Nothing says value like the words “FREE.”

Free costs everything to produce, but nothing to consume, and so, it helps feed the consumption engine that each of us relies on.

If people aren’t consuming, then they aren’t buying, so it is your job to fuel the consumption.

Freemium is everything.

It allows you to place faith in the powerful process of “if you build it, they will come.”

It allows you to give your ideas away.

It allows you to put your foot in the door, the door which bars you from an overcrowded room.

You might place value on your words, but your audience does not, therefore it is your job to prove them wrong.

This is what free ebooks accomplish, and this is why you must create one for your readers.

Don’t get me wrong. The goal with a free ebook is not to provide value, but to find a hook with which you can bait potential customers. To get them in the program.

And once you have them on your list, you are free to do with them what you wish.

The ebook is just a distraction. The list is where it’s at. Think not of the value you provide in that book, but of what you can get them to buy in the future.

Since value is unimportant, feel free to throw something together at random. Use a blank document if you must…design is also unimportant.

I would, however,  craft a fancy title so that the hook is shiny and bright.

“But freebooks are a dime a dozen” you say…

It does not matter. No one will read it. They’ll download it, RT the link, and plan to read it, but they never will.

Everyone plays the part to perfection…in the same manner that they share links of posts they haven’t read, comment on posts only having read the headings, and fuel the fires of the consumption engine.

Your way of life…your value as a blogger…relies on the existence of this very machine. It is essential that you understand this.

It is the machine that feeds you.

In a perfect blogging world, every single blogger on the planet would offer a free ebook to their readers. It’s not your ebook that matters, but that of the greater good.

Don’t worry about art, leave that to someone else. Someone that enjoys taking risks.

You might never make a single dime as a blogger, but at least you’ll have something to give away.

At least you’ll feed the machine.

So come up with an idea, at random. The topic doesn’t matter. Write in large, double spaced fonts so that you take up more room, and put it front and center on your blog.

Free ebook for sale!

Use Free eBooks to Fuel the Consumption Engine is a post from: Nathan Hangen

Recommended Posts

• I’m Taking the Gloves Off

Homecoming: First Hug after Afghanistan

You might have seen my video, but in case you didn’t, my son Gabriel, who’s in the above photo, turned 8 this week.

It’s a big deal for me because it seems like it was just yesterday that he had a full mouth of baby teeth and was light enough to carry around.

Time goes too fast.

Anyway, now that my blog is 2, and I feel like I know some of you in the same way that I know my family, I wanted to find a way to celebrate online in the same way we have off.

I talked with Mike about it, and he came up with a great idea. Instead of asking you to send presents (FYI, he loves Bionicles and K’nex), we decided to give something to you in return.

We call it 8 for $8, and it’s our chance to not only have some fun, but to really provide some value in a way that takes price out of the equation. We were going to make it free, but let’s face it…8 for $8 on my son’s 8th birthday just has a ring to it.

Anyway, here’s the deal:

For 8 bucks you get Mike and I on the phone, reviewing your blog live while you bombard us with questions. We’ll record the whole thing and send it to you for free.

We can only do 8 because of time constraints (he is an old man, he needs his beauty sleep), and since we’ll likely have more than 8 people interested, we’re having a sort of competition. Not a huge deal, but you have to tell us why you need the help, over here.

We’ll chose the best 8 responses and get started next Monday. 4 per week.

Interested? Click here to read the post.

Happy Friday!

Guess who Turned 8? is a post from: Nathan Hangen

Recommended Posts

• Think Like a King
• Blog as if Your Life Depended on It
• The Candyman Can [GCN-12]
• Three Leadership Principles for Successful Blogging
• Would You Sell Your Soul for Success?

Editor’s Note: This is a guest post by Catherine of Be Awesome Online, who just announced a really cool project called “Awesome Fear Wrangling.” Check it out!

There’s a simple equation for making ethical money* online:

Problem + Solution = Profit

Step 1. People have problems:

• itchy scalps
• disobedient dogs
• boredom at work
• credit card debt
• pants that don’t fit
• doorknobs that don’t match
• social anxiety
• strange rattling noises from their engines

Step 2. People will pay for solutions to those problems.
Step 3. If you create a website that provides a solution, people will give you money.

Done. Simple. So why isn’t the money rolling in?

You have to answer one more important question:

Why should I choose YOU?

If you have a half-decent idea, you are guaranteed to have a lot of competition.

There are, at last estimate, over 110 MILLION websites on the Internet. Most – let’s be generous and say a hundred million – are obscure derelicts that have never had more than 50 visitors, and you don’t need to worry about them. That still leaves thousands of people who are providing similar solutions to your own.

Put on your plumber’s hat for a second. And the Mario moustache too, why not.

Here I am, on the Internet, looking for some information and help so I can solve my persistent dripping-tap problem. (It’s keeping me awake at night, dammit! This will not do!) There you are, with your No-Drips-No-Plumber-No-Worries e-book. You’re confident it will be exactly what I need: it’s easy, doesn’t need special tools, and is much cheaper than a plumber. It solves my problem excellently well.

So why haven’t I bought it yet?

Because there are 156,000 results on my Google search for “how to fix a dripping tap”. For me to choose you over all the free tutorials and government articles and other paid resources, you have to stand out in some way. Unless you’re comfortable with taking the odds that I’ll choose you over the 155,999 other options…

… plus the really seductive option to do nothing at all.

What the heck do you do?

Provide something unique. Something no-one else can provide.

You provide you. At full volume.

Are you patient and good at explanations? Then brand yourself as The Helpful Plumber: no-nonsense, never patronising, practical plumbing advice for scared laymen. Like Mr Rogers, with a caulking gun.

Are you excitable and dramatic? Then you’re The Singing Plumber! Handy tips, delivered with an operatic twist, tell your friends!

Are you a dog lover? Hello for the Joanna and Barksalot Show: you, a pipe wrench, and your Labrador. (Bark, bark!)

Are you snarky and sarcastic? Then start Don’t Be A Damp Idiot, where you caustically describe other people’s mistakes and how to avoid them.

Think I’m going too far?

Really? Spend five minutes getting a drink of water (it’s important to hydrate), then before you come back to the computer try to remember the plumbers. I bet you remember most, if not all, of them.

Do you remember the last plumber that worked on your pipes? Or was it “just some dude”?

I rest my case.

But I’ll alienate people!

This is very true. I would never, ever give money to the sarcastic plumber, because caustic wit makes me edgy.

The plumber-and-dog I might hire because they seem cool, although I’m not a big dog fan.

The singing plumber I would be overjoyed to give money to.

And the patient plumber? I would hire them even when my plumbing was perfect, just to hear them talk. I would tell all my friends. I would tell my 1200 Twitter followers. I would tell anyone, ever, who mentioned plumbing. I would be their biggest fan.

The biggest advantage

If you provide decent, useful advice: there are tens of thousands of people who can do what you do.

If you combine decent, useful advice with your personality: there are maybe a hundred people who have the same combination of personality traits and expertise? Maybe four. Four. Out of six billion.

I like those odds!

So how do you do it?

1. Choose an aspect of your personality, a hobby, an interest or a quirk. It should be:

• compatible with your topic (Vegan butcher? Maybe not.)
• a positive or neutral trait (Nothing that interferes with the perception of how well you can do the job – like alcoholism, or sloppiness)
• easy to describe (Mime artist. Geek. Astronomy-loving. NOT “collector of late-Renaissance duelling swords”. It’s a pity, because that sounds kick-ass, but it’s too wordy. “Sword collector” would be fine.)

2. Turn it up to eleven.

3. Make it a part of your domain name, business card, products, profile, everything.

How have you made sure you’re hard to replace? Tell me in the comments!

*There are equations for making unethical money, but I am not going to talk about those, thankyouverymuch.

Catherine teaches people how to grow an awesome website and then high-fives them. She’s about to launch her first big product, Awesome Fear-Wrangling: tame your website fears, grow your kick-ass website. Ironically, she’s petrified about it.

Image Credit

Image Credit

How Easily Can You Be Replaced? is a post from: Nathan Hangen

Recommended Posts

• Make Nothing but Art
• Building an Empire is Building a Community
• How to Use Recruiting to Build Your Business
• What’s Missing in Your Marketing?
• How to Build a War Chest

Editor’s Note: This is a guest post by Siddhartha Herdegen, who is what I like to call, a silent killer.

He’s doing great things, but super humble about it. I hope you’ll follow him by clicking the link at the bottom of this post.

Success is not easy – we all know that – but blogging is; it’s just writing.

As an expert in the field of leadership, I often get asked how to be a leader. The simple answer is: figure out how to write a successful blog and you’ll know how to be a leader. And the corollary is true as well. Figure out how to be a leader and you’ll have a successful blog.

They demand the same set of skills:

1. Have a vision.
2. Connect with followers.
3. Communicate your vision in a way that makes them want to follow you.

Most people think they only need help with the last two, but of these the hardest part, believe it or not, is the first step. So I’ll talk about that last.

Connecting with followers

Before people will follow you they have to want to hear what you have to say. They have to like you and/or respect you.

If you’re one of those rare people who are renowned in your field, you’re starting with a leg up on everyone else. If you’re like the rest of us (most of the blogging world), you’ll have to find another way to connect.

The easiest way to connect with people is to get them to see you as a real person. This means opening up and being vulnerable. It means showing some flaws and risking being criticized.

It also means being open to the point that it hurts; becoming completely naked and transparent. Please keep your clothes on. I meant being emotionally naked, as in, without cover.

When you open yourself on your blog two important things happen: people will see you as genuine and authentic and they will find aspects of your flaws that correspond with theirs.

This creates an immediate bond because our flaws are a part of ourselves people don’t openly talk about. We rarely get to see this side of people.  Now suddenly they’ve met someone who is going through the same thing, someone who understands.  There’s a bond of understanding and immediate trust.

Communicating your vision

Once you have introduced yourself as someone they can relate to and care about, you need to communicate your vision.

Reading takes energy. That’s why most people watch TV instead of reading. To get people to actually read your blog takes an engaging writing style. It takes a unique way of saying things. In short, it takes personality. This is what writers refer to as your “voice”.

A lot of people use humor. Humor is engaging, but it’s not for everyone and it will only get you so far. People may visit your blog to see if you have anything funny to say but they aren’t going to take you seriously and probably won’t buy what you’re selling.

What you want to evoke is interest. An intriguing story, a new perspective on familiar problems, or a solution they hadn’t considered. You need to make a point.

You have to communicate in a way that aligns your vision with theirs and you need to do it in a way that tells a compelling story.

For those who are not writers, a “story” is simply a character they can relate to, having a problem that ends with a solution. The main character could be you, or them.  State the problem, then show them the solution.

(For this post, you are the character. The problem is not knowing how to blog successfully. The solution is to implement these steps and blog like a leader.)

Finding your vision

I have saved this until last because I think it is really the hardest part about being a leader. You need to know where you’re going. That’s why people are following you.

If they’ve already got what you’re offering, why should they read?

So you’ve got to come up with something new. Your vision is the way you see the world. In that sense, everyone has a vision since everyone has a worldview. But you need a vision that is compelling.

In order for a vision to be compelling, it needs to solve an existing problem. This is what is referred to as finding your niche. But it’s more than merely a segment of the market – it’s a vision of the world that solves a specific problem.

“I work with idiots” is a worldview. “You can improve your life through conscious effort” is a worldview. “You can make a living blogging” is another. Any of these could be a leadership platform.

The thing you need to figure out is, what is unique about your view and is it compelling? Generally, if you don’t feel passionate about it, it’s not all that compelling.

It takes creativity and critical thinking. Creativity to come up with a unique vision and critical thinking to ensure it will stand up to scrutiny.

As I said, these steps are not easy. But practiced consistently and with purposeful application you will find people respond to your vision and follow you.

Then you will be a successful blogger and a successful leader.

Siddhartha Herdegen is the Assistant Chair of the Leadership Department at the United States Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland. He writes the Leadership Development blog Principles of Failure at http://principlesoffailure.blogspot.com. He can be reached at Principles.of.Failure@gmail.com.

Image Credit: Hamed Saber

Three Leadership Principles for Successful Blogging is a post from: Nathan Hangen

Recommended Posts

• Think Like a King
• Balance – The Secret to Blogging Success
• Blog as if Your Life Depended on It
• How to Use Recruiting to Build Your Business
• The Candyman Can [GCN-12]

Editor’s Note: This is a guest post courtesy of Maren Kate the “Chair Hunter.” I’m a huge fan, not just because she’s generally awesome, but because she’s out there taking bold action and walking the walk. Show her some love by sharing this post and subscribing to her blog.

Writer’s Note: Many of you have probably read the classic How to Win Friends and Influence People. This post is not meant to take away from that great work of art, but rather to add to it, in my own zany way.

Influencing people is great if you’re an entrepreneur, maybe you can convince 10 of them to come see your art show on Saturday night or get them to email their friends with links to your online store that sells fishing equipment. This is all fine and dandy. It’s great to be an influencer, but it’s better to win friends. Winning friends is what separates the super brands like Apple from the generic brands like Augen (Who’s that you say? See – they’re generic).

Setting the stage to win friends and become a super brand…

When you first start a business, either online or off, you inevitably get all fired up and think, “Wow I’m going to make $40k a month in no time… just like Tim Ferriss!” and then a few months in and a few dollars shorter reality sets in. This is where the average man gives up – YOU are not the average man (at least you better not be if you’re here!). You want to escape the 9 to 5, to live a life of freedom that feeds your very nature and allows you to live your passions.

But how do you cross the abyss from wanting to make $40,000 a month to actually making $40,000 a month? It’s a road spattered with blood and tears but there is a shortcut that can be greatly beneficial if you are part of the few who will really work it.

You ask what cows have to do with winning people... I ask what DON'T cows have to do with winning people?!

Winning people works…

Gary Vaynerchuk has won his audience. They adore him. They buy out all the wine he promotes. They clamor to read Crush It! in a night and then tweet about it for weeks. The generic guy who runs a blog about auto parts influences people. Sometimes a reader thinks, “Oh, good point, buddy. I should try that on my gear shaft”, but nobody thinks, “WOW I want to BE this guy”.

If people want to BE you, if they want to follow you around writing down every word you speak and work for you for free (heck they’ll PAY you for the opportunity), congratulations – you’ve WON your people.

A food analogy…

You cook a steak and the friends you’ve influenced say, “Good steak, I may have to have steak for dinner next weekend”. The people you’ve won say, “Oh my gosh! You are a meat genius! Can you give me the recipe? Can I have your email address so I can ask you questions on how to brine it properly? Let’s have lunch together and talk about how you became such a grilling whiz!”

In business, who do you want? The 10,000 people who listen to your pitch and think, “Yeah, this is useful”, or the 100 people who are so psyched on your product and pitch they hunt you down to tell you they want it now!

I had this happen recently. I offer a few different services on Oracle Launch. For a while people used some of them and “liked” them. I had influenced their thinking and they appreciated it, but they weren’t stark raving mad fans. After some tweaking I created a product that WINS people. They try it and love it so much they email me with a gushing note and tell 10 of their friends about this STEAL you absolutely MUST try.

Who do you want? You want the people you can WIN.

How to WIN people…

To win people I’ve found there must be two factors in play. First, you must be a dynamic person or brand – people must either love you or hate you. Secondly, you must have a product that is amazing – people either love it or think it’s dumb and you’re an idiot for producing it.

Many people think people who drive Hummers are asses. Why? They don’t necessarily have a reason – the giant, hulking cars just rub them the wrong way. And they are quick to tell you about it. Most people that drive Hummers know that others stare at their cars – they love it, that is why they bought it.

They don’t care if people think they’re asses, they’re asses who are getting a lot of gawking stares… so screw ‘em. Do you think the execs at Hummer spend one moment worrying about what the haters think? No. They only care about the handful they’ve WON who spend big money to drive a tank around residential neighborhoods. You want to be Hummer.

So start brainstorming some new business ideas that you can WIN people with, not just influence them. Think of a business opportunity that people will either love or hate – then you are set to win your audience, one true fan at a time.

Don’t Influence People, Win Friends is a post from: Nathan Hangen

Recommended Posts

• Building an Empire is Building a Community
• Utopia is within Reach
• The WoW Guide to Building an Empire
• Saturday Project Update: The Project
• How to Develop an Online Empire – Part 4

Mars Dorian is a gamer, a game changer, and a world-dominator in motion.

I couldn’t help but notice his presence in all of the same spots that I was hanging out at, and after talking with him a bit over the past few weeks, I’m now a huge fan.

Help him build his empire by not only reading this post, but RT’ing it and leaving a comment below.

Everyone wants an exciting life, but most people are afraid to take the dragon by the horns.

So they take an easy option – they trash their mind with senseless entertainment and listen to people they shouldn’t listen to.

I used to be one of them – always listening to other people, talking way more than taking action and being busy living a life that wasn’t mine.

One year ago, it came to a critical point. My life was a mess – a dull disaster caused by bland decisions. I was the only one to blame – and I gladly took the full brunt.

When I reached my 25th birthday, I went for a 180° degree spin, and made some radical decisions.

Life’s about decisions

When you look back there will be things you will regret.

You should have created that blog.

You should have talked to that woman.

You should have stepped up.

Do you ever think you take the wrong decisions ?

I don’t think so.

I believe that you always make the right decision – the only one you could make at that specific time. If your life sucks, then you must have taken some pretty lousy decisions in the past. You chose your current lifestyle.

But don’t worry, as long as you’re breathing, there’s still hope. Come on, buckle up, it’s time to rock your digital destiny:

1. When faced with a decision, take the outrageous one.

Outrageous doesn’t mean it has too be super-mega-crazy – nah, it just means it’s something new that you haven’t done before – you’re conquering new frontiers, blowing your comfort zone to bits and pieces.

I spend every single day on connecting with people out of my league, talking to strangers and doing things that make me uncomfortable. Life tends to get more exciting once you value your actions more than your words.

2. Only listen to yourself.

Of course you should embrace positive criticism, but too many people waste their time listening to other people while ignoring their inner voice.

Nobody can really help you with the big decisions in life – everything about you is sooo unique that only YOU know the full potential. Even if your mother, your spouse, or God herself tells you to do something – if it doesn’t align with your inner direction, then you have to drop that advice, it’s useless to you.

3. If no one criticises you, you’re playing the game too safe.

Flying below the radar is a good tactic for a stealth bomber, but if you want to make a splash in the online world, it will be your kiss of death.

This doesn’t mean you should provoke for the sake of provoking – but you should, no, you MUST stand up for what you believe in, even if that throws you directly into the crossfire.

My grandfather always used to say: “If you have no enemies, then you have no personality either.”Pretty strong, but I get his point. The more passion and originality you bring to the world, the more you’ll attract the flak fire.

Don’t cry about it, embrace it with your arms wide open. Some of my posts and videos seem to offend people, and my “dislike” messages pile up like trash. Thanks boys and girls! It looks like I have found my voice after all.

4. You’re going to die soon.

Maybe not tomorrow, maybe not next week, but after that, who knows?

In the not so distant future, YOU and me, we’re going to be a pile of ashes, just like the billions before us.

Before our light switches off for good, let’s leave the world a bit more illuminated!

Great decisions can lead to great situations – if you develop a disregard for where your abilities end and decide to kick-ass, once and for all.

If a decision touches your soul, even at the slightest level, then frickin’ follow it!

Nobody is going to stone you if you fail – on the contrary, no matter how much you screw up ( you can take it) , you’ll always be one experience richer. And that experience will lead to another experience, and so on.

Pretty soon, you’ll get addicted to making bold decisions, and the next time you see yourself in the mirror, you’ll be amazed by what a maverick you have become.

So, if you want to build an empire around your blog, go for it. I certainly want to. I know it takes an insane amount of work, I know it takes daily commitment and enough sweat to fill the Mississippi River. But I have made that decision, and I’m going to stick to it.

Start taking bold decisions, and back them up with massive action.

And maybe, just maybe, you’ll create something awesome along the way.

Where do you want to go today ?

Mars Dorian is obsessed with creativity and personal branding. Go check out his website marsdorian.com and grab
RSS feed today !

Kick-Ass Your Destiny is a post from: Nathan Hangen

Recommended Posts

• Building an Empire is Building a Community
• Marketing is Overrated
• Don’t Influence People, Win Friends
• Write Your Own Story
• What 300 Spartans Can Teach You about Building a Digital Empire

“Way too macho for me.”

I received this message in an unsubscribe email yesterday, and yeah, I know…you’re not supposed to read them and if you do, you’re not supposed to care.

And I don’t, at least not for the reason you might think.

I get them all the time

After a while, they add up, and even though I get a little pissed when I see them, I realize that they’re part of the game. If you’re not getting them, then you’re doing something wrong, so I embrace it in the same way House embraces his leg pain.

It’s nothing a lil’ whiskey can’t cure right?

Besides, they add fuel to the fire, and as you know, I like to keep this fire hot!

Is it really that simple?

Before we disregard this somewhat anonymous comment from a random subscriber, let’s talk about why this one, in particular, bothers me so much.

I get it, the blog is pretty masculine. We talk about dominating, building an empire, battle cries, and becoming a crusader. I can see how someone would say that this blog is drenched in testosterone.

But…let’s be real about it.

Most people need a swift kick in the ass from time to time. Talks of Care Bears don’t get us pumped up…we like to hear rallying cries because that’s what inspires us to take action.

Granted, “macho” might make us uncomfortable, but only because it puts us in the awkward situation of realizing our business is f’ed up and in the need of help.

“Flowers and butterflies are so much more comfy…they’re reassuring and make me feel special.”

Get a grip

The person that sent this email had a blog with very little action. It looked nice, but it was like a store caught in the middle of a zombie invasion. No one was home.

They are obviously uncomfortable with calls to action and talk of world domination, which is fine, but let me ask you this:

Do you want to be educated or entertained?

I’m not here to make you feel special, because in doing that I provide a disservice to you and to humanity.

I’m here to show you where I’ve been and teach you how I got to my present point.

I’m not a guru or a Jedi, I just happen to have a few notches on the hilt of my sword.

I’m in the business of teaching people how to build a business that makes them happy.

I’m not in the business of making people feel happy. You have to get that on your own.

He’s doing it right

Do you know who’s uncomfortable now? I’ll give you a name:

Dana Severson

He just took a risk…a leap of faith, and launched IDesignYourLogo.com with the help of the I Wear Your Shirt guy.

He had an idea and fricking went for it. That’s pretty macho if you ask me.

He’s building a kick ass empire because he’s OK with being scared. He loves storming the gates.

I think you should help him get the word out, because he’s awesome. In fact, you better book a logo before her rates go up.

Macho Kicks Ass

If being macho is a sin, then I’m a sinner baby, and it feels good

Let’s put another level on the castle.

Image Credit

Are You Not Entertained? is a post from: Nathan Hangen

Recommended Posts

• The Secret to Great Marketing
• How to Build a War Chest
• How to Build a Business on a Shoestring
• The Secret to Getting Past Go
• Walking the Path of the Web Warrior