Membership Site Beta Group

Comments:

1. Jose says:

   July 19, 2008 at 8:20 pm

   Hi Paul,

   I would like to be one of your beta testers. I am in the process of launching a Personal Development blog in Spanish (www.empoderando.com — translates into “empowering”). There aren’t many Spanish-language PD blogs out there, so I know there is market for this. Thank you for your consideration.

   Reply
2. Anand says:

   July 19, 2008 at 9:28 pm

   Sounds like a great opportunity, Paul. I would definitely be interested.

   Reply
3. Evan says:

   July 19, 2008 at 10:13 pm

   I’m definitely interested.

   At the moment I don’t have the money but am looking for a part-time job so this may change soon (hopefully).

   My commitment to blogging and working on a membership site is demonstrated by my having written a blog for more than a year and modifying it in accord with what I have learnt (www.wellbeingandhealth.net). I can send you what I have written so far of my content for the membership course – I think it’s great but if you won’t to read it you can decide). I have a landing page for the course – the Living Authentically page on my blog. My next step is to write a lot of articles to do an article marketing blitz in the couple of weeks or so before the launch (current plan, early October – it’s an 8 week course so this would mean the first group finished by Christmas. Which would give a break and time for reassessment for a second course starting in the new year).

   I hope you will consider me for inclusion. I really click with your approach.

   I think I can contribute to the course by giving feedback on both structure overall and in the structure and content of the lessons. I have a qualification in Adult Education (though not specifically for web-based education). If you want to know my take on teaching it is summed up in Eric Sotto’s When Teaching Becomes Learning. This is THE book on classroom teaching in my (not so) humble opinion.

   Hope you are having a good weekend. Evan

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4. Tim Robinson says:

   July 19, 2008 at 10:19 pm

   Sounds awesome! I’d love to take part

   Also just came up with a good idea for you

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5. Tim Robinson says:

   July 19, 2008 at 10:22 pm

   Sounds awesome! I’d love to take part

   Also just came up with a good idea for you:

   How about launching the first lesson for free, then the 2nd at $2, 3rd at a bit more (like $10) and the reader can use the money they make from blogging while taking your course to pay for futher lessons .

   This way everyone can get started and once they start making money using your advice they can purchase more and more lessons (or pay for more and more months), in turn allowing you to make more money (as a lot more people will be able to take the course) and giving everyone a fair shot

   Cheers, Tim

   Reply
6. Sandy says:

   July 19, 2008 at 11:48 pm

   Hi Paul,
   I am new to blogging; I’ve just started one and am still working on my voice and the type of content I will offer. I am interested in helping you beta test your course. Just to illustrate how new I am to all of this, I have no idea how the RSS feed thing works. I know they’ve been around for a quite a while now and you can totally customize what is fed but the particulars of it all continue to elude me.

   Reply
7. Apollia says:

   July 20, 2008 at 12:02 am

   Well, if you want to see if a rather apathetic person like me can be converted into a passionate blogger with a profitable blog, I’m available.

   I don’t even know what I’d write about, and think I might have trouble making myself write really good, worthwhile stuff on a regular basis, and I also am doubtful that blogging is the right medium for me in general.

   But, even though I’d rather create things that are more significant and useful than just writing, I still can’t deny that writing can be a very powerful thing.

   It’s also something I do a lot of already, without profiting from it. (I have a private journal I write in frequently, and I tend to end up devoting a lot of energy to writing replies to message boards, blogs, opinion surveys, and email ).

   So, maybe I should just set my various excuses aside and try it.

   If selected, I’ll hopefully end up writing some pretty extensive feedback. Except, I sometimes procrastinate and do things rather slowly, and anytime I take on any obligation at all I start to feel rather burdened and like I want to be free of it.

   But, I’ll do my best, I would hate to just accept $97/month worth of education and not provide something adequate in return. I can also do free proofreading if you want, and/or maybe some stuff with HTML, CSS, PHP, Perl, and/or MySQL, though I’m really not some kind of programming guru and don’t know if I ever will be.

   Anyhow, either way, I’ll be happy about being selected or not selected. In the former case, I’ll be happy to learn some probably excellent stuff for free, and in the latter case, I’ll be glad not to have the responsibility/obligation of writing feedback, blog posts, and making a serious effort toward becoming a success.

   Tim Robinson wrote:

   How about launching the first lesson for free, then the 2nd at $2, 3rd at a bit more (like $10) and the reader can use the money they make from blogging while taking your course to pay for futher lessons .

   I like this idea.

   Best wishes,
   Apollia

   Reply
8. Erika Harris says:

   July 20, 2008 at 1:19 am

   Paul,

   Congratulations on creating a win-win scenario for you and your readers! I think the beta test group is a great idea, and I’d very much like to be a part of it. My blog is only a few weeks old, and I could definitely benefit from your courses. I hope for the chance to contribute!

   Erika Harris
   http://www.lifeblazing.com

   Reply
9. JJH says:

   July 20, 2008 at 4:49 am

   count me in Paul

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10. Dean Saliba says:

    July 20, 2008 at 9:23 am

    This sounds like something I might be interested in when it is officially launched.

    Reply
11. Paul Piotrowski says:

    July 20, 2008 at 10:50 am

    Thanks for all the responses. Keep ‘em coming guys. Yesterday I completely re-wrote the first lesson a second time and I think it’s much stronger now. There is a definite difference between “Blog” and “Membership Site”. For a “Membership Site” it makes sense to edit and re-edit your content over and over again to make the lesson as strong as possible even if it takes a while to do that. Then you can spend even more time by introducing pictures, audio, video or anything else that could make the lesson stronger. Of course you could do the same thing with a Blog post, but then it would take you forever to post something With Blogs it’s better to just put it out there, get comments and if needbe clarify by writing another post on the subject…

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12. Leah Whitehorse says:

    July 20, 2008 at 1:54 pm

    I’m happy to offer up my services as a beta tester I like to second Tim’s idea above as well.
    The site my name is linked to is new but I have been running my other site http://www.inlovewithlisbon for over a year so I do understand what the long haul is about. I would like to use what I learn to apply to both sites but my new site is what you might call my ‘lightworker’ site.
    I would be very willing to offer feedback of course. Whatever you decide, whether I’m a beta tester or not, I wish you much success with your course. I think it will help a lot of people.

    Reply
13. Evan says:

    July 21, 2008 at 1:19 am

    Hi Paul,

    A suggestion for (probably) later courses. It would take quite a few students. But the suggestion is to segment the blogosphere. In the discussions I’ve read and courses I’ve done the discussion tends to flow to the Make Money Online side of things. This is understandable but I think there may be differences in other kinds of blogs.

    Yaro quotes Eben Pagan as giving three main niches: health and wellness, money and finance, relationships. I’m not sure that this is the best division but this is the kind of thing I mean. I prefer Edward de Bono’s different type of values (convenience, quality of life, self-importance and distraction).

    I’ve felt a bit isolated as someone interested in health/self-development with all the blogging about blogging bloggers and those interested in making money on line. I’d like to have a place to go for people with the same interests as me. And to discuss how/if it is different in our niche.

    Hope this makes sense. I think there would need to be lots of students to make it work but when you do have considerable numbers I think it will be an idea worth considering.

    Reply
14. Christine says:

    July 21, 2008 at 7:08 am

    Great idea Paul, I would love to be considered for this.

    For myself, it would be perfect timing. I just launched my blog last month and could really use the assistance. I don’t have the traffic yet to monetize so I don’t have any income. The opportunity to be a beta tester would be something I would be really grateful for at this point in time.

    Reply
15. Ginny says:

    July 21, 2008 at 7:59 am

    I have a blog right now and am learning and kind of struggling (new at this!), but feel like I really have something to share and contribute if I could tap in a bit better. I took your survey, too and it was fun. This is an exciting project and I would be honored to participate and help if I can as well as learn something, too.

    Like Christine above said, I don’t have a lot of traffic either (in fact, no one really knows about my blog) therefore no income, but I figure that may take time. It’s not been formally “launched” though it is online.

    Again I would love to participate! Thanks for all you do!

    Reply
16. Alban says:

    July 21, 2008 at 8:58 am

    Hi Paul,
    I just put my blog on its own domain name about a month ago.
    I am definitely convinced that you’re going to be very successful, I can feel the good vibes from your blog, especially since the last two or three month
    So I believe your course is going to be great value. Can I be part of the beta group too?

    Mu blog will be written in French btw, I feel the French people need some good vibes too. Is it ok if it’s not written in English?
    Alban

    Reply
17. Terrence says:

    July 21, 2008 at 9:30 am

    Hi Paul. I love your blog. I too consider myself a student of wealth and I am in the process of developing my own blog. It should be launched this week. I look forward to learning any and everything I can about the blogging business and I would REALLY appreciate being a beta tester for your program.

    Look out for my blog!!

    Reply
18. Diva says:

    July 21, 2008 at 12:16 pm

    I am really interested in being considered for the beta group as well!

    I’ve been blogging for about five years now, primarily with a personal blog, but I’ve written so much non-personal material that I built up a regular readership of several hundred people. A few posts got widely linked and brought in at least a thousand readers and many hundreds of comments, without any effort on my part to market or promote that material.

    I ran a group blog for a short time that got linked and quoted by some other fairly prominent blogs, but I never quite learned to bring all the pieces together and really achieve liftoff.

    Right now I have an alt-spirituality blog that’s definitely a labor of love, and an idea for an independent/world film blog focused on giving exposure to genuinely indie films that are great yet struggling to get their word out, as well as exploring the further possibilities of the web for film distribution, and discussing the spiritual/mythical impact of film on culture. I think I’m more likely to monetize the latter, but I’m hoping that working on a course of study like this will help me figure out where my blogging energies are best directed right now.

    I can also offer proofreading and editing skills in return, and part of my “day job” involves managing a distance learning site for a particular community of adult learners, so I can probably give you good feedback on the structure of the lessons as well.

    Reply
19. zk says:

    July 21, 2008 at 3:59 pm

    good concept , will do well ….best wishes

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20. Thorsten Bonn says:

    July 21, 2008 at 11:56 pm

    Paul, that sounds like a great opportunity. I would love to participate in the beta test group.

    Thanks.

    Reply
21. Sindre says:

    July 22, 2008 at 2:29 am

    Hi Paul, I’m also interested in this opportunity, and I’ll be happy to provide feedback along the way. I have my own PD-blog in Norwegian, and I’m currently in the learning process of how to make money blogging. So I think this might be a win-win

    Thanks!

    Reply
22. Agata says:

    July 22, 2008 at 10:36 pm

    Hey Paul,

    This sounds like a great plan – I’d love to be considered for your blog beta group. Like some of your readers, I too am very excited to start a new blog, am willing to put the time into it, and would really love some help in figuring out all of the nic-nac paddy-whacks of the blogging game

    Thanks a lot.

    Reply
23. Evan says:

    July 24, 2008 at 4:26 pm

    Hi Paul,

    A thought regarding content and quality

    My own view is that quality matters and that quality is not exactly the same as popularity (Happy Birthday to You) is not the worlds best song.

    I think we need to be adding stuff of quality to the world not just making money. But how to do this? When discussion of this occurs on blogs the debate polarises very quickly – this happens with most issues. There are those who think that quality=popularity (give people what they want etc) and then those who find this awful but can’t give much of an alternative. I think you could help people with this by providing two pieces of content and asking people to figure out why one is better than the other. You could provide a few examples from different areas of interest. You could also do a review of a post in the same way as blog reviews are done on some sites. Or you could get students to submit content and ask for others content.

    Hope this makes sense and is useful.

    Evan

    Reply
24. Evan says:

    July 24, 2008 at 5:10 pm

    Some thoughts on marketing from John Lyons and Edward de Bono’s Marketing Without Money. p.170-173 (I’m an Edward de Bono fan.)

    Three aspects of generating word of mouth.
    1. Content. Promote the cause – what customers care about. Generate publicity/discussion of this. Have a natural solution available for the problem/opportunity. This way you don’t need to do hard sell. But people will buy the solution if they experience the problem/want the benefit.

    2. Provocation. Do stuff to get attention. This can be anything from the typical stunt to a good headline. Richard Branson is a genius at this. What does parachuting naked have to do with any Virgin product? Nothing at all. It sure gets attention though.

    3. Challenge. Provoke people’s curiosity or desire to do more. Eg can you (climb the Himalayas, make an income in the exciting toad sexing industry, Be a superb athlete, Handle your relationships with courtesy and genuiness).

    I find this a really useful set of points. Specific enough to start me thinking of ideas, general enough to apply to any industry. Hope you find it helpful.

    Reply
25. Paul Piotrowski says:

    July 24, 2008 at 10:45 pm

    @Evan: Very thoughtful. Hmmmm…. I like that idea.

    Reply
26. Evan says:

    July 27, 2008 at 1:02 am

    Hi Paul,

    More from Marketing Without Money. I don’t know if you’ll find it of any use – and it may be teaching my grandmother to suck eggs, but you can always just ignore it.

    They point out that entrepreneur can enter mature markets and become popular quickly. It seems likely that many of us wanting to make money doing what we love will be in this situation. What these people do is offer great value – either finding a massively cheaper way (which they can keep to themselves) or offer some other value (either a personal approach or serving one particular area that is underserviced). It is then possible for word of mouth to do the marketing for you – which is always the preferred method (high credibility and very low cost).

    They see this as a three stage process. Opportunity recognition, concept development, energetic follow through (ie. getting the details right). It is concept development that is usually left out. Everyone realises that being entrepreneurial is about finding an opportunity (no one tells you how to do this however). They also realise that it takes attention to detail, motivation and so on. They tend to leave out concept development (thinking up newer and/or smarter and/or different ways to do something). It is this part where value is more likely to be created. Otherwise you are awfully vulnerable to just being copied and undercut on price.

    I find this very thought provoking. For creating value they list four considerations: your specific expertise, your profitable delivery, your sustainable position (finding a way that it can’t be easily copied), and deciding whether you want to go customised or standardised.

    Hope you find this useful.

    Reply
27. Paul Piotrowski says:

    July 27, 2008 at 6:27 pm

    Ok, I’ve selected first small group of beta testers (somewhat randomly). They are:

    1) Evan.
    2) Erika Harris.
    3) Dean Saliba.
    4) Leah Whitehorse.
    5) Christine.
    6) Thorsten.
    7) Agata.

    This is just the initial group and I will most likely be letting in more members soon.

    If you’re on the list, I will be emailing you soon with info on how to register for the program.

    Reply
28. Erika Harris says:

    July 28, 2008 at 5:42 am

    Thanks so very much for this opportunity, Paul! I’m excited to get started

    Reply
29. Leah says:

    July 28, 2008 at 6:42 am

    Hi Paul – thankyou! I’m really looking forward to being a Beta tester. I’m excited too

    Reply

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