So without further ado…

My WordPress Direct Review

WordPress Direct is a service that has been marketed every year by the Thirty Day Challenge team to it’s participants. Essentially it acts as a dashboard to quickly install and easily manage multiple WordPress blogs in a single location.Further to this there are autoblogging options that allow you take user generated content from the web and share it through your website.

I first tried out this software at it’s official launch a couple of years back after it was recommended by Frank Kern, creator of the highly respected List Control internet marketing training course. Coupled with the word of Ed Dale I was excited to give the service a try.

At the time I was just starting to get into the world of blogs and blogging however I was skilled enough to install WordPress and a small selection of plugins. I initially started a free trial for my personal blog and was impressed at the variety of options that were available. Cut to the end of my trial and I decided to cancel deciding that I could manage my blog and install a few plugins myself. I still hold this to be true however I was missing out on the true power of WP Direct.

The truth is you can easily create a single blog and do everything that WordPress Direct offers free of charge BUT… When it comes to creating multiple WordPress blogs and managing them all through a simple interface I’ve not found anything that even comes close.
Getting The Most Out Of WordPress Direct

These days I manage multiple sites and blogs that operate in different markets. Even the ability to manage a small network of sites through a single dashboard is invaluable. The old saying goes that time equals money and that is never more true than when working online. Perhaps you, like myself, could install a new blogs, add some plugins and choose a theme with relative ease but what if you could install 10 or even 50 in the same amount of time?

Whilst WordPress Direct offers you it’s selection of free and premium plugins to improve on SEO, Advertising Management and simplify content creation. That really is just a small part of the offering, the real value in WordPress Direct is the ability to really scale up your niche marketing efforts without wasting a whole bunch of your time on the mundane tasks surrounding the set up of a new blog.

If you really can’t see the value in spending $2 or even $5 for each blog you create then I would question not only the purchase of WordPress Direct but also your business plans. On the other hand if you are ready to take your niche marketing empire to the next level whilst also saving time and money then WordPress Direct is the vehicle to take you there.

>-> Start Your WordPress Direct Trial Here <-<

As an affiliate I was lucky enough to have the privilege of seeing the launch of this product from it’s early stages right through to the very end. To say that I watched the List Control launch closely would be an understatement; I followed all of Frank’s mailings, other affiliates mailings, browsed forums and even had keyword tracking running on Twitter.

Once the dust had settled on the launch I decided to put together a quick report to lay out the entire product launch formula so that I could use it to learn from within my business. Rather than keep it hoarded to myself however I decided that I would share it with the community so that others could learn from the List Control launch and put some of the tactics into use within their business.

Classic Internet Marketing Logic states that I’d throw it up locked behind a wall and require you to opt-in to receive the report. I like to do things a bit differently this time because I know that you are going to enjoy it. If you really want to succeed with internet marketing you will download the report and then use the opt-in at the side of the page to stay up to date with news on other launches, business information and other freebies as well.

Download The List Control Launch Secrets Report

Once you’ve downloaded the List Control product launch formula make sure you take a few minutes to think about how you can apply the tactics within your business. If you feel that there is any value in the report then sign up to my newsletter where I can stay in touch and share a few things that I tend to reserve especially for my subscribers.

I’ll speak to you soon..

Update: I spoke with Gavin Simmonds from the Product Launch Vault and managed to swing you an extra gift when you download today

I’ll be honest with you video editing is slick, even for an internet marketing video but at first you may wonder how it all relates to your business. Just like a good film; you will see that everything comes together and Frank goes on to discuss how you can use one of the biggest myths in Internet Marketing to your advantage. And yes, whilst he does talk about five simple steps to creating a loyal following that buys from you like crazy, using as Frank Kern aptly puts it, “shock an awe coolness”, I think that the real take-away from this video is this:

The value you get back from your business is in direct relation to the value that you provide others.

Sometimes it really is the most basic sounding concepts that need to be hammered home. In this video, Frank Kern does an excellent job at explaining exactly what you should be doing in your marketplace to really take things to the next level. If this first taste of Franks new style is representative (and I’m sure these videos are just the beginning) then List Control really is going to be an exceptional product and I’m happy that I can share news of it with you all.

Right now I’m off to update my List Control Bonus site with an updated offer based on my conversations with a few people about what they’d really want to accompany List Contro. These things will really help you to bridge the gap and there will be some things available which I’ve never offered before.

Talk soon!

The essence of what you will learn is how to truly identify an individuals core influences. This can cover everything that has an effect on an individual; current situation, their dreams, goals and even hidden fears. The beauty of the tools that Frank will give you is that whilst you can create what’s called a customer avatar that you can use for marketing purposes, you can also work on your own profile. If you’ve never really taken the time to sit back and think about what really drives you this can be quite an experience.

This training covers things which some may consider a little deep; however after watching you will begin to understand the power in the process:

• On a personal level core influence can make the difference between stumbling through your day reactively with no sense of direction and powering through your days with a sense of purpose and clarity.
• On a business level core influence can help you to discover the truth about your target market and what really makes them tick. When you really understand your customers; suddenly you are in a position when you can offer them exactly what they need or want, often before they know it themselves.

You can get access to the entire core influence training free of charge when you head over to Franks new site for a limited time. Whilst you will need to provide your email address to get access to the training, this is one offer that I can highly recommend. I personally paid money for the DVD as part of a previous promotion he ran and I have no regrets and definitely no doubts in recommending this opportunity to you today.

Get Core Influence Free of Charge

P.S. Even if you are a perpetual freebie seeker with a hard drive full of info, this is one presentation I recommend that you actually WATCH the whole way through. It is that important!

The truth is however I’ve been spreading myself over many different projects and it’s not fair to any one of them. There comes a time when you have to take a step back and look at what you are doing, which parts you enjoy and where you plan on going with everything.

I’m at a stage now, that when a friend asked the name of all of my websites, I could not list every one. I understand that it is good to spread your bets and have a varied portfolio of “online real estate” but it’s also important to have focus. It’s all too easy to have another great idea and throw something up to get started with a new website as the barrier of entry is so low. The truth that I have come to realise however is there are hidden costs. These are the costs associated with things like your time and energy.

The Internet Marketing Plug-Hole Plan

1. Have a great idea
2. Register Website
3. Create product/service
4. Reach Profitability
5. Have another great idea
6. Forget previous project
7. Start the process all over

It’s like trying to build a castle but every time you build the gate you decide to create another. It was never the plan to end up with a collection of gates, but if you don’t have the process in place for things to carry on growing without you, once you move on to the next, that’s all you’re going to get.

In the next period of weeks I will be phasing out a few of my websites, mainly old reports etc, working to bring others together and ultimately create a better experience for the both of us. As I go through this process I thought I would share story with you in hopes that some of my readers may take note of how they are working and perhaps see some similarities. I couldn’t be speaking about you, could I?

Hey There,

You may have heard of a term called “modelling” before, not the skimpy kind… The modelling that I’m referring to is the act of taking a successful approach to something and building your one around it. The second letter example below is most likely what I would model when approaching potential JV partners.

You’ll find this post is slightly different from the usual tone as it doesn’t actually come from me. I decided to re-publish this article from marketing expert Daniel Levis however due to it’s appropriately timed arrival and very valid points.

Best Regards,

Daniel

A Damn Good Idea

Done Darn Poorly…

Dear Web Business-Builder:

Last week my wife came in with the mail and dropped a thick, heavy, yellow envelope on my desk.

Inside was the worst JV pitch letter I’ve ever received … and I’ve received a few.

In fact, I don’t think a week goes by that I don’t get several of these thick, heavy, yellow envelopes in the mail pitching me on some kind of “HOT” JV action. And many more arrive by e-mail.

Do I mind getting these unsolicited solicitations? Not at all …

I think a program for reaching out to competitive and complementary businesses to establish potential joint venture relationships is one of the most profitable things you can possibly do.

The relationships I’ve established in this way have gone on to deliver my best and most profitable customers. So I welcome these JV offers from others with open arms, and read every one of them.

Most I reject.

But I respect anyone with the initiative to approach me.

And some I accept.

I wish I could accept more, actually. But I receive so few good pitches it’s truly pathetic.

Most of them are so bad they go straight in the trash. And it’s a pity. Some of the products are probably good.

Here’s the letter I found tucked inside the book in the thick, heavy, yellow envelope I received last week:

Dear Reader,

I’m happy to send you this copy of How to Wow by Frances Cole Jones, the go-to guide for success by making a lasting impression.

In today’s fast paced world, knowing how to sell yourself in any situation is vital. Corporate coach Frances Cole Jones has helped numerous CEOs and public personalities present their best selves in boardrooms and in person. Now in this book she shares her easy-to-follow success strategies on how to: make lasting impressions with simple introductions, use the twelve most persuasive words effectively, motivate your team under a deadline, deliver speeches that bring people to their feet, and much more. From asking the right questions to giving the right answers, How to Wow will give you the confidence to be calm and commanding in all you do and to impress anyone anywhere anytime.

I’ll think you’ll find this essential guide to be both fascinating and helpful. I hope you like it and decide to share it with your friends and colleagues. Please feel free to send me an e-mail to let me know what you thought of the book. I look forward to hearing from you.
Best,

[Person’s name here]
Marketing Associate
The Random House Publishing Group

First of all, let me say thanks to the person who remains nameless for the free book. But this letter misses the mark on so many levels you could easily lose count.

For starters, I’m not vain enough to believe I’m the only one who got one of these little masterpieces. But is that any excuse for addressing me as “Dear Reader”? I mean, they must know my name, or how would they have addressed the envelope?

The first paragraph is dry as Melba toast, but I suppose, forgivable, as an introduction. I’ll keep reading …

The second paragraph is too long and should have been broken up into several paragraphs. The first two sentences of this paragraph try to establish credibility for the author of the book. The first sentence delivers a truism. This is a tried and true persuasion technique. Say something they have to agree with. But this truism seems trite and patronizing. And the payload (the credibility statement that follows) is vague and dull.

Credibility is not a problem this company should have had. The letterhead above the body copy reads “The Random House Publishing Group”. Unless you’ve been hiding under rock your entire life, you know who they are. They’ve been around forever. Presenting credibility before benefit is a huge mistake in this case.

The remainder of the paragraph delivers a few fascinations designed to whet my curiosity about what’s inside the book. These bullets seem unfocused and don’t really get my juices flowing.

When I get a pitch letter like this, I’m not initially concerned about what’s in the product anyway. I could care less until I know what it means from a business perspective.

By now, I’m 99.9% convinced I’ve wasted my time reading this letter. But there’s just one short paragraph left. There must be a point to sending this thing in here somewhere. So I keep reading. It gets worse …

In the final paragraph I expect to find the quid pro quo. You do this, and I’ll do that. But no such luck. I’m supposed to read the book and share it with my friends and associates. Why?

And then the final insult: no signature.

I find it truly amazing that in today’s day and age of brutal competition … shrinking profit margins … and absolute marketing clutter that any company could be so out of touch and out of control to allow such a mindless, brain-dead effort out the door unchallenged.

It boggles the mind.

Some ivory tower marketing muckity-muck must have gone out and hired someone obviously clueless, and set her loose without the slightest bit of training or oversight.

How would you have written this letter?

Well, you might start out by taking the time to mail merge my name. Duh!

Dear Daniel,

And surely you’d have come up with something a little more compelling as an opener. Heck, you might even come out and tell me why I should spend my valuable time reading your letter, no?

If you’re looking for a drop-dead easy way to generate a flood of hot new subscribers for your e-mail list … then this is going to be one of the most exciting letters you’ve read this year.

And once you’d promised me something I actually want, you’d probably give me a few details, wouldn’t you?

Here’s why …

One of our star authors, Frances Cole Jones, has just released her much anticipated new book, How to Wow, and we’d like to feature you as an esteemed contributor to a massive launch day bonus package we’ll be offering book purchasers.

On launch day, dozens of high profile information marketers will be notifying their lists of this watershed new book. If you agree to be one of them, then hundreds, perhaps thousands of highly qualified buyers will be referred to your squeeze page to download your bonus.

I don’t have to tell you that every one of those leads has the potential to blossom into a new customer and fresh new profits for your business.

Then you’d anticipate my question: Now that sounds pretty good, but what about my subscribers? Is this quality material they’ll be interested in? And you’d answer:

And your subscribers will love you for alerting them to this groundbreaking new book. It’s jam-packed with priceless wisdom for entrepreneurs who need better, faster, and more efficient ways to persuade in today’s cut-throat business environment.

And my next question as well: OK, but who is this woman, I’ve never heard of her? And you’d answer:

How to Wow delivers the very same cutting-edge mass-influence strategies Frances uses to position her private clients for huge business-building home runs on “Oprah,” “Larry King Live,” C-SPAN, CNN, The Discovery Channel, “Access Hollywood,” ESPN, and many more top shows.

Then you’d sit back and think. What objections might Daniel have that would cause him to hesitate?

These proven communication techniques can be used by any business, large or small, in any setting, to positively influence customers, business partners and employees. I have included a complimentary copy of How to Wowfor your review.

And last but not least, you’d tell me what to do next. You’d tell me what you’ll do if I comply. And why I should drop everything and do it right now.

The deadline to lock in this lucrative opportunity to flood your list with hot, new, proven buyers is <date>. Please let me know as soon as possible that you’re on board by calling my private JV hotline — xxx xxx xxxx. As soon as I hear from you, I’ll send you our simple instructions for including your bonus on launch day.

Yours for higher profits!

Plus you’d sign it, wouldn’t you? Of course you would.

<sig>

Is it just me, or does anybody else see this as just another example of what’s wrong in the developed world today.

• Too much insulation from reality … and the realization that if you don’t put serious effort, care and excellence into everything you do … your company is going to end up right where it belongs — pushing up daisies.
• Too many managers sitting around giving orders … without getting into the field and getting their hands dirty once in a while to see what’s really required.
• And too many employees without any skin in the game … spoiled by decades of good times … and who just don’t care.

What it really means is there’s more opportunity for freelancers and small, nimble, entrepreneurial companies to thrive than ever before.

Until next time, Good Selling!

Daniel Levis
Editor, The Web Marketing Advisor
THE TOTAL PACKAGE

This article was first published in The Total Package. To sign-up to receive your own FREE subscription to The Total Package and claim four FREE money making e-books go to www.makepeacetotalpackage.com.

I thought that with one week past it would be an interesting idea to share with you all a few tools that have helped me get through this week and to where I am right now. So without further ado:

The Top 3 Tools of The Sixty Day Challenge (So far…)

1. A4 Sized Notebook – You may start giving me funny looks right now or be wondering where I’m going with this. Funny it should be that on a challenge announced and being performed online that my number one tool be offline. The reason being I just can’t seem to create as freely on the PC. Whilst there are many things I am more than happy to do with the PC I feel that the initial stages of a business plan, creating mind maps and writing lists are all easier to get my head around when written with good old pen and paper. Of course tasks later get added to my iPhone app and initial ideas may be expanded digitally. I just find the paper gives you more freedom to think than staring at a blank glaring monitor.
2. WordPress – This is the platform not only used to create and manage this blog but also my new website that I’m working on. The features are so intuitive, customizable and perfect for the way I work online. With no other CMS ( Content Management System )  can I get a site fully up and running so quickly and easily whilst also meeting my preconceived ideas. I am referring to the self-hosted version here as well for clarification as you get free reign to edit it to your will and add any number of widgets and alterations.
3. Twitter / TweetDeck – I had to think about this one as I didn’t want everyone thinking that I was just jumping on the vogue. I really am appreciating the power of this whilst working on this project. I can use Twitter for research, acquiring feedback, networking and updating people all under one roof. Yet with the power of Tweetdeck I can achieve all this without overlap. For a service as single focused as Twitter, that is a great achievement and I thank the creators of both.

So there you have it, the top three tools of my first week in the Sixty Day Challenge. I’m guessing as I’ve already named this part 1 there will be more of these to come throughout my experience as my tasks and needs change focus.

Until then:

Sign up for email updates at the official challenge website

AND/OR

Follow the challenge on Twitter using the #60dc hash tag!

Following the growing trend of politics moving online this was also the first inauguration that joined together the power of online news with social media. Not only did CNN broadcast the entire event via live streaming on their website but parts of Facebook were temporarily embedded into the websites media player so that viewers could update their status to share their thoughts with the world in real time as they watched the broadcast.

Facebook and CNN working together

In the time that I spent watching status updates were coming in thick and fast so it appears that this has been successful for them both. As we move forward into new digital territory I’m sure we shall see more and more of these sorts of collaborations happening.

Update:

Recent reports, shown on web blog Mashable, state that there were 600,000 status updates through the CNN.com Facebook Feed with translates roughly to 4,000 status updates per minute.

Did you use the feed? What are your opinions on this type of broadcast? Feel free to leave your commenst on this post or send me a message; @DanielMcClure on Twitter.

Evil Marketing Genius that I am, I’ve decided to release it as an incentive to sign up for my free newsletter. You can grab it right now for absolutely no cost just for deciding to receive periodical updates from me. Good stuff hey? All you have to do to receive the report is enter your details in the subtle “Subscribe Here” section to the top right of this page (If you are reading this from your RSS, Please visit http://danielmcclure.com/blog/ and you’ll see what I mean).

I’ve included an excerpt from the report below for your viewing pleasure, enjoy ;

Social Media is being talked about everywhere you go these days. Twitter this… Facebook that… Oh I’ll just post that to my FriendFeed!

When you finally manage to get away from your accounts your confronted by a mob of people telling about how you should be getting back on FriendFeed Right Now or or that there is a Dark Side of Twitter?

I’m here to confront you. Really, This may seem like a big claim when some people are calling 2008 the year of Twitter but so many people are hiding a Big Ugly truth from you. In fact you’ve probably been hiding it from yourself without even realising it.

Why Social Media is Sucking The Life Out of your Business With the Intensity of a Black Hole

So there you have it, to carry on with the report all you have to do is sign up in the “Subscribe Here” scetion that you will see to the top right of this screen.

Until Next Time,

Daniel McClure

Whilst you are logged in to a Google account there is a new feature named SearchWiki, where you now have the option to remove a listing from your results or promote it to the top of your page. If you own or run a website you were probably asking the same question as I was “Will SearchWiki have an effect on SEO and my websites ranking?”.

For the moment at least you can sit back and play around with this feature to your hearts content. Google has stated “The changes you make only affect your own searches.” Anything you do at the moment will only effect the way that you are provided your results. Having said that with so much user generated input on websites that they may never have fully reviewed before it’s hard to see that this won’t eventually play at ;east some factor in search engine rankings.

The obvious things that will stand in the way of this ever being a completely trustworthy way to generate website feedback is the huge opportunity for Spammers. Less than honest webmasters could potentially manipulate search results hugely in their favour and even launch campaigns to crush their opponents.

Another thing to think about if you use AdWords is the potential knock-on effects for your website. If you are not generating great quality content for your users or providing relevant information on your websites you could get knocked from a lot of people’s search results. There is nothing that I’m aware of to stop Google in future using this information to decide on the charges and position of your AdWords Campaigns. After all the ultimate goal of any search engine is to keep their results relevant and therefore profitable.

In conclusion as long as you are providing great value through your website this should not effect you too much and probably won’t in the future. It’s just something to be aware of and can always be used to filter your own search results as long as you have a Google Account. Below I’ve attached the video from the SearchWiki Post on Google’s Blog so that you can take a look for yourself.