Blogging & Online Marketing

A lot of people ask me what online tools I use for this and the other blogs that I produce.  There are many different choices for everything from hosting to autoresponders, but here are my basic recommendations.  Some of the links below contain affiliate codes where I get a commission if you end up buying one of the services.  You aren’t charged more, I just get some funding to support maintaining this blog because I sent you to these vendors.  Of course, I can also take care of managing your blog for you and come up with a quote for doing what you don’t want to do:

WordPress – I like and use WordPress as my blogging platform.  It is free, customizable and I have some good resources to help me with web design and what I call WordPress mechanics:

• Tammy Hart Designs – Tammy designed www.thecoachingassociation.com which is a site I manage for independent executive coaches in my network.
• Dawn McAuley - Dawn is my WordPress mechanic and all around Digital Assistant.  She does my tune ups such as getting new plug ins and she fixes things when they break.  Dawn has also created some simple headers and small box ads for me.  She helped me with www.RichmanResources.com which is a blog for Executive and Career Coach, Joyce Richman.  To see the WordPress Themes that I use with clients, check out the portfolio pdf (it takes a LONG time to load, so you have to be patient).

AWeber - I’ve used AWeber since 2006 at the recommendation of just about everyone I know doing internet marketing.  If you are a small shop, this is the easiest and cheapest autoresponder service on the market.  I started using AWeber for my son’s high school PTO website and newsletter and cut my teeth learning on that.  AWeber has changed its pricing structure, but they gave me a nice discount for my nonprofit list and as usual the help desk was really great.  I manage email lists and do broadcast messages, like newsletters, from AWeber.  My West Coast marketing partner, Joy, is more sophisticated than I am about AWeber, but even I can figure out how to make it work.  If you are going to build a mail list and you want your emails and newsletters to actually reach people and not get caught in SPAM filters, you want to go with AWeber.

BlueHost - I host my sites at www.bluehost.com.  I tried two other hosting services first and then made the switch to BlueHost…mainly because I want live help.  I don’t enjoy going to forums and FAQ lists when I have a problem.  Sure, I want to learn some things on my own, but when I am actually trying to get something done and I hit a snag, I want someone to actually talk to me and help me fix it.  BlueHost is definitely price-competitive and I love, love, love their help desk and online chat.

• Idea Catalyst: Helping Create & Package Ideas

  Barbara helps clarify the business concept or product idea and then provides a realistic assessment of what it takes to go from concept to action.

• Market Navigator: Promoting & Positioning Yourself, Your Products, and Your Organization

  Barbara helps design, develop and disseminate knowledge products and services so that they reach target audiences. She offers expertise in managing the unique marketing challenges that arise when your products and services stem from ideas and when your organization’s mission is to disseminate knowledge.

• Real-World Strategist

  Barbara helps set a strategic direction and works through the details to achieve results. She works with you to focus your portfolio of products and services -- whether that product is you or your company -- so that it reaches new markets.