In fact the way that I learned about this kind of thing was when I started building a website for the karate school that I run with my wife Sandra.  When we chose the name for our business, we stumbled across some great longtail keywords, but more about that in a little while.

At first I thought wouldn’t it be great if we could be found when someone typed “karate” in the search bar in their web browser.  The problem with this “karate” is a short tail keyword, meaning that it is short, non descript and not very targeted.  The other problem is that there are also 24,900,000 results on google which makes it quite a competitive search term and brings up results for people all over the world.

But I want to connect with people in my local area.  This is where I add a bit more detail, I know that the people I want to attract live in the Sunshine Coast region, and given the the name that we chose for our dojo is “Sunshine Coast Karate” this is enough to build a geo-targeted, longtail keyword.  Google returns 37,200 results which is certainly much smaller than the global results that the search term “karate” returns.  But for our purposes, it helps us connect with our market.

In most cases, this is enough for us as it captures the interest of new students every month.  But we could go further and by looking at the types of people that we want to attract.  One of our market segments is children, so we could use an even longer and more targeted search phrase such as “sunshine coast karate kids classes”.  Or from time to time we run school holiday programs for children, so we could get even more targeted with something like “sunshine coast karate school holiday programs for kids”.

There are a lot of ways to figure out what might be good keywords for your business, but a good place to start is to do a search and see what it takes to find one of your competitors.  Once you’ve chosen a keyword that you want to use, the next step is to make sure that your key words are visible on your webpage, blog post, article, or link back to your website.

In the 2004 US presidential election a group of internet marketers manipulated the search results for the term “miserable failure” by creating lots of links back to George Bush’s website with the words “miserable failure” as the anchor text for the links.  As a result, George Bush’s website became the #1 listing in Google’s search results for that search term even though the words “miserable failure” did not even appear on his website.  As a result Google had to rewrite their search algorithm to fix this “problem”.  Anchor text is still important for links that point to your website, but there is also a lot that you can do on your own website.

Without getting into too much detail, here are a few things that you can do with your onsite SEO (search engine optimisation).  If you just do the basics, you’ll be doing more than 95% of webmasters, even I get a bit lazy from time to time.  Here’s a short list of what you should do on your site with your primary keyword(s):

• It should appear in the page title
• It should appear in the page meta description
• It sould appear in the meta keyword list
• It should appear in the <h1></h1> HTML tag
• It should appear throughout the page at a density of 3-7%
• Additionally, you can also wrap your keywords in a <strong></strong> HTML tag throughout your page, also known as bold

As I said most webmasters are too lazy to do all of this on every webpage that they create, but if you’re serious about building traffic to your website, don’t underestimate the power of taking these steps.

As an additional note, I use this keyword density checker from time to time when I really want to target a specific keyword.

Finally just the other day she made her very first blog post.  And to help give a bit of encouragement I posted a short message on my facebook profile page and as a result the blog post got a few comments.  It served it’s purpose and a few people left comments, to what was a great first post.  Mum’s always been pretty good with words, so the writing part is going to be easy for her, it’s the marketing part that might take a little bit of time to get her head around and the mechanics of using wordpress.

But, I realised that when people comment and in turn get a reply back to their comment, they don’t realise unless they check back at the site again later.  So to help build a bit more interactivity, I did a bit of a search and found a few great little plug-ins that let’s people subscribe to receive email notifications when somone leaves a comment on a blog post.

The simple plug-in Subscribe To Comments allows visitors to tick a box when they leave a comment which gives them the option of being notified by email when someone else leaves a comment. The only drawback of this plug-in is that by default, a visitor must first comment before they can subscribe to receive notifications of new comments.  But if you want to receive notifications without actually commenting, you can install an additional plug-in Subscribe to Comments Now! which allows you to overcome this little issue.

So, if you use wordpress or manage a plan to use wordpress in the near future to create your own blog or website, these look to be a couple of great little plug-ins that I will most likely be installing on most wordpress websites that I build in the future.  If you know of a better solution, let me know, I’m always open to suggestions.  And if you want to check out how it works, leave a comment.

Here’s how it works… Let’s say someone visits your website and they don’t buy from you straight away, but you still get to build a relationship with them and offer the opportunity for them to subscribe to your email newsletter.  You have a little form asking them for their name and email address, just like the one to the right side of this page.

When someone signs up, they receive a series of pre-written email messages that you have loaded into the autoresponder and scheduled to send out at pre-defined intervals.  But it doesn’t stop there, you can also send out broadcastemails or schedule them to send out additional messages at any specific point in time.

There are a lot of different autorsponder solutions available if you want to spend time looking around.  There are free solutions, but in my opion I haven’t found a good free one yet.  There are self hosted solutions, which may be good for some people who are technically minded and have time to burn with setup, maintenance and anti-spam legistlation.  And then there are subscription services like the one that I use and recommend.

I choose AutoWebBusiness because it’s a scalable solution that offers a 30 day trial for just $3.95, then starts at $29 per month for up to 10,000 subscribers.  And as you business grows, there is some great upgrade features like the fully integrated shopping cart, the digital product distribution systems and the affiliate tracking system so that you can easily build and manage your own affiliate network to drive traffic to your website.

Whether your planning on using your autoresponder to turn prospects into customers, turn your customers into repeat customers, or looking for a fully integrated system that will grow with your business.  An autoresponder system like AutoWebBusiness is one of the most important tools for any internet business owner.

At the heart of it, a system like this will help you build and manage your greatest assest of your online business:  a database with multiple lists of prospects and customers.

If you want to learn more, check out the $3.95 trial of AutoWebBusiness, it’s not like you’ve got anything to lose!

Towards the end of last year I realised that I was slipping into some pretty bad habits with my food.  But to be honest I didnt’ realise just how bad until I decided to take some drastic action and stop eating.  It was inteded as a detox, and it worked very well.  But it surprised even me that it would last for 17 days in total.  Of course I didn’t just do it on a whim, I took a lot of time to research and learn about the possible implications of fasting.  And for me it was absolutely worth it.

My main purpose was to detox, break some bad habits and gain some perspective.  It wasn’t my intention to do it to lose weight, but  I dropped over 10kg.  And thanks to some big changes in my nutrition habits I’ve only put on about 2kg and now I’m back at my high school body weight, something that I neer thought I’d see again.

It’s now over 2 months since the my 17 day fast finished, and I think it’s one of the best things that I have done.  But let’s face it, it’s not something that I would recommend for anyone else to do unless they have taken considerable time to research the process as I did.  Even then it’s not a good idea for everyone to fast.

At the end of the day good health or getting to your ideal weight is really quite simple.  Not necessarily easy, but it’s simple.

1. Eat less (control your portions in your nutritional intake)
2. Eat differently (eleminate as much processed food as possible, aim for 100% fresh food)
3. Drink more water
4. Move more (exercise daily, walking is a great start)

In order to be successful in any field your physical and mental health are definitely essential elements.  Don’t just think about it, make the change now and claim your life. Here are a few resources that will most certainly help.

The last week or so has been pretty smooth sailing.  I’m feeling great, lots of energy, wanting to get more physically active.  I actually find that I have to slow myself down a bit because I don’t know how much longer I’ll be going without food.

This last week especially has opened my eyes up to how much rubbish we let our own kids eat.  So there are certainly going to be a few changes on that front.  The biggest one being, more veges.  I’d don’t think they’re going to like it, but that’s too bad!  Much like my own food habits (previously).  They just eat the junk because it’s easily available.  And they’re not into the habit of looking for a healthy alternative first.

Hunger – Haven’t really been hungry very much at all.  Still want to eat, but that’s still more out of habit than any real need.

Emotions – Feeling pretty good on this front.  In fact I think I’ve been a lot more patient with kids especially.

Mental Focus – I just seem to be getting so much more work done than normal as I find it really easy to get focussed and started.  Starting to knock off a few big jobs that I have been putting off for…. well lets just say a loooong time.

Physical Changes – Over the last 4-5 days my weight seems to be stabilised around 84kgs.  Some days it’s actually up a bit some days it’s down a bit.  The only things going in are still salt and water, so it’s kind of surprising to me that my weight has stabalised.

A lot of people are starting to comment “have you been losing weight”.  And yes, I have about 10kg now (93kg > 83kg).  When I eventually get to explain what I am doing, it’s surprising how many people,  look at me like a crazy person and write me off as a lunatic.  But I guess ignorance has a way of creating fear in people.

Although weightl loss is the most noticeable physical change, it’s not really the goal.  The primary goal is to detox and then in turn give me some time to break bad habits and think about the new food habits that I want to create.

My tongue is still really white.  The photo below gives a bit of an idea what it looks like, but this photo makes it look quite pink as compared to what I see in the mirror.

One interesting observation.  Even though I’ve been drinking lots of water (about 6-8L/day) my urine is still really yellow.  I guess there’s lots of toxins to get out of my system and there’s only so many ways for it to get out.

That’s all for now, more next time.

The thing that I’ve loved the most is just the new perspectives I’m gaining, of myself, my kids, and other people in general.  Particularly when we’ve been shopping for food for the kids it’s been a bit of an eye opener looking at how much rubbish most people seem to put in their trolleys, in then in turn into their mouths.  I’m absolutely amazed how most people have any energy to live, becuase there’s not a lot of nutritional content in their trolley.

It’s also been a bit of an eye opener how much we were doing exactly the same thing in certain areas.  Now that we’re not eating, we still find ourselves wanting to go down certain isles out of habbit.  In case you’re wondering, I mean the chocolate isle.

The other thing on the shopping front that’s pretty amazing… This week we took our normal $200 shopping bill down to just $60, and that included a big packet of nappies.  So if you’re looking to save a bit of money.  Why not go on an extended fast?  It’s a pretty cool side benefit.

Emotions – Mostly pretty good towards other people.  I think I must be getting calmer, because the kids are much more responsive and easier to work with than normal.  Maybe it’s because I want to conserve my energy, so I’m not giving them a hard time.

Hunger – Some days I feel like chewing off my arm I’m so hungry.  But today, it’s hardly even entered my mind.  As long as I keep up my water intake and keep busy (100% mentally engaged in something), hunger is not an issue.

Mental Focus – I just feel like doing lots of work at the moment.  I feel like I’m able to focus a lot more on what I’m doing than normal.  It could be a really productive time for me.

Physical Changes – Weight is still dropping off nearly 1kg a day.  I last weighed in this morning 86kg (-7kg so far).  I can almost see my abs now, just a little bit more covering to disappear.  I have been a bit light headed at times, particularly when I get up too quickly, but I am able to monitor it for the most part.

My tongue is still looking disgusting, all white.  I was poking it out in the car rear vission mirror today to have a look if it had changed and my 4 year old daughter noticed that it was white.  So cheekily I asked her, why do you think it’s white?  “Because you’ve been eating snow daddy!”  That made me laught.

In at the karate dojo, I am still teaching, albeit a lot more passively.  I am noticing that my strength and endurance have dropped considerably.  I can still do most things, but I don’t think I’d make it to the end of the class if I was training instead of teaching at the moment.  Feeling like I do now gives me a great appreciation for what some people must feel like when they start karate, particularly as adults.

I’m still keen to keep going.  I like how I look, I can still function to do everything that I need to do, in some cases even better than normal, and I’m enjoying the little insights along the way.

I’ll keep you posted, more next time.

I was feeling really hungery and a bit light headed throughout the day.  But managed to push through, during mid afternoon I had to lie down for a bit of a siesta before classes started in the afternoon.  It was a hard day yesterday.

Needed to finish up relatively early last night to teach early morning and day classes today.  Today was completely different to yesterday, woke up with lots of energy, I got a bit more physically involved with the classes.

After the day class we went to Woolworths to get a few things (cleaning products, in case you’re wondering).  I have to say it was hard to walk around all that food knowing that I wasn’t going to have anything.  Instincively I wanted to go to the chocolate isle, but resisted the urge.

Emotions – Yesterday, took a lot of focus to stay in control.  Today was a breeze in comparison.  If it’s like what I’ve heard, I might be over the hump.

Hunger – Vary hard to be around food.  Especially preparing food for the kids.  That’s the main time that I feel hungry.  That, and when I’m sitting down doing nothing.  And there hasn’t been much of that lately, fortunately.

Mental Focus – Yesterday, all my focus was just on getting to the end of the day.  Today, it’s been a completely different day, I have really been able to live in the moment of each part of the day, except while at Woolworths…

Physical Changes – Tonge is really white, and I think my sense of taste is getting better.  The taste of the salt is starting to get to me and I can really taste the chlorine in the tap water.  Went to put my belt on my shorts and I’ve gone done a notch.  Also jumped on Wii Fit and my BMI is down in the ideal range.  Down to 89kg (-4kg so far).  My body shape is starting to change a bit now, another 5kg and I’ll be back to the weight I was when I left school.  Which was really a bit underweight I think, because I was so physically active at that time.

Still not really sure where this is all going, but I’m feeling pretty good now and still happy to see it through (at this stage).  By see it through, I mean keep going without food until I have a pink tongue again, whenever that is.

Emotions – Pretty level really.  Nothing to report.

Hunger – The first part of the day I spent with the kids, while Sandra was at the dojo for morning and day classes.  Kids were grazing all morning, and I was having a bit of a lazy morning so I was feeling a bit hungry.  No hunger pains or anything like that.  Just like I would on any morning, perhaps just a little more conscious of how my stomach was feeling.

Mental Focus – Early part of the day was actually challenging, because the kids entertained themselves a bit, which left me without a specific focus.  But after Sandra got home, we had a bit of time together and I got into some work.  When I started work, my focus shifted off my belly quite quickly.  I think it’s going to become quite important to stay busy and mentally focussed on something as time goes by.  This evening karate classes made the time go by quickly.  A lot of members are now back for the new year so the pace is starting to pick up.  Already there are a lot of enquiries from potential new students thanks to our new year promotion, so the next few weeks are shaping up to quite busy on that front.

Physical Changes – I jumped on the scales this evening, down to 90kg already (-3kg from start weight).  My tongue is also very white.  I have also started to notice my B.O. is quite strong, maybe it’s the toxins leaving my body, maybe my nose is getting more sensitive, not sure really.

Not really that much to report today.  Maybe tomorrow will have a few more interesting things to report.  I’m still quite excited about the process, but I’m realising that it might be quite a while before I get to eat again.  It was hard perparing dinner for the kids and then watching them eat it.

The more I read, the more I knew it was time for a change.  The funny thing is, I didn’t just know it academically, my whole body just knew.  I kind of started testing the water unconsciously, skipping meals, eating less, and watching much more closely that I ever have how I was fuelling my body.

After talking about it with my wife Sandra for nearly the last 2 weeks, last night we both decided to make a start.  We have decided to fast on nothing but water with a pinch of rock salt here and there as required.  We don’t have a goal as to how long the fasting will last, we want to try to let our bodies decide when it’s time to start eating again.  From what we’ve read, we’ll know it’s enough when our breath is fresh, our tongues are pink and our skin is clear.  I’m not really the expert so I’ll follow this advice which I have seen echoed by a number of “experts”.

I have heard that the first 4-5 days can be really tough both emotionally and physically, but so far so good.  I’ve been drinking lots of water and it’s been quite a hot day.  On top of that this week we are running a series of Day Camps for kids in the school holidays at our karate school, so there was a bit of physical activity this morning and again this evening with the regular classes.   It was incredibly hot and humid this morning, so it made it easy to keep the fluids up, but I still don’t think I had enough.

Probably the one thing that I’ve noticed so far, is that I just seem to have so much more time, just by not thinking about meals.  But I have to admit it’s a bit strange trying to make sure that our kids are well taken care of in the nutrition department when you aren’t eating anything yourself.  I guess if anything it’s helping to take a closer look at some of the bad habits we have been creating for them.  Being only 2 and 4 years old, I just wonder how it will take them to realise that we aren’t eating anything.

To be honest I’m a bit aprehensive about how we’re going to go, with two of us fasting at the same time.  Both of us for the first time.  The potential emotional roller coaster.  Balancing business, kids and our own ups and downs along the way.  I’m sure there’s going to be a few, but so far it’s been pretty uneventful.

It’s funny I don’t really know why I’m doing this, I just know that I have a really strong pull in this direction and I know that it’s important right now and the right thing for me to do.

Just before I sign off, a few key areas that I might use at the start of each post from here on.

Emotions – Feeling good, nothing out of the ordinary.  Was a little bit short with Sandra a couple of times, but realised quickly and sorted it out.

Hunger – Haven’t really been any more hungy that I would first thing in the morning.

Mental Focus – Feeling a little more focussed than usual, but not significiantly different.

Physical Changes – Nothing to report.  My starting weight was around 93kg.  According to Wii Fit, just slightly overweight with a body mass index of ~25.7 if my memory servs me correctly.

Weight loss isn’t a motivator for wanting to fast, but it would be nice to drop a few kgs and keep it off.  I’ve heard that fasting and then reverting to old eating habits is a surefire way to increase your weight in the long term, so I might have a bit of reprogramming to do when I start eating again.

That’s all for now I’m off to bed to do some study, MP3 audio program in case you’re wondering.

“…Success in any field of endeavour, whether it’s your business, your health or your relationship with others, takes effort!  But, more importantly, it has to be the right kind of effort. As well as that, SUCCESS IN ANYTHING TAKES CONSISTENT ACTION!

So, if you’re not successful right now, or want to improve on what you’re doing, find yourself a mentor and model them.  MODELING OTHERS WORKS.”

Everyone is successful at something.  Sometimes you just need to ask the right questions to get to the most important information.  Anyone can teach you how to be successful, it’s just that some people can take you there quicker.

If you want to shortcut the process find people who are getting the results you want.  That’s always a good place to start.