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Which would attract your attention?

Just offered – 5 night cruise to Mexico for $249 – inside cabins. Great ports, you’re going to love them. Click for more info.

Or

The night was balmy as we headed on deck to watch as the ship set sail for the second of four ports. After spending the day in Cabo San Lucas, we were all tired from walking, and ready to enjoy a fantastic lobster dinner…

Do you see the difference? A blog is a way for you to share your experiences. It’s a way for you to entice people to want more information. They want to see how the story ends – how your material can directly apply to their lives.

Sure, money speaks. But then it just boils down to price.

If you talk about your adventures, and tell them places you’ve gone, what to expect, what you can do, what the menu looks like – then you’ve created the desire to experience it for yourself.

9 Beaches  is a blog I’ve found recently, and love the way they write, both on their blog and in their ezine. They share experiences, share viewpoints of visitors, and give you ideas of what to expect. I haven’t been there yet, but it is on my short list of vacation spots to visit.

Sacred Destinations is another wonderful blog that shows you through words and photographs the authors travels around Europe. I can scroll through individual locations in each country, and learn a wealth of information about each one.

With both of these blogs, they go beyond selling you on a service, and share with you the idea of being there – of actually experiencing the locations for yourself. Both monetize their blogs in some manner – 9 Beaches by enticing you to visit, and Sacred Destinations with links to products/services.

To Do: Take a look at your own blog posts – would you want to read them? Do they share quality information with the readers? Can they learn something from you? If not, maybe it’s time to change the way you post.

You’ve taken a job with a national company, and begun training on all the tools and technology your company has offered you. You love what they have to offer, and can’t wait to bring in your first client.

The hard part comes in distinguishing yourself from the next person in the company. Sure they have great resources, but do you really want to look like everyone else? Don’t you want an original way of communicating with your prospects and customers?

Chances are your company gave you your own website, and possibly made it an extension of their existing site. So your domain name is:

www.BigNationalCompany.com/myname

You may have invested in purchasing your own domain name, but it still points back to that Big Company site, which ultimately leads back to the national information – pulling them away from what you have to offer.

So how do you capture attention online? What’s your best option?

Start up a blog.

1. A blog gives you a voice. Teach your customers and prospects about your products and services, tell them about upcoming seminars, and give them logical advice. You’re in control of what you share.

2. A blog shares your expertise. Day after day you can share all that you know about your subject matter. If you attend training and learn a new strategy, it’s easy to share with your readers.

3. A blog connects you with a huge audience. When you meet one to one, you only have the option of connecting with that one person. But if you write a great post, it may ultimately connect you with hundreds of potential customers.

4. A blog is a cost effective way of advertising. Customizing a blog is a one time fee. Then you have full control over what text you choose to add, photos you share, and video you include.

5. A blog gives you ins with other media sources. Maybe you’re trying to gain a column in your local community newspaper. Or maybe you want to share your ideas with your trade associations. Blogging regularly shows your dedication, and gives people the chance to see your views. Making it easier to get you the PR you desire. 

Okay, I’ll admit I love cruising. I’ve been on numerous cruises over the past 10 years, and love being able to see a variety of places without having to change hotel rooms. It’s a great way to find out what areas you really love, and want to go back to for longer stays.

So every so often I get Currents magazine in the mail – a magazine put out by Carnival to promote cruises, and give special deals to people that have cruised before.

I sat down with the summer edition last night, and there on page 32 was an article, "Bloggers United." Blogging has made it to cruising?

It seems one of the cruise directors for Carnival has started a blog, and it’s become very successful. So successful it boasts over 2.1 million visitors, 17,800 comments – and countless laughs (what a great tag line.)

In the blog, John discusses everything from his personal life to life as a cruise director. Of course he shares information about the cruise ships and the destinations. But it’s also his personal opinions about, well, everything.

I was also amazed because there is also a Bloggers Cruise being planned for 2009 – how amazing is that? Bloggers are such a strong community, that they can plan a cruise based on the entire concept.

Are you blogging?

Success Works: The idea behind blogging is to share your personal ideas, resources, comments, and opinions. Whether you are an employee, business owner, or just choose to blog about something personal, there is a market for you. The important things is to keep at it, make it personal, and make it fun. 

You’ve signed up as a representative for a company with great products and services. You love what they offer, and the money you can make from the opportunity is amazing.

Now it’s time to build up your downline.

Chances are your company gave you a website that allows you to send people to order products and possibly look at the business opportunity. It’s a great start. But how do you differentiate yourself from the hundreds of others selling the same opportunity?

With a domain name like

www.MyNetworkMarketingCompany.com/rbs12345

you’re not going to get a lot of traction. If they lose your card or forget your name, they’ll end up on the main site www.MyNetworkMarketingCompany.com/, and skip over giving you credit for the entire purchase – or worse, not end up in your downline.

So how do you network online? What’s your best option?

Start up a blog. Consider these eight reasons.

1. A blog allows you to sell more of your products and services, and communicate regularly with your downline. Add categories for each, and share your ideas throughout your blog.

2. A blog allows you to reach beyond your local area. Anyone from around the world can visit your blog and see the latest information. Keep everyone informed with just a few minutes of posting a day.

3. A blog allows you to talk about your latest products, your current events, and your upcoming conventions. Post it all online, and get people excited about all that you do.

4. A blog allows you to create a running testimonial of your actions. You can talk about how fast you are growing your business, how many people you add to your downline, reasons people join your team, and how well people like the products.

5. A blog allows you to dig deep into what makes the business opportunity work. Skip the fluff and go for the details. The reason network marketing works is because you leave a trail for others to follow you to success. Create that trail with a blog.

6. A blog is one of the least expensive ways of building your business. Where else can you reach out to anyone, anywhere in the world for just a few dollars every month? It sure beats that ad you’ve been running all these months for a few hundred.

7. Don’t worry about people stealing your ideas. Over time, you’ll have a ton of information and a ton of resources – enough to make you the leader in many categories. People follow leaders because of what they offer.

8.The world is online. Over 80 percent of all shoppers head online to do research before making an investment. If you’re not there – and reachable – you’ll be lost in the crowd. With just a little work every week, you’ll quickly find yourself a blogging expert – and one of the leaders in your business!

It’s 11am. You haven’t eaten since 7, and you’re starting to get hungry. You come across a site advertising a burrito, sandwich, (insert your favorite) and you just have to get up and grab something to eat.

What makes those ads work? Why do they affect you so much? It’s the photography.

Those photos bring out all of the good qualities of the foods, and make you want to dive right in.

That’s where I am today – out surfing and I come across a blog with dozens of fantastic photographs of food. Lunch is a blog filled with, well, food.

Like Chinese food? There’s 23 entries sharing a variety of lunches at a variety of spots (the site is focused on New York).

Like a particular area in town? This site shows you food from a variety of places, including Greenwich Village and Chinatown.

This is a great example of a fun, interactive blog that showcases something the authors love. In this case they don’t have a lot of writing because the focus is all about food.

This is also a good example of a blog that is personal in nature, and hasn’t made the jump to a profitable blog. They have a lot of great content, but haven’t monetized the site to help them with their lunch habit.

What could they add?

• Coupons to the restaurants they talk about.
• Advertising from local restaurants.
• Email a daily lunch suggestion around 10 every day with a new offer.
• Delivery service

And that’s just the start.

Success Works: This is a case where large photographs work well. Staring at them makes you want to take action – especially at 11 in the morning. They have quality content and lots of it. They do a great job of keeping it up to date – now its time to monetize it. Great site!

In honor of Earth day this week, I set out to find a blog that shared a variety of tips and ideas that could us all be a little more green.

Green is the buzz word of 2008. I hear it on the news and on the radio. It’s in magazines and in books. In fact at my local bookstore, they have a whole section up front on living Green.  You know it’s big news if you can create a whole section out of it.

So why not blog on it? TreeHugger fills that niche nicely. TreeHugger strives to be a one-stop shop for green news, solutions, and product information. They have a variety of ways to share information with their readers, including daily newsletters and a radio show, and post more than 31 posts per day.  

You can read all about cars and transportation, or you can read about the latest fashions. And everything in between. Whatever your interest, you can definitely find something fun on this site.

The thing that impressed me is how well they use their space. They have so much content it begs to be read. And when you do find a page of interest, it’s covered from top to bottom with opportunities. Yet it all works. You’re motivated to stay and read because of the ideas. And you may just happen to click around, making TreeHugger money.

I also like the way they split out their navigation, and offer many choices. I can start by following the Get Informed section, and read about anything that interests me. Then I can Interact. I can visit their forums and share my ideas and opinions. I can comment on any of the existing posts. Or I can take a quiz and find out a wealth of interesting facts. (For instance, how much poop can an earthworm produce in a day? Take the quiz and find out if you’re right.)

Not only do they teach you a wealth of information, they make it fun in the process. And that’s what makes blogging so much fun.

Success Works: Yes, it helps to have a bunch of people writing content for you. You can get to success very quickly that way. But studying a large blog like TreeHugger can give you a world of ideas to incorporate into your own blog. The photographs are dynamic and add to the content. You can have many different choices in the navigation. You can read a short post, or gain access to one of dozens of how to guides. And you can make money in many different ways. What can you learn?

On a recent trip to the mall, I found several new shirts at incredible deals. It’s always nice to get something new for the changing season. But when you save 30%, 50% or even more, doesn’t it just seem more enjoyable?

That’s the premise behind Pink Deals. If you’re in the mood for a good deal, head on over to Pink Deals and take a look at their bargains. (If you’re going to buy anyway, why not save a little in the process?)

Right on their home page, I found deals for RedEnvelope for 25% off an entire order, 15% off a Footlocker purchase, and 2 free Burt’s Bees Lip Balms with a $25 purchase from Drugstore.com.

What makes this blog work it bypasses  the fluff, and gets straight to the deals.  I can immediately see the new deals, take a look at ongoing offers, and sign up to get coupons and other discounts delivered directly to me through my RSS feed reader.

And if your short on time and know exactly what you want, Pink Deals is categorized in many ways, including free shipping, special discounts, and by product.

Success Works: Once again, its all about monetizing your blog in a way that’s customer friendly. You have to decide on your purpose, create your design, and stay true to your plans. In this case, it’s all about the deal. With sponsors providing funding to Pink Deals, the site can continue to bring in new deals all the time.

Blogging can be used in many ways. Don’t like to write? Why not try podcasting.

Quick and Dirty Tips has a variety of topics, and a variety of podcasts that are produced to be fun and informative. Mignon Fogarty and Cherylyn Feierabend have created a podcast series on everything from parenting to legal, and are converting the Grammar Girl series into a book deal the summer of 2008.

Grammar Girl really hit home with me. My daughter is a budding author, and is the best editor I know. She finds grammatical errors in almost everything she reads, and picks up on things most of us overlook. As a writer myself, I know I often have questions about little things that pop up in my writing. So listening to Grammar Girl’s tips provided me with ideas I haven’t thought about. For instance, have you ever been confused with choosing which or that in your writing? Not to worry says Grammar Girl. So are a lot of other people. Hear her podcast on the subject, and learn which to use in your next writing.

When starting any type of business site or blog, the most important thing to start with is how you will monetize your products or services as efficiently as possible. With books, ads and even t-shirts, this site has a variety of ways to bring in money.

Who knew grammar could be so much fun?

 Success Works: Blogs are a platform to help you get your information out any way you can. I’ve showcased this site because I love how they’ve taken a variety of topics and information styles, and combined it into a site that works. From their awards and exposure, it’s easy to see how these sites will continue to work long in to the future.

I found Wine Library a couple of months ago, and have been watching ever since. This is a great example of combining a passion, with a blog, with video – and taking it to a whole new level.

Gary Vaynerchuk started this blog because of his love for wines, and his desire to bring in new clientele to his business with a new media. Instead of working in the store, he set up shop to start his own "tv" show online, and has been growing strong ever since.

Five days of the week, Gary creates a short "tv" show that compares and rates different wines. He provides a thorough understanding of each wine, what it pares with, and how to develop your own love of wine.

And the sales for his business have skyrocketed!

Plus he’s been gaining a huge amount of PR on places like The Wall Street Journal, Ellen Degeneres Show, Nightline, ABC News, and National Public Radio.

Success Works: This blog works because it appeals directly to the consumer. They can expand their knowledge of wine in short clips. And can learn how to serve the right wine with each meal. Plus Gary’s personality comes shining through – which is what blogging is all about. This is one case of using video perfectly to further what you love.

Great job Gary!

What if you could start a blog in January 2008, and have over 23 million hits by April 2008?

That’s what Stuff White People Like has done.

What’s amazing to me with this site is how they take ordinary items, and turn them into something exciting that everyone is talking about.

Take for instance their #1 item white people like – coffee. This was their original post. They provide a simple explanation as to why white people love their coffee. In less than    
3 months,  have been made on this post. What a following.

And of course its not stopping there.

Because their blog has received so much press, the authors have another venture – a book deal by Random House.

Success Works: This blog works because it’s new, it’s different, and it has a ton of fresh content. Have you ever thought of some of the things listed in this blog? Of course. But it took Christian Lander and Myles Valentin to put it all together in one spot, and market it well.

Good job guys!

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