Today (March 11, 2010), I gave a talk at a local Meetup group here in Denver. I talked for an hour about how to build your business by building your blog.

Overall, I think it went pretty well. Especially since it’s the first time I’ve spoken in public in more than 6 years. It’s been so long, I can’t even remember the year I last talked.

One thing that quickly became apparent is that it’s difficult to explain how to set up a Wordpress blog on your own domain. And it’s hard to explain the concepts of themes, plugins, etc. to somebody who is not familiar with blogging.

If you’re just getting started, you’re certainly free to take the time to learn how Wordpress works on your own. That’s what I did. There’s lots of free information at Wordpress.org.

But if you’re short on time, and you’d rather have somebody else set up your blog for you, then you should hire my friend and business partner Ken Gary.

He can set up a new Wordpress blog for you, install a theme, and even install a handful of plugins for you — all for just $200.

If you’re interested, here’s what to do.

Step #1: Go to Ken’s consulting page.

Step #2: Check the third box down, which is the one for two hours of consulting.

Step #3: Complete the order form and click Continue.

Once you complete this process, you’ll want to let Ken know your hosting account login details so he can login and install Wordpress.

Ken will also need to know what theme you want installed, as well as the plugins you want installed. You can probably do that by email or a phone call, whichever you prefer. I’ll leave it to you to work out the details with Ken.

Anyway, I’d hate to see you put off starting your blog because of a lack of time or a lack of technical know-how. So if one of these things is holding you back, hire Ken to help you.

-Ryan M. Healy

P.S. I just got off the phone with Ken, and he told me that you will also get access to his private Wordpress training videos if you hire him to install your Wordpress blog.

These videos show you how to use Wordpress as a publishing platform, and are very helpful if you’re just starting out.

Ever wanted to monetize your blog with Adsense? Then you’ll definitely want to grab the free Adsense blogging interview I’ve linked to at the bottom of this post.

I’ve tested Adsense a few times throughout the years with a modicum of success. But lately my interest has been rekindled because of some new plugins that make it super easy to put Adsense on Wordpress blogs.

(This is in contrast to the old days when I had to cut and paste the Adsense code on every page of my site. Ugh!)

A couple weeks ago, Mark Allen stumbled on my blog and called me up to talk. During our second conversation, he offered to do an Adsense makeover on my blog.

Since I’ve been wanting to switch things up on my blog anyway, and my previous experiments with Adsense on RyanHealy.com have generated very little income, I agreed to the interview.

At the very least, I figured it would be a good challenge for Mark. :-)

Turns out, Mark’s advice is really good. And while the jury is still out on whether Adsense will work on this blog or not, Mark’s advice is already producing good results on another blog I write.

With that in mind, here’s the link to go download the Adsense makeover interview from Mark’s blog. I hope you get as much out of the interview as I did. Enjoy!

-Ryan M. Healy

A few people have responded to my recent controversial post either on their blogs or via comments. Some have expressed their opinion that it’s never good to name names. And others have spoken out against name calling.

But I think the two issues are getting a little bit confused. There is a big difference between “calling somebody out” and being a “name caller.”

If you name names and draw attention to a particular person and his or her bad business behavior, that is a public service. This is why there are complaint boards, business rating services, etc. They exist to help document unethical business practices and protect consumers.

Should we have not called out Bernie Madoff — and let him continue his Ponzi scheme indefinitely? Should we have been silent as Robert Tilton exploited thousands of TV viewers every week?

To be silent on such issues is to encourage criminal behavior.

In my opinion, naming names is not optional. It must be done to preserve law and order in a society. Criminal behavior (like fraud) can’t be ignored.

Here’s a mental exercise that helps prove the point:

Imagine a known sexual predator living in your area. Would you merely warn your neighbors about the different kinds of sexual crimes being committed in neighborhoods across the nation?

Or would you tell your neighbors the full name of the sexual predator, exactly what he had done in the past, and exactly where he lived so you would know how to avoid him?

I think you know the answer to that. You’d warn your neighbors — and you’d give plenty of specifics.

Name-calling is a different issue entirely. It rarely serves any positive purpose and only redirects attention away from the real issues that need to be talked about.

Unfortunately, this is what often happens in political discussions. The ad hominem attacks start flying. The real issues get swept under the rug.

In fact, this is what happens in many, many arguments, not just political ones. Whether it’s between two friends, two spouses, or whomever, it’s far too easy to let our emotions get the best of us — and resort to name calling. (“Jerk!” “Pervert!” “Idiot!” Etc.)

So, in sum:

Naming names – Necessary, especially when criminal behavior is involved.

Calling names – Unproductive at best, damaging at worst.

That’s my story and I’m sticking to it. :-)

-Ryan M. Healy

Last I checked, Apple had sold like a hundred gazillion iPods and iPhones.

Okay, just counting iPhones alone, they’ve sold more like 33.75 million as of fourth quarter 2009. [source]

Remember, that’s not counting any iPod Touch sales.

Plus, millions more Crackberries, PDAs, web-enabled cell phones, and handheld Internet devices have been sold all across the world.

I don’t think I’d be exaggerating if I said that 70 million people worldwide can now surf the Internet on a handheld device. And even if it were “only” 34 million people, that’s a LOT of mobile web surfers!

Question: Have you ever wondered how many people are trying to read your blog using a handheld mobile device? And have you ever seen what your blog looks like on one?

I only recently got an iPhone in July 2009 — so I’m not casting stones here at all — and all of a sudden I realized why “the mobile web” is actually a really big deal.

One morning in particular brought this to the front of my mind. My friend was traveling and my brother had slept through his alarm clock, so all of a sudden I found myself at Panera alone… without a book. (The horror!)

But I did have my iPhone.

So I stopped in at a few of my favorite blogs.

Let me tell you: It was practically impossible to read some of them! The words wouldn’t resize, the borders wouldn’t flex, and I’d be stuck scrolling left to right and squinting to read the super-small font.

Not a pleasant experience.

Then I tried to read my blog. And it wasn’t much better!

The fact is, a blog that’s designed to be read on a computer cannot be easily read on a screen that’s perhaps one-tenth or even one-twentieth the size of a full computer screen.

That’s when I got curious about how to modify my blog for mobile readers.

Turns out, it’s way easier than I thought — if you have a Wordpress blog.

All you have to do in Wordpress is scroll down to “Plugins” from within the admin panel and click on “Add New.” Type “Wordpress Mobile Pack” into the search box. Click “Install” next to the plugin to install it.

From there, customize as you wish.

It’s a beautiful thing. Because immediately you will have a site that is easily viewed and read by any mobile web user.

Problem solved! (Not to mention you can now grab the eyeballs of a few million web surfers who are stuck in department stores while their wives try on clothes.)

-Ryan M. Healy

Heads up…

I’ve got a few more posts in queue and will be publishing them soon.

But it’s been a while since I asked you what questions you’ve been wrestling with. With that in mind, what questions do you have about writing sales copy for the web (or direct response copywriting in general)?

Just type your question below in the comment box. Or, if you’d rather, shoot me an email at rhealy@gmail.com.

I’ll be reviewing every question and will choose the best ones to answer in new blog posts.

Thanks!

-Ryan M. Healy

Another issue of Five on Friday — issue number 13, in fact, on the eve of Halloween! Now there’s a coincidence.

Not to worry though… no tricks here, only treats. Enjoy!

Website Redesign Pulls in More Sales? – by Michel  Fortin

I love test results. And while Michel doesn’t reveal any actual sales figures or conversion rates in this post, he does let you in on a little secret that most copywriters and online marketers don’t know. Must read.

How to Outwit a Den of Thieves – by Martin Howey

The Internet in many ways is still the “wild, wild west” of the business world. Here Martin exposes the dangers of doing business on the Internet and what you can do about it.

Beware of Copycat Credibility – by Brendan Regan

Is it really possible that building credibility the same way everybody else does can actually hurt your credibility? This is the argument Brendan puts forth in this brief but fascinating article. (You know what? I think he’s right…)

8 Reasons to Have a Membership Site – by Robert Plank

Ever wondered why you should not have a membership site? Robert gives you 4 reasons. Every wondered why you should? Robert gives you 8 reasons. (I also love how Robert uses scarcity to get comments on his blog.)

A Simple Way to Write Your First Sales Letter – by Ryan Healy

I’ve just started writing articles for Charlie Cook’s “Marketing for Success” blog. The articles I’m submitting are not published anywhere else, so I’m linking to the first article here in case you missed my “tweets” about it. In this post, I share a super-simple way to write your first sales letter. Retweet it if you like it!

Have a safe Halloween and a wonderful weekend.

-Ryan M. Healy

First there was the Great Wall of China. And now there is the Great Wall of Google.

China built its wall specifically to keep out the invading Mongol hordes.

Google, on the other hand, seems to have built its wall for nothing more than graffiti.

The “wall” is called Sidewiki.

Sidewiki puts a frame around any web site you visit so it appears that you’re on a particular site… when you’re really just on Google.

Furthermore, Sidewiki gives you a free license to say whatever you want “on” any page on the entire Internet — without notifying the site owner.

This is the equivalent of graffiti. And it doesn’t matter if the graffiti looks good or not; it’s still graffiti!

In case you’ve not read anything about Sidewiki, you might start here because of the screen shots. Then you might want to jump on over to Michel and Sylvie Fortin’s web site and check out The Google Sidewiki Controversy.

This is an important issue. And even if it doesn’t affect you yet, it probably will. So I recommend you take some time to learn about Sidewiki.

Of course, the way Google is marketing Sidewiki is fairly innocuous: “Contribute to the web by publishing your comments.”

“Contributing to the web” sounds so nice and inclusive, doesn’t it?

Unfortunately, Sikewiki is inclusive for everybody except the site owner. It hijacks the conversation that might otherwise happen on a blog, forum, or customer support system — and puts that conversation on Google.

It effectively cuts the site owner out of the social fabric of the very web sites he/she has created!

As Sylvie so eloquently points out, Sidewiki could easily be used for many nefarious activities. For instance:

• Bad-mouthing a competitor.

• Offering your own product for sale right beside a similar product.

• Posting download links for paid products right next to the sales page.

• Redirecting traffic from a popular site to your own site.

• And you can do all this without the site owner’s immediate (or eventual) knowledge!

What makes Sidewiki so bad for web site owners is that there’s no good way to see what people are saying about your pages. You would literally have to check every page on every site you own — every day! — just to be on top of what was happening on Sidewiki.

In a word, impossible.

I’m generally a big fan of what Google is doing, but I have to say that Sidewiki is one of the worst ideas they’ve ever had. I sincerely hope they’ll reconsider the impact of this tool — and either redesign it or remove it from the web completely.

Let me know what YOU think by leaving a comment below.

-Ryan M. Healy

P.S. Sidewiki makes DL Guard more important than ever before. DL Guard protects your information products from thieves who would try to steal your paid content from you.

I bought a copy of DL Guard and have been using it for 2+ years, so I highly recommend it. You can learn more about DL Guard here.

Doesn’t matter what market you’re in, you’ll always be competing for the attention of your prospects and customers.

They’ve got a million things going on… oh, and they just got distracted by thing number million and one. (Was it a new email, a text message, an IM on Skype, an incoming tweet? Whatever it was, they’re probably not paying attention to you!)

But imagine for a moment the prospect of witnessing a man brandishing a red hot poker in the middle of a mall. You’d ignore everything else — for a few minutes, at least — to focus all your attention on him. You’d be compelled to find out, “What’s going on here?”

On Saturday, I published a post that got a lot of attention. I even rewrote the post (prior to publishing it) to get less attention, if you can believe it. And still, it’s quickly become one of the Top 5 most popular posts I’ve written on this blog.

And that got me to thinking. What made it stand out? Why was that one post so popular when many others I’ve written haven’t been popular at all?

With that in mind, here are three keys for getting people’s attention in hyper-distracted markets.

Red Hot Poker #1: Controversy

Hardly anybody can stay away from a good controversy. That’s one reason my post was so popular: It speculated about Perry Belcher’s real reason for retiring from Internet marketing.

Is there a controversy among your prospects? Or is there a subject most people consider controversial? (It will probably be different in every market.)

For instance, if I were a doctor, I might publish my thoughts on the recent universal health care legislation. And if I were a dentist, I’d be all over the fluoride controversy. Just the mention of it — for anybody who is “in the know” — can raise the temperature of people’s emotions like boiling water in a tea kettle.

This is the power of controversy if you are willing to step up and put yourself in the middle of it. A good controversy is like the proverbial train wreck: It’s hard to look away.

Red Hot Poker #2: Challenge Tradition (or, Tip a Few Sacred Cows)

It’s time to go cow tipping!

Is there something in your market that’s always been done a certain way — but you feel could be done better? Or is there an accepted dogma that you could challenge and perhaps even overturn?

If so, you may have a ripe opportunity for getting people’s attention.

And right now, I can think of no better example than the JK wedding dance. For years, wedding parties and brides-to-be have solemnly marched down the aisle to the alter of holy matrimony.

Then, one day, a couple decided to do it differently.

They danced.

And they got the entire nation’s attention. (If you haven’t seen the JK wedding dance, go watch it. I tear up every time.)

Red Hot Poker #3: Piggyback on Popular News

Probably the most familiar form of “piggybacking” is holiday sales. Everybody in the U.S. knows when Halloween, Thanksgiving, and Christmas happen. It’s an easy way to piggyback on what’s already on everybody’s minds.

But you can piggyback on other news events, too.

For instance, tax day on April 15. The Superbowl. July 4th. These are all predictable events that you can bank on.

But there are also unpredictable events as well. Many times you can get better results from piggybacking on a big news item that pops up unexpectedly.

For instance, when the movie Dark Knight was suddenly popular, lots of smart marketers piggybacked on its success. Same thing when Barack Obama beat John McCain in the 2008 presidential election.

The key here is twofold: You not only want to capitalize on what your market is already thinking about… you also want to be entertaining. By combining these together, you have the perfect recipe for getting — and keeping — your prospects’ and customers’ attention.

(Hint: Any news items that show up on Saturday Night Live or become jokes on the late-night shows are usually things you can piggyback on to get your market’s attention.)

And with that, you now have three ways to get your market’s attention as if you were brandishing a red hot poker. Of course, what you do what that attention once you have it is up to you. ;-)

-Ryan M. Healy

P.S. What techniques do you use to get your prospects’ and customers’ attention? Share by leaving a comment below.

Another issue of Five on Friday, served up hot and fresh. Here are five of my favorite blog posts from the last week or so.

“The bar for success is too low in our industry” – by Jason Fried

This post was written about the techn industry, but could have just as easily been written about Internet marketing. Jason takes the tech industry to task for holding up unprofitable businesses as a model of success. Highly recommended reading.

Affiliate Caught in the Act! – by Ricky Breslin

In this video, Ricky exposes some of the shady affiliate tactics that are becoming more and more common in every industry. Raises an important question: “How far is too far in the pursuit for profits?”

Supplement Millions Video – by Doberman Dan

Another video! This one’s a bit longer; 38 minutes. Well worth watching though, especially when you consider it’s a recording of Doberman Dan’s presentation at a PAID seminar. In spite of the title, this video is actually less about selling supplements than it is about the value of direct mail.

Do One Thing. Do It Well. – by Jonathan Leger

Here’s a good reminder to stick with the basics… and focus. Jonathan actually wrote this post after reading a thread on Warrior Forum. The thread was so long, he decided to summarize what he got out of it. Good quick reading.

Internet Marketing Propaganda Is Going to Cost You – by Terry  Dean

What’s keeping you from building a successful online business? Here Terry shares 5 Internet marketing lies that can hold you back if you believe them. (If you like Terry’s information, you should check out the Terry  Dean newsletter.)

Have a great weekend!

-Ryan M. Healy

Time for another issue of Five on Friday. This is where I list five of my favorite blog posts that I’ve read in the last few weeks. Take a look…

Why IM Marketing Gimmicks Are Like “Hippie Crack” – by Greg Poulos

The title of this post alone should make you want to read it.

For the record, Greg is the mastermind behind an extremely successful business. And in this post he talks about one of the big pitfalls of Internet marketing: lack of focus.

Plus, he offers a solution for how to handle all the hundreds of money-making techniques we’re deluged with every year.

Why Goal Setting Sucks, Sometimes, I Think – by Stephen  Dean

Stephen makes the argument that goal setting is overrated because “You either ARE or you AREN’T.” If you’ve had limited success with written goals, then this may explain why.

Sigh… The End of an Abusive Relationship – by Victor Cheng

Check out this post for some business lessons we should all be taking to heart, especially in times like these when many markets are shrinking. (Unfortunately, many businesses are doing just the opposite of what Victor suggests, and are suffering for it.)

Why Some People Follow Through & Others Don’t – by Anthony Robbins

This is actually a 38-minute video interview in which Anthony Robbins, Frank Kern, and John Reese talk about why some people follow through and others don’t.

If you’ve ever had trouble finishing a home study course, taking action on what you’ve learned, or following through on your intentions, you’ll definitely want to watch this video.

The Greatest Benefit of a Freelance Career – by Kevin Rogers

Here Kevin relates a story that literally turned his life around and led him eventually to a freelance copywriting career. It’s a good story, and a good lesson.

Kevin concludes, “…for me, the freedom to make my own day is the greatest benefit of a freelance career.” Of course, you’ve got to read the story to see how Kevin arrived at this conclusion.

Have a great weekend!

-Ryan M. Healy