Askpat 2.0: A Weekly Coaching Call On Online Business, Blogging, Marketing, And Lifestyle Design

I’m talking to Sam today, from Byte-by-Byte.com. He helps software engineers interview for jobs (like Google, Facebook, etc). He’s testing his new course right now, and he’s a little burnt out. He’s doing pretty much everything himself and wants to focus on building his audience next. He feels like the best thing he can do to improve is to grow his audience, but he feels like he’s hit a barrier and is trying to figure out where to go next. How can he grow his audience to the next level? Check out Sam’s coaching and courses at Byte-by-Byte.com. If you want to be considered for a coaching session, apply via the form at AskPat.com. Today’s sponsor is FreshBooks, who make the best financial management software out there. You can actually get an unrestricted, thirty-day trial for free; just go to FreshBooks.com/askpat and enter “Ask Pat” in the “How Did You Hear About Us?” section.

Today’s coaching call is with Jackie Bolen, who needs to make a big decision but doesn’t quite know how. Jackie is a blogger and writer who teaches ESL (English as a Second Language). She was an ESL teacher in South Korea for ten years, started blogging, and fell into the online business world. Now back in Canada, she’s quit her job and is focusing full-time on her online business. With thirty books, three websites, and several Amazon affiliate sites, she feels she needs to pick one thing and focus on it. How does she choose? Check out Jackie on the web at JackieBolen.com. If you want to be considered for a coaching session, apply via the form at AskPat.com. Today’s sponsor is FreshBooks, who make the best financial management software out there. Go to FreshBooks.com and enter “Ask Pat” in the “How Did You Hear About Us?” section for more information.

Today’s coaching call is with Cathy, a full-time professor and mom of three. She helps academic women—specifically moms—write and publish more. She makes most of her money via coaching and online courses. She’s had a great first year, but is wondering how much she should reinvest in her business. What should she be spending it on, business-wise? Check out Cathy’s site at CathyMazak.com. If you want to be considered for a coaching session, apply via the form at AskPat.com. Today’s sponsor is FreshBooks, who make the best financial management software out there. Go to FreshBooks.com and enter “Ask Pat” in the “How Did You Hear About Us?” section for more information.

Welcome to the first episode of AskPat 2.0! To recap, in case you missed Episode 1000, going forward the episodes of AskPat will be much more than a single answer to a single question. Instead they’ll be a live, one on one coaching session! Through this process, you’re going to learn so much more in terms of how to discover the problems in your own business so you can tackle them head on. If you want to be considered for a coaching session, apply via the form at AskPat.com. Today’s coaching call is with Gianna of Family Fun Twin Cities. She has a very direct question for me today: How can she streamline her business so she's not overwhelmed? Sit back and enjoy this coaching call with Gianna! I’m excited to say that today’s sponsor is FreshBooks, who have agreed to sponsor the new format. They’re really excited too! FreshBooks makes the best financial management software out there. Go to FreshBooks.com/askpat and enter “Ask Pat” in the “How Did You Hear About Us?” section for more information.

Today is a very special episode, and an important announcement! Since February of 2014, I’ve been answering questions five days a week here on AskPat. It’s been an amazing journey—999 questions answered and 4,000 questions submitted from listeners. To everyone who’s been listening and asking questions, thank you! Recently, I’ve noticed that I’ve been wanting more. I’ve been wanting to ask questions back, to have real conversations with the people asking questions. I want to get at the root of a lot of these problems—the mental aspects of becoming an entrepreneur, for example. Today, I’m so excited to reveal what’s coming up next: AskPat 2.0! To apply to be on a coaching call with me on AskPat 2.0, visit http://askpat.com.

Jackie has a question today about personal growth. She’s making enough money online that she could pay her bills, so she’s considering going full-time with her online business. What advice do I have for her? Jackie’s website is http://jackiebolen.com. Do you have a question about personal growth? Record it at http://askpat.com/.

Today’s question comes from Cookie, who has a podcast called Weight Loss Made Real. She has three short questions. Should she periodically offer new freebies to her audience? How often should she mention her free book on her podcast; on every episode? Does it make sense to use Facebook ads to lead people to the podcast? Check out Cookie's podcast at http://realweightlossrealwomen.com/category/podcast/. Do you have a question about audience engagement? Record it at http://askpat.com/.

Today’s question comes from Chris. He has some physical, original products, like teeshirts, that he’d like to sell on Amazon. Should he still use Fulfillment by Amazon (FBA)? How does he market those products? What thoughts and advice do I have? In this episode I recommend checking out Benny Hsu’s website, http://getbusylivingblog.com/, where he talks about selling teeshirts in a similar manner. Benny uses https://teespring.com. You could also check out http://www.onlinesellingexperiment.com/ for more information on selling on Amazon FBA. I also recommend listening to Episode 99 of the Smart Passive Income Podcast: Buying Stuff and Selling it on Amazon (For 6 Figures a Year!) with Jessica and Cliff Larrew.—https://www.smartpassiveincome.com/podcasts/fulfillment-by-amazon-fba/ Do you have a question about physical products? Record it at http://askpat.com/.

Today’s question comes from Razwan. He’s been reviewing Halal-certified restaurants on Instagram; is reviewing restaurants monetizable? Do you have a question about monetization? Record it at http://askpat.com/.

Today’s question comes from Emilio. How can he improve the open rate for his email marketing? In this episode, I recommend https://glockapps.com/, a great tool for testing emails before you send them. Do you have a question about email marketing? Record it at http://askpat.com/.

Today’s question comes from Troy, who has some questions about mastermind groups. What should he consider when setting up his mastermind, what should he talk about in his first meeting, what tools do I use, and what suggestions do I have for paid masterminds? Troy’s website is http://troydelaney.com/. In this episode I mention a presentation I gave at Social Media Marketing World, specifically about mastermind groups, in 2015: http://bit.ly/2i1qi3T. Search for "mastermind groups," on SmartPassiveIncome.com for more information about mastermind groups. Do you have a question about mastermind groups? Record it at http://askpat.com/.

Jason has a question about podcasting: Should he publish segments as separate episodes or as one long episode? Starting at Episode 900 and leading up to (and including) Episode 1000, I’ve been leaving clues to a puzzle. Next week I’m giving away $1,000 to a random person who solves it, every day! You can also get multiple entries for sharing the podcast. To enter into the drawing go to AskPat.com/solve. Do you have a question about podcasting? Record it at http://askpat.com/.

Today’s question comes from James: How he can get more traction on his site in a bootstrapping kind of way? James’ website is http://lasercutterfaq.com. Starting at Episode 900 and leading up to (and including) Episode 1000, I’ve been leaving clues to a puzzle. Next week I’m giving away $1,000 to a random person who solves it, every day! You can also get multiple entries for sharing the podcast. To enter into the drawing go to AskPat.com/solve. In this episode I mention my new course, Power-Up Podcasting. In it, I’ll show you how to launch a successful podcast. Check out http://poweruppodcasting.com to sign up for the waitlist. Do you have a question about online marketing? Record it at http://www.askpat.com/.

Darcie has a question about online courses. Should she bundle her courses together or package them as separate modules? Darcie’s website is https://ergonomicshelp.com/. Starting at Episode 900 and leading up to (and including) Episode 1000, I’ve been leaving clues to a puzzle. Next week I’m giving away $1,000 to a random person who solves it, every day! You can also get multiple entries for sharing the podcast. To enter into the drawing go to AskPat.com/solve. Do you have a question about online courses? Record it at http://www.askpat.com/. Today’s sponsor is FreshBooks. Go to http://www.freshbooks.com/askpat and enter “Ask Pat” in the “How Did You Hear About Us?” section for more information.

Today’s question comes from Juan. He has a podcast, but wants to try different formats of podcasts. Should he put the new podcasts in the same feed? Juan’s website is http://disruptivo.tv. Starting at Episode 900 and leading up to (and including) Episode 1000, I’ve been leaving clues to a puzzle. Next week I’m giving away $1,000 to a random person who solves it, every day! You can also get multiple entries for sharing the podcast. To enter into the drawing go to AskPat.com/solve. Do you have a question about podcasting? Record it at http://www.askpat.com/. Thanks to ZipRecruiter for sponsoring today's episode. Go to http://www.ziprecruiter.com/pat to get started posting jobs today.

Today’s question comes from Dominick, who asks: How do I drive more traffic to my website? Dominick's website is http://PeaceofMindFinances.com. In this episode I recommend a blog post on SPI: How to Launch a Brand New Website (With a Bang!)—https://www.smartpassiveincome.com/how-to-launch-a-brand-new-website/. Do you have a question about traffic-building? Record it at http://www.askpat.com/. Today's sponsor is DesignCrowd: A website that helps businesses crowdsource designs from over 500,000 designers worldwide. AskPat listeners can receive a free download and $100 off their next design by visiting https://designcrowd.com/askpat and entering the promo code "AskPat".

Alana has a question about starting out. She’s building a website and looking for new clients—how does she put everything she’s learning together, and what suggestions do I have for her? In this episode I mention my new, free five-day challenge and course: Build Your Own Brand. In this course I walk you through the process of creating a foundational website. Check it out today at https://smartpassiveincome.com/byob. I recommend checking out https://www.smartpassiveincome.com/convertkit, an amazing tool for building an email list. [Full Disclosure: I'm a compensated advisor and an affiliate for ConvertKit.] I also recommend my book Will It Fly?, which is all about idea validation and testing your next business idea. Check it out at https://www.smartpassiveincome.com/will-it-fly/. Do you have a question about online business? Record it at http://www.askpat.com/. Today’s sponsor is FreshBooks. Go to http://www.freshbooks.com/askpat and enter “Ask Pat” in the “How Did You Hear About Us?” section for more informat

Today’s question comes from Borja, who asks if it's hypocritical to encourage people to have a mentor even if he doesn’t have one? If someone wants to hire a mentor, does the mentor need to be more successful than them? Borja’s site is https://borjagiron.com. Do you have a question about mentorship? Record it at http://www.askpat.com/. Today's sponsor is DesignCrowd: A website that helps businesses crowdsource designs from over 500,000 designers worldwide. AskPat listeners can receive a free download and $100 off their next design by visiting https://designcrowd.com/askpat and entering the promo code "AskPat".

Today’s question comes from Paul, who asks if I know any good members-only WordPress plugins. Also, what are some added-value items he can give to his community? Paul’s website is https://www.recoveryelevator.com/. In this episode I mention my book, Will It Fly?, which is all about idea validation and testing your next business idea. Check it out at https://www.smartpassiveincome.com/will-it-fly/. I also mention a few WordPress plugins in this episode: https://zippycourses.com and https://member.wishlistproducts.com/. Do you have a question about WordPress? Record it at http://www.askpat.com/. Today’s sponsor is FreshBooks. Go to http://www.freshbooks.com/askpat and enter “Ask Pat” in the “How Did You Hear About Us?” section for more information.

Today, Amy has a question about podcasting. She’s about to relaunch her podcast—is there a way to get into the New and Noteworthy section on iTunes when she does? Amy’s website is http://makermama.com/. In this episode, I mention my new course, Power-Up Podcasting. It will take you from no podcast to a vibrant, thriving podcast in just weeks. You can sign up for the waitlist at http://poweruppodcasting.com. Do you have a question about podcasting? Record it at http://www.askpat.com/. Thanks to ZipRecruiter for sponsoring today's episode. Go to http://www.ziprecruiter.com/pat to get started posting jobs today.