How Using Blogs Can Help Your Online Profits

By Ben O'Rourke

Just what is a blog and why should you use one? A blog is an online diary or journal where you can post your thoughts, opinions, articles or anything at all for that matter. What it really is is a 'web log', and that is where the term 'blog' comes from.

Why should you use one for your business? Well first of all search engines love content. They especially like new and frequently updated content. So updating often will help get your site indexed in the search engines. You are also able to notify the blog directories when you make an update, and this will help get your site spidered much more quickly.

So will this help you make money from your blog? It is another tool in your arsenal. Used well, it can certainly help you make money. There are millions of blogs online and growing daily. If your blog becomes popular, you will gain a lot of inbound links from other sites. If you are an expert in your field and post informative, newsworthy, thought-provoking or even controversial posts you will benefit from traffic sent by others who think their own visitors would benefit from what you say.

There is also software available to automatically generate hundreds of pages targeted to specific sets of keywords. RSS feeds can be used to display your blog on other web sites, and this gives you an inbound link back from them. If your site gets used as content for the automatically generated pages this will also result in inbound links and potential traffic for you.

These inbound links and updated fresh content will help you achieve higher search engine rankings. This will translate into more traffic and potential sales. You can also display ads on your blog targeted to your content and get sales in that way also.

Blogging is here to stay so it would be foolish not to consider using it. A lot of marketers are now using their blog as a 'newsletter'. Because of the problems delivering newsletters by email, due to spam filters blocking them, it is easier to send an email to their lists advising them there is an update on their blog.

So you can see that is indeed possible to generate money from your blog. Especially if you are an expert in some niche area and gain a reputation for that. It will also help people to get to know you, as you can be more candid and informal in your blog, building up closer relationships with your readers. Another major benefit is that readers can post comments. From these comments you get to know your readers better also, and could identify possible areas where they need help or assistance. This would help you see recurring themes which could profit you greatly if you come up with solutions for which you now have a readily accessible market waiting for them.

In summary, it is well worth the time and effort into starting your blog. Let it be another area of your main business, supplementing and assisting it. Keep it alive with daily posts, read all comments and the bonus is that you can certainly profit from it, both financially and as a way of building trust with your readership.

Ben O'Rourke is an Online Marketer and Software Developer.

Free eBooks: http://seazzy.com

Free Software: http://seazzy.com/software

Corporate Blogs - Good or Bad?

By Sally Falkow

Pete Blackshaw of Intelliseek predicted that blogs would experience anti-hype backlash. The EMarketer report on corporate blogs is one example.

Even so, the blog format will endure and grow, quickly advancing to a powerful rich-media context, writes Blackshaw

The problem with this report is that it neglects to mention the many positive aspects of corporate blogs

"Blogging aint going away. The conversation is going to go on without you. Be there or be square," says Steve Rubel in WebPro News

A corporate blog has become an accepted tool of Internet marketing. Just in the last two months there have been four or five business conferences and workshops about corporate blogging.

CEOs of Fortune 100 companies are blogging.

Forrester Research says, "Get started slowly, but get started now!"

"Corporate blogs can be an effective marketing communication tool, if you have a sound strategy in place," says Sally Falkow of Expansion Plus, an Internet Marketing and PR firm that sponsors the Internet Marketing Forums - a series of seminars for CEOs and CMOs who want to learn more about corporate blogging and how to use RSS feeds in a business environment.

"Most corporate blogs are seen as a way to build relationships or thought leadership," comments Falkow. "But there is much to be gained if you start with a sound stratetgy for your blog. A blog can also address specific business issues - like search visibility, leads and sales. Companies are just now starting to see the power and influence that a successful corporate blog can wield."

Sally Falkow has created effective internal and external communication strategies for both large and medium sized enterprises for 25 years. Since 1999 Ms. Falkow has translated her extensive experience in communication to the Internet and is now one of the leading web site and Internet marketing strategists in the U.S. Her web reviews and Internet marketing strategy using RSS feeds, business blogs and optimized press releases have kept our clients on the forefront of technology.

Our case studies show the results of her research work in this competitive field

She is certified as an Accredited Public Relations Practitioner by the Public Relations Society of America. She lectured in Communication Theory and Public Relations Strategy for University of South Africa students and Marketing and Consumer Behavior for for the Oxford-Brookes University (UK) program for five years.

Blogs and Your Business

By James Peggie

There are 600+ corporate bloggers at Microsoft. They use blogging as one of their greatest marketing assets, generating an astonishing amount of online and offline word of mouth interaction. Microsoft takes blogging seriously and these blogs are all linked to the corporate site. They help put a human face on the corporation by injecting individual’s passion for the company. What they are really involved in is building relationships on behalf of Microsoft.

A blogs or 'weblog’ is a regularly updated internet journal of organized personal thoughts made usually by an individual. In the business world this may be either as an official corporate blog or in an unofficial capacity. Business blogs usually incorporate news, issues, and ideas and speak to customers, vendors and employees. What makes blogs unique is that they link with other blogs and websites and solicit comments making them the ideal platform for an ongoing dialogue. Blogs are inexpensive, easy to set up and use, and require no technical skills such as HTML. The collective term for blogs is the blogosphere.

The blogosphere continues to grow. Technorati the leading web search engine is currently tracking 19.6 million blogs. About 70,000 new blogs are tracked every day. The total number of blogs continues to double every 5 months or so. There are between 700,000 and 1.3 million blog posts made every day. Both Google and Yahoo are introducing blogs search engines. Yahoo is currently showing a beta version of blog search results alongside their news results.

News travels fast through the blogosphere. In times of disaster such as Hurricane Katrina or the London terrorist attacks, blogs were instrumental in getting news, photos and opinions out at a remarkably fast rate. They often beat journalists for the scoop on news or scandals. In fact you can be sure that these days’ journalists keep a close eye on blogs and use them as a source for stories.

What does this growth in blogging mean for your business? It means that you should give serious consideration to adding a blog to your business. However you should also consider whether a blog would fit in with your business objectives. Because of the different tactics that blogs can be used for you may want to weigh up the options as to what benefits it can offer you and your business.

Increase your Web Presence
If you have an established online business you can add another vehicle to communicate your message and pass information on to your clients. Because blogs continually have new content they are indexed regularly by the search engines. It is another way to get your name and your products out into the search engine space. You can also use your blog to target additional keyword phrases.

Interactions with Customers

Your blog can be used to build stronger ties with your customer base. The opportunity to exchange information and expertise is one of the main reasons that explain why corporate blogs have grown in popularity in recent years. Corporations have recognized their customers are using blogs to self publish their opinions about products and services. This has led to customers getting actively involved in business situations such as product development.

Branding Tool

Use your blog as a branding tool for your business. It’s an effective way to get your brand message out there. Your brand represents an exchange of ideas between you and your audience. It is a relationship. Brands exist in the mind of your customer therefore brands that aren't in touch with their customers miss out on innovation opportunities.

Corporate Communications

You can use your blog to speak directly with the media. There has been an ongoing debate as to whether blogs should replace the press release as the main corporate communications vehicle. As far as I am concerned both will do a good job and each has their own unique value.

Business Marketing

Blogs are being utilized more and more as a business marketing tool. And this is creeping into more and more business areas. Word of mouth advertising and independent testimonials are two major benefits of running a marketing focused blog. This is a great alternative to advertising. Blogs can also attract and develop a regular audience for your message and foster an atmosphere of trust.

CEO Blogs

A CEO blog is a way to speak directly to customers and vendors. And it can be used to advance industry issues. There are pitfalls of course. Saying something controversial may be picked up and reproduced in many locations. However some controversy is good as it gets people engaged.

A blog does require a commitment from you. Remember that writing and maintaining a blog take time. You should really have an interest in writing and communicating with your readers. A blog also requires an injection of personality.

Blogs are a increasingly common way to communicate about your business. As Businessweek magazine said in their article on business blogs – ‘catch up…or catch you later’

Copyright © James Peggie

James Peggie is the Director of Marketing for Elixir Systems – a search engine marketing agency located in Scottsdale, Arizona. Their website is located at http://www.elixirsystems.com and their blog is http://searchblog.elixirsystems.com

Blog First for an Internet Presence

By Paul Jerard

Remember when advertising was limited to expensive ads in print. I came from that field and clients paid thousands of dollars to claim their market share. Printers worked overtime to keep up with impossible deadlines and increasing demand.

A few years ago, I was looking for a service in the Yellow Pages. My son found the service faster than I did, by using the Internet. At the time, I was spending some serious cash on the Yellow Pages for local advertising. I was sold into the idea that “break even” advertising was fine because of repeat business.

Business owners from my generation, and the generations before, had accepted the idea of investing in failure. We even had a formula of “cost per information call,” to justify investing, in advertising, that would not show a profit for months or years.

However, how many ads can you write in print and afford to break even on your expenses? Most “mom an pop" businesses invest their hard earned money and look forward to, a much needed, immediate “return on investment.” Why else would they advertise in the first place? Small businesses are looking for instant results.

My son had enlightened me about the accessibility of Internet advertising, but I was really new to the idea. Shortly afterward, I sought out an Internet advertising guru. By luck and fate, I found Corey Rudl and IMC. Later, I was coached by Corey’s mentoring program.

For the first time ever, you can advertise for, very little or, no money at all. A web site can cost $100 to $200 per year depending upon the host and what kind of package you need to get started.

If you do it all yourself, you won’t spend anything else. You must still work to optimize your site, for the search engines, and if you hire "outside" it won’t be cheap. A "top notch" search engine optimization (SEO) expert won’t come cheap either, and some of the inexpensive (SEO) services will get you “black listed.”

With a website full of unique “keyword content,” it should take you about five months to see big changes in your rankings with the major search engines. This is a conservative estimate, but getting top 10 rankings with Google, Yahoo, MSN, or AOL requires skill, content, and time.

However, Blogs can get you ranked very fast. Due to the constant changes and adding of copy that is keyword rich you can establish an Internet presence in much less time. On top of that, you don’t have to know HTML or be an SEO expert.

Some Blog services like Blogger are free, and since Blogger owned by Google, it is well worth your while to open an account. All you have to do is make entries a few days per week. If you have a lot to say – more keyword content is better.

If you are a small business, refer to your services, products, changes, and your geographic location, in your Blog entries. This will point prospects toward your Blog. When people are searching for your niche market in your area, you will be listed within your niche.

Blogs work in harmony with a web site, so you should still get a web site and have your Blog link to your company website and have your website link back to your Blog. This is a great way to let potential customers see the changes that happen in your business and feel your passion for it. When your new customers meet you, they will be much more informed and comfortable, with you.

A powerful Blog, with unique and keyword rich content, serves as a "magnet," and may draw more customers than your web site does. The bottom line is, you don’t have to spend a penny on advertising with your Blog.

Paul Jerard is a co-owner and the director of Yoga teacher training at: Aura Wellness Center, in North Providence, RI. He has been a certified Master Yoga teacher since 1995. He is a master instructor of martial arts, with multiple Black Belts, four martial arts teaching credentials, and was recently inducted into the USA Martial Arts Hall of Fame. He teaches Yoga, martial arts, and fitness to children, adults, and seniors in the greater Providence area. Recently he wrote: Is Running a Yoga Business Right for You? For Yoga students, who may be considering a new career as a Yoga teacher. http://www.yoga-teacher-training.org/index.html

How To Create a Blog

By Keith Mallinson

So, you know that having a blog is a great way to generate customers. Or, maybe your not sure. Either way, creating a blog is not all that hard to do. In fact, there are many companies willing to help you create a blog.

First of all, know why you are creating a blog. Do you want a product to be advertised and discussed in it? Or, do you want to create open communication with your customers? Maybe you plan to place an article there in the hopes of your visitors reading it and then browsing your website for more information? Regardless, you need to know why you will use it in order to know what you need to get out of your blog. So, when looking for software to create your blog, consider those factors.

Creating a blog can enhance your site. It can allow for better communication, better attention to sales or your get your main point out easily. A few pointers about them, though. If you commit to putting a blog on your site, realize you will need to keep it updated in order to keep the interest there in your visitors. You can even find software that will help keep you updated in your blog.

Having a blog is a great tool all around. But, finding the right product for you should take you some time. Time to research the best available product that is. Create your blog to fit your site and watch as it helps your site grow in visitors and search engine ranking.

Keith Mallinson is author of the article exchange newsletter, offering subscribers up to date information on all aspects of article submissions and use of free articles for search engine optimization http://www.article-exchange.com

Generate Traffic with Blogs

By Keith Mallinson

Does your site have a blog? A blog is an easy to use communication tool. It can contain information about your product, be a place where you communicate with your customers, or a place to talk with others. If your website is geared towards selling products or putting out information, then a blog can be a great tool to have and utilize.

It is also important to use your blog if you have it. In other words, blogs can help generate traffic to your site. In the simplest means, a blog can keep customers or visitors in general coming back. They want to see what's new or hear what you have to say. Updating it often can keep the stream of visitors flowing.

Another thing about keeping your blog up to date is that it can create additional traffic to your site. Search engine spiders, as they are called, crawl over sites to read their content. They keep a note in them if your site has changed. This means that they tell themselves that they need to check back at the site because it changes. If it changes often enough and enough content at a time, then the search engine will continue to return to update itself. Even better is that each time the search engine comes to your site it will crawl deeper into it and log even more from it.

What all this means is that the search engine will log what your site is all about. When someone searches using keywords that depict your site, they are more likely to find your site then someone else's. And, that's the goal, to keep visitors coming. So, updating your blog will allow all this to take place and, possibly, keep visitors coming to your site.

Keith Mallinson is author of the article exchange newsletter, offering subscribers up to date information on all aspects of article submissions and use of free articles for search engine optimization http://www.article-exchange.com

How to Get Your Blog Noticed Quickly and Widely

By Gregory White

1. Submit your blog to all of the directories listed on
http://pingomatic.com/. Pingomatic will ping 15 services all at once.

2. Ping your blog after every post at http://pingomatic.com/

3. Here's a real gem: Submit your blog to http://www.pingoat.com/ Pingoat will ping over fifty
blog ping services all at once. So you don't have to hunt for ping services and manually ping them.Pingoat pings over fifty blog ping servers (growing) with just one click.

4. Ping your blog after every post at Pingoat at http://www.pingoat.com/

5. Sign up for a free account at BlogExplosion.com and
register your blog there: http://www.blogexplosion.com/

6. Submit your blog to all of the directores listed at http://www.rss-feeds-directory.com/blog_lists.html

7. Sign up for a "My Yahoo" at http://my.yahoo.com/ and attach your blog to your own "My Yahoo" account. This
will get your blog included in Yahoo very quickly.This is worth the effort to stop what you're doing right and do it, since Yahoo has a PR 9.

8. Use this code: "http://add.my.yahoo.com/content?url=
http://www.yourblog.com/urblog.xml" in your blog to allow others to put your feed on their own "My Yahoo" account.

9. Sign up for a "My MSN" at http://www.my.msn.com/, and attach your blog to your own "My MSN" account. This will
get your blog included in MSN very quickly. This is also invaluable because MSN has a PR 8.

10. Use this code: "http://my.msn.com/addtomymsn.armx?id=
rss&ut=http://www.urblogfeedaddress.com/urblog.xml" in your blog to allow others to put your feed on their own "My MSN" account.

11. Place the link and description of your blog in your signature, so that any posts to Forums, Outgoing
Emails, Autoresponder Courses, etc, will promote your blog.

12. Post a link and description of your blog on each of your sites.

13. Place your blog on all the major search engines.AddMe.com will submit your blog free to the top 14
Search engines here:
http://www.addme.com/submission.htm

SubmitExpress.com will submit your blog free to the top 20 Search engines here:
http://www.submitexpress.com/

14. Use Article Directories as a resource for articles to post on your blog. Here are a few:
http://ezinearticles.com/

http://goarticles.com/

http://www.knowledge-finder.com/

http://www.informit.com/articles/

15. Locate blogs with a lot of traffic and place useful comments in their comment box. Be sure the blog and your comments are relavent to both your blog and theirs. Senseless posts won't help you, they'll
hurt you.

16. Once you get around 5 to 10 posts on your blog, start a PR campaign and announce it to all relevant channels.

17. Make a blog post as often as possible. More than once a day is not really necessary. Remember, if you can't write that much, go to step # 14.

Greg White, Internet Marketer, Author, Consultant and Project Manager has been running successful web projects since 2001. His sites and blogs cover Blog Marketing Tactics, Internet Marketing Tactics and a variety of 'Niche' topics, in addition to starting and marketing profitable web project.

http://www.blogmarketingtactics.blogspot.com/

http://internetmarketingtactics.blogspot.com/

Google Blog Search: What You Should Know

By Titus Hoskins

Google is moving in so many directions, it can be somewhat difficult to keep track of all the services and tools offered by this premium search engine. For the seasoned webmaster as well as the ordinary surfer, keeping a clear
picture of what Google is offering is sometimes a little overwhelming.

Recently, there has been a deluge of new products from
Google. If you hit the 'more' button on the Google Home page, you will see a smattering of Google services and tools. Including Desktop 2, Print, Maps, Google Earth...you can even search and browse mail-order catalogs.

Now comes Blog Search - where Internet users can now search blogs for their information. This is a welcomed service, especially for bloggers. Google's embracing of blogs started with the purchase of Blogger.com and got sidetracked with the 'costly' argument over which
syndication standard to use. Most favored RSS while Google promoted the Atom standard for its blog feeds.

Blogs are online journals where ordinary people give opinions, information and links on topics that matter to them. These topics can be anything under the sun: from politics to needlepoint to corporate blogs to your local school's basketball team. Blogs give a real insight into what ordinary surfers believe and feel about a subject.

It's an instant snapshot of our world in words and pictures -- but mostly words.

Blogs are often associated with RSS because RSS is the syndication standard that sends out the blog's content in little snippets to all interested parties. Subscribers to these blogs can read these headlines in News Readers or Aggregators and then click on the links to get more information. Keep in mind, the original acronym for RSS is 'Rich Site Summary', but that meaning has been somewhat replaced by the major benefit of RSS which is 'Really Simple Syndication'.

Many browsers are now coming with an RSS reader already built-in, such as the popular Mozilla's Firefox browser.
Microsoft's new Longhorn version of Windows will have RSS built into its operating system.

Recently Google has embraced RSS in its Desktop 2 program and in the XML powered Google Sitemaps. Now comes Blog Search, a way to search all the information in these blogs. In the past, most bloggers have used the Technorati site
to search blogs as well as RSS search offered by MSN and Yahoo.

Some things you should know about Google Blog Search:

1. How to access it? You can use the blog Search site www.blogsearch.google.com or www.search.blogger.com
You may also use the Navigational Bar on any BlogSpot blog, plus you will also be able to access it from your Blogger Dashboard. The Blogger Navbar gives you the option of searching within the current blog or searching all blogs.

Major criticism -- Google has not placed a link on its home (front) page of Google search; as blogs and blogging becomes even more popular maybe this error will be fixed.

2. Who's included? It should be noted that Google will index
all blogs using a site feed (RSS or Atom) and you can get your Blog indexed just by using an automatic pinging service offered by such sites as www.weblogs.com

Please Note -- Your older posts may not be present in search
results, Google started indexing feeds around June, 2005.Older posts may be included at a later date.

3. What search operators or query words are supported? You can use these standard Google Search modifiers and Google will
restrict your results -- link:, site:, intitle: plus new ones for Blog Search -- inblogtitle:, inposttitle:,inpostauthor:, and blogurl:

4. Can I subscribe to search results? Yes, just use the News Aggregator of your choice and subscribe to the feeds at the bottom of the results page, then you can be automatically updated as new posts come online.

5. Can I use Safesearch? Yes, Google lets you filter out any unwanted sites.

More information on Blog Search click here:
http://www.google.com/help/about_blogsearch.html

Blog Search is a great extension to the Google Search Empire, it will give surfers access to a greater range of material.No doubt, this is not the end of what Google has to offer to its loyal followers. Persistent speculation and rumors abound, it just won't go away, rumors that Google is NOT only designing its own browser (it owns the domain gbrowser.com) but its own operating system.

But why stop there -- if you're dreaming of the perfect
search -- you must go further. Google must go further!

And since we're dreaming...

How about a Google delivered Instant Search embedded in a
Google RSS Powered Operating System on a Google designed ultra-portable notebook computer with a wireless cell phone modem, accessible anywhere in the world...

...wake me up when it arrives!

The author is a self-admitted Google addict and user! You can find
his main Internet Marketing Site here: Google Cash File

Copyright © 2005 Titus Hoskins. Get a Free Desktop Calendar & Planner compliments of the Author and DATEwise. This article may be freely distributed if this resource box stays attached.

Google Blog Search - Another Great Reason To Have an RSS Newsletter

By Mike Makler

Google recently announced a Beta Version of their Blog Search Engine. Blogs are the perfect tool for a Newsletter publisher and now that Google allows users to Search Blogs their really is no better medium to publish your Newsletter (AKA Ezine) then an Online Blog with an RSS Feed.

Creating an RSS or Blog is simple here are the 4 steps to follow.

1 - Select a Topic

You need to select a topic for your Newletter. The following questions should enable you to pick many topics

1. What are You Good at?
   
2. What are your Hobbies?
   
3. What do you consider yourself an Expert in?
   
4. What do people seek your advice on?
   
5. What would you like to learn more about?
   

2 - Get a Free Blog

Go to blogger.com and get a free blog. They are owned by Google so you should not have any problems getting indexed by the Google blog search engine.

3 - Write Your First Post

Write your first post is as simple as stating what your newsletter is about and how frequently you plan to post

4 - Never Ending Content

Remember you are a newsletter publisher not an author. It is good to create original content once or twice a month but you can republish articles from others for the rest of your content.

Search Engine Masters Course
A FREE 5 day email course on how your web site can get
top 10 rankings in the other search engines.

http://ewguru.com/free-seo-ecourse

About The Author:
Mike Makler has been Marketing Online Since 2001 When he Built
an Organization of over 100,000 Members

Get Mike's Newsletter:

http://ewguru.com/newsletter

Weekly Tios and Tricks

http://ewguru.com/tips

Copyright © 2005-2006 Mike Makler the Coolest Guy in the Universe

Business Blogs, Does Your Company Need One?

By Rich Ottum

I’m often asked by clients and prospects whether or not their business should blog. While there is no universal answer, there are guidelines to consider. In general, blogs make more sense for business-to-consumer companies. But whether or not you are a B2C company, you should evaluate a number of factors including your brand equity, your target audience, and your internal resources to reach a decision regarding your blogging commitment.

If your company is associated with a well-known consumer brand, you might be surprised to learn you are probably already the subject of a blog or certainly mentioned in blog postings for various reasons. Searching the blogosphere for mentions of your brand is your first step in evaluating the corporate blog imperative. If consumers are posting comments about your brand, products, or customer service, you need to join the conversation. Ideally, you would launch a brand or product blog to give customers a sounding board. Remember, it is not your job to set customers straight with a corporate blog. Rather, it is your job to listen and learn!

Take a cue from your target audience. Consumers often depend upon word-of-mouth referrals from friends in their selection of products and service. If your target customers are likely to share their experiences with your product, a business blog can provide a credible platform for communication. How well does your company field customer service complaints? If you are unsure, a disgruntled blogger who considers your company unresponsive might tarnish your brand online. Consider also, if your prospects are likely to seek information about your products from a Search Engine. By maintaining active blog content, you will actually increase your page rank with Search Engines. For an example of a blog that maximizes brand and the consumer experience visit Weber Nation.

Ultimately, the decision to launch a business blog depends upon your ability to commit internal resources. Technology is a low-barrier to entry in this instance. While you can install software and host your own blog, you can also easily use a low-cost hosted service with no technology commitment. You will need a staff member dedicated to the task of blogging on a regular basis, daily postings are preferred. As such, you need someone who is capable in representing your brand and products in a glib manner. The same person must be a good listener with the ability to engage both your brand champions and your brand detractors. Finally, your company blogger must have the ear of management to share consumer-generated comments, complaints, or issues with executives as required.

Before you begin the business blog evaluation task, eStrategyOne recommends you seek help from an experienced business blogging consultant. For more information on business blogging, download the free "eStrategyOne Business Blogging Primer," and read "10 Steps to Marketing with Business Weblogs," available from the eStrategyOne website or weblog.

Rich Ottum is General Manager of eStrategyOne Online Marketing Solutions, and author of the award-winning business blog, "The eStrategyOne Buzz." eStrategyOne conceives and executes online marketing solutions to increase website performance and profitability. Services include E-Business and E-commerce Strategy, Business Blog Consulting, Online Advertising and Promotion, Website Analysis and Optimization.

Weblog: http://estrategyone.blogs.com

Website: http://www.estrategyone.com

The Blog Revolution: How To Use Blogs to Generate Solid Web Profits

By Ross Storey

Blogs were originally only meant to be ‘Web Logs’, or personal journals for members of on-line communities to stay in touch, sort of like ‘underground news media’. But, it didn’t take long for net-repreneurs (internet entrepreneurs) to catch on to their popularity and to find ways to use them to make money. The human mind is infinitely creative and nothing really stays the same.

This awesome entrepreneurial spirit transmogrified Blogs into what they are today: very powerful marketing weapons that have almost made some other forms of advertising, redundant. It never ceases to surprise me how ingenious people are when it comes to finding new ways to generate cash flow, particularly in web marketing – what a power-house!! It leaves real-world business for dead (in my opinion).

Traditional safelists are becoming somewhat threadbare. Isn’t it amazing how quickly business changes on the ‘Net, and isn’t it weird how safelist people ‘spin their wheels’ by posting, posting, posting, when most messages go to ‘junk’ in-boxes to be automatically deleted. You can send out a whole lot of messages with safelists, but only a tiny percentage are likely to be actually read by a real person. Maybe that’s why email traffic is threatening to choke the Internet. Because of this, many canny web business people have now shifted to Blogs as their main tool for promotion. Many others, like me - who continue to believe that safelists have a role (when properly used) -have made Blogs a valuable extra facility in their marketing toolboxl.

Blogs have become so popular because they are so very user-friendly for advertising. They are practical, easy to set up and very convenient to use. Keeping content up to date is very easy for webmasters who otherwise would have to spend hours uploading and downloading files. Be warned, however, that setting up a ‘Free’ Blog, will mean you will have a lot of other people’s ads on it (There’s no such thing as a ‘free lunch’). It’s always worth paying because, yes, you get what you pay for.

Anyway, There are probably five key methods (and a whole lot more) you can use to ensure that Blogs pump up your web profits.

1. BLOGS ARE MAGNETS FOR SEARCH ENGINES: Go on, get on to Google and, whatever topic you search, you’ll inevitably see that the search engines have thrown up a number of Blogs in the top ten results. This is because Blogs are constantly showing fresh, new and key word friendly content just like your web pages should; that’s a Blog’s very reason for being. Imagine the value to you of having your own Blog pop in the top end of search results. The ubiquitous search engines clamor to highlight fresh, appropriate content – they love it. Constantly re-newed and freshened Blogs leave stale, ageing (and rarely updated) web sites for dead.

2. BLOGS LOVE TO LINK TO EACH OTHER: Yes, Blogs love to stick together, creating networking ‘heaven’. Just one link on your Blog could see visitors drop in from all over the place. Wow – visitors queueing to click your links; how powerful is that for an advertising and traffic generating system. Awesome.

3.YOUR CUSTOMERS WILL APPRECIATE REGULARLY HEARING FROM YOU: You see, Blogs today have this great ‘comment’ facility which means your people – your customers – can ask you questions and give you valuable feedback almost immediately. This is almost like a ‘chat’ system, and is quicker than email. Forget about having to manipulate your source codes, Blogs make this unnecessary. Blogs have an amazing comment system that allows your customers to immediately post feedbacks and queries. And that’s what service on the net is all about today – quick responses, dependable advice and getting what you want, when you want. Now. And Blogs can do it.

4. PUMP UP YOUR ADSENSE PROFITS: If you’re into Pay Per Click marketing, well Blogs are ideal for you. Then can stimulate even more regular traffic than your basic garden variety web site. Google AdSense, god bless ‘em, even lets Blog owners show as many as three appropriate ads, and these must relate to your theme and content, on their Blog pages. It’s Blogging marvelous!! Here’s the key reason why your Blog should have a ‘niche’, a specific theme, a targeted audience. Take time to give some thought to this when you set up a Blog. What about AdSense? The more visitors – and they’re likely only dropping in because of what you specifically offer - who click on your Blog’s Adsense ads, the more income you can earn.

5. BLOGS ARE A DREAM FOR AFFILIATE MARKETERS: Like me, I just bet you are enrolled in more affiliate programs than you can count. The problem is how to continue to promote all of them. ANSWER – You can easily use Blog ‘reviews’. Simply design each Blog entry around the particular affiliate program you want to focus on that day. Extol the virtues of the program, product, service or what-ever, give good advice about the PROs and the CONs (this objectivity impresses the hell out of potential buyers who are usually pleased with honesty) and include your affiliate link, almost as an after-thought. This is not hard-sell territory. This is the ‘soft-sell’ Most 21st century people run a mile from ‘hard sellers’ but they will take time to listen if they believe you are giving good, solid, valuable advice. Providing such good, valuable info encourages your people to come back for more. Hey, you don’t even need to create an individual page for every affiliate program because Blogging makes this unnecessary. What a time saver!!

Whew. Blogs do get me a bit excited. And these tips are only the tip of the iceberg. I am sure you can be creative in the marketing use of your Blogs because they have enormous potential. Just check out the exponential growth of Blogs today and you’ll see what I mean. If you want fresh Blog ideas, all you have to do is cruise through a few of them. Check out what the pros are doing and, do the same. Remember, imitation is the ultimate form of flattery.

Don’t let anyone try to tell you that the bottom is falling out of web marketing. The awesome growth and popularity of Blogs shows that they could not be more wrong.

Happy Blogging!!

Contact Ross Storey with any feedback.

(Here’s Some More Great Blogging Resources)

Ross Storey is an experienced public relations and marketing consultant who has been obsessed with web marketing, web design and the internet for more than a decade.

Become a ‘Super Blogger’

Blog Biz for Beginners

(Copyright © 2005 Ross Storey Please feel free to use this article, so long as you keep this resource box intact)

What Is A Blog? - A Beginner's Guide to Understanding Blogs

By Michael Turner

A blog is short for weblog, which simply means a website that is updated frequently with new information and is organized by date and submission. Blogs are typically a way of journalizing information whether it be personal, business, or what have you. It’s like an editorial and a journal all mixed together and available online for constant updates and submissions.

As a beginner, you probably want to know more about blogs and why people are using them.

Blogging started out when the Internet was new and the individuals who were technology savvy found it fun and entertaining to post different things they found on the web for other people to visit and enjoy. It caught on quickly and a community of blogs developed, allowing people to read other peoples blogs. As time went on, new technology was developed that allowed even the non-techie to create their own blog and join the blog culture.

Blogs are popular because they relay experiences, interesting thoughts, comments, photos, web links, and plenty of other information that people find interesting. Today, blogging is really popular and many people will send you a link to their blog so you can keep up with their experiences such as vacations, studies, pregnancies, and any other thing you can possibly think of.

What started out as a way to navigate the web and figure out all of the newness that was the Internet of the early ‘90s, turned into a way for people to journalize their experiences, share photos, and keep people up to date on their lives. In response to the popularity of blogs, many websites launched software and free sign-ups for blogs so anyone could have their own blog and share their experiences with the entire world.

And so, blogging has continued to grow and weblogs have multiplied into the millions. In fact, there are so many blogs on the web that you can practically become part of your own community with people worldwide, sharing your life, experiences, and thoughts with people you would never have met. Blogs truly are linking people together and they are an amazing phenomenon.

If you are interested in blogging, all you have to do is join one of the many blog websites that will allow you to set up your own account and have your own blog space on the web, giving you a personal space to share photos, experiences, stories, links, and basically anything else that you care to share. Many people even find that writing blogs are excellent stress relievers and quite cathartic, so you might receive some additional benefits from your blog than just the joy of sharing your personal information. Go online today and find a blog website where you can set up an account and get started!

Michael Turner shows you exactly how to increase web site traffic in his free 7 part mini-series. Grab it today at http://www.powertraffictactics.com/

What the BLOG?

By Lorrie Morgan-Ferrero

Blogs Are the NEW Secret Weapon for Reaching Your Tarket. Just like you, I hate being marketed to. Every day we're bombarded with over 3,500 marketing messages. And frankly I'm sick of it! But blogs are different. Blogs are a two-way conversation between blogger and bloggee (plus all the readers in between). Through commenting and cross-linking, you can share feedback. You can build your network. You can become, dare I say it, an Internet celebrity!

See blogs add humanity and instantaneous expression to the web. Like ezines, blogs are a way for your customer to get to know you.

However, unlike ezines, blogs help you with search engine rankings. Did you hear me? I said, unlike ezines, blogs help you with search engine rankings. That's a big one.

Entrepreneur Magazine, Business Week, even the FCC (Federal Trade Commission) all believe blogs are here to stay. Recently Michael Powell, chairman of the FCC, started one. His initial post drew over 30,000 readers. A Microsoft spokesperson says Bill Gates is considering starting a blog. And filmmaker Michael Moore built a blog to promote his controversial new movie, Fahrenheit 9/11.

But who has time to read a blog anyway? Exactly! The job of a blog is to cut through the information overload and deliver searchable, relevant and current content. BlogAds.com recently conducted a survey of over 17,000 blog readers. Here's what they report:

• Blog readers are older and more affluent. 61% of blog readers are over 30, and 75% make more than $45,000 a year.
• Blog readers are more cyber-active. 54% of their news consumption is online. 21% are themselves bloggers and 46% describe themselves as opinion makers.
• Blog readers are media-mavens. 21% subscribe to the New Yorker magazine, 15% to the Economist, 15% to Newsweek and 14% to the Atlantic Monthly.
• Whether on the left or right, blog readers have traits in common that often are absent in today's public spaces: passion and initiative.
• Blog readers have apathy towards traditional news sources. 82% say that television is worthless. 55% percent say the same about print newspapers. 54% say the same about print magazines.
• Meanwhile, 86% say that blogs are either useful or extremely useful as sources of news or opinion. 80% say they read blogs for news they can't find elsewhere. 78% read because the perspective is better. 66% value the faster news. 61% say that blogs are more honest.
• Blog readers appear united in their dissatisfaction with conventional media and their rabid love of blogs.

Don't you want to be a blogger too? How about looking at some samples of the good, the bad and the bizarre?

Model citizen blogs: http://www.marketingsecrets.com/blog/ - John Reese's blog. Hey, the guy just made $1,080,496.37 online in a single day. Here's a good rule of thumb. If Reese is doing it, you should be too.

http://www.talkbiz.net/ramblings/weblog.php - Copywriter Paul Myers keeps us up-to-date on SPAM and other Internet marketing nightmares.

http://www.thinkbigrevolution.com/ - Michael Port's weekly calls to inspire those who aspire now have an online connecting point. Designed by Andy Wibbels.

My Blog: http://www.red-hot-copy.com/blog.htm - my blog today (see end of article).

Bizarro Blog: Jeff Bridges' site is considered a "blog." It's hand-written! (Yes, really). http://www.jeffbridges.com

I've been dipping my toe into the blogging pool since earlier this year. Now I've decided it's time to really learn how to do this stuff with an expert who will take me by the hand through the scary forest of the blog-world. I'm going back to school! Through another client, I met blogging guru, Andy Wibbels. Sure, he has a funny name, but he is adorable! And his writing style has me rolling on the floor. Well Andy is a self-professed geek. And Andy knows blogs. He says it's easy and I trust him. Read more about it here. www.easybakeweblogs.com

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

International copywriting trainer, author and speaker, Lorrie Morgan-Ferrero has been a freelance writer and journalist for over 25 years. Her words have made her clients hundreds of thousands of dollars. Now she focuses her vast experience on teaching others the skill of copywriting. Lorrie is the author of a highly acclaimed copywriting course, creator of the Red Hot Copywriting Bootcamp and founder of Copy Campus, a unique membership resource site designed to support copywriters and entrepreneurs on all levels. Visit her site to learn more at http://www.red-hot-copy.com.

An Example of a Business Blog: Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) Blog

By Harish Keshwani

Think of a product or a service that your business provides to customers. This product may requires lots of instructions to assemble, tips to use efficiently, or simply requires lots of questions to be answered before it can be used. What are your options? Provide a Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) list on your website, OR write a FAQ Blog.

What will a FAQ Blog achieve that a simple FAQ List on your website cannot achieve?

FAQ Blog may be designed to answer one Frequently Asked Question per day in great details and is properly categorized for easy access. Answer may include some other tips and tricks useful for your customers. This approach can help your customers to become power users of your product / service and in turn become your emissary to the prospective customers.

Typically a Weblog has a comments feature, where a reader may post their comments, questions and appreciation. With proper moderation of comments, FAQ Blog can almost become a Customer Service center on Auto-pilot once there is a good collection of Frequently Asked Questions answered.

This Weblog can ultimately become a detailed and easily searchable manual of your product / service which serves dual purpose of satisfying existing customers and attracts prospective consumers.

Ideal businesses that may opt for FAQ blog are software development companies, consumer product companies, web hosting providers and insurance agents.

Harish Keshwani is a Strategic Blogging Consultant, Software Developer, Blogger and an Entrepreneur. He is focused on consulting and guiding small and medium businesses in setting up their blogs and managing it for them as an outsourced process.

He guides corporations of small and medium size to realize the potential of blogging for their business. With appropriate content, he helps companies to keep their existing customers satisfied and attract prospective customers. He promotes blogging as a marketing and customer response tool to the companies. One of his Business blogs was recently featured in FORBES - Best of Web under Small Business Category.

His contact information is:

Email: businessorati-at-gmail-dot-com

Company: Ideologic L.L.C.-A Small/Medium Business Blog Process Outsourcing Company.

Website: http://www.ideologicllc.com

Blog 1: http://www.ideologicllc.com/wp

Blog 2: http://businessworks.blogspot.com
- Featured on FORBES - Best of Web for Small Business Blog Category.

12 Reasons Why You Need A Blog

By Dr.Mani Sivasubramanian

"Why Should I Blog? I Simply Don't Get It"

This post on a popular discussion forum set me thinking - and I came up with 12 reasons you should blog.

Read them and get started on your blog. Or better still, go get your blog up and running and THEN come back and read this :)

#1 - You Do Not Need To Know HTML

One of the biggest hurdles many hopeful website creators face is they don't know to design a webpage. Blogs overcome this - all you do is type into a box, and the blog software automatically converts it into a webpage and publishes it on the World Wide Web for anyone to see.

#2 - You Are 'Forced' To Keep Your Content Fresh

Blogs are essentially online diaries. It doesn't make sense to write in your diary every month or two. Similarly, running a blog itself 'forces' you to update it often. And refreshing your blog often makes it more useful to readers and consumers - and by extension, to search engines who are in the business of presenting *their* clients with valuable resources.

#3 - Your Blog Is AUTOMATICALLY Optimized For Search Engines

Search engines love fresh content. But that's not the only way blogs are powerful tools to rank high. Indeed, most blogs are structured to offer a high degree of search engine optimization.

All sections of your blog are linked together. The terms used as link 'anchors' are keyword-optimized. Categories can be created to host themed content. Navigating through your blog is intuitive. Archives can be customized, and generate hundreds of pages of content that act as 'search engine spider bait'.

#4 - You Get A Built-In Linking Structure

With very few exceptions, most blogs are structured to be a tightly integrated network of links - to other sections of your blog! It's quite easy for a visitor to get 'lost' within your blog... without ever leaving it.

Calendars link to posts on specific dates. 'Recent Post' listings point to your freshest content. Archives connect all your earlier posts. Search boxes let browsers look for certain kinds of content. And it all happens automatically, without you spending hours on creating a link structure or sitemap!

#5 - You Generate Multiple Content-Rich Pages

Every post you make on your blog is content. And by intelligently setting up your archiving preferences, you can turn each post into many different forms of content, each on a page of its own. Blog regularly for a few months, and you could end up having a 100+ page website - all filled with relevant, keyword-optimized, themed content!

#6 - You Can Keyword-Optimize Your Blog Extensively

All parts of your blog's template can be customized. And a very powerful way to do it is by inserting relevant keywords. It's a do-it-once job that will give you ongoing benefits for as the life of your blog. You can include keywords in your blog title, description, blog post headings, trackback links, comment invitations, archive titles, and category names.

#7 - You Create An Online Community

If your blog is on a specific theme, you can build a loyal readership and develop an online community. You can even take it a notch higher by tying it in with a forum or membership site. Ask for comments, suggestions, ideas and feedback, or invite reader participation. Pretty soon, your blog will be growing organically - even if you don't write a lot!

#8 - You Initiate Conversations With Readers

Of course, the first step is yours - to initiate a dialog with readers. You could do it with your blog post, asking a question or by inviting comments and interaction. Your blog will be read by an audience that's already interested in your subject or theme. This conversation will be priceless to you, the blog owner.

#9 - Your 'Inbound Link' Process - Trackbacks

Blogging is about distributed conversations online. Links are an integral part of such an informal network. Trackbacks are a kind of blog technology that make it possible - and simple! Your blog will benefit from the inbound links a trackback will bring, and you'll also get extra traffic from other sources.

#10 - You Can Syndicate Your Content Easily

Getting readers for your content is good. Getting your content out where many more readers can see it is GREAT! Syndication (via RSS feeds) is built in to most blogging platforms, giving you a quick and easy way to get a wide readership for your blog posts.

#11 - You're Creating Stuff Search Engines LOVE

Search engines exist to offer their audience a compilation of the best resources on a subject or keyword. Your blog is the answer to a search engine's prayers! By sticking to a theme and presenting the content in an organized, structured, intuitively connected pattern, your blog will be appealing to search engines in a way only a very professionally planned and designed website can ever hope to be.

#12 - You Get 'Alternate' Traffic Sources

Remember what we saw about blogs being linked and networked together? Bloggers like to share opinions with others. And when they 'talk' about you, they are going to point to your site, or a post on your blog, to show their readers what they mean. They become 'alternate' traffic sources - for YOU!

Other tools like blog rolls, furls, favorite bloggers and more can drive sporadic - but sometimes big floods - of traffic your way. And best of all, it's effortless and costs you nothing!

Not yet convinced? Well, then maybe blogging isn't quite your cup of tea. But if you trust me, try it - you just might be pleasantly surprised.

Dr.Mani Sivasubramanian is author of 'Blog Profit Ideas Exposed - 33 Ways To Profit From Blogs" - http://www.BlogProfits.com - and 'How To Profit From RSS Feeds" -
http://www.RSS-Marketing.com and publishes 8 different 'niche' blogs and has been reporting on marketing with blogs and RSS feeds since 2001.

Tips on Using Blogs in Your Home Business Website

By Ryan Joseph

A trend that has been growing on the web is the use of blogs. These may be quite useful in your home business since e-mail applications including newsletters have been hard hit in recent year due to UCE (unsolicited commercial e-mail) or spam. Blogs are a content delivery method which might eventually replace commercial e-mail to a certain degree. As a matter of fact, a blogs may contain any content that you want. By using them to help promote your home business you are accessing an entirely new audience. Getting a blog going is not really that hard. Blogger(owned by google) might just be the best way. Tblog is also a free service, and paid ones include salon dot com and the blogging network. Tripod offers a free blog builder and hosting service as well. It was one of the first such free services, yet may be inferior to some services in certain respects. You can also use software applications if you want to to create a more personalized blog for your home business.

One of the big advantages of using a blog is that they tend to get good search engine posititioning due to interlinking and their inherent content. Search Engines know that most blogs are updated on a regular basis. Blogs have brought in a whole new texture to the media relations world because bloggers are often seen as opinion leaders and such. Topic specific blogs have become a kind of "speaker's corner" for the internet due to their relevency. Area specific blogs can also be a useful resource. You might want to set up a city based blog. Or a blog that covers certain topics or news effecting a certain state or other geographical location. Blogs can also be a source of news for subjects not covered by the mainstream media. You could use blogs to either promote your home business directly or use the traffic to promote an affiliate program like Google adwords to set up another stream of income.

Once you have your blog up and running, there are a number of superb resources that you can use to promote it. Blog-city is a blog search engine and directory, blogsearchengine.com, blogwise (paid) and bloghop dot com(paid). Using blogs effectively can certainly improve the internet marketing results for your home business! For additional home business tips go to Home Business Match.com and look at the free reprint original home business article archive there.

Ryan Joseph is writer of home business and other topics. More info at http://www.home-business-match.com and http://www.aaronsfreebies.com/

"Blogging" For Fun & Profits

By Jim Edwards

Unless you've been under a rock for the last year, you've heard the term "blog" once or twice.

To most people, a "blog" simply represents a glorified online "diary" where geeks, computer nerds, and lonely teenagers record their thoughts in cyber-space.

However, many people don't realize that "blogs" are quietly revolutionizing the way companies and customers interact about everything from existing products to new ideas and improvements in customer service.

In short, "blog" style communication has come of age and anyone with an online business better sit up and take notice fast!

In the eginning, "blogs" were basically an online diary to record your thoughts; but "blogs" have now evolved into dynamic websites that non-technical people can update immediately without html editors or ftp programs.

Blogs allow their authors to make instant website updates through a computer anywhere in the world with a Web browser and Internet connection.

Blogs also allow readers to respond to the author's posts,provide additional information, links, expanded opinions,and more.

In short, an active "blog" creates an interactive community
with the author as the hub and the readers as the spokes of the wheel that keep the whole cycle turning round.

Unlike traditional "static" web pages where content rarely(if ever) changes, an active blog evolves in a state of constant and never-ending renewal.

With blogs, smart online businesses re-discovered a principal that small "mom and pop" stores understood for years: know your customers and stay in close tune with their wants, needs, and desires.

Large companies throw billions of dollars down a black hole every year to literally "guess" what people want to buy.Most call it the "Marketing Department."

On the flipside, smart online businesses understand that blogs allow you to avoid guessing what's on your customers' minds and provide an active and up-to-the-minute means for them to tell you exactly what they do and don't like about your services, products, and virtually any other aspect of the market.

This lightning fast communication makes it possible for small companies to literally snatch huge market share away from more traditional companies.

Blogging also has a distinct advantage over traditional
email newsletters in that subscribers can get udpates without having to receive an email message. Through the power of RSS (real simple syndication),subscribers get
notified of updated content though an rss news reader.

Bottom Line: publishing a blog with an RSS feed that your readers can subscribe to means your content NEVER gets blocked by a SPAM filter.

Blog software basically comes in 2 flavors: hosted and stand-alone. Hosted blogging solutions make it extremely easy to get set up with a blog, often in just a couple of minutes.

If you know how to type, you can create a blog. Log on to Blogger.com and you can set up a blog free of charge and start posting in just a few minutes.

Blogger.com (owned by search giant, Google) will even host your blog on their servers.

Typepad.com, which charges as little as $4.95 per month, is also an excellent hosted service offering additional features that enable you to quickly get your own blog up and running.

The alternative is stand-alone blogging software installed on your own website.

A very popular solution is Moveable Type, available from
moveabletype.org, which provides a very versatile and powerful suite of tools for creating a full-featured blog to rival that of any size company in the world.

<-- Side Note -->

This is the solution I've chosen for my blog at

http://www.IGottaTellYou.com/blog/

<-- End Side Note -->

Whichever blogging solution you choose, if you plan to successfully conduct any form of business online,understand that a "blog" must form an integral part of your overall plan for customer communication and interaction.

About the Author:

Jim Edwards is a syndicated newspaper columnist and the
co-author of an amazing new ebook that will teach you how to use fr^e articles to quickly drive thousands of targeted visitors to your website or affiliate links...

Simple "Traffic Machine" brings Thousands of NEW visitors to your website for weeks, even months... without spending a dime on advertising! ==> http://www.turnwordsintotraffic.com

© Jim Edwards - All Rights reserved

http://www.thenetreporter.com

How to Use a Blog to Dramatically Improve Your Web Business!

By William Johnston

A blog is an online journal in which the author publishes his or her thoughts and opinions on a subject which interests them. A good blog will be updated frequently with new points of interest which the blogger (author) and readers can discuss.

Recently, blogs have appeared all over the internet. Thousands are being created every day on every subject imaginable. Everyone has interests and so you can always guarantee that other people will have the same interests as you. If you start a blog on something you are interested in you can be sure that thousands of people will be interested in what you have to say. Having thousands of people reading and following the content in your blog has enormous potential. Here are some great ways in which you can use blogs to your advantage.

1. A blog is a great way to promote your web business. Your blog should be about the same subject as your web business because this way you can easily promote the products and services that you are trying to sell. Due to the fact that you can guarantee your readers will be interested in the product you are offering, it looks like you are doing them a favour and not just blatantly advertising to them. A blog is also great for keeping your customers and prospects updated on new products or deals available.

2. A blog is an unbeatable way to build yourself a great web presence. One of the main reasons why visitors will not buy from you on the internet is because they fear that you are not trustworthy. However, if you have a blog which is updated regularly with high quality comments that show you know a lot about what you are selling, this will build your credibility immediately. Visitors will see the amount of time and effort you put into your blog and will think it very unlikely that you are going to cheat them. Boosting your credibility using a blog will skyrocket your sales.

3. A blog will help you build better relationships with your prospects and with your existing customers. Capturing prospects’ email addresses is made very easy with a blog. To build a good relationship with your readers, follow up with them privately on comments that they make. For example you could say that you found a comment they made particularly interesting and then give an intelligent, knowledgeable response. They will feel particularly good about themselves that you have sent them a personal email response and this will encourage them greatly to purchase a product that you are recommending or promoting.

4. A blog is an excellent way to boost your search engine rankings. Many websites receive over 80% of their traffic from search engines and so this is a major advantage. Search engines love blogs because they are frequently updated with fresh content. Due to this, new blogs are often indexed a lot more quickly than new sites. A good blog, full of interesting, quality content can reach the top Google and Yahoo positions very quickly. If your blog has links to your website within it, then you can guarantee that this will boost your website’s search engine ranking as well.

5. Blogs in themselves can be a great source of income. Google Adsense is a great way to make money quickly because Google’s technology makes the ads that appear to be relevant to your blog’s content. You can guarantee that your readers will be interested in what appears in Google’s ad boxes. Every time someone clicks on a Google ad you get paid! Affiliate sales are another way to make easy money with blogs. Just promote someone else’s product subtly within a comment and you could earn up to 75% of the sale. Making money through an affiliate program is extremely easy and my strong recommendation is http://www.clickbank.com.

Most importantly, make sure your blog is based upon something that really interests you. Blogs can be very time consuming but so long as what you are writing about interests you, then you will find blogging a very enjoyable experience.

For more information on this subject or about making money online go to http://www.info-ebooks.co.uk

100s of free ebooks and software products are also available at this address. Gain free access to these by sending a blank email to:

infoebooks@freeautobot.com

Thank you for reading

William Johnston
(will@info-ebooks.co.uk)

Seven Sizzling Ways to Turn Targeted Traffic Towards Your Blog!

By William Johnston

Blogs are an unbelievable way to achieve success on the internet. Blogs can establish a web presence, express your opinions and generate serious profits. However, without visitors a blog is useless no matter how good the content. With thousands of blogs being created every day, you need to know exactly how to get people to your blog over everyone else’s. Here are 7 breakthrough ways to bring traffic to your blog:

1. Optimize your posts for the major search engines. Search engines love blogs because they are frequently updated with fresh content. All blogs have the opportunity to make it to a high position on search engines but here are a few tips to beat your competition for the top spots.

• Make sure you use plenty of primary keywords in the titles of your blog posts.
• Make sure you use secondary keywords in the body of your posts, however be careful not to use too many since this will make your post sound unnatural.
• Use keywords in the anchor text of links in the body of your posts since links have a higher importance to the search engines than ordinary text.
• If possible try to use your most appropriate keyword in the URL of your blog. Search engines love keywords in the URL and this will have a serious effect on your positioning.

2. Write posts that people will want to read. Put yourself in the position of someone following your blog. Always write relevant content which will be of interest to your blog followers. Good content will lead people to recommend your blog. As a rule, each post should contain a single topic. If you wish to discuss two topics then break it down into two posts. This makes life easier for readers and makes information easier to find. A great mistake that many bloggers make is writing large, infrequent posts. Get into the habit of writing short posts but making sure that you post regularly at least 3 times a week. This way, people will return to your blog because they are sure there will be something new to read.

3. Use your blog posts as articles. Writing and submitting articles is a sure-fire way to gain more visitors. Just turn your blog posts into articles by formatting them, and perhaps adding a bit more detail. This way you are building traffic and writing for your blog at the same time. Recommended sites for submitting your articles are http://www.ezinearticles.com and http://www.goarticles.com.

4. Build links to your blog. This will also have a great impact on your search engine ranking, especially Google. Build links to your blog by exchanging links with other blogs of the same topic as yours. This way you can guarantee targeted traffic. Come to an agreement with another blogger that you will each write a positive review on each other’s blog. This way you will get a good testimonial for your website and receive a link on another blog. If you have a main website, then make sure you link from every page to your blog. This way you gain lots of links and whichever page visitors enter your website, they will always have the opportunity to visit your blog.

5. Ping the blog services. There are many services which track and connect blogs all over the world. By sending a small ping to all of these services you will let them know that you exist. They will come and check you out and this could spell serious visitors if your blog is full of good content and is regularly updated. Sending this ping is not at all difficult. Just go to http://www.pingomatic.com where you can send a ping to a number of services very quickly for no cost.

6. Submit your blog to blog directories. Just like if you have a website or an ezine, it is essential to submit your blog to the top directories. A good listing in these directories could mean 100s of visitors every day. You can find a great list of blog directories at http://www.masternewmedia.org/rss/top55/. And don’t stop at blog directories. Don’t be afraid to submit your blog to the big directories such as Yahoo and Dmoz.

7. Capture your readers’ email addresses. This is vitally important because it is essential that you can keep in touch with your readers so that you can update them about your blog and make sure they are still reading. Just make sure you have a subscription box on every page of your blog and offer a free bonus such as an ebook as a reward for subscribing. With a good list of subscribers, you can conduct surveys to find out what topics your readers want your posts to consist of. Keeping in touch with your readers will lead them to trust you and they will continually come back to your blog and will recommend it to their friends.

Just be imaginative. Keep trying different techniques to getting people to your blog and see which methods work best. Remember, creativity is one of the keys to internet success.

For more information on this subject or about making money online go to http://www.info-ebooks.co.uk

100s of free ebooks and software products are also available at this address. Gain free access to these by sending a blank email to:

infoebooks@freeautobot.com

Thank you for reading

William Johnston
(will@info-ebooks.co.uk)

How to Make Money from Your Blog Content

By Evelyn Lim

Writing a blog can be fun and exciting, but it can also be rewarding. If you do not know how to make money from your blog content then you need to consider implementing the following suggestions in your blog.

Make Money Tip #1 Adsense
Adsense is an incredible service offered by Google to help you make money and help others advertise as well. Basically, with Adsense you choose several ads that blend or complement the information talked about in your blog. Then, when individuals click on the ads that are present in your blog, you receive money! Best of all, Adsense is free to use on your site, so this is a great opportunity to make money without really having to do very much.

Make Money Tip #2 Affiliate Marketing
Affiliate programs are another great way to make money as well and work on the same premise of Adsense. The web surfer has to click on the affiliate website’s link and when they do so they are redirected from your blog to the link they clicked on. You will get paid affiliate income for the click, and if they make a purchase when they are on that website you will get paid affiliate income again.

Make Money Tip #3 Blog Ads
Blog ads can help you make money as well. Blog ads are not too different from Adsense or Affiliate marketing, but they are in the sense that blog ads connect web surfers with advertisers. Then, when any ad placements are made a commission is exchanged.

Make Money Tip #4 Business Blog
You can use your blog to simply converse about any topic that is important to you, but you can also use your blog as a tool to help you make money. Advertise your business services; make your blog a business blog by focusing at least part of your blog on your business services. This way, you can still communicate whatever it is you need to and make money as well.

When it comes to making money from your blog you can do so easily with these tried and true tricks of the trade. Whether you utilize Adsense, affiliate marketing, blog ads, a business blog, or a combination of all of the above, you will certainly benefit and make money. Don’t delay and start implementing these types of money making strategies in your blog today. Not only will you make money, but your blog will become more popular as well.

Evelyn Lim is the publisher of a FREE newsletter "Mapping You to Success". She hopes to help the aspiring entrepreneur start a home based business. To subscribe to great tips and marketing resources, please visit http://www.e-BizMap.com.

Google AdSense and Blogs

By Diane Nassy

If you have a blog, or are thinking about starting a blog, then you are definitely going to want to read this article. It’s all about how to line your pockets with money that’s just waiting to be made without working much harder than you already are.

No only are blogs the hottest thing on the ‘net right now, but they are custom-made for Google’s AdSense program. Why? It’s simple. Blogs represent constantly changing and fresh content to Google’s search engine spiders. Feeding fresh content to those little spiders is just like tossing raw meat to a tiger. They just gobble it up. The more pages of your blog that get indexed, the more traffic you get. And the more traffic you get, the more exposure your AdSense ads get. Are you beginning to see where I’m heading here?

It’s not just Google that loves new content, all of the major engines do. In fact, some web-savvy bloggers are testing Google ads on one page and Overture ads on the other. It doesn’t take too long to see which ads are doing the best when you have nearly side-by-side comparison statistics to look at. Just don’t make the mistake of putting Google and Overture ads on the same page together. While they won’t kill each other like a pair of Siamese fighting fish in the same bowel will, you will be violating both sites’ Terms of Service, and it isn’t worth killing the goose (geese) that laid the golden egg.

It’s a snap to set up Google AdSense ads on your blog. Everything you need to know is right inside of the Google control panel. What’s not so easy is figuring out what ads are going to appear on each page. Since Google targets your key words, and your blog articles could possible wander towards any subject, you never know what you’re going to get.

Well, “never” is a strong word because there actually IS a way to pre-test your blog’s ads before you post your newest edition. Here’s what you do:

• Write your blog article like you normally would

• Plug in your AdSense code and then post your newest page to a sub directory that’s not part of your blog.

• Click refresh a few times until Google wakes up and starts sending ads.

• If you don’t like what you see then fine-tune the article until you see the types of ads that you’re looking for.

With some ads paying as much as $5 per click or more, I’d certainly spend an extra 30 minutes or so tweaking my blog. That’s for sure.

If you’re working hard to get your blog in front of visiting eyeballs, then it doesn’t make any sense at NOT to be using Google AdSense to draw every penny out of your site that’s possible. OK, that’s the end of the article. Now get busy tweaking your blog and checking your ads. You’ve got money waiting to be made!

Diane provides marketing and internet profit tips.
For more Google AdSense tips, visit http://www.adsense.deeljeabiz.com

Email : deeljeabiz@gmail.com

How Bloggers Are Making Thousands of Dollars From the Google Adsense Affiliate Program

By Christopher Kyalo

There is no doubt that the Google Adsense program for publishers and site owners is one of the most successful affiliate programs anywhere. There is increasing evidence that many bloggers have managed to find the right formula to make thousands of dollars every month from little more than a handful of blogs with carefully created and compiled content.

Unfortunately this has also led some unscrupulous bloggers to try and steal other writers work and post them at their blogs like it was their own. Alas there will always be some bad apples in most baskets.

So what are these successful Adsense bloggers really doing to rake in a couple of thousand dollars on a monthly basis? What’s their secret?

Cashing In On The Blog Advantage for The Adsense Affiliate Program

When it comes to attracting traffic, blogs have a definite advantage over web sites. It is amazing how quickly a decent blog can attract quality links to itself. These links usually bring in lots of traffic very quickly. Bloggers carrying Adsense ads in their blogs are taking full advantage of this fact.

What this means is that a blogger can set up brand new blog now and within the next few hours will be drawing in traffic. If they already have another handful of blogs with some reasonable traffic, then by simply setting up a few relevant links to the new blog, traffic will take off in a hurry. And of the new blog is able o attract some high-paying Google Adsense PPC (pay-per-click ads) then the impact on their affiliate program income will be almost immediate.

The other advantage is that search engines love blogs so much that they will always tend to rank them higher than websites in any search. The fact that blogs are updated regularly and the rapid growth in links they enjoy are some of the reasons for this. This higher ranking means higher traffic.

When I was starting out in Internet marketing my first site took ages to attract search engine traffic. A new blog I started attracted a couple of serach engine hits within a day or so, even before I had done any serious search engine optimization.

No doubt, in making their decision to actively promote Adsense amongst blogs, smart Google executives must have been fully aware of this fact.

This advanatage that blogs enjoy over web sites is one of the key factors that many bloggers are using to draw the sort of monthly income that other folk need several months and in some cases a whole year to bring in.

Carefully Research Keywords For The Adsense Affiliate Program

While traffic is important in making money from the Adsense affiliate program, keywords are much more critical. Most keywords will attract the sort of ads that pay only a few cents for every click that happens at your blog. A few keywords will draw in ads that pay a couple of dollars. A single click can sometimes pay $100.

Bloggers who are making big money with the Adsense affiliate program are spending a lot of time researching Adsense keywords. What makes this task even more difficult is that keyword prices are constantly fluctuating as different advertisers bid differently for their ads. The clicks ads receive also have an impact on the bid price. With the new Google system, advertisers have an option of raising their bid price.

So if you want to join the ranks of Adsense bloggers earning serious money, there are really no two ways about it, you will need to be an Adsense keyword specialist. This is not as difficult as it may sound at first because there are tons of information available online for free that cover this subject.

Set Up Several Blogs For Your Adsense Affiliate Program

Adsense money is not easy money, at least not initially. One of the things that leading Adsense bloggers have done is to set up several blogs catering for different niches and then linking them to each other to maximize on the traffic received.

Christopher Kyalo makes money writing online and also writes content for some clients who make money from Adsense ads posted at their blogs. Read the rest of this article at his blog http://webcontentprovider.blogspot.com He can be reached at strongwallafrica at yahoo.com

10 Benefits of Being a Blogger

By Nicholas Dixon

I have been a blogger since September 2004 but only began to take it seriously this year. My blogging journey began when I stumbled upon a company owned by Google named Blogger.com that offered free tools to build a website.

In fact Blogger provides you with free several templates which you can customize in addition to a domain name hosted on their server. You can host your blog on your domain if you like to. Here are some benefits I found while blogging:

1) Easy to manage. A blog can be set up by even a novice in no time. All you have to do is post and publish. Blogging can get as simple as that or even more complex.

2) Easy to update. Blogs can be updated weekly or daily instead of sometimes monthly for a static website. Even adding a few paragraphs a day can be done in no time and can be beneficial to your search rankings.

3) Get spidered quickly. Search engine spiders crawl blogs with greater frequency than static webpages. I have had webpages that took over eight months to be indexed in Google where as Yahoo sometimes index my blogs in weeks sometimes days.

4) If you write articles then you can post all of them on your blog in addition to free reprint content that is widely available everwhere. The more content you have the better.

5) You can get your website indexed quicker. An article or a piece of news about your website with an optimize anchor link will send the spiders your way in no time.

6) Sell advertising space. If you have a popular blog then you can create a revenue stream by selling ad space. Blogads is one of several places where you can sell your ad space to major companies.

7) Similar to offering ad space, you can add Adsense to your blog to monetize your content. What I love about Blogger is that once you plug in the Adsense code into your main template, a new page is created and Adsense is automatically displayed when you make a post.

8) Review your affiliate products. If you have a blog that is in a niche then you can find affiliate programs for that niche and do reviews of them for a commission. Every time someone purchases the product or service through your link you make money.

9) It is still early to catch on. Blogs and RSS feeds are used by the minority of internet users which makes it excellent for you to start blogging right now. Less than 10% of the Americans which is the biggest online market use this emerging trend.

10) Can be syndicated. An easy way for your readers to stay in touch with updates is to add your blog to their My Yahoo and My MSN. They can see the latest information and how long ago it was added.

11)Yes a bonus! Savvy marketers know that if you add your blogs to My Yahoo you can have it indexed in no time by Yahoo. You can use these two websites to inform blog directories that
you have updated your content.

a) http://WWW.Ping-o-matic.com

b) http://WWW.Rssfeedpromoter.com

So with all those benefits in mind there is no reason you should not start your own blog. So when do you decide to go blogging?

© Oceanroc Web Publishing

Nicholas Dixon has successfully use free articles as his primary source of marketing. Subscribe to his Free Four Day Email Course on how to use free articles to generate business and traffic at SubmitYourArticles@Getresponse.com or visit http://WWW.Oceanroc.Blogspot.com

Blogging Tutorial

By Steve Dimeck

Let's start at the beginning. What is a 'Blog' and why would you care?

Plain and simple. A blog (short for web-log), is nothing more than an electronic journal or a diary to enter your thoughts or ideas by using web-based programs.

However, a blog can be so much more than just plain opinion columns or diary entries. It can quickly become a valuable news source in which bloggers (people who blog) link to a number of other news sources and other blogging sites.

Bloggers are the *construction workers* of the Internet. They literally build "Internet highways" that lead readers from one website (or one blog) to the next, offering an extensive variety of information. Journalists and publishers haunt blog sites in search of trends or emerging stories. Others just search blogs for gossip and tidbits to share with their friends.

A blog can also be used to enhance your online business or even your personal site. It can be used to offer tutorials or free content you may not want to include on your regular website.

In fact, a blog can be a website in and of itself! Blogs are designed to be whatever it is you want them to be, giving you complete and creative control over every aspect of it.

Using a blog can be very beneficial to you whether you have an online business or you simply need some sort of *emotional expressive outlet.* And, blogs are extremely easy to create, use and profit from, even if you have never made a blog in your life!

Express Yourself.

Let's not talk about a profit for a minute.

How would you like to express your thoughts, opinion, point of view, comments, or simply tell the world what you think of e certain topic or issue, or what you stand for?

And how about, … simply sharing your thoughts with other people?

People are starting to spend more and more time browsing through blogs and communicating through their blogs rather than with any other forms of online communication.

And that's because a blog is something you personally own. It's your own blog. You identify with it. Even if you've never designed your own website, this IS your website. This IS your web presence.

Let's say you're a teacher, or work at the office, or a mechanic, or whatever you do for a living. You can share your thoughts only with the few people that you work with or hang out with.

But by having your own blog, you can tell the world. Simply, express yourself and be heard by the world. This is how you do it.

How To Express Yourself With a Blog

At the time of writing this article, I created a blog at http://www.blogger.com in literally 2 minutes. I called it, "Blogging For Fun."

It's located here: http://blogging-for-fun.blogspot.com/

It's going to be my blog for fun (as the name implies), non business related - just having fun sharing everyday information with other bloggers.

Then I went to http://pingomatic.com/, and I submitted my blog to all of the "blogging services."

And now, all I'm going to do is wait until my blog gets picked up and read by other bloggers. Meantime, as I'm browsing through other blogs, I'm going to link to some of them that catch my interest.

Later when I post more of my thoughts and comments, I'll check these blogs that I had previously linked to, just to see if there was new information posted by those bloggers.

And I'll even give them my comments in response to their thoughts or comments. Well, that also goes for other people too. As they read my blog, they can submit their comments to me too.

And that's all there's to it. A simple online communication. But, ......... you're communicating with the world.

There are so many blogs today that they have their own search engine. And the engine tracks millions of bloggers worldwide that add millions of blogs each and every day.

O.K.

How Would You Profit With a Blog?

To put it in the simplest way possible ... same as mentioned above.

Share information with the world - with one slight difference. "Profit in Mind!"

When you go back to my blog "Blogging For Fun," you'll find two links back to my website.

Oooops!

I shouldn've told you that. :-)

If you have a website of your own, use your blog to simply send traffic back to your website where you have your products displayed. Post your articles in your blog, overview of your product or service, comments, announcements, your newsletter and whatever else you want to post or however you want to reroute the visitors back to your website.

Or ...

If you don't have a website, the blog IS your website. Use it just like your website. Post product reviews with your affiliate links, banners, Google AdSense and everything else that you would use your website for.

But ...

Don't ever forget one thing - a thing that I learned the hard way.

Don't turn your blog into a pure sales pitch. A Blog is an online journal. A Blog is best known and accepted as a source of information - a FREE information.

If you're just promoting the hack out of your latest affiliate/MLM programs and such, you won't get much sympathy, if at all. As I already mentioned, I learned this lesson the hard way.

Be open and share information with the visitors of your blog, just as I am sharing this information with you.

More and more you show to other bloggers that you just want to share your thoughts and comments with others, more and more of them will accept you as a source and perhaps even link to you.

If just one, I mean just one blogger links to your blog, do you realize what you've done?

You have just gained access to a major highway. Other bloggers are linked to that one blogger, who are linked to other bloggers, who are linked to other bloggers, and other bloggers, and other bloggers, and even more bloggers, and ...

You get the picture.

You'll get bloggers visiting your blog that are coming from maybe “20 blogs away” who somehow worked their way through the links into your blog. That means you'll be getting traffic from who knows where and from who knows who.

And how do you make that traffic a highly targeted traffic?

Be very specific about your subject, and post comments, reviews, articles and such - only on that subject. Link to other bloggers who are following the same subject. They will link to you too and that's how the story goes.

Let me give you a few profit blogging tips

Tip 1:
You DO want to link to other bloggers who are running blogs on the same subject as you are. Your visitors will see your blog as a resource and bookmark it.

Don't worry that you might be sending some traffic away to other blogs. You will want the same treatment in return. Your chances for other bloggers to link to you are bigger when you're providing other resources. Your blog is not a dead-end street.

Tip 2:
When you're writing an overview about your product that you're selling, be extremely short and to the point. 2 - 3 paragraphs only. And those paragraphs have to be educational or informative. Inform and educate your visitors. Don't sell to them.

Spread your overview in many blogs. Shortly cover only one feature of your product in each blog. Tell them what you're going to talk about in your next blog.

Of course, put a link on some keywords back to your website. Or, at the end of each overview, put your URL and say something like: "If you don't want to wait until my next blog, you can get complete information at my site" - or somewhere along those lines.

Tip 3:
If you just want to use your blog for promoting your affiliate programs or such, write your personal experience with the program. Don't just provide the same sales pitch that was provided to you by the website you're promoting and the one that 20 thousand other affiliates are repeating.

Tip 4:
Don't use the words "I think" and "should" when writing overviews and informing people about your product or service. They're dangerous. They will quickly reveal your lack of confidence, experience and expertise. When you know something for sure and you're very confident about it .... .... .... You will not “think” that they “should” look into it .... .... .... You get it?

Tip 5:
Share information with the visitors of your blog. Inform them. Educate them about your product. But don't try to sell them anything.

When you open your favorite magazine or a news paper, what do you read and where do you spend most of your time? The section with the content and all the stories, or the advertisements?

Why do you keep on buying that same news paper or a magazine? Because of the information presented in there or because of the advertisements?

You get it?

Your blog is your "news paper" or your "online journal" that other people will want to visit over and over. They will want to come back and link to your blog because of the FREE information you're providing and not because of your advertisements.

Of course, while your visitors are reading your blog, think of ways how to sell them something or make them click on the link back to your sales page.

Steve Dimeck. Author and Publisher. For more quality articles such as the one you've just read, visit http://www.ogdteam.com -
Internet Marketing information and resources.

Why Blog?

By Jill Hart

It seems everyone these days is talking about blogging. Everywhere I go, I find articles and forums devoted to this craze. I also have heard from many home business owners who are trying to figure out what a blog is and how they can use one to their benefit.

The term “blog” is short for “weblog”, which just means an online journal or “log”. You can jot down personal thoughts and notes, post articles you’ve written or keep track of interesting websites you find. The sky is the limit, it seems, when it comes to blogging. A blog is something entirely of your own creation and you can use it to share your thoughts with the world, well….with anyone you can get to read it anyway.

One of the main debates going on about blogs is whether blogging can be done to improve Search Engine rankings for businesses or to create a buzz about business websites. Both of these can be true if the blog is used correctly. Many resources show that once a blog is created, many times it is listed in Search Engines within 48 hours. This was true of the blog I created for Christian Work at Home Moms.

These are many ways to create a blog. The easiest by far is to use one of the free tools available online, such as Google’s Blogger. You can create your blog for free using their online tools and templates(nothing to download). After you have created the blog, you can then publish your blog through them and “Wa-La” – your blog is posted online for the world to see.

Once you’ve created your blog, you will need to decide how you will use it. Will it be a personal blog, full of thoughts and comments for yourself alone or maybe your family? Or will it be a business blog, with articles and tips for potential customers? If you want your blog to be found by others, blogging experts recommend that you begin by setting the title and descriptions for your blog. These are similar to the the title and descriptions you set for your website. Try to make them meaningful because they are what people will see when your blog is returned in a Search Engine. If your description is simply “my blog”, you may not draw the attention you’d like.

If you are blogging in the hopes of attracting customers, make sure to use wise use of words and links in your blogs. Try to avoid the “click here” link. Instead, opt for links within descriptive sentences. Add the HTML link within the sentence and attach it to the words that are closely related to the page or site you are linking to. For example, to link to my website I would not use “click here” as my link. I would say, “Please visit Christian Work at Home Moms for home-based work resources.”

There are many ways to get your blog noticed outside of optimizing them for Search Engines. For instance, there are entire websites devoted to listing blogs dedicated to any topic that you can think of. One of the best such websites devoted to women-created blogs, is BlogDaisy.com. You can also use free tools such a FeedBurner.com to track the traffic on your blog and to create a dynamic title box that can be used to display your blog headlines on your website or even in your email signature. Each time you update your blog, these headlines are instantly updated.

There are many ways to use a blog for either personal or business use. If used correctly, a blog can be a terrific tool to inform potential customers of your business. Be sure to update your blog at least once a week so that the content remains fresh and you remain in the Search Engines.

Jill Hart is the author of the e-book, 2 Weeks Devotional Journey for Christian Work at Home Moms, and the founder and editor of Christian Work at Home Moms CWAHM.com. This site is dedicated to providing work at home moms with opportunities to promote their businesses while at the same time providing them spiritual encouragement and articles.

E-mail Jill at jill@cwahm.com for additional information or stop by her site at http://www.cwahm.com
This article is free to reprint if the Author’s Bio remains in tact. For additional articles, please contact Jill Hart.