Category Archives: Writing/Blogging

Does Your Blog’s Income Earning Ability Depend On Comments Volume? (Additional Insights from 2 Famous Bloggers)

In my Blog Comments Multi-Post Series (see table of contents at the end of this post) published last year, I basically said “No” to the above question. If you’re in a rush, I’ll save you the hassle of reading this to the end to find out what I now think: I still say “No”: There is no tangible correlation (negative or positive) between a blog’s income earning performance and the volume of comments it receives.

Over 10 months of closely studying successful blogs/bloggers in a wide variety of niches inform my view.  If anybody has verifiable data that proves otherwise, I’d love to see it. As a Performance Enhancement Specialist, I have a Best Practice focus on establishing reproducible success formulas for venturing into various areas of endeavour.

This 1,500 word post offers you the most recent insights I’ve gained – from studying two famous bloggers (Patrick Meninga and Chris Guillebeau) – to reinforce my opinion.

1. Patrick Meninga’s 5 Year $200,000 Blogging Success Story Podcast Interview: Not Once Was Commenting Mentioned!

When I recently spent time studying Patrick Meninga’s amazing story about how he sold his blog for $200,000, I realized I needed to revisit the subject again.

NB: I recently published excerpts from my new e-book which discusses 21 lessons I learned about blogging for passive income (fromYaro Starak’s podcast interview of Patrick Meninga).

But no one seems to have caught on to ONE big MISSING in Patrick’s story it appears. I find it intriguing that Patrick NEVR once mentioned “blog comments” during that entire 60 minute interview! This is quite odd – considering how many bloggers sometimes even insist that if your blog is not getting comments, you’re effectively spinning your wheels.

It Was An Epiphany Of Gigantic Proportions For Me!

Think about it for a moment. If you have not listened to that comprehensive interview, listen to it here. You’ll agree with me that Yaro literally “downloaded” everything (so to speak) from Patrick about his journey to achieving his amazing success story.

All through that entire session, a constantly repeating theme was for Patrick to “tell listeners what he did…how he did it…what worked and so on.

If Patrick received any blog comments that made him realize he was doing well or succeeding, he would have mentioned it. I’m sure you agree with me. If the site’s commenting community (assuming he had one) had grown as he added more articles, and so inspiring him to continue, I think Patrick would have mentioned that too.

Instead this guy told us he focused on working hard, publishing new content regularly to a daily quota, monitoring search engine results/rankings, and building keywords lists with which to author new content.

Not once did he mention asking people to post comments on the WordPress site all through that interview. Not even once! Yet, the website visits grew…and grew…and grew until he was earning enough to quit his job (over $1,000 per month!).

But that was just the beginning. Eventually, he had the owner of a real world treatment center offer to BUY the website off him for over ten times the normal price that most website owners would ever hope to get theirs sold for ($200,000!).

It doesn’t end there. Since that sale over 2 years ago, the new owner of that website has continued to pay Patrick to write new articles for the website. Wow – talk about getting to eat your cake and having it at the same time!

Again, think about it: that implies the guy has had no regrets about buying the site. Otherwise Patrick would be on the run right now…if you know what I mean :-)

All this came from a website that got more or less no comments worth mentioning.

Patrick achieved success with his website by loading content at a phenomenal rate (25 articles per day – and up to 400 articles per month!) into a website that was getting few or no comments from visitors.

Why Patrick’s Addiction Treatment Website Got Few Comments (My Take)

By way of interest, I spent some time thinking about it, and I came up with one likely reason why that website did not – and probably may never – receive any significant number of comments.

People interested in drug addiction rehabilitation or treatment are most likely to be those struggling with drug addition – or persons involved in caring for and helping such addicts recover.

Both groups are unlikely to be willing to broadcast their interest in such a website in publicly in a comments section

Update (25th March 2013):

This infographic published recently by Patrick (I got it via his e-mail broadcast 2 days ago) puts a dent in the theory I proposed above. It would appear the site did get many comments.

Whether contributors adopted aliases to feel “safe” in commenting is something that comes to my mind.

So does whether they were so worth mentioning to NOT be missed out in the interview…

In other words, I still find it quite striking (especially considering the impressive commenting activity the infographic reports he had), that not once did he mention comments in the extensive 60 minute analysis of his blog’s success. Not one time.

The way I see it, such a level commenting activity could also have pointed him in the direction of new topics to write on (or not) for instance. And that would have made an impression worthy of mention in the interview.

But then I guess sometimes things can skip a person’s mind…

Click here to take a look at the infographic, and draw your own conclusions to guide your blogging efforts :-)

2. Chris Guillebeau Says “Don’t Let Comments Kill You!”

Chris achieved Internet fame by building a large following rapidly in a short period of time using blogging and social media. He’s the kind of person who should know.

I discovered Chris through his (Art of Non-Conformity) world domination mission’s first manifesto. It was emailed to me by Burt Dubin – creator of the Speaking Success System and mentor of some of the world’s highest paid speakers (whose products and services I promote to experts across Africa).

I remain forever grateful to Burt for that thoughtful gesture.

If you have not read Chris Guillebeau’s website and many useful manifestos you’re missing an opportunity to change the way you look at life and achieve true fulfillment! Click here to visit his website – there’s a lot to read and learn.

If you end up with a site that attracts lots of comments, it may go from giving you pleasure into a nightmare of sorts. That’s probably what comments management became for some famous people who chose to close comments on their blogs.

One example I mentioned in my series on my comments is Steve Pavlina. I wasn’t surprised to find him mentioned by Chris in his second PDF manifesto as well. Seth Godin is another famous person he mentioned.

When Steve did what he did, it caused a major uproar. Some predicted the demise of his site. Long after that we all know nothing of the sort has happened. Steve had carefully done a cost benefit analysis before pulling the plug on commenting.

At the end of the day, as a productivity expert, he was able to define what really mattered most for him to succeed. And comments management simply did not fit in.

Chris Guillebeau rightly points out that you don’t have to be famous to be able to “safely” dispense with comments on your blog if you feel so inclined. He offers the example of his friend, Naomi – who did just that and lived to tell the tale :-)

So, it’s really up to you to decide.

This Is Not An Anti-Comments Post…Only a “Health Warning” :-)

Keep in mind here that I’m not against allowing comments on your blog. What I’m saying is that in your writing and blogging efforts, avoid falling into the trap of drawing validation for continuing your work from the number – and type (read: positive or negative) – of comments you get from your blog.

If you do, you set yourself up for a potential “crisis”.

What happens for instance, if people suddenly stop commenting – for whatever reason? Or what if the number of people who comment starts dwindling? Even worse, what if more people start posting negative comments? All of these are real possibilities.

Think about it. If you started your blog with the right mindset, you would know that YOU should be in the driving seat of your blog’s evolution.

YOU should be working to a plan you prepared by yourself – or in collaboration with trusted others. It goes without saying that you may have to modify it based on input from others where necessary.

But for the most part this would be YOUR vision in motion, so to say. And that’s why focusing too greatly on whether or not you get comments, or whether the comments are in line with your expectations can be emotionally stressful.

Here’s my suggestion: Save your physical, emotional and intellectual energy for the most important tasks. The main one being keeping up your content creation and marketing. That’s the key to your ultimate success.

Final Words: Don’t Kill Your Enjoyment of Blogging By Fretting Over Comments

Commenting is an activity that many bloggers – some are top rated experts – readily brandish as a powerful indication of the success of their blogs. And  many of their followers use this as a measure of the value they should place on any blog they visit. And for their niches, they are probably right.

The web is literally packed with thousands of how-to articles explaining what you need to do to succeed in this highly visible blogging activity. And yet I have not found one post or article offering reliable data showing a tangible correlation between nurturing an active commenting community on a blog, and the success – I mean financial –  it achieves.

And that’s not surprising – at least to me. The insights I have shared in this article indicate it’s not a one size fits all thing. You cannot make a blanket statement about the importance of comments in measuring the progress or success of a blog or website.

Quite often it will depend on the topic/theme of the site, the nature of activity it discusses, and the preference of those who frequent the site, among other factors.

It therefore follows that a comment-less blog can become financially successful. Examples abound on the web – for anyone willing to look objectively.

One such website (with blog) is this one, from which Burt Dubin earns thousands of dollars in passive income year-in, year-out by selling speaker mentoring products and services to buyers all over the world.

So, don’t kill your enjoyment of blogging, with an unhealthy obsession with getting and managing comments.

Remember: you can still succeed even if you do NOT get any!

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Blog Comments Multi-Post Series – Table of Contents

Post 1: Should You Worry About Getting Blog Comments?
Post 2: Deciding If Your Blog Needs Comments To Succeed (5 Questions To Ask Yourself)
Post 3: Six Potentially Useful Measures of Your Blog’s Performance (Hint: Comments Vs. Five Others)
Post 4(Final): Using Your Blog To Make Money – Little Used Strategies You Can Exploit

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GET A FREE COPY OF MY NEW FREE EBOOK!

To get your FREE copy of the FULL ebook  titled “21 Valuable Lessons I Learnt About Blogging for Passive Income, from  Yaro Starak’s 60 Minute Podcast Interview with Patrick Meninga”, (Includes my 20 page VERBATIM text transcript of Yaro Starak’s 29MB podcast – with time stamps.) – send email to me via tayo at cbstudio.biz with “FREE Transcipt PDF EBook” in the subject line.

Cover - 21 Valuable Lessons I Learnt About Blogging for Passive Income, from  Yaro Starak’s 60 Minute Podcast Interview with Patrick Meninga

Podcast interview transcript with headshots and time stamps.

10 Valuable Lessons I Learnt About Blogging for Passive Income, from Yaro Starak’s 60 Minute Podcast Interview with Patrick Meninga

This is an excerpt from my new ebook, which includes my 20 page VERBATIM text transcript of Yaro Starak’s 29MB podcast – with headshots and time stamps.

Patrick Meninga achieved fame as a blogger by building a $2,000 a month adsense website while doing a full time job, and then selling it for $200,000. Between 6th and 7th March 2013, I spent over 12 hours typing out a 20 page verbatim transcript of Yaro’s 2012 interview for my personal use. Then it struck me that others could find it useful as well. So I’m distributing this free PDF eBook version, which begins with an article that discusses twenty-one (21) lessons I distilled from listening repeatedly (for a cumulative period of over 24 hours) to the interview.  You can request a FREE copy of the new ebook by sending me email via tayo at tksola dot com. Please share it freely with others!

 

1. BEING NEW TO BLOGGING IS NOT A FATAL HANDICAP

Patrick explained that he had been using the web, but not to earn income. He made it clear that his journey involved a lot of trial and error – a “Hit and miss” approach. He stressed that he did not know what he was doing . But he persisted and learned. But you’re lucky. We all are! Patrick’s formula is reproducible, and now documented in various formats for us to consult. With diligence, your journey should take less effort, time, and yield faster rewards.

2. LACK OF ENTREPRENEURSHIP EXPERIENCE CANNOT STOP YOU

Patrick noted that he had never run a business prior to starting his blogging venture. But he had a deep hunger to make a success of the business. He wanted freedom from “needing” a day job. So as the blog showed more promise, his determination to make it work grew as well, and he soon became an entrepreneur! The fact that you’ve never done business before should not stop you from doing this.

3. A FULL TIME DAY JOB CANNOT STOP YOU

Many people work day jobs and after closing, spend the rest of the day “resting” or “relaxing”. Patrick made smart use of his after work hours. He locked himself in and consistently wrote new content for his site: for well over a year. Then when he saw real income earning potential, he redeemed his accumulated vacation time, and pushed himself to the limits – churning out 25 articles per day! I’ve NEVER done more than 6 articles in one day (at 600 to 1000 words each). Patrick’s achievement tells me I can do better. And so can you.

4. FIND A GOOD MOTIVE OR REASON

For many people, the reward of earning money is enough reason to start blogging. However, in Patrick’s case, his personal experience with drug addiction and how to beat it drove him. It kept him going even when income and traffic was not so encouraging. Find your own reason, and use it to challenge yourself to succeed.

5. GOOD WRITING AND TYPING SKILLS WILL GREATLY BOOST YOUR PRODUCTIVITY

To type 3,000 word articles in 2 to 3 hours like Patrick says he does, will definitely require above average typing and writing competence! So, check yourself. How well do you write? How fast can you type – without errors? Improve your writing and typing skills. Get self study materials, if you’re good at self-tutoring. Otherwise, enroll for classes. Or find a coach to help you with either or both. They are not the same by the way: You could be a good writer, and have poor typing skills. Get it?

6. FORGET WEB DESIGN: WORDPRESS WILL DO. IT’S YOUR CONTENT PEOPLE WANT!

The days when “pretty” websites with drab content reigned are long gone. Today, websites must offer useful content to get – and hold – the attention of search engines, and their click-happy visitors. WordPress is a powerful all-in-one Content Management System used by millions worldwide. It lets even a novice get a dynamic and database driven website up and running within minutes. And best of all, it allows you to focus on the most important tasks e.g. creating what Yaro calls “Pillar Content”. Patrick also calls it “Epic Content”.

7. YOU’LL HAVE TO DO THE WORK – NO OVERNIGHT SUCCESS STORY HERE

Patrick’s narration of his journey showed clearly that it would be unrealistic to expect quick success in blogging for passive income. You’ll have to do the work, monitor the results you get, tweak things here and there as necessary, until you start getting the kinds of results you want more consistently. But you’ll have to give it time – be patient. If you’re in a hurry to start seeing big money, this is probably not the kind of business you want to do!

8. MINE YOUR STAT LOGS FOR GOLD

Patrick talked about the data mining he did that led him to discover how people visiting his website were finding him. Not just that, but by forming a habit of reviewing his stats logs, he identified search strings and long tail keywords that were bringing his website up in search engine results pages. Patrick actually said he wasn’t even using Google analytics at the time, and that all he had was the “stats counter”. I found this quite interesting. It’s like a simplified version of keyword research, but effective. And I’ve resolved to begin checking mine and using what I learn from it, in addition to anything Google analytics gives me. I expect that just like Patrick, I should be able to find out what’s keyword strings are bringing me visitors, and use then to write new posts.

9. WRITE FROM YOUR OWN EXPERIENCES

I think this is really important. Most of my writing is experience based. And I’ve gotten great results for it. It’s actually easier, than when you try to write based on abstract concepts or ideas. Patrick said he “knew the material” and had many ideas that were not mainstream. Every human being is unique. That’s why writing from experience is the best way to stand out. “Boring” content drives visitors away!

10. BUILD LINKS PROFILE USING GUEST POSTING

Patrick built links to his website by doing guest posts on blogs he identified in his niche. He also did article marketing via Goarticles.com and Ezinearticles.com. Explore other options to boost the links profile – and ranking – of your website. However, you’ll probably get the best/ multiple returns for your time or effort by focusing on guest blogging in particular.

GET A FREE COPY OF THE FULL EBOOK!

To get your FREE copy of the FULL ebook  titled “21 Valuable Lessons I Learnt About Blogging for Passive Income, from  Yaro Starak’s 60 Minute Podcast Interview with Patrick Meninga”, (Includes my 20 page VERBATIM text transcript of Yaro Starak’s 29MB podcast – with time stamps.) – send email to me via tayo at tksola dot com with “FREE Transcipt PDF EBook” in the subject line.

Cover - 21 Valuable Lessons I Learnt About Blogging for Passive Income, from  Yaro Starak’s 60 Minute Podcast Interview with Patrick Meninga

Podcast interview transcript with headshots and time stamps.

How To Make Your Writing Effortless

Writing can be hard. I know this from over a decade of doing it as an entrepreneur. But I’ve learnt how to do it easily, almost effortlessly. I do it faster and better with each passing day. This article exposes the real reason why writing gets too hard for some people to continue. Read it to discover how to make your writing happen with less effort.

Writing Is Hard
Only When You Have No Reason For Doing It

I’ve sometimes worked with individuals of different ages and backgrounds, to help them develop a regular writing habit like mine in their areas of interest. Nine out of ten never made it.

They said it was hard. And they were right. But the funny thing was, that was not why they could not do it!

I think deeply about things a lot. And it’s helped me gain insights that have resulted in my ability to literally achieve any goal I set my mind upon in any area of endeavour – including writing.

Here’s what I learnt.

Writing, like any other challenging task or activity, will get too hard for you to continue doing only if you have no reason to keep at it.

Think back to your days in school. With few exceptions, most people endured the rigours of reading and writing endlessly, only because they wanted to earn their certificates and degrees. And not because they liked studying hard and taking exams!

You probably had moments in school when you felt you could not keep up. But the thought of disappointing your family may have kept you going. Or maybe you wanted to get qualified so you could get a good job and live in a big house, drive a fancy car…you get my drift I’m sure :-)

And that’s how most of us human beings are really wired. We need to have a reason to keep doing anything that requires us to exert ourselves on a regular basis.

Can You Find A Good Reason To Write?

If you’ve ever contemplated giving up writing, search yourself.

Do you have a good reason for wanting to write?

Are you considering the right topic or theme? One that you have a compelling reason to write on?

If no, then that’s why writing can be too hard for you.

I have many reasons for writing as if I’m possessed, or as if my life depends on it.

Those who live with me will tell you I sometimes keep reading and writing for 18 to 20 hours non-stop – without pausing to eat – if I have a deadline to meet.

The very thought of not finishing ahead of my target date or time drives me to work in that manner.

But actually, my underlying motive is not an obsession with deadlines. Instead it’s my desire to deliver results I promise my clients that motivates me.

Then again, that’s not my most important reason for writing with passion like I do.

I do so because I have an irresistable urge to share what I know with others who may find it useful.

I’ve learnt so much from reading what others who knew chose to share by writing. Over the years I’ve learnt that it’s important to do the same thing.

And since I began doing so over a decade ago, I’ve enjoyed the satisfaction of seeing my writing interest and help others. That’s in addition to having it repeatedly earn me substantial income.

All of the above serves to inspire me to do even more writing, and to improve my ability to do it.

Final Words: Find Your Reason & Start Writing With Ease!

When you find a compelling reason to do something, a magical thing happens.

You stop thinking about how hard it is – and you just start doing it. And you’ll keep doing it until you get the result you want. No matter how long it takes or how hard it gets.

So if you want to make writing easy for yourself, think deep and hard, to find a good reason to do it.

If you succeed you’ll never find writing too hard to do again.

Writing is the hardest work in the world. I have been a bricklayer and a truck driver, and I tell you – as if you haven’t been told a million times already – that writing is harder.  Lonelier. And nobler and more enriching.
Harlan Ellison

My Recommended Posts for WE 23 Feb 2013 | The #1 Thing You Need to Be Successful In Life | King of the Online Jungle: The Early Years of Jeff Bezos | How A Guy With A Full Time Job Built A $2,000 A Month AdSense Income Niche Site And Then Sold It For $200,000 – Patrick Meninga Tells His Story

As a Performance Improvement Specialist, I diligently apply Continuous Improvement principles in my personal and work life, and have consistently achieved great progress as a result.

To this end I’m always keen on researching successful people in various areas of endeavour. I do this not just for myself, but also to improve the variety and depth of insights I can deliver to my personal improvement coaching/consulting clients.

This past week, my efforts yielded the following 3 articles that I thoroughly enjoyed reading:

1. The #1 Thing You Need to Be Successful in Life (That Nobody Talks About) – By Darwin

In this detailed article, Darwin highlights a fundamental ingredient (which he calls “Deferral Of Instant Gratification”) required for success, which too many people fail to identify.

As a result, they often end up sabotaging themselves in their pursuit of success. Interestingly, this ingredient is featured in Daniel Goleman’s bestselling book (titled “Emotional Intelligence”) as a key attribute of Emotionally Intelligent people – a group to which many successful entrepreneurs belong.

Goleman simply called it the habit of Delayed Gratification. Another little book titled “The Millionaire Next Door” by Stanley and Danko also identifies this willingness to put off instant gratification in service of an important future goal as a key strategy employed by majority of the wealthy Americans studied over 2 decades.

The above makes it obvious that what Darwin says in his article is known to work. And yet only few who aspire for success act like they understand that simple but powerful principle!

That’s why I believe this article is aptly titled. Too many people just don’t “get it”…that thrift, frugality and a generally conservative approach to doing things will greatly enhance their chances of success in any areas of endeavour.

Darwin’s article offers many useful examples and analogies…including an entertaining comments thread!

Click here to read it.

2. King of the Online Jungle: The Early Years of Jeff Bezos – By Evan Carmichael

Jeff Bezos needs no introduction. Everyone knows he created the modern day online book selling miracle known to us all as Amazon.com.

What many may not know however, is who he was/what he did BEFORE starting that company. And more importantly how he achieved his astounding success.

This is quite important when you consider the following famous quote credited to him about discouraging advice he received from those he turned to for guidance:

“Every well-intentioned, high-judgment person we asked told us not to do it,” – Jeff Bezos

This article offers very valuable lessons, and powerful insights. Most important being that if you are reasonably convinced of the workability of your ideas, don’t let anyone – no matter their qualifications, reputations or achievements – discourage you from following your instincts. Success may lie ahead of you, just waiting for you to act on your convictions!

Read the article here.

3. How A Guy With A Full Time Job Built A $2,000 A Month AdSense Income Niche Site And Then Sold It For $200,000 – Patrick Meninga Tells His Story (Interview By Yaro Starak)

The title says it all. And from listening to the podcast (available as an MP3 download from Yaro’s website, I can tell you there’s no hype in there.

If you’ve not heard or read Patrick Meninga‘s story before, THIS incisive and indepth interview conducted by Yaro delivers the most detailed insights anyone could ever hope to get, on the amazing success story of the “Skinny Ninja” (as Patrick is known in some Internet circles)

The most noteworthy takeaway for me was Patrick’s emphasis on the fact that his success was far from being overnight. He worked many long hours for months on end, to make little progress in traffic and income.
For 2 years he was still working to get the formula for success right. And there were times when his massive work rate (e.g 20 to 25 articles per day – each not less than 600 words long) yielded seemingly no significant results.

He did all this while working a 9 to 5 job. He kept at it. And eventually his persistence paid off.

Click here to read Yaro’s preview.

You’ll see the download link to the 28MB podcast MP3. Take it from me: you don’t want to leave that page without listening to that interview!

3 Important Truths About Writing for a Living

With the global jobs market shrinking, many people across the world are turning to writing as a part-time or full-time source of income. And why not? Writing is something virtually anyone with interest and motivation can do successfully. Especially with access to proper guidance. Prospects however vary from one location to another. This article discusses 3 realities aspiring writers in different socioeconomic environments may have to contend with in their pursuit of paid writing success.

1. Reading and Writing Go Together

You cannot have one without the other. Many writers draw inspiration from reading the writing of contemporaries, and sometimes from studying the works of writers from earlier times e.g Shakespeare etc. The latter were mostly thought leaders in their time, and communicated their ideas and philosophies mainly through writing and public speaking debates.

“Reading usually precedes writing and the impulse to write is almost always fired by reading. Reading, the love of reading, is what makes you dream of becoming a writer.” – Susan Sontag

I got a good laugh few years ago when I read a newspaper interview in which Chimamanda Adichie, award winning author of Purple Hibiscus highlighted the faulty reasoning holding some aspiring authors back.

She gave the example of a young man who requested for her help to improve his writing. When she asked him what books he had read, he replied that he did not have time to read!

She promptly told him a writer who cannot make out time to read, cannot reasonably expect to achieve any worthwhile progress in writing.
Very true.

2. Thinking Is Essential To Ensuring Quality Reading & Writing

In between the reading and writing, a lot of thinking often has to happen. And it is that thinking process, when diligently done by the writer that enables her turn out what will be considered a new or unique body of writing to complement what already exists.

It does not matter what your field of writing interest is. These principles are universally relevant. And anyone who wishes to make headway in writing will have to apply them diligently.

To appreciate good writing, readers will often need to be comfortable with doing a reasonable amount of thinking. An aversion for reflective thinking generally makes reading a burdensome task for most people. One reason for that is the poor introduction many get to reading in the formal schooling system.

3. Reading Cultures Determine Viability of Writing As a Profession

Not surprisingly, some of the best writing (and writers) in the world come(s) from parts of the world where a healthy reading and thinking culture exists.

Generally, writing for a living in such climes confers an amount of prestige, and depending on a number of other factors, the financial rewards can be substantial.

On the other hand, societies with poor reading and thinking cultures tend to have writing as a profession looked down upon by the larger majority. This is understandable, and to be expected, since writers out there are unlikely to command enough readership to earn enough income for their efforts.

However, some writers who originate from such societies, if driven enough by desire, can (and have) successfully exported their writing abroad, where they consequently earn(ed) great recognition and reward for their works at an international level.

Ironically, back home their people will readily celebrate such writers’ successes, but it rarely influences them to improve their poor reading habits.

A striking example is the internationally accomplished dramatist and playwright whose books, 2 decades after he won the Nobel prize for literature, have still not been read by an overwhelming majority of adults in his native country!

Final Words: Your Success Is Up To You

Having said the above, it ultimately boils down to the individual, and how far she’s willing to go to succeed.

The Internet has removed the barrier of distance from the equation for most people, making it easy for them to showcase their written works, and skills, to a potentially unlimited audience, regardless of where the writer is based.

Therefore, if you are a writer, or one aspiring, the sky is literally speaking truly your limit. Just do plenty of good reading and thinking, and turn out your written works of art for paying clients and customers to enjoy!

My Recommended Posts for W/E 16th Feb 2013: Sun Tzu’s Art of War for Business Executives | Stopping Web Content Theft | Winning A Fight By Walking Away | African Moms vs Their Unmarried Daughters | Nobel Laureate Wole Soyinka’s Valentine Message to Wives of African Leaders

Below are brief previews and links to the full text of the above mentioned blog posts/articles I read online this week. Remember to apply due diligence before putting any ideas to use for yourself :-)

1. A Summary and Review of Sun Tzu’s The Art of War for Thinking Executives – and Those Who Want To Be One – By William C. Bradley

(NB: When he wrote this piece in 2011, William Bradley, was a Business Administration student in Southeastern Louisiana University, USA.)

This is not the first time Sun Tzu’s ideas will be applied to business. Corporate executives have been doing it for decades. Entire books have been written on the subject. The popularity of Sun Tzu’s Art of War attests to the fact that it works.

Where I Disagreed With Him

There was one thing this author said in his review that I don’t agree with:

He opined that Sun Tzu would have done better NOT to have used so many proverbs in his book.

I’m African. In many ways we’re like Asians. Our language and culture have deep meanings to our everyday lives. And we know that many times the English language does not have the words to convey the full contextual meaning of all that we say in our languages.

In my language for instance (i.e. Yoruba) we have a saying that goes as follows:

“Owe l’esin oro. Oro l’esin owe.”

Literal translation: Proverbs are the vehicles through which words are communicated. And words equally act as the medium through which proverbs are communicated.

Contextual translation: One cannot exist without the other. To speak and be properly understood, proverbs must play an integeral part of the communication process. Otherwise there would be a lot of lost meaning!

Therefore when a book not originally written in English is to be translated, those involved must keep this in mind. Especally if such text is in an African or Asian language. This is why it is always advisable to secure the services of a native speaker of the language in which a book is written.

Languages evolve over time. Therefore the person chosen to translate, must have a deep understanding of the language as it was used during the period the book’s author must have lived. Only that way are you sure of getting the most accurate interpretation of the text as the author really intended to communicate it.

The late Afrobeat music legend – Fela Anikulapo Kuti – once told an interviewer (regarding his preference for communicating in his native tongue):

“English is not expression. Expression is in all other languages all over Nigeria.”

And to illustrate, he reportedly said:

“If you don’t believe me, translate ‘Eku ile‘ to English.”

That Yoruba phrase “Eku ile” is used by household members who have been out, to greet others – especially older persons – they meet in the home when they arrive.

There is no word or phrase in English that can accurately convey the same contextual meaning to a native speaker. Not one.

And that’s why only a native speaker (or a fluent, and culturally assimilated non-native) can help a foreigner/non-native speaker fully capture the intended meaning of text written in an African or Asian language.

Having said the above, Bradley’s review remains an interesting and compelling read, that I recommend you make out time for. Click here to begin.

2. Copying Web Content Isn’t Flattery – It’s Plagiarism – By Debra Gould

Also read an interesting piece on one of my pet peeves: Web Content Theft. So much of it is happening online these days, so it’s always great to see people speaking out against it like this author does. Click here to read the full article.

3. 6 Badass Ways to Walk Away from a Fight– By Steve Silverman

On Friday, I wrote a post in the “Parenting” category titled “I Fought ‘Iron Mike Tyson’ in School – And Paid the Price!“. To end it, I felt it would be good to provide a reference or two that reinforced the point I was making. Especially for the benefit of impressionable kids. An excerpt from Steve Silverman’s “6 Badass Ways to Walk Away from a Fight” proved to be just perfect).

4. A St. Valentine’s Day Card on the Occasion of Women’s March Against Connubial Corruption – By Wole Soyinka

Nobel Laureate Wole Soyinka wrote a “First Ever” Valentine Message to the wife of Nigeria’s President i.e. Patience Jonathan. In it, he added his voice to those of the women condemning the proposed outrageous use of public funds for functions by a president’s spouse, not covered in the nation’s constitution.

Especially in these austere times, when millions can barely get food to eat! Soyinka called on wives of the leaders of all African nations not to entertain attempts to involve them in any such projects. Very powerful message, delivered in his usual articulate and straight-to-the-point manner. Click here to read Soyinka’s full message.

5. African Moms: Be Patient With Your Unmarried Daughters – By China Okasi (founder of Daily Mocha, and director of Women of Media)

And on a lighter, yet serious note, I read a seeming appeal by a high flying career woman of African descent for “African Moms” to be patient with their unmarried daughters.

Her core message is that African mothers, after having pushed their daughters to excel in their vocations, cannot now ask them to “pretend” to be less “smart”, in order to attract husbands. It’s an irony of life that presents a real dilemma for many successful African women today. Thought provoking piece! Click here to read the full article.

Read My First List of Recommended Blog Posts + Do “Speed Read” ?

Click here to learn how speed reading helps me get volumes of useful reading done. You’ll also get to read my maiden list of recommended blog posts published on 9th February 2013.

How To Make Money from Social Media (An Ex-Public Servant’s True Story)

When people say social media do not really work, I often tell them it’s up to every individual to make it work for his/her purposes. Technology was made for man. Not the other way round.

Nigeria’s former Federal Capital Territory minister, Nasir El Rufai’s smart use of popular social media to cost-effectively boost marketing and sales of his new book (“Accidental Public Servant”) is something many appear to have missed.

This article highlights useful lessons even the most accomplished social media practitioners can learn, from what El Rufai has done…and continues to do.

NB: I do not do flattery. Neither do I seek cheap publicity. When you’re done reading this piece, I’m certain you’ll see that the points I’ve made are valid.

Celebrities Can Make Financially Rewarding Use of Social Media – Without Looking Bad

I’ve often wondered about our celebrities and public figures, regarding their use of popular social media platforms like Facebook and Twitter especially. I mean musicians, actors, serving public officers, TV/radio personalities, and so on.

Many of the above mentioned have a large number of followers. But few can claim to have achieved the kinds of results El Rufai is currently getting via his Facebook posts and Twitter status updates .

I know they are not into business directly. But I argue that making the most of such followership can be quite worthwhile. You need not make it your life focus, but if/when the need arises, you should be able to use it to achieve your goal(s) faster.

Ironically, if you were to do this, your followers, rather than be offended, are most likely to welcome such efforts.

Nasir El-Rufai’s Ingenious Social Media Based Book Selling Campaign Strategy

El Rufai apparently understands all of the above quite clearly.

I elaborate…

1. Subtly Creating Anticipation Amongst Buyers

Recently, his long awaited book “Accidental Public Servant”, finally got launched.

Unlike what happens with others who’ve been in government, I did not hear that any big politician or public office holder bought copies of the book at the launching, for millions of naira.

Instead, leading up to that date, El Rufai who had spent months periodically talking up the book and its planned launching, actively announced the firmed up dates and outlets.

It is difficult to say whether the previous launch date postponements were inadvertent, or deliberately designed to raise anticipation and curiousity in the minds of the public.

Either way, the delayed release of the book served a powerful pre-marketing purpose. People were huingry to read the book before it arrived.

And when eventuially it hit the stands, El Rufai once again leveraged his social media clout. He actively shared comments, opinions and reviews done by others about the book.

Considering the dignified status of some of those who gave mostly positive reviews of the book, it goes without saying that more people would have been enticed to get copies for themselves.

2. Using Personal Branding To Inspire Purchases

El Rufai showed savvy when he announced via Twitter and Facebook that he would autograph purchased copies of his book for any interested buyers.

That drew the interest of many followers and others. “Imagine having a copy of the book personally signed by mallam himself, to show people?” they must have told themselves!

3. Courting Controversy In/With Style

Then there was the use of controversy to great effect. Each time he said something that could ruffle the feathers of those he criticized, they almost never let it pass without a sensational rejoinder of some sort.

Again, El Rufai simply retweeted and shared same to his followers, who did the same within their networks.

The multiplier effect was far reaching. Considering also that his book contained all sorts of unprecedented insider revelations, the attraction it holds for average Nigerians living at home and abroad can be appreciated.

So much buzz has been generated. And the word of mouth accounts have only served to feed the frenzy.

Virtually everyone who read or heard about the book’s excerpts suddenly wanted to own a copy.

Few spoke about borrowing or photocopying it. Even fewer asked to get it free. And these were the same people – Nigerians I mean – with a reputation for being averse to reading!

What’s more, El Rufai’s book is far from being a short read – and at approximately N5,000 to N9,000 (depending on physical print format) it cannot be said to be cheap, by Nigerian standards.

Yet Nigerians ask him daily on Twitter and Facebook:

“Mallam, I must read your book. Where can I buy it…?”.

And those who’ve read (or are still reading) it return to post or tweet:

“You did a good job in the book” etc.

Of course there have been those with negative feedback to give him. What is however surprising and certainly noteworthy is that he did so well in his social media marketing that even those who dislike him bought the book, then sent him their (expectedly) negative feedback after reading it!

One of them even wrote to say:

“I don’t like you, but I wish you quick recovery”.

This was after apparently reading that the mallam had undergone an operation and was recuperating!

A Marketing Model Worth Studying & Adopting

Isn’t it just amazing how this man has used social media to capture the attention and interest of such a naturally distracted group of people like Nigerians?

I actually find it to be quite a fascinating phenomenon!

It’s a model worthy of further study and possible emulation by other public officers currently in office, and even those no longer in service.

I further suggest public figures and celebrities interested in monetizing their social media presence, take pains to study El Rufai’s model (and possibly contact him for tips): seriously!

Final Words: Selling Smarter By Creating “Top of Mind Awareness”

I know some Nigerian celebrities already sell on social media. But the way El Rufai is doing it really stands out.

Most others are doing direct selling. They announce sales or events while simultaneously sharing fun stuff. For instance, some comedians have a tested and proven Facebook marketing model that apparently seems to have worked well for them.

El Rufai’s approach however is more subtle, and packs greater marketing punch, with longer lasting effects.

And it tends to be driven not by him, but by his target audience. They end up being the ones asking for it. He does very little telling, selling or showing. Quite often, he’s only responding to the enquiries.

And that’s because he’s successfully used his pre-marketing to create “Top of Mind Awareness” about the product he wants them to buy.

Everything about him draws their thoughts to his product, because he’s so closely connected to the topical socio-political issues on people’s minds.

El Rufai has played his cards just right, and now, his carefully orchestrated social media book marketing system continues to sell him and his book, even while he sleeps.

He’s certainly not like many past public office holders who keep thinking of ways to work themselves back into office to get more money.

This man seems headed for a life of quiet comfort based (at least in part) on passive income streams from sales of his book to enthusiastic (possibly frantic) buyers in Nigeria and the diaspora!

On a final note, El Rufai could not have done all this by himself.

He must have reliable access to some smart minds who helped put up – and possibly maintain – what we all see everyday. The books – print and electronic. The status updates etc.

To those silent contributors who helped create this impressive success story, one must say “Great Job – and more grease to your elbows!”

My Recommended Blog Posts For Week Ending Saturday 9th Feb 2013

It’s taken me a while, but I’ve finally settled on what I believe will be a sustainable way to share links to stuff I read and find useful online. So, every Saturday (starting today), I’ll publish a post that lists (and links) blog posts I’ve read, which I recommend to others.

Do You "Speed Read" ?

By way of interest, I do a lot of reading. Both online and off the net. It’s important to keep abreast of issues and developments in one’s areas of focus and interest. Thankfully, my use of speed reading techniques advocated by Tony Buzan helps me plough through many write ups daily, without sacrificing comprehension.

Which reminds me: Speed Reading can help you boost your personal productivity many times over – especially if you have to read a lot (like most writers/bloggers do). So if you don’t do it yet, you might want to learn: Googling "learn Speed Reading" could be a good way to get started!

My Recommended Blog Posts For Week Ending Saturday 9th Feb 2013

Below are brief previews and links to blog posts/articles I read online this week, and found compelling enough to recommend for others to read. Remember to apply due diligence before putting any ideas to use for yourself :-)

1. Putting a Stop to Abusive Client Behaviour (7 Part Series) – By John Tabita

Like I always say, this is a subject I feel strongly about. Service providers are so prone to getting abused. And my personal experiences as a multi skilled service provider emphatically confirm it. After being subjected to a number of less-than-dignifying experiences, I began devising strategies to protect myself. And I succeeded.

Then I realised I needed to share my insights with others – because I kept running into colleagues who felt they had no choice but to accept the bad treatment. So, in 2006, I wrote my first piece on the above theme in form of an article titled "The Customer Will NOT Always Be Right: Don’t Be A Victim Of Entrepreneur Abuse™!"

Since then I’ve written a number of other pieces. 2 years ago or so, I discovered John Tabita’s comprehensive series on this theme. In them, I found validation for the opinions I’d expressed in my own articles, which not a few people out here had questioned (not that I’d listened to any of them!).

As you’ll find from reading John Tabita’s powerful series, it’s imperative that you stop letting clients walk all over you, if you want to earn their respect as a professional, and ultimately make tangible progress in your business.

2. Do You Refuse To Work for New Clients? – By James Chartrand

This piece about relating with clients also resonated with me – but in a different way from the one above. James reminds us of the need to act with honour and integrity in dealing with clients.

Even when there’s money to be made, we must ask ourselves if the client will get equivalent value for her investment. Some people feel they don’t owe a client the duty of telling her not to waste money on a project. I believe James is right: we do. Click here to read it.

3. This Deadly Mistake Cost Me a Five Figure Client – By Bamidele Oni

I think it’s safe to say that many people already know Bamidele Oni to be a teenage Guest Blogging expert. He’s proved his mettle by getting his guest posts repeatedly published on some of the most prominent blogs on the web.

That’s why when he writes a post about blogging, guest blogging or handling blogging clients, many people pay attention.

This young man, despite his success still remains humble enough to admit that he makes mistakes. In this article, he shares insights gained from one such instance that cost him a potentially profitable client project. Click here to read it.

4. The Guest Blogging Fails: Again (Video + Infographic) – By Ann Smarty

I’m preparing myself to give guest blogging outside the Farm Business industry another go. Last time out, I only tried three pitches (which were rejected) before I decided I still had a lot to learn.

I felt if I had to send anything to another blog owner’s mail box, I had to make sure I understood how to do it right. And this is why every time I see a write up that offers ideas on how to Guest Blog, I never fail to give it a good read (and re-read if need be).

The infographic created by Ann Smarty really helps to drive home the points she makes in her excellent article. Read it here.

”Spammy

5. The Top Ten Mistakes Writers Make When Self Publishing a Book – By Guy Kawasaki

Everybody knows Guy Kawasaki. In this article (written last month) published on Digital Book World, he offers "a list of Do’s and Don’t’s" for people like us, who (may) use self-publishing to get our books into the marketplace. Read it here.

A Lulu.com blog post (through which I actually found Guy’s article) also offers about 4 additional tips – following from Guy’s piece. Click here to read the Lulu.com blog post.

6. 3 Honest Ways to Raise Startup Money – Entrepreneur.com

During the week – on Tuesday to be exact – I published a post titled 3 Ways to Quickly Raise Money. When 2 days later I came across a post titled 3 Honest Ways to Raise Startup Money on Entrepeneur.com, I was naturally drawn to read it. And afterwards, I knew I wanted to share it :-)

7. Outreach Letters for Link Building [Real Examples] – By Peter Attia

Like I said, I’m constantly looking to learn as much as I can about how to succeed with guest posting. The use of Outreach Letters as a means of pitching guest post ideas is discussed by Peter Attia in a post on the Daily SEO Blog. One thing I (and 80 others who commented on the post) liked about the post was his use of real life examples of letters he had sent out. He also discussed other strategies he employed to achieve success. Very informative and useful piece. Read it here.

Must Freelance Writers Specialize To Succeed?

Should you specialize on a particular theme or category to attract more writing clients, or boost sales of your written articles? Or is it okay to pursue opportunities to earn income by using intelligent research on different topics to produce writing content that sells? This article offers answers for you to consider towards possibly making up your mind.

Some writing experts in the blogging industry have expressed what I consider one-sided views on this subject, that in reality do not apply to all possible scenarios.

But the fact that you’re an expert does not mean you’ll always be right. There were experts before you. And there’ll definitely be many after you.

And sometimes your experiences, perspectives and insights will not be enough to give you a full appreciation of what can or cannot be done.

It however appears that some experts forget the above mentioned truths. Or why else would they make statements that betray the fact that they subscribe to such faulty notions?

Here’s one example of a situation in which the above occurs:

I’ve read some writing experts arguing in their articles that writing success depends mainly on a writer’s ability to specialize in the right niche.

So, for example, a writer could choose to major in writing on Self-Development. Another could focus on being a Technology writer, and so on.

According to these experts, specializing in this manner will inspire trust in the minds of potential clients that you, the writer, can deliver the right content to meet their needs. As a result you’d get hired more often and/or your articles and other written works would sell more.

However, what I’ve found out from careful observation of trends online, is that many successful writers, especially freelancers, do not limit themselves to any particular subject, theme, topic range or niche.

Instead they actively take on and successfully complete paid writing projects by using intelligent writing research techniques to generate good quality content for clients in different fields or markets as the need arises.

If you really think about it, this makes more sense than insisting on writing only on specific subjects.

At the end of the day however, it’s up to each writer to decide what approach to adopt. And if she’s able to attract enough patronage from buyers, then it’ll be worth her while.

In other words, I argue that there is no one way to do this. Every writer should be free to choose what works for her.

One place where I’ve found that writers are actively encouraged and supported to explore available opportunities to earn income by writing on different subjects/categories, is www.constant-content.com.

Ever so often they send out email updates featuring top 10 selling categories. They also include feature articles from leading writers in the community sharing ideas about how to write as many articles as possible in all of the featured categories.

The objective is ultimately to turn out more articles in the popular categories, thereby increasing writers’ chances of making article sales.

It’s the above kind of real life situation that proves nothing is cast in stone as far as writing specialisation is concerned.

The truth is that different kinds of clients will seek different kinds of writers.

What cannot be denied is that many successful writers – especially freelancers – become so by developing their abilities to research and write competently on a wide range of topics.

To summarize therefore, a writer’s ultimate ability to succeed is likely to be enhanced by her willingness to research and write on as many categories as she feels competent to handle.

As long as she has the interest to pursue it, that strategy can only boost her chances of success!

Use a Schedule To Write Faster and Smarter

Virtually all serious writers know it’s not easy to consistently come up with new write-ups that their target audience will appreciate.

And that’s why many are constantly on the lookout for ideas to overcome or minimise the above mentioned challenge.

I Am No Exception.

I’ve also experienced the challenge of struggling to generate new content that would be considered valuable by potential clients/customers and readers in general.

For years I drew inspiration from happenings around me, to come up with new content for my work.

Sometimes I came up empty. On such occasions, I would really struggle to get my writing done.

It’s a testament to the passion I have for what I do, that I kept going for so long.

So much so, that I eventually began reaping financially rewarding benefits as a result of my writing e.g via sales leads for my feed formulation software/handbook, direct sales of my print/electronic books from my online store etc.

Today, I No Longer Struggle To Write Like I Used To

Something has changed – and for the better too.

Ever since I began following a publishing schedule (based on 6 different categories, at one per day) on my blog, everything has simply fallen in place.

I now have an amazing degree of clarity about what to write about. It’s so much easier to narrow down to potential topics when the categories have been defined.

In addition, I am able to do the actual writing quickly and almost effortlessly because I would often have spent time thinking up useful points to go with my chosen topic before it falls due.

Most importantly, writing according to a schedule has enabled me progressively build up my library of written works based on the set categories.

This now gives me added motivation to write more, since I plan to periodically publish ebooks for sale on each category using a compilation of selected write-ups. Each write-up will probably be treated as a chapter in the ebook.

I know from past experience that this works, having used the same strategy to get my 25 Articles Ebook published.

Final Words

What I’m saying in essence is that writing based on a publishing schedule will get you to be more committed to your writing responsibilities.

It will also make you more consistent in producing good quality content over time.

Considering that less than 3 months ago, I did not believe in using a schedule, what I’ve said here should be worthy of consideration by any writer in search of viable ways to boost her writing productivity.

“You can’t say, I won’t write today because that excuse will extend into several days, then several months, then… you are not a writer anymore, just someone who dreams about being a writer.” – Dorothy C. Fontana