"I don't know what it is or where it came from!"

Mark Joyner does an excellent job explaining exactly what a blog is. He describes different types of blogs (personal, business, editorial, etc.) and offers several reasons why someone should create a blog. He claims that "blogging is easy". Well, that really depends on the type of blog you wish to create. A personal blog can be very easy to set up and maintain but anything beyond that will take some time and effort. Mark also states that "it's free". That also depends on how much time you have and what you place on the value of that time. He also claims that "blogging allows people to express themselves". Absolutely no argument there...we all want to be heard after all.

Mark also claims that "anyone (well, almost anyone) can make money from blogging". Well, my friend, that's what this review is setting out to discover!

Along with the short lesson 1 video, the course offers a short, online quiz, a print (pdf) version of the lesson material, an audio (mp3) version of the material, and printable "memory joggers" that you can post around your house, office, etc. to reinforce key points of the lessons. There are also a number of bonuses included that should help novice and seasoned bloggers alike. I'll talk more about these later.

An integral part of this (and every other lesson) is the course check-list and workbook. The check list walks you through everything you need to do to meet the course objectives. The first thing it instructs you to do is watch the lesson video, then take the lesson quiz, then write, in your own words, what you learned. The lesson ended with the following assignment: "check the internet for examples of good blogs...exploring other blogs will give you an example of what your blog should look like." I don't claim this to be the most comprehensive course on blogging but it's short and simple and I have to admit, I know more about blogging now than I did before.

Lesson 3 starts, of course, with the course check-list. It takes you through the lesson step by step:

1. Watch the Lesson 3 video
2. Take the Lesson 3 Quiz
3. Write What You Learned

Write Your Answer to the Following Questions:

1. What are the five steps to creating a blog?
2. How can you determine which blogging service to use for your blog?

Do the Following Exercise:

1. Visit different blogging services
2. Compare features and benefits to determine which service is best for you.
3. Read as much as you like from the virtuosity book.
4. Read aloud as much as you like from the virtuosity book.
5. Listen to as much of the book on mp3 audios as you like.
6. Do your Daily Target Praxis (more on this later).

So, let's go to the video!

Mark states at the beginning of the 3 minute 38 second video that "the aim of this course is to teach you how to create a ‘killer' blog that readers can't get enough of."

He goes on to state that there are 5 steps to creating a blog:

1. Choose Your Blogging Service
2. Choose a Theme or Topic
3. Set up your Blog
4. Write your first post
5. Update regularly

He acknowledges that step 4 is the hardest part of starting a blog and he offers advice to make it much easier. He also provides quite a bit of bonus material that'll help you find topics to write about, get you past writers block, teach you to create attention grabbing titles and more. If you're really stuck at the starting gate, a simple "welcome to my blog" post will be just the thing to get you started. The lesson goes into all of this in much greater detail.

The quiz consisted of 3 multiple choice questions. The correct answers are very obvious. The incorrect answers are totally absurd and usually funny. I commend Mark‘s effort to inject humor into the course. The sound effects, as you navigate the test site, add a nice touch. I completed the remainder of the checklist and I must reiterate what I said yesterday; it may not be the most comprehensive course on blogging but it's short and simple and I now know more about blogging I did before.

The 8:46 am moment of silence proclaimed by President Bush in memory of the victims of Sept. 11, 2001 has passed. But my memory of that fateful day will go on forever. I wish to thank all servicemen and servicewomen - past, present and future, for the sacrifices they have made and continue to make to keep our country, safe, strong and free.

Between my dad, my brother and his wife Judy, my daughter and her husband Ivan, my sister Tiffany, my brother-in-law Wordell, my dear friends Gregg and Don, and I, we have over 75 years of military service. Our duty to this great nation has, at one time or another put each of us in harm's way. My dad was a paratrooper in the Army during the Korean War, my brother and his wife were both food service specialists during the crisis in Lebanon and during the first Gulf War. I was a fire control technician in the Navy and sailed in hostile waters on many occasions. My daughter and son-in-law are in the Marine Corp and have both completed tours in Iraq (he has been there twice and is re-enlisting soon). Let us all pray for a peaceful end to all the world's conflicts so we can all be united with our loved ones.

Here's my Lesson 4 review:

First, this review is not intended to teach anyone how to create an effective blog. This review is intended to provide readers with my objective opinion of Mark Joyner's Free Blogging Course. I was able to get the course by agreeing to complete the course and, if I wanted to, comment on it. I'm also using my own personal blog, 300 Words Every Day, as a crash test dummy upon which I can experiment with the strategies I'm learning in the course.

Just like in the previous lessons, it all starts with the checklist. The checklist walks you through each element of the lesson. Mark teaches you how to choose a theme and then he gives you an assignment - in this case , based on the information you have learned, choose 3 themes for your blog(s).

It's not as easy as you might think to decide upon 3 themes. After all, there are so many things we may want to write about; my trip to Japan, my thoughts on the presidential election, my passion for golf, sushi and broccoli rabe, my love of drawing and photography, my favorite movies, books, fantasy football, Battlestar Galactica's final season, Serenity, Weeds, Dexter, Howard Stern, my wife, my kids, and on and on. It's enough to drive you crazy!

In "DO IT! Let's Get Off Our Buts", the late Peter McWilliams wrote, "you can have anything you want but you can't have everything you want". Lesson 4 gives you practical advice that'll help you chose 3 themes.

In this lesson, Mark explains that there are 12 basic guidelines that must be followed to ensure that your readers will not only return to your blog - but will refer others to your blog as well. This is crucial if you expect your blog traffic to increase.

In the video, Mark proclaims that "content is king!"

He stresses the importance of creating good content by "keeping it up-to-date with reliable information, news and opinions". And by "always checking your facts and making sure that you're giving them good information".

It is also very important to provide good links to other blogs. For example, here's a link to a terrific article on creating great content: http://www.problogger.net/archives/2008/09/12/how-do-you-define-great-content/

Mark goes on to explain the importance of using keywords, knowing your audience, brevity and simplicity, and the use of good grammar - here's another great article: http://www.copyblogger.com/5-common-mistakes-that-make-you-look-dumb/

The course includes a number of bonus materials that will teach you how to create interesting titles for your posts, how to overcome writer's block, and much more.

Before I get to my lesson 6 review, let me tell you a little story. I decided it was time to update my Blogger profile so I clicked on the edit profile button and discovered that I had more then one blog. My "I Love Broccoli Rabe" blog was sitting there like a faithful dog waiting for his master to return. I thought about "putting him down" but then I realized he had done nothing to deserve that. All he wanted was a little love and attention and to be fed - and maybe to be cleaned up a little. After all, was it his decision to come into the blogosphere?

So I set about cleaning him up. None of the default templates seemed to satisfy him so I went searching for a new one. I found a site that offered a nice selection of templates. I downloaded one that seemed to make him happy but I sensed that he wasn't completely satisfied.

"Hungry Fella? How about a nice juicy post?"

He wagged his tail enthusiastically - that's what he was really waiting for!

So, I set about preparing his first post. I kept it very small - after all, he is brand new. He gulped it down and now he's napping. That gives me just enough time to post my lesson 6 review - 3 Ways to Attract Traffic Part 1: Improving Your Posts:

If you scroll down on that blog you'll notice that my earlier posts suffered from some poor formatting. Fortunately, my formatting is improving as I progress through the course and get more in touch with my software.

That aside, Mark suggests 4 ways to attract more readers by improving your posts:

1. Post keyword rich content
2. Convert posts into articles and submit them to e-zines
3. Convert your posts into RSS feeds
4. Write lists

Mark offers several examples and goes into greater detail on how to implement these strategies. The checklist will prompt you to perform an exercise that enhances the learning experience.

In order to get more traffic, Mark insists that your blog be search engine friendly. In lesson 7 you will learn how to make your blog and your posts keyword-rich and link-rich. This will allow search engines to rank your blog higher than blogs that are poor in these two areas. Mark also advises that your blog is frequently updated.

My mission for today is to do the following:

1. Submit blog to Google, Yahoo and MSN
2. Get keyword help from wordtracker.com
3. Add relevant links
4. Visit, study and post comments on My Blog List blogs
5. Update profile

Lesson 8 emphasizes that in order to attract more traffic, your blog should have as many relevant links pointing to it as possible. This gives the appearance that your blog is highly recommended by others. Lesson 8 provides several guidelines for attracting good links. Among these guidelines are:

1. Offer Valuable Content
2. Create Outbound Links in Your Post
3. Connect With Other Bloggers in Your Niche
4. Track-back to Other Bloggers From Your Site
5. Install a Blog-roll

Mark provides plenty of clear instructions on how to implement these strategies.

My mission for today is to do the following:

Study Lyn Terry's blogroll http://www.clicknewz.com/ and try to create or improve my own blogroll.

I met with some success yesterday in completing my lesson 8 exercises. First, I realize there's room for improvement, but I believe that I am creating valuable content. I studied Lynn Terry's blogroll; http://www.clicknewz.com/. This allowed me to create a couple of good (and relevant) outbound links in my blog. I also got some good ideas on how to tweak my own blog list (blogroll). I haven't connected with other bloggers in my niche - I will do so today and report back tomorrow. I haven't figured out if I can trackback to other blogs yet. I'll ask the question when I join a discussion and report back tomorrow.

Lesson 9 teaches the following additional strategies for attracting traffic to your blog:

1. Join Discussion Forums
2. Ping
3. Advetise on Other Blogs
4. Get Email Subscribers
5. Start a Podcast

Mark provides clear instructions and examples on how to implement these strategies.

My mission for today is to do the following exercise from lesson 9:

Do some internet research and find the most popular discussion forums related to your theme. Sign up and introduce yourself to the other members. Participate in the discussions in a positive way.

I wanted to share this with you before I get to my Lesson 10 Field Test. There's an interesting outlet where you can write about anything you want. As long as you adhere to one very strict guideline - write exactly 100 words a day for a full month.

This, according to the developers of this site, is an exercise in disciplined creativity. It might, in my opinion, help me write better posts. The site goes on to say that writing exactly 100 words at a time -- not a single word more, not a single word less -- isn't as easy as it sounds. The word count may be arbitrary, but the motive is not. To borrow from Proust, the tyranny of rhyme often brings out the poet's best work. By working within a standardized form, the writer can concentrate on other matters.

Membership is free, easy and without obligation. Click here.

On to the review - First, I met with great success yesterday in completing my lesson 9 exercises. I connected with other bloggers by joining a discussion forum and introducing myself. I posted my trackback question and even before I got a response I was able to figure it out for myself. It's so easy there's no point wasting your time (or mine) explaining it.

Guess what people? That's really all there is to being part of the blogosphere. I can ditch the rest of the course and blog on - satisfied that my posts are being read by a growing number of people. But what if I want to take this to the next level and explore the possibility of making money from my blog?

That's what we'll talk about in the Lesson 10 Field Test - 6 Ways to Make Money From Your Blog

The objective of lesson 10 is to summarize the following 6 strategies for making money with your blog:

1. Advertising Programs
2. Affiliate Programs
3. Sponsorship
4. Donations and/or Solicitations
5. Selling Information Products (ebooks, tele-courses, etc.)

Mark provides only a summary of these strategies. He promises to go into greater detail in the upcoming lessons.

My mission for today is to do the following exercise from lesson 10:

Choose three revenue streams you think would work best for your blog. Don't forget to explain your answers.

In this lesson, Mark explains that advertising on your blog is very easy and very common.

He say's that subscribing to Google Adsense - which will allow Google to place targeted ads on your blog - can be very lucrative.

That is, of course, if your blog offers good content and attracts plenty of traffic (Mark reminds us to see lessons 6 through 9).

In addition, your ads must be strategically placed on your blog.

Mark suggests that you track your results by reviewing your Google Adsense reports and he warns that you should never click on your own ads or encourage your readers to do so. This can get you banned! He also notes that Google will only accept websites and/or blogs that are "wholesome".

Although Mark describes several other ways to include advertisements on your blog, Google Adsense seems to be the easiest - and least inexpensive - to incorporate.

In this lesson, Mark explains that under an affiliate program, an internet merchant or advertiser pays a blogger (the affiliate) to send people to their site. He claims you can earn good income from affiliate sales. He provides a quick description of five of the most established affiliate programs on the internet. I selected 3 of the 5 and set about joining them. I figured it would take an hour or more and I would have to fill out lengthy applications and I would have to wait 3-5 business days before they'd even consider my application. What was I thinking? This is the internet for crying out loud! I was able to join 3 of the 5 affiliate programs within 15 minutes. There were applications to fill out for each one but it was relatively painless. Best of all, I'm able to promote only the products that I have personally tried for myself. Mark finishes the lesson with a lesson with the following warning:

"Affiliate programs can be a good source of income for your blog, but bear in mind that you should provide a service when linking your readers to products in your affiliate programs. If you want your readers to trust you, don't create a site that is crammed with nothing but affiliate links. Spare your readers the feeling that you're just trying to sell them something whenever they read your blog. You can do this by writing an honest review about a book along with a link that shows your readers where they can buy it. Or you can come up with a blog post about products you genuinely want to recommend. Always strive to give your readers valuable content above all else."

I feel this is the most important concept that can be taken from this entire course.

I decided to combine lessons 13, 14 and 15 into this, my last field test of Mark Joyner's Free Blogging Course.

In lesson 13, Mark describes the various ways a blog writer can get paid without incorporating ads on his or her blog - or without joining an affiliate program - or selling merchandise. Mark explains that many corporations are hiring professional writers to run and maintain their corporate blogs. This can be a good career choice if you have the necessary skills.

In lesson 14, Mark explains why small business owners should have a blog. Mark states that if you have a small business or are just starting out, blogging can do wonders for you due to the following reasons.

1. Blogs are powerful marketing tools
2. Blogs allow you to share your company's expertise
3. Blogs can help you make your mark in your industry
4. Blogs enable you to connect with people
5. Blogs enable you to meet potential customers
6. Blogs can take the place of your website
7. Blogs help build trust and credibility

Mark goes into each of these areas in much greater detail and his simple teaching style allowed me to easily implement each strategy.

In lesson 15, Mark suggests you go through all 15 lessons one more time. This includes completing the course checklist, watching the videos, listening to the audios, and completing the workbook exercises. Mark says, by doing this you will greatly enhance your learning. Mark invites you to relate your experiences and observations with his blogging course by visiting the discussion community at the following link: insert link

Summary: I highly recommend this course. It's free, comprehensive and it's simple. Prior to taking the course I thought blogging was for teenagers, housewives, and/or political pundits. I thought I was too busy to create and maintain a blog of my own. I have to say, Mark Joyner's blogging course changed all that. Now I'm hooked on blogging and I plan to make it a part of my everyday life.

Get Mark Joyner's free blogging course today - click here: http://www.simpleology.com/