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Tangible Evidence: Your Blog Can Increase Your Profits

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David Maister is an expert on the management of professional service firms. In his post Pricing Consulting Services he writes:

Raintoday.com has just released a new study Fees and Pricing Benchmark Report: Consulting Industry 2008. 645 respondents in the consulting industry completed the survey. Among the findings:

Firms that are well-known in their target markets receive higher fees, see their revenue grow, and earn higher profits than their lesser-known counterparts. Brand leaders were more likely to price their services at a higher level than their competitors in the market (42% of brand leaders were premium-price vs. 28% of lesser-known firms). And, they were more likely to actually get higher fees by up to 35%.

There are a LOT of ways to become “well known” to your target market.

  • You can spend money on advertising in various media that reach your target audience.
  • You can write articles for publication in magazines read by your target audience.
  • You can arrange to speak before groups of your target audience.
  • You can write a book to demonstrate your expertise to your target audience.

If you want to become well known to your target audience, I STRONGLY encourage you to engage in any and all of the above activities.

However, if your budget is screaming and your time is limited, then the best low cost, highly effective method of becoming “well known” to your target market is to launch a self hosted WordPress blog.

Becoming well known used to be thought of as an “ego” thing.  The report above demonstrates that becoming well known is necessary to affect the bottom line performance of your service based business.

WordPress rocks for SEO

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This is one for the “more proof” files. As you know, I’m a real fan of WordPress blogs.  I’ve found that for my clients, who are not tech savvy, a WordPress blog allows them to compete successfully with “web experts” in getting their website found on the internet.

Mark Gosh on the Weblog Tools Collection did his own unscientific research project and was kind enough to share his findings. In his “experiment” he typed in a keyword and took a look at what results were returned. In each case, the results returned a WordPress blog post on every Google Search.

March challenged his blog’s readers to find keywords that didn’t return such favorable responses, and they found a few.

I’ve written about how I’ve had clients who launched a WordPress self hosted blog in addition to maintaining an established blog on another “popular” platform who were SHOCKED at how quickly their WordPress blogs rose to the top when they searched for their own name.

Reading the comments on Mark’s post, you’ll see their experiences are not uncommon.

Domain Name Registry Scam

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The bastards are on the loose again.  You know, the CREEPS  who send you a very official looking “invoice” regarding your domain name registration.   Obviously a LOT of people fill in the form because it looks so damned official.  I’m a “professional” and I have to admit, if I didn’t know better… I’d sign it as well.

It’s bad enough that you have to worry about security online… now you have to guard yourself off line as well.  It’s a form of snail mail domain name phishing.

In case you don’t know, here’s the scoop.   In the fine print it is written that by signing this form you’re authorizing the  transfer of your domain name to THEIR service.  Want to point your DNS to another hosting program.  TOO BAD!  You can’t.  Want to transfer your domain name… can’t do that either… you signed away those rights.

I’ve gotten two emails this week from clients asking about the letters they’ve received via snail mail regarding this scam.

“But I thought my domain name was registered through you?”

My reply, “It is and will be unless you fill out that form and send it in.  Then all bets are off.”

In case you can’t tell, one of my clients made that mistake a few years back.  I don’t think we ever got control of the domain name back.

It INFURIATES me when some slimy bastard tries to use FUD (fear, uncertainty, doubt) to make a buck.

Well, obviously the scam isn’t working so well anymore, so the slimy bastards have hired a call center to telemarket their service.

I got just such a call this morning.  “Hello.  I’m from Domain Name Registration Services and you will be getting a notice in the mail about changes to your domain name account.”

“Why will I be getting that?” I asked.

“Uh, because there are changes in your domain name registration account,” she replied.

“Why?” I asked again because I can be a horse’s ass sometimes.

She started stumbling so badly it was literally incoherent jibberish.  I began thinking of the dear, sweet woman who wrote to me earlier this week and thought about how different this phone call would be if she were in my place.   That visualization set me off and with that,  I let loose on that poor telemarketer.

You know you’ve reached a new low when a telemarketer hangs up on you.

IF YOU DON’T KNOW ALREADY:

  • Don’t click on links in emails regarding your domain name .  Go to  the web site where you registered your domain name and renew it.
  • If you didn’t register your domain name via snail mail, don’t respond to snail mail messages regarding your domain name.
  • Your domain name registrar will NOT be phoning you about your domain name… even if you haven’t paid the bill.

By the way, these rules apply to your CREDIT CARD, YOUR BANK and YOUR PAYPAL accounts as well!!!

It’s only classified as paranoia if they ARE NOT out to get you.

Finding Time to Blog

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One of the most common laments I hear from clients is that they don’t have the “time” to create content for their blog.

Long ago, when I was involved in selling an ad agency’s services, I learned that one must “overcome” objections.  So, when I began hearing the “I don’t have time” objection from clients, I would reply with a “We always find time to do what’s important.”

After all, I didn’t have TIME to write my book… and I too don’t have “time” to post to my blog.  However, I MAKE the time.  For me, to find that time means I don’t get to watch a lot of television.  When the discussion turns to who has been voted off American Idol, I have to shrug.  When a character named “McDreamy” was mentioned one day in a conversation… I seriously thought it was the name of a character on some parody skit.  If I were blogging about the entertainment industry, then this would put a serious crimp in my content, but I don’t so it rarely comes up except in casual conversation with people I don’t know well.

But what if you’re not willing to give up television viewing?  Or…worse yet, what if you’re secretly not sure of your writing skills.  I’ve had clients who chose to hire a professional editor to review the content they create.  Is it possible that my clients are “freezing” up when it comes to writing content for their blogs?

If you find you’re freezing up when it comes to creating blog content, there is a solution which is probably more palatable than giving up watching television…. hire a ghostwriter.

For many, it’s an idea that represents the best of “out of the box” thinking.   However, you may share a sentiment echo’d on the Men with Pens’ FAQ:

Anyone can write. Why should I work with you guys?

Actually, not everyone can write. And not everyone can write well. Think of it this way: Almost everyone can run around the block. But not everyone will become an Olympic athlete. That athlete trains every day, learns new techniques and strategies, and pushes the limits of the human body to achieve the ultimate goal of a winning victory.

Professional writers are the Olympic athletes of the written word. Our goal is your success – and we’re ready to help you win the race against your competition.

Hiring a ghostwriter may be a new thought for you and your blog.  There are those who don’t feel blog ghostwriting is practical or ethical.  However, I don’t think it’s any LESS ethical than hiring a copy writer to compose your direct mail or sales letter.

By the way, the best ghostwriters will take your thoughts and ideas and return to you something that, if you didn’t know better, you’d say you had written yourself.

Rates for ghostwriters vary… and that doesn’t mean that the most expensive are necessarily the best.  A great goal is to find a ghostwriter who can compose in YOUR voice.

I have a client who spent several months “auditioning” writers.  The writer my client found can truly write in my client’s voice.  Whether the ghostwriter was the “cheapest”… I’ll never know.  My client won’t even share her email address with me.  Yes, she’s found a treasure and she wants to make sure her ghostwriter doesn’t get busy with other people’s work.  (Probably a good choice… I’ve been known to “close” more than on Virtual Assistant’s practice through referrals.)

Oh, there’s a difference between ghostwriting for a blog and blog management services.

What’s up with Amazon? Why Bigger Isn’t Always Better…

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Great comment on my last post about Alexa from PhilB of Phishbait where he reports:

“The rumor here in Austin is that Alexa is on the market. So perhaps this is just getting fresh lipstick on the pig.”

It made me chuckle… the thought of the “mighty” Amazon being depicted as a pig sporting lipstick.

My love for Amazon is evidenced by my previous post An Important Lesson from Amazon on How NOT to Treat Your Customers, so you can see why such a comment would make me smile.

So know that:

a) rumor has it that Amazon is trying to sell Alexa

b) Amazon is resorting to bullying tactics to try to prop up another Amazon property, BookSurge.

It’s Monday and I’m not spending too much time focusing my thoughts on the two points above. Instead, I’m working to clear my inbox of the pile up from the weekend.

Later on in the day, I checked my email and found an interesting email from Amazon. I get these emails because I’m a customer. In the email, they tell me that I’m getting this email because as a customer who has purchased baby related items in the past….

SCREECH!!! HOLD THE PHONE, I’VE GOTTA DRIVE!!!!

I am CERTAIN that I have NEVER purchased baby related items from Amazon. I can be REALLy certain because it’s been more than a decade since I’ve purchased baby related items PERIOD!!! Back in 1994, which was the last time I was in the “baby supply” market, Amazon was just a recently registered domain name and was barely a glimmer Jeff Bezo’s eye!!!

With the exception of the occasional baby shower I’ve attended over the past 13 years, I’ve moved WELL beyond the “baby related items” phase of my life. When invited to said showers, I usually show up in person, thereby negating any benefit from shopping online.

In other words, I usually make such a purchase whilst on my way TO said shower. I rarely plan in advance for such purchases and FREQUENTLY purchase the gift, the card and the gift bag at a store which is directly in my path to said shower. More times than I want to admit have I been in the situation of LUNGING at said gift recipient as she removes my gift from the bag as I remember that I forgot to take the price tag off of the gift as I stuffed it into the gift bag in the car.

Today’s email informs me that Amazon thinks I need to pre-order the Bugaboo Stroller, a stroller that retails for $899!!!

Unless one of my oldest daughter announces that she is expecting to give birth to an NBA or NFL star player’s offspring, I most definitely WILL NOT be in the market for a $900 stroller any time in the near future. (If my 20 year old daughter who is completing her sophomore year in college with the hopes of entering Pharmacy school next year announces she is expecting a baby from anyone LESS than an NBA or NFL star, then I’ll be expecting to spend my money on support and not wasting it on a super deluxe fleece lined stroller!)

So what’s up with Amazon?

First Amazon put on the bully hat and try to strong arm POD publishers into using Booksurge… then they begin putting lipstick on a pig in an effort to make Alexa a “better” traffic tool … and as such, one that’s more “marketable”. Now, they issue a customer alert that is so off target that I seriously have to consider hitting the “Mark as Spam and Report”.

What’s wild is my observations are in DIRECT conflict with “official” reports on Amazon. From the AWs Blog

In a new Business Week cover story, Amazon.com founder and CEO Jeff Bezos discusses his approach to innovation, thinking for the long term, our focus on the needs of customers, and our company culture.

Um… Jeff…. this is your FORMER customer speaking….. I’m sensing that you not only don’t know who I am, you don’t even know I’ve left the building. That’s the problem when you become the 900 lb gorilla as Amazon has grown to be in the online retailing world.