Working At Home and Your Health
January 14, 2010
I have been doing the Internet Marketing thing for many years now, and working from home full time just over 2 years and I can say that I thoroughly enjoy this lifestyle.
I love getting up in the morning because my body tells me it’s time – not my alarm clock. In fact, I don’t use my alarm clock any more.
I love the ability to walk my 6 year old son to the bus stop every morning.
I love the ability to decide if I want to work from my home office, or drive the 9 miles to my outside office.
I love being able to go out to lunch with my wife pretty much any time I want.
So many benefits!
But there is one downside that not many people talk about. A side that, if left unchecked, can be disastrous.
Your health.
Let’s face it – working this business is NOT very physical. I spend a LOT of time in front of the computer, sitting. Sometimes with a nice snack at my fingertips, lots of coffee throughout the day and so on.
So last year, after my annual physical, my doctor had me go out for another round of blood tests after just 90 days. Then again. Then once more. After that third time he sat me down and said that, while overall I am healthy (for a 45 year old with a sedentary lifestyle) my blood-sugar was trending upwards. Borderline diabetic – not fully, but heading in that direction.
Not coincidentally, my weight had also gone up over this time to 210lbs. I am 5′10″ so that’s pretty heavy – the heaviest I have ever weighed.
So, the doctor said that before putting me on any medication he wanted me to do the “diet and exercise” thing.
Now, diabetes is definitely in my family – my mother had it. And at 45 I figured I am much too young to have to go on medication for an extended period of time. I worked in the pharmaceutical business for 20 years – I know what goes in to those drugs – no way I wanted that!
This was back in October 09. So it was time to make the choice.
I dusted off the trusty treadmill in our basement and renewed my gym membership. And of course, started documenting everything I ate.
Note: I think that documenting what you eat on a daily basis is the BEST thing to do. Sometimes we have no idea what or how much we eat. Doing this for just a week will seriously open your eyes (if you do it honestly). You can help not only track, but also know the nutritional value of the things you eat. I do this with the help of a site:
I use this site to track what I eat, get ideas for exercise and weight loss, get inspiration and motivation and more. There’s a free version, and Gold membership is very affordable (around $40 – $50 for the year).
Anyway, starting on the treadmill, I would walk 30 minutes per day at 4 mph (2 miles total). I loaded up my Ipod Touch with music I like, stuff I can move to. I also put on things like Tony Robbins courses, etc. Stuff to suit any mood while I walk.
After the first month I decided to try throwing some jogging into the mix. The first attempt I could only do about a quarter mile without stopping. Ouch. But I didn’t get discouraged…
Now I am up to 2 miles without stopping. Some days, I run, some days I walk on an incline (between 6 and 10 degrees). Either way I burn calories.
Fast forward to this week…
Back to the doctor on Tuesday to get the results of my latest bloodtest – I am back in the “normal” range. Officially I have lost 11 pounds (so far) – which isn’t bad considering I started in October and went through the holiday season!
And there’s side benefits…
The daily heartburn is now gone – no more Pepcid. My energy level is up. My knees feel better than they have in quite some time. My moods have been great. My motivation for other parts of my life are off the charts.
So many benefits. My only “regret” is waiting so long and waiting for a health issue to get me going.
Diet and exercise – two words that scare off many people. But let me tell you, laziness today will bring you WAY more problems tomorrow.
Now if I miss a day on the treadmill, I feel it. I have started to actually look forward to the time. Because the time I spend walking or jogging, with my Ipod playing (whether I use my treadmill at home or at the gym), is now my “ME” time. My reflection time. My planning time. My alone time.
Do yourself a favor. Make sure you get to the doctor regularly for checkups. My doctor is thorough and thanks to that, he helped me avoid the next 20 – 30 years on medication. This also saved me from other medical issues that being overweight and unhealthy brings.
Get up and get moving. Join the site I linked to above. Don’t try to do too much at once – be patient and persistent and you WILL succeed. Set measurable goals so you have a target to work towards. My target weight is 185. I will achieve it and maintain it.
If I can do it, anyone can.
To Your Health!
New Year New Goals for 2010
December 29, 2009
Ah, the new year. 2010 just around the corner. You know what that means, right?
Time for new resolutions and goals – made and most likely broken.
Don’t feel bad – I am as bad as the next person 
Over the past couple of years though, I have gotten pretty good at setting and achieving goals, and making New Years Resolutions that I can stick to!
And I want to help you do the same thing. So I have not one, but TWO free downloads for you…
The first report I put out with Fabio Marciano a couple of years back. It’s a comprehensive system for achieving your resolutions. Looking to lose some weight? Quit smoking? Stop drinking? Things like that? It’s not as hard as you think. You can start right here:
Now, the second free download was written and developed by my friend Paul Myers. He wrote it a few years back and it is as relevant today as ever. In fact, I just RE-downloaded it myself for this coming year.
This one you can download without opting in to any newsletter – but I urge you to join Paul’s Talk Biz News. I have been getting his newsletter for many years and it’s one of only two that I get at my main email address. All the rest go to my hardly ever opened “special” email account for all the other lists I am on.
I send Paul’s to my main email because I don’t want to miss an issue.
So, when you go to the download page, scroll down a little to see the OPTIONAL signup form and do yourself a BIG favor… SIGN UP!
This is my last email for 2009. Here’s hoping that you achieve all of YOUR goals for 2010!
Happy New Year!
Michael Ambrosio
22 Free Traffic Secrets
December 10, 2009
Traffic. Traffic. Traffic.
It seems to be all we hear about these days, right?
Well, there’s a good reason for that. Traffic is one of the most important elements for your on line business. No traffic equals no sales equals no income. Pretty straight forward.
I am no stranger to generating traffic for my own sites, as well as for others. But there are so many ways to get traffic it’s hard to decide which way to go.
As far as where to get good, up to date information on some of the traffic techniques being used today, that can be a chore to find as well.
Unless, of course, you already know where to turn – like I do.
My good friend Jonathan Gunson has an awesome interview site where he gets traffic experts to reveal their secrets on how they drive traffic. In fact, he interviewed me on my method.
Traffic Cafe – Jonathans site – has 22 such interviews with various experts. But the best part – they are all free. Just go there and sign up and get instant access to his interviews with me, Dr. Mike Woo-Ming, Mark Joyner, Jack Humphrey, Matt Bacak, David Frey, Carrie Wilkerson…and many more.
If you are a traffic newbie, or a traffic expert, you will get quite a bit out of these interviews.
Like I said, if you don’t know how to get traffic to your site(s), then don’t waste your time creating products, or get into affiliate marketing, etc. Traffic is King.
Click Here to get these interviews now!
The Reasons For A List
September 30, 2009
It’s funny, this business we’re in.
You build a list because you learn that it’s what you MUST do if you want to be able to make money on demand.
So people sign up to your list. Some will buy what you’re promoting, some will read and delete, some will not read and still some will email you and say “Stop send me this crap!” – LOL.
Have you experienced that too? Anyone with a list does – even those who send out ALL good content.
So let me ask you. Why do you have a list?
There’s quite a few reasons…such as, delivering content and sharing knowledge, promoting products, or both. And even as a mechanism to inform your customers of updates, etc.
But at the end of the day, in the internet marketing niche anyway, the ultimate GOAL of a list is to make money. Plain and simple. For most of us, anyway.
I bring this up because I am on a lot of lists. Some with excellent content, like Internet Marketer Duncan Carver. I have been on his list for years and I can tell you that he puts out some fantastic information. And interestingly, there’s no advertising in his emails (at least, not in the emails I get from him).
So does that mean he isn’t looking to earn some money from his list? Well, when you get his email, normally you are directed to read his articles on his blog. And on his blog are…advertisements. So his method isto keep the emails clean and get clicks from visitors to his blog. I’m sure it works nicely for him too 
Then you have those lists that are PURE pitch emails. Every one you open has something to promote. Anything wrong with that? Maybe. That is a personal preference, whether those types of emails bother you or not.
There’s 2 schools of thought for these types of lists. Get off those because they are a waste of time. Or, sign up to them and study the emails, subject lines, etc. And both are viable.
For me, I am signed up to DOZENS of these lists. But what I do is send ALL of them to one email address (not my main one). Then once every month or two, I will take some time to see what catches my eye. What makes me open one email over another. Then learn what they do. Works for me.
And finally, you have those “mixed bag” type emails. You know – a couple of content mailings, followed by a couple of pitch emails. Or, perhaps a nice combination of content/pitch in one email.
This third category is where I have been through most of my emailing days. Try to give some content, promote products and start again.
For a long while, that worked very well for me.
But I noticed a change over the past year or so.
I have noticed a drop in sales, and a rise in complaints. I know some of this is directly related to the economy this year. But I think it also relates to the amount of people coming on line today, compounded by the magnitude of marketers and their competing lists. We’re all “sharing” lists (for the most part). Trying to be unique in all the noise.
No longer does giving away good, quality information guarantee more sales or longer retention. Our market has gotten very impatient, and very distracted by all the “shiny new objects” being thrown around daily.
And here’s something else I noticed. Based on talking with many of my on line marketing friends with lists, it seems that the more they simply promote, the more money they make. Plain and simple.
Many have made a conscious decision to drop the content in their emails and just pitch. They save the content for the blogs (which, when you think about it, is what you SHOULD be doing). Hey – Google loves fresh, quality content. Why send it in an email when you can add it to your blog? Makes sense, right?
At this point, it has now become my own conscious decision to do the very same thing – content on my blogs, pitches in my emails (except in a very few of my lists targeted in other niches or my “Premium Service” clients).
There. I said it. My emails will now be largely pitching products and services while my content will go here or my other blogs.
The nice thing about this is the fact that unsubscribing is easy. I have come to the conclusion that the bulk of my lists were built to make money. So, that will now become my focus.
Hey – I gave away good stuff for years. And my sales declined. So I no longer believe that good, quality content all by itself is what will make people “know, like and trust” you, leading to more sales. It’s simply showing them more products that make you more sales.
Onwards and upwards!
Product Creation Crash Course – Lesson #2
September 4, 2009
It’s time for your second lesson in your Product Creation Crash Course. I hope you found lesson one informative and that you are ready to get started researching topics for your new information product.
This is one of the most talked about subjects in Internet marketing and can be like the search for King Solomon’s mines.
The good news is it really doesn’t have to be that difficult and you can find profitable niches with ease it just requires you to think slightly outside the box.
This step is the exact method I use to find profitable niches and is pretty easy to do!
The first thing you need to do especially with your first product is find a niche that interests you.
This is not always the case and there will be plenty of profitable niches that you do not really interest you at all, but with your first product it is a good idea to find a niche that you have some sort of interest in. It will make the job easier for you.
If you are having difficulty thinking of a good niche that you have interest in, the best thing to do is think about your hobbies.
Just think of things that you enjoy doing like cooking, playing computer games, fishing, DIY, Ebay, collecting stamps etc…
The other thing I should mention here is try not to spend too much time thinking about this as it can prevent you from taking action!
Ok, so once you have got your niche the first thing you need to do is see if it is profitable and people are looking for it!
Remember don’t spend too much time on this just think of something you have an interest in and move on to the next step.
The next thing you need to do is determine how many people are searching for your niche.
To do this you will need a good keyword tool like the one found here: http://freekeywords.wordtracker.com
There are many more that you can use and you can find them by doing a quick search for “keyword tool” in your browser. But for this course we will stick with the one above because it’s fast, free and easy.
Now, perform this test. Go to the link above and type in your main topic, for instance dog training. When you click the button you will see a list of the top keywords on that topic plus how many times the words have been searched for.
By performing this search you will be able to get a good idea if the niche you are interested in is a popular one with lots of people looking for products related to it.
Keep in mind that your niche search results should have more than 1000 searches per month at the very least 500. This is a rough estimate, but it will still give you a good idea of weather or not you should move forward in that niche.
If you did the test above you’ve seen that the top main phrases associated with dog training are:
- free dog training tips
- dog training collars
- in home dog training
- dog training collar
- dog training tips
At least at the time I am writing this. Result will vary.
So you should now do the same with the topic of your choice and pick the top 5 phrases that are being most searched for in your niche.
If you followed the above steps and your niche has less than 500 searches per month then you may want to find another because it may not be worth putting the work in to creating a product on that topic if there are so few looking for it!
So if you have a very small niche, try and think of another niche with more search results.
Once you have found a niche with a decent amount of search results move it time to move on to Step 3 where we will find out if your niche will make you money and we will cover that in your next lesson.
12 Steps to Hordes of Traffic
September 3, 2009
If you’re like me, you will definitely love the idea of attracting hordes of visitors to your websites.
But if anyone has ever told you that can get all the website traffic you want WITHOUT any work being done, then you’ve been shamelessly lied to 
If you want more visitors to your website, here’s a 12-Point “check-list” that could make all the difference for you
But, before I begin, I urge you to read this letter till the end and there’s a BIG surprise waiting for you (hint: a shortcut?)
#1. Make sure your website is promoted every month! – Continuous exposure and search engines will start “liking” your website.
#2. Do not use “black hat” or “grey hat” tactics to trick the search engines. You may get permanently banned from search engines.
#3. Strategically choose the right “mix” of promotional activities (I’ll tell you more about this later).
#4. Get One-way “Back-Links” from other websites to boost Your Search Engine Rankings and Positioning.
#5. Write 4-5 new and original articles every month and distribute UNIQUE versions to leading article directories.(Don’t know how to write? There’s a shortcut for that below as well!)
#6. Write and distribute a Press Release about your website every month. Search engine robots are always lurking around these sites.
#7. Try to get “back-links” from other people’s Blogs and Forums in your niche. Post comments to Blogs and replies to forum threads.
#8. Start writing content for other Blogs. These are not just comments but entire ‘Posts’ for other blogs. Of course, you’ll be allowed to get a back-link for this effort.
#9. Bookmark every article, blog post, video, webpage on your site as well as the URLs of other sites where your content is appearing on all leading bookmarking sites.
#10. Create your profiles on leading social networking sites like Squidoo, Hubpages and so on. Keep them updated with new content every month.
#11. If you are not using VIDEOS, you are leaving too much on the table. Create promotional videos about your product, service or website and distribute to all leading video portals like YouTube, Google etc.
#12. Boost your credibility and bottom-line by getting leading “Authority” sites (wiki sites) to display a link to YOUR website. Add your unique content on high pagerank sites like WetPaint, LittleWiki etc.
Phew!! That’s a lot of “work”… and imagine you doing all these ‘arduous’ tasks each and every month!
Personally, I don’t want to do this… I guess nobody wants to break their head either every month.
And, who wants to do all these when there is an effective “shortcut”?
Many marketers don’t the time, resources or even the “know-how” to get all these ‘back-breaking’ tasks done.
Well… here’s the “secret” shortcut to hire a virtual team of professionals who not only do all these “tasks” for you, but do it well!:
Check it out for yourself. Let a team of highly trained professionals utilize their expertise, resources and time in promoting YOUR online business. Just image how much your sales will increase with all the extra traffic you’ll be getting.
Hope this helps.
Product Creation Crash Course – Lesson #1
August 31, 2009
Welcome to the first lesson in the Product Creation Crash Course.
Each week for the next few weeks you will receive a lesson that will help you learn the ins and outs of product creation.
Firstly, let me say that I am confident that you will find the content in this course invaluable when begin to create your own information products.
The reason I’ve created this short course is to help other people (like you) get started creating their own products. I know it can seem like a daunting task, but believe me when I say it is also the most profitable step you can take for your financial future!
There is a lot of information on the web on how to create your own products but not many of these sources provide a clear and concise step by step plan so that you can get your product out there and making money in the shortest time possible!
So that is what I am going to attempt to do here.
I am confident if you follow the steps within this course you will have your very own killer product that will bring in sales for years to come.
In this first lesson let’s talk a little about why the right mind set means a lot when it comes to creating your own product.
The hardest thing I’ve found and probably many other people find to when they get started with any aspect of Internet Marketing is all of the hard work it involves.
I am not sure how you got interested in Internet Marketing but if you were like me you have probably been pulled in at some point, by all the websites out there that promise untold riches for 5 minutes work!
Don’t get me wrong this is indeed possible, but in my experience not when you are getting started. It is indeed a reality if you have a list of 3,000 responsive buyers that you can send out an email that will make you thousands of dollars within a few days.
Although to start off you need to create that product and build that list and unfortunately that will require some good old fashioned research and elbow grease!
So you will need the correct mind set and I am not going to write pages and pages of motivation for you, except to answer the number one question that stops people taking action or makes them give up in my experience.
I know this question comes up and can be very hard to overcome because I have asked myself the same question plenty of times when I was getting started with Internet Marketing.
Here is the question or questions I found myself asking when I was getting started:
“Is this going to work?”
“Is all this work worth it?”
“Will my product sell?”
These are the three main questions that I found myself asking when I was creating my own product.
Well take it from me the answer to all those questions is “Yes it really does work!”.
If you follow the steps within this course you will see that Internet Marketing does not have some secret formula!
All you have to do is see things through to the end, have the ability to follow a series of steps and probably most important take action!
Whether it takes you 5 days or 5 weeks to follow these steps see them through to the end and I guarantee you will achieve success online!
Once you create your own product and once that is pulling in money you can do the same thing over and over to build a virtual empire.
We have a lot to go over in the next few days if you want to learn how to create your own product, so make sure you look for your next lesson.
Failure is Just the Beginning of Your Journey!
June 18, 2009
You know, not everyone who succeeds in life are the best at what they do. I’ve seen the most educated and skilled people in their field fail, while others who are half as talented succeed.
Why is that?
Most people do everything they possible can to prevent themselves from experiencing failure. They have a simple
misconception that failure is the end of the road. So when they face setbacks or failure, they give up.
The thing is… NO ONE who has ever tasted any level of success without first experiencing the bitter/sweet taste of failure.
You see, failure is only the end of the road when you give up.
One of the best ways to deal with setbacks and failure is to experience it first hand. Embrace your failings and analyze what went wrong so you can make improvements the next time round.
I encourage to get out there and give it a go. Don’t be afraid to make mistakes. If it goes wrong, learn from it. Make changes and move on. Just keep repeating the process until youg it right.
And when you find the correct formula… simply rinse and repeat your way to success.
There Are Few Winners When You Do This
April 9, 2009
Have you ever purchased a product or service on line and decided that you weren’t happy with it? Doesn’t matter why you weren’t happy – just that you weren’t.
What do you do in that situation? I know what I do…
If it costs a decent amount of money, I would ask for a refund. If it were a subscription of some sort, I would cancel it and if it billed me another month, I would ask for that month refunded.
Fair enough, right?
So, then let me ask you this…HOW would you ask for it back? Would you simply go to the product or service owner first? Or would you bypass them and hit up Paypal, or whatever merchant provider they use and file a dispute, or chargeback?
Mind you – I am NOT asking what you would do if you tried 10 times and are frustrated – I am asking what you would do right from the beginning.
Not for nothing, but as someone who has been doing business on line for nearly 10 years, I have only ever filed a chargeback once. After finding the product to be pure crap, then being summarily ignored when asking for a refund.
Listening to some people, you would think they got ripped off on a daily basis. Let me give you an example…
I have a service that charges a good amount of money per month – which is clearly stated on the sales page in several places. I run the payments and subscription through Paypal.
I had a client that decided that they no longer wished to use my service, but their second month was billed. I was emailed and asked (that is being kind) to “…put back the money I took from their account”. I mean, you could see the anger right off the bat – the money I took?? Hmmm…
Well, no big deal. It’s part of the business.
So, I log in to my Paypal to refund this customer and what do I find when I log in? Yup – a dispute…for an UNAUTHORIZED transaction no less.
Now, I find that laughable, seeing as they signed up for a recurring payment and the first payment went through a month prior. They used that because the mindset of those who do that are simple – Hey, if I say it’s unauthorized, I can make them look like a thief and get my money back…
What’s even funnier is the fact that this mindset prevents the person from understanding that that’s NOT how this works. In reality, knowing Paypal the way I do, all I needed to do was provide proof that it was authorized – and considering the first payment was NOT being disputed, this would have been easy. And this person WOULD have lost this dispute – and created bad vibes along the way.
So, I very nicely explained this to the person, telling them a simple “Hey, can you please refund the second month? I am canceling…” and they would have had their money back in their Paypal in about 30 seconds.
The response I got? “Well, I have been ignored by others, so I filed the dispute”
With the kind of mindset displayed, it’s no wonder.
I am a very simple guy – treat people the way you want to be treated. Karma lives in my world, as it does in so many others.
Many of my on line friends would have told me to simply refund them and get them out of your life. And, I could have I suppose. But what I explained to this customer is that when you claim that the payment I “took” was unauthorized, simply because you are too lazy, or scared, or whatever to come directly to me, then you are calling me a thief.
Sorry. Not gonna let that fly. Especially considering that by calling me a thief, you made yourself into a liar. Lock, stock and barrel.
In the end, we traded a few emails, they recinded the dispute and I refunded them. But when you insist on doing business this way, I can tell you that more often than not, people will remember you in not such a positive light. For example, if this person were to email me in six months with a JV request for a new product, that email goes straight into cyber heaven.
No chance.
Spiteful? Maybe. Or, maybe I simply know that somehow this person may in the future call me a liar then withhold any affiliate payments due to me. Bad business is just bad business even if it starts out as something a little personal…
This is just a rant, but it’s food for thought on a few different levels…
Just because you sit behind a keyboard and not across from people does not give anyone the right to treat people poorly. It may give you a feeling of power over someone, but it’s short lived and misguided, to say the least. It ALWAYS comes back around sooner or later.
As has been said by better people than me – character is how you behave/act when no one is looking. Or not sitting across from you.
People WILL remember you and your attitude.
Just because you may have been ripped off by someone does not mean you will get ripped off by everyone. That kind of mindset will hold you back.
Fianlly, don’t automatically assume that because YOU are the one that files a claim that it means the merchant provider will automatically believe you and side with you. They understand fully that there are as many thieves on that side of the credit card too. And, you would be surprised how few people actually win those disputes anyway.
Try asking first. The bad taste you leave may come back to haunt you…
Do You Use Protection?
February 2, 2009
I realize that is kind of a weird question to be asking on a blog, but it’s not what you think.
Look, let’s be blunt here.
I have been on line for quite a few years, and these days I see more and more people trying to make it. But more than 80% are making a very fundamental – and potentially fatal – mistake.
They are not protecting themselves, their loved ones or their ASSets.
http://www.centralnetmarketing.com/recommends/protection
I have told people this story before, but I was once hit with a lawsuit because I was not smart.
This was back in 2006.
Luckily, I was able to settle for about $1500, but man, it could have been MUCH worse.
Long story short, I now protect myself and my business.
You need legal forms on your site that cover various things, like:
Terms and Conditions of Use
Privacy Policy
Anti-Spam Policy
External Links Policy
Earnings Disclaimer
Affiliate Agreement
Digital Millenium Copyright Act (DMCA) Notice
And here’s the best part…this software and all of the forms were created by an ACTUAL lawyer who practices internet law, and is legal counsel to a number of players on line.
His software creates custom forms that, if you hired him to write them for you (if you could even get an appointment) would cost you around three grand. Maybe more.
Now it’s a fraction of the cost.
http://www.centralnetmarketing.com/recommends/protection
I realize “scare tactic” style posts can turn people off, and I also realize that this is not one of those “sexy” software applications, but don’t pooh-pooh this very important message.
It could cost you big. MUCH more than the tiny price of this software…
Here’s one of my sites I use it on, to show you as an example:
http://followupsecretsrevealed.com/fsr/legalstuff.html
It was a snap to use, too.
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