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Twitter Exploit: The Maxi-Tweet

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Today the following Tweet has been retweeted by over 100 people. Nothing unusual about being retweeted – what is unusual is the length of the original Tweet. As you can see, it far exceeds the 140 character limit. MaxiTweet Here is the Maxi-Tweet in its entirety: In the beginning ???? created the heavens and the earth. Now the earth was formless and empty. Darkness was on the surface of the deep. ????’s Spirit was hovering over the surface of the waters.???? said, “Let there be light,” and there was light. ???? saw the light, and saw that it was good. ???? divided the light from the darkness. ???? called the light “day,” and the darkness he called “night.” There was evening and there was morning, one day.???? said, “Let there be an expanse in the middle of the waters, and let it divide the waters from the waters.”???? made the expanse, and divided the waters which were under the expanse from the waters which were above the expanse; and it was so. ???? called the expanse “sky.” There was evening and there was morning, a second day.???? said, “Let the waters under the sky be gathered together to one place, and let the dry land appear”; and it was so. ???? called the dry land “earth,” and the gathering together of the waters he called “seas.” ???? saw that it was good.???? said, “Let the earth yield grass, herbs yielding seed, and fruit trees bearing fruit after their kind, with its seed in it, on the earth”; and it was so.The earth yielded grass, herbs yielding seed after their kind, and trees bearing fruit, with its seed in it, after their kind; and ???? saw that it was good.There was evening and there was morning, a third day.???? said, “Let there be lights in the expanse of sky to divide the day from the night; and let them be for signs, and for seasons, and for days and years; and let them be for lights in the expanse of sky to give light on the earth”; and it was so. ???? made the two great lights: the greater light to rule the day, and the lesser light to rule the night. He also made the stars. ???? set them in the expanse of sky to give light to the earth, and to rule over the day and over the night, and to divide the light from the darkness. ???? saw that it was good. There was evening and there was morning, a fourth day.???? said, “Let the waters swarm with swarms of living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth in the open expanse of sky.” ???? created the large sea creatures, and every living creature that moves, with which the waters swarmed, after their kind, and every winged bird after its kind. ???? saw that it was good. 1:22 ???? blessed them, saying, “Be fruitful, and multiply, and fill the waters in the seas, and let birds multiply on the earth.”There was evening and there was morning, a fifth day.???? said, “Let the earth produce living creatures after their kind, livestock, creeping things, and animals of the earth after their kind”; and it was so. ???? made the animals of the earth after their kind, and the livestock after their kind, and everything that creeps on the ground after its kind. ???? saw that it was good.???? said, “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the birds of the sky, and over the livestock, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.???? created man in his own image. In ????’s image he created him; male and female he created them. ???? blessed them. ???? said to them, “Be fruitful, multiply, fill the earth, and subdue it. Have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the sky, and over every living thing that moves on the earth.???? said, “Behold, I have given you every herb yielding seed, which is on the surface of all the earth, and every tree, which bears fruit yielding seed. It will be your food. 1:30 To every animal of the earth, and to every bird of the sky, and to everything that creeps on the earth, in which there is life, I have given every green herb for food and it was so.???? saw everything that he had made, and, behold, it was very good. There was evening and there was morning, a sixth day. In the beginning ???? created the heavens and the earth. Now the earth was formless and empty. Darkness was on the surface of the deep. ????’s Spirit was hovering over the surface of the waters.???? said, “Let there be light,” and there was light. ???? saw the light, and saw that it was good. ???? divided the light from the darkness. ???? called the light “day,” and the darkness he called “night.” There was evening and there was morning, one day.???? said, “Let there be an expanse in the middle of the waters, and let it divide the waters from the waters.”???? made the expanse, and divided the waters which were under the expanse from the waters which were above the expanse; and it was so. ???? called the expanse “sky.” There was evening and there was morning, a second day.???? said, “Let the waters under the sky be gathered together to one place, and let the dry land appear”; and it was so. ???? called the dry land “earth,” and the gathering together of the waters he called “seas.” ???? saw that it was good.???? said, “Let the earth yield grass, herbs yielding seed, and fruit trees bearing fruit after their kind, with its seed in it, on the earth”; and it was so.The earth yielded grass, herbs yielding seed after their kind, and trees bearing fruit, with its seed in it, after their kind; and ???? saw that it was good.There was evening and there was morning, a third day.???? said, “Let there be lights in the expanse of sky to divide the day from the night; and let them be for signs, and for seasons, and for days and years; and let them be for lights in the expanse of sky to give light on the earth”; and it was so. ???? made the two great lights: the greater light to rule the day, and the lesser light to rule the night. He also made the stars. ???? set them in the expanse of sky to give light to the earth, and to rule over the day and over the night, and to divide the light from the darkness. ???? saw that it was good. There was evening and there was morning, a fourth day.???? said, “Let the waters swarm with swarms of living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth in the open expanse of sky.” ???? created the large sea creatures, and every living creature that moves, with which the waters swarmed, after their kind, and every winged bird after its kind. ???? saw that it was good. 1:22 ???? blessed them, saying, “Be fruitful, and multiply, and fill the waters in the seas, and let birds multiply on the earth.”There was evening and there was morning, a fifth day.???? said, “Let the earth produce living creatures after their kind, livestock, creeping things, and animals of the earth after their kind”; and it was so. ???? made the animals of the earth after their kind, and the livestock after their kind, and everything that creeps on the ground after its kind. ???? saw that it was good.???? said, “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the birds of the sky, and over the livestock, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.???? created man in his own image. In ????’s image he created him; male and female he created them. ???? blessed them. ???? said to them, “Be fruitful, multiply, fill the earth, and subdue it. Have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the sky, and over every living thing that moves on the earth.???? said, “Behold, I have given you every herb yielding seed, which is on the surface of all the earth, and every tree, which bears fruit yielding seed. It will be your food. 1:30 To every animal of the earth, and to every bird of the sky, and to everything that creeps on the earth, in which there is life, I have given every green herb for food and it was so.???? saw everything that he had made, and, behold, it was very good. There was evening and there was morning, a sixth day. In the beginning ???? created the heavens and the earth. Now the earth was formless and empty. Darkness was on the surface of the deep. ????’s Spirit was hovering over the surface of the waters.???? said, “Let there be light,” and there was light. ???? saw the light, and saw that it was good. ???? divided the light from the darkness. ???? called the light “day,” and the darkness he called “night.” There was evening and there was morning, one day.???? said, “Let there be an expanse in the middle of the waters, and let it divide the waters from the waters.”???? made the expanse, and divided the waters which were under the expanse from the waters which were above the expanse; and it was so. ???? called the expanse “sky.” There was evening and there was morning, a second day.???? said, “Let the waters under the sky be gathered together to one place, and let the dry land appear”; and it was so. ???? called the dry land “earth,” and the gathering together of the waters he called “seas.” ???? saw that it was good.???? said, “Let the earth yield grass, herbs yielding seed, and fruit trees bearing fruit after their kind, with its seed in it, on the earth”; and it was so.The earth yielded grass, herbs yielding seed after their kind, and trees bearing fruit, with its seed in it, after their kind; and ???? saw that it was good.There was evening and there was morning, a third day.???? said, “Let there be lights in the expanse of sky to divide the day from the night; and let them be for signs, and for seasons, and for days and years; and let them be for lights in the expanse of sky to give light on the earth”; and it was so. ???? made the two great lights: the greater light to rule the day, and the lesser light to rule the night. He also made the stars. ???? set them in the expanse of sky to give light to the earth, and to rule over the day and over the night, and to divide the light from the darkness. ???? saw that it was good. There was evening and there was morning, a fourth day.???? said, “Let the waters swarm with swarms of living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth in the open expanse of sky.” ???? created the large sea creatures, and every living creature that moves, with which the waters swarmed, after their kind, and every winged bird after its kind. ???? saw that it was good. 1:22 ???? blessed them, saying, “Be fruitful, and multiply, and fill the waters in the seas, and let birds multiply on the earth.”There was evening and there was morning, a fifth day.???? said, “Let the earth produce living creatures after their kind, livestock, creeping things, and animals of the earth after their kind”; and it was so. ???? made the animals of the earth after their kind, and the livestock after their kind, and everything that creeps on the ground after its kind. ???? saw that it was good.???? said, “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the birds of the sky, and over the livestock, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.???? created man in his own image. In ????’s image he created him; male and female he created them. ???? blessed them. ???? said to them, “Be fruitful, multiply, fill the earth, and subdue it. Have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the sky, and over every living thing that moves on the earth.???? said, “Behold, I have given you every herb yielding seed, which is on the surface of all the earth, and every tree, which bears fruit yielding seed. It will be your food. 1:30 To every animal of the earth, and to every bird of the sky, and to everything that creeps on the earth, in which there is life, I have given every green herb for food and it was so.???? saw everything that he had made, and, behold, it was very good. There was evening and there was morning, a sixth day. In the beginning ???? created the heavens and the earth. Now the earth was formless and empty. Darkness was on the surface of the deep. ????’s Spirit was hovering over the surface of the waters.???? said, “Let there be light,” and there was light. ???? saw the light, and saw that it was good. ???? divided the light from the darkness. ???? called the light “day,” and the darkness he called “night.” There was evening and there was morning, one day.???? said, “Let there be an expanse in the middle of the waters, and let it divide the waters from the waters.”???? made the expanse, and divided the waters which were under the expanse from the waters which were above the expanse; and it was so. ???? called the expanse “sky.” There was evening and there was morning, a second day.???? said, “Let the waters under the sky be gathered together to one place, and let the dry land appear”; and it was so. ???? called the dry land “earth,” and the gathering together of the waters he called “seas.” ???? saw that it was good.???? said, “Let the earth yield grass, herbs yielding seed, and fruit trees bearing fruit after their kind, with its seed in it, on the earth”; and it was so.The earth yielded grass, herbs yielding seed after their kind, and trees bearing fruit, with its seed in it, after their kind; and ???? saw that it was good.There was evening and there was morning, a third day.???? said, “Let there be lights in the expanse of sky to divide the day from the night; and let them be for signs, and for seasons, and for days and years; and let them be for lights in the expanse of sky to give light on the earth”; and it was so. ???? made the two great lights: the greater light to rule the day, and the lesser light to rule the night. He also made the stars. ???? set them in the expanse of sky to give light to the earth, and to rule over the day and over the night, and to divide the light from the darkness. ???? saw that it was good. There was evening and there was morning, a fourth day.???? said, “Let the waters swarm with swarms of living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth in the open expanse of sky.” ???? created the large sea creatures, and every living creature that moves, with which the waters swarmed, after their kind, and every winged bird after its kind. ???? saw that it was good. 1:22 ???? blessed them, saying, “Be fruitful, and multiply, and fill the waters in the seas, and let birds multiply on the earth.”There was evening and there was morning, a fifth day.???? said, “Let the earth produce living creatures after their kind, livestock, creeping things, and animals of the earth after their kind”; and it was so. ???? made the animals of the earth after their kind, and the livestock after their kind, and everything that creeps on the ground after its kind. ???? saw that it was good.???? said, “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the birds of the sky, and over the livestock, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.???? created man in his own image. In ????’s image he created him; male and female he created them. ???? blessed them. ???? said to them, “Be fruitful, multiply, fill the earth, and subdue it. Have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the sky, and over every living thing that moves on the earth.???? said, “Behold, I have given you every herb yielding seed, which is on the surface of all the earth, and every tree, which bears fruit yielding seed. It will be your food. 1:30 To every animal of the earth, and to every bird of the sky, and to everything that creeps on the earth, in which there is life, I have given every green herb for food and it was so.???? saw everything that he had made, and, behold, it was very good. There was evening and there was morning, a sixth day. In the beginning ???? created the heavens and the earth. Now the earth was formless and empty. Darkness was on the surface of the deep. ????’s Spirit was hovering over the surface of the waters.???? said, “Let there be light,” and there was light. ???? saw the light, and saw that it was good. ???? divided the light from the darkness. ???? called the light “day,” and the darkness he called “night.” There was evening and there was morning, one day.???? said, “Let there be an expanse in the middle of the waters, and let it divide the waters from the waters.”???? made the expanse, and divided the waters which were under the expanse from the waters which were above the expanse; and it was so. ???? called the expanse “sky.” There was evening and there was morning, a second day.???? said, “Let the waters under the sky be gathered together to one place, and let the dry land appear”; and it was so. ???? called the dry land “earth,” and the gathering together of the waters he called “seas.” ???? saw that it was good.???? said, “Let the earth yield grass, herbs yielding seed, and fruit trees bearing fruit after their kind, with its seed in it, on the earth”; and it was so.The earth yielded grass, herbs yielding seed after their kind, and trees bearing fruit, with its seed in it, after their kind; and ???? saw that it was good.There was evening and there was morning, a third day.???? said, “Let there be lights in the expanse of sky to divide the day from the night; and let them be for signs, and for seasons, and for days and years; and let them be for lights in the expanse of sky to give light on the earth”; and it was so. ???? made the two great lights: the greater light to rule the day, and the lesser light to rule the night. He also made the stars. ???? set them in the expanse of sky to give light to the earth, and to rule over the day and over the night, and to divide the light from the darkness. ???? saw that it was good. There was evening and there was morning, a fourth day.???? said, “Let the waters swarm with swarms of living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth in the open expanse of sky.” ???? created the large sea creatures, and every living creature that moves, with which the waters swarmed, after their kind, and every winged bird after its kind. ???? saw that it was good. 1:22 ???? blessed them, saying, “Be fruitful, and multiply, and fill the waters in the seas, and let birds multiply on the earth.”There was evening and there was morning, a fifth day.???? said, “Let the earth produce living creatures after their kind, livestock, creeping things, and animals of the earth after their kind”; and it was so. ???? made the animals of the earth after their kind, and the livestock after their kind, and everything that creeps on the ground after its kind. ???? saw that it was good.???? said, “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the birds of the sky, and over the livestock, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.???? created man in his own image. In ????’s image he created him; male and female he created them. ???? blessed them. ???? said to them, “Be fruitful, multiply, fill the earth, and subdue it. Have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the sky, and over every living thing that moves on the earth.???? said, “Behold, I have given you every herb yielding seed, which is on the surface of all the earth, and every tree, which bears fruit yielding seed. It will be your food. 1:30 To every animal of the earth, and to every bird of the sky, and to everything that creeps on the earth, in which there is life, I have given every green herb for food and it was so.???? saw everything that he had made, and, behold, it was very good. There was evening and there was morning, a sixth day. In the beginning ???? created the heavens and the earth. Now the earth was formless and empty. Darkness was on the surface of the deep. ????’s Spirit was hovering over the surface of the waters.???? said, “Let there be light,” and there was light. ???? saw the light, and saw that it was good. ???? divided the light from the darkness. ???? called the light “day,” and the darkness he called “night.” There was evening and there was morning, one day.???? said, “Let there be an expanse in the middle of the waters, and let it divide the waters from the waters.”???? made the expanse, and divided the waters which were under the expanse from the waters which were above the expanse; and it was so. ???? called the expanse “sky.” There was evening and there was morning, a second day.???? said, “Let the waters under the sky be gathered together to one place, and let the dry land appear”; and it was so. ???? called the dry land “earth,” and the gathering together of the waters he called “seas.” ???? saw that it was good.???? said, “Let the earth yield grass, herbs yielding seed, and fruit trees bearing fruit after their kind, with its seed in it, on the earth”; and it was so.The earth yielded grass, herbs yielding seed after their kind, and trees bearing fruit, with its seed in it, after their kind; and ???? saw that it was good.There was evening and there was morning, a third day.???? said, “Let there be lights in the expanse of sky to divide the day from the night; and let them be for signs, and for seasons, and for days and years; and let them be for lights in the expanse of sky to give light on the earth”; and it was so. ???? made the two great lights: the greater light to rule the day, and the lesser light to rule the night. He also made the stars. ???? set them in the expanse of sky to give light to the earth, and to rule over the day and over the night, and to divide the light from the darkness. ???? saw that it was good. There was evening and there was morning, a fourth day.???? said, “Let the waters swarm with swarms of living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth in the open expanse of sky.” ???? created the large sea creatures, and every living creature that moves, with which the waters swarmed, after their kind, and every winged bird after its kind. ???? saw that it was good. 1:22 ???? blessed them, saying, “Be fruitful, and multiply, and fill the waters in the seas, and let birds multiply on the earth.”There was evening and there was morning, a fifth day.???? said, “Let the earth produce living creatures after their kind, livestock, creeping things, and animals of the earth after their kind”; and it was so. ???? made the animals of the earth after their kind, and the livestock after their kind, and everything that creeps on the ground after its kind. ???? saw that it was good.???? said, “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the birds of the sky, and over the livestock, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.???? created man in his own image. In ????’s image he created him; male and female he created them. ???? blessed them. ???? said to them, “Be fruitful, multiply, fill the earth, and subdue it. Have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the sky, and over every living thing that moves on the earth.???? said, “Behold, I have given you every herb yielding seed, which is on the surface of all the earth, and every tree, which bears fruit yielding seed. It will be your food. 1:30 To every animal of the earth, and to every bird of the sky, and to everything that creeps on the earth, in which there is life, I have given every green herb for food and it was so.???? saw everything that he had made, and, behold, it was very good. There was evening and there was morning, a sixth day. In the beginning ???? created the heavens and the earth. Now the earth was formless and empty. Darkness was on the surface of the deep. ????’s Spirit was hovering over the surface of the waters.???? said, “Let there be light,” and there was light. ???? saw the light, and saw that it was good. ???? divided the light from the darkness. ???? called the light “day,” and the darkness he called “night.” There was evening and there was morning, one day.???? said, “Let there be an expanse in the middle of the waters, and let it divide the waters from the waters.”???? made the expanse, and divided the waters which were under the expanse from the waters which were above the expanse; and it was so. ???? called the expanse “sky.” There was evening and there was morning, a second day.???? said, “Let the waters under the sky be gathered together to one place, and let the dry land appear”; and it was so. ???? called the dry land “earth,” and the gathering together of the waters he called “seas.” ???? saw that it was good.???? said, “Let the earth yield grass, herbs yielding seed, and fruit trees bearing fruit after their kind, with its seed in it, on the earth”; and it was so.The earth yielded grass, herbs yielding seed after their kind, and trees bearing fruit, with its seed in it, after their kind; and ???? saw that it was good.There was evening and there was morning, a third day.???? said, “Let there be lights in the expanse of sky to divide the day from the night; and let them be for signs, and for seasons, and for days and years; and let them be for lights in the expanse of sky to give light on the earth”; and it was so. ???? made the two great lights: the greater light to rule the day, and the lesser light to rule the night. He also made the stars. ???? set them in the expanse of sky to give light to the earth, and to rule over the day and over the night, and to divide the light from the darkness. ???? saw that it was good. There was evening and there was morning, a fourth day.???? said, “Let the waters swarm with swarms of living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth in the open expanse of sky.” ???? created the large sea creatures, and every living creature that moves, with which the waters swarmed, after their kind, and every winged bird after its kind. ???? saw that it was good. 1:22 ???? blessed them, saying, “Be fruitful, and multiply, and fill the waters in the seas, and let birds multiply on the earth.”There was evening and there was morning, a fifth day.???? said, “Let the earth produce living creatures after their kind, livestock, creeping things, and animals of the earth after their kind”; and it was so. ???? made the animals of the earth after their kind, and the livestock after their kind, and everything that creeps on the ground after its kind. ???? saw that it was good.???? said, “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the birds of the sky, and over the livestock, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.???? created man in his own image. In ????’s image he created him; male and female he created them. ???? blessed them. ???? said to them, “Be fruitful, multiply, fill the earth, and subdue it. Have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the sky, and over every living thing that moves on the earth.???? said, “Behold, I have given you every herb yielding seed, which is on the surface of all the earth, and every tree, which bears fruit yielding seed. It will be your food. 1:30 To every animal of the earth, and to every bird of the sky, and to everything that creeps on the earth, in which there is life, I have given every green herb for food and it was so.???? saw everything that he had made, and, behold, it was very good. There was evening and there was morning, a sixth day.

f67b7ffc91itweet.png 144x150 Twitter Exploit: The Maxi Tweet

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Twitter Exploit: The Maxi-Tweet

Johnny’s Copyblogger Wrap-Up: Week of May 31, 2010

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Last week , Brian threatened to replace me as the writer of the Copyblogger Weekly Wrap-Up. All because I left for vacation without writing up the second post from last Friday, and chose instead to lay on the beach ogling bikini girls. The ensuing confrontation on Monday was quite heated. “Yeah, I ditched … what are you going to do about it?” “I MADE you and I can BREAK you,” Brian responded, frothing angrily. “It’s JOHNNY’S wrap-up,” I yelled back. “That name has mindshare, baby. You can’t fire me now because then there will be no JOHNNY. Check and mate!” Unfortunately, he outfoxed me and I will retire after writing this intro. I hope you enjoy the remainder of this Wrap-Up, which has been written by the former guitarist for The Smiths, Johnny Marr . Here’s what happened this week on Copyblogger: Tuesday: How to Dominate Your Niche Without Apology This rollicking post was written by one Nathan Hangen, who explains why apology is bollocks when you’re trying to do your internet bloggery thing. Why stop in advance of trying to make a point to tell your readers, “Right-o, this is just my own opinion, and I’m not trying to convince you that it’s totally on the mark – you can just take it as being my own thoughts on the matter.” That’s rubbish, and much too British for most of you. If you want to dominate your niche, you say what you have to say as if it’s fact, and you don’t pussy-foot about it. Consider that Morrissey wanted us to play “Lifeguard Sleeping, Girl Drowning” and that several of us said, “Steven, honestly … what’s with you saying, ‘Hooray’ repeatedly while the girl is going under?” Do you think he knuckled under and said, “It’s my opinion that this lifeguard is lazy and might do such a thing?” No. He said, “Shut up and play, Johnny … I have a hair appointment.” Read the full post here . Wednesday: 8 Reasons Rich People Hate Their Lives I have to say that I didn’t initially agree with the title of this post. Smiths money has me richer than the queen, and now I’m in Modest Mouse and they pay okay too, and I don’t hate my life nearly as much as I hated playing “Vicar in a Tutu,” which, when you think about it, very few rich people are required to do. Yet, some bird named Sonia wrote a whole report on the topic, and I see where she’s going with it. There are successful people like me who love their lives, and people like Morrissey who seem miserable with everything including success. So what makes the difference? You should read her report to find out. (Honestly, Morrissey was a downer even in the best of times, and I’m pretty sure his lawn cuts itself because it’s so emo. So I’d wager that one of the 8 reasons rich people hate their lives is “because they’re Morrissey” — that depressive wank.) Read the full post here . Wednesday part 2: Scribe: New Versions & Better Features I can’t wait to get my proper new website and use Scribe on it. Then when people use Google to find out “ who wrote the greatest Smiths song ever ,” they’ll know it was me, not that miserable fop Morrissey. In fact, let me ring up my web designer this instant. “Hullo? See here chap, is my website live yet?” “You’ve said that before … that joke isn’t funny anymore. I bloody well need an answer!” “Look here – when you say it’s gonna happen now , well when exactly do you mean?” click Bloody web designers. Read the full post here . Thursday: 10 Surefire Ways to Land More Customers This post by David Brim explains how to treat your customers as if they were fish, even if they aren’t fish. If you want them to bite on your offers, you have to “bait the hook properly.” If you want better odds of landing customers, you should “go where the fish are.” If you want to get more business out of existing clients, you “roll them in beer batter and deep fry them.” And if you’re working an upsell, you “serve them with chips and a pint.” So if you want to land more customers, read this post. You could even do it while eating those fish and chips. Just don’t go crazy with the vinegar on the chips, because then you’ll stink and your customers will just say, “Bugger off; You Reek-A!!” Read the full post here . Friday: How to Build a Successful Business with a Small Audience It’s a shame that Truant got sacked because I understand he has some sort of fixation with gnomes, and this post about “small audiences” was cheekily topped with a photo of lawn gnomes. (Lawn gnomes are diminutive, hence a brilliant play on the synonym “small.” Get it? Jolly good fun!) The post itself by Jonathan Mead (who I understand is not diminutive) is about creating a profitable business without having scads of subscribers and readers. Essentially (and Jonathan explains how this is done) you do this by making that small audience very loyal. Which makes sense, really, because though The Smiths weren’t as massively successful as say, the Rolling Stones, our fans would hop into wood chippers on our command. Even the ones who weren’t suicidal already, and I’d guess that was at least 25 percent of them. Read the full post here . About the Author: Johnny Marr is the critically-acclaimed former guitarist for The Smiths , a current member of Modest Mouse , and the composer of “How Soon is Now?,” the greatest Smiths song ever written.

2ad6771f80Johnny.jpg 150x150 Johnny’s Copyblogger Wrap Up: Week of May 31, 2010

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Johnny’s Copyblogger Wrap-Up: Week of May 31, 2010

10 Surefire Ways to Land More Customers

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So many people all around the world have great ideas, products and services. And yet some businesses do well, and some fail. What separates the businesses that starve from the businesses who feast? For the answer, we turn to another way people have been setting their feast table for hundreds of years: fishing. Landing a fish, just like landing a customer, requires strategy and know-how if you’re going to come home successful. Here are my top 10 ways to land the catch of the day. 1. Know what you’re after In fishing, you always use the best bait possible for the particular type of fish you’re after. So many times clients come to me and say, “I don’t have a target market”. They’re always wrong. At a minimum, you should understand: The problems your customers have Their buying habits Their potential objections to your product Where they go to find information What influences them (their heroes and idols, TV shows they watch, websites they enjoy, magazines they read, etc.) What their core demographics and psychographics are Even if your product “appeals to everyone,” typically 20% of your audience will generate 80% of your revenue. Your job is to figure out who those 20% are, so you can find the kind of bait that appeals most to those customers. Bait that works for trout won’t necessarily let you land a great white shark. 2. Know where to fish for your customers Determining the right fishing location can be the difference between a successful fishing trip and going hungry. Knowing the places where your customers hang out online gives you a much greater chance for marketing success. Figure out which sites your customers frequent and you’ll have a much better chance of reeling one in. Try seeking out: Blogs they read Forums they participate in Social networking sites and other membership groups Entertainment or other non-work related sites You don’t want to use a top water lure if the fish you want are feeding on the bottom. 3. Be aware of your competition All fishermen guard their secrets closely, but newcomers can still pick up plenty of tricks by watching what their competition does. I’m not saying it’s smart to copy your competitor exactly. “Me-too” marketing doesn’t work. But learn from them and get a feeling for the overall marketplace you’re in. Incorporate those insights into your own marketing and content strategy. By analyzing your competitors you can also figure out how you can position your brand to stand out from the crowd. 4. Use good bait When you’re hoping to catch a fish standing side by side with a row of other fishermen, you have to make sure your bait is the most appealing fish food dangling the water. Otherwise, that fish is liable to go for one of your neighbor’s hooks instead. Consumers have lots of options and offers dangling in front of them in any marketplace. You’ve got to have some pretty juicy bait to stand out from that crowd. So what makes good customer bait? Magnetic headlines Compelling images Content that’s valuable in its own right An attractive niche that makes your customer feel “this is for people like me” Easy-to-swallow landing pages 5. Setting the hook Just because a fish bites doesn’t mean you can reel it in. Many a marketer has a woeful tale about the big one that got away. Once a customer is interested and bites by clicking through to your sales page, you have to set the hook by making an offer that’s so great it’s practically unfair . 6. Forget catch and release Remember, it’s a lot easier and more profitable to re-sell an existing customer than acquire a new one. So if you land a big fish, keep it! Don’t throw it back for someone else to catch. Re-marketing , high-quality affiliate offers, and up-sells are great for keeping the customers that you currently have, instead of letting them drift back into the stream for some other savvy marketer to reel in. 7. Test the waters Fishermen often track different variables, like what time of day they went fishing or what bait they used. They measure their results over time to figure out the smartest way to get certain fish. Similarly, in marketing it’s always wise to test various aspects of your marketing campaign. Measure your results to see what works best, and track your results over time. Try different images, headlines, or layouts to see which one maximizes time spent on your site, lowers bounce rate, and produces the best ROI. 8. Don’t get discouraged Some days the fish just aren’t biting. Sometimes you are not going to be as successful as you’d like, but it’s a process. Continue to educate yourself about business and marketing, keep analyzing your competitors, keep talking to your customers and refining your message. Keep going and don’t get discouraged. Tomorrow’s the day you’ll get the big one. 9. Partner up to get a bigger catch Fishing with a buddy helps you to both cover more water and come home with a bigger catch than usual. If you’re hoping to land more customers than you’ve ever reeled in on your own, find a partner. By knowing your own skill set, you’ll be able to effectively select partners that complement your skills. This strategy can also help you get bigger customers than you could have handled on your own. 10. Enjoy the trip It’s definitely a lot more fun to catch the big one than to see it get away, but no matter what happens, remember to enjoy yourself. Entrepreneurship is a lot like fishing. Even when it’s not going as well as we’d like, it’s still a privilege to be able to spend our days doing it. About the Author: David Brim is the founder and CEO of Brand Advance , an interactive agency that provides marketing consulting, web design, and marketing staffing to emerging companies. David is also the founder of GroupTable.com, collaborative software to increase group productivity. David blogs at Filled to the Brim , and can be found on twitter @davidbrim .

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10 Surefire Ways to Land More Customers

7 Quick-Start Techniques for Fighting the Fear to Write

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Congratulations, you have a hot writing assignment! Maybe it’s a proposal that could make your company’s fortune. Maybe it’s your first professional writing gig. It could even be a guest post for Copyblogger. The stakes are high . . . and you know it. In fact, it’s all you can think about . . . the F.E.A.R. trying to sabotage your aspirations for success. Your fingers are shaking too hard to type anything , and your stomach has sunk down to the bottom of an ocean so deep that all the fish have weird lights on their heads. Well that’s not helping any, now is it? Instead, let’s get those pixels flowing with these 7 not-too-scary steps. 1. Write down your goal What does success look like? Get imaginative , specific and visceral . Imagine yourself being awarded with the Employee of the Month trophy while your boss announces: Without Catherine’s vital work on the proposal, we would never have won this contract. Now we will be giving bonuses to all our staff and hiring three new ones, and we couldn’t have done it without you. Thanks, Catherine. Everyone is clapping and there’s cake. This goal serves two purposes: It encourages you to get writing. It gives you a way to measure whether your writing is effective . If it increases the chance of the successful proposal/trophy/cake then it’s effective. If it does not , then you need to make changes. An objective yardstick is critical when your emotions are getting the better of you. 2. Plan your content Grab your favorite brainstorming tool. Could be mind-mapping software, a bunch of index cards, parchment and quill pen . . . whatever suits you. Start with the high-level ideas. If you’re writing a sales page, you need to describe the benefits , so that’s an entry. The call to action is another. What content do you need to provide to support the high-level ideas? In the last example, each specific benefit would have a separate entry. Go down as many levels as you need to until every entry makes only one point . Evaluate the entries. Does each one move you toward your goal? Can some be removed? What order makes the most sense? Shuffle and remove entries until you have a working plan of what to write. Notice you now have a nice, clear idea of what the finished document should look like. Awesome. It’s time to take a deep breath and start on the actual writing. 3. Ten minutes of gibberish If you’re looking at the blank screen with mounting horror ( Have I forgotten the English language entirely? ), open a new document and pound out anything . A history of cheese The lyrics of your favorite song A stream-of-consciousness piece that starts with “Daffodil Philomena carousel elf-wine fodder marmalade” A cake recipe An imaginary shopping list Endless lines of All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy Don’t force it to make sense! Just let it flow out with no judgment or expectations. When there’s no pressure to get anything Right, for many people the mental vapor-lock vanishes. They can go back and start writing the important stuff. 4. Divide your ideas into sections Remember back in school when we were taught, “One idea per paragraph”? Still a good idea, although you may need more than a paragraph. But each section of your document should convey one idea, and only one. Introduce each section with a good subhead to make the document more readable and keep your ideas organized. You can go back and adjust your content plan to include extra ideas, but give each idea its own section and subhead. 5. Explain it to the potted plant If you’re trying to make a point and you’re . . . umm . . . you know, how do I say it . . . it’s on the tip of my tongue . . . stuck on how to explain it? Talk it out with another person. It doesn’t actually need to be a real person. It can be to the potted plant on the windowsill. You’ll start out stumbling and inarticulate, but quickly the thoughts will come together and you’ll have it all sorted in your head. Or you may realize that this was one of those ideas that seemed good at first blush but doesn’t really make any sense. That’s fine too. Delete it and move on. 6. Editing, your deadly new friend After you’ve written what you need to write, the dreaded post-writing stage kicks in. This is where you edit your work to make it the best it can possibly be. Revising, polishing, reordering and spell-checking are all wonderful tools. They help you make your point more clearly and concisely. BUT. Perfectionism, the copywriter’s curse , loves editing. If you’re not careful, deadlines will fly by while you make infinitesimal improvements. Never try to write and edit at the same time. Write first, edit later. Focus on removing words when editing. This doesn’t mean you can’t tell a relevant story or insert an interesting adjective, but every word must contribute to that goal you set out in Step 1. Set an upper limit on revisions. For truly critical documents, you might go as high as ten revisions. But pick a number and stick to it , no matter how much you think, “Oh but I just have this one tweak . . .” 7. Still overwhelmed? Today I’m releasing a new resource called Awesome Fear-Wrangling: Manage your Website Fears, Grow an Awesome Website . If you want some industrial-strength help, come check it out! (There’s a special bonus today too. It’s my birthday. There’s cake.) What are your techniques to get you writing when you’re facing a bunch of fear? Tell us in the comments! About the Author: Catherine is wicked passionate about helping people to start and grow an awesome website. When she’s not adding five-minute missions to BeAwesomeOnline.com , she can invariably be found on Twitter .

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4 Things an Ethical Internet Marketer Can Learn from Spammers

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First things first: We hate spam. And we hate spammers. Maybe even more than you do. So this article isn’t about endorsing spam in any way, or suggesting that you do anything unethical. But as much as we hate spam and wish it didn’t exist, we can’t deny one fact. Spammers make a killing online. Just to give you an idea, last year a Russian investigation found a network of spammers selling fake goods and fake pills online. Each spammer was making, on average, $4,600 per day. Sure, the spammers use the “law of large numbers” to achieve these results. But you also need marketing savvy to make more than $1.5 million a year selling fake stuff to people who would rather shoot themselves in the left foot than listen to you. When I started looking more closely at their tactics, I found some valuable lessons any marketer should know. 1. Go where the fish are What is the most important factor you need to have if you want to go fishing? Most people will say the fishing rod. Others will say the bait, or a boat. Interestingly enough, they are all wrong. The most important element of the equation is the presence of lots of fish . If you have a lake full of fish but don’t have a fishing rod or bait, you can probably still improvise something that would let you enjoy a fish dinner tonight. But no matter how great your bait or how cutting-edge your equipment, if there aren’t any fish, there’s no fish dinner. Spammers know this, and they always focus their efforts on the niches with the largest number of fish. That means they always target known customers willing to spend money. Examples include health-related niches, luxury goods, anti-virus software, and, of course, men who want access to certain prescription medicines without getting into embarrassing conversations with their doctors. Lesson learned: If you target a niche that’s too obscure, you’ll have a hard time making money even if your product and marketing are outstanding. If you target a large and profitable market, of course you’ll face more competition. But it’s a lot easier to improve your product and marketing than it is to manufacture buying customers out of thin air. 2. The money is in the list Email is the most direct type of communication we have. That’s why spammers love it so much. It allows them to display their messages right in the face of their victims. Now, if creepy, bottom-dwelling spammers get a conversion rate high enough to keep them in business, imagine what kind of results you can get with: A legitimate, permission-based list of people who want to hear from you, Terrific content that benefits the reader, and Smart, respectful promotion of excellent products and services? Lesson learned: If you are not building your email list, you are almost certainly leaving a lot of money on the table. Blogs, social networking, and various kinds of advertising are all useful tools. But email is still the “killer app” for building relationships with your prospects and clients. 3. Copywriting, copywriting, copywriting Ever wondered how scammers manage to convince people to buy fake products? It comes down to one word: copywriting. Spammers may not always write the most poetic English. But they do use solid, time-tested copywriting techniques. If you master the essentials of copywriting yourself, you’d be able to sell crappy products to a fair number of people. (Not that we recommend that.) But because you have a quality product or service and a great reputation, you’ll be able to sell it to lots and lots of people . Who will, in turn, tell their friends about how terrific you are. There are lots of places you can get solid copywriting advice, including: The Copywriting 101 series on Copyblogger (free) Copyblogger’s Internet Marketing for Smart People newsletter (free) Read classic books on copywriting (inexpensive) Take a paid copywriting course — one that focuses on persuasive writing that sells rather than beautiful or “creative” writing (can be expensive, but if you’re a serious marketer, it’s worth it) Lesson learned: Copywriting matters just as much as having a quality product or service. In some situations it matters even more. Never shortchange the attention and care you give to your copywriting. 4. Scale matters Do you know how many emails a spammer needs to send out to get one sale? More than a million. That’s right, their conversion rates are usually lower than 0.0001%. So how can they make those thousands of dollars per day in profits? By sending out millions and millions of messages. Obviously we are not saying you should start spamming people like there is no tomorrow. What you need to keep in mind, however, is that even great conversion rates are still pretty low in the scheme of things. If you were able to convert 5 or 6% of your list to becoming paying customers, you’d be doing a fantastic job. Which means 95% of your list won’t ever spend a dime with you. In fact, for many marketers, a conversion rate of 1% is doing quite well. That means if you have 1,000 subscribers on your email list and you send them an email talking about your latest product, you’re doing well if 10 people buy it. Lesson learned: Numbers aren’t the only thing, but they do matter. If your main income source is your website, learn how to get as much traffic as possible. If your main income source is your email list, learn how to get as many subscribers as possible. How to do that? Keep following blogs like this one and putting their advice into action. About the Author: Daniel Scocco is the owner of Daily Blog Tips . He is also the author of the “Make Money Blogging” ebook, which you can download for free by signing up for his newsletter here .

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4 Things an Ethical Internet Marketer Can Learn from Spammers