Kickstart #893: We’re getting there!
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Kickstart Today
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Tuesday February 26th, 2008: Issue #893
Kickstart Today is published three times each week for
opted-in subscribers only. Publisher: Martin Avis.
Your comments are always welcome - to respond to
anything you read here, please click ‘Reply’
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Greetings Martin!
A quick update for you…
The poll that I asked you to vote on on Monday has
received a total of 168 votes so far - and the results
make interesting reading.
What has been more interesting, though, has been the
number of emails I’ve received in support of the
notion that videos are, generally speaking, a waste of
time!
Let’s look at the poll results first.
In broad terms, video gets a thumb up - but with
certain reservations.
In question 3 I asked ‘In an ideal world, how would
you prefer ‘how-to’ products to be: a. All text and
static pictures; b. All video; c. A mixture of the
two.’
It wasn’t a huge surprise to find that 68.5% prefer a
mix of text and video.
What did surprise me, however, was that only 2.4% (4
voters) preferred all video. Surprising because there
are several very well thought of products on sale as
we speak that are entirely video based. I’ve
recommended some of them myself.
29.2% said that they preferred all text and pictures
(i.e. no video at all). A lot lower than John Day (the
guy who raised the question) predicted, but a
significant number anyway.
Now you can’t read too much into a quick straw poll
like this - not least because the blunt nature of the
questions doesn’t allow people to express shades of
meaning. But my take from this is that how-to products
that use video should always include a text version so
that the people who really hate sitting down to watch
videos are not left out and alienated.
Looking a bit deeper at the numbers. it is interesting
to see how opinions change according to the experience
level of the person questioned:
Newbies Intermediate Advanced
No video 8.3% 32.7% 26.3%
All video 16.7% 2.0% 0%
A mix 75.0% 65.3% 73.7%
(Apologies if that ‘table’ doesn’t display correctly
within the restrictions of a text-only email, but
hopefully you’ll get the gist of it.)
It appears that people who class themselves as
intermediate or advanced are less interested in being
shown how to do things. However, the emails I received
clarified this somewhat. Many of those people said
that yes, they dislike video when it is used
gratuitously. Often they find that a twenty-minute
video is used to explain a process that could be
succinctly described with text and a picture or two -
and would take them 5 minutes to read.
And I have to say that I agree wholeheartedly with
that!
Also, it was pointed out to me that the type of video
has a great deal to do with whether it is gratuitously
annoying, or well received. Videos that are little
more than thinly disguised sales letters were
mentioned several times as being deeply unpopular.
How-to videos that explain simple processes where
video is not necessary were deemed equally wasteful.
But videos that genuinely made effective use of the
audio-visual medium - reviews and demonstrations, for
example, were cited several times as being a different
matter.
Of course, we are all different and we all learn in
different ways. Text (and pictures) still seems to be
the defacto standard, audio alone, although not part
of this poll, was mentioned as being useful several
times, but video is still somewhat contentious.
As information product developers we should be attuned
to our individual markets, but it seems pretty clear
that video is fine - provided it isn’t used instead of
text. It is an added learning method, not a lazy way
out for the product developer.
I’ll try to remember that as I continue the Foolproof,
No-Nonsense, Kickstart Guide to Making Money Online.
If you haven’t voted yet, it isn’t too late:
http://www.keywordlsispy.com/videovote/
#~#~#
My computer situation is getting better.
Many people advised me to go and buy different brands
of wireless networks (some of which I’ve never heard
of!) but in the end I plumped (don’t you just love
that word) for one by Netgear.
After the endless hassle that I’d had setting up my
old Belkin network, I expected at least some
complications, but I was very surprised and pleased at
how streamlined and downright easy it all was.
In 20 minutes from start to finish, Belkin was gone
and Netgear was working perfectly on all of my
computers. (Three desktop PCs, a laptop and a PDA).
I live in a house with quite thick brick walls and the
old Belkin system had a real struggle getting a signal
through the two solid ten-inch walls between the
router and my conservatory, where the kids’ computer
resides. Signal strength was always very low and the
Internet was as slow as a teenager on washing-up duty.
Not now. The Netgear router has a much more powerful
signal and it gets through my walls with barely a
stumble. In fact, the reported signal strength in the
conservatory is 86%. The kids are pleased. They can do
more on Facebook than ever before!
Even better is the fact that the Internet connection
seems to be stable now. It isn’t breaking down every
few minutes, so the main problem is, hopefully,
solved.
With a stronger signal, password protecting my network
is much more important. With my Belkin machine,
password protection was never an option. Every time I
set the password, the network just stopped working. No
amount of calls to their support people could sort
that out, but I figured that the signal was so weak,
anybody wanting to steal my bandwidth would have had
to have been sitting on my lap - and I think I’d have
noticed!
With the new network, adding password protection was a
ten-second job and linking all the satellite computers
in was simplicity itself.
I’m a happy bunny now, network-wise.
Now if only I could work out how to move the programs
I need from my old PC to my new one, everything on the
Avis computing front would be perfect. Don’t hold your
breath!
#~#~#
In order to escape from the computer for a while we
went to see the new Rambo movie…
…and wished we hadn’t.
Gory, bloodthirsty, gratuitously violent, and lacking
in a decent plot. And those were the good points.
I like Sylvester Stallone movies and thought the last
Rocky was excellent. But this one is a real dud. Save
your money - and your stomach.
#~#~#
On a much more positive note, I was lucky enough to be
sent an advance copy of a new ebook by JD Swanson and
Jason James a couple of weeks ago. Mafioso Marketing
is the title, and the book certainly packs heat!
My review copy is 69 pages long - but this isn’t some
huge font, treble spaced book like so many seem to be
lately (I bought another ebook this week that had over
370 pages, but the font was so big and the spacing so
wide - not to mention the margins - that it would have
hardly made a couple of dozen ‘real’ pages. Who was HE
kidding!). No, Mafioso Marketing isn’t like that at
all - this one takes ink to print.
The subheading of the book sums up what it is all
about: How to dominate small niche markets for instant
PayPal cash.
I found the book frustrating because I couldn’t tell
you about it. I was asked to keep quiet until the
actual launch (which was yesterday) but the content is
really good and I would have loved to clue you in much
earlier.
The book covers everything - and I mean that - you
need to know. Product creation, article writing,
traffic, SEO, you name it, there is a chapter that
clearly covers what you need to be doing.
The writing style is fun (in a down-to-earth Aussie
kind of way) but never waffles or blusters. This is 69
pages of facts and usable advice, not a book full of
hot air and theory as so many seem to be lately.
Mafioso Marketing does what it promises - it tells you
exactly how to dominate profitable niches and how to
get cash flowing your way. Of course there is work
involved - anyone who ever tries to suggest you can
make money online with some hard work is at best
misleading, and at worst scamming you. No, with the
Mafioso Marketing methods you will have to roll your
sleeves up and get stuck in, but the results will be
worth it. You’ll have a sustainable cash flow at the
end of it.
Who is this book aimed at? Well, I’d peg at at the
intermediate level. Complete newbies may get lost over
some of the concepts, but anyone else should have no
problem.
Advanced Internet marketers will probably find that
they already know most of what is in Mafioso
Marketing, but it never hurts to have our knowledge
refreshed and put into a new perspective. I certainly
learned - or relearned - some very valuable
information. Enough to have easily justified the
asking price if I’d have paid for it.
http://www.urlnex.us/mafiosomarketing/
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An Inspirational Thought
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Do you have something that you keep close at hand to
trigger your inspiration?
If not, please try it - it really works.
Keep an eye out for some small item that seems to
connect with you. You’ll know it when you find it.
It may be a particular pebble - its smoothness and
coloration may speak to you even if you don’t know
why.
Perhaps you will see a jagged piece of tree bark while
out walking and be drawn to pick it up and keep it.
Maybe a small toy - a car, a marble, a wooden animal -
will attract you in ways you can’t explain.
A picture that means so much to you, but nothing to
anyone else.
A bottle of perfume that transports your mind to
another place.
It could be anything.
If you have such an item in your life, you’ll know
what I mean, but if you don’t yet, please keep looking
- your touchstone is out there waiting for you.
When you find it, you’ll see that it has magical
powers. (Don’t panic, I’m not off on some mystic
flight of fancy here). Your own personal touchstone
has power because it connects with your imagination.
When you pick it up and allow your mind to drift, it
is a catalyst that lets your thoughts soar.
Inspiration is there for us all - but sometimes it
need a bit of help breaking through the barriers that
we put up in our daily lives.
When you connect with your touchstone it’s like
throwing open a window and letting the air and light
flood into your soul.
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Who do you know who would love Kickstart Today?
Don’t keep it to yourself - send them to
http://www.kickstartdaily.com today!
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The Quote of the Day
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Henry David Thoreau said,
“I know of no more encouraging fact than the
unquestioned ability of a man to elevate his life by
conscious endeavor.”
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Today’s Power Thought
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Think hard about this next statement and repeat it to
yourself ten times with real feeling:
‘Really bad things are going to happen to me today.’
Did that make you feel uncomfortable? Did you resist
my instruction?
Did you think, “Are you CRAZY Martin? Why would I want
to think THAT?”
I bet you did! At least I HOPE you did!
Naturally, we don’t want to think that bad things will
happen because just by thinking that awful thought it
might just come true.
We know, deep down, that repeating something like
that, over and over again, can trigger the very event
we fear. So we don’t do it.
Or do we?
In fact, we spend our entire lives fearing the worst,
dreading the ‘inevitable’ and secretly thinking
negative thoughts.
And we wonder why our lives don’t run as smoothly as
we’d like!
Here is a thought for you to ponder:
If you won’t consciously tell yourself that bad things
will happen ten times over because you fear the
outcome, why don’t you tell yourself that good things
are going to happen?
Surely if repeating the bad statement over and over
makes it likely to come true, then the same can be
said of the good statement?
THAT is what the whole concept of positive
affirmations is all about. It may seem silly to keep
repeating something like “Every day in every way I am
getting better and better” but it WORKS.
You ARE what you most often think about.
If you think often enough that you are successful,
pretty soon you’ll start to see all the ways that you
ARE already a success and you will be able to build on
them.
If you think often enough that you are smart, it won’t
be long before you start to focus on all the ways that
you ARE smart, rather than the inevitable areas where
you aren’t.
When you think often enough that your life is filled
with positive energy that makes you happy with your
world …
… you guessed it.
So how about revisiting the beginning of this article:
Think hard about this next statement and repeat it to
yourself ten times with real feeling:
‘Really great things are going to happen to me today.’
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The Foolproof, No-Nonsense,
Kickstart Guide to Making Money Online
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Part Five … The Perfect Host.
There is a glib, but often-repeated phrase that will
be familiar to anyone who has any interest in Internet
marketing: “All you need to get started is a domain
name and some hosting.”
Those of us who take these things for granted often
make the basic mistake of forgetting that that phrase
might as well be written in ancient Egyptian for all
the sense it makes to many people.
Hopefully the video (and text) in session 3 of this
course explained about domain names and how to go
about getting one, but what about hosting?
* What is hosting?
Let’s start at the very beginning and explain what
hosting is.
‘Hosting’ refers to a place where you can store all
the files that make up your website, and where people
who wish to view it can safely be allowed to enter.
In theory, you *could* store all the files that make
up your website on your own home computer, but there a
few difficulties with that solution:
1. In order for people to be able to access your site,
your computer would have to be on, and connected to
the Internet, 24/7.
2. If your site became popular your Internet Service
Provider would not appreciate the traffic flowing
through their service. Your use of bandwidth (see
below) would be inevitably high and would soon exceed
what they would allow.
3. There would be security issues: visitors would be
wandering around inside your personal computer.
4. If everyone served websites from their own home
computers the Internet would become even more chaotic
than it already is!
5. The Internet would have to know where to find your
computer if someone wanted to get to your website.
All told, while possible, it isn’t a good idea.
So early on in the days of the Internet, a system was
devised that made Internet sites be stored on special
computers called servers. A server is a very simple
computer that is ‘on’ the Internet 24/7 by very fast
connections. And the location of these servers is
logged - so when you type a URL into a browser, it can
find the server where the website is.
In the early days, servers were expensive - at least
they were too expensive for the average person
building a website to need to buy. So an industry grew
up whereby someone who did own a server would rent
space on it for other people to use.
In other words, they ‘hosted’ your site on their
server, for a monthly fee.
* What kinds of hosting are there?
Every hosting company offers a wide range of services,
and reading their websites can be very confusing. For
our purposes though, hosting options boil down to
three main types:
- Shared hosting
- Reseller hosting
- Dedicated Server
In reverse order, with dedicated server hosting you
will be given a server all to yourself. Nobody else’s
websites will be hosted on it. It is effectively your
own private server that the hosting company maintains
for you. Naturally this is an expensive option with
typical monthly fees in the $170-$200 range.
You would only need dedicated hosting if you have a
really big and important website, so for most of our
needs it is not something to consider - yet!
Reseller hosting came about because a lot of people
wanted to be able to offer hosting services
themselves, but didn’t want to go the the trouble or
expense of setting up a hosting company.
The hosting company rents you space on their servers
in the normal way, but you can then subdivide ‘your’
space up and offer portions of it to other people -
and charge them a monthly fee.
While many people don’t really want to sell hosting
plans, the other big benefit of reseller hosting is
that by becoming your own client, you can can host
many of your own domains in the one hosting account -
all accessible through a main control panel.
Costs of reseller accounts vary wildly, but two I use
are fairly typical: one costs $24.95 per month and the
other $34.95.
Shared hosting is the cheapest option and for
beginners, the best.
For a few dollars a month (currently $4.95 with
www.urlnex.us/hostgator/) you can host one domain on a
server that may be filled with hundreds or even
thousands of other people’s websites.
More recently, hosting companies have realized that
many people own multiple domains, but have no interest
or need to sell hosting themselves. For these people,
the reseller account plans are overkill.
To that end, companies like Hostgator now offer shared
hosting plans that allow you to host multiple domains
on a single account, and these can offer incredible
value.
Hostgator’s ‘Baby’ plan (go to
http://www.urlnex.us/hostgator/ then click on ‘Learn
more…’ in the Shared Hosting panel) is exceptional
value at just $7.95 per month. You can host unlimited
domains up to the very generous hosting space and
bandwidth limits (see below) and the added functions
and facilities are top class.
* What is all this web space and bandwidth jargon?
They are only shorthand for very simple concepts.
Web hosting space (sometimes called file space) is
simply the amount of hard disk space that the hosting
company is renting you. If the hosting space limit is
600gb (as with Hostgator’s Baby plan) that means you
can store files up to that limit. ‘Files’ means
everything that you put on the server - the files that
make up your website, all the images, and video you
store there and so on.
If you have a hosting plan that allows unlimited
domains, that 600gb has to be divided between them.
While you can host as many domains as you like, they
can’t, combined, exceed the web space allowance.
Bandwidth is sometimes trickier to understand, but
stick with me - it is quite simple once you get the
idea.
If you have a web page that is made up of files that
total 25kb and 1000 people come to view it, then 25kb
x 1000 (25000kb) of data has been moved. Your
bandwidth allowance denotes the total amount of data
that you can move in a month. As you can imagine,
video, audio, and some pictures can eat up your
bandwidth allowance very quickly, so before you buy
hosting it is a good idea to check how much you will
be allocated.
That’s it for today’s session - I hope that hosting is
no longer a great mystery for you and now, when
someone says ‘All you need is a domain name and
hosting’ the phrase will make sense!
As always, if you have any questions or comments, I’d
love to hear from you.
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Fascinating Facts
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In an average year, 311 New Yorkers are bitten by rats
- but 1519 New Yorkers are bitten by other New
Yorkers!
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Products you may enjoy
by Martin Avis
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* ‘Unlock the Secrets of Private Label eBooks’ (Ideal
for anyone who is a member of the excellent
PLRproEbooks site): http://www.plrsecrets.com
* ‘You CAN Write Articles’ - Anyone can write articles
to make money online. This $7 ebook shows you just how
easy it is. http://www.youcanwritearticles.com
* ‘14 Days to Total Time Control’ - The book that will
help you control the time IN your life, so you can get
on with having the time OF your life.
http://www.totaltimecontrol.com
* ‘Keyword LSI Spy’ My new script that lets you find
the exact words that the search engines love to see on
your web pages and in your articles - and a whole lot
more! http://www.keywordlsispy.com
#~#~#
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