There’s a well-trodden path for developing a viable startup. Come up with an idea, build an MVP, and do beta testing to catch bugs while making the startup better. It’s simple right? One thing I’ve learned is that simple is NOT the same as easy. After four months and tons of beta testing lessons, we’ve officially ended our testing... more
Have you heard this startup narrative? Come up with an idea, build it, launch to an audience that accepts you wholeheartedly, and watch the money roll in. While that may happen to a select few, it’s a bit different for us mere mortals. Before your product is ready for prime time, it needs to be tested by a pool of users who represent... more
Roughly one year ago, I started looking into hiring software developers to build KyLeads and plot world domination. It... more
Before we talk about tripwire offers, there’s something we should all understand. Nothing in business is free. It... more
If no one sees your epic quiz then it might as well not exist. Quiz promotion is important so you get it in front of as... more
Last updated October 15, 2018 Have you ever wondered why it’s so hard to convince someone their beliefs are wrong? It's even harder to convert them to your way of thinking. They tune you out when you talk about things that aren’t in line with what they think. As soon as you talk about what they know to be true they’re all... more
To be blatantly salesy is like using a leaky bucket to fetch water from a stream. You put in more effort for less results. I was at a friend’s house and he got a call on his home phone. He asked me to grab it for him. I picked up the phone, heard the click that transferred me to an operator, and could make out the noise of a busy office.... more
I was talking to a friend of mine the other day about a business idea he had. It was a pretty solid idea with proven demand and he was in a good position to execute on it. He has a relevant audience, the financial resources, and could get a team together quickly. There were two things preventing him from pulling the trigger. He didn’t... more
You’re surfing Facebook and run across a quiz about sculpting your abs. You click through and it has a nice title and the description makes you want to dive right in – so you do. Something is off. The quiz questions seem irrelevant. You answer a few but feel like you’re being shortchanged so you click the back button and write the... more
Last updated on October 23, 2018 Right after traffic, your conversion rates are the best gauge of how well your website is doing. You know what’s crazy? 40% of marketers cite a conversion rate of less than 0.5%. For every 200 people that visit a website, only one person takes the desired action. That’s no good. What do... more
A few weeks ago, we were throwing around ideas about how we could build awareness and an email list for KyLeads ahead... more
Have you ever been on a website, saw an irresistible offer, got it, and felt disappointed in the thank you page?... more
Medium has been around for a while. Some people sing its praises. Others are vocal about how Medium continues to change... more
Website optimization mistakes are everywhere. The internet is an unforgiving place. It's also interesting in that there’s a lot of information freely available. Your public library makes you pay for a card (and late fees) You have to buy physical books You need to pay for the good shows (HBO and Netflix) People on the web... more
Almost no one buys from your website on the first visit. It takes multiple interactions. The onus is on you to create an opportunity for your visitors to come back and interact with your brand. How do you do that? Blog into oblivion? Spam social media? Create awesome videos? No, not exactly. If you said lead magnets then you... more
I can guarantee you’ve experienced message match while wandering the internet (or a failed attempt at message match). Think about the last time you clicked on an ad, social post, or link in an email. Were your expectations met or were you wondering why you were sent to that page? If you were confused, then you’ve experienced message... more
Does your brand exist to make a lot of money or does it have a deeper reason why? Seriously, why was your company formed? Is it worth the bandwidth it takes to render your site or the pixels on your web pages? Many times, no one sits down to think about it. There’s no wider goal or mission. Is yours any different? When I was busy... more
Marketese is your enemy. Marketese kills your conversions. Marketese is to be fought with extreme prejudice. If marketese were a living creature, we’d shoot it in the head, drag it back to its home, shoot all its offspring, burn everything to the ground, then dissolve the remains. Marketese is a disease. If left unchecked, it... more
Headline formulas are like the holy grail of blogging, landing pages, opt-in forms, and quizzes. Why? Because more... more
It’s about time we started optimizing for humans. I started my journey into all things digital a little under a... more
Last updated October 26, 2018 In 2017, Affiliate marketing was responsible for billions of dollars in sales for... more
Imagine you’ve got a deadline to meet. It’s been 15 days out of the 30 you were initially given. You’re working slow and steady; after all, you’ve got two weeks left. The next morning, you’re talking to a few friends over an early lunch at your favorite restaurant. Everyone is sharing what’s going on in their lives — birthdays,... more
