1. By Brian Cormier

2.  Short for “web log” = blog  Online diary, log  News  Photos  Video

3.  Google Blogger (“Blogspot”)  WordPress  TypePad  Tumblr

4.  What are you passionate about?  Niche-market blogs get the most traffic  General interest blogs are much more difficult to promote  Blogs are excellent for showing your expertise in certain areas: ◦ Crafts ◦ Collectibles ◦ Entertainment ◦ Specific issue

5.  Be concise  Entries don’t have to be “major” – they can just be quick thoughts  Post-date blog entries for convenience  Update often – a few times per week  Don’t ignore your blog  Use photos – these are searchable in Google and will help get you traffic  Use video

6.  Google Images  Search for “free stock images” in Google  Give credit for photos whenever possible  Take your own photos – more personal and exclusive

7.  YouTube  Dailymotion  MySpace  VideoSurf  Google Video  Facebook

8.  Resist using coloured fonts  Use what’s easy to read ◦ If readers’ eyes are bugging out of their heads trying to read your blog, they will simply move on ◦ You may think it’s “pretty” and “cool” and “awesome”, while others may think it’s simply “annoying”, “loud” and “excessive” ◦ Make your blog reader-friendly  Use labels to allow readers to find similar stories on your blog

9.  Show archives  Allow readers to search your blog

10.  Register your URL in Google  Comment on other bloggers’ posts  Post links and talk nicely about other related bloggers, including links to their blogs  Post links to social media websites ◦ Facebook – start a FB page, too! ◦ Twitter  If your blog posts features one of your own YouTube videos, make sure the link to your blog post is in the video description on YouTube

11.  Write an e-book on your area of expertise and post it to your blog for everyone to share ◦ People love free stuff ◦ Establishes your credibility ◦ People will gladly share it with others ◦ Give credit to others in your e-book and they’ll definitely help you to promote it

12.  Many ways to earn an income online  Google AdSense ◦ Ads will be placed on your blog based on what you’re writing about ◦ Niche-market blogs most successful at this, i.e. knitting ads on a blog about knitting will tend to get more clicks ◦ Payout is about 60 days after reaching $100 U.S. in your account

13. Example of a Google banner ad

14. Example of Google text ads

15.  Membership site ◦ Exclusive content for members of your site for a monthly fee ◦ Teaching / mentoring / coaching ◦ Professional advice and tips ◦ Online community open only to a few  Affiliates ◦ Commission-based ◦ Selling books, e-books, courses, etc., for others, including Amazon, Chapters Indigo, other bloggers, mentors, coaches, etc.

16.  Yes, definitely enable commenting  Yes, definitely enable moderating ◦ Gives you control on what is being posted ◦ Allows you to eliminate spam ◦ Allows you to eliminate haters and trolls ◦ Strongly advise not to allow anonymous comments – this will cut down 95% of spam, haters, trolls  Respond to your comments, even if it’s a simple “Thank you!”  Don’t ignore comments on the links you post to social media site – they count, too!

17.  It’s OK not to get bullied into fighting with someone online  “Free speech” also has consequences  Remember, your friends, work and online colleagues will see your blog, too – and read the comments

18.  Number of comments on your blog  Number of comments on Facebook  Number of RTs and replies on Twitter  E-mails from readers  Income earned  Mentions on other blogs / websites  Mentions in the media  Traffic statistics

19.  Google Analytics ◦ Visitors ◦ Time spent on website ◦ Where are they from? ◦ Top content ◦ Top search engines ◦ Bounce rate

21.  Blogging platforms ◦ www.blogger.com www.blogger.com ◦ www.wordpress.org www.wordpress.org ◦ www.typepad.com www.typepad.com ◦ www.tumblr.com www.tumblr.com  Social media ◦ www.facebook.com www.facebook.com ◦ www.twitter.com www.twitter.com ◦ www.youtube.com www.youtube.com

22.  Professional bloggers / coaches / mentors ◦ Yaro Starak: www.entrepreneurs-journey.comwww.entrepreneurs-journey.com

23.  Professional bloggers / coaches / mentors ◦ Gideon Shalwick: www.gideonshalwick.comwww.gideonshalwick.com

24.  Professional bloggers / coaches / mentors ◦ Darren Rowse: www.problogger.netwww.problogger.net

25.  Professional bloggers / coaches / mentors ◦ Sue and Steve Soucy: www.sueandsteveshow.comwww.sueandsteveshow.com

26.  Be professional  Remember... it’s public  Treat it like a business ◦ Show up for work ◦ Learn how to spell ◦ Layout isn’t everything but it’s something  Promote! Promote! Promote!  Share! Share! Share!  The more you give, the more you’ll receive

27.  Brian Cormier ◦ www.briancormier.com www.briancormier.com  Brian Cormier’s Blogtastic World! ◦ www.briancormier.blogspot.com www.briancormier.blogspot.com  Lowcarbdude ◦ www.lowcarbdude.com www.lowcarbdude.com brian@bricorcommunications.com

28. By Brian Cormier Thank you!