and choose the best title that will give me the best shot at getting ranked. Keyword Winners helps me get more search engine traffic by allowing me to target less competitive keywords and keyphases.
The information Keyword Winner produces is available right in the WordPress editor panel. There’s no need to go back and forth between two or more programs. After entering a few keywords in the WordPress title field, click the suggestion button and Keyword Winner will tell how many searches those keywords get each month and make recommendations on other related keywords to use.
By targeting less competitive keywords, I have a much better chance of ranking number 1 of Google than by going after keywords with millions of searches each month. Targeting the lower volume niche keywords is the key to getting search engine traffic and Keyword Winner allows you to do just that. Watch the video to see how it’s done. Then incorporate the tricks from the On Page SEO video to really blast your Google ranking.
I was introduced to Empire Avenue at BlogWorld Expo New York. I heard about the site before BWE but never really checked into it. Empire Avenue is like a stock market for social media junkies. You can invest in any social media profile by buying their shares, meeting new people, unlocking Achievement badges, and earn boatloads of virtual cash by being active and social.
At its heart, Empire Avenue is a big game, and it can be a lot of fun when your share prices are going up, up, up. I “IPO” John Chow dot Com (symbol JCDC) at 20 EAVES (the virtual currency used in the game) and the stock quickly climbed from there. Right now, shares of JCDC are trading at 68.97.
With rising share prices and more people buying me, my virtual net worth is approaching 800K. At this rate, I should break the million mark before the weekend. I can use the virtual cash to buy shares of other Empire users, or I can spend it on virtual toys at the Empire Avenue shop. Right now, the most expensive item is a jumbo jet at 10 million EAVES.
Joining Empire Avenue is really easy. All you need is to connect your Facebook profile. There is a normal sign up with an email address for the five or six people who are not on Facebook. Once you join, you can connect your Social Networking accounts, and Empire will score activity and engagement in each account and give you a virtual share price. The connections you make on Empire Avenue create “value-based” relationships, a deeper relationship than simply “following” someone, in a completely less intrusive context than becoming “friends.”
I’ve purchased shares in one profile so far, picking up 200 shares of Vancouver Sun writer, Gillian Shaw. At this time, you are not allowed to short sell a profile. You can only buy and sell a stock that you own.
If you think I should buy some shares in you then post a comment and let me know why I should. If you’re not on Empire Avenue, then go set up an account and I’ll buy some shares in you. Let me know in the comments. Otherwise, I might have to buy that big jumbo jet.
I posted some photos from the Tweetup at the HasOffers office last week, but I never included a video. The reason for this was because HasOffers VP of Marketing, Peter Hamilton, was going around with a pro-camcorder and that allowed me to keep partying.
Peter’s video is below and it’s also posted on the HasOffers blog. Peter did a great job on the video. We’re looking forward to doing another Tweetup in the future.
We’re so focused on our product that we haven’t time to put on many of these events, so we’re thankful that someone else took the initiative to put it on the books. We had people coming in and out for over five hours and the bartender stayed pretty busy the entire time I’d say it was definitely a success.
I posted some photos from the Tweetup at the HasOffers office last week, but I never included a video. The reason for this was because HasOffers VP of Marketing, Peter Hamilton, was going around with a pro-camcorder and that allowed me to keep partying.
Peter’s video is below and it’s also posted on the HasOffers blog. Peter did a great job on the video. We’re looking forward to doing another Tweetup in the future.
We’re so focused on our product that we haven’t time to put on many of these events, so we’re thankful that someone else took the initiative to put it on the books. We had people coming in and out for over five hours and the bartender stayed pretty busy the entire time I’d say it was definitely a success.
I’d say it was definitely a success.