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

Today's question comes from Patti, who asks about starting a podcast. Does she need the full setup I usually recommend? Can she start by just recording Skype calls? Patti's site is http://pattigood.com/. Check out my podcasting tutorial (http://www.podcastingtutorial.com) for getting started. For recording Skype calls, on Mac use Ecamm Call Recorder (http://www.ecamm.com/mac/callrecorder/), on PC use Pamela for Skype (http://www.pamela.biz/). An excellent inexpensive microphone is the AudioTechnica ATR 2100 (http://askpat.com/atr2100). Do you have a question about podcasting? Record it at http://www.askpat.com/. Today's sponsor is Freshbooks. Go to http://www.GetFreshBooks.com and enter "Ask Pat" for more information.

Today's question comes from Prabhu, who asks about building his email list. He's getting social engagement but people aren't subscribing to his email list. What should he do differently? In this episode I mention 1-Day Business Breakthrough (https://1daybb.com/). Do you have a question about email marketing? Record it at http://www.askpat.com/. Thanks to today's sponsor, AWeber. Your email list is your most valuable asset—get started today. Go to http://www.aweber.com/askpat.

Today's question comes from Sean, who asks about LeadPages. How do use LeadPages for delivering enhanced content to current subscribers? Sean's site is http://flightcrit.com/. In this episode, we discuss LeadPages (http://askpat.com/leadpages). Do you have a question about using enhanced content? Record it at http://www.askpat.com/. Today's sponsor is Freshbooks. Go to http://www.GetFreshBooks.com and enter "Ask Pat" for more information.

Today's question comes from Sam, who asks about making versions of his website in multiple languages. Is it worth the time? Sam's site is http://edmprod.com/. Use Google Analytics to help you make this decision (http://www.google.com/analytics/). Do you have a question about making your site multi-lingual? Record it at http://www.askpat.com/. Thanks to today's sponsor, AWeber. Your email list is your most valuable asset—get started today. Go to http://www.aweber.com/askpat.

Today's question comes from Wendy, who is getting back into self-employment. How should she balance her time between working and learning? In this episode, I mention a show I love, Internet Business Mastery (http://www.internetbusinessmastery.com/). I'm a big fan of using Evernote for saving content (https://evernote.com/). Do you have a question about learning skills for building your business? Record it at http://www.askpat.com/. Thanks to today's sponsor, AWeber. Your email list is your most valuable asset—get started today. Go to http://www.aweber.com/askpat.

Today's question comes from Wesley, who asks about two blogging terms: trackbacks and pingbacks. What are they? Do you have a question about a blogging term you don't understand? Record it at http://www.askpat.com/. To learn more about email marketing, go to http://emailthesmartway.com. Today's sponsor is Braintree. Braintree will help you accept business payments for your products from customers across the world. Go to http://braintreepayments.com/pat.

Today's question comes from Darin, who has been building a blog and has a question about post metadata. What is the difference between categories and tags? Darin's site is http://mystartupchallenge.com/. The WordPress plugin for combatting spam is Growmap Anti Spambot (https://wordpress.org/plugins/growmap-anti-spambot-plugin/). Share your advice with Darin on Twitter using #AskPat458. Do you have a question about blogging metadata? Record it at http://www.askpat.com/. Thanks to our sponsor, Lynda.com. Try out all of Lynda.com's courses for free for seven days. Go http://lynda.com/AskPat to get started.

Today's question comes from Estevan, who asks about niche sites. Is the traditional niche site outdated? How do you learn enough to become an authority in your niche? The site I mention in this episode is http://howtobakeapotato.com. The tool I used to analyze the site is SEMrush (http://www.semrush.com/). I discuss my niche site project, Niche Site Duel (http://www.nichesiteduel.com/), and the niche sites I built out of this Security Guard Training HQ (http://www.securityguardtraininghq.com/) and FoodTruckr (http://foodtruckr.com). Do you have a question about niche sites? Record it at http://www.askpat.com/. Today's sponsor is Freshbooks. Go to http://www.GetFreshBooks.com and enter "Ask Pat" for more information.

Today's question comes from Nick, who asks about affiliate marketing. Is it okay to put multiple affiliate links on a page, or should he put each on a separate page? In this episode, we use Bluehost as an example (http://askpat.com/bluehost). Do you have a question about affiliate marketing? Record it at http://www.askpat.com/. Thanks to today's sponsor, AWeber. Your email list is your most valuable asset—get started today. Go to http://www.aweber.com/askpat.

Today's question comes from Kitt, who has questions about crowdfunding. Which site do I recommend? Kit's site is http://theillustratedcoach.com/ The crowdfunding sites I discuss are Kickstarter (http://www.kickstarter.com/), IndieGogo (https://www.indiegogo.com/), and GoFundMe (https://www.gofundme.com/). I talk with Dwight Peters from BackersHub about crowdfunding in Smart Passive Income Session 117 (http://smartpassiveincome.com/session117). Do you have a question about funding your next project? Record it at http://www.askpat.com/. Today's sponsor is Freshbooks. Go to http://www.GetFreshBooks.com and enter "Ask Pat" for more information.

Today's question comes from Tom, who asks about Google search algorithm changes. He was hit with a Google penalty, and even after updating his site, it still hasn't recovered. How can he get back into Google's favor? Check out Neil Patel's guide on QuickSprout to recovering from Google penalties (a short link to the article: http://askpat.com/penalty). Do you have a question about the Google search algorithm? Record it at http://www.askpat.com/. Today's sponsor is Braintree. Braintree will help you accept business payments for your products from customers across the world. Go to http://braintreepayments.com/pat.

Today's question comes from Jay, who asks about mentorship. How can he find a mentor? Jay's site is http://www.respect1st.com/. My review of Azul Terronez's book is on SPI TV (http://www.smartpassiveincome.com/the-art-of-apprenticeship/). The printing company for our t-shirts is Printfection (http://www.printfection.com/). Do you have a question about mentorship? Record it at http://www.askpat.com/. Thanks to our sponsor, Lynda.com. Try out all of Lynda.com's courses for free for seven days. Go http://lynda.com/AskPat to get started. Check out my new email marketing guide at http://emailthesmartway.com.

Today's question comes from AJ, who asks about domain flipping (the buying and reselling of domain names). Is it a good income strategy? In this episode I talk about a principle Nicole Dean shared with me in Smart Passive Income Episode 009 (http://www.smartpassiveincome.com/spi-009-make-money-by-making-the-web-a-more-wonderful-place-with-nicole-dean/). I also discuss flipping websites using Flippa (https://flippa.com/) and my friend Chris Guthrie who has done this successfully (http://upfuel.com/). I tried this once with http://beginnergolftips.com/. Do you have a question about income strategies you've read about online? Record it at http://www.askpat.com/. Today's sponsor is Freshbooks. Go to http://www.GetFreshBooks.com and enter "Ask Pat" for more information.

Today's question comes from Ethan, who asks about launching his new website. Should he set up a pre-launch landing page? Ethan's website is http://whydidntyouask.com/ and his Twitter name is @ethanpariseau. In this episode I talk about the launch strategy for my niche site FoodTruckr (http://foodtruckr.com/). Do you have a question about landing pages? Record it at http://www.askpat.com/. Today's sponsor is Freshbooks. Go to http://www.GetFreshBooks.com and enter "Ask Pat" for more information.

Today's question comes from Stefan, who asks about outsourcing. How do you know when it is time to outsource a task? Stefan's site is http://howtolucid.com/. A few great companies for finding staff are Upwork (merger of oDesk and Elance; http://upwork.com) and Virtual Staff Finder (http://askpat.com/virtual stafffinder), as well as Fiverr (https://www.fiverr.com/) and 99 Designs (99designs.com/spi). I recommend Chris Ducker's book, Virtual Freedom, for discovering which tasks to outsource (http://www.smartpassiveincome.com/vf). The calendar tool I mention is Calendly (http://calendly.com/). Do you have a question about outsourcing? Record it at http://www.askpat.com/. Be sure to check out Email the Smart Way (http://emailthesmartway.com). Thanks to our sponsor, Lynda.com. Try out all of Lynda.com's courses for free for seven days. Go http://lynda.com/AskPat to get started.

Today's question comes from Ray, who has a podcast that isn't showing up in search on iTunes. Ray's podcast is http://topagentsplaybook.com/. Do you have a question about podcasting? Record it at http://www.askpat.com/. Check out my new guide on email marketing at http://emailthesmartway.com. Today's sponsor is Braintree. Braintree will help you accept business payments for your products from customers across the world. Go to http://braintreepayments.com/pat.

Today's question comes from Ximena, who asks about my posting schedule for my blog posts, podcast, and video. What is my schedule? In this episode, I mention Darren Rowse (http://problogger.net/) and Derek Halpern (http://socialtriggers.com/). The tool I recommend is Coschedule (smartpassiveincome.com/coschedule). Do you have a question about blogging? Record it at http://www.askpat.com/. Today's sponsor is Freshbooks. Go to http://www.GetFreshBooks.com and enter "Ask Pat" for more information.

Today's question comes from Ted, who asks about images in blog posts. How should he name his images? Ted's website is http://www.beersinsac.com/. The tool I recommend is Sumo Me (smartpassiveincome.com/sumome). Do you have a question about the nitty-gritty of blogging? Record it at http://www.askpat.com/. Thanks to today's sponsor, AWeber. Your email list is your most valuable asset—get started today. Go to http://www.aweber.com/askpat.

Today's question comes from Jordi, who wants to help his peers get started with their own freelancing businesses. He lives in an area where security is a concern—how safe is it to share details about his personal income? I share reports on my income with my audience (http://www.smartpassiveincome.com/my-income-reports). Do you have a question about sharing with your community? Record it at http://www.askpat.com/. Today's sponsor is Freshbooks. Go to http://www.GetFreshBooks.com and enter "Ask Pat" for more information.

Today's question comes from Jim, who has several different interests. How does he choose which interest will make the best podcast? To learn how to better serve your audience, listen to Smart Passive Income Episode 178 with Ryan Levesque (http://www.smartpassiveincome.com/the-ask-formula/). The acronym I use is FOCUS (Follow One Course Until Success), from John Lee Dumas (http://www.eofire.com/). Do you have a question about starting your podcast? Record it at http://www.askpat.com/. Thanks to our sponsor, Lynda.com. Try out all of Lynda.com's courses for free for seven days. Go http://lynda.com/AskPat to get started.