Aspiring Bloggers, Here’s Your Roadmap
December 3rd, 2008
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Back in January, Yaro Starak and Gideon Shalwick released a series of 10 free blogging training videos for beginners at BecomeABlogger.com. They were very well done, and while the information was far too basic for me at the time, I remember thinking that the videos would have been nice to have back when I was dealing with the technical challenges of setting up my blog (getting a web host, a WordPress theme, setting up FeedBurner, etc).
Now they’ve released their Roadmap To Become A Blogger, a free ebook and audio that outlines their strategy based on the “X-Factor.” (Warning: video with sound starts playing automatically. I hate that.) It’s proven to be very popular, with nearly 7,000 downloads already.
When I heard them mention the “X-Factor,” I thought it was going to be about blog mojo, but it’s not. The X-Factor is the intersection of multimedia (video, audio, online radio, and TV) and social media (Facebook, MySpace, Twitter, etc).
And this is where it kind of lost me. I liked reading it, but about halfway through it started getting very tech-heavy (beyond just normal text blogging), and I started skimming. On the other hand, if you want to tech out your blog, you’d probably like it.
On Thursday, December 4th at 4 PM EST, they open the doors to their premium membership program that teaches successful blogging. Yaro is the entrepreneurial guy, having made $70,000 from his blog in October 2008, and I don’t know as much about Gideon, but he’s the tech wizard.
Back in April they asked for feedback on their free videos, as well as input that would help them decide what to include in their paid program. Gideon said my feedback was valuable and honest, but I wasn’t chosen as the one person with the best feedback who would be rewarded with free access to the program. (I always like to win free stuff!)
Their 6-month program is $27 per month if you sign up in the first week (with bonuses for people who sign up the first day). After the first week, the price goes up to $47 a month. But the Roadmap To Become A Blogger ebook and audio is free, so there’s no commitment there.
If I were to join one of Yaro’s programs, I’d probably do Blog Mastermind. It’s considerably more expensive than Become A Blogger, but for now I don’t have much interest in multimedia. YMMV.
December 3rd, 2008 at 11:50 pm
Hey Hunter, great post. I think that programs like this are a bit of a scam…..not to call Yaro a scammer, because he is not, but a 6 month program to get started blogging? I think that anybody with some blogging experience knows that you can learn the basics of blogging within 3 months of reading free blogs. Of course the problem is…….most people start a blog before they even frickin’ read one. They want to pay a certain amount of money to learn everything all at once.
If anyone is considering buying this, they need to read the top 10 blogs for a month or two and then see how they feel about setting up their own. Chances are, they’ll be competent enough to do it on their own.
Sorry if I come off negative, but I am just in a bit of shock lately about people who email me with questions that I know they should know. I’m talking about people who have blogged for 10 months and don’t know what RSS is. What happened to the old do-it-yourself attitude?
I too sell simple products to people who should know how to do it on their own, but there is a difference. I will tell the people that they could do it on their own, not tell them it will take 6 months to teach them about it for $47/month.
Conrad Hees´s last blog post..Two Questions That Will Change Your Life
December 4th, 2008 at 1:23 am
@ Conrad, not having actually gone through a program like this, I can’t speak from direct experience. Things like setting up RSS were covered in the free videos, and I’m sure the membership program goes far beyond the basics.
Still, I’m curious about what takes 6 months to get across. Merely having 6 months worth of material is pretty staggering! I guess it must be good though, or we’d hear complaints. I didn’t see any negative reviews of Blog Mastermind. But I think with Blog Mastermind, some people skipped ahead to finish the program faster and save money.
December 12th, 2008 at 6:31 pm
If you want to make money blogging, the best way is to sell a product about making money blogging. Yaro is more of an internet marketer than a blogger.
John Wesley´s last blog post..jwesley: @earthwriter there is Cosi or Starbucks near the Ballston metro stop, or really any of the Arlington metro stops for that matter
December 13th, 2008 at 1:41 am
@ John, as for Yaro being more of an internet marketer than a blogger – yes, definitely. That’s why he makes so much money! But as for MMO products being the best way to make money, I’m not sure about that, because the niche is pretty full.