Writing Articles

4 Content Marketing Ideas That Earned Me $20,000

9/12/2017

Yesterday I put out my quarterly rankings report.

Why do other political blogs lag behind me in visitors?

I had this to say:

“The reason is simple – no one cares about their content a month after it goes up.”

I told you that it was “too tied-into the news,” and that people aren’t interested in it months or years from now.

So what are people interested in months or years from now?

Typically it’s longer-form, list-style articles.

And that got me thinking about all the money I’ve made from my writing.

That in turn had me thinking of the decisions behind that.

What did I do to make a lot of money…what ideas did I have, and where did they come from?

I’d like to tell you about 4 of those ideas today.

Mountain Man Books: $12,000

Back in the summer of 2013 I didn’t know what to write on my site.

I did notice that a lot of my current traffic was made-up of people interested in the old mountain man articles I had up, however.

I’d written those months earlier and they were getting traffic.

The traffic was small, mind you – about 100 or 200 people a week…if that.

But hey – they were interested in what I was writing!

So I wrote more of it.

I did several posts about popular mountain man nonfiction books, each with an Amazon Affiliate link so they could see – and hopefully purchase – that book.

Each time they did make a purchase, I’d make a few pennies…maybe even a buck!

Yippy!

Now, I’ve only made about $650 from the Amazon Affiliate income I get from the direct product links to those books…and that over 3 years.

That ain’t gonna cut it.

So I watched this miniscule affiliate income tick up each month, and I wondered how I could make more.

Why not a novel? Hell, by that point I’d written a dozen or two, and I’d been kicking around a mountain man novel idea for a couple years.

So in March-April 2015 I wrote the first of my Colter novels.

It got a one-star review shortly after going up on Amazon.

Sales slowed…and had never been that good to begin with.

But those sales remained steady, and after a time they picked up…with the help of subsequent volumes in the series.

Sure, it’s not my site so much that’s pulling in that income…but it was the site that gave me the idea.

A lot of people have been interested in those kind of novels, and many probably get to them after seeing my site and its mountain man articles.

So far I’ve sold over 4,400 of the six ‘Colter’ books, which has earned me just over $12,100.

The Lesson?

If you see articles on your website that are popular (whether 100 hits or 10,000), then it’s a good indication that you should write more.

Don’t be afraid to go with book format, either. Don’t be afraid to switch from nonfiction to fiction, too.

If I hadn’t done both of those, my income from mountain man-related writings would be in the hundreds of dollars, not the thousands.

English Rocks: $5,000

I taught English in China from 2008 to 2013.

I learned a lot of stuff during that time, and in 2012 I started a website to give other teachers those ideas.

No one visited.

Hardly anyone visits today.

I gave up on the site’s blog a couple years ago, back when it was getting about 300 unique visitors a day…if that.

Now it’s back down to around 100 to 150.

And I’m fine with that – the site continues to make me money.

Mostly, it’s the ideas I put onto the site…and then later put into an eBook.

Those ideas were simply games and lesson plans and little tricks that helped teachers get through an hour of teaching.

I knew the ideas worked, and other teachers I talked with knew they worked too.

So while no one visited the site where the ideas were originally written, they did buy the collected ideas in book format.

And those who buy the book get a link at the end to a special page on the site with dozens of downloads.

Since I published the book in 2013 it’s sold 743 copies.

Most are eBooks at $9.99 but many are print books at $19.95.

Those sales have netted me just over $5,000.

The Lesson?

If you have ideas that are in your head, your website is a great place to get them out. They might make more sense there.

But remember – they might not make you any money. Perhaps another format would work better. Why not give it a try?

Google AdSense: $2,000

Back in 2013 I didn’t know what to write on my Montana blog.

I decided to put up a post asking what people wanted to read.

No one commented for weeks, then someone I knew in China did.

She was interested in famous people from Montana, so I wrote up a monster, 4,000-word post on the subject.

It really started to get views, and then after waiting too long, I finally put some ads into the post.

I also wrote a lot of other posts like it, and put ads in them too.

Then the income started to come in.

All-time earnings from Google AdSense are now $2,033…which is a lot more than the $100 threshold I finally managed to pass in February 2015.

I started using Google AdSense in August 2012, but didn’t get serious about it until 2014.

Took over two years to get $100 and then in the two years since then I’ve made nearly $2,000 more.

Where is that money coming from?

Over 2,500 ads on this site and my ESL site…but mostly just 30 ads that are pulling in the bigger bucks.

These include:

Michael Keaton famous celebrity post 1: $168
Montana blog sidebar ad: $163
Michael Keaton famous celebrity post 2: $107
25 Montanans post: $92
Homepage ad: $85
Cover design article: $81
Montana famous post 3: $62

So that’s $758 just for those 7 ads…but remember, that’s stretched over a couple years.

The Lesson?

Don’t be afraid to ask people what they want to read. If it takes off, don’t wait too long to monetize it.

Content Curation: $1,000

From April 2014 to March 2016 I put up a weekly content curation post.

It was called Midweek Content Roundup and for awhile there it was getting up to 1,000 unique views on the day it went up.

I was quite pleased with that, and with the small increase in ad income for those days.

But boy…it’s a lot of work going around to sites each week, reading their stuff, picking the best, and then doing a short write-up for your readers!

I did it 101 weeks in a row.

I also collected those 101 weeks-worth of curated content and put it into two books: Stand Out and Get Noticed.

It was pretty simple, but time-consuming.

I had to cut-and-paste all the weekly posts into one document before categorizing them into social media marketing, content marketing, and SEO sections.

I then had to further categorize them into various categories in those sections, such as Facebook, Twitter, social media images, posting schedules, and whatnot.

Real pain in the ass, but people were willing to pay for that work.

The books never sold that well, maybe because they were priced around $10.

I did manage to sell 228 of them and that’s netted me $1,028.

The Lesson?

If you’re doing a weekly post, collect them all for a year-end anthology.

It’s best to build this as the year goes on, perhaps on a monthly basis. If you don’t, you’ll have a lot of work at the end of the year.

Conclusion

I got lucky.

I took things that I was interested in or that I was doing at the time, and I wrote about them.

People read them.

I wrote more.

More people read them.

I did this all on my two websites.

I noticed the traffic going up, and I switched those articles into book format and I made a lot of money.

I monetized some articles and I made a lot of money.

I got lucky.

But there were some good ideas and decisions that helped bring that luck about.

Take a look at your interests and put them to work for you.

It might take awhile, but maybe you’ll make $20,000 like I have.

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3 Content Marketing Lessons from History’s Most Decisive Battles

3/6/2016

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There’s a reason we put the ‘campaign’ in content marketing campaign.

This is war.

You’re waging war on your opponent’s message so you can get their customers for yourself.

You don’t want to wage war on your target audience, though doing so to their sensibilities from time to time can work.

It works especially well at getting noticed, disrupting your opponent’s campaign, and bringing those prisoners of war (followers) back to your home turf.

If your website and its message is set up properly you can conquer the content marketing battlefield in your niche or industry.

To make that easier to understand, consider three key concepts:

Technology;
Mobility;
Find Your Opening.

Let’s discuss those things, and in a fun and sometimes bloody way.

The Battle of Leignitz

Battle of Liegnitz

This battle changed the world and let the Europeans know that they were not the top dogs.

It happened in 1241. The Teutonic Knights that took the field that day laughed at the Mongol opposition.

The Mongols were on horses that were barely the size of a pony. Why did they think they could face the humungous war steeds of the knights?

The Knights were likely thinking that as they took the field and began their charge. Halfway across the field they would have started to lower their lances. By this point the Mongols were rushing at them as well.

Then it happened.

The Mongols, instead of pulling out long lances to try and impale the Knights, pulled out compound bows instead.

These were unknown in Europe, as was an arrow that could travel 150 yards or more. Additionally, these arrows could puncture a Knight’s armor at 50 yards with the same force as our modern handguns.

Around 30,000 Mongols died that day but tens of thousands of the best Knights in Europe died as well. The Knights had put a lot of money into their horses, their armor, and their weapons. They required squires to help get it all together.

The Mongols didn’t require much. Anyone could learn how to fire a bow…it didn’t take any money.

The Knights were under the impression that they were superior. They quickly learned otherwise, as did all the people depending on them.

Europe was overrun.

Lesson #1: Technology

I think the main lesson here is to not make stupid choices based on assumptions about your opponent’s weaknesses.

In this case the high and mighty thought they were just that, but quickly found out that they hadn’t been for some time.

They’d been inferior for probably a good year or more by that point, perhaps several, and they didn’t even know it.

That’s especially bad – being so backwards and not even knowing it.

In this case those backwards leaders thought they were still #1.

Find situations where you can make those assumptions work for you instead of against you.

The Battle of Huai-Hai

Battle of Huai Hai

From November 6, 1948, to January 10, 1949, Mao Zedong and his Communist army effectively took China.

Yep, 2 months.

No one said it could be done, but he did it. The former librarian turned revolutionary proved them all wrong.

So how’d he do it?

Simple – he killed, captured or converted 500,000 of the Nationalist troops being led by Chiang Kai-shek.

Mao and Chiang had entered into an alliance in 1923, one that lasted for five years. From 1927 to 1937 the two men and their armies were locked in a civil war for the country.

Mao focused on the rural areas, Chiang on the urban. By 1934 it looked like the Communists were finished, but Mao and 100,000 of his people (many of whom were women) trekked across 6,000 miles of China in a Long March that left just 20,000 of them left.

By 1937 the two men had to put their differences aside to fight a common enemy, the Japanese. World War II had started in China in 1931 when the Japanese invaded the country. For the next ten years, Mao and Chiang fought the Japanese.

By October 1947, Mao was ready to end the weakened Chiang’s rule. Mao ordered his men to “surround, separate, and destroy” the 500,000 Nationalists located between the Huai River and the Lung Hai Railway.

To do that, Mao entered into a three-stage battle plan. He’d studied Washington, Napoleon, and Sun Tzu before and the battle came off well. The Nationalists were divided into three groups and then Mao began hammering away at them until they gave up.

The writing was on the wall, and on December 20, 1948, the Americans stopped supplying Chiang’s men.

Chiang had six generals at that point and two got killed, two captured, and the other two fled. Chiang did the same on January 10, 1949, fleeing to the island of Formosa, which he then started calling Taiwan.

Mao would go on to take China, ruling over its 560 to 930 million people (1949 to 1976) until his death.

Lesson #2: Mobility

If you know what’s worked before and you apply it with pressure and diligence and don’t give up, you will win.

You need a good plan first of all, and after that you have to have the will and the resources to carry through.

You also need the mobility to identify a message or campaign quickly, react to it, then conquer it.

Picking off your opponents’ audience for your own is easy if you apply that principle.

Also, apply the same principles of surrounding their message, separating their followers into your camps, and then destroying your opponent’s base of support because of it.

If you have good social outreach and disruptive marketing campaigns, you can surround.

If you have quality landing pages that attract and keep followers, you will separate.

If you do both those things that small base of your opponent’s message support structure will be broken.

Give it a try on your next campaign.

The Battle of Gaugamela

On October 1, 331 BC, the armies of Alexander the Great and Darius III of Persia met at a place called Gaugamela in today’s Mosul, Iraq.

Alexander had decided to invade Persia and he’d just had a great victory in Issus, resulting in the capture of Asia Minor for his empire.

He also took the wife, mother and two daughters of Darius for himself. It was quite the coup.

He kept up the push and the two great generals met at Gaugamela. There were anywhere between 52,000 and 87,000 Persians to the Macedonians’ 47,000 troops.

The two armies met on the field and charged. Darius was in the center of his line but Alexander did something unexpected – he didn’t attack the center, he attacked the flanks.

He rode out to the right flank, drawing off men from the center of Darius’s line. When the moment was right, Alexander rushed back and filed that hole in the center with his own men.

Darius lost his royal guard and his more experienced mercenaries. He was forced to flee. Alexander could have chased and ended him, but his own left flank was now suffering badly. He went to aid it, letting Darius get away.

It was no consequence – the Persian Empire now divided into East and West, Darius lost the trust of his men. One named Bessus killed Darius while on the way to Babylon.

The Achaemenid Persian Empire was through.

Lesson #3: Find Your Opening and Rush In

There’s a time for being conservative and battle isn’t one of them.

A keen eye is required at all times, however, and you’ll need it in order to spot the switch in your opponent’s campaign.

Perhaps this is when they do a new rollout.

It could be when they alter their social media message.

Maybe it’s when they finally react to whatever it is you’re doing in regards to their message, either by altering their efforts or directly targeting you or your message.

When that happens you need to identify the gap in their line and rush in.

Social media makes this easy.

You can go to any company page and read comments and reactions.

You can see reviews on Amazon.

You can look at the media and even measure analytics and sales data.

Find that opening in the market and fill it. Find the hole in the campaign and fill it.

Most of all, however, fulfill that need of the customer, website visitor, or social media viewer.

Get them to your site, get them on your brand, and make them part of your world.

You can do that and in doing so you’ll have won not only the campaign, but the war as well.

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Time-Tested Marketing Principles that You Might Benefit From

12/28/2015

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There was a damn good post earlier this year.

It was called 4 Bombproof Formulas for Openings That Grab Readers and Don’t Let Go.

Bryan Collins had it on Boost Blog Traffic on February 12.

It’s a long post, but it breaks down ways to write that will get you results.

For instance, here’s the gist of the first set of examples:

Problem – Agitate – Solution

Problem – introduce a problem the reader is experiencing.
Agitate – use emotional language to intensify the problem.
Solution – offer a credible solution to the problem.

Something else that’s pointed out are several formulas for writing content that converters, convinces, or is just plain compelling.

They include:

AIDA: Attention, Interest, Desire and Action,

Firstly, you grab the attention of your readers quickly and directly

Then, pique their interest by explaining what you’re going to offer them, addressing needs and wants

Next, create desire by explaining the measurable benefit of your offer.

Finally, prompt the reader to take action.

Bob Stone’s Gem:

Start with your strongest benefit.
Expand on this benefit.
Explain how the reader can experience this benefit.
Back up your statement with support copy.
Tell readers what they’ll lose if they don’t act.
Sum up the most important benefit.
Include a call-to-action.

The Approach Formula:

Arrive
Propose
Persuade
Reassure
Make an offer
Ask for the order

For more tips on using psychology, check out this post from 2012 called Aristotle’s Secret to Great Content.

We’re discussing Ethos, Pathos and Logos.

Mainly, I just wanted to point out these posts that could help you.

Good luck this year!

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12 of the Best Content Marketing Posts of 2015

12/27/2015

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I love content marketing.

Of all the big three – SEO, social media marketing, and content marketing – it’s my favorite.

Why is that?

Because it’s all about writing, persuading, and getting people to nod their head to what you’re saying.

When you can do that well enough, you’ll get sales, conversions, or whatever it is your ultimate goal is.

That’s why I like content marketing.

I’m not alone, either. Many people like it, and they write about it a lot.

In this post we’ll take a lot of that writing, or more aptly, the best of it.

Yep, these are what I consider to be the best content marketing articles this year.

Enjoy!

Content Marketing Stages
A fun post that appeared on Content Marketing Institute on April 16 was What’s Next in Your Content Marketing Career Evolution? Written by Jason Miller, this post details the following stages you might find yourself at:

– The Young Gun;
– The Emerging Artist;
– The Collaborator;
– The Crackerjack.

Emerging Artists want to share their passions through content,” Miller writes, while a Crackerjack will “lead the industry rather than just responding to it.” There’s checklists for each and the whole posts has a Jim Morrison/Doors theme. Check it out!

Types of Blogs
I hate posts that don’t have dates, and I usually don’t include them in these weekly roundup posts. I’m making an exception for Will Hoekenga’s post called The 10 Types of Popular Blogs: Which One Is Yours? Why am I doing this? Because this Lead Pages post is great, has lots of wonderful tips, and could really be a small eBook, so long it is.

The post has cool categories like the Rogue site and the Niche site and it tells you benefits and drawbacks of each. A Rogue site will “polarize, which attracts attention,” but will also “attract an above-average amount of haters.” I’m telling you, check it out!

Trends to Watch for in 2016
The Top 7 Online Marketing Trends That Will Dominate 2016 was a September 29 Forbes post by Jayson DeMers. Those 7 trends are:

– Video ads will start dominating;
– App indexing will lead to an explosion of apps;
– Mobile will completely dominate desktop;
– Digital assistants will lead to a new kind of optimization;
– Virtual reality will emerge;
– Wearable technology and the Internet of Things (IoT) will pave new ground;
– Advertising will become more expensive.

Alright, where to begin?

– First of all, the Internet of Things refers to how you can use “things” like smart watches and wearable technology to access the internet. Even things that count your steps and upload it could be considered as such.

– Next, I think we can all agree that advertising will be more expensive. I’ll go a bit further and say that paid advertising for individuals and small businesses will decrease in effectiveness as larger businesses gobble up the prime deals.

– Then, I totally agree on video advertisement gaining ground and taking the lead. It’s clear those are making more money for advertisers and those putting them on their site. One thing I hate, however, is how video ads jerk you from your spot in the article to the location of the ad, if it’s not an ad that follows you. Hopefully that dies out.

– Finally, I think DeMers is right on his assumption that mobile will come to dominate. He says that Google is “banking on desktop traffic fading away,” and that’s probably true. I don’t like that as I always use my laptop – I have to as I’m a writer.

All in all, a good post with things that will likely come about. I’m glad I stumbled upon this article – good job!

Marketing Formulas
Bryan Collins had a post up on Boost Blog Traffic on February 12 called 4 Bombproof Formulas for Openings That Grab Readers and Don’t Let Go. Those 4 formulas are:

– Problem-Agitate-Solution;
– AIDA;
– Bob Stone’s “Gem”;
– The Approach Formula.

Perhaps some of those sound funny to you, maybe you don’t know what some are. That’s fine – click over and learn. There are three examples of each approach and I know you’ll want to make a short cheat-sheet to put over your desk. Do so now!

Interesting Marketing Stats
15 Stats Marketers Need to Know to Improve the Customer Journey Today was a September 6 Business 2 Community post by Andrew Sheridan. Some of those stats are pretty interesting, and include:

– 43% of people said they’re more involved in B2B purchasing than last year;

– 66% of smartphone users look up something they saw on TV;

– 72% of potential buyers use Google for research.

There are a lot more numbers here, and they’ll make you think. Check ‘em out!

Content Marketing Tips from Movies
One post I really loved was October 19’s Content Marketing Lessons From Hollywood A-Listers. It appeared on Marketing Land and was written by Quinn Whissen.

The post takes movies like Jerry Maguire, Money Ball, and Finding Nemo and takes their central marketing message, using it to explain the essentials of content marketing to you.

For instance, Jerry Maguire is all about “Help me help you.” For that movie the post talks about useful content, delivering information, and the rewards of it all.

You’ll find a lot to chew on here. Check it out!

The Power of Infographics
10 Reasons Your Brain Loves Infographics was a post by Joe Gullo’s site on May 2. He mentions how there’s been a 9,900% increase in visual content on the internet since 2007, and a lot of that is because of infographics.

Images really get to our sub-cortex, that caveman brain that grew up on visual cave paintings for thousands of years.

This infographic has tons of useful information, and once again shows that small sites with get-up-and-go can beat the Big Boys each and everyday. The Big Boys rely on what they think, you rely on what you feel. Which do you think will appeal to that caveman brain more?

Trigger Words
Dvora Goldstein had a post on Boost Blog Traffic on June 4 called 17 Trigger Words That Work Like Cheat Codes for Getting Your Content Read. Some of those words are:

– You;
– Because;
– Yes;
– New;
– If;
– How.

If you go outside right now and look up you’ll also find that the sky is blue. That’s about the same level of awareness you’ll get from this post, in my humble opinion. I mean…we should use ‘you?’ Wow, do you want me to go back to first grade as well?

Honestly, sometimes the people that ‘know’ what’s going on don’t have a fucking clue. This post is laughable, how elementary it is. Obviously it’s summer, the time of year when we stop trying. Jon Morrow obviously has…but then he doesn’t do much besides bring ringers in anyways, er…guest posters.

I Ain’t Missin’ You at All
Michele Linn had a June 23 post on Content Marketing Institute called The One Content Marketing Question You Need to Ask (That May Scare You). That question is, “would anyone miss your content if you did not publish it?”

Wow, that hits you in the gut, huh? I have to say…probably not. I don’t think anyone would really miss the content on this site. Maybe on Wednesday, but that’d just be like missing coffee or a cigarette for a day. By the next it’d be easier and after a week or two you’ll hardly think on it.

Linn’s fix is to have your content build anticipation. You want people to be craving what you write, your tone, or whatever it is that’s pulling them in. If you’re not sure what that is, then you might have some problems.

I’m not sure I’m the best to comment on this, as I don’t get much traffic (about 500 to 600 unique hits a day) and hardly any comments. So like I said, people wouldn’t miss me much. How about you?

Dealing with Social Media Attackers
There were some good ideas for dealing with social media attacks on your brand in a November 15 Content Marketing Institute post. It was called When Followers Attack: A Monty Python Guide to Maintaining Social Media Harmon.

Jonathan Crossfield wrote the piece and he discusses the following social media personas:

– Trolls: “A Person who makes a deliberately offensive or provocative online post.”

– Complainers: Someone that has a genuine concern that you’re ignoring or not addressing correctly, causing them anger.

– Fanatics: Someone that “won’t stop protesting or heckling until” you see to their issue, even if the dispute is “unfair, unrealistic, or just plain wrong.”

So those are some interesting types and we often confuse them. The post gives you ideas for dealing with them, and even if you should deal with them in some cases.

I get called a troll about once a week, and on big sites. Content Marketing Institute actually banned me from commenting for a short time – taking away one of the only commenters they have, besides the spam posters.

I encourage you to speak provocatively and directly and not to mince words. You’ll be called names when you do, but by God, when you get companies by the balls like that they will begin to act, they will begin to redress your grievances.

Isn’t that a lot better than sending out an email to Company HQ and hoping for the best?

The Most Shared Content Page-Types
Isabel Wagner had an October 12 Business 2 Community post called Editorial Still Packs a Punch in Content Marketing. What I like about this post is that it tells us the “most-shared page types.” These include:

– Editorial at 27%
– Corporate Social Responsibility at 20%
– Press/News Pages at 17%
– Content Hubs at 14%
– Product Pages at 6%
– Company Information at 3%

Wow, don’t write about your company, huh? And gosh…product pages are that low?

I realized this a long time ago on my Montana blog. People in this state have tons of newspaper, TV and radio options to get their news. They don’t have a lot of analysis of that news, however.

That’s editorial opinion, and the more informed someone is in a niche, the more of that they’ll want.

Give it to ‘em!

60 Content Marketing Experts on Twitter
A very helpful post appeared on Express Writers on October 27. It was called The Top 60 Content Marketers You Should Be Following on Twitter, written by Julia McCoy.

First she mentions that there are 304 million “monthly active users” on Twitter, and that’s the best social network for catching an influencer’s ear.

She starts off with the usual suspects – Rand Fishkin, Brian Clark, Neil Patel – and that’s great. Still, I think their time has come and gone.

That’s why you’ll get some up and comers, the kind that don’t have to rely on others to write their blog content for them, or in the case of Rand, can managed more than one post a week.

You’ll get about a sentence or two on each and a link to their Twitter profile. Check ‘em out and give some a follow. Maybe you’ll be surprised who follows you back.

Conclusion

I hope you get some ideas from these posts.

Maybe they’ll help you get ahead in 2016. Who knows – maybe you’ll even get tons of traffic and make a million dollars.

That’s who I write for on this site – people that are struggling, but still believe they can do it.

Keep working hard – I believe you can make it.

For more tips, check out my book Get Noticed, available on Amazon and iTunes.

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12 Awesome Psychology Posts that Get to the Heart of Content Marketing

12/24/2015

1 Comment

I love seeing psychology posts.

For the past two years now I’ve put a section on psychology in my annual guidebook’s content marketing section.

The reason for this is that psychology sells.

It’s a way for you to tap into inner desires, lizard brains, and the true wants of your user.

When you can do that you can better sell them your products or services, get them to sign-up for your email list, or follow you on social media.

It’s all about the goals of your content, and what you want that user to do after reading it.

By using simple psychological principles you can better get your user to do what you want.

Here are 12 posts from 2015 that really got to the heart of that.

Using Psychology in Marketing
One post that you should check out was written by Pratik Dholakiya on Search Engine Journal on January 20. It’s called How to Use Psychology to Build Social Media Campaigns That Resonate, and has the following tips:

– Put a Human Touch on Brand Interactions;
– Use Compelling Narrative to Inspire Followers to Take Action;
– Make it Fun and Encourage Participation;
– Leverage Nostalgia to Trigger Warm Fuzzies;
– Shift Your Mindset From “Selling” to “Sharing.”

If you’re into social media strategy, this is a post to look at. I had a whole section on using psychology to get traffic in my last SEO book, Stand Out, and I really think you need to start thinking about this in your daily online affairs.

Keeping Readers
7 Psychological Ways to Keep Readers Attracted to Your Blog was a post on March 23 by Hassaan Khan on Blogging Cage. Some of those tips are:

– Make Posting Schedules and follow them;
– Give Alerts and Notifications about Posts;
– Create Shareable Images;
– Add People’s Examples in your Blog Posts.

Those are all good tips for getting ahead, and you’ll find more details by visiting this post.

Trigger Words
Dvora Goldstein had a post on Boost Blog Traffic on June 4 called 17 Trigger Words That Work Like Cheat Codes for Getting Your Content Read. Some of those words are:

– You;
– Because;
– Yes;
– New;
– If;
– How.

If you go outside right now and look up you’ll also find that the sky is blue. That’s about the same level of awareness you’ll get from this post, in my humble opinion. I mean…we should use ‘you?’ Wow, do you want me to go back to first grade as well?

Honestly, sometimes the people that ‘know’ what’s going on don’t have a fucking clue. This post is laughable, how elementary it is. Obviously it’s summer, the time of year when we stop trying. Jon Morrow obviously has…but then he doesn’t do much besides bring ringers in anyways, er…guest posters.

I Ain’t Missin’ You at All
Michele Linn had a June 23 post on Content Marketing Institute called The One Content Marketing Question You Need to Ask (That May Scare You). That question is, “would anyone miss your content if you did not publish it?”

Wow, that hits you in the gut, huh? I have to say…probably not. I don’t think anyone would really miss the content on this site. Maybe on Wednesday, but that’d just be like missing coffee or a cigarette for a day. By the next it’d be easier and after a week or two you’ll hardly think on it.

Linn’s fix is to have your content build anticipation. You want people to be craving what you write, your tone, or whatever it is that’s pulling them in. If you’re not sure what that is, then you might have some problems.

I’m not sure I’m the best to comment on this, as I don’t get much traffic (about 500 to 600 unique hits a day) and hardly any comments. So like I said, people wouldn’t miss me much. How about you?

3 Important Blogging Qualities
Why Your Blogging Community Wants More Than Just Quality Content was a September 14 Shade of Info post by Andrew M. Warner.

The post delves into what quality content is and why your audience wants it. It also mentions that quality content alone just isn’t enough.

Three ideas are presented to get over that hurdle, and they include:

– Trust;
– Giving Credit;
– Personality.

Warner has much longer sub-headings than those, and you’ll get quite a bit of analysis for each.

This is a good post to check out, and I honestly think there might be more words in the commenting section. See for yourself!

Giving Social Posts a Psych Boost
5 Psychology Tips to Improve Your Social Media Posts was an October 7 Social Media Examiner post by Wade Harman. Those 5 tips are:

– Images Speak to Viewers;
– Color Communicates;
– Words Trigger Action;
– Emotion Connects;
– Conversation Engages.

If you can target that lizard brain that we all have, people will turn their heads and notice. Bells and whistles, fancy colors and flashing lights all do that. Figure out how you can get that stuff into your Facebook, Twitter, or other social network posts.

Boosting Social Engagement with Psychology
3 Psychology Principles That Boost Social Media Engagement was a November 3 Social Media Examiner post by Wade Harman. Those 3 principles are:

– Focus on a Desire;
– Appeal to Knowledge Seekers;
– Tap Into the Fear of Missing Out.

What I think you need to do is tap into the lizard brain of your potential buyer or site visitor. I do like the idea of missing out and it goes well with the earlier post we saw on scarcity. That ties right into supply and demand and if you have something people want, need, and is in short supply, you’ll always do well.

So how do you get that? Well…you already have it. I don’t care if it’s the newest damn can-opener or dad’s beat-up old Buick – sell that shit.

You need to sell the hell out of that and it comes down to convincing your potential buyer that you are the best and no one else is worth their time. Tap into that lizard brain and woo the hell out of ‘em. Get more ideas in this post.

Does Content Trump a Relationship?
One post that got me thinking was Sarah Snow’s November 6 Social Media Today post called What If Content Is Not King? She makes a good argument that branding is more important than content and that you need to establish relationships.

“Remember when all people cared about was page views?” Snow writes. “And so the best minds of a generation were wasted on figuring out how to make people click?”

The problem with that approach is that that click-bait content might have gotten us to a site, but it didn’t keep us there, didn’t get us to come back the next day, and the next.

You need to “offer real value, and offer it consistently,” she tells us. I hope you give this article a read – it has lots to think on.

Why Visitors Hate Your Site
Marketing Land had a fun post from Surgo Land on November 10 called 6 Reasons Visitors Hate Your Website. Those reasons are:

– Mobile Design (causes high bounce rate);
– Click-bait Articles (causes low social shares, high bounce rate);
– Pop-ups (causes a low returning customers rate);
– Confusing Content (causes misleading time-on-site figures);
– Slow Speed (causes low conversion rates);
– Low Quality Images (causes low referral traffic).

Wow, you get quite a lot in this post and just in the headings. I’d give it a look – maybe you’re doing some of these things and it’s time to stop.

Some Psychological Processes of Decision Making
12 Psychological Methods People Use When Making Decisions was a November 12 Marketing Land post by Jordan Kasteler. Some of the methods are:

– Anchoring;
– Information;
– Decoy;
– Recency;
– Selective Perception;
– Ostrich Effect;
– The Social Effect;
– Bandwagon Effect.

Some of the methods that stood out to me were anchoring, which is “not being able to ignore the first piece of information you heard” and recency, which is tapping “into a person’s short-term memory.”

You’ll get a lot more in the post, and I bet some of the ideas will make you think and nod and perhaps change your approach on some things. Give it a look.

Dealing with Social Media Attackers
There were some good ideas for dealing with social media attacks on your brand in a November 15 Content Marketing Institute post. It was called When Followers Attack: A Monty Python Guide to Maintaining Social Media Harmon.

Jonathan Crossfield wrote the piece and he discusses the following social media personas:

– Trolls: “A Person who makes a deliberately offensive or provocative online post.”

– Complainers: Someone that has a genuine concern that you’re ignoring or not addressing correctly, causing them anger.

– Fanatics: Someone that “won’t stop protesting or heckling until” you see to their issue, even if the dispute is “unfair, unrealistic, or just plain wrong.”

So those are some interesting types and we often confuse them. The post gives you ideas for dealing with them, and even if you should deal with them in some cases.

I get called a troll about once a week, and on big sites. Content Marketing Institute actually banned me from commenting for a short time – taking away one of the only commenters they have, besides the spam posters.

I encourage you to speak provocatively and directly and not to mince words. You’ll be called names when you do, but by God, when you get companies by the balls like that they will begin to act, they will begin to redress your grievances.

Isn’t that a lot better than sending out an email to Company HQ and hoping for the best?

How Psychology Creates Long-Term Fans
7 Psychological Tricks for Turning Fleeting Visitors into Loyal Fans was a November 19 Boost Blog Traffic post by Katharine Di Cerbo. Those tricks are:

– Tell Stories from Your Reader’s Perspective;
– Sprinkle Your Writing with Success Stories;
– Show Your Readers How You’re Just Like Them;
– Credit Your Influencers;
– Display a Strategic and Prominent Personal Photo;
– Use Comment Replies to Show Empathy and Consistency;
– Let Your Readers’ Motivational Style Drive Your Headlines.

Wow, lots of stuff! You also get a bunch of stuff on loyalty triggers in this post. There are tons of examples to back up these points and I think it’s in your best interest to read this post.

Need More Ideas?

Get a lot more tips on what works in my new guidebook.

It's available on Amazon and iTunes and you can get a print version as well.

Make 2016 your year.

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10 Social Media, Content Marketing & SEO Predictions for 2016

12/20/2015

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The year 2015 is about done and 2016 is just around the corner.

All the top sites are doing their prediction posts. Why not get in on that game?

I decided to do that beginning in early-December. It was a busy month for me and I didn’t get this post finished for a couple of weeks.

I decided to go back in and add in more stats and links that might help you. Perhaps they’ll also bolster my arguments.

So without further ado, here are my 2016 social media, content marketing, and SEO predictions:

#1 Rand will do 52 posts this year

I’m willing to bet that Rand Fishkin of Moz will slack off again in 2016.

I bet between Whiteboard Friday and his blog he’ll manage 52 posts.

I say this because I don’t know what the guy does or how it helps me. I also don’t know why so many people think this guy knows everything.

I guess he did at some point, which allowed him to make a multi-million dollar company. Since then he’s been coasting on his accomplishments, easing back on his laurels.

Nothing shows this more than the sorry excuse for a blog that, for some reason, is still linked up to Moz’s homepage.

Personally, I wouldn’t want a daily reminder of my inability to post embarrassing me like that.

Rand and Moz do, however.

Looking at Rand’s Blog I see that the last post was November 25, just about a month ago.

Prior to that we had:

August 15;
June 17;
June 9;
June 3;
June 2;
February 8;
January 26;
January 12;
January 8.

So that’s 10 posts this year, not even one a month. What’s particularly bad is that stretch from February to June. Well, it’s not as bad as that lame attempt at catch-up.

Maybe it's not as lame as that January-gym approach. Got busy there at the New Year, didn't he?

Honestly – why do we take advice from this guy?

Something else I’d like to mention is Rand’s love affair with still images, like this one:

My oh my…where to begin?

How much time do you think it takes for the Moz team to come up with that?
Do you think it’s a good use of your time?
Do you benefit from those still images?

Well, Rand and his team feel producing those images is a better use of their time than analyzing their industry and telling us what they think.

Personally, I’d rather read more of the latter than see those still-images. I feel I’m not alone in that.

So…why do I feel we’ll be seeing even more of those still-images this year and a whole lot fewer blog posts?

Because this is a “top” site and Rand is an “expert.”

#2 Hashtags in Titles will Fade #Away

Aren’t you getting tired of seeing haghtags in blog titles? I know I am.

I fully expect this silly tactic to go away this year. It smacks of desperation and the last thing you want to look like is desperate.

Is your site really doing so badly that you need that extra hashtag boost that the title-hashtag gives you? Gosh, I’m sorry.

Here’s a post from Search Engine Journal that does it:

Here’s another one from an article a week later, again on SEJ:

Here’s another one from Brand Watch:

Here’s a post from last December that thought the idea so good it did it twice:

So really, here we have a site trying to get a bit more lovin’ from Twitter. It’s mainly Twitter, though I suppose this might work on other networks as well.

Does it work?

What is the goal?

Are we actually getting more traffic to our sites because of this?

I’m not convinced. What would be great would be seeing these sites actually study this.

Will they? I highly, highly doubt it.

I mean, why point out what you’ve been doing all year has been a silly waste of time?

That’s not what expert sites do.

Instead they say, “oh...,” look over their shoulder to make sure no one saw, and continue right on as if nothing has changed.

Terrible.

#3 Barry Schwartz’s Content will Get Shorter

Barry Schwartz has good ideas. He also has a terrible work ethic.

How do 250 word posts help me?

I’m not sure, but that’s about all you can expect from Barry each year – short posts that don’t tell you much.

That’s the problem with these sites – they break news but never tell you anything else.

I mean, honestly – is it really fucking hard to put some analysis in there, tell us a bit more of the history of this thing, how it came about, why it came about, and what you think will happen?

That’s the thing – Barry doesn’t think. He just writes. He sees something and he writes about it.

I’d rather he spend more time thinking about what he’s writing about. It’s called analysis, and Barry needs to learn how to give us some.

Will he?

No.

#4 We’ll Stop Using [INFOGRAPHIC] in Our Titles

Alright, I can see why you might put the word “infographic” in your title – it tells people what the post is.

I can even understand why you might put a hashtag in front of it, hoping to get a little extra social media lovin’.

But why, pray tell, does the damn thing have to be in all caps?

INFOGRAPHIC vs. Infographic.

Hell, why not mix it up and say INFOGraphic?

It’s not any stupider than using all caps, and I doubt it’ll lose you anymore respect than the all caps version.

Mainly, using INFOGRAPHIC in your titles just makes you look stupid. I’m sure we’ll see it a lot in 2016, but not from the big sites.

Well…we’ll see.

For now let’s see some posts.

Here’s one from a Social Media Today post:

Social Media Today is actually the worst with this. I see far more of their posts doing this than other sites. Here’s another one:

Still, they’re not the only ones.

Here’s one that combines my duel loves of “infographic” in the title while using a hashtag as well:

Digital bad habits…let’s think about that.

#5 Google+ Will Lose More Users as People Flee the New Mobile Design and Current Users Die Off

Google+ has two things going against it right now:

First, the users are incredibly old, the oldest demographic on social media, coming in at 45 to 55 for the age of the average user

Then, their new mobile design really pissed off long-time users, and it’s likely many of these users will do what they’ve been saying for years, and migrate more fully to other networks.

We know from a September 15 post called What is Snapchat and How Can I Use It for Business? that 70% of Snapchat users are 18-34 years of age. Taking it further, Snapchat had “around 100 million daily active users” in late-2014.

On top of this we saw in October 19’s Young Consumers Read Reviews & Are More likely to Write Reviews that just 69% of those 55-years of age and above write reviews.

What’s more, we know from December 3’s Social Media Statistics 2015 that just 9% of Google+ users actually post content.

This doesn’t mesh with local SEO goals. One more reason to kick the old fogeys to the curb.

Old people can’t compete with that and since we know millennials have tons of money to spend, marketers will just start to ignore the old people.

Considering that the vast majority of Baby Boomers are too much in debt to retire and have no savings, this won’t be a bad thing.

Yes, marketing trends will be changing in this coming election year.

#6 Melissa Mayer will Finally be Fired from Yahoo

I remember writing some content for a guy in Germany back in the spring of 2013.

It was all about this woman Melissa Mayer at Yahoo.

I remember this because I was hurriedly writing it between classes when I was still teaching English in China.

My God, has that woman been around this long?

I think it’s because she’s a woman and was pregnant and…didn’t she write a book? Yeah, that too. We cut her too much slack.

I feel that she’ll do poorly this year as Yahoo continues to do poorly. Maybe I’m wrong. Maybe Yahoo Gemini will save the company.

I don’t think so, however. Perhaps Yahoo will ditch Melissa Mayer the same week America ditches Carley Fioriana.

Both are terrible businesspeople.

#7 More Sites will Close Comments

I think Content Marketing Institute, Social Media Examiner, and Search Engine Journal are the main candidates for closing their commenting sections this year.

Why?

They have no comments.

Well, when you look at the ridiculously large share numbers they have it’s clear they have no comments.

It’s a terrible ratio!

So…why are people sharing, but not commenting? Please don’t tell me the world’s full of shy ninny’s.

I guess it must be.

Or are these what I call robo-shares, nothing more that people sharing an article they got notified about on social or email, for no other reason than to look smart to their followers?

I think a lot of it is that.

#8 We’ll See A Pull Back from Email Marketing

Aren’t you getting sick of email marketing articles all the time?

God, I am.

It’s because we know that most email campaigns have an open rate of about 22%.

Worse, most email marketing campaigns have an abysmally small click-through rate of about 3%.

We know on AdWords the average click-through rate is 2%.

Sadly, most companies are expecting 10% to 15% for click-through rate.

Wow, talk about failure.

Yet we continue to see the big sites harp on how important it is to grow your email list.

Sadly, they nearly always suggest giving something away or engaging in some other gimmick.

Great, now I have a bunch of sign-ups that will never open, never click. No wonder our click-through rates are so low!

Folks, this strategy is not working.

Oh, maybe it’s working for some big sites that bombard you with pop-ups until you finally relent and give them your email list.

But you know what…it’s not. Even those sites have the same problems of low engagement, low opens, non-existent clicks.

Our email marketing strategies are not working.

Will that stop the Big Boys from shoving the same tired advice down our throats?

No – they’ll never stop. As long as you keep that sucker face on and lap up their bullshit, they’ll keep shoveling it at you.

So I expect more people will become vocal, saying what they think.

“Damn, it – I follow your advice and my click-through rates are shit! What gives, you dumb bastards!?!”

I’d like to hear more talk like that. Perhaps, just perhaps, we might be able to get somewhere.

For I know deep down that if we continue on, I’ll be sitting here next December writing how our email click-through rates are still an abysmal 3% or so.

#9 Twitter Goes Back on Share Counter Takeaway

I’m going to go out on a limb here and say that the removal of share counter’s from Twitter buttons will not go over well.

I’ll go further and say that Twitter has to backpedal and put those numbers back.

Maybe I’m being hopeful, or projecting my wants onto the situation. I dunno – are people going to pay…whatever a month to have that number, that ego booster?

We’ll see.

#10 SEO Sites Focus More on Content Marketing and Social Media

I think we’ll see top SEO sites like Moz and Search Engine Land go more with content marketing for topics on their blogs.

This is clear to me from both the July Online Marketing Industry Survey and the August SEO Ranking Factors post. Both show that content is perceived as more valuable than SEO…to users and now more and more to Google.

Big sites will focus more on content because guest posting, linkbuilding, keyword optimization and all the rest of it is falling flat.

I mean, guest posting really went out the window this year!

I say that because we always have Google algorithm updates that take everything those SEO folks said from years ago and penalize it.

We see this again and again.

Far from it embarrassing the SEO sites, however, they continue to push outdated and downright harmful ideas.

Worse, we know this stuff just doesn’t work. We know that you have to focus on what your user wants.

With mobile overtaking desktop and more semantic search and long-tail phrases doing away with traditional methods, SEO just isn’t going to get as much play in 2016, or future years.

Again, people will jump on that, saying we’ve heard it all before.

I already see big sites like those mentioned steer more toward the social media marketing and the content approach for building traffic, however.

We’ll see. For now I suspect it’s a wait-and-see approach. As the year progresses, however, and as we tally the various articles appearing on SEO sites, I think we’ll find this one comes true.

Conclusion

Wow, lots to think about! Let’s recap what those predictions were:

#1 Rand will do 52 posts this year
#2 Hashtags in Titles will Fade #Away
#3 Barry Schwartz’s Content will Get Shorter
#4 We’ll Stop Using [INFOGRAPHIC] in Our Titles
#5 Google+ Will Lose More Users as People Flee The New Mobile Design and Current Users Die Off
#6 Melissa Mayer will Finally be Fired from Yahoo
#7 More Sites will Close Comments
#8 A Pull Back from Email Marketing
#9 Twitter Goes Back on Share Counter Takeaway
#10 SEO Sites Focus More on Content Marketing and Social Media

So those are my predictions. I hope they made you think or gave you a new perspective.

Good luck in 2016 – if you do 'well' enough maybe you’ll be on a list next year.

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18 SEO, Social Media and Content Marketing Sites: 2-Month Case Study

12/6/2015

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Two months ago I set about on a case study.

It was a difficult task, for it required me to go to 18 of the top SEO, social media, and content marketing websites each and everyday.

I’ve done that and now I’d like to tell you the results.

The study began on October 6 when I put up a post called Analyzing 18 Different Social Media, SEO, and Marketing Sites for Content.

It got 1,061 views that month and maybe 300 or so last month, if that.

If I was a big site I’m sure it would have gotten that in an hour or so.

Oh well – I’m not a big site.

I’m a nobody, really, just someone that started reading these sites years go. I listened to their advice and I’ve used a lot of it.

Not all, however. No, some of their advice you don’t want to use.

We’ll discuss that today, as well as the good and bad points for each of these sites.

I hope it’s informative, I hope it’s entertaining, and I hope it offends.

The content and the habits of these sites should offend you. Oftentimes it’s lackluster and not at all what we’d expect from content leaders.

Unfortunately, that’s become business as usual at these sites and we as an audience accept that.

It’s a shame, a damn shame.

Oh well. Instead of griping, let’s discuss these sites. Maybe that way you’ll begin to see a bit of what I’m talking about.

#1 Moz

My opinion of Moz has gone down a bit, though that’s largely because of this week’s post suggesting you “buy” Twitter followers.

Perhaps it’s just a terrible headline. You’d think these people would know better though, right?

Not the case.

Oh well. Besides that there’s not much to get excited about. The site continues to put up SEO content that’s pretty hardcore, meaning for regular people it’s of little interest.

Their forays into content marketing advice have left me wanting.

Overall, this site also suffers from having great staff that are never used. Rolling Rand out once a week might be enough for some people, but not me (still, I haven’t bothered with his video posts for about a year).

The site relies on guest posters when there’s no real need to. You have to wonder…what does Moz do all day?

I guess sell SEO services and tools. So that’s what this site is – they sell SEO stuff and sometimes put up content that’s related to that.

I’m sorry, that doesn’t much appeal to me anymore.

Stars: 3/5

#2 Boost Blog Traffic

For the second or third time in as many years, Boost Blog Traffic will be coming off my bookmark bar.

I in no way feel bad about this.

In fact, the site owner suggested it after I commented on this rather staid post.

For two months I’ve visited this site each day. Of course, I knew that wasn’t necessary – they’re posting schedule is terrible!

This site has put up 8 posts in 60 days.

That’s not acceptable.

Oh, it might be acceptable if Jon Morrow was writing the content all the time…but honestly, I can’t say that anymore.

I mean, that shit-shingle article he gave us on December 2 was a joke. I said as much to him in the comments as you saw. Got me about 45 linkbacks and probably a ton of scorn from loving fans.

Good.

Those fans need to speak up and demand better. This site is letting you down so much it’s sad.

The writers that do contribute to the 3 to 4 posts a month often have good ideas. Compared to sites putting out 10 times the content or more, however, it’s not good enough.

I won’t be missing this site as I know there’s little to miss.

Stars: 2/5

#3 Quick Sprout

I kept this site on my bookmark bar for the full 60 days even though I wanted to get rid of it after about a month.

The content is boring and too long and never new.

On top of this, we know that Neil Patel pays others to write for him. Lots of people do this, it’s just they let those people use their own names.

Well, who knows – maybe all big-time content producers do this.

The thing with Quick Sprout is that the articles are like Men’s Health articles.

You could pick up an April 2013 and an April 2015 issue and see the exact same advice.

Whether it’s ab workouts, that diet shake, or how to finally get her clothes off, the advice will be the same.

Folks, the basics don’t change!

That’s what Neil Patel deals in – the basics. He tells them to us over and over and then over some more.

He makes a lot of money doing that, which is easy when suckers are born every minute.

You’re not a sucker. You’re also not a third-world type with a name that’s hard to pronounce. That’s who I see making up the majority of the comments on these posts.

Do yourself a favor – remove this site from your bookmark bar like I’m going to do after this article.

Stars: 2/5

#4 Social Media Examiner

Wow, what a site!

This has probably been the most interesting site to watch, for a variety of reasons.

First, if you make the right kind of comments here you’ll usually get a response;

Next, the owner of the site isn’t that secure in his business and will sometimes lash out. This is very entertaining.

Finally, they have good content…most of the time.

Alright, about the comments. I’ve made some pretty provocative comments on this site over the past 60 days.

Clearly, I must be a troll.

Usually all you need to do to get a response that goes comment after comment is to challenge the writer of the post on their content.

I did this with several hashtag posts, questioning the use of the hashtags presented. Boy, people did not like that.

When you go to someone’s favorite site and start asking questions people get pissed.

Don’t you know you’re supposed to go and say ‘great post’ and little else? What’s wrong with you!

So you get a lot of those style comments on the site. Not a lot of challenges or questions, however.

In regard to the second point, we saw how insecure Michael Stelzner is with his business. This is totally understandable, what with fraudulent Facebook advice posts creeping their way in, terrible Disqus moderation, and a long line of paid writers.

I’m assuming the writers on this site are paid – I don’t know. I put in an app to guest post but was turned down in June.

Finally, the site does manage some good content. Overwhelmingly list-posts, the site still gets a few wheels in your head turning nonetheless.

The main problem is that they rely on ringers, er…guest posters, and with those folks you don’t get a sustained level of quality.

Writers that put up content each day and have themes, they give you high-quality. This flying from branch to branch like Social Media Examiner does, however, well…that gets you lots of stuff, but no real insight.

Of course these are my opinions. I'll continue to leave them on this site as it has value for me.

Stars: 3/5

#5 Search Engine Journal

The main problem with this site is their short content. I wish they had more posts on the weekend.

You can leave a comment, so that’s nice. I was kicked off the site for leaving comments, however, so be wary.

What happened? I said that a post on writing a book was rubbish. People did not like that.

One thing that I get pissed about on this site, like many sites, are the low ratios of shares to comments.

Why do people share more than comment? Are they afraid to say anything?

Yeah, they are.

Commenting on a website is just like commenting in class. No one wanted to raise their hand back in high school and no one wants to now.

It’s a lot easier to pass notes to friends, and that’s what sharing is.

Search Engine Journal has some good posts and I’ll be keeping them on my bookmark bar.

A problem they run into his having so many writers. You never really get a feel for any particular one, never develop that name recognition.

Yep, they come and go here on SEJ, just like the advice. It often comes through one mouth, goes into one of your ears and then out the other.

You don’t remember this content many times.

I mean, if I wasn’t doing my Midweek Roundup posts I’d have a hard time remembering anything I read on this site.

Yeah, a lot of these sites begin to blend together after awhile. Be careful of that and try to spot ways that these sites stand out.

It’s tough, but I think you can manage.

Stars: 3/5

#6 Search Engine Land

I hate this site’s design.

Clearly it’s for mobile. Why else would you have these images with white text bombarding you above the fold?

I never click on those, I just scroll down. When I do so I get to the dated articles so I know what’s new.

Now, visiting this site on the weekend is a complete waste of your time. Despite the wondrous ability we have to schedule posts, this “leading” SEO site chooses to let two days of the week just slip on by.

Why is that?

I guess it’s because they’re thought leaders.

Personally I’d like to see more sites post on the weekend. Do I expect to see this? No, don’t be stupid.

Besides the lackluster weekends, the content is as well. Barry Schwartz is the leading cause of this.

Schwartz is great for getting us the news fast, and first. He’s terrible at putting any analysis in there, historical insight, or even more than 250 words.

This is unacceptable and I can’t understand why it’s gone on so long.

Another fault I have with this site is their no commenting policy. Guys…what are you afraid of?

People questioning their posts or pointing out their lack of insight, I suspect.

Something else I don’t like are how the Land sites often have duplicate content. By this I mean they post a bit of a post that appeared on the other, hoping you will click over.

A lot of the time I feel Search Engine Land is more concerned with what affects them than what affects you and I.

I dunno, I just get that vibe.

I still like this site because they have fresh content that’s first. But you know what? Usually reading the headline is enough.

Yeah, many times I see that headline and I think, ‘damn, I don’t want to read that. It doesn’t affect me, and it kind of sounds boring anyways. Besides, I probably wouldn’t understand it.’

After that I close the site out for the day. So in that regard I click on maybe 3 to 4 articles a week, and this site puts up several a day.

I’ve just not found the content to be that relevant to me, or that informative on how I can benefit from the ideas.

Stars: 2/5

#7 Marketing Land

This site has the exact same interface and look as Search Engine Land. There’s really no difference, so figure out which you like better and go for that.

I have to say, I find this content to be a bit more relevant to me – as someone that focuses more on content marketing over SEO – than Search Engine Land, or even Search Engine Journal.

I will say I get those 3 sites mixed up a lot – Search Engine Journal, Search Engine Land, Marketing Land.

I call these 3 the “Land” sites, because of the names and because they’re so similar. Two are owned by the same company, I believe.

Overall, I feel these 3 sites could do better.

I feel they’ve started to slack off a bit.

I’m disappointed by this.

No one else seems to be, but perhaps no one else has been visiting with an eye for detail for 60 days in a row…and long before that as well.

I do content curation on a daily basis and these are the things I notice.

The Land sites are letting their users down by not pushing the bar enough. They’ve become entitled, lazy in their success.

It’s sad, and I hope they begin to address this.

Stars: 2/5

#8 Search Engine Watch

This site is run out of the UK. They do a good job with content, though I wish they’d get over the newspaperman’s habit of not capitalizing headlines.

Besides that, they have a small group of writers so you can begin to see themes in what they cover and how they write.

Comments are few on this site. When I first started going they had Roger for the most part, and he’d leave long comments.

He never left comments on any other Disqus sites that I could see, which I always thought was strange.

Something I have a problem with is the no-weekend content policy. Guys, it’s 2016 now and maybe you can schedule a post from one of the people clamoring to post on your site.

There are people clamoring...right?

Besides that, I find this content doesn’t really appeal to me. I get few engagements on the posts when I share them, telling me others feel the same.

I will say this is because I’m moving away from SEO, as I feel the world is.

I just don’t care that much about manipulating my site so it’ll do better on Google. I know that Google creates algo updates all the time to deal with sites doing that.

I said a lot of that on this site over the past 60 days. I got a lot of blowback.

In the end, that dies down. People get excited and then fall back into their SEO or content camps.

For this site, I’ll keep visiting but I’ve already stopped commenting. Many others have as well (Roger).

The site just kind of got boring for me, what can I say?

Stars: 3/5

#9 Content Marketing Institute

I like this site a lot. They have some good ideas, it always revolves around content, and they post on the weekends.

I like that the owner, Joe Pulizzi, did not kick me off his site, though he probably should have numerous times.

I don’t like that there are few comments. I like that the article writers come back and comment on their posts.

I don’t like that there are always new writers. I do like that there aren’t so many new writers that I can’t recognize an old one from time to time…though that’s rare.

I could do without the podcasting.

Podcasting is something we’ve been taught we need to do though I don’t think there’s any clear evidence that it helps you.

It will waste lots of time on a Friday, however, and I feel that’s why many sites do this – they don’t have enough regular work to do at the end of the week.

Hey, I’ve worked in offices – I know how it goes.

The good news is that podcast sites often have a transcript that you can read. This takes a fraction of the time. Alas, it doesn’t give that site the on-site-time analytics they wanted.

Well, it’s not my job to benefit you – it’s your job to benefit me.

Sites that learn that key fact will do very well for a long time.

Stars: 4/5

#10 Forbes

Forbes is a good site because they have a lot of business stats.

I like that. I like that I can get a lot of numbers on industries, earnings, and what people are making.

Now, I have to admit that many of the articles on the site don’t interest me.

Another problem is the number of writers – there are so many I can never develop a relationship with anyone.

Comments is another bother for me. I don’t like their interface, one that both doesn’t show comments until I click on them and also doesn’t allow me to comment unless I’m signed-in.

I'm not too concerned, however. I don't expect to have any sort of relationship with this site. It's just too large and full of itself.

If you don't believe me then I guess you weren't watching Steve Forbes in the debates back in '96 like I was.

Stars: 3/5

#11 Entrepreneur

Wow, this site has so much potential but it never seems to use it.

I especially like how they have the “4 minute read” posts.

Wow, this must be content for mobile users on the go, the kind that are looking for the next subway or metro stop.

Another thing are the articles with no date. I hate that. They have a date when you click over, and many times you find yourself on an article from June.

WTF?

That’s why putting a date on your articles on the homepage is important. But this site would rather trick you into clicking on something that’s old.

It’s because they’re advertising whores.

Most times when you click on an article you get assaulted with a pop-up ad.

I will admit that you can skip the video ad right away. That’s a lot better than waiting 5 seconds.

Another fault is their Livefyre commenting section, which requires you to click to see.

Hardly anyone ever leaves comments, including the article writers.

Yeah, lots of ringers here. The site has paid writers or just those that guest post for links.

Mainly, generic advice from people that are trying to help themselves more than you. Well worth skipping, and I’ll be doing so each day now that I got rid of this abomination off my bookmark bar.

Stars: 2/5

#12 Business 2 Community

God, why did I put this site back on my bookmark bar?

They suck and I’ve known they suck for some time. Besides their terrible homepage design that tells me way to much without telling me anything at all, the content is just…normal.

Yeah, they have normal content. It’s for regular people, the kind that go to offices at 9 and leave at 5, maybe doing their lunch at the desk.

I did that shit for years and my God it sucked.

Business 2 Community is a site for those people – the walking dead, the kind with 401(k)s.

I got rid of this site yesterday when I started this post. It feels good. It feels good knowing I won’t have to go there each day, hovering over their tabs to see if there’s anything new that I might like.

I just don’t have to bother with it anymore, and that’s a great feeling.

Stars: 1/5

#13 Social Media Today

I like Social Media Today. They have lots of content, put it up on the weekend, and have lots of writers.

Sadly, this in no way makes up for their incredibly short posts, their old and tired tips, and the fact that they have so many writers revolving in and out that I never come to know any.

Worse, they now have a terrible tendency to put “sponsored content” right up on the homepage, labeled as such.

Overall, this site went way downhill. On top of it hardly anyone comments. Even the people that wrote the post never come back and make a comment.

Is the site dying?

It kind of feels that way at times. When I go there I often feel like I’m the first there, that the owner is watching me nervously, hoping I buy.

That just makes me want to run out of the place.

More and more, I go to this site and read the headlines. I click on two articles a day at most. I don’t even bother sharing them anymore, however, for the content is too generic.

Sharing this site's content might make me look bad.

Now, if you’re just starting out, this site can be good. They also have the occasional post that’s really good, full of stats and insight and analysis.

Sadly, those are the exception to the norm. If you’ve been visiting this site regularly, you know what I mean.

Alas, I don’t think this site has any regular visitors.

Stars: 2/5

#14 Buffer Social

This is a good site, one of my favorites. They have long content, they have short content. Kevan Lee is really the stand-out on the site. Ash Read has some good ideas too.

Some things that bother me are the lackluster posting schedule. Again, we can do weekend content, guys; we can do posts more than every few days.

I dunno – maybe it’s a small team running this. Still, I’ve been a solo-blogger for years and can put up more content in a month than this site.

They had 11 posts in November, and even with the Thanksgiving holiday, this is pathetic.

It’s one of the sad state of affairs today that we think any kind of content will make up for not posting 19 days of the month.

I know we have this idea that killer or long-form content is more valuable to your audience than lots of smaller posts (read consistent), but that’s just not the case.

People want that consistency. They want to read new stuff each day.

They don’t want what Buffer puts you through all too often, and that’s long wait times for content, that let’s face it, isn’t that good after all that waiting.

Yeah, you built me up, but all too often you didn’t deliver on that promise.

Oh, there was no promise? Then what the hell was that 3-day wait for?

Sites with lackluster posting schedules need to have their head examined. It’s not working, guys.

Stars: 3/5

#15 HubSpot Blogs

This is a good site, one that has at least three new articles each day.

The one fault I have with this site is that the content isn’t really specific to me. It’d probably be great if I was a small business owner or something.

But I’m not, really. This is definitely a site for business professionals more than regular bloggers.

Something else that bothers me a bit are the comments. This is another site where you need to click the comments to see them. That’s a terrible design.

Really, this is a site that I appreciate, but don’t really respect. I say that because I don’t read that many articles. It’s just not my cup of tea.

It’s important to find those sites. Maybe they’re on your bookmark bar now, keeping you plateaued on whatever level or stair you’re on.

Could it be time to do away with them, moving on to other, more relevant sites?

It’s certainly something to consider.

Stars: 3/5

#16 Hot in Social Media

I kept this site on my bookmark bar for the whole experiment but it’s gone now.

I’m not interested in this site.

The content is weak, not very long, and not that interesting. There’s nothing new and the posting schedule is too slow for me.

I can find this same content on other sites. Social Media Today, a site that has the same type of weak content, does better. At least they have more of it and post it more often.

When you’re visiting 18 sites each day it’s a lot of work. When about half of those sites don’t have new content, and half of those have weak content, should you even bother?

I don’t.

Stars: 2/5

#17 Kissmetrics

I removed this site from my bookmark bar about 3 weeks into the case study.

It’s not worth anything to you, again, because it’s a Neil Patel site and I just don’t feel Neil Patel content is worth much.

Stars: 1/5

#18 Crazy Egg

I removed this site from my bookmark bar about 3 weeks into the case study.

Again, Neil Patel site. I’d not bother with it, myself.

Stars: 1/5

Conclusion

I say what I think.

I do that on my site and I do that on these sites. Some like it, many don’t.

I gave you my opinion of these sites after visiting them each day for 2 months.

Maybe you agree with some of it, maybe some of it bothers you. Regardless, I hope that it’s made you think

I hope that it’s made you think, ‘my God – I can beat these guys! I can really do it. I mean, their content isn’t that good, their posting schedules aren’t that good, and they’re not really doing anything new!’

Hot damn – 2016 will be your year if you keep that attitude!

Far too often we coast by on past accomplishments.

These 18 sites do that a lot.

Let them know it. Do it in posts like this that tell them what you think. Do it in posts that just blow the shit out of whatever they put out.

You can do it – I’m counting on you.

0 Comments

Competing With All the Bullshit Out There

11/22/2015

0 Comments

People get up in the morning because they’re afraid.

They’re afraid of what will happen if they don’t.

That’s the main driver and motivator in our society today – fear. If we don’t do something, we’re afraid of what will happen to us.

Now, when we say “get up in the morning” we mean start the day, but it’s a lot more than that. Mostly, it’s about going to work.

Sure, if you don’t get up one day, call in sick or whatever, it’s not going to make much difference.

But we’re getting at the mentality here. What if you don’t get up today, and what if that stretches into a few days, a week – then what?

When you stop getting up in the morning it’s a clear sign that you’re no longer interested in whatever it is that’s keeping you alive.

That’s not quite right, however. Mostly, people get up in the morning so they can go to work…so they can pay bills.

Ah, another layer. So far we have:

Get up in the morning;
Go to work;
Pay the bills.

That’s the main recipe that motivates people to join the real world each day – paying bills.

My, they have a lot of bills to pay, don’t they? There’s:

The rent
The power
The phone
The cable TV
The newspaper
The magazines
The student loans
The health insurance
The car insurance
The home insurance
Hell, maybe even the mortgage.

On top of this we have things like retirement, the kids’ college account, and that holiday fund.

Gosh, if didn’t get up in the morning for just one day, all of that great stuff might just vanish. And my God, we couldn’t have that.

When you’re trying to sell someone with your copy, you have to get past all of that bullshit that’s getting them up in the morning.

It’s hard.

People need that bullshit, they need it bad. That’s what our society is built upon, the world over – bullshit.

It’s this life we’ve created for ourselves, one with so many strings attached that you’re hopping and skipping and jumping at the slightest change in your reality. And those changes are immense.

Constantly, each and everyday, you’re bombarded by advertisements, products, and people trying to get whatever measly bit of change you have left over after that list of bullshit you have to throw your money at first.

So when you write content and engage in content marketing, that’s who you’re competing with – all the bullshit in your potential customer’s life.

After that you can start to have competition with the major companies of the world that want that customer’s money. These are things like Coke, Apple, Home Depot, and tons of other national and international chain stores with corporate-backing.

Once you get past the layer of bullshit and the companies of the world you can start to compete for that customer’s attention with those other businesses in your niche or industry.

By this point 75% of that customer’s resources – financial and otherwise – have been eaten up.

You and your entire niche/industry are competing for the last quarter of what that guy’s got, and the overwhelming desire he has to go home and hang it up after the incredibly long and frustrating day of bullshit he’s had to put up with.

My God, it’s amazing we sell anything at all to these people!

Conclusion

With all the bullshit in people’s lives you’d think they’d want to stay in bed all day.

They can’t – they’re slaves to their bullshit.

Whether it’s that pile of bills they think they have to pay, that crappy job that they think they have to keep dragging themselves into, or the societal and generational expectations that they continue to shoulder, people will for the most part do as they’re told.

It’s why they get up in the morning – they’re afraid of what will happen if they don’t.

Every single one of your potential customers is driven by fear at a very base level. They’ll never admit it of course, but it’s the main thing that drives them.

People are afraid of their little world crumbling around them. That would surely happen if they looked at all the bullshit and threw up their hands and said ‘fuck it.’

But society and the corporations that run it would frown on that, now wouldn’t they? So we get the situation we have, the rat-race-like world that most people hate and do their best just to get by in.

That’s who you’re selling to.

Figure out what motivates that person.

We’ve already talked about the bullshit that motivates them, but you need to get at that 25% they have left.

This is the area that’s free of bullshit, though it could be filled with yours.

Shouldn’t it be filled with yours?

0 Comments

Some Content Marketing BS I’ve Been Privy To

11/14/2015

5 Comments

I’m getting so sick of the big sites complaining and acting like little girls.

Just today I had Michael Stelzner bitching at me via email.

The reason?

He doesn’t like the post I wrote about his website, Social Media Examiner.

First he wanted me to leave a comment to his comment. I said no.

Then he got mad and said that I should delete the post. I said no.

After that he got mad and said I should write about this so everyone can see how I lack integrity.

So I’m writing about it.

Why on earth a guy that built a site from the ground up with $5,000 and got it to earn $1 million in one year would feel threatened by me I have no idea.

But he is.

Someone else that’s threatened by me is Joe Pulizzi.

He managed to write a post this week on the site he started, Content Marketing Institute.

Yes, these founders usually are capable of writing a post once a week.

This week Joe talked about wearable technology. He suggested that there are “opportunities for utilizing data from these devices to provide enhanced or personalized customer experiences.”

What the fuck does that mean?

What it means is that advertisers are going to try and hit the 39.5 million of you that have a wearable device.

Wow, isn’t that the last fucking thing in the world you want – an ad when you’re on your morning run or counting your steps up the stairs?

I said as much in a comment on the site. It got through…probably by mistake.

I went back to see if anyone replied to it later today and noticed I had a typo. I decided to edit that. When I went back a few moments later, the comment had been deleted.

Hmm, fishy. I’ll let you judge what the problem was (besides Joe’s ego being bruised):

Update: I'd like to point out that my comment on this site went through the next day. What you will have to watch for on this site are comments being posted but then not showing up if you refresh your screen or go back later. Another pitfall of moderation.

Perhaps word is getting around that I’m “malicious.”

That’s what Search Engine Land said my comment was on a post on November 13 about eBooks.

Brent Csutoras had to come in and explain things, rile down a few folks.

As if getting 14 comments on a post is a bad thing!

If only the posts he put in his Google+ group got so many. A guy can dream, right?

Now, what is a bad thing is the advice this author gave. Sure, if you’re a beginner and thinking that eBooks are just the thing for you, then maybe it’s helpful.

But if you’ve been in the eBook business for a few years you know that most of that advice won’t do much of anything for you.

But…that’s the advice you have to expect from Social Media Examiner, Content Marketing Institute, and Search Engine Land…at least when the founders are around.

They’re successful – they don’t need to impress anyone, or earn anymore money.

They don’t need to go around to social groups and share content.

They sure as shit don’t need someone coming around and making people think, ‘hey, is this site giving me the best information it could or is it jacking me around a bit?’

These sites have lost the hunger.

That is so fucking awesome that I cannot begin to describe how happy I am!

Do you know how easy it is to get past these sites?

Michael Stelzner is groveling to me in email – he is totally insecure in his success.

What else is his site insecure in? What else are the countless big sites insecure in?

We talked a lot about the Big Boys and how to topple them in my 2014 guidebook, Visit My Site, Bitch!

Those of you who read it got some good strategy points, the kind that you might learn if Sun Tzu gave content tips.

I hope you keep your eye on the ball.

Since I began going to my 18 sites I’ve seen the cracks, and how easy it is to split them open and cause doubt among the users of those sites.

It’s called disruption...though many of us know it as telling the truth.

It’s a technique you might want to use. Disrupt their content and their message.

It’s easy – just say what you think about the content!

So often these days the big sites are putting up shoddy content. When you point this out – when you effectively say the emperor has no clothes – they get defensive, start to cover up.

They take down your comments.

Clearly you're doing something right.

Keep them on their heels like that.

5 Comments

3 Reasons Why Social Media Examiner Banned Me from Their Site

11/10/2015

2 Comments

Today I found out that I’ve been banned from Social Media Examiner.

I discovered this after I clicked on my profile picture to see the status of my comments.

What I found out was that Social Media Examiner now labels all of my comments as spam.

To view Disqus comments you've made, click your name and pull up this sidebar window.

The post in question was called How to Promote Your eBook With Social Media.

Why was this done?

#1 I Speak My Mind

If you’ve visited the site in the past few weeks you’ve likely read some of my comments.

These are typically the posts with a lot of comments as people tend to take umbrage with what I say.

The reason for this is that I speak my mind.

People don’t like that, for the following reasons:

It’s forceful;
It’s direct;
It’s intelligent;
It makes them doubt themselves.

One of the easiest ways to determine if you’re speaking your mind or not is if people call you a troll.

Being called a troll is a 100% indication that you are not afraid to speak your mind.

So I’ve been called that, among other things.

The problem for sites like Social Media Examiner – and the writers they have write for them – is that I don’t back down. I just keep coming back to comment on any reply.

And why not?

Isn’t that what we’re supposed to do? It’s called a conversation.

Alas, I’m not wanted in the conversations on this site any longer.

#2 I Criticize, Question and Complain

I criticize both Social Media Examiner’s lackluster content and the writers that put it together.

This is what happens when you produce work that you choose to put out into the public sphere.

Maybe I’m disgruntled, alienated or angry.

Those are all good ways to explain why I’m saying what I’m saying.

They’re a helluva lot easier than looking at your content and taking into consideration the criticism that’s being directed its way.

So we shoot the messenger, and sites like Social Media Examiner like to do that.

They’re of course not the only one. Many sites will relegate you to the spam pit darn quick if you’re speaking out of place.

Oh, and speaking out of place can include:

Highlighting the lack of originality in content;

Pointing out that big sites aren’t really delivering;

Suggesting that more effort needs to be directed to content;

Questioning the level of shares vs. the level of comments;

Complaining about spam.

I think it’s that last one more than anything that got Mike Stelzner mad at me.

He came over and commented on my article Big Sites Can’t Control Comments. What Can They Control? back at the end of October.

He founded Social Media Examiner and I’m willing to bet $5 that if he read this post he’d come here and say that the reason I was banned from the site was…

#3 They Have Third-Party Problems with their Platform

Yes, big sites can do little in the face of Disqus.

What I’m saying is that Social Media Examiner will likely tell you that I got caught in their spam trap.

This is the typical response you’ll get from the Big Boys when you tick ‘em off and then have the audacity to make a fuss about it where others can see.

It’s a defensive move, a bit of posturing to show that, yes, they do give a damn about those that comment on their site.

The problem is that this is complete bullshit.

Just today Content Marketing Institute had a post called Is It Time to Ditch Your Company Blog’s Comment Section?

Clearly, big sites do not like comments.

And why not? What is the drawback to taking comments away, what is the penalty?

Typically there is none – people just don’t care about comments.

I think that’s clear in the number of comments these posts on the big sites get, which is hardly any.

Remember, these are large sites that tell you how to get ahead.

Despite this, they can’t elicit enough interest in their own fare to garner the comments they claim are so important.

Are comments important?

I don’t see much in the way of linkbacks from sites I comment on. Hell, I don’t see much of anything!

No, it's about showing your authority and your knowledge. Alas, I had too much of that for Social Media Examiner so they quietly showed me the door.

I still think that Social Media Examiner put me into Disqus pre-moderation, meaning that anything I write automatically goes to the spam folder.

Disqus causes problems…and not just for people like me.

Here’s a post from June on WP Beginner that talks about switching away from Disqus and getting a 304% increase in comments. Reasons they cited for switching away were:

Inserting Affiliate Links without Permission;
Sponsored Comments;
Significant Decrease in Comment Engagement;
Moderation Interface.

So…not a whole lot on problems with the spam trap.

Yeah, this was no mistake that I got banned from Social Media Examiner.

I figure this is true because I sent them a tweet with an image attached

I got no reply nor did I expect to.

Conclusion

So what’s next?

I’m actually surprised that more sites haven’t banned me. I’ll still go to Social Media Examiner but maybe I’ll just save my comments for a weekly post that highlights their shortcomings.

Is that really what you want to read, however?

I think the best strategy is to let Social Media Examiner continue on with its beginner-level content and expounded-upon ideas.

If they’ve got no problems rehashing the same-old same-old then why should I?

Let them continue to dodder along. Perhaps they’ll be so busy focusing on their current path that you and other hardworking sites can zip right on by them.

Let them coast through on their name. It won’t work for them forever, especially when their content is so lackluster.

Take heart knowing you’re putting out much better stuff than they are.

Take heart knowing that this will one day be their downfall.

Let them do themselves in – their laziness, ineptitude and incompetence already are.

2 Comments

<<Previous

​Mountain Man Books: $12,000

​English Rocks: $5,000

​Google AdSense: $2,000

​Content Curation: $1,000

​Conclusion

​The Battle of Leignitz

The Battle of Huai-Hai

​The Battle of Gaugamela

Conclusion

Need More Ideas?

​#1 Rand will do 52 posts this year

​#2 Hashtags in Titles will Fade #Away

​#3 Barry Schwartz’s Content will Get Shorter

​#4 We’ll Stop Using [INFOGRAPHIC] in Our Titles

​#5 Google+ Will Lose More Users as People Flee the New Mobile Design and Current Users Die Off

​#6 Melissa Mayer will Finally be Fired from Yahoo

​#7 More Sites will Close Comments

​#8 We’ll See A Pull Back from Email Marketing

​#9 Twitter Goes Back on Share Counter Takeaway

​#10 SEO Sites Focus More on Content Marketing and Social Media

​Conclusion

Conclusion

​Conclusion

#1 I Speak My Mind

#2 I Criticize, Question and Complain

#3 They Have Third-Party Problems with their Platform

​Conclusion

Writing Blogby Greg Strandberg

Top Ten

Categories

My Books(By Publication Date, New to Old)

Archives

Mountain Man Books: $12,000

English Rocks: $5,000

Google AdSense: $2,000

Content Curation: $1,000

Conclusion

The Battle of Leignitz

The Battle of Gaugamela

#1 Rand will do 52 posts this year

#2 Hashtags in Titles will Fade #Away

#3 Barry Schwartz’s Content will Get Shorter

#4 We’ll Stop Using [INFOGRAPHIC] in Our Titles

#5 Google+ Will Lose More Users as People Flee the New Mobile Design and Current Users Die Off

#6 Melissa Mayer will Finally be Fired from Yahoo

#7 More Sites will Close Comments

#8 We’ll See A Pull Back from Email Marketing

#9 Twitter Goes Back on Share Counter Takeaway

#10 SEO Sites Focus More on Content Marketing and Social Media

Conclusion

Conclusion

Conclusion

Writing Blog
by Greg Strandberg

My Books
(By Publication Date, New to Old)