For those of you not on the webinar today, Benjamin’s father is in grave condition and he had to fly back to D.C. to be with his family. Please keep Benjamin and his family in your thoughts and prayers.

Since the WP Dev Course has been cancelled and will be rescheduled, Lisa has graciously offered to pinch hit and offer training for Friday, Jan. 13.

Here’s what we’re going to be doing tomorrow:

• We will use the same registration link as the previously setup webinar for the Dev Course …
• Starting at 9 a.m. Central Standard Time (as scheduled) Lisa will be talking about BuddyPress most of the morning.
• Break for lunch (probably around noon)
• After lunch, starting around 1 p.m. (and know that times may change so be flexible) we will be doing Q&A with Lisa and our theme and plugin dev teams.
• Post your Q&As here on this post please!!!!
• We will end likely around 4 p.m.

Key questions you might have:

• Yes, we will be live streaming via webinar
• Yes, we will be recording and posting the workshop today and tomorrow’s to the membership area along with slides early next week.
• Saturday and Sunday sessions are cancelled and will be rescheduled.
• Customers will be sent emails when the WP Dev Course dates have been set (likely in a month from now)

Thank you for being the kind and patient community you constantly prove to be. And in the meantime, again, please remember Benjamin and his family in your thoughts and prayers.

We’ve just finished the 3rd webinar in a WebDesign.com 3-part series with guest instructor Chris Garrett. The focus of the series was “how to make money with your blog/site”. As the co-author of the book PROBLOGGER: Secrets for Blogging Your Way to a Six-Figure Income, Chris is particularly qualified to lead this series.

Based on participant feedback, Chris over-delivered (and then some)! Thank you, Chris!

In case you missed this final webinar, here are some notes from today’s session.

You can also view the notes from Part1 and Part 2 for a little background.
If you’re a member of WebDesign.com, you can view the replays in your members area.
Part 1 Replay – Build Audience and Traffic With Your Blog
Part 2 Replay – How to Build a Sticky Blog
Part 3 Replay – How to Monetize Your Blog [replay coming soon]

Webinar #3: How to Monetize Your Blog

Perhaps the strongest point Chris made throughout the webinar is that having a profitable blog isn’t just about the money, or instant cash. You have to think long term and focus on building your reputation as someone who is trustworthy AND helpful.

Chris identified two primary ways to make money with your blog:

• Direct Monetization – such as AdSense, Paid Links, etc. (Chris was not an advocate of this method, or of focusing most of your time here. He did recommend a plugin called “Who Sees Ads” if you are going to use ads to generate income.)
• Indirect Monetization – where you don’t make money from the site itself, but rather from selling services, products, etc. to people who visit the site.

One of the key distinctions is that the Indirect Monetization method does not require as much traffic as the Direct methods when you are using products such as AdSense and getting only pennies per click.

In the graphic below, Chris shared the different ways in which he makes money with his blog. He was quick to point out that this is HIS way of doing it based on his experience and expertise. You may use some of the same methods, but will put them together in a unique way or in different ratios.

Trust is an imperative when you are using your blog as a financial asset. Your readers & visitors come to your site because they believe you have worthwhile knowledge to share, and because they trust you will tell them the truth and not misrepresent yourself or others.

Readers are smart. They can tell if you’re being smarmy or just going for the quick cash.  If you violate that trust, they will go away – and perhaps take people with them.

What’s the best way to build trust and authority? Add Value!

When you add value, you are letting people know what you have for them and how it helps solve a problem they have identified for themselves. That doesn’t mean the only thing you talk about are your own products or services. To really add value, you need to think about what the reader really needs, and help them find it. Sometimes that means endorsing someone else’s products or services. (Just make sure you can really stand behind your endorsement. If not, the trust gets broken.)

Chris also provided a lot of detail about how to use Content Marketing as a strategy to build your list and grow your revenue.

Chris also shared what is most important when using email autoresponders, how to use a webinar launch process as a revenue generator, and what – exactly – you need to tell others in your “sales pitch.”

To get the full scope of Chris Garrett’s message, you’ll want to watch the entire webinar!
If you are a WebDesign.com member, you can access the replay in your member area.

At last report, there are around 180 hours of webinars and training available to members.!

If you’re not a member yet, you can register and gain instant access to ALL the recordings at WebDesign.com.

On Wed., February 23rd, Chris Garrett will be back for the final webinar in his 3-part series at WebDesign.com: How To Monetize Your Blog.
Reserve your seat and mark your calendar for 11am central time.

In this webinar Chris will go even deeper into the nitty gritty about how to monetize your blog. Chris loves answering questions, so you can count on there being some great Q & A time as well.

It’s free to attend, but you must reserve your seat.

Reserve your seat here– https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/621950154

You may want to read the notes from Part1 and Part 2 for a little background. If you’re a member of WebDesign.com, you can view the replay in your members area.
Part 1 Replay – Build Audience and Traffic With Your Blog
Part 2 Replay – How to Build a Sticky Blog

(Not a member? You can sign up at WebDesign.com and have immediate access to over 130 hours of training webinars, including the Chris Garrett series.)

Part 3, the final webinar, is on Wednesday, February 23rd at 11am central time.

Register here – https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/621950154

Be sure to check out the Insights From Part 1, as well.

The way to create a “sticky blog” is to build relationships and community, and an environment that encourages people to come back – by making them feel safe, like they belong, and that supports them in achieving their goals.

What’s the big deal about having a sticky blog?

Well, remember, this whole series is about how to make money with your blog. With a sticky blog, a blog people feel like they are a part of, you will

• sell more
• reduce refunds
• get better case studies & testimonials
• learn what your customers really want
• build trust
• and create advocates (the kind of people who bring their friends!)

All of that adds up to more revenue for you, because “happy, loyal customers are much more valuable than one-time buyers.”

Chris G. talked about a number of ways to increase the stickiness factor of your blog.

• Build an environment that encourages comments
• Develop a sense of belonging for your readers – according to Chris, this will help any blog.
• Build community
• Watch out for the pitfalls – no or few comments, personality clashes and/or rude behavior in comments, not providing structure or accountability to help people get what they want, not engaging with your readers.

How do you create an environment that encourages comments?

Chris had a number of pointers:

1. Make it easy to comment.
   Don’t make your readersjump through hoops, like having to register before they can comment. Comments are more of an “in the moment” response from someone. The more they have to do in order to comment, the less “in the moment” they are, hence the less likely they are to comment.
2. Respond to comments.
   People want to know they are being heard and valued. They want to belong. Respond to every – or virtually every – comment you get. This helps create a safe and welcoming zone.
3. Be friends/social.
   Let people know something about you. Share about yourself when you reply to comments. It helps them know you, which helps them like you, which helps them feel good about spending time and money with you.
4. Comment on other blogs.
   Not only is it a great way to get people to visit your site as well (assuming your comments are valuable), it role models for others how you want them to participate with you. If you don’t ever support someone else by commenting on their blog, why would someone support you?
5. Ask questions.
   In your post, ask questions the reader can respond to. And ask them to respond in the comments section. Also, to make it even safer for people, don’t ask questions that have a right or wrong answer. Ask opinion questions or curiosity questions.

These are just some of the lessons Chris Garrett shared in Part 2 of how to make money with your blog.

Part 3, the final webinar, is on Wednesday, February 23rd at 11am central time.
In this webinar Chris will get even deeper into the nitty gritty about how to monetize your blog. Chris loves answering questions, so you can count on there being some great Q & A time as well.

It’s free to attend, but you must reserve your seat.

Reserve your seat today – https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/621950154

NEW – Wednesday – February 16th – 11am –

WebDesign.com PRESENTS Chris Garrett:

How to Build Community With Your Blog

This is part 2 of a 3-part special presentation by Chris Garrett, author of ProBlogger – Secrets for Blogging Your Way to a Six-Figure Income. In this session Chris will talk about how – and WHY – you need to focus on building a community with your blog if you want it to be profitable.

You can read more detail here. As well as take a look at notes from the first session.

Reserve your seat today – https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/706847699

NEW – Thursday – February 17th – 11am

Builder Style Manager EXPOSED

Builder Style Manager is the hottest tool for working with iThemes Builder if you don’t want to mess with any code. In this webinar, you’ll get the nitty gritty about the Builder Style Manager. Plus you’ll learn the ins and outs of what areas of your site can be manipulated by the Builder Style Manager. This is the EXPOSED series where we will go through EVERY setting to provide a firm grasp of the tool.
Reserve your seat today – https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/243450770

Coming up next week…

NEW – Monday – February 21st – 11am – Builder Basics

Learn how to use the Builder theme by iThemes. A comprehensive web development package containing 1 parent theme, 23 child themes, and 9 plugins.
Reserve your seat today – https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/692441610

NEW – Monday – February 21st – 7pm – Members ONLY Chat

This is a twice-a-month event where members of WebDesign.com can request specific training. More information for members at http://university.webdesign.com/member-chat/

• All times are Central Standard Time. You can also see the local time for Central Standard Time and Oklahoma City, where we are based by clicking here.
• Webinars are free to attend live. Playback recordings will be made available to members of WebDesign.com.
• Subscribe to the WebDesign.com Events Calendar via Google Calendar or iCal