More blogging basics for marketers

This post is a washup of Wednesday October 21st and Sunday October 25th Xocai training calls with Malcolm Peters and I, where I cover some additional essentials that we didn't have time for. Firstly, regarding advertising and publicising your blog and getting it up in the rankings.  Remember that what you want is links TO your blog. So, if you are a member of an online community like Xarah's Chocolate Warrior or any of the other thousands of business groups on Ning, make SURE that your blog is linked from your member page.

If and only if it is in context and answers a question or illustrates a point, add the URL to discussions otherwise it looks spammy. Forums are quite a bit different and you can make a signature line or lines that will follow every post you make.

Don't just put the URL, say what your users can expect to find in your blog. For example you could say this:

http://hotchocprofits.blogspot.com  - My blog on the personal inside track of being a Xocai distributor.


Read my previous post because there is a lot in there that didn't get covered in the call.  Note that I have changed my blog layout so that there is a 'Read more' after an introductory paragraph. That is one way to keep your readers' attention and spark their interest.


Planning. I touched on that, but can't emphasise enough how important it is when starting a blog. Work out what your first post is going to be AND your second. Type every post in draft, write it longhand whatever. Experiment with themes, remember I said that with hindsight Wordpress is better? One of the reasons I say that is that the choice of themes and layouts is wider, the way your blog is controlled and edited is better, and you can create something that looks more like a 'standard' website.


Have a look at a blog I worked on earlier this year for comparison http://havantlitfest.wordpress.com 

Note how the overall menu at the top includes a link to every page. I didn't do that - Wordpress does it for you - automatically. You also get really good stats, out of the box - so you know which links and advertising is driving traffic to your blog - free. The only 'off the menu special' we did with the Literary Festival blog was to pay Wordpress a little $5 sub to be able to tweak some really little things like the font, and what size our sub-headings came out. Another good thing with Wordpress is that you can create draft posts and private pages so YOU can see how your blog will look before you put it in the public domain.


Sketch out a layout, include some pictures. Pile up Xocai chunks or squares in a pretty bowl and snap them with your mobile phone or digital camera. Make a habit of carrying a notebook around with you everywhere and let that be the birthplace of your posts. Half a dozen bullet points written in your coffee break if you work outside your home, on the bus or train, whenever - that's the basis for your next post.


If I am talking total technical gobbledegook to you but you still want to blog - write me a comment here, contact me via my profile page and ask me to help or to get you started. We'll work something out and it won't cost an arm and a leg.


One of the reasons that Xocai is such a FANTASTIC business is that people help each other, even if they aren't in the same team. Hey, you out there thinking about joining this business, did you read that? Do you get that from the business you are in now?
 
There will be another post along in a day or two which will really surprise you.

Read More...

Blogging in baby steps

Malcolm Peters continues his series of helpful and very entertaining training sessions and kindly asked me if he could 'interview' me about the benefits of blogging for the network marketer. We agreed that we should also give some very basic and elementary information about starting blogs as a number of people really needed that help. Experienced bloggers you are excused - go & make a cup of tea, have a beer, feed the cat or walk the dog etc. The first call with this topic went out on Sunday 26th June, and was recorded - see link at the end of this post and more calls featuring the same topic is scheduled for Wednesday 21st October and Sunday 25th October.

This post summarises what was said on the original call and also extends some of the topics where we did not have time to go into more detail and which came up in later questions, both on and after the call.

1. What is a blog?
It is a reflection of any and every aspect of your life. A diary, a marketplace, a journal of your job and skills, interests and hobbies - even about your politics and personal beliefs, typically organised in a diary style format.

2. Where do we start a blog
There are several places where you can start a blog absolutely free and with ease - right here on Blogger for example. It is part of the Google 'empire' and your blog will be automatically listed in Google searches.

The next place you should consider - and has a few advantages over Blogger in terms of styling and presentation - is Wordpress. It has two options. The easiest is to use Wordpress.com and have a blog hosted free. The other and more technical option, if you have a domain name you want to use for your blog, is to go to Wordpress.org and get the script to install it on your web host. Not all hosting companies will let you do this

For others - just Google for 'free blog' and find some other options. Do take care that others you might choose will allow you to make a blog about a networking opportunity. Avoid Today.com - it is very good for other topics, but not this one.

3. Is a blog beneficial to a networking business?
Definitely!
You have the potential to get your blog noticed by a much wider audience than your product or marketing websites - because the massive fellowship and connection between bloggers as opposed to marketers lets you attract people who might otherwise never have got interested.

4. Is there anyone who shouldn't start a blog?
A non-blog website can capitalise on its appearance and visuals. Blogging is about words, so you need to have a good command of your native language. If you KNOW that your spelling, grammar and typing is not 100% reliable, compose offline in Word or something with a checker. or consider whether you should really be blogging at all.

Nothing will put off your potential audience and customers/new distributors quicker than careless writing. What would you think if you picked up a leading newspaper or magazine and found it full of spelling errors, poor punctuation and bad grammar? Maybe I'm being a bit old-fashioned here, but it DOES really matter. Sorry to be brutal, but if I'm not, someone else may be in the future.

What we are NOT doing here is to try to repeat everything from other sites that talk about our networking business. Rather, what is required is to lead people in by talking around it. Be interesting, creative and witty. Don't try to sell, it isn't the place to do that.

5. Advertising blogs.
Take a look down my sidebar here and you will find some clues to how you can get your blog out to a potential audience.
They are all basically exchanges in one form or another. You visit and endorse other blogs and they do the same for you. I particularly like Adgitize and entrecard, but I won't deny they are quite time consuming.

Your MXI site has a web links area which can be customized to add your blog, your marketing site and anything else which might interest your downline.

Visit my other blog 'My Greetings To You' and you'll find some other useful resources for ensuring your blog gets seen.

The queen of all advertising for your blog is, ironically another form of blogging - Twitter.

Yes, it can be incredibly banal, time wasting and there are undoubtedly freaks and weirdos out there, it is really only a reflection of society. You could, if you get addicted, think about having one Twitter account for personal use and one for business if you are concerned about your friends getting bored with your endless chocolate chat.

In the past, I have made the classic mistake of trying to sell on Twitter, but in the past few weeks I have listened to those who know better and tried to make friends instead and not bombard my followers with links to my MXI and/or marketing site in every tweet.

You'll notice I use my Twitter profile background to emphasise what I do and why I'm there.

Twitter has its own etiquette, grammar and there are plenty of people who have done the job of advising you how to use it, I'm not going to repeat it here.

On the RECORDED call, I make an offer of help. This is STRICTLY an offer for Xocai distributors and may or may not be free depending how much help you want and need. We'll work that out. You'll find my contact details in the sidebar here.

Thank you all those who listened in on the first call and visited here afterwards.

Link to recording for this call -
http://instantteleseminar.com/?eventid=8435541

Read More...

Expanding your Recruiting Horizons

I have mentioned before how good the training for the Xocai business is, but this week has just excelled. Our trainer is a guy called Malcolm Peters, he has been in network marketing over 30 years and knows a thing or two. What he has taught us in the last few sessions is going to turn a lot of people's lives around - including mine!

His training style may upset some people - he can be very blunt and sometimes the language he uses isn't for the vicar's Sunday tea party, but if that upsets you maybe you are in the wrong business!

When you are looking to bring more people into your business you are going to get a lot more rejections and people who don't 'get it'. Well OK, your role is not to stand there and try and convince them, Malcolm's words - 'That's like trying to give resuscitation to a dead body! - Nasty!'

If they say things like, no, don't like the product, what you do is pyramid selling etc. etc. just put the phone down, change the subject, say 'OK that's fine - let's change the subject' if you are with friends, whatever.

There are two sorts of people at that point. One kind WILL walk away. You never wanted that person in your business to begin with. The other kind just might calm down and realise that you DO have something to offer. They just may be teachable.

That's just a tiny flavour of what we have had from Malcolm in the past week. What he is saying in these calls will work WHATEVER business you are in, Xocai or anything else. It's the methods, the process that he recommends that stand out.

The calls are recorded, you can get to them here - it is the 'Expanding Your Recruiting Horizons' calls you want to listen to.

If you are NOT happy with your job, or your current home business, if you want more income, or you feel you don't know HOW to take your business forward, I can help, Malcolm can help.

He has built a fantastic new marketing site for his Xocai business, take a look, but make sure you come back to me here and tell me what you think about it - see my profile for contact info. or if you use his contact form, please mention you heard about his site here on HotChocprofits.

This site absolutely knocks spots off the marketing sites most UK/EU Xocai people are currently using http://www.wealthwithchocolate.com/

Read More...

So what are the health benefits then?

This is what you need to read if you are wondering how chocolate can be healthy. The unique cold pressing process by which MXI processes the raw cocoa beans that go into their chocolate preserves the anti-oxidants and phyto-nutrients (plant based nutrients) that would otherwise be lost in the traditional way of roasting the cocoa. In addition, acai berries and blueberries themselves are an amazing source of anti-oxidants.

Anti-oxidants work in our bodies by helping to strengthen our immune systems which give us protection against the full range of infections and illnesses from colds and flu to cancer.

Another benefit of high quality chocolate is the 'happy' factor. It is well known that it acts on the serotonin levels in the brain, helping you to be more contented and calm and beat stress.

I can tell you that Xocai has helped me recover from a serious bout of depression that started at the end of 2008. It has also reduced my blood pressure enabling me to come off my hypertension medication altogether.

This link will give some more detailed and scientific explanations for what I have simplified above and will also list some of the many other health benefits which this chocolate can bring. If you are diabetic, you can enjoy this chocolate too and it could even help you - read the information you'll find on the Q and A page on the site.

http://mydrchocolate.soundconcepts.com/

Read More...

Training and Opportunity Call Schedule

MXI who are the Xocai parent company are really proud of the standard and frequency of the training it offers its distributors and their potential customers. Every week, we can go online and listen to training calls dealing with different topics, and we can invite people who are interested in the opportunity to come and listen to the calls directed at them absolutely free of charge - excepting any call charges of course if you go that route.

This is a pretty typical schedule - International Training for UK/EU is always on a Tuesday at 20:00 UK time (adjusted for BST) and an International Opportunity call on a Thursday at the same time.

If you want to listen in, just go to the URL for the call, and you will see the different ways to access it. An updated schedule is sent to distributors over each weekend, and my plan is to update this post with the latest info each week so you can just get in there. The calls are recorded, so don't worry if you miss them - they will usually still be there later in the day or even later in the week, just click on the links.

Any problems just comment here and I'll try to help. Sometimes you just need to re-boot your PC with your headphones plugged in the USB slot or your speakers turned on or download the latest version of Flash or Windows Media Player.

USA, you may prefer to use the phone or Skype phone route, UK is cheaper to go for the webcasts if applicable, but even Skype is not expensive - your business is worth £1 on a phone call isn't it?

This is the latest schedule for the UK and EU for week BEGINNING Monday June 22nd 2009

813-262-0467 Pin/Bridge 726654# or listen online by clicking the link

International Training Call TUESDAY, June 23 - 3pm EST, 8pm UK

http://instantTeleseminar.com/?eventid=7672800 International BUSINESS OPPORTUNITY Call

Thursday, June 25, 3pm EST, 8 pm UK Please notice: This is a "Listen by phone only" call. International Training Call TUESDAY, June 30 - 3pm EST, 8pm UK
http://instantTeleseminar.com/?eventid=7672863

Even if you are not yet a distributor, or you just want to find out more about the product, please just listen in to the call or calls of your choice.

With the exception of any marked phone only, you may find that you can still listen to the recording for several days after the event and there are also archived calls to listen to on

http://www.mysuccessbychocolate.com/archived_calls

Then, if this product and opportunity and it inspires and interests you as much as it did me when I first heard about it, contact me.

Read More...

It's not JUST about the chocolate

It is very encouraging when a network marketing company does as much as Xocai have done to make its new distributors feel welcome and provide materials for marketing and for helping to recruit new people into the business. In the past few days, I have been gathering together some items which I can put together on a CD and hand out to anyone who expresses an interest in my business. As time goes on, more UK specific marketing materials will be available as Xocai grows in the UK.
The e-books and info are already available on various Xocai training sites, what I want to do is to give you ALL the links here, in one place, so you don't have to go hunting for them.
The best news I have had this week is that I can now sign up people in Europe as well as the UK, so anyone who follows my blog and has been holding on for this - get in touch with me now! Best way is via Twitter if you have it, but you'll find contact details here.

Top of my list is something that was mentioned in the course of the opportunity webinar I was listening to during the week.

It's a recording of another webinar which was given by one of the best representatives of the whole Xocai opportunity, a great lady called Paula Pritchard. It's called 'It's not about chocolate'.

This really sounded strange but by the end of it I totally understood what she was talking about. The focus of this webinar is that this business is a SOLUTION and it is about your prospective customers - them, not you. You are building other people's new lives by giving them a solution to their financial and employment problems as well as transforming your own. Yet, Paula also reminds us that sales of chocolate went up in the last great economic depression in the 30's just as it is doing today.

You just HAVE to listen to this! You can listen online directly or download it to your mp3 player and play it over and over till you get the sense of it and can pass it on to the people you talk to about this business. Here is the link.

http://tinyurl.com/itsnotaboutchoc

Next I want to speak very directly to people who live in the UK and Ireland. In the next few weeks, you have the chance to go to a Xocai opportunity meeting somewhere not too far from where you live. Once again remember, this is NOT about the chocolate, this is about changing your life if you are just thinking about coming in and about the other people's lives that YOU could change by introducing them.

Here is where to go a collection of .pdf files that you'll find helpful as a new Xocai distributor, or visit the site generally to find out more about the business, it's a great resource.

http://mysuccessbychocolate.com/training_tools

Now, my next big discovery this week is that Xocai specific material is not the ONLY thing that will help you build your business.

I listened to another remarkable audio file - it's a reading of an e-book by star network marketer Ann Sieg. I can tell you that it has transformed the way I think about what I do and how I do it overnight. This is where you can get to both the written and audio versions.

http://posse.MarketersManifesto.com

Have a great marketing day!

Read More...

I got my first Xocai Chocolate!

I was so excited yesterday when a courier delivered my first box of Xocai chocolate was delivered.

I immediately tried some myself and took some out when I went to meet a friend for coffee.

It is delicious - it has none of the bitterness I have experienced with other high-cocoa dark chocolate and is very smooth.

In terms of its healthy effect, I am currently undergoing treatment for depression. I have resisted anti-depressant drugs because of their possible effect on my driving and the risk they pose to my driving license and my car insurance. My doctor says they are safe, the drugs packet notes say the opposite.

In 24 hours I can report a very significant change of mood, the fact that I slept better last night than I have for a very long time, and the suicidal thoughts have not touched me today.

I have also discontinued my hypertension medication because it was making me nauseous. I will report in the future what the chocolate has done to regulate this condition.

To experience the benefits for yourselves you do NOT have to become a distributor.

If the amounts on the website are too large for you and you want a smaller amount to try, then contact me or comment here and I'll get in touch with you. I can sell this product retail as well as introducing new distributors.

Read More...