Charles,  I promote mine, too, and this is going to be the one I use for everything.  It is a great tool, more so now.

Bill - I do have issues!

Gary, I feel like a pioneer sometimes, and way above my tech level of competence - but boy, has it paid off.

You guys read this when it wasn't done - I forgot to check draft when I started in!

JL - I wanted to jump in instead of being the last one here to try something - I have high hopes based on past performance of AR features.

Bo, thanks!  I guess the proof is in the pudding and the test is how the results show on Google.

Toula - you are welcome and if I can accomplish it - anyone can.

Jane - Email Brad or Bob, they will help you, it really is easy.

Dan/Amy - These AR guys are great - I can't believe the time they spend with me.

Steve - you can go back and edit any post that you want added to your outside blog, just click a little box at the end before submit - I took the time to do that and went through all of my posts in a short time - I didn't put all of mine on this outside blog, just the real estate- ish ones.

Wendy - You and I have discussed this - I waited untill I was sure that I wanted the upgrade - I checked out other posts and really thought about it  first, although you can cancel it after a month or whatever if you don't feel that it is helping you.  I didn't know until I had upgraded that the listing router comes with the $19 - they are just giving to us as a bonus.  It is also a bonus with Localism when you sponsor a city.  So, no charge.  You just click on listing router, a screen comes up, you type in the url that you want to use. 

I have seen increased traffic since I got it on Localism and I expect to see more now that I have it on this outside blog.

The listing router itself is worth way more than the $19 for the blog or the $9 for the sponsorship.  So now I have it on Lacalism and this blog, too.

BONUS!

Bill - Your opinion is worth a whole lot more than 2 cents and I thank you for it.  And you are 100% right - I am only going to put local real estate stuff on it, loan info, staging.

This was the first post that I wrote since I upgraded, and I wanted to see how it looked as far as the paragraphs and formatting, if there were any problems - there were not.  I will remove it later.

Thank you for taking the time to help me/us - your input means a lot to me.

Kat - thanks, Mesquite is not a secret anymore!

Dean - I think Google will pick up on these outside blogs, and the listing router comes with it - I didn't know that until I did the upgrade.  Thanks for the reminder to put this in the directory - it does help.

Barb - all my trials are full of errors.  :)  I have talked to both Bob and Brad at wierd hours - they act as if they have nothing better to do than to fix my problems.

Once I tried to add some HTML to my descriptions - Bob and Brad both worked on that mess!

Hope - don't put it off any longer - with technology, you want to be first!

Kim - I have Bob Stewart and Brad Andersohn on Speed Dial - they answer the phone!!!  And I get Mesquite TX on some of my Google alerts.  :)

Pat - thank you, I hope you got an outside blog, too.

Tammy - just jump in there - any problems, call me!  Or better for you, call Brad or Bob!

Eric - I think I am going to upgrade Picnik, too.  I love it, it is so easy and fun - saves time, which is money, right?  And you can do realy cool stuff - I am glad Brad told me about it.

Vicki - thank you.  And yes, Brad is wonderful.  He called me once on a Sunday night - I guess he loves his job.

Thank you, Sheldon, the best is yet to come!

Chris and Stephanie - thanks!

You all should put a link in these comments if you have an outside blog.

Kristi - Thanks!  Mesquite is the fastest growing city in Nevada - it is turning into a little city.

Terrilynn - Helpful.  Very.  :)

Sonya - I was so impressed with other people's headers and completely intimidated.  Brad told me to pic a picture on my computer, crop a piece of it 134X 960, save it, then go to Piknic.com and they have a feature where you can upload your picture and put text on it.  I did - it was EASY - and free!  Call me if you need help!

Kent - all this stuff is hard for me - I call Brad and Bob all the time!  The tech support here is awesome.

Jo - compared to when I joined AR, I am a techy now!

Li - Thank you.  I am trying to give back a little.

Marian - Your blog is lovely.  It sounds like we are kind of alike - I learned about AR from my daughter, too.  You keep writing those thought provoking posts and you will have many readers!

Jason - I created a bunch of issues when I tried to upgrade - I actually had 3 outside blogs and didn't know it.  So Bob and Rich had to clean all that up - then it was a cinch.

Chris - I did this post because I think that outside blogs are a huge value and wanted to share my thoughts - so many, like Bill Gassett, point us in the right direction and it really has helped me.

Laura - Brad and Bob both act happy to hear from me - either theay are really good at faking it or they just love their jobs!

Tim and Pam - Thanks!

John - The support is excellent - where else do you get tech support who answer the phone and immediately sart helping?

Kathy - Picnik was a picnic - I will be using it a lot now.  I have my own name for the bugs, too, but I don't put it in print.  :)

Jeff - Glad to make you think for a change - it is usually the other way around!  Thanks.

Gary - Thank you very much!

Petra - I guess a lot of us have Brad on speed dial.  ;)

Jon - It is amazing that it is on first page of Google in the first 2 days.  Especially since all the posts on it were already on my AR blog and/or Localism first.  I haven't written any for my outside blog yet.  And I haven't linked to it from anywhere yet.   

Yet it already shows up on page 1 Google for several very important long tail searches for my area!

That tells me that Google noticed it already.  My goal is to have Google subscribe to my blog. :)

After 2 weeks or so, I will do an extensive Google search for all of my targeted long tail keyword phrases - I have a list and a little chart.  I will let you know how it does.

Whatever you are doing to make our outside blogs so powerful - please keep it up!!!

BTW - The outside blog with it's own G-juice is worth 19 bucks, no doubt - peoople who get there from searches are not going to be distracted by those pesky other blogs from my competitors.  The listing router is a bonus - I did not know that we get it free with the upgraded blog.  My mls requests have tripled since I added the router to my localism sponsored page, so I expect an increase in requests from the outside blog, too.

But I don't expect an increase in price - sorry, Jon - 19 bucks - a deal is a deal!    :)  :)  :)

Maria - Take the plunge.  I figured that I spend more than 19 bucks a month on MacDonald's cookies, if I need to give them up, I will.  :)

Bill - what a nice compliment, thank you.  You should consider it.  I wrote about it to let people know that it dooesn't take much time to set up, you already know the ins and outs of AR blogging, and if you need help like I did - call them!

Steve - well, you know how it is - it is so easy for us young kids!

Chris - so true, when AR says support staff, they mean it.

Thank you, Joan - some of us do need a little more help than others.

Rebecca - glad I could give you the push you need - go for it!

Connie - I think that there are lots of us who are getting there - but it does not come as easy as it does to the kids.  :)

Eileen - please come back and put a link to your outside blog when you do, so that everyone can share!

Simon and Jeff - sometimes I am afraid to try the new things here, but I eventually do.  This time I jumped in without actually reading the directions completely, so I needed some help to fix it.  I have called these guys and asked them some pretty stupid questions, I thought, but they never act that way - they are so patient and helpful with suggestions and go the extra mile to make sure that I get it!  And then offer some more ideas to help me along.

Tina - yes, read it again, then just do it.  Once you put in your credit card info, the screens pop up and it is easy - I messed mine up before I even got that far and ended up with several new blogs that didn't work - all my fault.  You can even call Brad and he will walk you through it.

Annette - Thank you!  And I was a Newbie once, too - I got a lot of help from other Rainers, that is what kept me here, I was so tech-challenged.

Christine - just pick a picture that you like, crop it to the size and save it on your computer.  Then go to Picnik and add some text - it will only take you 10 minutes at Picnik. 

Peggy - Your outside blog looks really good.  And the stand alone aspect of the outside blog is one of the best things about it - now we aren't bringing attention to our competitors!

But how do you embed it onto your website?  Maybe you could write a post about it?  And link to it here?  I am sure many would like to know how to do it?

Lanre - if you need help, which I don't think you will - give them a call.  I have called them a few times, not enough that they recognize my number yet.  :)

Craig - the activerain guide was a great idea.  Let me know if you need any help - I will tell you who to call.  LOL

Karin - You have a really nice profile and I see that you are already consistently blogging already.  If you need any help with adding pictures or anything, give me a call.  You will be amazed at how much blogging here on AR will help your business - I was!

Liz - Wonderful to see you here!  You helped me so much and I don't think you will need any help catching up with what you missed while you were out sick.  And I would love a call from you!

Terri - yes, I am way out of second gear.  I am running in high gear most of the time, as you know!

Cindy - I am a slow learner, but this one was easy, once they fixed my mistakes - and Brad has a great tutorial on how to do it, step by step!

Glenn - Someone who found my blog would have found it for my specific keywords which are all about Mesquite and Mesquite only.  I don't think I have ever had a buyer who was considering both/either - Mesquite or Henderson.  It is 2 different worlds and 80 miles apart.  I don't work the Vegas area.  Las Vegas area agents don't work here - they don't have access to our MLS or lockboxes.

I guess I could sponsor a whole bunch of areas of Nevada, in case someone happened on my blog who was looking in another area and then I could refer them - is that what you mean?

The Listing Router is specific to the area that you are in, I do not have any access to Henderson information to give them.  If I did, I could choose to have that site as the destination url.

I pay 19 for outside blog which is for the Mesquite area - AR is giving us the listing router for no extra charge.

Henderson and Mesquite is like apples and oranges.

If I am not understanding your question - please let me know.

Brian - I just looked at your AR blog - you are good - figure on about 20 minutes, especially if you have a header ready - if not, you can add the header later.

Joanne - I would recommend that you try to be like someone besides me when you grow up!  LOL  Jump in and do it - you can always add your header later, that way the blog is ready for some new content NOW.

Jennifer - my enthusiasm comes from already having success from my regular AR blog and Localism - that is why I know that this will help my business even more.  Thank you!

Amber - Thank you - please put a link to it here when you get done!

Katerina - Thanks for the advice - you and Bill Gassett are my SEO gurus!  You teach us how and he tells us where.

I have had really good results for my keywords here and spend a lot of time making sure that I am hitting them right - I learned that from you.

I would recommend your blog and your webinars to anyone who wants to succeed and learn how to use internet marketing to rise to the top as you have done.

The calls that I am getting are usually directly from my blog, way more than from my website.

Thank you for all of your help this past year and PLEASE come back with the link when you have your new outside blog up!  And everyone should subscribe to your blog!

Glenn - Good - I didn't realize that Jon had already answered your question till I scrolled down to more comments - since I was not sure what your question was, I am glad Jon stepped in to answer it.

Gayle/The best spot - I looked at your blog and you are certainly NOT technically incompetent!  After I list a home and get all of the different internet marketing going, I email a list to the seller.  It it includes all of the different sites that show his listing, and I show him different ways that a buyer might search with different keywords which will result in showing his property on first page results of Google. When I do a listing presentation, I use an address of another listing and show him those results.  He can then see for himself what he will get when he lists his home with me.  I also ask sellers to Google my name and town, and then Google another agent who they might be considering, and compare.  It is very effective.  Are you doing something like this?

Sharon - it is such a good opportunity - hope you get yours soon, put a link to it here - love to see it!

Denise - I have been busy lately and didn't want to waste any time trying to figure out what I did wrong - glad I contacted Brad and got my errors fixed quick!

Bob - Old dogs might be reluctant to learn new tricks, but the rewards make it worth it!

Randall - Come back and leave a link when you are done setting it up.

Kristen - I was skeptical, too, put a link to yours here, we would like to see it.

Steve - Once you go in and put it your credit card, the screens come up and it is about 5 steps, just have your header ready, or you can add one later.

Wendy - Brad's advice to crop a picture made all the difference.  I opened and closed the blog in IE and Firefox and had no problems, tried it on another computer and had no problems either.  Sorry that you did.

Jane - I think your outside blog looks good.  Maybe you could crop a piece of those clouds on the mountain picture to 960X 136 - I think that is the size.  Then go to Picnik, then add some text - your logo, or phone number and email address, whatever you want on there.  Then upload that picture as your header.  Then you could put a picture of yourself on the right side.  Then people who read your blog see who is talking to you.  If you need help, email me or Brad or Bob.  They could help you better than me, but call me anyway!  :)

Tim - I think that just as Localism has been working for us, the outside blogs will, too, when Google indexes them.  You could use yours for a specific niche, and leave Localism for other stuff.  Remember, too, that when a consumer goes to Localism, he may get sidetracked by another blogger or subject.  With your customized outside blog - they just get YOU.  Also - you are not committing to any length of time except a month - I would say try it for 3 months and see if it works.  And once you set it up (after learning from our mistakes :) it is just another post - we already know how to do that.

Mike - Thank you - I think those of us who are aggressive and try the new things will be ahead of our competition.  I don't mind asking for help when I need it.

Katerina - I am all about the buyers and that is who calls me - the market that we have here is so different - very few move up buyers - most are second homers or retirement - some have never been here.  I got two listings in the last couple of months, both just called and said 'we want you to list the home'.  And the listing router is working for me - I have established some good relationships from it.

Your SEO advice is what has put me on first page of Google for my keywords - I wasn't getting much results until I subscribed to your blog and read every word.  You have given me specific pointers many times, out of the goodness of your heart - they are always right on and very effective immediately.

Thank you and I hope to become one of your students one day, when I can.

Paul - You are welcome - hope to see your outside blog up soon!

Michelle - I have learned a few things from you!

Terry - I trust you.  :)  We certainly are in this together - a blog post is like a pet isn't it?

Wendy - I am positive that it is free.  Call Brad, my listing router automatically linked up, because I have it anyway for my Mesquite sponsor which is 9 per month, free listing router also.

I think the credit thing is for some campaign.  I have credits on mine and I don't have a campaign.  I can't remember how that works.

I am not the listing router expert - that would be Bob or Brad - but I didn't pay anything for it anywhere and it is extremely valuable - get it!

Wendy - Put the link here when you do.

Sylvie - We need our own tech-impaired Group!

Todd - I am sure yours will be a hit - give us the link when you start it.

Christianne - Your outside blog already looks pretty.  And your photos are excellent - what kind of camera?  You have a really clear and easy to use mls search page, too, was that provided by your MLS or did you design it?

Christianne - I think it is working pretty well, now, I am ready to add some widgets!

Jason - The rewards are HUGE - just do it.  :)

Hi Jenny,

The value of my outside blog is that it is so geographically hooked up through Raindexing that it comes up in so many searches - then people get just me, not the whole AR page and competing agents info.

The google juice is mine, all mine.

When I started it, I selected some posts from my regular AR blog and edited them to send them to my outside blog.  Now when I write a post, I decide whether to put it on my outside blog, localism or all 3 places.  I am trying to keep my outside blog real estate only, no members only posts.

Good luck with it - call me if you need any help, better yet, call Brad or Bob!