30 Common Website/WordPress Mistakes by both Novices & Pro Authors

1. Allowing your content to be author-focused instead of reader-focused
2. Using WordPress.com instead of self-hosted WordPress (.org)
3. Using a generic or defective theme
4. Not designing for mobile use
5. Not optimizing pages and images for SEO
6. Not properly integrating social media
7. Not setting up the permalinks properly (A.K.A. ugly permalinks)
8. Too many categories, not enough tags
9. Letting it be too design heavy or too boring
10. Overwhelming your visitors
    Too many navigation links
    Too much on the home page
    Too many pop-ups and moving graphics
    Too many ads
11. Not using video to the best of your abilities
12. Not making it easy for visitors to connect with you on social media
13. Not making your book’s buy-now button easy to find
14. Not offering an easy way for visitors to get on your list (appealing incentives?)
15. Not using effective calls to action (where are you leading them?)
16. Not taking full advantage of the scripts that are available such as
    Google XML Sitemaps
    Contact Form 7
    Akismet
    All in One SEO Pack
17. Running too many unnecessary scripts
18. Trying to run e-commerce plugins on WordPress
19. Not posting on the blog often enough
20. Not having a regular backup of your database & site files
21. Not using Google Analytics
22. Not using Webmaster tools to get your site indexed
23. Ignoring Google Authorship Markup
24. Not using a Gravatar (Globally Recognized Avatar)
25. Not customizing the Favicon
26. Not taking advantage tools like CDN and CACHE that help your site load faster
27. Ignoring WordPress updates
28. Going with a faulty hosting company just because it is cheaper
29. Not taking steps to further “harden” your WordPress site (here are just a few)
    Not using proper security plugins
    Not changing the default username from “admin”
    Not changing the “wp_” prefix of your database table

30. Not talking to your website designer about all of this!

Contact Cherished Solutions today to discuss your website and WordPress needs.

Many of the solo professionals whom I coach are people who offer services. They’re coaches, consultants, creatives. And many of them are also beginning to sell information products on their Web sites. They’re smart to offer a lower-priced alternative to hiring them, and to sell a product that can gain them passive income.

But here’s the problem: I see many of them trying to sell their e-book, tutorial, etc. on a regular Web page. They list a paragraph about the info-product and give the price, and they expect a slew of sales.

Wrong.

You need a special sales page that has a “slippery slope” sales letter.

Remember that game Chutes & Ladders? If you landed on a space that had a chute on it, you just went down, Baby. No turning back. That’s how your sales letter should be – a “slippery slope” that pulls in the reader because it’s so compelling and interesting.

Here’s a basic outline of the 13 elements you want to include. To see an example of them all in action, visit MY own sales page at www.BoostBizEzine.com.

1. Limit your navigation.

The visitor should not be distracted by links that take her to your bio, other products, etc. The idea is to keep her on this page, reading your copy and leading her to order. So on this page, only have navigation that relates to the product (e.g. FAQs, Order now).

2. Give a powerful headline.

Your headline can make or break your sales. If it’s not compelling, your visitor will click away. Here’s an easy headline formula: “How to _________ So You Can ____________.” Make sure the 2nd part gives a big benefit, for example, “double your business” or “gain peace of mind.”

3. Discuss the problem the prospect has, or incorporate your own story.

Marketers call this “pushing the ‘ouch’ button.” First discuss the problem or pain that the reader has, and then lead in to how your product will solve it. Or share your own failure-to-success story that the reader can empathize with.

4. Tell us who you are.

If I’m going to buy your stuff, I’d like to know why you’re qualified to write about this topic. Give me the feeling that you’ve learned a lot about this topic and want to share it with me.

Even add a picture of yourself and an audio greeting, like I did. These help the reader instantly feel like she knows you better, increasing the “trust factor.” And people buy from those they feel they know, like, and trust!

5. Use bullets like mini headlines.

Lay out everything I’ll get from your product. Don’t just list your table of contents verbatim! Turn each point into an exciting secret. For example, suppose your e-book features 5 tips on how to save money on groceries. That bullet could read, “Revealed: 5 ways you can save hundreds of dollars on your monthly grocery bill.”

6. List plenty of testimonials.

Show your prospects they won’t be the first to buy. It’s more effective to weave-in testimonials throughout your sales letter than to have a separate section for them. Give each person’s full name and Web address, and for extra power, post their photo and an audio testimonial as well.

7. Tell us why your product is such a great value.

How does the price of your product compare if I hired you one-on-one? For example, your manual is a great value at $49 if an hour consultation with you would run me $250.

8. Throw in a few great bonuses.

Offer special bonuses (preferably created by you) that are so good you could sell them alone if you wanted to. It could be a list of resources, a collection of articles, extra tips on a certain subject, or a free consu1tation.

9. Give an unconditional guarantee.

This puts your prospect at ease, giving her no reason to NOT buy. A few turkeys will take advantage of your generosity, but the amount of sales you GAIN from this strategy dramatically outweighs the risk.

10. Request immediate action by having a limited time offer.

Some sales pages use trick scripts to make it seem like the offer always ends on that day at midnight, but I find these insulting. If you really will be raising your price soon (and you always should be), list the exact date and stick to it. Otherwise just say it’s an introductory, limited-time offer.

11. Make it ABSURDLY CLEAR what to do next.

Nothing bothers me more than when I’m at a Web site, I have my credit card ready, and I can’t find the $%#@& order link! Make your order process idiot-proof. Example: “Cl1ck below to 0rder n0w on our secure server.” Also sprinkle in order links throughout your page — some people will be ready to buy before they get to the bottom.

12. Make one last plea.

In your P.S., right after your signature, emphasize that I should act now. For example, “Don’t miss out on this great 0pportunity. Remember, you can buy n0w and change your mind at anytime.”

13. Don’t forget your contact information!

Readers WILL have questions, so provide an e-mail address on your site that you or someone else will check at least daily. Also, don’t you feel better buying from a Web site that lists a real address and phone number?

Want More Detailed Step-by-Step Help, With Examples You Can Model?

See my quick-start audio program, “The Secret, Simple Formula to Writing Web Copy That SELLS”.

© 2003-2006 Alexandria K. Brown

Online entrepreneur Ali Brown publishes the award-winning ‘Highlights on Marketing & Success’ weekly ezine with 36,000+ subscribers. If you’re ready to jump-start your marketing, make more money, and have more fun in your small business, get your FREE tips now at www.AliBrown.com

Although the credit crunch is still weighing on millions of people, it doesn’t mean the end for every small or medium-sized business. In fact, this is a great time for savvy entrepreneurs to grow a business and prosper by thinking creatively and strategically. To make sure your business thrives during the downturn, you need to take a good hard look at your business.

Here’s how you can flourish during difficult times. It just takes a bit of creativity…

1. Trim the fat. Now’s the time to review your company finances in a calm and collected manner. Be sure to look at what is being paid on time. Then look for waste and how you can save – there are sure to be a few places where this is possible. Eliminate expenses that aren’t essential to your core business.

2. Know your customers. Spend time with your customers and find out more about their needs so you can deliver what they want when they want it. Also consider sending out a customer satisfaction survey to gain additional insights. Continue offering great service and going above and beyond so that every customer feels as if they are getting the VIP treatment.

3. Stay ahead of the competition. Researching your competition is invaluable so you can make sure you’re competitive with their quality and service. Also remember that during a downtown, some of the people who are laid off may start their own businesses. Monitor the market for newcomers, but remember that you have a head start.

4. Enhance your offering. Cutting prices is one way to make your product or service more attractive, but it’s not the only way. Once you lower your prices, it can be hard to raise them again. Think about adding other incentives like reduced delivery times or added bonuses instead.

5. Adapt to the market. If you notice that sales are declining in one area, focus your efforts on areas that are seeing more sales. Don’t waste your time on sectors that are in freefall. If your business is focused on a single product, consider repositioning it and be ready to cater to people’s changing needs.

6. Invest in you. Now is the perfect time to build on your knowledge, skills, and talents by attending conferences, taking a professional development course, or investing in a business coach. It will help position you as an expert in your field and give you a competitive edge!

7. Make more noise. Continue advertising if you can afford it, but look for other inexpensive ways to get the word out. Perhaps start a blog, join web forums in your field, or write a column for a trade publication or local newspaper.

8. Prepare for the good times. Remember that a recession is a periodic event, but it doesn’t last forever. Resist the urge to run for cover. Instead, keep doing business.

Come out fighting and energize your business to ensure that you don’t go the way of the dinosaurs. The good times will come again – this is your chance to make sure you’re a part of them.

© 2009 Ali International, LLC

Online entrepreneur Ali Brown publishes the award-winning ‘Highlights on Marketing & Success’ weekly ezine with 36,000+ subscribers. If you’re ready to jump-start your marketing, make more money, and have more fun in your small business, get your FREE tips now at www.AliBrown.com

Whether you’re selling a product or service, the 10 tips below are your keys to writing great copy that communicates and persuades … to get results! These guidelines can apply to Web copy, e-mail, sales letters, brochures, direct mail, and more. As long as your goal is to elicit a reaction from your reader, you’ve come to the right place.

1. Be reader-centered, not writer-centered.

Many ads, brochures, and Web sites talk endlessly on and on about how great their products and companies are. Hello? Customer, anyone? Think of your reader thinking, “What’s in it for me?” If you can, talk with some of your current customers and ask them 1) why they chose you, and 2) what they get out of your product or service. TIP: To instantly make your copy more reader-focused, insert the word “you” often.

2. Focus on the benefits — not just the features.

The fact that your product or service offers a lot of neat features is great, but what do they DO for your customer? Do they save her time or money? Give her peace of mind? Raise her image to a certain status? Here’s an example: If you go buy a pair of Gucci sunglasses, you’re not just looking for good UV protection. You’re buying the sleek, stylish Gucci look. So that’s what Gucci sells. You don’t see their ads talk about how well made their sunglasses are. Think about what your customers are REALLY looking for.

Now, what does an insurance broker sell? Policies?

Nope — peace of mind. (See? You’ve got it.)

3. Draw them in with a killer headline.

The first thing your reader sees can mean the difference between success and failure. Today’s ads are chock full of clever headlines that play on words. They’re cute, but most of them aren’t effective. There are many ways to get attention in a headline, but it’s safest to appeal to your reader’s interests and concerns. And again, remember to make it reader centered — no one gives a hoot about your company.

Bad: “SuccessCorp Creates Amazing New Financial Program”
Better: “Turn Your Finances Around in 30 Days!”

4. Use engaging subheads.

Like mini-headlines, subheads help readers quickly understand your main points by making the copy “skimmable.” Because subheads catch readers” eyes, you should use them to your benefit! Read through your copy for your main promotional points, then summarize the ideas as subheads. To make your subheads engaging, it’s important to include action or selling elements.

Bad: “Our Department’s Successes.”
Better: “Meet Five Clients Who Saved $10K With Us.”

5. Be conversational.

Write to your customers like you’d talk to them. Don’t be afraid of using conversational phrases such as “So what’s next?” or “Here’s how do we do this.” Avoid formality and use short, easy words. Why? Even if you think it can’t possibly be misunderstood, a few people will still be confused. Plus, being conversational helps prospects feel like they can trust you more.

6. Nix the jargon.

Avoid industry jargon and buzzwords — stick to the facts and the benefits. An easy way to weed out jargon is to think of dear old Mom reading your copy. Would she get it? If not, clarify and simplify. (This rule, of course, varies, depending on who your target audience is. For a business audience, you should upscale your words to what they’re used to. In some industries, buzzwords are crucial. Just make sure your points don’t get muddled in them!)

7. Keep it brief and digestible.

No one has time to weed through lengthy prose these days. The faster you convey your product or service’s benefits to the reader, the more likely you’ll keep her reading. Fire your “biggest gun” first by beginning with your biggest benefit — if you put it toward the end of your copy, you risk losing the reader before she gets to it. Aim for sentence lengths of less than 20 words. When possible, break up copy with subheads (see no. 4), bullets, numbers, or em dashes (like the one following this phrase) — these make your points easy to digest.

8. Use testimonials when possible.

Let your prospects know they won’t be the first to try you. Give results-oriented testimonials from customers who have benefited immensely from your product or service. Oh, and never give people’s initials only — it reminds me of those ads in the back of magazines with headlines like “Lose 5 Tons in 3 Days!” Give people’s full names with their titles and companies (or towns and states of residence) — and be sure to get their permission first.

9. Ask for the order!

Tell your reader what you want her to do — don’t leave her hanging. Do you want her to call you or e-mail you for more information? Order her copy now? Call to schedule a free consultation? Complete a brief survey? Think about what you’d most like her to do, and then ask her. It’s amazing how many marketing materials I come across every day that don’t make it clear what the reader should do. If you wrote interesting copy, your reader may forget you’re trying to sell something. Tell her what to do, and she’ll be more likely to do it.

10. Have your copy proofread!

Good. Now have it proofread again. Don’t risk printing any typos, misspellings, or grammatical mistakes that will represent your company as amateurs. Hire a professional editor or proofreader to clean up your work. Remember, you only get one chance to make a first impession! Oops — impression.

© 2001-2008 Alexandria Brown International Inc.

Online entrepreneur Alexandria K. Brown publishes the award-winning ‘Highlights on Marketing & Success’ weekly ezine with 28,000+ subscribers. If you’re ready to jump-start your marketing, make more money, and have more fun in your small business, get your FREE tips now at www.AlexandriaBrown.com

www.subscriptionrocket.com

This was sent to me my a friend who does Internet marketing. The service is being reconstructed, but you can still get on the list to be the first to know when it relaunches.

Free Submission list of Universal Search Engines and Directories

Six years ago, when I first started selling online, I focused on doing what I did best: generating useful content that people would want to pay for. But I quickly learned that selling a product online required me to have to learn about …

…my Web statistics.

“Yuck!”

“Why should I have to do this?” I thought. “I’m not a numbers person. Such small details! I want to spend time on big ideas.”

Then after a few months of poor sales, I realized I needed to learn more about my numbers so I could learn how to improve my results. (You can’t improve something that you can’t measure.) After getting acquainted with my stats, I not only realized that this information would help me immensely, but I was relieved that it wasn’t so hard after all. It had just been something unfamiliar.

There are four types of basic “Web numbers” I want you to understand. Don’t worry — if I can handle this, you can too!

1. Sales

HOW MANY SALES are you making? This should be easy to determine on your end.

2. Unique Visitors

HOW MANY PEOPLE are visiting your sales page? To know this, you’ll need to know your number of unique visitors for that specific page.

Do NOT confuse unique visitors with “hits,” which refers to number of graphics downloaded.

Your Web host may already provide some stats you can access, but many of these programs are hard to understand and only track hits. If this is the case, it’s well worth it to use a low-cost outside tracking service such as WebSTAT that will show you your number of unique visitors. (I use them and love their service.)

3. Sales Conversion Rate

Here’s where we start with some math. Take your number of sales during a given time, and divide it by your number of visitors during that time. We’ll walk through this in a minute.

4. Value per Visitor

This tells you how much each visitor is worth to you. It’s basically your selling price times your conversion rate.

Let’s Walk Through It Together

Say Suzy Q runs a site that sells a special report on how to teach your dog to do a back flip. The report sells for $20.

Last month she had 50 online sales. Her Web stats show that during that month she had 1,500 unique visitors.

First let’s figure her sales conversion rate — sales divided by visitors.
50 / 1,500 = .0333. We’ll round it down to .03. (If we’re talking about percentages, that’s about 3%. Or 3 sales for every 100 visitors.)

Now, let’s determine her value per visitor.

The report sells for $20, and we now know that her sales conversion rate is .03.

So .03 x $20 = $0.60.

That means each visitor is worth 60 cents to Suzy, whether they buy or not.

(Here’s a longer way of doing this, but it may make more sense to you: Based on Suzy’s current conversion rate, she makes an average of 3 sales per 100 visitors. 3 x $20 = $60. So for every 100 visitors she makes an average of $60. $60 / 100 visitors = $0.60 per visitor.)

This number tells Suzy how much it’s worth spending to get a visitor to her site. For example, if she decides to advertise via a pay-per-click search engine (such as Google AdWords), she knows that $0.60 is the maximum she’d want to bid.

Want My FREE Calculations Template?

Would you like a free fill-in-the-blanks template to help you make the calculations above? I’ve put one together for you! Send a blank e-mail to
ali-39796@autocontactor.com and you should receive it automatically.

What to DO With Your Numbers

First of all, look at your unique visitors. If your numbers aren’t as high as you’d like, work on attracting more prospects to your site via your e-zine, search engine listings, advertisements, articles, etc.

Then look at your sales conversion rate. The average for information products is actually around only 1%, according to both my testing and that of my colleagues. (So don’t get upset if that’s where you’re at!) Often my conversion rate is a lot higher, but it depends on who’s visiting that sales page. My conversion rate will be a lot higher if I’m sending my own subscribers there (people who already know, like, and trust me) versus strangers who found me from a search engine or other website. Make sense?

Aim to continually improve your sales page to boost your results.

Keep a log of what changes you make and when you make them so you can see which factors help or hinder your sales. (There’s a place for these notes in that template I created for you.)

You should also do simple “split tests”, but I’ll go into that another time.

Don’t Wait Any Longer!

Remember, you can’t improve something you can’t measure. Take a few minutes and start tracking these things. I guarantee that once you do, you’ll actually enjoy this process, because it gives you the power to continually IMPROVE. : )

© 2005-2008 Alexandria Brown International Inc.

Online entrepreneur Alexandria K. Brown publishes the award-winning ‘Highlights on Marketing & Success’ weekly ezine with 36,000+ subscribers. If you’re ready to jump-start your marketing, make more money, and have more fun in your small business, get your FREE tips now at www.AlexandriaBrown.com

HootSuite is The professional Twitter client! If you manage multiple Twtitter accounts or share your Twittering duties with friends or co-workers, HootSuite’s for you. If you’re interested in tracking how many people click the links you tweet out, HootSuite can help you. If you want to pre-schedule your messages or feed your blog to Twitter, we’ve got you covered.

Home

Our next-generation technology for getting attention via our exclusive rich media layers is sweeping the pages of thousands of internet companies. We have designed an easy to use system that allows our cutting edge customers to easily change and target their message.

http://www.midpointtradebooks.com/

Many people seem to think that selling on the Internet is a complete mystery. Funny how we see the Net as its own entity instead of just another marketing channel.

When I meet people and they say they’re going to start an “Internet business”, I get worried. It’s as if that’s all they need to know — not what they’re selling or who their customers are. (I mean, when faxes first came out, did you hear people saying they were just starting a “fax business”? Not really.)

The Internet is just one type of media that can sell for your business, and it follows a sales cycle like any other. It’s not magic … it’s a process.

But once you WORK that process, it CAN work like magic!

So let’s look at the five basic parts of the Internet sales cycle:

1. Collect Leads

Who are you looking for? Your answer should match your ideal client or customer. (Please don’t say that’s “everybody”!) Do you market to women? Men? What ages? What professions? Certain areas of the country or world? What publications do they read? What interests do they have?

The answers to these questions will help you determine where and how you can find these folks. There are tons of ways to get leads online: search engines, pay-per-click ads, banner ads, articles, blogs, directories, and other types of advertising and promotions.

2. Get Them in Your Funnel

Once you’ve found who you’re looking for, you need to get them in your “sales funnel”. On the Internet, that means get them on your list. The best way to make this easy is to offer a free ezine or e-course.

On your website, getting visitors on your list should be your #1 objective! Why? Up to 99% of your first-time visitors will not buy from you or even contact you. They’ll take a quick look and then click away, and you’ve lost them forever. These people are already valuable prospects — they took the time to find your site and are interested in the subject matter or products you deal with. Does your home page or landing page give the visitor a bazillion choices? If so, ditch the clutter and give them a compelling invitation to sign up for your ezine or e-course.

3. Follow Up

Marketing studies have always shown that your prospects need to be exposed to your message at least 9 times before they’ll take action! (Some say it takes even more times on the Internet.)

In traditional sales, real people had to follow up with their prospects via live meetings, phone calls, or postal mailings… over and over and over. What a lot of work! But the Internet makes all this easy, instant, practically free, and … automatic.

This is where your ezine or e-course works like a charm, following up for you automatically. In fact, with many of the programs available today, you can schedule email messages up to two years away! It’s like putting your marketing on auto-pilot, so you can just “set it and forget it”!

4. Close the Sale

The goal of your ezine or e-course should be to drive the reader to buying what you have. Of course you’re also providing useful content and information — that’s why they got on your list, and that’s why they’ll stay on your list. But your underlying objective is to make more sales.

Most people make the mistake of trying to sell from the actual email. That is, drive them straight from the email to taking out their wallet. This is usually not effective for two reasons: 1) you don’t have the room in an email to fully explain what you’re selling and demonstrate its value to the prospect, 2) it can turn people off who aren’t ready to buy yet, and you’ll lose those prospects from your list.

The idea of the email is to get them excited about your offering and to get them to CLICK.

Once they click, they’re taken to a sales page that you set up specifically for that product or service you’re promoting. It’s THERE that the prospect will get the full scoop on how great it is, why they need it, how much it costs, how to order, etc.

5. Upsell, and Upsell Again

Here’s the biggest mistake I made when I started to sell my first information product online (Boost Business With Your Own Ezine): It was the ONLY product I had to offer for 2 whole years! So once anyone bought it, I had nothing else in my funnel to sell them. (Marketers also call this having a “back end” product.) That meant I had to work extra hard at finding new prospects all the time.

Smart salespeople know it’s much easier to sell to people who have already bought from you than to constantly go out and find new prospects.

I finally realized I already had thousands of valuable customers who knew, liked, and trusted me. They’d already purchased a product from me that they were happy with. So I learned more about WHAT ELSE they wanted.

That’s when I began churning out valuable new products and programs that my customers ate up like crazy. And that strategy took me from sales of less than 5,000 dollars a month to these days averaging 50,000 dollars a month!

Now, that didn’t happen overnight! In fact, I recommend starting with ONE product like I did. It makes learning this entire process much easier, and your results will come faster. Once you get the system down, you can start adding more valuable offerings to your prospects and customers.

Learn It, Work It, Live It

Pretty simple, yes? Based on this model, you may see the missing links in your own Internet sales cycle. Have patience, keep learning, fill in these gaps, and you’ll start to see the magic work for you.

© 2005-2008 Alexandria Brown International Inc.

Online entrepreneur Alexandria K. Brown publishes the award-winning ‘Highlights on Marketing & Success’ weekly ezine with 30,000+ subscribers. If you’re ready to jump-start your marketing, make more money, and have more fun in your small business, get your FREE tips now at www.AlexandriaBrown.com

Feed2JS

Using RSS Feeds in your web pages is just a cut ‘n paste away!

This service is really easy to use with any existing RSS script.

As a first time entrepreneur you probably have tons of questions. And every time you do a Google search for an answer you are bombarded with too much information and in some cases that information contradicts other things you have heard. Due to this, I have created a list of 54 resources that should help you out.

Social Cord is the simplest way to offer premium content to your audience. Use our platform to monetize by offering mobile content subscriptions in your Twitter, social network, website or blog.

Social Cord Alerts

With social cord alerts you can promote a specific daily SMS subscription to your audience. We have the following subsriptions that your audience will love:

• Green Tips
• Bible Verse of the Day
• Beauty Tips
• Dating Tips
• Fitness Tips
• Men’s Style
• Celeb Dirt of the Day
• Know your Booze
• Know your Beer
• Pick Up Lines
• Travel Tips
• Sports Updates

The subscription includes a message written daily and is delivered to the member’s phone by SMS. Subscriptions are $5.99/month and are billed directly to the member’s mobile phone bill.

Social Cord Fanclubs

Have an audeince that loves the content you create? Then start a Fanclub!

A Fanclub is an SMS subscription where you create premium content that your fans pay you for. Your Fanclub subcribers will pay $5.99 per month. This fee is billed directly to the mobile phone bill.

You are required to deliver at least 3 messages weekly to maintain your Fanclub.

Social Cord How to Monetize your Twitter with Tipcup

Artists, celebrities, and media companies are using Tipcup to offer premium content to their Twitter followers!

Tipcup is a Twitter plugin for Social Cord that allows you to create to promote your fanclub to your Twitter followers. Your subscribers can decide whether they want to receive your updates as a direct message to their Twitter inbox, as a text message delivered to their phone or both.

YouSendIt is the No.1 digital delivery company serving business and individuals on the Web today. Our innovative service enables users to send, receive and track files, on-demand. YouSendIt provides a trusted, convenient and smart solution for transferring large files over the Internet, replacing the need for FTP transfers, overnight couriers and unreliable email attachments. YouSendIt’s technology platform provides developers and partners the resources for integrating YouSendIt services into the applications people use for creating and communicating. When it has to be there now- just YouSendIt!