1301. Once this is posted, that will be the number of posts on this blog. Yesterday's post was number 1300. It took me four years, three months and one day to get to 1300 posts. That's an average of 0.838 posts per day or 5.86 posts per week. That's a lot of posting!
When I started this site back on February 4, 2007 I could never have envisioned where it would take me. I certainly never planned or even began to comprehend there would ever be 100 posts, let alone 1300.
Since that day back in 2007, The Hot Dog Truck has become a big part of my life, even after I sold my real hot dog truck. The creation of this site has led to new friendships, business partnerships, and (at last count) the creation of over 100 other websites (some mine and some I have made for others).
When I first started out, I just wanted a place to advertise my hot dog truck and have a little fun. It has become a fairly good money maker for me and has led me down the path to new internet ventures.
Who'd ever have thought that "the life and times of a Hotdogman" could lead to a mini internet empire?
Since starting, I have helped over one hundred people realize their own dream of starting a hot dog business and I am still helping folks get started today. I have also helped folks get started with their own websites and designed some small business websites.
I am humbled by the enormity and longevity of this site.
I would like to thank all my readers (regulars and occasional) for supporting this site and for being a fan. If I didn't have readers, I wouldn't have 1300 posts and I would probably be selling insurance!
Thank you all very much and hang out for another 1300 posts!
-The Hotdogman
1301
I WON!
Woo Hoo! I won John Chow's contest and will be getting a FREE GOLD PASS to Affiliate Summit West in Las Vegas in January! Basically, the contest was judged by John on the quality of the entry, it wasn't just a random drawing. He announced the winners Monday. Here's my winning entry:
John-
I have been following your blog since you started your Making Money with a Blog series in October, 2006. I may not be the most active participant in your “community,” but I have learned a lot from your site and gone on to quietly live the Dot Com Lifestyle while, more publicly, living The Hot Dog Lifestyle!
When I started my first blog, I just wanted a way to publicize my hot dog truck. It was a rough winter and I ended up not opening. With all the extra time, I learned ways to make extra money with blogs-you were my first and best teacher.
I have bought cars, paid for kids’ braces, gone on vacation and just plain old “paid the bills” with the money I have made from my blogs. I owe a lot of that success to your advice.
Now that I have the mechanics of making money with a blog in place, I am spending some of my earnings on developing a presence in more popular niches-this should lead to an enhanced Dot Com Lifestyle!
None of the things I have accomplished could have been done without John Chow dot com. Your advice was well organized, easy to read and seemed doable. With all the “hype” out there about making money online, your voice was a beacon of reason and reality.
While I’d LOVE to go to the Affiliate Summit West for the learning experience alone, I’d much rather go to look you in the eye, shake your hand, and say “Thank You.”
We can even go get a hot dog somewhere….
Thanks.
-Rob Merlino
“The Hotdogman”
Now the challenge will be to get to Vegas. It's too bad my in-laws aren't out there any more, I could have had a free place to stay. I think I still have a "comp" or two at a few hotels, I need to check my player's card accounts (the Hotdogman is a closet high roller-at least I was until my kids started getting older and MUCH MORE EXPENSIVE). Let me put it to you this way, the first place I ever stayed at, and got comped at, in Vegas was The Desert Inn-that's "old school." Coincidentally, The Affiliate Summit West is being held at the Wynn Resort-on the site of the old Desert Inn. I love Karma.
Getting there could prove interesting too. I am seriously thinking of driving out there and doing some Hot Dog Stories along the way. It could be fun and it would certainly bring that site beyond the regional boundaries it currently occupies. Besides, if I go the southern route, I can put the top down!
I'll definitely do a Hot Dog Story or two (or three or four) while in Vegas. It would be fun to do one with John; we could have a lot of fun with the "CHOW DOWN" photos I have in every post. Chowing Down with John Chow- it's definitely a concept!
VEGAS, BABY!!!!
HEY JOHN, I WANNA GO TO VEGAS!!!!
John Chow, dot com Mogul, is running a contest. It's a bit bigger than my Punch Buggy Contest, and I entered!
He's giving away a FREE PASS to Affiliate Summit West in January. You need to plead your case in the comments of THIS POST.
Wish me luck!!!!
What's up at The Hot Dog Truck dot Com
There are some changes coming to this site! As many readers know, I have ceased operations of my own Hot Dog Truck due to some serious health issues last year. I am happy to say I am all better now! I spent the last year working towards an education degree and I am looking to do some teaching. While hunting for a job (unsuccessfully so far), I decided to use my extra time to "crank up" my websites and blogs.
I have been actively writing and posting on some of my other sites, like Hot Dog Stories and Our Sea Glass. I have started some new sites like Wicked Cool Videos and The Punch Buggy Game. I am attempting to resurrect Veggyhead with my vegetarian daughter. I'm also gearing up for another thrilling NFL season on Winning Football Picks. There are some other new projects in the works, like a site to sell Our Sea Glass Jewelry and a Classics Illustrated Comic Books site. I have other web projects in the works and I am going to attempt to chronicle how I am doing making money online on Hot Dog! Money Online.
As you can see, I have been busy! Some of the sites are doing very well and others haven't caught on yet; what's important (to me anyway) is that I consistently put out content.
This leads me back to what is happening here at the Hot Dog Truck dot com. This site is about three and a half years old. It was my first blog and only the second website I ever made. I haven't done much to it, other than the recent redesign, for over a year. What surprises me is how popular the site remains. I get about 200-400 visitors a day and they read, on average, three and a half posts per visit.
When I first started this blog, it was going to be a combo of an advertisement for my business and a chronicle of "the life and times of a hot dog man." It morphed into a comedy/paid posting/how to/chronicle site. There's lots of stuff here! While I have been working on my other projects, I have been overseeing a TOTAL redesign of the Hot Dog Truck dot com. My goal is to get back to the "life and times of a hot dog man" type of blog, with large chunks of humor, family stuff and whatever the "topic of the day" may be. When I make the move back into the hot dog business (yes it will happen), I will be sure to chronicle every step of the way!
Beginning NOW there will be regular posting to this site. In the coming weeks, I will be migrating to Wordpress from my current Blogger format for a cleaner, more user friendly look.
So welcome or welcome back to the Hot Dog Truck!
Reality Check for Bloggers
I was looking at the Pro Blogger site the other day. It's one of these "blogging guru" sites where a guy named Darren Rowse, who has been blogging for quite a while and earns a nice living from it, shares his wisdom and gives advice about making money with blogs. He wrote an article that all bloggers with a thought of getting rich with a blog should read. It's called A Reality Check about Blogging for Money.
As for me, I started my blog as a lark and stumbled on a ton of “make money blogging” sites. Most of them are the same recycled junk that puts unrealistic expectations into the heads of blogging newbies. I wanted to make some extra money though, so I persevered.
The best bit of advice (spouted by numerous “pro bloggers”) was “create good content.” It’s the old “if you build it they will come” theory. Steve Pavlina wrote a great article on How to Build a High Traffic Website (or Blog) that I constantly refer to for "inspiration."
Another thing I learned along the way is just “building it” isn’t enough. You need eyeballs-lots of them- and you need to convert the eyeballs to regular readers. I did all the SEO stuff I could figure out and I’ve managed to make anywhere from $750-$1000 per month for the past 6 months or so.
I am not getting rich, but I paid for my kid’s braces, some daycare expenses, a bunch of domain names, an attorney’s bill, some Christmas presents and a new memory card for my computer. And I still have money rolling in every month. This site is paying for a trip to Las Vegas in April!
It sure beats having a part time job and it’s a lot of fun.
Would I like to make $250,000 a year blogging? HELL YES, sign me up. Maybe someday I will. In the meantime, I’ll continue having some fun and having a chunk of extra cash around every month. If you want to make money blogging, remember one thing: it IS WORK-nothing comes easy, but it can be done!
Go Live Mobile Goes Live
With the influx of mobile, web enabled devices, more and more people are taking the internet "on the road" with them. You literally have all the functionality of the internet in the palm of your hands. This has created a wireless explosion and a dramatic increase in interest in mobile web technology. I could write this blog on a mobile web device if I wanted to. Mobile website design and mobile website hosting are "the next big thing" and a wap site is something everyone will access and use before long.
Wap is short for "Wireless Application Protocol," a simpler internet browsing application designed for use on wireless devices. Wapsite hosting and design are growing by leaps and bounds and the design and graphic capabilities are getting more and more sophisticated every day.
Virgin Mobile is a pioneer in this new technology and they have just launched Go Live Mobile which allows people to create ringtones and wallpapers from their wireless device. You can also earn money when someone downloads a ringtone or wallpaper you've designed. This is going to be a big business before long and soon the reach of the internet will go even further bringing the full scope of social networking to wireless devices. I wonder if we'll all have to duck out of the way of all those wireless signals flying around our heads?
Leave it to Richard Branson and Virgin Mobile to blaze new trails. Wireless blogging anyone?
Content Theft
Many bloggers have, unfortunately, had to deal with content theft. I have too, and it pisses me off! So What do you do when someone steals your content?
There are lots of ways to go about it, one of the best ways is a series of steps that I found on JCM's- The 15000 Dollar Mission. Brazilian blogger Julio outlines what he's done in the past to prevent content theft and if more bloggers took these steps, those weasels who steal content might cease and desist once and for all.
I personally found some content theft last night and I am going to start putting a stop to it! Thanks, Julio!
New Header!!
I got the cool new header designed for FREE by Revka at The Porch Light.
I came across her site one night while surfin the net and she was offering to design free headers for the first 25 responders so she could promote her new design service RS Designs. Sorry there are no more freebies :o( but she does good work, is prompt in responding and seems like a genuinely nice person to boot.
Her blog has money making info, recipes, religious stuff, family activities and a lot more. Check out her site and her blog.
THANK YOU REVKA!!!!!!
Hangin' Out at the Hot Dog Truck
If you'd like to have your Blog in my "Hangin' Out at the Hot Dog Truck" spot at the top of the second column for 3 days, leave a comment and a link. If you have an image of your page I'll put that up too! Why pay rent when you can just hang out at the Hot Dog Truck?
Make Money Online
There are a host of "make money with your Blog" sites out there. Sifting through them all, I have realized that some are junk, some are excellent and many are repetitive.
Before you go spending money on some e-book or manual that tells you how to make money with your blog (like the sites, there are good ones and bad ones-certainly check out their claims), you should look at the quality, FREE information that is available to you. Read more on the Bloggers Affinity Group
There is also a great way to drive exponential traffic to your site. If you're using Blog Explosion or Blog Mad, this seems to be a good complementary way to get more "eyeballs" to your site. I'm trying it with one of my other sites. They explain it better than I could, so click HERE to learn more.
Blogger's Affinity Group
I have been swirling an idea around in my head for weeks. I am experimenting with a new, organic means of generating traffic to my site and others. Check out the Bloggers Affinity Group and become part of the experiment!
