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	<title>Not A Pro Blog with Jordan Cooper &#187; Marketing</title>
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	<itunes:author>Not A Pro Blog with Jordan Cooper</itunes:author>
	<itunes:explicit>yes</itunes:explicit>
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		<itunes:name>Not A Pro Blog with Jordan Cooper</itunes:name>
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	<itunes:keywords>comedy, humor, marketing, advertising, media, technology, business, stand-up</itunes:keywords>
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		<title>Not A Pro Blog with Jordan Cooper &#187; Marketing</title>
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		<item>
		<title>A Message To Comedians: Get Connected Or Die</title>
		<link>http://notaproblog.com/comedians-get-connected-or-die/</link>
		<comments>http://notaproblog.com/comedians-get-connected-or-die/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Fri, 18 Mar 2011 16:45:08 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Jordan Cooper</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Comedy]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Marketing]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Media Industry]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[career]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Comedians]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[comedy]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[comedy career]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[comedy club]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[content creator]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[joke]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[laugh]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[performance]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[stand up comedy]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://notaproblog.com/?p=4139</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[<p>Posted in <a href="http://notaproblog.com/tumblog/audio/">Audio</a></p><p><a href="http://notaproblog.com/wp-content/audio/joshspector.mp3" rel="bookmark" title="A Message To Comedians: Get Connected Or Die" target="_blank">Play Audio</a></p><div><p>I've been doing stand-up comedy professionally for almost 15 years, but for 13 of those years, I was doing it wrong. Maybe not necessarily from the performance or writing perspective, but from the marketing end. While I was driving 7 hours to gigs in the middle of nowhere for less than stellar pay, week in and week out, I thought getting more gigs, booked in more rooms and in front of the right influential people, that I would end up going places. And that I did - going to more low pay one-nighter gigs at bars and clubs. Still barely able to make rent. Still driving the same beat-up car. Still struggling to keep my schedule full so I can get by. Until I got connected. Through this</p></div>]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>Posted in <a href="http://notaproblog.com/tumblog/audio/">Audio</a></p><p><a href="http://notaproblog.com/wp-content/audio/joshspector.mp3" rel="bookmark" title="A Message To Comedians: Get Connected Or Die" target="_blank">Play Audio</a></p><p>I&#8217;ve been doing stand-up comedy professionally for almost 15 years, but for 13 of those years, I was doing it wrong. Maybe not necessarily from the performance or writing perspective, but from the marketing end.</p>
<p>While I was driving 7 hours to gigs in the middle of nowhere for less than stellar pay, week in and week out, I thought getting more gigs, booked in more rooms and in front of the right influential people, that I would end up going places. And that I did &#8211; going to more low pay one-nighter gigs at bars and clubs. Still barely able to make rent. Still driving the same beat-up car. Still struggling to keep my schedule full so I can get by.</p>
<p>Until I got connected.</p>
<p>Through this blog, creating online content, conversations on Twitter and Facebook, guest writing on other sites, attending or speaking at conferences, participating in webinars and joint venturing with other people on creative projects online &#8211; I&#8217;ve made more advancement in my comedy career in 2 years than I have the 13 years previously.</p>
<p>I went from doing 30-35 weeks on the road to hand-picking only the gigs I want to do, eliminating much of the grueling travel and opting to stay close to home more often. I went from taking any and every booking that came my way, regardless of pay, to now declining more gigs than I actually do. I&#8217;m performing on stage less, but I&#8217;m making way more money. I no longer have to just &#8220;get by&#8221;.</p>
<p>That&#8217;s why I don&#8217;t want my fellow creative performers to get stuck in the same rut as I was in. As comedians, you have a very unique gift that can be applied in many different ways across the board. It&#8217;s not just about standing on stage at a comedy club and making 150 drunks laugh at a few jokes. You&#8217;re a content creator, no matter what platform it&#8217;s on. Utilize them all, especially when the internet makes it so fucking easy to get it out there to so many people &#8211; more than the 40 rednecks who you&#8217;re bombing in front of at a dive bar in Tennessee on a Tuesday night.</p>
<p>Recently, I spoke with <a href="http://www.twitter.com/connectedcomedy">Josh Spector</a> of <a href="http://connectedcomedy.com/a-54-minute-discussion-about-how-comedians-should-approach-their-career/">Connected Comedy</a> on how comedians need to approach their career from 2011 onward. Take a listen above.</p>
<p>Don&#8217;t be one of those washed-up dinosaur headliners who let their career slip right by them. Get connected or die.</p>


<p>Related posts:<ol><li><a href='http://notaproblog.com/youtube-views-dont-pay/' rel='bookmark' title='Excuse Me, But YouTube Views Don&#8217;t Pay The Bills'>Excuse Me, But YouTube Views Don&#8217;t Pay The Bills</a></li>
<li><a href='http://notaproblog.com/not-only-as-good-as-your-last-post/' rel='bookmark' title='You&#8217;re Not Only As Good As Your Last Blog Post'>You&#8217;re Not Only As Good As Your Last Blog Post</a></li>
<li><a href='http://notaproblog.com/how-to-write-a-funny-blog-post/' rel='bookmark' title='How To Write A Funny Blog Post'>How To Write A Funny Blog Post</a></li>
</ol></p>]]></content:encoded>
			<wfw:commentRss>http://notaproblog.com/comedians-get-connected-or-die/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>4793</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>The Social Media Strip Club</title>
		<link>http://notaproblog.com/social-media-strip-club/</link>
		<comments>http://notaproblog.com/social-media-strip-club/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Wed, 26 May 2010 13:28:22 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Jordan Cooper</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Marketing]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Social Media]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[business model]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[buzz]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[buzzwords]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[crackwhore]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[delusion]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[engage]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[expert]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[human nature]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[implicit collusion]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[mainstream]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[pimp]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[prostitute]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[selfish needs]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[sense of purpose]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[stripper]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://notaproblog.com/?p=3006</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[<p>Posted in <a href="http://notaproblog.com/category/marketing/" title="Marketing">Marketing</a><a href="http://notaproblog.com/category/social-media/" title="Social Media">Social Media</a></p><div><p>When you see the term "social media" written in the mainstream press as this awe-inspiring, ground-breaking, radical shift in the connected human consciousness (their buzzwords, not mine) - do you roll your eyes and sigh apathetically? When you hear a marketing rockstar ninja expert use the word engage about 84 times in a 7 minute interview, do you vomit in your mouth just a little bit? When you wake up in the morning to find 163 new blog posts, 326 Facebook updates, 831 incoming tweets (not including the redundant aggregation of each individual one on 74 other social platforms) - do you smell a pungent odor emanating from this landfill? Do you get the sense that social media is</p></div>]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>Posted in <a href="http://notaproblog.com/category/marketing/" title="Marketing">Marketing</a><a href="http://notaproblog.com/category/social-media/" title="Social Media">Social Media</a></p><p>When you see the term &#8220;social media&#8221; written in the mainstream press as this awe-inspiring, ground-breaking, radical shift in the connected human consciousness (their buzzwords, not mine) &#8211; do you roll your eyes and sigh apathetically?</p>
<p>When you hear a <a href="http://danzarrella.com/are-you-a-social-media-snake-oil-salesman-or-are-you-a-scientist.html">marketing rockstar ninja expert</a> use the word <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BA4ythM69I0">engage</a> about 84 times in a 7 minute interview, do you vomit in your mouth just a little bit?</p>
<p>When you wake up in the morning to find 163 new blog posts, 326 Facebook updates, 831 incoming tweets (not including the redundant aggregation of each individual one on 74 other social platforms) &#8211; do you smell a pungent odor emanating from this landfill?</p>
<p>Do you get the sense that <a href="http://nathanhangen.com/blog/social-media-has-become-a-virus/">social media is just a delusion</a> we&#8217;re all perpetrating on ourselves with implicit collusion in order to give a sense of purpose and value to <a href="http://www.justinkownacki.com/2010/05/24/i-tweet-therefore-i-am-empty/">our empty lives</a>?</p>
<p>Do you get a feeling that human nature is actually not changing whatsoever, but has designed a construct in which our own <a href="http://notaproblog.com/most-selfish-person-in-the-world/">selfish needs</a> and <a href="http://www.twistimage.com/blog/archives/the-dirty-little-secret-of-the-twitter-elite/">dirty little secrets</a> can be veiled so well to the unsuspecting masses?</p>
<p>Do you think anyone in business who stands to <a href="http://nathanhangen.com/blog/soul-selling/">earn income in any way possible</a>, directly or indirectly, from the use of social media can truly be authentic about their intentions?</p>
<p>This all sounds like the same <a href="http://www.theattractionforums.com/strippers-hired-guns/112716-6-signs-strippers-really-interested-you.html">business model of strippers</a>.</p>
<p>The only difference is that the pole dancer <b>knows</b> what she is and doesn&#8217;t deny it.</p>
<p><strong>So, why can&#8217;t we just admit that <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1_fbQnwcSqE">we&#8217;re all whores</a>?</strong></p>


<p>Related posts:<ol><li><a href='http://notaproblog.com/japan-social-media-extortion/' rel='bookmark' title='Are Companies Using The Japanese Tragedy as Social Media Extortion?'>Are Companies Using The Japanese Tragedy as Social Media Extortion?</a></li>
<li><a href='http://notaproblog.com/confessions-free-addict/' rel='bookmark' title='Confessions Of A Free Addict'>Confessions Of A Free Addict</a></li>
<li><a href='http://notaproblog.com/marketing-blog-readers-or-customers/' rel='bookmark' title='Are Your Blog Readers Your Customers?'>Are Your Blog Readers Your Customers?</a></li>
</ol></p>]]></content:encoded>
			<wfw:commentRss>http://notaproblog.com/social-media-strip-club/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>6982</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Confessions Of A Free Addict</title>
		<link>http://notaproblog.com/confessions-free-addict/</link>
		<comments>http://notaproblog.com/confessions-free-addict/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Thu, 11 Feb 2010 11:35:25 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Jordan Cooper</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Business]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Life]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Marketing]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[addict]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[cheap bastard]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[confessions]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[content]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[free]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[free content]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[free music]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[money]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[sales page]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[sales pitch]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[selling]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://notaproblog.com/?p=2497</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[<p>Posted in <a href="http://notaproblog.com/category/business/" title="Business">Business</a><a href="http://notaproblog.com/category/life/" title="Life">Life</a><a href="http://notaproblog.com/category/marketing/" title="Marketing">Marketing</a></p><div><p>I want everything for free. I want it all for nothing. $0.00 is the only price I want to pay. I will fight tooth and nail to get anything for free. Music, movies and games, I'll try to find a torrent. Any type of news or information, I'll search the heavens and the earth for what I want at no cost. No law will stop me. No moral or ethical argument will persuade me. Yes, I have money to spend - but you will have to pry it from my dead body to get it. I don't care how valuable the content is. To me, it's not worth paying for if I don't have to. I don't care about you. I don't care how much work you've put into it. I don't owe you anything. It doesn't matter how many free</p></div>]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>Posted in <a href="http://notaproblog.com/category/business/" title="Business">Business</a><a href="http://notaproblog.com/category/life/" title="Life">Life</a><a href="http://notaproblog.com/category/marketing/" title="Marketing">Marketing</a></p><p><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eaOSJsqZ-MAe">I want everything for free</a>. I want it all for nothing. $0.00 is the only price I want to pay.</p>
<p>I will fight tooth and nail to get anything for free. Music, movies and games, I&#8217;ll try to find a torrent.</p>
<p>Any type of news or information, I&#8217;ll search the heavens and the earth for what I want at no cost.</p>
<p>No law will stop me. No moral or <a href="http://webworkerdaily.com/2010/01/02/when-is-free-too-much-of-a-good-thing/">ethical argument</a> will persuade me.</p>
<p>Yes, I have money to spend &#8211; but you will have to pry it from my dead body to get it.</p>
<p>I don&#8217;t care how valuable the content is. To me, it&#8217;s not worth paying for if I don&#8217;t have to.</p>
<p><a href="http://notaproblog.com/most-selfish-person-in-the-world">I don&#8217;t care about you</a>. I don&#8217;t care how much work you&#8217;ve put into it. I don&#8217;t owe you anything.</p>
<p>It doesn&#8217;t matter how many <a href="http://nathanhangen.com/blog/gloves-are-off">free products</a> you send me.</p>
<p>It doesn&#8217;t matter how much trust, authority or influence you&#8217;ve created for yourself.</p>
<p>I will never buy your shit. I will never buy your shit. <a href="http://notaproblog.com/marketing-blog-readers-or-customers/">I will never buy your shit</a>.</p>
<p><strong>Now, what are you trying to sell me again?</strong></p>


<p>Related posts:<ol><li><a href='http://notaproblog.com/japan-social-media-extortion/' rel='bookmark' title='Are Companies Using The Japanese Tragedy as Social Media Extortion?'>Are Companies Using The Japanese Tragedy as Social Media Extortion?</a></li>
<li><a href='http://notaproblog.com/ego-stops-learning/' rel='bookmark' title='Are You Letting Your Ego Get in The Way of Further Learning?'>Are You Letting Your Ego Get in The Way of Further Learning?</a></li>
<li><a href='http://notaproblog.com/usp-useless-self-promotion/' rel='bookmark' title='Does Your USP Stand For Useless Self-Promotion?'>Does Your USP Stand For Useless Self-Promotion?</a></li>
</ol></p>]]></content:encoded>
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		<slash:comments>7154</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Are Your Blog Readers Your Customers?</title>
		<link>http://notaproblog.com/marketing-blog-readers-or-customers/</link>
		<comments>http://notaproblog.com/marketing-blog-readers-or-customers/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Thu, 28 Jan 2010 09:50:24 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Jordan Cooper</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Blogging]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Business]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Social Media]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[business building]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[business model]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[cliche]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[community]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[customer experience]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[customer support]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[followers]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[friends]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[help]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[loyal readers]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[making money]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Marketing]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[peers]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://notaproblog.com/?p=2357</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[<p>Posted in <a href="http://notaproblog.com/category/blogging/" title="Blogging">Blogging</a><a href="http://notaproblog.com/category/business/" title="Business">Business</a><a href="http://notaproblog.com/category/social-media/" title="Social Media">Social Media</a></p><div><p>"The customer is always right." It's a business cliche that has been around for ages. While it's debatable whether the accuracy of this exact statement is true, it definitely highlights an omnipresent point that cannot be refuted. Your customers are your business. Without them, you'd be out of business. It's a no-brainer that any business or anyone involved with making money should treat their customers like gold. They're the ones paying your bills, feeding your family and hopefully, maintaining your comfortable lifestyle. There's no question it's important to care for them, nurture them, provide support, foster a relationship, communicate and establish a continued positive</p></div>]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>Posted in <a href="http://notaproblog.com/category/blogging/" title="Blogging">Blogging</a><a href="http://notaproblog.com/category/business/" title="Business">Business</a><a href="http://notaproblog.com/category/social-media/" title="Social Media">Social Media</a></p><p><strong><em>&#8220;The customer is always right.&#8221;</em></strong></p>
<p>It&#8217;s a business cliche that has been around for ages. While it&#8217;s debatable whether the accuracy of this exact statement is true, it definitely highlights an omnipresent point that cannot be refuted. <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aqSTsBEodgE">Your customers are your business</a>. Without them, you&#8217;d be <b>out</b> of business.</p>
<p>It&#8217;s a no-brainer that any business or anyone involved with <a href="http://www.robswebtips.com">making money</a> should treat their customers like gold. They&#8217;re the ones paying your bills, feeding your family and hopefully, maintaining your comfortable lifestyle. There&#8217;s no question it&#8217;s important to care for them, nurture them, provide support, foster a relationship, communicate and establish a continued positive environment for them to purchase in the future. I think we all understand this&#8230; but this begs the question, <strong>just who exactly are your customers?</strong></p>
<p>To get clarification and answer this simple question, I did a quick search on Google for the definition of the word &#8220;customer&#8221;. Here is just a sample of the results:</p>
<p><a href="http://www.yourdictionary.com/customer">Customer</a> &#8211; a person who buys.</p>
<p><a href="http://www.merriam-webster.com/netdict/customer">Customer</a> &#8211; one that purchases a commodity or service.</p>
<p><a href="http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/customer">Customer</a> &#8211; a person who purchases goods or services from another.</p>
<p><a href="http://www.answers.com/topic/customer">Customer</a> &#8211; one that buys goods or services.</p>
<p><a href="http://dictionary.bnet.com/definition/Customer.html">Customer</a> &#8211; one who purchases or receives a product or service from a business or merchant.</p>
<p>What is the one thing all these definitions have in common? A customer is one that <strong>buys something.</strong> If you even want to broaden the scope a bit more: a customer is someone in which a business <strong>makes money from</strong> in a transaction.</p>
<h5>Your blog readers are NOT your customers.</h5>
<p>Sure, maybe some of them are. Maybe some will turn into customers. Maybe some never will. But just because someone is <a href="http://menwithpens.ca/blog-readers-arent-buying">reading your blog</a>, it doesn&#8217;t <strong>automatically</strong> make them a customer.</p>
<p>It also really depends on your business model. Are you even selling any product or service? If so, are the bulk of your blog readers part of the <a href="http://need-information.com/blogging/who-is-your-target-market">target market</a> and demographic you&#8217;re even selling to? If you have nothing available to purchase, then how could <strong>anyone</strong> you encounter even be considered a customer?</p>
<h5>Your peers are NOT your customers.</h5>
<p>Sure, maybe one or two may buy something from you &#8211; that is, if it fits a very important need for them and <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RB5JrPhvhYE">you&#8217;re an expert</a> on the subject. Otherwise, they will most probably <strong>never</strong> purchase anything and make you any money directly.</p>
<p>Peers are business associates. Peers will likely visit your blog quite often. They&#8217;re great to have as a resource for help, support and future business opportunities. It&#8217;s definitely a good idea to foster a good relationship with them, but when it all boils down &#8211; they&#8217;re <strong>not</strong> your customers.</p>
<h5>Your friends, followers and fans are NOT your customers.</h5>
<p>Sure, many of them can be. It&#8217;s quite possible a whole bunch may have bought something from you or will in the future. But out of the hundreds, thousands or even more &#8220;followers&#8221; you have (many of which are faceless names, <a href="http://ariwriter.com">non-engaging types</a> or downright spam automatons) &#8211; what percentage of them are <b>truly</b> buyers?</p>
<p>Platforms like Twitter and Facebook are an absolute must for any business to get the pulse of the market. There&#8217;s a definite benefit in engaging with the community centered around your niche, but it is just that: a <a href="http://www.shoemoney.com/2008/01/14/get-out-of-your-incestuous-circle-jerk-already/">social network</a>. It&#8217;s not necessarily your consumer base. Just because someone retweeted you, @replied, posted on your wall or gave you a &#8220;poke&#8221; &#8211; that doesn&#8217;t <strong>automatically</strong> make them a customer.</p>
<h5>Pay attention to everyone, but focus more on your customers.</h5>
<p>Everyone repeat these three words with me. <strong>This. Is. Business.</strong></p>
<p>If you&#8217;re looking to <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OHHONe4wNJo">make money online</a> through your blog, it&#8217;s imperative that you really grasp this concept well. You&#8217;re creating and maintaining a business. You want to make money. There&#8217;s nothing evil about this! It&#8217;s just cold hard facts. Everything you do should lead towards to your ultimate goals. <strong>Prioritize accordingly.</strong></p>
<p>Should you try to reply to e-mails in a timely manner regardless of who it&#8217;s from? <strong>Sure.</strong></p>
<p>Should you make it a point to thank those who help promote your business? <strong>Absolutely.</strong></p>
<p>Should you encourage discussion within your community and on your blog? <strong>Of course.</strong></p>
<p>But when it comes down to business, real dollars and tangible, sellable assets&#8230; the actual customers, whoever and wherever they happen to be, should <strong>always</strong> be at the forefront of your attention. No questions asked.</p>
<p>Not readers. Not peers. Not followers. Not fans. <strong>But customers.</strong></p>
<p>Repeat those three words again. <strong>This. Is. Business.</strong></p>
<p>Maybe after hearing the cliche of <em>&#8220;the customer is always right&#8221;</em> being used time and time again, we should update it to a more accurate 2010 version: <em>the customer is always <b>first</b>.</em></p>


<p>Related posts:<ol><li><a href='http://notaproblog.com/how-to-build-powerful-blogging-alliance/' rel='bookmark' title='How To Build A Powerful Blogging Alliance'>How To Build A Powerful Blogging Alliance</a></li>
<li><a href='http://notaproblog.com/power-of-hanging-out/' rel='bookmark' title='The Power of Hanging Out'>The Power of Hanging Out</a></li>
<li><a href='http://notaproblog.com/promote-blog-through-online-forums-using-4-words/' rel='bookmark' title='Promote Your Blog Through Online Forums Using Only 4 Words'>Promote Your Blog Through Online Forums Using Only 4 Words</a></li>
</ol></p>]]></content:encoded>
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		<title>Flawless Blogging with Fit Jerk</title>
		<link>http://notaproblog.com/flawless-blogging-fit-jerk/</link>
		<comments>http://notaproblog.com/flawless-blogging-fit-jerk/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Thu, 21 Jan 2010 09:55:13 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Jordan Cooper</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Blogging]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Interviews]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[advice]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[bloggers]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[coaching]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[content is king]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Fit Jerk]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[fitness]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[ftc regulations]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[gurus]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[interview]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Marketing]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[ProBlogger]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[raw]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[real deal]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Uncensored]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://notaproblog.com/?p=2245</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[<p>Posted in <a href="http://notaproblog.com/category/blogging/" title="Blogging">Blogging</a><a href="http://notaproblog.com/category/interviews/" title="Interviews">Interviews</a></p><div><p>The blogger simply known as Fit Jerk has been making waves in the fitness industry with his brash cut-to-the-chase, brutally honest, no bullshit attitude. He doesn't just exude confidence, he epitomizes it. Just take a look at some quotes from Fit Jerk's Fitness Blog and you'll see what I mean: "I don’t like wasting time, I don’t kiss people’s asses, I can’t handle people who feel sorry for themselves. I tell it like it is. I don’t accept the guilt of those who chose to be mediocre in life." "Unlike some 'experts' who are out of shape and completely useless, I can help you get in the best shape of your life. Point blank period. I’m the dude that’s done it, tried it, and</p></div>]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>Posted in <a href="http://notaproblog.com/category/blogging/" title="Blogging">Blogging</a><a href="http://notaproblog.com/category/interviews/" title="Interviews">Interviews</a></p><p>The blogger simply known as <strong>Fit Jerk</strong> has been making waves in the fitness industry with his brash cut-to-the-chase, brutally honest, no bullshit attitude. He doesn&#8217;t just exude confidence, he epitomizes it. Just take a look at some quotes from <a href="http://www.flawlessfitnessbook.com/blog">Fit Jerk&#8217;s Fitness Blog</a> and you&#8217;ll see what I mean:</p>
<p><em>&#8220;I don’t like wasting time, I don’t kiss people’s asses, I can’t handle people who feel sorry for themselves. I tell it like it is. I don’t accept the guilt of those who chose to be mediocre in life.&#8221;</em></p>
<p><em>&#8220;Unlike some &#8216;experts&#8217; who are out of shape and completely useless, I can help you get in the best shape of your life. Point blank period. I’m the dude that’s done it, tried it, and been through it all.&#8221;</em></p>
<p><em>&#8220;You either get with the program or take a hike. But eventually, you know you’ll be back. In fact I know you’ll be back because 95% of the info out there is bullshit, designed to keep you a mindless product-consuming sheep.&#8221;</em></p>
<p>Bloggers out there in any niche can learn a thing or two from Fit Jerk&#8217;s <a href="http://flawlessfitnessbook.com/blog/about-us/fitjerk-bio/">no holds barred</a> approach to marketing. I tend to be on the same page with him on many issues and think the anti-hyperbole may be the new direction for advertising in the coming years.</p>
<p>Although I&#8217;ll freely admit I&#8217;m not strong-willed enough to handle a fitness regimen of any kind&#8230; why don&#8217;t you check out Fit Jerk&#8217;s <a href="http://flawlessfitnessbook.com/blog/the-book/">Flawless Fitness Book</a> and as he puts it, &#8220;have a body that turns heads wherever you go&#8221;. (which for me, is only a 30 feet radius around my computer desk!)</p>
<h5>and now the raw &amp; uncensored interview&#8230;</h5>
<p><span style="color: #000080;"><strong>Q: I think everyone can tell straight off just by the name &#8220;Fit Jerk&#8221; that you mean business and don&#8217;t hold anything back. </strong></span></p>
<p><strong>A:</strong> Yeah, you&#8217;re right. I&#8217;m a straight up kinda guy. I actually got the name from this lady who was one of <a href="http://flawlessfitnessbook.com/blog/the-book/">my first book</a> customers. She wasn&#8217;t taking action so I laid it to her straight. She called me a jerk, but a fit one. I liked it and ran with it. Most authors wouldn&#8217;t raise a finger after making the sale. I&#8217;m not going to be associated with that kind of faggotry.</p>
<p><span style="color: #000080;"><strong>Q: But why should people listen to you? </strong></span></p>
<p><strong>A:</strong> The thing is, people don&#8217;t <strong>have</strong> to <a href="http://flawlessfitnessbook.com/blog/8-reasons-you-shouldnt-listen-to-me/">listen to me</a> and I&#8217;m not out to convince them of shit like that. Those that are skeptical always ask me that question <em>&#8220;why should I listen to you FJ?&#8221;</em> and what I tell them is to <a href="http://flawlessfitnessbook.com/blog/">go read my blog</a>. That&#8217;s it. I don&#8217;t try and <strong>sell</strong> them some bullshit or pressure them with retarded products. I let my writing, my body and the results of the people I train do my talking. What ends up happening is that instead of <strong>me</strong> giving them reasons of why they should listen to me, then end up creating their own.</p>
<p>Some listen to me because I cut the crap and lay it to them straight. Others listen to me because on some disturbing level they find me entertaining. Some listen because I deliver <strong>real</strong> content. Whatever floats their boat.</p>
<p>See, there are too many fat ass morons running around screaming desperately so that people will pay attention to them. That&#8217;s not my style. I don&#8217;t chase. I don&#8217;t kiss ass and I don&#8217;t bend over for people. What I do is lend out my hand, if you take it, cool. If you ignore it, cool. There is a reason I model myself in <a href="http://flawlessfitnessbook.com/blog/the-book/">my own fucking book</a>, it&#8217;s not to show you <a href="http://flawlessfitnessbook.com/blog/about-us/fitjerk-bio/">how awesome I am</a> (ok maybe a little) but it&#8217;s because I like to walk the talk. I find it funny when I see fitness books and the person showcasing the exercises in the book <strong>isn&#8217;t</strong> the author, because they are usually not in any presentable shape. It&#8217;s like &#8220;why?&#8221;</p>
<p>But the even more baffling thing is that there are some fitness authors that look good enough to be in books don&#8217;t bother putting themselves in. Pretty dumb if you ask me.</p>
<p><strong><span style="color: #000080;">Q: So you&#8217;re pretty much an advocate of what I say &#8211; </span></strong><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RB5JrPhvhYE"><strong><span style="color: #000080;">be your own expert</span></strong></a><strong><span style="color: #000080;">, yes? Do you find that after people take your course and read your stuff, eventually they see that most of what you say is pure common fucking sense?</span></strong></p>
<p><strong>A:</strong> Not really. Ha ha, but it depends. See, if I talk to someone who knows what they are doing, they will read my stuff and say &#8220;well, of course! That&#8217;s common sense!&#8221; But what is common sense to them may not make sense for others, especially beginners. See, people make fitness both overly complicated than it needs to be or too simple and see no results. It&#8217;s neither of those things. It&#8217;s in the middle. I realized this through experience, nothing else. I&#8217;ve been to both extremes and it&#8217;s a pretty odd place to be.</p>
<p>Now I have a healthy obsession. Healthy because I&#8217;m not up at night losing sleep trying to read every newly released scientific study under the sun. You can&#8217;t know it <strong>all</strong>. No one can, but you can know a good amount to make shit happen. Now before I turn into a fucking monk, let&#8217;s move on&#8230;</p>
<p><strong><span style="color: #000080;">Q: What are the &#8220;experts&#8221; not telling people in the fitness industry that you are?</span></strong></p>
<p><strong>A:</strong> First let me just say that there <strong>are</strong> legit people out there as far as trainers or even as far as bloggers go. In fact I have 3 categories for them. The first are the awesome sauces of the world, like Jody from <a href="http://truth2beingfit.com">truth2beingfit.com</a>. She comes to my blog because she says I motivate her. It&#8217;s actually quite the opposite, this woman inspires <strong>me</strong> because at 52, she looks <strong>kick ass</strong>. She&#8217;s a lean, mean grandma and knows what she&#8217;s doing. So mad respect. Others that are cool are JC from <a href="http://www.jcdfitness.com">JCD Fitness</a>, Will Brink, Matt Perryman, Nate Green, Lyle Mcdonald and a few others. These people are cool. If you find my obnoxious, too abrasive for your reading pleasure, now you know you have credible options.</p>
<p>The 2nd type of people are the &#8220;fakers&#8221;. These tools don&#8217;t exactly claim to be &#8220;experts&#8221; which is ok, but what gets me going is when they try and sell fitness advice, and yet don&#8217;t know jack <strong>shit</strong>. They blog because they think blogging is cool. You can tell by the way they write that fitness is just some &#8220;make quick cash&#8221; scheme they are dabbling in. These fuckers really annoy me. Fitness and <a href="http://flawlessfitnessbook.com/blog">writing about fitness</a> is my craft and I take this seriously. There are nights I&#8217;ve been up reading studies and books till my eyes bleed&#8230; or till my contacts get dry enough to resemble a shriveled prune&#8230; and then you find some schmuck who recommends the latest diet pill and backs it up with broscience. Lame.</p>
<p>The 3rd type are the sellouts and/or the marketing fairies. Take Christian Thibaudeau for example. I&#8217;ve read his books and articles and respected this guy&#8230; all up till the point where he helped <a href="http://www.tmuscle.com">tmuscle.com</a> push some <strong>bullshit</strong> supplement that promised like 20lbs of muscle in like 2 weeks (or something equally ridiculous). Not even steroids can give you these types of results&#8230; and this just pissed me off. I mean here is a guy who I respected, but now I <strong>have</strong> to lose all respect for him, just because of this move. On top of that he was all like &#8220;I dont even get paid to praise this awesome supplement&#8221;. Heh, first I think thats bullshit and even if that <strong>was</strong> true &#8211; what a stupid move. If you&#8217;re going to sell out like that, at least demand a higher price, dude!</p>
<p>Oh, then there are the acai berry scams etc. Don&#8217;t even get me started with that shit.</p>
<p>So what am I doing different? Well, basically I&#8217;m cutting through the noise and getting back down to Earth with a realistic and <strong>effective</strong> approach. If I tell you to do something it&#8217;s because it works for me and countless others. When I tell you to take something, it&#8217;s because I&#8217;ve taken it in the past and has proven to be effective. Truth be told, I would love to slap the morons spreading the ridiculousness out there, but unfortunately shit splatters.</p>
<p><strong><span style="color: #000080;">Q: Are you annoyed more at them or the fact there are a ton of dumbasses paying them money for it? Have you ever had an &#8220;encounter&#8221; with someone you thought was full of shit? I&#8217;m almost afraid to see what you&#8217;d be like to their face&#8230;</span></strong></p>
<p><strong>A:</strong> Good question, but you can never blame the customer. Money is earned, so when they plunk down their cash they probably believe that it will bring them some benefit, some kind of valuable return on investment. The only reason they believe that is because the douchebag &#8220;expert&#8221; gave them a complete mind fuck. But at the end of the day, I somewhat need these <a href="http://flawlessfitnessbook.com/blog/the-biggest-loser-gets-criticized-by-lame-fitness-pros/">god damn cupcakes</a> running around scamming people, because that&#8217;s when they come running to me.</p>
<p>I make it a goal to be the end of the line when it comes to someone&#8217;s fitness goals. What I mean by this is that they shouldn&#8217;t need to go diet hopping or living in a state of confusion after FJ has graced some truth upon them. They can certainly learn more but a good foundation is what I set out to do.</p>
<p>As for in-person&#8230; Yeah, I&#8217;ve met some idiots in person but not anyone who runs a useless blog. I think they avoid me, which is a wise decision.</p>
<p><span style="color: #000080;"><strong>Q: You seem to give very practical tips on your blog that virtually anyone can understand.</strong></span></p>
<p><strong>A:</strong> Yeah, my writing philosophy is smack-your-face-simple. Step 1: Make it useful. Step 2: Make it simple. So when I start writing, I end up with this massive, sometimes confusing web of thoughts and ideas, but it&#8217;s all useful stuff. Sometimes it&#8217;s gold and the next day I&#8217;m like <em>&#8220;damn I wrote that?&#8221;</em> What I do then is edit, structure and simplify it all down so that even a complete tool with zero skills can understand it. In fact I want people to be able to read an article, then <strong>that very day</strong> go apply whatever they learned.</p>
<p>It&#8217;s a process I call <strong>&#8220;spit first, shine later&#8221;</strong>. I also call it verbal diarrhea but that doesn&#8217;t sound nearly as appealing.</p>
<p><strong><span style="color: #000080;">Q: This is actually quite good advice for any blogger. You&#8217;ve made quite a name for yourself on the </span></strong><a href="http://www.problogger.com"><strong><span style="color: #000080;">ProBlogger.com</span></strong></a><strong><span style="color: #000080;"> forum &#8211; especially since you seem to have more of a grasp of blogging than even some of the &#8220;blogging bloggers&#8221;. How do you think your fitness niche uniquely differs than some of the leading advice given by the blogging gurus?</span></strong></p>
<p><strong>A:</strong> Heh, yeah, Problogger is a cool, tight forum. But it&#8217;s not been all sugarcream and honey rainbows. <a href="http://www.twitter.com/larakulpa">Lara</a> (the mod) consistently gave me fucking hell in the beginning. Two infractions and a shit load of PM&#8217;s. At one point I was apparently on the last stand and she said I&#8217;d get banned if she heard another complaint. Not her fault though&#8230; all these retarded people were bitching like little girls. It&#8217;s a damn forum, don&#8217;t read my stuff if you don&#8217;t like it, know what I mean? No one was forcing them yet they kept on being douches.</p>
<p>Whatever. I can&#8217;t change who the fuck I am and so all I kept doing what what I knew best &#8211; bring value to the forum and connect with cool people. But I also respected the place so I decided that after writing, I&#8217;d go back and edit my spice and throw in a little bit of &#8220;nice&#8221; so I can hang around.</p>
<p>As for the question&#8230; Well, one place where it differs is that I can be diverse. A lot of the <a href="http://www.davidrisley.com">blogging gurus</a> will say &#8220;stick to your niche&#8221;. Well for me, I don&#8217;t have to since fitness is universal. It doesn&#8217;t matter if your&#8217;re an accountant or a fucking race car driver. Everyone wants to live healthier and so what I do is &#8220;spread my seed&#8221;.</p>
<p>I&#8217;ve guest posted for <a href="http://www.MenWithPens.ca">Men With Pens</a> which is a freelance writer site. I&#8217;ve also guest posted for Marko at <a href="http://www.howtomakemyblog.com">How To Make My Blog</a> and have done other non-fitness related interviews. Why? For one, I like what I&#8217;m talking about and two, it gets me known. So when these people ever need to seek fitness advice, that little &#8220;seed&#8221; has been planted and they will think of the one person that has established trust and knows what he&#8217;s talking about. Me. Now a bunch of <a href="http://www.danzarrella.com">marketing geeks</a> will drool over this technique and use it <strong>just</strong> to get exposure and &#8220;to plant seeds&#8221; and hey, to each their own. I don&#8217;t write for anyone I don&#8217;t like. I read <a href="http://www.twitter.com/menwithpens">Men With Pens</a> on a consistent basis and I&#8217;ve gotten to know their editor, so it works for me.</p>
<p>Other than that, the rest of the advice is standard as usual. For anyone that&#8217;s looking for something &#8220;fancy&#8221; &#8211; don&#8217;t bother. Get a blog. Start writing. Invest in yourself so you better your craft. Promote it, connect with others and always remember <strong>content is king</strong>. It&#8217;s not difficult, it&#8217;s just tedious work&#8230; and too many nipple nuggets forget that.</p>
<p><strong><span style="color: #000080;">Q: Do you look more to help everyday average people that may not want &#8220;rock-hard chiseled abs&#8221;? Or is your attitude that if you&#8217;re not going to be 100% passionate about your fitness, you don&#8217;t want to waste your time on them?</span></strong></p>
<p><strong>A:</strong> I help anyone that <strong>wants</strong> to be helped, regardless of their goal. Point blank period. The people that I don&#8217;t want to waste time with are ones that are <a href="http://flawlessfitnessbook.com/blog/the-real-reason-why-you-cant-get-shit-done/">always bitching</a>, whining and complaining. I don&#8217;t care what your goal is. I don&#8217;t care what you think of me and I certainly don&#8217;t care how deep your pockets are. As long as you put that head down and do what I&#8217;m telling you, things will start to happen.</p>
<p>This is one of the reasons why I have so many articles under the <a href="http://flawlessfitnessbook.com/blog/category/useful-fitness-advice/motivation/">motivation</a> category of my site. There isn&#8217;t a lack of information out there (in fact there is actually too <strong>much</strong> info and people get paralyzed), there is a lack of <strong>action</strong>. People read and read and watch videos and listen to podcasts, then just sit at home and bask in the newfound knowledge that they gained without doing anything with it.</p>
<p><strong>FUCK THAT.</strong></p>
<p>You want to know the one place where I had always had the biggest learning experience? No it wasn&#8217;t school. It was the fucking gym. The lessons that I have gained from helping others and training myself was worth more than the weight on the bar. The reason is because there is a gap between theory and reality. This is why transferring information from the head to your hand results in a different experience. You can go read about some cool new workout you read in a magazine but when you go try it, you realize it&#8217;s completely useless. The iron is king. Nothing is above it.</p>
<p><span style="color: #000080;"><strong>Q: You talk a lot of smack talking shit against supplements it seems. Is it just certain &#8220;magical&#8221; ones in general or virtually all of them?</strong></span></p>
<p><strong>A:</strong> Yes and no. A huge pull for my site is the fact that I review supplements, and if you&#8217;ve ever read my <a href="http://flawlessfitnessbook.com/blog/category/reviews/supplement-reviews/">supplement reviews</a>, you&#8217;ll see that I can be quite an ass (when justified). A few companies have blacklisted me from sending future samples because I bashed their shit so hard. But think about this for a minute&#8230; you are a supplement company and are off to send your product to a dude who runs <a href="http://flawlessfitnessbook.com/blog/">Fit Jerk&#8217;s Fitness Blog!</a></p>
<p>If your product is blows chunks, <strong>How do you think</strong> I&#8217;m going to express myself? A fucking monkey could answer that question. I guess some of them feel that I owe them something because they sent me free samples. I don&#8217;t owe them shit. The only person I owe anything to is myself first and my readers second.</p>
<p>The truth is I like supplements. I&#8217;m a fan. But there are just too many insane products that use so much fairy marketing lingo, it&#8217;s crazy. If you want a good laugh, go read the sales copy for <a href="http://www.muscletech.com/products/anabolichalo/index.shtml">Muscletech&#8217;s Anabolic Halo</a>. That shit belongs on a comic book, not in a store.</p>
<p><strong><span style="color: #000080;">Q:  I&#8217;m also assuming the </span></strong><a href="http://www.johncow.com/you-absolutely-must-read-this-before-you-write-another-blog-post-or-promote-another-product/"><strong><span style="color: #000080;">new FTC regulations</span></strong></a><strong><span style="color: #000080;"> haven&#8217;t affected you one bit then. You&#8217;ve been hardcore straight up from day one so there wasn&#8217;t a need to change. Are you secretly hoping they crack down hard on some of the fakers in your niche?</span></strong></p>
<p><strong>A:</strong> No, I&#8217;m too honest for FTC to violate me. If I take the effort to write a deep and detailed review of a supplement (or product) and it happens to be good, I&#8217;ll legitemally want to help the company spread the word and sell it. So at the end of the review I&#8217;ll say <em>&#8220;if you liked what I wrote and if you want to support the site, pick up this supplement from the link below&#8221;</em></p>
<p>So I&#8217;m disclosing the link, and hey, if they are going to buy it anyway, why not support the site that told them all about it? I know I would.</p>
<p><strong><span style="color: #000080;">Q: I&#8217;m a scrawny guy with almost no muscle whatsoever and I sit in front of my computer working for hours on end. What fitness advice would you give to someone like me? Like a full-time blogger?</span></strong></p>
<p><strong>A:</strong> I consider myself a full time blogger by day, yet I still hold another job (coaching gymnastics and martial arts) that I do in the evenings and I can still find time to hit up the gym. So first, I&#8217;d say get a membership. It doesn&#8217;t have to be all frills, but if you want some mass, you will need to lift heavy, and then eventually, heavier. I&#8217;d create a 6-week plan with tons of compound movements and tell you to progressively overload your weight every week. I&#8217;d also focus on volume. Hypertrophy favors volume at 75-80% of your max intensity. But all of this is only accounts for 30% of the success.</p>
<p>The other 70% is your food intake. If you&#8217;re scrawny, then chances are your body fat is already low (I&#8217;m guessing since I&#8217;ve never measured yours), so there is no real point in trying hard to stay shredded. A 45-30-25 ratio (protein-carbs-fats) would be a good way to go. To make things accurate, I&#8217;d calculate your base metabolic rate (the # of calories you burn just to stay alive). Then I&#8217;d factor in your activity level&#8230; which I&#8217;ll consider null. Then I&#8217;d take this number and slap on another 1500 calories on top and you would have your daily intake.</p>
<p>I&#8217;d also tell you to take fish oils, creatine, whey protein &amp; a solid multivitamin. Nothing fancy, just stuff thats tried and true. Those are the basics. Of course, as a client we&#8217;d go into more detail&#8230; which is why I do something called <a href="http://flawlessfitnessbook.com/blog/e-training/">E-Training</a>.</p>
<p><strong><span style="color: #000080;">Q: A much more detailed reply than I expected. I figured it would be </span><em><span style="color: #000080;">&#8220;stop smoking, eating pizza, drinking 4 cups of coffee a day and go for a walk once in a while, you fucking idiot!&#8221;</span></em></strong></p>
<p><strong>A:</strong> Yeah, actually that&#8217;s not bad advice and a good way to start. Now all you gotta do is look in the mirror and say that shit out loud a good dozen times.</p>
<p><strong>Find out more about Fit Jerk by checking out <a href="http://flawlessfitnessbook.com/blog/">Fit Jerk&#8217;s Fitness Blog</a>. You can also follow him on Twitter <a href="http://www.twitter.com/fitjerk">@FitJerk</a>. <em>Just don&#8217;t piss him off!</em></strong></p>


<p>Related posts:<ol><li><a href='http://notaproblog.com/anti-blogging-rule/' rel='bookmark' title='The Golden Rule Of Anti-Blogging'>The Golden Rule Of Anti-Blogging</a></li>
<li><a href='http://notaproblog.com/how-to-build-powerful-blogging-alliance/' rel='bookmark' title='How To Build A Powerful Blogging Alliance'>How To Build A Powerful Blogging Alliance</a></li>
<li><a href='http://notaproblog.com/acquired-by-problogger/' rel='bookmark' title='Not A Pro Blog Acquired By ProBlogger'>Not A Pro Blog Acquired By ProBlogger</a></li>
</ol></p>]]></content:encoded>
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		<item>
		<title>Greatest Liszt Post Ever Written</title>
		<link>http://notaproblog.com/greatest-liszt-post-ever-written/</link>
		<comments>http://notaproblog.com/greatest-liszt-post-ever-written/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Tue, 22 Dec 2009 13:45:30 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Jordan Cooper</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Blogging]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Comedy]]></category>
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		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://notaproblog.com/?p=1651</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[<p>Posted in <a href="http://notaproblog.com/category/blogging/" title="Blogging">Blogging</a><a href="http://notaproblog.com/category/comedy/" title="Comedy">Comedy</a></p><div><p>Franz Liszt was a Hungarian composer, virtuoso pianist and teacher. He was renowned throughout Europe during the 19th century and said by his contemporaries to have been the most technically advanced pianist of his age. As a composer, he left behind a huge and diverse body of work, in which he influenced his forward-looking contemporaries and anticipated some 20th-century ideas and trends... one of which was social media. That's right! Liszt was one of the most prominent representatives of the "Neue deutsche Schule von Bloggen Fachleuten" where he cultivated the next generation of "Soziale Mediengurus" in the conceptual art of branding. Considered by many as the Nostradamus of</p></div>]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>Posted in <a href="http://notaproblog.com/category/blogging/" title="Blogging">Blogging</a><a href="http://notaproblog.com/category/comedy/" title="Comedy">Comedy</a></p><p><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Franz_Liszt">Franz Liszt</a> was a Hungarian composer, virtuoso pianist and teacher. He was renowned throughout Europe during the 19th century and said by his contemporaries to have been the most technically advanced pianist of his age. As a composer, he left behind a huge and diverse body of work, in which he influenced his forward-looking contemporaries and anticipated some 20th-century ideas and trends&#8230; <strong>one of which was <u>social media</u>.</strong></p>
<p>That&#8217;s right! Liszt was one of the most prominent representatives of the <i>&#8220;Neue deutsche Schule von Bloggen Fachleuten&#8221;</i> where he cultivated the next generation of <strong>&#8220;Soziale Mediengurus&#8221;</strong> in the conceptual art of branding. </p>
<p>Considered by many as the <strong><i>Nostradamus</i> of internet marketing</strong>, his teachings and techniques were spurned by peers as having no measurable <em>&#8220;Kehren Sie auf Investition zurück&#8221;</em>. While contemporaries were off creating short 30 second pieces of music for sale during letter opening (Ring tönt as it was called), Liszt did not charge students for lessons whatsoever &#8211; <strong>the first recorded evidence of the power of &#8220;free&#8221;</strong>. (note: 160 years before <a href="http://www.wired.com/techbiz/it/magazine/16-03/ff_free">Chris Anderson penned the idea</a>.) </p>
<p>Of course though, as a forward-thinking marketer, Liszt offered his students little technical advice, expecting them to &#8220;wash their dirty linen at home,&#8221; as he phrased it. <strong>The &#8220;freemium&#8221; model, therefore, was born.</strong> Instead, he focused on musical interpretation with a combination of anecdote, metaphor and wit. (note: 160 years before <a href="http://sethgodin.typepad.com/all_marketers_are_liars/">Seth Godin penned the idea</a>.) </p>
<p>Liszt also wanted to avoid creating carbon copies of himself, but after his death, was unable to control the countless students of his work from <strong>&#8220;scraping&#8221;</strong> his content relentlessly. <u>Hans von Bülow</u> was the most notable <em>&#8220;Seien wollen Sie&#8221;</em>. Notoriously tactless, Bülow alienated many musicians with whom he worked. He was dismissed from his Zürich job for this reason, but at the same time he was beginning to win renown for his ability to conduct new and complex works without a score. (note: 160 years before <a href="http://carsonified.com/blog/web-apps/now-is-the-time-to-cash-in-on-your-passion-by-gary-vaynerchuk/">Gary Vaynerchuk penned the idea</a>.)</p>
<p>Unfortunately, Liszt&#8217;s contributions in the field of social media marketing has been minimized by bloggers worldwide. With his most notable compositions: <i>&#8220;6 Hungarian Rhapsodies&#8221;</i>, <i>&#8220;8 Variations on a Waltz&#8221;</i> and <i>&#8220;14 Years of Pilgrimage&#8221;</i>, the often-used form of link bait was originated. <strong>The Liszt Post.</strong></p>
<h5>Predictions &#038; Quotes Made by Franz Liszt on Social Media</h5>
<p><strong>His prediction on the state of the blogosphere:</strong><br />
<i>A person of any mental quality has ideas of his own. This is common sense.</i></p>
<p><strong>His thoughts about marketing through social media channels:</strong><br />
<i>I find little in the works of Beethoven, Berlioz, Wagner and others when they are led by a conductor who functions like a windmill.</i></p>
<p><strong>His rudimentary founding of the keys to search engine optimization:</strong><br />
<i>Brahms&#8217; Variations are better than mine, but mine were written before his.</i></p>
<p><strong>His ideology about being part of the community as an &#8220;agent zero&#8221;:</strong><br />
<i>The principal task of a conductor is not to put himself in evidence but to disappear behind his functions as much as possible. We are pilots, not servants.</i></p>
<p><strong>His first draft of the now-punchy cliche &#8211; &#8220;content is king&#8221;:</strong><br />
<i>A theatre receives recognition through its initiative, which is indispensable for first-rate performances.</i></p>


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<li><a href='http://notaproblog.com/how-to-write-a-funny-blog-post/' rel='bookmark' title='How To Write A Funny Blog Post'>How To Write A Funny Blog Post</a></li>
<li><a href='http://notaproblog.com/flawless-blogging-fit-jerk/' rel='bookmark' title='Flawless Blogging with Fit Jerk'>Flawless Blogging with Fit Jerk</a></li>
</ol></p>]]></content:encoded>
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		<title>Promote Your Blog Through Online Forums Using Only 4 Words</title>
		<link>http://notaproblog.com/promote-blog-through-online-forums-using-4-words/</link>
		<comments>http://notaproblog.com/promote-blog-through-online-forums-using-4-words/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Tue, 08 Dec 2009 15:32:56 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Jordan Cooper</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Blogging]]></category>
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		<category><![CDATA[megaphone]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[promoting your blog]]></category>
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		<category><![CDATA[spam]]></category>
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		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://notaproblog.com/?p=1359</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[<p>Posted in <a href="http://notaproblog.com/category/blogging/" title="Blogging">Blogging</a><a href="http://notaproblog.com/category/marketing/" title="Marketing">Marketing</a></p><div><p>Participating on internet discussion forums in your niche can be a valuable tool for marketing your blog. Unfortunately, many bloggers take this approach too literally and come across way too strong in their efforts to promote themselves. For those who understand the philosophy in social media (being part of the conversation and not a megaphone), the rules for interaction on forums isn't much different at all. It's about building trust over a period of time, sharing useful information and contributing with well thought out responses that inspire others to participate in the discussion. "But how then do I become part of the elite clique right away and get known throughout the</p></div>]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>Posted in <a href="http://notaproblog.com/category/blogging/" title="Blogging">Blogging</a><a href="http://notaproblog.com/category/marketing/" title="Marketing">Marketing</a></p><p>Participating on internet discussion forums in your niche can be a valuable tool for marketing your blog. Unfortunately, many bloggers take this approach too literally and <a href="http://www.htmlforums.com/the-lounge/t-the-10-different-types-of-forum-spammers-102611.html">come across way too strong</a> in their efforts to promote themselves. For those who understand the philosophy in social media (being part of the conversation and not a megaphone), the <a href="http://robbsutton.com/using-online-forums-to-drive-traffic-to-your-blog/">rules for interaction on forums</a> isn&#8217;t much different at all. It&#8217;s about building trust over a period of time, sharing useful information and contributing with well thought out responses that inspire others to participate in the discussion.</p>
<p><strong><em>&#8220;But how then do I become part of the elite clique right away and get known throughout the community?&#8221;</em></strong></p>
<p>If you want a quicker path to success &#8211; one sure fire way to get noticed is by promoting your blog seemingly every other thread regardless of the context or relevance of the topic at hand. This is especially true if all you do is post blog links and nothing else. Oh, and make sure to have a signature that scrolls for 800 pixels and can cause a blind bat seizures. I guarantee you within a week, you&#8217;ll be the talk of the town. Sure, they&#8217;ll all be making fun of you, using your name as a verb in replacement of the word &#8220;spam&#8221; &#8211; but isn&#8217;t that what the end-goal is in branding? like Xerox or Google!</p>
<p><strong><em>&#8220;A whole week? Isn&#8217;t there anything I can do to get tons of people to my super awesome blog within a day?&#8221;</em></strong></p>
<p>Absolutely. This is exactly why private message systems on forums were invented &#8211; so you can talk to members behind the administrator&#8217;s back (that no-good spam nazi!) and convince them your blog is so much more worthy of their time than this boring website. My only suggestion is to prepare a comeback for when the moderators see that your PM box takes up 1.3 gigabytes of space after sending everyone your exclusive one-of-a-kind eBook. Don&#8217;t worry, just tell them you pressed the wrong button by accident&#8230; 284 times.</p>
<p><strong><em>&#8220;That still seems so time-consuming&#8230; any one-post wonder type solutions?&#8221;</em></strong></p>
<p>Yes, of course. I should have told you this from the beginning. <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cZ2mce70zRc">It just takes four words</a> in your blog link&#8217;s anchor text:</p>
<p><strong><span style="color: #800000;">Megan. Fox. Naked. Photos.</span></strong> &#8216;Nuff said.</p>


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