Archive for March, 2010
Once The Shiny Wears Off
Posted by: | CommentsLast week’s webinar was just the kick up the bum I needed and I made a decision and just went with what I had as I said I would in my Fail in the Field not in Your Head post. So I’ve put up a site, done days 1 to 6 of 30DC and the Stage 1, getting indexed linking, recommended by Rob in 30DC+. And . . . OMG . . . drum-roll please. I’ve just checked and I’m already indexed AND ranking for my main phrase and indexed (but not yet ranked) for 2 category phrases. Cartwheels of excitement and all that!
This was written on March 23rd and then the rubber hit the road.
As the site was indexed and ranked I assumed I could now stop doing a couple of the really boring tasks, e.g. adding the links to Traffic Bug and Propeller and Rank Tracker etc. But apparently not. And this is where, without the accountability provided by a coach, I would normally wander off to pastures new.
Interestingly, the subject of this week’s webinar was about just that. Entitled “This S@@t is hard, a job and often times, boring and repetitive”. Every project, once the shiny wears off, feels like a chore. But the difference between being successful or not depends on getting through this bit.
I actually felt encouraged by that because I know that my usual pattern, of changing tack, doesn’t work.
My mind, ever hopeful, at the possibility of getting out of such work immediately turned to the possibility of outsourcing. Maybe I should just pay someone to do this stuff. But I’ve tried that in the past too and it didn’t work. What I learned was that if you don’t have an effective system in place, all that happens is, you have 2 people jumping from task to task, from project to project, instead of one. Outsourcing comes later, once you have effective systems in place.
So, there’s nothing for it but to knuckle down and get on with the boring repetitive tasks that must be done. However, there are ways to make the process less painful which I will cover in another post.
More On Critical Focus Time
Posted by: | CommentsUpdate on CFT . . .
So far, I’m doing well with my critical focus time blocks. I am keeping to my targets of the amount of time spent and I’m doing tasks within it that are critical relative to internet marketing, as outlined in my earlier critical focus time post. However, I’m noticing that I am still spending a lot of time faffing around and doing stuff that, hand on heart, I would have to say is time-wasting.
So something new I am going to add this week is to add a non critical focus time block each day, NCFT, and then stop “work” when that is complete. That way I will be able to do other work related stuff but I will know when to stop. The way I’m working at the moment means the work day stretches out and the rest of my life gets put on hold unless I have specific appointments calendared in.
In relation to this I’m also noticing that the faffing around happens first thing in the morning before I settle down and get to work. So this week I will try and build in more routine and see how that works, as follows:
1. Write list of actions for the day.
2. Write for 30 minutes (= 1 block CFT).
breakfast
3. 1 x 45 minutes CFT.
15 minutes break
4. 1 x 45 minutes CFT.
15 minutes break
5. 1 x 45 minutes NCFT.
life outside work!
This just a starting point. I don’t expect it to work out straight away as I will need to make adjustments depending upon whether or not I’m working at home or if I have appointments etc. But it’s a good move towards establishing a routine that works for me and that is my goal here.
I’ll report back next week . . .
Critical Focus Time In Internet Marketing
Posted by: | CommentsThe first “lesson” from Ed Dale’s mentoring program was on what he calls Critical Focus Time or CFT. Basically it’s about committing yourself every work day to a certain amount of time during which you will only work on actions critical to your business.
This is something I’ve frequently struggled with for 2 reasons:
- I’ve not been committed enough to the outcome to practice getting good at CFT (see internal motivation post for more on this).
- I’ve misunderstood, in realtion to internet marketing at least, exactly which activities should/shouldn’t be done during my CFT blocks.
~~~~~~~~
1. Critical Focus Time Takes Practice
A mistake I’ve made in the past is to think that a commitment to being focussed is sufficient to make me so. I’d start out all keen and determined and then discover that creating a new habit was not as simple as saying as I was going to do so. I’ve learned that, like any new skill it requires consistent effort.
For example, one strategy I’ve found to be helpful is to work in 45 minute blocks – what I call the 45/15 rule. I’ve been applying this idea for a number of years, on and off, and reaping the benefits. But I forget to do this every day. It has not yet become a habit so I’m still practising. I have to remind myself each day to set the timer and then discipline myself to stop when it goes off.
So, don’t expect to get your CFT right the first time you try it. Chances are you will need to practise until it becomes a useful habit. While you’re learning accept that you will make mistakes and let that be OK. If you see this in the context of learning a new skill you will be more motivated to keep practising until you’ve cracked it.
In order to get the most from your Critical Focus Time:
- Remove All Distractions – turn off your phone, clost your office door, ask your family/colleagues not to be disturb you for your allotted time, etc.
- Set A Timer – start with 10 minute blocks is you’re new to this, working up to whatever you’re optimum work block length is. You will need to expereiment and find what works best for you. However, never go beyond 45 minutes as studies have shown that this the the maximum amount of time we can focus for effectively.
- Take Regular Breaks Between Sessions – up to a maximum of 15 minutes for the 45 minute block. Use that time to get up from the desk and away from the computer. Do something that requires you to move our body.
2. Critical Focus Time for Internet Marketing
Here are the tasks that Ed counts as IN:
- activities that directly relate to bringing money in
- content creation
- link building including using Market Samauri Rank Tracker for finding and making back links
- outsourcing guides
- prospecting, e.g. active Joint Venture making (by phone not email) or looking for clients
- creating/tweaking PPC campaigns
Tasks That Are Not Included in CFT
- anything passive
- learning
- answering emails
- editing writing
- ANY social media (I was a bit surprised at this one!)
- exploring new keywords
- checking ranking
So, now you know what and what not to do in your CFT sessions. Make a commitment to how many blocks you will do each day. Start small and work your way up and, remember, practice, practice, practice.
———– An update on this post can be found at more on critical focus time.
Fail in the Field Not in Your Head
Posted by: | CommentsIt’s the end of week 2 of Ed Dale’s mentoring program. It’s been a bit of a non-week work-wise. Well, that’s what it’s felt like anyway.
I emailed Ed last Monday with my Market Samauri (MS) keyword and competition research for the internet marketing coaching market, expecting him to look at the figures and give me his opinion on them. I was finding it difficult to find things that I wanted to write about in internet marketing/success coaching where the competition numbers weren’t really high and I also wasn’t sure what the strategy is re. the use of Market Samauri in relation to Market Leadership as opposed to 30DC.
Rather than look at the numbers, he emailed back saying – “There is a big difference between using MS for leadership and for SEO – I’ll cover this in group this week as it’s such an important point – bottom line your practicing leadership in a market -you are researching phrases for traffic.
Write about what you want to write about as a market leader – it’s not about SEO.”
And that was it as far as building a website went. I ground to a halt unsure as to whether I should be doing more market research so I just continued with writing stuff for future use in my Critical Focus Time time.
This week’s webinar was entitled “Market Selection and how it differs from Market Leadership”. There a number of issues that it addressed which clarified things for me a bit and I’m ready to get going again. Hoorah!
First and foremost was the message of:
Fail In The Field
Apparently, MS research should be only 5% of our testing. The other 95% should come from the field, by getting stuff out there, which means content.
I see now, I misunderstood Ed’s meaning in his emails. I thought he was saying do MORE research. That stopped me because I didn’t know what else to do (I’d already researched >150 potential keyword phrases). But I realise now that what he meant was use the research I’d already done.
After watching this week’s webinar I realise I just need to get on with it and test in the field.
Here are some of the key points:
- Fail in the Field and Not in Your Head
Apparently, 98% of people fail in their head. I’ve definitely been guilty of that this week, which connects nicely with another point:
- It’s Never Perfect
When doing market research you are never going to find the perfect keywords, competition figures etc. So take the best you find and, you’ve guessed it, test it in the field.
- Indecision is Resistance – Period
Switching from a “getting it right” mentality to one of “testing” is a big help here. I’ve been indecisive, this week, because I’ve been looking for the “right” theme and category keywords.
- YOU Need to Decide
I emailed Ed for his opinion about my theme/category keywords and when he didn’t respond specifically I ground to a halt. This is connected to the earlier points.
So, using the research I’ve already done, here’s what I plan to do next:
- Pick a theme phrase
- Pick a couple of category phrases
- Put a blog on WordPress Direct
- Get It Indexed
- Do Some Backlinking
AND SEE WHAT HAPPENS FOR MYSELF!
I’m excited to be moving again.
Get Thee Behind Me Email
Posted by: | CommentsGet Thee Behind Me Email
Well, this morning was a resounding success of how not to apply Critical Focus Time!
I got thrown off course by my son waking me early, feeling unwell, and so, not going to school. This resulted in my being at my computer at 6.36 a.m. thinking “oh well, this is earlier than I intended to start so no harm in taking a little look at my emails”.
Which led to my watching another about the List Control launch
which led to my trying to find out Frank Kern’s birthday
which led to my checking out the various affilaite bonuses on offer
which led to my reading a post in the Warrior forum about a possible (but seemingly unfounded) security problem with the list control software that went on and on for yonks and contained the usual slew of misinformation and conspiracy theory that seems to attend most big launches these days
which led to my doing another search in Google which resulted in my reading a load of IM gossip about certain “gurus”
which led to my feeling vindicated about certain times in my internet marketing history where I felt well and truly “ripped off”
which led to my feeling pleased with myself about my choice of Ed as a mentor
and then . . .
. . . the phone rang
which led to my coaching a friend to stop trying to work everything out and just take some action
which led to me returning to my desk and briefly getting back on track as I wrote my action list for the day.
But then I glanced up and saw a new email
which led to my going to Hayhouse to listen to Michael Neill’s latest recording and, whilst listening to that,
I was wondering if Ed had posted anything new on the mentoring site so went there to look
and then remembered something I heard earlier about Stompernet and so went there
and then noticed that Michael was saying the exact same thing that I’d said ealier to my friend so
went off on a coaching tangent
and checked out Steve Hardison’s site
and then one of his client’s sites
and then I noticed an email from my friend saying she was back and how helpful our chat had been to get her out of the house and how she was going great guns now so
I just had to ring her to tell her Michael Neill’s recording was very appropriate and would she like me to forward it to her,
which I did.
And whilst doing that I noticed Ed had emailed about Frank’s latest video.
It was now 12:17 – almost 6 hours since I first sat down at the computer and I was back where I started.
UNBELIEVABLE – 6 H O U R S!
I would have guessed I’d been faffing around for 2 hours at most, which would have been bad enough – but 6 HOURS!!!!!!
The good news is, it was such a shock I made a new commitment to never doing that again! Six hours will be my record for Internet Trawling Diversionary Tactics.
Putting “My money where my mouth is” I took the coaching I’d given to my friend to heart and applied it to myself.
After I’d showered (yes, I was still languishing around in a dressing gown) I grabbed pen and paper and took myself off to a local cafe to do my first CFT block of the day – writing this post.
Note to Self – Do Not Open Email until after you’ve done your CFT!
I shall be interested to see how that pans out . . .
Internet Marketing History Shows A Lack Of Internal Motivation
Posted by: | CommentsI first tried my hand at internet marketing back in 2005, when adsense fortunes were being made practically overnight. I was instantly hooked by the ability to create a site and start earning money within 2-3 days. It wasn’t really the money that hooked me in though, although I was unaware of this at the time, it was more the excitement of the numbers. Of being able to see things change (pages indexed, adsense earned etc.) almost instantly.
But the easy money adsense days came to an inevitable swift end and I then spent years in the web marketing wilderness trying to recreate that buzz. I tried Underachievers, Ultraunderachievers, Jeff Johnson’s Coaching Club, Perry Marshall’s Adwords Course, Traffic King Pro, PLRPro’s 90 day challenge, the 30 day challenge, The Lazy Affiliate, PPC Kahuna, authority loophole, and numerous seminars etc. etc. But all to no avail. Until this year, I never managed to create a decent IM income again.
Looking back I can see that all my previous attempts at setting up an internet marketing business were externally motivated. I was focussed on the money I thought I would earn and the tactics that would get me there. I never stopped to question why I was really doing it or what I was hoping to achieve, beyond the dollars. I just blindly started, but rarely finished, one project after another.
And I am not alone. Thousands of people have spent thousands of dollars chasing the internet marketing dream but relatively few have succeeded. In some cases this is simply due to a lack of skills but more often than not it is due to a poor understanding of what it is we are really after. We find ouselves chasing a dream that’s not really ours and focussing on purely external goals. When these goals aren’t connected to our internal motivation then it’s easy to get distracted and give up when the going gets tough. So we adandon what we’ve been trying and move on to the next shiny, new toy.
So, this time around, I’ve taken the time to consider why I am trying internet marketing again and what my internal motivation is. This has allowed me to define success on my own terms rather than in purely monetary ones. Instead of blindly chasing the “get rich” dream and making money the goal I have set up the game so I can play it by my own rules and measure success in a way that is meaningful to me. So now when the challenges come they will be worth making the effort to face because the reasons I am doing this are now connected to my internal motivation.
Narrowing Down The Market
Posted by: | CommentsPhew. Just had my first 1:1 mentoring session with Ed and it was a bit hairy for the first 20 mins or so. We talked about how coaching was what I’m really interested in, rather that building an internet marketing business (although I probably didn’t state it as clearly as that) and then went about trying to identify a market.
Problem is the world is my market and people in general, However, that was never going to wash with Ed.
I could see his point.
In the traditional marketing model one of the biggest mistakes is to try and market to everyone. But choosing a market with the sole purpose of creating an IM business is not something that works for me. I’ve done that too many times in the past and resented all the time I spent writing about cholesterol, finance, pilates, swimming pool pumps (I kid you not), water purification etc. etc.
As the call went on I could feel my energy dropping as I imagined picking a market and trying to make myself enjoy the work involved.
The breakthrough in the conversation came when Ed said how good the content was on my Life Moves blog. I was surprised at his enthusiasm since I see my blog posts and my IM writing from the past as distinctly different. I was assuming that it would be the latter type that I would have to revert to if I picked a specific market.
“Could I continue to write like I do on my Life Coaching blog, and have a specific market I asked?” “Absolutely”, says Ed and then proceeded to bring up my latest blog post, on the screen, and add a few words here and there to make it useful to the real estate market, as an example.
Hmmm . . . getting better but not quite there yet.
I am interested in the mechanics of internet marketing. I like numbers and measuring them and learning new things.
But I like to write about life. The journey. The process.
These things attract me more than the goal of just making money in an online marketing business. If you told me I could make a million this year but the content I’d have to write about was something I wasn’t interested in I wouldn’t take your money. So it’s important for me that, no matter how the business side of things pans out, I am able to enjoy the process while I’m creating it.
This year, part of my journey will be an internet marketing adventure being mentored by Ed. I’d like to write about that experience and also record the actions I take and progress made. (See the Web Marketing Strategy and Results section).
I’d assumed that Ed’s response would be to say that the IM market is already saturated and too hard to get into but, to my surprise, he thought it was a great idea.
And so, this blog was born.
Actually it was conceived rather than born since some keyword seo and niche research was needed before I chose a domain name etc.
But before we move onto that let’s look at how this web marketing game differs from those I’ve played in the past. See my post regarding internal motivation.
Internet Marketing Coaching
Posted by: | CommentsI have a confession to make. For a number of years now I’ve been wearing two different hats. One for my internet marketing (IM) career and one for my life coaching persona. I have moved back and forth between the two businesses, never quite settling exclusively for one or the other but this year, I thought I’d get a bit radical, wear both hats at the same time and see what I could develop in internet marketing coaching.
In the latter part of 2009 I attended Steve Chandler’s Coaching School which made me rethink how I wanted my practice to look and I found I was drifting a bit, undecided.
Then, an opportunity occurred that I might have said “no” to because it was in the online marketing field and I thought I’d left that behind. Ed Dale was offering an internet marketing mentoring programme and I decided to apply.
The more I thought about it the more attractive the prospect became. A full 12 months when I would know what I was up to, where I would be supported to stay on track and where I would have access to the expertise of someone on the cutting edge of a field that, no matter how many times I walk away from it, I seem to be drawn back in. I decided this was an opportunity to combine both interests into a grand internet marketing coaching experiment. And, hoorah, hoorah, I was lucky enough to get a place. So the game begins!
This website is the story of that year and a resource for all of you who have struggled/are struggling to make a success of your own online marketing businesses. However, this is not a place to find indepth tactics and instruction (there are plenty of websites out there doing that far better than I can) but more of an exploration of why some people succeed in this game but most don’t and how we can turn past/current failure into future success.
For those interested, however, I will record the specific steps I am taking and the results I’m achieving in the web marketing strategy and results section.
