Kimberly Castleberry shared a wonderful video with Duane Forrester teaching us how to optimize our blogs for success. He’s talking about his book Turn Clicks into Customers. Duane is the Senior Program Manager of MSN and Microsoft. The information that Duane shares is of great value for the blogging community!
As we take Duane’s advice and choose a blog topic that we are passionate about our interest won’t die and we’ll be able to add value to our blog with every post.
If we are planning on monetizing our blog, when we’re driven by passion we won’t give up before the money starts coming in. Duane tells us we need to be patient, recognizing this is a business. When we are blogging about our passions, we won’t be victim of what he says is the biggest killer of blogs; blogging with no passion to carry us through the dark days in the beginning.
If you’re like me, there are many passions to choose from! I’d love to hear how you decided what to blog about!
January 8th, 2011 at 1:36 pm
Hi Linda
I have recently changed my niche for my blog after about 8 months. I think it is important to realise that it can take this amount of time to find your feet, learn the ropes and pick a topic that you are a passionate about. Especially hard if you have many passions. Persistence is required all the same and as I have developed my blogging skills my reason for my blog has also changed.
Belinda
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January 8th, 2011 at 3:56 pm
I can totally relate! When we have so many things that we are passionate about it’s hard to decide! You narrowed it down in eight months, it took me over a year! I say good job to both of us!
January 9th, 2011 at 8:34 am
Hi Linda,
Great info! Understanding the all the backside of blogging is key to success. It does take time and without starting from a brand, it’s hard for people to know what you’re all about. Mine has developed over time and I hope my message is clear.
Have an awesome day!
Val
Val Wilcox @ Empowering Your Life’s Dreams recently posted..Dream It…Live It!
January 9th, 2011 at 3:38 pm
Thanks for sharing the video and for the support for my book Linda.
I’d like to add to the conversation a bit by extending Belinda’s point a bit.
As most bloggers progress, they’ll first have to find their voice. While some scoff at this notion, it’s a critical part of the program. How YOU present ideas is unique to you. This voice may change over time, and it’s often this development of your voice that leads to bloggers changing their website or focus.
In some cases, folks simply feel the need to switch topics. In my experience, this can usually be traced back to the point above on passion. Pick a topic you love anyway, and your blog will thrive. Pick a topic for some other reason (such as picking a topic you think is profitable) and your lack of personal investment will shine through.
You can make almost any niche profitable, but will you have the drive to build your blog until it becomes profitable? True, profits vary with topics, but it’s the passion that helps you endure the tough days before profits arrive.
Anyway, enough of me prattling on – get back to blogging!
Thanks again Linda.
Keep up the great work on your site. 
duane
duane forrester recently posted..Turn Clicks into Customers hits top business book lists
January 9th, 2011 at 7:26 pm
Duane~
I’m honored that you took the time to visity my blog! Kimberly is a fabulous teacher and I’m having the time of my life learning! I have always had an opinion about many things and when I started blogging I wanted to express it! As my confidence in blogging grows, I’m beginning to hear my voice! I’ve switched topics and started http://www.Multiplesclerosis-relief.com. Give me a few more months and I’ll monitize it!
Linda
ps. I bought your book~ can’t wait to read it!
January 10th, 2011 at 8:53 am
SWEET! Thanks Linda.
Best of luck withthe new project, too.
duane
duane forrester recently posted..Turn Clicks into Customers hits top business book lists
January 22nd, 2011 at 11:31 pm
Linda thanks for the shoutout and glad you enjoyed the post!
Duane, glad you stopped by and look forward to seeing more from you in the future. That was a great interview with WPN and I think it helps dispel one of the biggest fears in blogging – that we gotta be that pixel perfect business or it wont work, when in fact the opposite is true today!
Kimberly
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January 10th, 2011 at 1:22 pm
Ultimately, we all want to turn our clicks into customers or in other words readers into potential clients that keep on coming back for more! Sometimes it’s easy to get carried away with running a blog but once in awhile it might be a good idea to step back and see what you can change to make your blog better serve your readers/purpose.
January 10th, 2011 at 7:54 pm
Mandy,
Many of us do want to make money online. And you are right, we need to step back and look!
January 10th, 2011 at 4:32 pm
The video is really have a great value in the blogging community.. I really learned a lot and I would like to thank you for sharing this video. I will surely going to take note those important points I get to that video. Amazing post.
January 10th, 2011 at 7:33 pm
Thanks Phil for taking the time to leave a comment! Why don’t get a picture connected to your comment? It’s simple and free! I made a post about it, check it out here: http://lindagraceonline.com/get-the-focus-on-you/
Linda
January 11th, 2011 at 3:55 pm
I guess it just goes to show our school teachers were right. “Write about what you KNOW!”
Sure, there’s a learning curve when establishing a business blog. But it’s such a relief to know my blog doesn’t have to be a carbon copy of so many others out there… that I can write in my own voice, and be ME.
Thanks for posting this interview, Linda. I am going to share it on my own blog.
Willena
January 12th, 2011 at 5:50 am
I love it Willena! As you know, that is exactly what I did when I read Kimberly’s post!
Linda
ps. I noticed that you don’t have commentluv activated on your blog. (or maybe it’s not acting up at the time) I created a post to show you how, just in case you don’t know!
January 12th, 2011 at 4:13 am
I think he’s right that you have to care about your subject. Blogs written by people for the sake of writing, rather than for the love of writing are not going to be read.
I think starting a blog to make money is the wrong approach. Writing a blog for pleasure and then when it is successful deciding what to do with it, is a much better approach.
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January 16th, 2011 at 7:00 am
Richard,
I agree, reading blogs that the writer is passionate about makes better reading, yet I think if I’m looking for something I don’t necessarily want to do a lot of reading, just find the product, purchase and get out, of course, I need to read enough to trust! Just depends on the purpose of the visit!
January 16th, 2011 at 7:02 am
Richard,
I agree, reading blogs that the writer is passionate about makes better reading, yet I think if I’m looking for something I don’t necessarily want to do a lot of reading, just find the product, purchase and get out, of course, I need to read enough to trust! Just depends on the purpose of the visit!
Linda
January 13th, 2011 at 12:29 am
awesome post and video information is more informative with growth
thanks
January 15th, 2011 at 3:58 pm
Hello Linda
Nice Video. Very informative and entertaining. You normally don’t hear very much stuff like this on Television. Or at least I don’t. But great stuff. Seems like a nice book probably adding to my collection. Appreciate you sharing this Linda.
Steven Dean
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January 15th, 2011 at 9:04 pm
Hey Steve~
I just got my copy of Duane’s book, I can’t wait to read it!
January 15th, 2011 at 4:01 pm
Thank you for sharing this wonderful video Linda. Finding our passion seems to be the topic of the moment and it is certainly something I am still struggling with. However, it keeps coming down to passion, so I guess that is where I need to start. Congratulations on finding your niche and I’m looking forward to your new blog when it is launched.
Louise
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January 15th, 2011 at 9:03 pm
I thank you Louise! It’s fun to finally decide which passion to focus on! Like I said, I get excited about so many things! Narrowing it down to one took me a long time deciding!!
January 15th, 2011 at 6:09 pm
Hi Linda,
You’re always cranking out such amazing content – it’s clear to me as well as your readers that you’re extremely passionate about your work – just as Duane Forrester says will happen if you’re a passionate blogger.
Thank you for sharing his interview – the importance of passion cannot be overemphasized. “First follow your passion” is not only the key to business success, it’s also essential to living a life of overall wellness and joy.
Dena
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January 15th, 2011 at 8:59 pm
Dena-Lynn,
You’re so right! It’s fun to work with you and see your passions too!
January 15th, 2011 at 11:48 pm
Hi Linda
I so agree. If you do not have the passion for your niche then it will be hard to persevere when there are bumps in the road. Blogging needs patience and I believe that if I was not interested in the topics I share, my readers would soon know.
Also it would be hard to stay motivated. Blogging is fun, with the right attitude and in the right niche.
Patricia Perth Australia
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January 16th, 2011 at 6:40 am
Thanks Patricia~
It’s fun to see the passion you have! Your posts always scream your passion!
Linda
January 17th, 2011 at 4:58 am
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January 18th, 2011 at 8:39 am
Lyle,
Thank you for visiting my blog! Why don’t you connect a picture to your comment? I created a post to show you how! I’ll email it to you in case you don’t see this! Check it out here: http://lindagraceonline.com/get-the-focus-on-you/
Linda
January 17th, 2011 at 9:46 pm
Hey Linda
Great video and also great Duane commented. I too like some of the others who have commented are still finding my area of passion. I have too many and need to focus down. I really get what Duane said to Belinda in finding your voice. I remember hearing that when I started blogging almost a year ago and I did not understand it, but I do now.
Thanks for putting this up for us Linda.
Sue
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January 17th, 2011 at 10:39 pm
Sue~
Isn’t it fun recognizing that we have so many things that we enjoy, so many that we have to narrow it down?! It would be tragic to be bored, to have no interests!!
Linda
January 18th, 2011 at 3:25 am
Say thank you for write about incredibly very good informations. Your net is great.I am impressed by the details that you’ve on this blog
January 18th, 2011 at 8:37 am
Thank you for visiting my blog! Why don’t you connect a picture with your comment? I created a post to show you how! Check it out here: http://lindagraceonline.com/get-the-focus-on-you/
January 19th, 2011 at 7:48 am
Linda, thanks for sharing the Duane Forrester video. His points about the need for bloggers to find their voice and passion are so important. Blogging can be difficult for those who anticipate instant success and money. Passion for your topic will keep you going while you work to build a readership base … the money follows the work.
To you success,
Susan
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January 19th, 2011 at 7:04 pm
Susan,
I agree! As we define our passion, it’s nothing but fun blogging about it!
January 19th, 2011 at 9:46 am
You are absolutely right, Linda. Writing what you’re passionate about will definitely help you get through the periods where you feel you’re stuck. I, for one, was stuck myself last year. I found a new passion and wanted to spend more time doing it. In the process, I lost interest in blogging for a while. But during those times, I wanted to write about all those things I’ve been learning. I wanted to keep sharing. So just this new year, I went back and started writing again.
Cherrie Bautista@Young And Fabulous recently posted..Heart Intelligence Vs Mind Intelligence
January 19th, 2011 at 7:03 pm
Cherrie~
It’s great to hear your experiences! I’m glad you’re back to writing again~ I look forward to reading your most resent post!
Linda
January 20th, 2011 at 6:18 pm
Passion is really everything when traveling the long road of blogging. If you don’t have it you will never reach your destination and if you’re not going to reach your destination you have to wonder why start the journey in the first place?
Blogging starts with writing the posts, then you want to promote that post in order to get traffic there. Getting them there is one thing and what they do there all depends on the post. If you’ve done your job right they may turn into a customer, if not you need to work out why.
If you have a product to sell it’s a lot easier than when promoting an affiliate. This is because you may do all the right things in promoting the affiliate but if their landing page isn’t up to scratch you may never make a sale.
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January 21st, 2011 at 6:30 am
Thanks Sire! I’ve got to look at my settings again! I thought I set it to ‘not need moderation’ and I still had to approve this comment~ yikes!
ok, it’s true, passion is everything whether or not you want to monitize! If it’s just to share what you’ve learned to make the world a better place, the passion will be there! Either way, passion and knowledge are what we all need! I am continuing to learn from you~ thank you for sharing.
Linda
January 21st, 2011 at 1:30 pm
He’s right too, if the passion is there people will come back as it’s infective and they want to, subconsciously
be infected with it as well.
That being true why not monetize your blog, even if your intention isn’t to make money (aimed at all those that insist on not doing it) as the potential for making money when you have traffic is greatly increased.
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January 21st, 2011 at 4:09 am
Very informative post, keep posting we will wait for your future updates.
January 21st, 2011 at 5:47 am
Thank you for visiting my blog! I agree, Duane Forrester is awesome! He had a ton of information! I just received his book, I will post more of his information! In the mean time, why don’t you get a picture attached to your comments! check it out here: http://lindagraceonline.com/get-the-focus-on-you/ I’ll send you an email in case you don’t get this message!
January 21st, 2011 at 6:19 pm
Slow and steady is the way to go. You can build a blog in virtually any broad topic and as long as you categorize your topics properly on the sidebar and write interesting 300-400 word articles (they don’t all have to be awesome articles)you will eventually place pretty high in the search results.
It simply takes time, though. If you are passionate about the topics of your blog, of course, that’s better for you. However, you can write just about anything you can think of and be successful if you stay consistent.
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January 22nd, 2011 at 10:39 pm
Thanks for sharing this video of Duane Forrester Linda, it’s perfect confirmation of what Jodie Thompson has been telling us all along. “Choose a topic that you’re passionate about”, it makes absolute sense.
To Your Health Wealth and Happiness
Toni
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January 29th, 2011 at 8:11 am
Hey Toni,
For some reason my spam filter picked up this message! Wierd!
I agree it’s validating to hear other people teach the same things as Jodie and Kimberly!
Find Your Joy,
Linda
January 22nd, 2011 at 11:35 pm
Thanks for sharing this video Linda… and I love how YOUR voice has started to shine. I look forward to seeing what you do with the new site and I know as you grow stronger in that voice its going to carry you a long ways. So proud of ya girlfriend!
Kimberly
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January 24th, 2011 at 7:13 pm
Linda,
Passion is where it’s at, my friend. That comes through loud and clear on a blog—including yours.
To answer your question, my blogging passion is about staying physically fit, walking and keeping a positive attitude.
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January 24th, 2011 at 9:34 pm
Darlene~
I love it! You are very passionate about all you do! It comes through your blog too!
Linda
January 24th, 2011 at 8:35 pm
We don’t just blog because of money. We blog with our passion to write which focuses on what we really loved. There are lots of topics to choose and choosing such topics depends on what we love to read and do. Passion to do what we love encourages us to blog more and share a more exciting post that’s more relevant to what we have started. We became more enjoyable with blogging if we love what we’re doing.
January 25th, 2011 at 7:01 am
I have multiple interests in blogging, i am not sure if it is ok to blog about random things…..my passion is not limited to one thing…because when i write about a certain topic a lot, i start losing interest in it. Is it ok to blog about anything random?
January 28th, 2011 at 9:43 pm
Absolutely! You can blog about anything you want! I think Duane is talking specifically to people who want to monitize their blog! If you want to have faithful readers with specific interestes, you’ll probably need to stick to stick to a certain subject!
February 27th, 2011 at 7:09 am
Hey Linda
Value Value Value
You cannot help but bring value when you are passionate about your product or service.
Peter
Peter Fuller MBA recently posted..How to Attract your Niche to your Blog – Day 3 of 5
February 27th, 2011 at 1:30 pm
Petter~
I’m just starting Duane’s book! I love it! I would be reading it right now if Seattle airport didn’t have WIFI!
Linda
February 27th, 2011 at 1:38 pm
You say the nicest things Linda…
SEATAC has wifi today?! Give it a minute, it’ll go away…
February 27th, 2011 at 1:44 pm
hahahaha! It looks like it’s going to stay until my flight comes!! I only have 15 minutes until I have to get to the gate!!
June 3rd, 2011 at 12:04 am
You are very passionate about your work its really good ideas thanks.
June 3rd, 2011 at 11:31 am
Milton,
And I’m very passionate about iWowWe! Thank you for visiting my blog. I have something to show you, I am so excited about iWowWe Video Emails! I am bursting at the seams! You’ve got to take a look at this! iWowWe honestly delivers a lot of bang for the buck! You can start out for free until you see the ease and value in this service. The compensation plan is very lucrative and it is a MUST have for any business! Check it out here: http://lindagraceonline.com/step-in-front-with-iwowwe-video-email/
Take a look and tell me what you think!
Linda
June 16th, 2011 at 8:35 pm
Duane’s right, every business starts small and it involves a lot of work and passion to grow and turn profitable.
Why would the monetizing of a blog be any different?
Antonia@Conversational hypnosis recently posted..Using Hypnotic Language
September 22nd, 2011 at 9:52 pm
Hello again Linda..
I really admire your site here.. Your such a helper! I will visit your site more often.. Looking forward on your new updates! Keep up the good work!
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September 23rd, 2011 at 11:06 am
Sally,
Thanks for visiting again! It’s good to see you here!
Linda
October 10th, 2011 at 9:16 am
It does take a lot of work to build the right character you want people to see from your blog. You have to be sure that you make your presence felt when you write stuff on the Internet so that you can quickly gain a good reputation in the niche you’re tackling.
October 10th, 2011 at 3:59 pm
Floyd,
You are so right. It’s best to be yourself on all social networking sites. It’s all about relationship marketing, we need to help people to know, like and trust us!
Linda
December 6th, 2011 at 5:41 pm
This is quite an awesome blog you got right here. It’s packed with all the right information and I enjoy reading your articles.
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January 19th, 2012 at 10:07 pm
Thank you for sharing the great article for us.I was searching this information for last 2 days and finally i get it.
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April 30th, 2011 at 11:31 pm
hoping for a follow up post
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May 1st, 2011 at 7:40 am
Thank you for visiting my blog, lindagraceonline.com! I noticed you still don’t have a gravatar! Connecting an image to your comment (actually to your email address) is very important! It’s simple and free! Check out this post and I’ll walk you through it! http://lindagraceonline.com/get-the-focus-on-you/
To your success,
Linda
June 3rd, 2011 at 11:30 am
Thank you for visiting my blog. Here is a great way to make money! I have something to show you, I am so excited about iWowWe Video Emails! I am bursting at the seams! You’ve got to take a look at this! iWowWe honestly delivers a lot of bang for the buck! You can start out for free until you see the ease and value in this service. The compensation plan is very lucrative and it is a MUST have for any business! Check it out here: http://lindagraceonline.com/step-in-front-with-iwowwe-video-email/
Take a look and tell me what you think!
Linda