bwagy, the blog of Ben Young

That’s what shows up when I Google ‘bwagy’.

Amazing huh?

That’s 19,100 opportunities for me to capture people and then engage them.

I do remember when it was 7 results.  Most were typos at that point in time.

Keep in mind, as long as they don’t get deleted, this content will be there for ever.

Produced once, consumed over and over.

I’m not gloating, just saying, one by one it all adds up.  Each piece of content started with a thought, then a sentence, then a post.  The sum is greater than the individual parts… and I see that day by day more and more people stumbling across what I do.

Definitely food for thought.

By now you will have received a number of posts from the blog which I’m sure you are enjoying (over 300 since day 1 in fact!)

Often it’s not the post itself but what you take away from the ideas that provide the most value. A conversation, a new idea, something you can implement in your own life.

That’s the real kick I get, stimulating new thought that wouldn’t have happened otherwise.

Blogs are fantastic in providing fresh content each and every day – however the restriction is how do I expose some of the classics to new readers? So what I have done is included some of them below.

The Most Popular Posts (ever)
You Can do what YOU Want
Why Entrepreneurs should go to university
12 Hour Startup
bwagy marketing manifesto
Free Marketing Advice Pay What You Want

Most Controversial
You Can do what YOU Want
Why Entrepreneurs should go to university
Five Star Service
12 Hour Startup
Remarkable Content is like a drug

My Personal Favourites
You Can Do What You Want
You are Always Wrong
Are you made of rubber?
How I am tipping the book model
Fifteen Percent on
bwagy Networking Theory

And any post on Kiva http://blog.local/tag/kiva/

This is the main reason you SHOULD blog:

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=04Mc14gHrWs

Amongst the million ok dozen or so other reasons I have talked about…

(Video courtesy of Seth Godin & Tom Peters.  I also interviewed Tom Peters earlier this year.)

Some guidelines for internet entrepreneurs developing their early stage marketing strategy:

• SEO is about branding, it takes time, it does pay off, but don’t expect overnight success.  Expect months of hard work to recreate the apparent look of overnight success.
• PPC is great if you can sustain it.  Often you are developing or creating a segment of which it is hard to get a return on this initially.  If you are in the rare stance of breaking even or making a profit (whilst in startup mode) go horizontal, invest in MSN, in Yahoo.  Get their lower competition marketplaces to help you drive profit.
• Viral tactics are just as the term describes, tactics.  They help provide a short term boost, or add the icing to the cake.  Realise this and use it to your advantage.  Solid business growth still comes from delivering insane value to your customers and looking after them.
• Marketing results always take double the amount of time that you predicted, it takes time to refine your strategy, make the technological changes, talk to all developed parties.  However picking up the phone and calling your existing clients can be done today.
• Focus on building brand name searches, measure the numbers of visit by your brand, focus on pushing that.  No one can compete when people are motivated to look for you.
• Do not skimp on metrics, use Google Analytics, capture all that you can (helps for future analysis) but focus on the key metrics that drive your business today.  Match them to business objectives and real dollars in the hand. 
• Blogging will be your #1 Marketing Tool if you use it wisely, so only blog if you’re going to do a good job of it.
• Communities are fantastic but like blogging require a lot of work, if you are time poor this may not be your best approach.  It is better to not do it at all than do it miserably.
• The best people you can hire (if you need hire at all) come from referrals, they don’t need splashy websites to sell themselves, their clients sell them.
• Free is good, creating a product that people marvel you charge so low for it is better.  Case in point Basecamp.
• Stick to your strategy, it will naturally evolve over time but if you quit because you don’t get instant results you are following the path to mediocrity.
• ALWAYS (and I mean ALWAYS) question those that provide marketing advice, it helps you understand their thinking and helps them learn about you.
• Once you have your strategy get onto it, there are a thousand ways to skin a cat, focus on yours.  Marketing fads come and go.

And finally….Stop procrastinating and start now!  Many entrepreneurs know what they need to do, they just don’t do it, like this blog I just do it, not spend all my time talking ….

One of the number one questions I get is:

1) What do you do?

2) How do you earn money?

Since #1 almost requires an essay i’m going to answer #2.  

Actually no I’m not as that would require answering #1 which neither of us have time for (save that for another day).

The real question is how do you make a return off social media?

It is all about frame of reference.

Some Tv Ads are all framed around awareness, such that when you are making a purchasing decision you choose one brand over another.

Social Media works on a similar wavelength, that is by turning up and participating, you are putting yourself (and your products/services) in the frame of reference of those that also read / participate.  

Then once they in turn have a conversation or are making a purchasing decision their experience with you floats to the top of their minds.  

Why? Because they have had a real experience with you, whether it was some Marketing Advice or some chit chat about your favourite podcasts.  In such a fragmented world this is where the real value is derived.

Is this directly measureable? No but neither is word of mouth (unless you engage in just one tactic) but it is rewarding.

How about trends? Return is not straightforward, you need to look over the long term, over 6 months how are we trending.

So when you find yourself doubting social media, remember:

1) You are engaging with people.

2) They may not need you now but are likely to sometime in the future.

3) Once you have a relationship.  No one can compete.

Recently in a podcast I listened to from Tim Ferris,

His key idea for a successful blog was to do three things:

1. Challenge peoples beliefs
2. Challenge their existing behaviour
3. Challenge their belongings (ownerships to)

All of these polarise people.

By polarising you draw out emotions and passions.

It’s true, we like to talk about things that are remarkable, neat, different.

So want to get people to talk? polarise them.

Keep sowing.

Keep meeting new people, keep blogging, keep the conversations going.

The return will come.

New Marketing isn’t about create x get x.

It’s not a strict formula.

You need to keep investing, and the rewards will come and like your investment they will compound.

This week, as a result of conversations have around my brand some neat things have happend:

• A referral to become a Mobile Content provider (no work on my behalf)
• I have heard of another project I have secured (before the official word)
• Been offered a speaking gig

Think about Newspapers, and actually read the content in them, it’s typically very low key and more press releases and quotes than actual editorial.  

They weren’t always this way.  Once their distribution was locked down, the game shifted from how can we maximise readership (through great content) to how can we maximise profits.

You see the same things with bands, how often do you hear so and so has sold out now the’re big.

Blogs are the new content medium, surely they’re not the same? Or are they?

Think of some of the more popular bloggers, once they hit a certain readership or tipping point they too appear to slack off.

Others don’t, some to take it as a good sign and work harder.

They’re in it for the long term.  

You see with blogging, once the distribution is set (through feedreaders / email subscriptions / syndication) the foundation is weaker.  It is easy for one single reader to drop off.  

You need to keep on your toes, keep active and use engagement or return visitors or attention time as a measure of success.

(and someone to give you a dead arm when you slack off)

That’s why you see such great content out there, for free, competition is fierce.

Blogging is a marathon.

There are hills, dips, long stretches.

The context weather changes…

Keep your eyes on the end goal and keep

Taking step after step.

Momentum is valuable, maintain it, if you lose it, it’s like starting running after you’ve stopped (painful).

Just keep taking those steps, even if they’re baby steps, do it!

Work in a startup? Different context.  Same application.

(and for those that haven’t yet read, look at my Blogging Strategy, takes 30 seconds to read)

How much time do you command?

For example since launching this blog

I have garnered:

59,746 seconds of attention or 991 minutes or 16 and a half hours of focused attention.  Wow!

What would you pay for 16 hours of focused attention from the influencers in your industry.

I’ve paid:
1.5 hrs / week
a morning setting up this blog
a few hours preparation.
Maybe 20 hours all up.
Now imagine over the long run as my audience increases.  My investment remains relatively flat.

Look at that return on investment vs that fax flyer campaign you just paid for.

Oh, something else, Interaction! I have received 13 comments, 20 or so emails.  Compounds things a little.

What is that worth to you?

It’s time for the Real Estate industry to get a shake up.

Consumers do not trust agents.

Consumers want more transparency in the process.

How about blogging for the real estate industry?

Each agent has a blog, talking about projects, how to help customers, and their area.

Consumers can jump on, read about them, get a real feel for who they truly are.

Agents also maximise exposure of their listings to a motivated audience.

I could go on all day…

Blogs are supposed to be an awesome new strategy to get in touch with your audience.

Some firms are doing it successfully.

This is great, no interruption marketing. Users love it.

However if your blog isn’t consistent and on focus. You are interrupting your audience.

For example if i launch a new product and mention it on my blog. I am interrupting my audience. When my blog comes up in their reader they are expecting another great marketing post. Not shameless self promotion.

Let go and stop interrupting me. It’s annoying.