The Iconic Google AdSense Check and My 10 Year Journey After
This is the backstory to one of the most epic and iconic pictures in internet marketing. When I cashed this check it was accompanied by a $350 unemployment check. My
These Three Businesses Are Marketing in Unusual Ways
You’re walking down the street and suddenly a zombie rises up out of the sewer. You scream, throw your backpack at the thing and begin sprinting down the street. And then someone cries out, “Watch The Walking Dead this week.” You stop, turn around, and see the zombie waving at you and smiling. You walk back and it hands you …
The Three Pillars of Inbound Marketing
You’ve spent entirely too much on your pay per click campaigns. And what have you gained? Maybe a few leads? You just don’t know what you’re doing wrong, but you’re frustrated. Does this sound familiar? Maybe it’s time to start looking down other alleyways for marketing opportunities. Why not try inbound marketing. Today, most of life is connected to the …
Deep Work vs. Shallow Work
Ding! You’ve got mail! You check your e-email. You reply to that one thing and then you remember that other thing you were going to reply to. One bit of “important” work leads to another and soon half the morning is gone. If you’re a freelancer like me, this means you’ve made no money. Sure, you’ve caught up on all …
The Top Paying Gig Economy Jobs
I was on my way to a writing conference a few months ago when my Uber driver told me how much he generally makes in a weekend. “$800?” I replied, “I struggle to make that in a week sometimes.” But then he told me how much his car payment is. Add on top of that insurance, wear and tear, etc. …
Mirror Mirror on the Wall, Will SEO Fall?
“My dear, SEO is alive an well. But it’s changing as we speak,” replied the mirror. And the mirror would be correct. SEO is a constantly moving target. Some who don’t understand the “science” would go so far as to say it’s snake oil. But SEO is alive and well…if we can keep ahead of Google. We’re spending $65 billion …
What is the Future of Search Marketing?
Search marketing is traditional a bottom funnel tactic. You target paid search terms that catch your leads when their pretty much ready to buy. But what if you could catch people early? What if you could lubricate your funnel with paid search? Today, we’re going to talk about how that’s actually possible. People Don’t Search at the Bottom 95% of …
What Businesses Need to Learn From the Facebook Crash
I thought it was just my internet. Or maybe Facebook was just mad I’d deleted their app and bragged about it. But as it turned out, Facebook’s uptime took a massive hit….all around the globe. This included Instagram and Whatsapp. Ironically, everyone went to Twitter to complain about it. Until then, I hadn’t realized how many businesses rely on Facebook. …
5 Badass Women Who Persevered and Built a Business
The entrepreneurial world has been a boys club for a long time. Recently that trend has been changing. The number of woman-owned businesses increased by 45% from 2007 to 2016. They represent over $1.6 trillion dollars in revenue. Are you looking to start your own business? These women will inspire you to push forward and kick ass. Let’s get inspired. …
5 Ways to Make a Killing as a Ghostwriter
I’m a ghostwriter. I’ve written hundreds of articles and gotten zero credit (but enough money to make it worth it). So you won’t see all of my work publicly listed (although you’ve probably read my work and not known it). It’s not for every writer. Some writers would prefer a byline with every piece. And there’s nothing wrong with that. …
Why I Deleted My Facebook App: Why You Should Too
Imagine it’s the year 2000. You’re a freelance writer and you work for every major corporation on the block. A time machine (a TARDIS for you nerds out there), appears in your home office and out steps me. Before you grab your Louisville Slugger, I hand you a special device that both acts as a cell phone and a high-powered …
More Graphic Design Failures You Should Avoid
It’s easy to get deep into a project and not step back to look at the whole picture. You think what you’re making is excellent. The people standing behind you are laughing their asses off. It’s all about perspective. If you’re going to create something that appeals to everybody, you need to look at your project from multiple perspectives. Before …
Marketing Strategies You Might Not Have Heard of Yet
Marketers are psychologist who make money off people instead of fixing their mental problems. Most of us are actually trying to help people too. But we’re also trying to make money. Today we’re going to talk about a couple kinds of marketing. These aren’t going to be your typical “hey, try e-mail marketing” type strategies. These are some of the …
How Not to Market to Millennials: My Weird Experience at a Timeshare Resort
For an insane moment, I thought maybe I’d crossed over into a weird alternate reality. Maybe these people weren’t actually marketers but a sadistic club of psychopaths leading us to the slaughter. Ironically, it would have been a financial slaughter for my wife and me if we’d been a little more naive. I considered it a win for my pocketbook …
Innovations in the Video Game Industry Entrepreneurs Need to Know About
The gaming industry is changing the way we do business. Here's how that works.
The #1 Secret to Making Money with Affiliate Marketing
Affiliate marketing is one of the hardest things for anyone to do. There is a ton of information on the web that will make you feel like it’s easy. Like anyone can do it. This is partially true. Anyone, at least technically, can do it. But it’s way harder than most people realize. Here are some tips to help you …