Today, I'd like to introduce you to part 1 (of 7
parts) of my new DIY-Web-Expert Mini Course.

http://diy-web-expert.com

Don't worry, it won't cost you a cent. It's just
my way of saying thank you that you've taken the
time out to have a look at The DIY-Web-Expert site.

You can use these 7 lessons as a companion to The
DIY-Web-Expert monthly lessons to help you
take action and implement the strategies and speed
up your results...

Let's have a look at a summary of what you'll get
inside this exciting new mini course:

- Part 1: What the heck is a blog anyway and why
you should bother setting up your own blog?

- Part 2: How to select the best possible topic
for your own blog/website...

- Part 3: How to optimize your site/blog for both
search engines, as well as your visitors - this
will help you get more traffic later on...

- Part 4: Magical content creation tips that will
let you crank out content like a professional
author on steroids - If you're stuck for ideas on
creating content, this part will just blow you
away!

- Part 5: How to boost the effectiveness of your
website using clever multimedia tricks and tools...

- Part 6: How to drive hoards of new traffic to
your site using sneaky little traffic generation
methods and tactics...

- Part 7: How to create multiple streams of income
from your website creation...

I think you'll find Part 7 of this mini course
most interesting. All the previous parts build on
each other, and climaxes in this final part. But
before I reveal too much, let's get right into the
first part of this course...

http://diy-web-expert.com


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Let's get started NOW...
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So, in today's lesson, you'll learn about the
following:

- What A blog really is and how to get your head
around this whole blogging thing...

- Why you need to set up your own blog if you
haven't done so already...

By the end of today's lesson, you'll have a much
greater understanding of what blogging really is
and how you can benefit from it in this
increasingly fast paced world of the
"blogosphere".

So, let's get straight into it...

**************************************************
1. What A blog really is and how to get your head
around this whole blogging thing...
**************************************************

So what the heck is a blog anyway?

If you're new to the blogging world, you may still
be wondering what on earth a blog actually is.

And you may even feel a little embarrassed or even
ashamed when others talk about blogs and you don't
really know what they're talking about.

Well, don't feel bad, because I'll now help you
demystify this whole blogging thing once and for
all...

The word "blog" is short for "weblog", and it's a
term that was created for a special kind of
website that essentially helps you write down a
"log" of...stuff... well, anything really!

In the "old" days (just a few short years ago now)
a lot of people used blogs as a type of online
journal where they could write down whatever
happened in their lives, and share it with their
friends and family.

And this still happens today. But, nowadays, blogs
are the most popular type of website on the
internet - for both people, as well as for search
engines - but more on this soon...

People now use blogs to publish content related to
any and every topic you could imagine, ranging
from how to raise kids to internet marketing to
personal development - in fact, almost any topic
that you can conceive of.

A blog is really just a special kind of website
that lets you easily publish content whenever you
want and allowing other people to interact with
your content in the form of writing comments in
response to whatever you published.

So, it's quite different from the stuffy old
"static" websites that do not change their content
as a general rule of thumb. Blogs are a lot more
fluid and interactive than the normal "old school"
websites... and much more effective too!

But why have blogs become so extremely popular in
the recent past?

Well, there are at least three reasons...

a. Blogs are popular with the search engines.

Because blogs get updated with new content so
often, search engines lists them very high up on
their search results.

This means that blogs are likely to get more
traffic than normal "static" websites because more
people can find them quickly and easily in search
engines like Yahoo and Google.

Now, if you were a website owner, which would you
prefer? A stuffy old static website that does not
change and does not get listed in the search
engines, or a vibrant ever changing interactive
blog that gets listed in the major search engines?

Easy decision right?

b. Another main reason is because blogs are
interactive.

Whenever you visit a blog, you can read the
original post by the author of the blog, and then
you can also submit a comment expressing your own
thoughts on what the blog post was about.

When other people join the "conversation", things
can get very interesting, and you could end up
with a very exciting collection of thoughts from
people from all over the world.

Because conversation in itself creates a bit of
"drama", people naturally get attracted to it, and
want to be a part of it. And thus, the more people
who do this, the faster this whole blogging thing
grows.

c. And of course, blogs have got to be one of the
easiest kind of websites to set up.

Believe it or not, but you don't actually need any
technical knowledge such as html programming or a
lot of money to be able to set up your own blog.

If you can click a few buttons and type letters on
your keyboard, that's all you need for setting up
your very own blog.

And in some cases, you could even set up a new
blog in a matter of minutes!

But these are only three of many reasons why blogs
are so popular, and there are many other reasons
as well and I'll leave you to explore those for
yourself.

So, in summary, a blog is really just a special
kind of website that allows you to easily add
content, and get other people from all over the
world to absorb and interact with your content on
the internet.

Ok, so now that you know in a bit more detail
about what a blog actually is, let's move onto the
next point...

**************************************************
2. Why you need to set up your own blog if you
haven't done so already...
**************************************************

At this stage, you might be wondering why YOU
should be setting up your own blog.

And you're probably thinking, "Why should I
bother? What are the benefits of having my own
blog? What's in it for me?".

Well, here are a few benefits of setting up and
running your own blog:

a. It's fun and fuflilling!

b. It's easy to set up!

c. It allows you to create a following and
therefore the ability to influence others on a
massive scale.

d. And, you can make money from it - and lots too!
But only if you know how!

Let's now look at each one of these benefits in
some more detail...

First, it's fun!

Blogging has got to be one of the best ways that
you can express yourself on the internet.

It's a place where you can call your own shots and
express the views that you have about any topic.

[My disclaimer: Of course I'm assuming here that
you'll only be blogging about legal stuff!]

As you start growing a following for your blog, it
becomes really fun interacting with people from
all over the world with the same interests as
yourself.

In many cases, you'll meet people through your
blog that could open up many other opportunities
for you.

For example, if you have another website where
you're selling a digital product, you may meet a
potential joint venture partner who may be willing
to promote your products.

This is not uncommon, and in fact, I now get
approached almost daily (I decline most but not all).

It really is a very powerful tool in that sense,
other than being totally fun of course.

Second, blogs are really easy to set up.

You don't even need to have a technical
qualification to set up your own blog. It really
is one of the easiest things to do online these
days.

As I mentioned before, if you can click a few
buttons, and type, you can pretty much call
yourself a blogger.

Third, a blog allows you to create a following and
the ability to influence others on a massive
scale.

I've kinda touched on it before, but by running a
successful blog, you can have a HUGE influence on
the people in the niche area that you're blogging
about.

Take Yaro Starak from Entrepreneurs-Journey.com
for example. He currently has a following of over
50,000 people.

So, every time he writes a new post, over 50,000
people will get to see his post almost instantly.
And in the niche that he's in, that can be a very
powerful and influencial thing indeed.

Everytime he wants to promote a new product, he
simply blogs about it, and gets an instant stream
of traffic to whatever new product he is promoting
- and hence sales.

But I'm getting ahead of myself here. I'll be
covering more about these kind of strategies a bit
later on.

Even if you don't want to use blogging to make
money, you can use it as a tool to influence
others.

If you're really passionate about a topic, like
alternative energy sources for example, you can
write compelling articles about it on your blog,
build your own following, and provide people with
insights into your own research, opinions and
conclusions.

Over time you'll become known as the expert in
your field and people will start contacting you
for interviews and advice about your topic of
interest.

I hope you can see that blogging can be a very
powerful tool indeed - the bottom line is that you
can use blogging to get a following and influence
others to take a certain action - like buying your
products or doing something good for the
environment for example.

And fourth and finally, you can make money from
blogging - and lots too! But only if you know how!

If you know what you're doing, you can make a
decent income from blogging. And over the
following few weeks, you'll be finding out exactly
how to do that with your very own blog too!

There are so many different ways of making money
from your blog, but we'll be covering this in a
lot more detail in part 7 of this mini course. So
make sure you stay tuned for this a bit later on.

There are a number of really great reasons why you
should be setting up your own blog if you haven't
done so already.

Inside the next part of this mini course, I'll
reveal how you can select the best possible topic
for your own blog.

I think you'll discover some amazing insights
inside the second part that I have discovered
through many hours of trial and error
over the last few years.

So, stay tuned for a lot more great information
coming your way!

Here's to your blogging success!

To Our Online Success



Mike Berry (dynamicmike) http://diy-web-expert.com
PS: Before you select a domain name for your blog,
maybe wait for the second part of this mini course
first.

It will help you figure out what kind of topic you
should be blogging about. And this will help you
select a more appropriate domain name for your
blog too.

But if you've already secured your domain name,
don't stress about it. It's not too big a deal in
the long run.

PPS. I have a **VERY SPECIAL** Thanksgiving gift
on my website (click the "Business in a Box" link)
This is available for 24 hours only!

http://diy-web-expert.com