| Every online business needs a headquarters location, | | | | posts or other regular activities. That's a lot. Then again, |
| like a blog or website, but to really reach out to the | | | | he does social media for a living. |
| people you want to touch, you need media outposts | | | | Time Spent: 5-7 hours weekly |
| as well. Chris Brogan, social media guru, suggests niche | | | | Dinero Spent: $0 |
| social networks as good places to create outposts | | | | Secret #16: Learn Some HTML |
| (for instance, MLMers might find the Home Based | | | | If you want to have a professional-looking blog or install |
| Business Forums a great social network for this | | | | some of the nifty gadgets that Chris talks about on his |
| purpose). The social outpost idea is secret #20 in Chris' | | | | blog, you have to know at least some HTML. Even |
| "27 Blogging Secrets to Power Your Community." I'll | | | | submitting articles to article directories takes some |
| elaborate on that secret below, plus review secret #16 | | | | knowledge of HTML, lest you end up with a |
| (learn some html) and secret #27 (keep giving). I | | | | completely funky-looking article with spaces in all the |
| implemented each of these secrets on my home | | | | wrong places. This tip isn't hard to follow, even for a |
| business blog and I will tell you all about the challenges, | | | | neophyte. Just visit places like W3Schools for a free |
| benefits, and costs of each. | | | | tutorial that takes you through the basic HTML tags |
| Secret #20: Create Media Outposts | | | | step by step. In all, it might take you a couple of hours |
| In my MLM business, growing my business is all about | | | | to learn the basics and then you can revisit the site |
| growing my network. To that end, Chris' suggestion to | | | | on-the-fly as you need more help. I didn't spend any |
| create media outposts is perfect because it increases | | | | time on this secret because I know what I need to for |
| my "reach" and expands my network. How does one | | | | my home business blog, but I estimated how long it |
| do that? Chris has several ways. First, include the rss | | | | might take a newbie to learn the basics. |
| feed to your blog in your Facebook and LinkedIn | | | | Time Spent: 2 hours for basic HTML training |
| pages. You can use automated services, like Simplaris | | | | Dinero Spent: $0 |
| Blogcast, to automate the process so your blog feed | | | | Secret #27: Give More |
| shows up on your page automatically. Next, tweet | | | | Chris certainly follows this principle on his blog. He gives |
| your really good blog posts to Twitter (Chris | | | | and gives and gives his secrets away. Visiting his blog |
| recommends a ratio of 1:12, that is one tweet about | | | | on any given day is like spending Christmas at a horse |
| your blog to 12 tweets about other people's stuff). | | | | sale barn for me (an admitted horse addict). As he |
| Finally, find niche-specific social networks and repeat | | | | puts it, "Share your secrets. You can't execute them all |
| the process. | | | | anyway." I don't have nearly as many secrets as he |
| I found the basic steps of this secret easy to | | | | does, but I share but I can on my home business blog. |
| implement on my home business blog but the principle | | | | In this article I'll give you two new great blogs I just |
| behind this secret more difficult to follow. Basically, | | | | stumbled across that have fabulous yet practical tips |
| Chris is telling us to stay on top of our social network | | | | for the online marketer: |
| at all times. That means keeping our pages updated on | | | | 1. Dosh-Dosh: online marketing from a weird, funky, but |
| the various social media platforms in which we | | | | workable angle |
| participate. I can manage to stay up to date on a few | | | | 2. Gary Vaynerchuck: A wine guy who made it big |
| but keeping up with Chris' blistering pace is hard work. | | | | and shares his online marketing secrets |
| Plus, maintaining a 1:12 tweet ratio means you have to | | | | Time Spent: 5 minutes (spent surfing and stumbling) |
| do some serious digging to find real gems to post for | | | | Dinero Spent: $0 |
| the 12 tweets other than your own. On a weekly basis, | | | | Anything else I can give you? Anything else you want |
| if I were to follow Chris' principles to the letter it would | | | | to know? |
| take me about 5-7 hours, not including writing blog | | | | |