“The 4-Step Guide to Building Your Authority” plus 1 more

The 4-Step Guide to Building Your Authority

Posted: 17 Nov 2012 12:03 PM PST

This guest post is by Derek of Fear No Goal.

If you want people to visit your blog—and stay there—you have to be an authority figure.

This is definitely true if you are trying to solve a common problem. You have to know and understand what you are talking about.

When people know you’re an expert on a topic, it gives them comfort. They know that they can trust you. They are going to put their faith into you over and over again. That means you cannot fail your readers. They have to be your main focus. They deserve an expert, they deserve great advice, and they’re expecting it from you.

You have to deliver.

How do you become that expert? How do you become that person that they go to for advice and guidance? Here are four steps you can take to help build your authority.

1. Write about something you already know or are willing to learn

This one tip can make the process very easy. You must focus on something you know or are willing to learn.

If you are interested in your topic, writing for your blog will be much easier. If you are already an expert, you shouldn't run out of things to write about.

If you are an expert, your advice will be sound and your readers will be able to achieve success with the information you provide them. Good advice builds credibility. Your audience will return to you more often if you’ve proven that you are an expert.

You may not be an expert in the topic you choose to write about, but being passionate about it can go a long way. You'll be learning as you go. You will be able to supply information to your readers about was or was not successful for you. It may take longer to build that credibility, but it is definitely possible this way.

Another benefit of building yourself up to expert status from scratch is that you can relate to your readers. Very recently, you were in their shoes. You are searching for information, just like your audience. You will be able to form a connection that few other bloggers can establish.

Take a look at Darren here at Problogger. He has become the expert on blogs and monetizing blogs. Darren knows his stuff; he has been through it all. He gives out quality posts consistently.

If you take a look at his posts, you will see he speaks with authority. Darren is the authority to anything related to blogging, and people trust him—expert and novice bloggers alike.

2. Speak with authority

This is a huge aspect in the development of your blog. It will definitely keep first-time readers on your blog while keeping long-time readers coming back for more.

If you speak with confidence in the information you are supplying, it will spark your readers' interest. They will definitely be more willing to try out the advice you’re giving.

How do you speak with authority and confidence? Good question. The biggest point is to watch the words you use. If you use words like might, could, and may, then you are not putting confidence into the information you’re supplying.

If you are giving your readers good information, and they follow the information you give them, then there should be no question that they will be successful. Not only should you be confident, but you should instill confidence into your readers too.

Have you ever visited The Simple Dollar blog? Trent Hamm has emerged as the expert in saving money and creating a stable financial future. Bring up one of his posts on simple money saving tips. As you read, you'll notice quickly that he knows what he is suggesting works. There is no question in his mind.

He gives you specific examples. He tells you that if you do X then you will save Y. No maybes, no mights, no coulds: only results. That's what people want—results. They want to know that if they do what you say, they will have success. Trent does a great job of this.

3. Speak from experience

If you are giving your readers advice, then you’d better have tried it out yourself first. The easiest advice to give is advice on what has or hasn't worked for you. You have to give your readers information that you know works.

If you speak from experience, not only will your information be more detailed, it will also be more reliable. This is a great way to establish credibility.

Readers love to hear about your experiences, too. This adds a personal level to your writing. And so your credibility builds, because your readers know that you tried each piece of advice you are sharing with them. Besides, how can you be confident in something you've never tried?

The first time I visited Life Without Pants, I was hooked. Matt Cheuvront shares his life experiences on overcoming challenges and working towards goals. Not only does Matt do a great job of describing his experiences, he’s great at making the lessons he learned relevant to his audience. This is powerful, because he is doing two things.

First, he’s sharing his experiences, which most audiences love. We all love a good story. He also gives the reader something to walk away with and incorporate into their lives. Whether it is a philosophy or a specific action, Matt is giving his audience usable information from his own experiences. That’s pretty powerful!

4. Be honest

If your give information that’s supposed to help your readers, but it doesn't, think about how bad you’ll look. Those who give out bad information do not tend to last in blogging. People can tell very quickly whether or not you are lying.

Real experts will also know when you are lying. If you have a comments section, they will point out how wrong you are very quickly. You can't just post something telling people it will help them of you really don't know if it will. This is a big credibility- and authority-killer.

Don't take an article written by someone else and market it as your own. This is another huge issue that will kill your authority. Come up with your own unique material. People want new and useful information. If you steal other people's work, you will lose all respect from the blogging community.

Blogging is all about building relationships with readers and other bloggers. Taking others' content will make others never want to work with you. It will forever tarnish you and your brand and. Keep it honest and your authority will soar.

Neil Patel at Quicksprout is well-respected around the blogging community. If you have never heard of him, just visit Quicksprout and see how popular his blog is. Neil has had his share of successes and failures. He makes that very public. He is also very open about things that do and do not work.

He has established himself as an authority figure as a result of this. His posts are honest and genuine, and include loads of valuable information. Model yourself after Neil and be honest and helpful when you write. You'll have a following similar to his, active and hungry for knowledge!

Are you an expert?

Well there you have it. These are four ways of increasing your authority and expertise. If you practice these tips regularly, people will learn that they can trust you and the information you provide. They will come to you more often for the information they need.

Become an authority figure and success will find you!

Derek is the author of the blog Fear No Goal. He has a Computer Science degree and currently works as a programmer for a major retail company. His writing is meant to inspire, motivate and help people to reach their goals, no matter what they are.

Originally at: Blog Tips at ProBlogger

The 4-Step Guide to Building Your Authority

10 Ways to Woo Would-be Advertisers on Your Blog

Posted: 17 Nov 2012 06:03 AM PST

This guest post is by Anup Kayastha of MoneyMakingModes.com.

Earning money through blogging is an attractive and viable income source. But it is not possible unless your blog have relevant, current, and useful information for your readers.

That will not only help increase traffic to your blog: it will also attract advertisers to buy ads. but to make that a reality, you need to know how advertisers are evaluating your site.

What makes them think that your blog is worth their investment? What they are looking for in your blog before offering you a deal for ad posts?

Here are ten factors that would help you understand what the advertisers consider before they’ll approach you about buying ad space.

1. Announce that you accept ads

Your blog must explicitly announce to the potential advertisers that it is ready to sell ads. Use an "Advertise with us" banner or message so that the advertisers know that they can buy space with you.

For example, look at the sidebar of this blog. There's an image link which clearly mentions that ProBlogger accepts sponsor ads.

2. Create a specific page for ad information

Having a separate page that displays the information about ad space on your blog is very important.

Include information such as the blog’s niche, ad space rates, methods of payment, and your contact details. This shows how organized—and serious—you are about helping advertisers reach their audiences.

Take a look at the advertising page of John Chow’s site. When advertises land on that page, they can easily get the required information, like site stats, banner spot and sizes, space availability, and so on.

3. Concentrate on your niche

If your blog targets a particular niche, you must stick to it in all your blogging activities. The advertisers interested in your particular niche will critically monitor this aspect of your work.

Don’t go off topic. Your advertisers want to gain targeted visits to their product sales pages. You don't want to disappoint them with untargeted traffic.

4. Work to increase traffic

Most importantly, the advertiser will want to know about the traffic that flows to your blog. The blog readership, subscribers, and your reputation within your niche are all carefully considered by advertisers.

These factors directly impact the cost expectations of potential advertisers. Most advertisers are more interested in the traffic that a blog attracts than many other factors.

5. Assess the positioning of ads on your blog

Prospective advertisers will analyze the placement of ads on your blog, to see if those spots will suit them.

First, they’ll ask if their ads will be visible without requiring a page scroll. If the space is above the fold, you should be able to charge more for it.

They’ll also want to know if the ad space is horizontal or vertical? Horizontal space is usually more costly because if has better readability. They’ll likely review the spot’s prominence and visibility too.

My blog, Hack Tutors is a good example of this point. You can see a horizontal (468x60px) banner at the top-right header. Typically, it gets sold as soon as the previously running ad has expired.

It's the most popular ad spot on my blog, simply because it's above the fold, eye-catching, and easily viewable without scrolling down the page.

6. Consider costing methods

Advertisers are very careful to review the terms on which ads are sold to the advertiser.

You may offer CPC (Cost Per Click), CPM (Cost Per Thousand Impressions), CPA (Cost Per Action), or some other method of selling space. The advertiser may be interested in a specific costing method, so be prepared to negotiate.

If you've no idea how to arrive at pricing for your ad space, you can get some ideas in this post by Hesham of FamousBloggers.

7. Establish your ad posting conditions

The ad posting conditions you impose will be taken very seriously by advertisers. Ad specifications—such as formats, maximum allowable file sizes, restrictions of animations, niche appropriateness, Flash requirements, and so on—are all considered by advertisers before they’ll buy.

You may not want to display colorful, blinking ads in your blog—but maybe your advertisers want to. It's very important to clearly communicate your ad posting conditions so that your advertisers won't be confused. Mention these conditions in your Advertising page, like iTrailMap have.

8. Provide special offers and promotions

Some advertisers also get attracted by special ad offers made by bloggers. Introductory or special offers can give an added incentive to the advertisers to give your blog a try. You can offer to give a free week or month for an advertisement, or provide some other kind of special promotion.

For example, you can offer to promote their product by writing a free review or sending their product newsletter to your subscribers. Such offers can come in very handy when advertisers are considering on buying ads in your blog.

9. Present your blog statistics

Blog statistics (other than traffic stats) are closely considered by potential advertisers.

If you’re proud of them, include your Google Page Rank, Technorati Authority, Alexa Traffic Rank, and others on your Advertising page. These ranks cement the perceived worth of a blog, and advertisers appreciate seeing blog statistics from established third-party sources.

If you take a quick look at the Advertising page on this blog, you'll see that these statistics are clearly mentioned.

10. Provide discount offers to guarantee long-term business

Advertisers also consider the long-term advertising opportunities provided by a blog. Their fear may be that the blog may not allow more advertisement time after ending of first contract period. For that reason, they may want to book ad space for the longer term.

Discount considerations will also become a factor in these deals. If you’re securing ad revenue for couple of years instead of months, the advertiser will naturally ask for a discount. The terms should be flexible—again, prepare to negotiate!

Final words

There are many factors about your blog that potential advertisers will consider. You can start experimenting and getting to know your advertisers' needs. If they get some good results, they’re more likely to become long-term advertisers with your blog.

Don’t forget to ask previous advertisers to write testimonials, since most prospective advertisers will want to know if others have benefitted from advertising on your site.

Do you offer ad space on your site? What kinds of things do your advertisers want to know before they’ll buy? Tell us in the comments.

17 year old, Anup Kayastha, has 3 years of internet marketing experience and shares his tips for internet marketing, making money online and blogging in his blog MoneyMakingModes.com.

Originally at: Blog Tips at ProBlogger

10 Ways to Woo Would-be Advertisers on Your Blog