Qassia, Sweet Content Sharing Site
OK, I did it again. I signed up for a site because somebody told me it was cool, then I did nothing with it for months, and now I realize how great it is and wish I had jumped on it sooner.
Qassia is a very cool content sharing site. At Qassia, you create “intel”, or content, and post it in simple, one page sites. You get “Qassia Dollars” for a variety of things, including creating new intel, inviting others to join, reviewing other peoples intel, etc.
One reason I didn’t pay much attention before was it was so fresh and new when I found it that nobody went there! And of course, it’s a waste of time to market in places that don’t get any traffic. But I just did my homework, and Qassia is now getting a respectable amount of traffic, and has thousands of pages.
One thing I like about Qassia is that you can indicate whether your intel is original or not. Obviously, they prefer original content that is unique to Qassia and not published anywhere else, so they give you more Qassia dollars for that. But they also take your existing content, as long as you are honest and check that it is content that already exists online. But that allows you to re-purpose all of your old content, giving you lots of Qassia dollars, natural traffic from within the site, as well as a backlink for every new piece of intel you add.
So check out Qassia. I will be adding all of my content there, and building out my profile. I think it may be the next hubpages- so those of us that jump in early and participate will get tons of traffic and links over time.
To your marketing success!
Dave Sherwin.
Link popularity Definition And Case Study
Link Popularity is critical for those of us who actually want to get our sites noticed. And if you want to build a long term, sustainable income and lead source with your site, you need to understand how the search engines measure and qualify the links into your site.
Link Popularity Definition: simply put, link popularity is a measurement of the total amount of links coming into your site, as well as a determination of how high the quality of the links is. Simply put, the search engines are basically saying that if your site is any good, other sites should link to it. If nobody links to it, it’s probably not relevant. And if your site isn’t deemed relevant by the search engines, then don’t expect much traffic from them.
Each search engine calculates link popularity differently. For example, Google is very concerned about the quality of the links, and is picky about which links it “counts.” Yahoo, on the other hand, simply adds up the total number of links to your site and gives you “link love” according to how big the number is.
It’s beyond the scope of this article to discuss link quality, but that’s a topic you can easily learn about at wikipedia (search “link popularity”)
My favorite (free!) link popularity check tool is marketleap.com. It not only gives you your total link count, but it allows you to enter three competitive sites to see how your site compares.
CASE STUDY.
I go to marketleap.com and enter my URL: escapethematrix.net
In the comparison box I’ll use these three sites:
ericworre.com
randygage.com
betternetworker.com
The first two are sites by well respected guru’s in the industry, the third is a network marketing web 2.0 site.
Here’s the results (just the totals):
ericworre.com 4
betternetworker.com 140
randygage.com 143
escapethematrix.net 915
So I not only see exactly how many links I have coming into my site, but how it compares to other sites in my niche.
So go to marketleap.com, enter your URL, and voila! You’ll see right away exactly how many links your site has compared to others in your niche, and it won’t cost you a dime!
To your success,
Dave Sherwin
Lighthouse Marketer
Blogging and online network marketing junky.
Spy On Your Niche And Competitors-Sweet Twitter Tools
How would you like to “spy” on your niche, be more connected in your marketplace, and know what your competitors are doing, on a daily basis and with little to no work? 
It’s easy to do, using a combination of twitter.com and tweetlater.com, one of the coolest free twitter tools out there. Twitter is a very popular micro-blogging platform. Many of your potential customers and competitors are there, actively participating. Here’s how you can monitor conversations about any subject, keyword, or person you are interested in.
1. Set up an account at tweetlater.com
2. Complete your profile. Add a picture, bio, etc. Don’t use some silly avatar or a picture of your product or a pile of cash or any other spammy image.
3. Set up an account at tweetlater.com
4. Log into tweetlater and click on “Manage My Tweet Keyword Tracking & Alerts”
5. Check the box “E-mail me a keyword alert digest, and choose how often you want to receive your alerts, the range is once per hour to once per day.
6. Choose the keywords you are interested in being alerted about.
Obviously, you’ll want to enter the keywords you are most interested in, but I also recommend you enter your own name and the name of your company. If somebody is going to comment about you, don’t you want to know about it? If it’s positive, you can simply thank the person for the love. If negative, you can enter the conversation and address the problem.
Once you stat receiving your keyword alert digests, you can quickly scan them for interesting intel. Here’s what you can do with your new found knowledge:
-Follow those people who share your interests. Many of them will follow you back.
-Engage in private conversations with people who interest you
-Identify potential new members of your Tribe
-Proactively handle any complaints or problems people are having with you or your company
-Learn how popular your niche really is and how many people are discussing it
-Watch your competitors. Learn what sites they’re promoting, what offers they’re making etc.
This solution is free, it’s easy to set up, and will make you one of the most informed and connected people in your marketplace.
To your success,
Dave Sherwin
Lighthouse Marketer
Blogging and online network marketing junky.
Get the complete “Twitter Traffic Guide” HERE! | Online Network Marketing Tools
The 4 “C’s” Of Online Network Marketing
The 4 C’s Of Online Network Marketing
Online network marketing is generally misunderstood by the offline crowd, especially those that build their organizations in the 80’s or 90’s and haven’t adjusted to the “Flat Earth” realities that have changed marketing forever.
They worry that online network marketing is impersonal. They don’t believe you can build a relationship online.
The fact is, ALL business is relationship based. At some level, a person has to know, like and trust a person or company before they will make a purchase. And the stronger the relationship, the more likely they are to stick and stay. And the fact is, most online network marketers don’t appreciate the value of the relationship in the process.
Here are the 4 “C’s” of online network marketing, hopefully this will help you whether you are an online network marketer trying to understand the process, or a skeptical “old school” marketer. 
CAPTURE. The first “c” is to Capture a lead. Just like in traditional marketing, it starts with a list. The only difference is the traditional marketer makes a list of their friends and family, while the online network marketer uses attraction marketing techniques to build a list of targeted, interested prospects.
CULTIVATE. This is where most marketers mess up. You have to Cultivate your list! This is where the relationship begins. Through a series of communications with your list, they get to know you and your opportunity and can get to know, like and trust you over time. Again, the old school crowd thinks that’s only possible through local meetings and phone calls etc. But the fact is e-mail, auto-response series, social connecting methods, live chat etc. are all valid ways of getting to know people, and can all be used to build a relationship with your prospects.
CLOSE. Sales is simply a matter of explaining a good product or opportunity in an intelligent way, and asking somebody to buy. Network Marketing is no different, you demonstrate your business online, then invite them to join. Very few companies have sites good enough to get automated sign-ups, so you have to find a way to directly communicate and invite your prospect to get started. The nice thing about online network marketing is you have many more people in the front of the funnel, putting the law of averages in your favor and increasing your chances of getting monthly recruits into your business.
COACH. Once somebody has joined your business, you just have to show them exactly how to do what you just did. There are five primary things you must train your new recruit:
1. Be a product of the product (use your companies products correctly and be on the best auto-ship.)
2. Develop a strong Why and a business plan.
3. Become a student of the business and of the industry.
4. Let the tools do the selling.
5. Make a long term commitment. Quitters never win.
So that’s it, the 4 C’s of online network marketing: Capture, Cultivate, Close and Coach. If you follow this simple plan you can build a dynamic, growing organization and attract your prospects instead of chase them.
8 Tips For Surfing Aimlessly
One day you might find yourself wondering…
“How did I end up on a page about the mating rituals of African Elephants? I gotta get back to work!”
That’s a fine idea, unless your blog is something to do with African Elephants. Then I would say quit kicking yourself for surfing aimlessly.
As we get busier, usually in direct proportion to the growing amount of visitors to our sites each day, we start cutting down on what we used to do online when we didn’t consider it a business. We stopped surfing.
With all there is to do keeping up a blog and marketing, not to mention testing advertising or developing and supporting products or services, it is natural not to use the web much for plain, old fashioned surfing.
But this can become a problem. You can put yourself in a bubble and your competition can get the jump on you.
8 Tips for Surfing Aimlessly
- Allow yourself some guilt-free time to surf around your niche each week.
- Venture around the edges of your niche and let the clicking flow. You never know what you might find that can help you with post ideas, breaking news, or finding great sites you should be following regularly.
- Open up your feed reader, clear the cobwebs, dust off some feeds you already belong to, and click around.
- Find great posts and follow the links of the commentators to find new blogs and sites of interest.
- Use your StumbleUpon toolbar to simply stumble more. There’s some killer stuff even Google hasn’t ranked yet in StumbleUpon.
- Compare the new stuff you find to old stuff you subscribed to before and make the old stuff prove itself worthy, or not, to stay in your feeds.
- Make comments on new blogs you find. Get a link and make some friends outside a social network for a change!
- Follow links from the blogs that appear in your Google Alerts. Most people check the blogs themselves and leave it at that, but a delightful journey often ensues when you start clicking around any given blog’s sphere of influence.
Thanks to Jack Humphrey for this great article, stolen shamelessly from his fantastic blog, see the original here: Friday Traffic Report
My New, Uber Marketing Attitude
I had an epiphany lately that really effected my own marketing attitude. I wanted to write about the “250 Article” concept. It’s simply a theory that article marketing success hits at around the 250 article mark. I was hesitant to write about it, because in my space (the work from home/ make money online world) talking about things that require work isn’t popular. 
As a matter of fact, it’s downright discouraged, and many of the popular guru’s stay up late at night dreaming up sales copy that makes their products sound as simple and “plug and play” as possible. The money is made in marketing programs to the “push button” mentality of the masses. They will pay big money for stuff that sounds like it gets massive results with little or no effort.
But I went ahead with my article anyway, and was pleasantly surprised by the positive responses. People really responded well to the message. They took it as a challenge, not a threat. They got competitive about it, comments ended with things like, “I’ll race you there!” It was refreshing.
And in one simple blog entry, my marketing attitude changed, because I realized that THESE are the type of people I want to work with. Because to me, work is NOT a four letter word. And I learned a long time ago that there are a lot of good marketers out there, so if your only strategy is to rely on plug and play garbage, but not develop the skills, you will always be left behind.
So as much as I love automated systems and technology, I also understand the role of good old fashioned work and how vital it is to success in anything. And I realize a lot of other people understand that too. And those are the people I want in my tribe.
To your success,
Dave Sherwin
To read the “250 Articles” entry click here and make sure and read the comments!
“250″ Keys To Article Marketing Success
Do you want article marketing success? Then take a DEEP breath, and get ready. Because it’s going to take 250 articles. Gulp-Ouch-Pain and suffering… Eyes are glazing over, heart-rate dropping…
But wait, what if you COULD take on this gargantuan task? What if this one article marketing challenge could make all the difference in your business? Read on for some tips and tricks to make it easier. Not easy, but easier.
First of all, how do I know that it takes 250 articles to achieve article marketing success? Well, the advice is from Christopher Knight at ezinearticles.com. He says the average article is read between 20 and 250 times per year. Multiply that by 250 and you have created a crazy good traffic machine. He also points out that true mastery seems to come at about 100 articles. When you reach 100 you are faster, you are good, and you’re in the zone.
But 250 articles! That sounds like a lot. But before you decide you can’t do this, understand that you can! And you SHOULD do this! Why?
-It will get you long term sustainable traffic for FREE.
-It will establish you as an expert in the market place.
-In the process you will become a thought leader.
-You will become more proficient and intelligent in your niche than 99% of your competitors.
And one other reason: the lazy marketers won’t do it. You’ll rise above the crowd, and do what others won’t do, and get what others won’t get. (OK, that’s from a cheezy saying, but it’s true!)
And here’s some tips to make it easier for you.
1. Focus on short, specific, simple topics.
2. Not a writer? Get a recorder, and simply talk out your topic. For example, take a question you are commonly asked about your product or service, and answer it into a recorder. Your answers can easily be converted into articles!
3. Just write one 400-800 word article per day. Don’t think about 250, just think “one” for 250 days.
4. Surf sites in your niche for inspiration on topics
5. Enter your relevant keywords into the google keyword tool to get related ideas.
So there you have it, 250 articles to become the master of time and space in your niche. And now that this article is done, I only have 220 to go! Race you there!
Lighthouse Marketing System Launches New Free Tools
The Lighthouse Marketing System has had a serious face-lift, and come out of the 90’s into the new century with a great web 2.0 interface. The site now has many tools for your online network marketing business. Improvements include:
-An article directory. Unlike most directories, the Lighthouse Marketing system directory is focused on topics interesting to marketers, such as marketing, lead generation, leadership, personal development, etc.
-A video tab for niche relevant videos
-An advertising space on the front page. The space isn’t available to rent yet, but look for an announcement soon with details on how to put your advertisement there.
-Blog. The blog will be up-dated not only by the Lighthouse Marketing System crew, but also by the advanced students in the 4th Pillar course. Should be a great blog.
Go there now and check it out!
The Lighthouse Marketing System
See also: Lead Generation System
My Business Values Statement
Just for fun, I thought I would publish my business values statement, or business creed. I was introduced to the idea by Steven Covey in his book, “7 Habits Of Highly Effective People,” in which he advises people to create a mission statement. A business values statement is along those lines, but isn’t all encompassing like a mission statement, it just focuses on business.
Here’s the 21 keys in my business values statement:
1. I am a wealth creator, and attract money every day.
2. I am a thought leader.
3. I create a winning team. I’m careful about who rides on my business bus.
4. I love people and use money, and never get those two reversed.
5. Regarding my business associates, my job is to keep them in their greatness.
6. I speak positively of others, and defend those that are absent.
7. I am never cocky, needy, or greedy.
8. I work harder on myself than I do on my business.
9. I refuse to participate in financial downturns. I create my own economy.
10. My work environment is a “no drama” zone. No gossip, no whining.
11. I don’t “spend” time. I focus on the 20% that earns 80%
12. I am a master delegator and don’t waste time on triviality.
13. In tough times, I am the first to arrive and the last to leave.
14. I respect money and use it wisely. My business is fed, not bled.
15. I do not separate my business and religion. I live my religion through my business and am a shining light and good example to others.
16. I leverage my time and resources through effective use of technology.
17. I spend a lot of time with those that share my values, and little time with those that don’t.
18. I am strictly honest, and don’t steal in any way, including music, movies, and software. I am 100% trustworthy.
19. I add more to the marketplace than I take.
20. I am an example of charitable giving in both time and money.
21. I leave my work at work. At home I am 100% husband and dad.
I keep these above my desk on a huge sticky note, and review them every morning. As you can see, it’s personal to me, but I hope you get some good ideas from this for your own statement. Feel free to “Rob and Duplicate” all you want!
3 Sweet Article Marketing Strategies
Article Marketing has been promoted as one of the key online business building strategies for years, yet very few people have been successful with it. I think the main reasons people fail with it is because they perceive it as being a lot of work, and they don’t see results quick enough. Two good reasons to not bother with it.
But here are three great article marketing strategies that will leverage your article (less work!) and get you quicker results:
1. Instead of blasting your article to hundreds of mediocre directories, only submit to the top few directories, then “re-purpose” the content in social networks like Hubpages and Squidoo. That way you are getting more bang for your buck. You create the article once, but transform it into social content that can get you more natural traffic as well as links back to your site.
2. Make a video of it! You can either record yourself giving the content, or make a simple powerpoint presentation and read your article as you record the slides. Once your article has been converted to video, you can distribute it free using a service like Tube Mogul.
3. Blog it! Make a shorter version of your article and post it to a blog. If you are submitting content regularly, your blog will get natural traffic, and you can promote your blog to your subscribers as well, giving them new, fresh, relevant information in a bite-sized format, and keeping them in your marketing world. You can also promote each blog entry in the social networks.
When you leverage your articles through these three methods, the “work” part becomes a lot easier because one article can be leveraged many times, bringing you not only direct traffic, but links, credibility, fresh promotion and exposure, and new joint venture opportunities.
So if you’ve given up on article marketing because it’s too much work, or you haven’t seen results from it, get back at it! Make your articles short, interesting, and specific, and leverage them over as many platforms as possible, and you’ll see fantastic results very quickly!
Top 5 Article Submission Sites!
