Screenwriting Lessons from December Blockbuster Movies

Dear Writers,

The end of the year is always an exciting time. People celebrate various holidays and wish each other the very best of health and happiness. They look back to consider the ups and downs of the past year, and look forward to a year yet to unwrap itself. Best of all, aspiring screenwriters get to take their inspiration from blockbuster holiday movies the studios release just in time for Christmas season viewing fun. If you are writing a movie script, be sure to spend extra time studying these December films, and think about what they have that makes them such a hit with audiences, or, in some cases, what might be lacking.

In this newsletter, I provide some thoughts about scriptwriting for a December release, and as examples look at two films that are making a big splash this year. I also take a look back at what happened for The Story Solution in 2016.  If you are looking for more screenwriting tips, or know someone who wants to be a screenwriter, my book, “The Story Solution,” makes a great holiday gift!

Screenwriting Lessons from December Blockbuster Movies

I’m sure scriptwriters know there are two huge times of the year for movie releases – summer and December. These seasons can make or break studios, and launch stellar careers for screenwriters. While summer leans toward the action genre, December movies tend to be more thoughtful and are often the best movies of the year. Audiences flock to local cinemas to see the latest Hollywood offerings, looking for cinematic heroes, drama, comedy, meaning – and a script that draws them in.

I advise my scriptwriting students to write each script as if the movie will be released in December. Here are some reasons why you should shoot for this goal, too:

• Award season is fast approaching: Winning a major award can catapult a movie and its screenwriter into the stratosphere. December movies are often the last chance to generate awareness and build momentum for an Academy Award nomination. If you write with a December release in mind, you’re automatically motivating yourself to produce Oscar-worthy material, because end-of-the-year releases must be very well written.
• The movie business rewards a December release: Because of the stakes at hand, movie production and distribution politics are at an all-time high during this season. A break-out script or star can change the entire outlook for a studio, so getting a December release slot is not easy.  That means you need to study the kinds of stories being offered in December.
• Shorts work well, too: If you’re not yet ready for a full feature film, keep in mind that December is the month when movie theaters run more shorts from student filmmakers, in order for those shorts to qualify for Oscar consideration. It’s good to try your hand at bringing a short script from idea to reality – and THEN try your hand at directing it. But in film directing there’s also a whole lot to learn. Read, take some classes, be prepared to stretch your directing wings! Just have your short film finished long before December, of course. Plan ahead.

Study movies that are released in December, because they are usually well written and frequently high concept, with an eye toward an Oscar nod. This is also why movie studios would rather NOT release a fantasy action around this time of year, and usually wait until late spring or summer for the younger audiences of superhero movies. A couple of December movies which are already generating a lot of Golden Globe and Academy Award buzz include:

• La La Land: Release date: December 9, 2016 (USA). Starring Ryan Gosling, Emma Stone, John Legend and Rosemarie DeWitt. Director Damien Chazelle is a 31 year old screenwriter/director who might have a huge hit on his hands. Already nominated for seven Golden Globes, including Best Screenplay, La La Land is the musical story of an aspiring actress and a jazz musician, who are struggling to achieve success in Los Angeles. The film takes viewers through the course of the first year they are together and then, in a unique story move, jumps ahead to compare what happened for them with what could have been. The script covers the joy and agony of pursuing your dreams, and leaves the audience wondering whether fame or love is more important.
• Silence: The film was previewed November 29, 2016 at Vatican City and is scheduled for a limited release in the U.S. on December 23, then wide release in January.  Starring Andrew Garfield, Adam Driver, Liam Neeson, Tadanobu Asano, and Ciarán Hinds. Screenplay by Jay Cocks and director Martin Scorsese, based upon the 1966 novel. Scorsese invested over 28 years into bringing this novel’s vision to life. His efforts have already been rewarded with a 2016 National Board of Review award for Best Adapted Screenplay. Set in the late 1600s during the time of “Hidden Christians” in Japan, the movie tells the story of two Portuguese Jesuit priests who face the ultimate test of their faith when they travel to Japan in search of their mentor. The script explores the difficulty of pursuing conflicting goals of personal enrichment and spiritual transcendence, and is a testament to Scorsese’s dedication to searching for an answer.  It’s also an object lesson for all screenwriters: getting movies actually made from your scripts takes a long – sometimes incredibly long – time.  I personally wrote one original feature screenplay that took twelve years to get produced.  Your commitment to your craft must be deep.

A Year in Screenwriting Tips

• Updated Website: I’ve revamped and updated my website to make it easier and more effective to use.  More to come.
• Expanded Download Library: Visitors to my website can access many screenwriting resources, including my complimentary Hero Goal Sequence breakdowns for popular movies. Already available are “Bridesmaids” and “Back to the Future,” and I’ve recently added “Finding Nemo.” Visit now and learn how my Hero Goal Sequencing process applies to these – and all – megahit movies.
• Blogs: I’m constantly sharing information on screenwriting. Look for my blog updates for inspiration and insights.
• Interview for (Virtually) Everything Story: I was thrilled to be asked to provide an exclusive interview for this first-of-its-kind virtual story conference, talking about “Building Powerful Movie Stories.” I got to share my secrets for writing movie scripts that get deals. And don’t miss the interview my dear friend, Michael Hauge, and Laura Leigh Clarke conducted with Will Smith to learn about his insights into storytelling.

AND – the year ended on an extremely high note when I announced our new partnership with Final Draft®, the world’s most popular screenwriting software. My Hero Goal Sequences® Story Structure Paradigm is now a downloadable template included in Final Draft® 10.

My very best to you this holiday season, and I look forward to finding even more ways to help you become a great screenwriter in 2017.

Happy Holidays!

Eric Edson

About The Story Solution: Eric Edson’s The Story Solution provides screenwriting tips for those interested in screenplay writing. Seen as one of the best books on screenwriting and currently #1 in its category on China Amazon, Edson outlines 23 actions used to create three dimensional heroes. Visit the website at  http://www.thestorysolution.com 
to learn about writing a movie script. “Like” the Facebook page to receive tips on scriptwriting. Call (818) 677-7808 for information about writing a movie script.

The perfect gift for a comedian in your life…

Dear Friends,

Christmas is supposed to be the most wonderful time of the year, but bring friends and family together, add a little alcohol, and it can also be the funniest. That’s the feeling you get from Classic Friars Club Roasts – it’s like a Christmas family reunion on steroids.

We’ve gathered some of the best comedy roasts of all time for your holiday viewing fun. After you’ve watched our celebrity roasts and classic outtakes, you’ll also want to enjoy these funniest Christmas TV shows and movies:

• Roseanne, “White Trash Christmas”: With characteristic Conner impunity, Roseanne’s family ignores the neighbors’ request to tone down their Christmas decorations. What can be wrong about wise men who spend more time adoring Mrs. Claus than baby Jesus?
• “Jingle All The Way”: Yes, it’s Arnold Schwarzenegger as a harried dad who waited too long to pick up the kids’ Christmas gift. As they say, hilarity ensues.
• Friends, “The One With The Holiday Armadillo”: Who would think it takes an armadillo, Superman, and Santa Claus to explain the Hanukkah miracle to a small child? The “Friends” writers brought it all together in one hilarious episode.
• Scrooged: If you’re tired of the treacly classic interpretations of the Charles Dickens classic, try this outing with Bill Murray as Scrooge. It’s always funny watching evil TV executives as they try to learn how to be nice.
• Santa Claus Conquers The Martians: And why not? Martian kids need overpriced toys, too. Watch the original, or take a peek at the Mystery Science Theater 3000 episode which has great riffs on this terrible yet amazing Christmas movie.
• 30 Rock, “Ludachristmas”: Forget Seinfeld’s Festivus; 30 Rock has the ultimate in alternative Christmas celebrations, served up with a side dish of angst. Meanwhile Jack Donaghy and his mom set out to prove that Liz Lemon’s family is just as dysfunctional as everyone else during the holidays.

 

Have a jolly holiday with Classic Friars Club Roasts – perfect for entertaining, your own viewing, or as gifts. Order the Jack Benny Roast, Milton Berle Roast, Johnny Carson DVD, Jerry Lewis Roast, or Don Rickles roast for just $14.99 each, or get the whole collection for only $89.95. Don’t forget the Bonus DVD with classic outtakes. We also have gift cards available.

 

GREAT NEWS: You can now watch Friars Club Roasts online anytime, anywhere on your laptop, TV, phone and tablet! Streaming memberships are available for $11.66/month, $28.74/quarter or a best value of only $95.52/year. Call us now at 866-987-3678 to order Friars Club Roast videos for your Christmas viewing entertainment.

 

 

 Q&A with Friars Club Roasts 

Q: Don’t they ever roast women?
A: In fact they do, but it took quite some time to get to that point. Phyllis Diller once dressed as a man to get inside and see what the fuss was all about. Lauren Bacall sent an audio tape when they honored Humphrey Bogart. Since then, some of the women roastees have included Phyllis Diller, Sophie Tucker, Lucille Ball and Carol Burnett.
 
Q: Which roast is the funniest?
A: They all crack us up, but the DVD where Dean Martin roasts Don Rickles is one of our all-time favorites. Old Dino played the part of the lovable lush to perfection but he could certainly get serious when it came to delivering a punch line.

Q: Would these make a good holiday gift?
A: Why didn’t we think of that sooner? Seriously, though, who doesn’t love a good laugh? And these are some of the best jokes that you and the lucky recipient will ever hear.

About Classic Friars Club Roasts: With Classic Friars Roasts you can own the best comedy roasts of all time on DVD. Order the Johnny Carson Roast or watch as Don Rickles roasts Hollywood legends. Erupt in laughter as Dean Martin roasts Don Rickles. Visit the website at http://classicfriarsroasts.com to learn more about these brilliant comedy sketches. “Like” the Facebook page for hilarious insights into Friars Club Roasts.

ERIC EDSON PRESENTS: THREE FESTIVE HOLIDAY FILMS

Christmas is the perfect time to gather around the TV with family and watch a holiday film, but just what goes into creating the perfect festive film script? From atmospheric settings to the right mix of comedy, family bonding and quirky plot twists, here are three festive holiday films that have their own unique Christmas magic.

 

Home Alone

Written by John Hughes and directed by Chris Columbus (1990)

It’s almost Christmas in snowy Chicago and the McCallister family is preparing to fly to France for the holidays. In the chaos of the departure, their youngest son Kevin (Macaulay Culkin) gets left behind. Kevin now must fend for himself as only an eight-year-old can: by gorging on ice cream, turning the house into an adventure playground and watching gangster movies on TV. Trouble comes in the form of burglars Harry and Marv, who plan to rob the McCallister home on Christmas Eve, prompting Kevin to rig the house with booby-traps for a spectacular slapstick climax. Kevin also has a big lesson to learn about the local creepy neighbour, rumoured to be a killer, Old Man Marley.  This clever kid ultimately figures out that all he really wants for Christmas is his own family back, just in time for a touching reunion finale.

Home Alone has become an iconic holiday film because it touches on the key Christmas themes of family and childhood. We watch the action unfurl through Kevin’s eyes, witnessing the magic of Christmas and the dream scenario of being left home alone through a child’s point-of-view. The film has just the right amount of festive fun and comedy with a touching holiday message at its heart: that the real magic of Christmas lies in being together with your family, no matter how annoying they may be. Add in a hefty helping of Christmassy decorations, festive tunes and snowy weather, and it’s not hard to see why Home Alone remains a firm holiday favourite. What screenwriters can learn here is that at heart we are all children struggling to cope with burglars and scary, strange neighbors – frightening neighbors who, we find out, are really kind and just want the same things we do. Comedies are about hope and happy endings and remind us that the basic things which make life joyful – love and belonging – are sought after by all. So every once in a while, consider setting aside those “edgy”, apocalyptic or dark story ideas and go for something simple, sweet, and heart-warming. Because in the end, the child within each of us longs to once more be tucked into bed and hear that everything is going to be all right.

And if you write one of these stories, you’ll be giving the world a great gift.

Miracle on 34th Street 

Written and directed by George Seaton (1947)

The original version of this classic holiday film tells the story of a little girl called Susan (Natalie Wood) whose mother Doris (Maureen O’Hara) has taught her not to believe in Santa Claus.  This all changes when Doris, who works for Macy’s Department Store, hires an incredibly realistic Santa (Edmund Gwenn) who goes by the name of Kris Kringle and has the eccentric habit of insisting that he is the genuine Santa. As Susan witnesses Kringle’s knack for spreading Christmas cheer, she begins to believe that he could be the real Santa. Not everyone agrees and Macy’s psychologist has Kris committed to a mental hospital, where in deep despair, he deliberately fails his mental examination. Help comes from Doris’ friend Fred, who agrees to represents Kris in a legal hearing. The case rests on being able to prove that Kris is in fact the real Santa Claus. Can Fred possibly, by some miracle, win?

Miracle on 34th Street is a heart-warming Christmas tale that focuses on the human struggle between belief and reason. At its very center lies a cynical little girl who gradually learns the value of believing. Despite being set around a department store at the most commercially-driven time of year, Miracle on 34th Street also manages to assert an anti-consumerist stance, which makes it particularly forward-thinking for its time. In the film, acts of kindness are more important than gifts and Kringle even sends parents to a rival store to buy cheaper toys. Set between the Thanksgiving and Christmas period, Miracle on 34th Street is full of atmospheric holiday spirit. What writers can learn here is that holiday stories can also have powerful themes. Even in traditional folktale fantasies like this one there can be found genuine human truth.  Don’t sell “Christmas movies” short and assume they must be all fluff.  This film became a true classic because it speaks to audiences on several levels: seen through the eyes of a child it works as a simple Santa Claus story, but it’s also impactful for adults with a thought-provoking theme, that in all forms of human expression some truth can be found.  We must open our hearts as well as our minds.  In whatever sort of script or novel you may be writing, never forget the power of theme.

The Nightmare Before Christmas

Written by Tim Burton, Directed by Henry Selick (1993)

Jack Skellington (Danny Elfman), the King of Halloween Town, is bored of living in a land filled with ghosts and ghouls and organizing the annual Halloween festivities. So, he’s overjoyed to stumble upon magical doors leading to different holiday lands. Along with Jack, we’re transported to Christmas town, an enchanting world of elves and penguins, snow and sparkly red-and-green lights. Jack is so enthralled with the holiday that he decides to kidnap ‘Sandy Claus’ and run Christmas with the help of his ghoulish friends from Halloween Town, with terrifying results. Can Jack realise his mistake in time, put things right and save Christmas?

The Nightmare Before Christmas is an unforgettable, alternative holiday film that has become a cult classic. The king of macabre Tim Burton brings to life vivid, believable holiday worlds full of quirky characters and fantastical settings. Christmas Town, with its candy canes, cute elves and gingerbread houses, captures the cartoony essence of the holiday perfectly. The Nightmare Before Christmas is a stunning example of painstaking stop-animation and has something for all ages, including a haunting musical score composed by Danny Elfman.

If you’re creating a holiday script, think about including key heart-warming themes but don’t be afraid to put your own, alternative slant on a Christmas message.  Yes, even a dark, edgy imagination – with an open heart – can create a holiday classic! Just remember to include plenty of festive scenery, music and… oh yeah, some unforgettable characters!

Happy Holidays to Everyone!

About The Story Solution:  The Story Solution was written by accomplished screenwriter Eric Edson. It reveals the 23 actions used to create dynamic, three dimensional heroes and link all parts of a captivating screenplay. He also covers screenwriting tips, screenwriting resources, and screenwriting books. Visit the website and Facebook page or call 818-677-7808 for more information.

How To Get Instagram Followers Fast

Instagram is another of the many social networking sites operating out on the web today. It is a platform where you can share your photos privately or publicly. Now, if you want to reach out to a wider audience, you have to start collecting your Instagram followers.

Here are a few legit and tried and tested techniques to get Instagram followers fast.

Public accounts –

If you have a private account, it’s only your friends who can see what you share. Hence, the first step to getting Instagram followers fast is to go public. For those of your really worried about privacy, you can always keep a check on what you choose to share.

Hashtags –

Instagram uses hashtags to filter photographs. When you search for photographs, the social media network will display all the photographs with a common hashtag. Popularity is not the only criteria when selecting the hashtags to go with your photographs. You should also use relevant ones. 3 is an ideal number of hashtags to use with your photograph.

Regular uploads –

A dormant account doesn’t usually get too many followers. Instagrammers on a regular basis tend to unfollow inactive accounts. Hence, the strategy is to refresh your account with new, original and captivating content.

As a rule of the thumb, don’t post too little and don’t flood your page. A photo daily is a good standard.

Use filters –

Why you should use filters? Well, they really improve the look of your photos adding a more personalized touch. This sense of added beauty is enough to draw more followers who love following quality work. Check how a particular filter looks before you actually apply it.

Picture collages –

Instead of uploading a lone picture, you can combine multiple images into a single one. Such images are more engaging as they tell a story. There are several paid and free, third party collage makers and photo-editing apps you can use for the purpose.

Time it right –

The most breathtaking photographs will have no viewers if you post it when the entire Instagram community is asleep. The peak times on Instagram are in the morning before work and in the evening after work. This is when most Instagrammers check their accounts. So, time your uploads right.

Follow, like and comment –

Yet another tip to increase your visibility on Instagram is to follow others. They might follow you in return. Take it a step further by liking and commenting on other’s photos and videos. You’re likely to grab the attention of the photo owner as well his/her followers. It might prompt them to check out your Instagram account, increasing the likelihood of followers.

Sync with Facebook –

With Facebook taking over Instagram, you can now share your photographs across both the platforms by integrating your Facebook and Instagram account. This way your Instagram activity gets streamed on to Facebook. Facebook Friends that also have an Instagram account will start following you, if they like what you upload.

Call to Action –

Your captions should have a strong Call To action. You should aim for better engagement with your captions. In that, they should compel them to comment or start an interesting discussion.

So, these are different ways in which you can get Instagram followers fast. You can also join micro-blogging groups and participate in discussions there.

Instagram, the photo-sharing site had gained immense popularity over the last few years. With most social networking sites, the more followers you have, the more you are able to leverage their potential.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/9378869

How to Remove Snapchat Best Friends

As one of the top video and photo sharing apps available, Snapchat’s recent news release reported over 500 million snaps sent and received on a daily basis. One of the most popular features of Snapchat is the Best Friend list, which is both hated and loved equally. Users enjoy this feature due to its easy availability of exchanging snaps with folks you often snap with, and it is equally hated because it shows the Best friends list on your profile — meaning anyone can see it.

The Snapchat Best Friends List Explained

Snapchat Best Friends, or your “top list” as they’re known informally, are 3 individuals you most frequently share snaps with. The list gets updated each week, meaning that if you snap people more frequently throughout the week, they’ll show up on your Best Friends list. You can see this list when you get ready to send a new snap, as it is shown on top of the contacts list to get easy access to it. It can be seen by anyone who has you in their contacts, and it is displayed on your profile publicly.

How to Bring Up Your Contacts’ Best Friends

To see the best friends of all your contacts, simply use the following method.

· Scroll down to the name or username of the friend you want to know about

· This brings up their profile, where you can see their username and friend score.

· There, you will see lists of those users your friend snaps with most often.

· You can move your number of best friends from 3 to 5 to 7 in the settings pane.

Keep in mind that the best friends algorithm works in such a way that if someone sends you snaps regularly, but you just reply a few times, that person could be on your best friends list simply because the score gets higher every time she sends snaps. Likewise, if you regularly send a snap to someone more often than other people do, they’ll end up on your list.

How to Remove Snapchat Best Friends

Learning how to remove Snapchat best friends is a fairly simple process, but you’ll need to fully understand how the feature works in order to use it correctly. First, Snapchat has a certain score for your best friends, with the score being the number of snaps in total that you’ve received and sent. This means the score you’ll see on your profile is the total activity number you’ve accumulated since starting to use the service. Secondly, the score is measured by the conversations you’ve had between all your friends, which determines who makes it onto your best friends list.

Then, based on Snapchat’s specific algorithm for friendship, it displays the number of snaps you’ve sent between you and all your best friends, displayed next to their names. In newer updates of Snapchat, you will see the scores in order from the top 3, 5, or 7 friends on the list. Since these friends get updated weekly, the score will reset to a 0 rating each week once the list gets updated.

Assuming you’d simply prefer to not have someone on your best friends list, you can simply control who shows up there. There are plenty of reasons you might want to do this. First, your best friends are public for anyone to see, which seems a bit odd. Why should anyone know who you’re talking with most often? Secondly, if your significant other is not the person you’re talking to most frequently, he’s going to notice that when ge goes to your profile. So some other guy you are talking to will show up on the list and your SO is going to ask some questions.

So, you can simply remove them. In order to do so, you will need to block your friends. This allows you to reset the score mentioned earlier.

A Simple Workaround to Take People Off Your List

You can’t completely hide the Snapchat Best Friends list. Instead, you’ll have to use a simple workaround to remove individuals from your best friends list. And this method also lets you replace people on your best friends list with other users, simply using a basic blocking and unblock method. Then, you can replace the people who you’ve blocked with new friends, which creates the illusion that you’re chatting with different people. Using this method, it will disguise whomever you’d rather not see on your best friends list, effectively “removing” them.

To block someone, follow these simple instructions.

1. First, go to your best friends list and click on the settings icon, which looks like a gear.

2. This brings up a popup window that gives you the choice to Block and/or Delete that person.

3. Click Block.

4. When you block an individual on Snapchat, your score will be reset to 0.

5. That person will now be removed from all your lists, including best friends and contacts.

This is the simplest method because you can just remove that person by blocking. They will not be notified of this block — and once you’ve done it, you can just unblock them and they will have a 0 score, so no one will have any idea how much you’ve talked to them.

Now, they’ll just appear on your contacts list, and not on your best friends list.

To unblock the person, scroll down to the lowest part of your contacts, where you can see your Blocked contacts within Snapchat. Next to each person’s name you’ll see a gear icon. Click that — and then when the next window shows up, click on Unblock.

And that’s it! Now the person you’ve taken off your best friends list is replaced by a new person — the individual who has the highest score on your normal contacts list.

Chat With Others to Improve Their Scores on Your Best Friends List

Chatting with other friends will help you increase the score with them, which makes it more likely that new folks will become your Best Friends. This means that if you talk less often with the person you want to remove, the others will outscore the person you don’t want to show up as high on your list. However, remember that the new best friend updates only kick in each week.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/9274869

Top 5 CPA Marketing Strategies

CPA (Cost-Per-Action) Marketing is an internet marketing income opportunity that’s very similar to affiliate marketing. The difference between affiliate marketing and CPA marketing is the fact that CPA networks pay you every time a user clicks on your link and takes an action – like fills out their email address, register on the landing site or download and install an app on their phone.

The actions required to profit from CPA programs depends on the specific program, but unlike affiliate marketing, CPA programs don’t require an actual purchase to be made. This means that it’s much easier to profit from CPA programs since users are only required to take a certain action, and then you get paid. With affiliate marketing, the user has to complete a purchase and pay for a product / service before you get paid.

This is only one of the advantages CPA marketing holds over affiliate marketing. It’s also easier to convert users with CPA programs since the programs are usually related to global interests – like “Win the brand new iPhone 6s” or “Win a $100 Amazon Gift Card”. There’s also a lot of different download CPA offers available on different networks – with these programs, your audience needs to download an app or game on their phone for free, and then you get paid for every install you refer.
These are all offers that targets a much more generic audience than a specific internet marketing or weight loss product you’d promote through affiliate marketing.
Now let’s take a look at my top 5 strategies for driving traffic and conversions to your CPA offers.

#1 – Use a squeeze page

The most important part of succeeding in the CPA marketing industry is to make use of a squeeze page. By using a squeeze page, you are increasing your chances for a conversion, while building a list of ready-to-take-action subscribers at the same time.

A squeeze page is a simple “landing page” where visitors will land before they are directed to the CPA offer. Your squeeze page should contain relevant information related to the CPA offer you are promoting – ask users to enter their email address into your email subscription form to continue. Once they add their email to your email subscription form, redirect them to the CPA offer. You can also have your auto responder send them an additional email with a link to the CPA offer in case the redirect didn’t work in their browser, or they closed the browser too soon.

#2 – Use Social Media

Social media is a very important part of CPA marketing. Millions of users are turning to Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Google+ and other social media networks every day to catch the latest news, check up on their friends, search for coupons and offers, and much more.

This means that it’s the perfect place to drop links to your squeeze pages / CPA offers. By promoting your CPA offers on social media, you are tapping into millions and millions of traffic – and if you do a good job, you can drive a lot of traffic back to your links.

The strategy to use here is to first join some groups related to the niche your CPA offer is targeting. If you’re promoting a trial offer for a new dieting pill, then you should join health and weight loss related groups / communities on social media.

Once you’ve joined a couple of groups, start sharing helpful content with the group. Your content should provide some value – do not simply drop links! After a couple of posts, the group members will start to recognize your name and you’ll have better authority in these groups.

Now it’s time to drop a link to your CPA offer – add a good description and tell the group why they should click on your link. Also add a creative image that related to the niche you’re targeting.

When dropping a link in these groups, be sure to add the link as close to the top as possible without starting the post with the link. Start with a title, drop the link and then add a description. The reason for this – when you create a long post on most social networks (except Twitter, where your tweets are limited) the post will be “shortened” with a “… ” link that will expand the post. You want your link to appear above the text that gets cut off so people will be able to click on the link even if they don’t expand the post.

#3 – Use Document Sharing Sites

Document sharing sites allow you to share PDF documents with others – they put your documents on their site and anyone browsing their site are able to see and read your documents.

This is another great way to drive traffic back to your CPA offers! By simply sharing a couple of documents related to the CPA offer you are promoting, you are able to drive hundreds to thousands of visitors back to your link, bringing you more conversions and more profit.

You might be wondering what documents you can share here… it’s actually quite simple. Do some research about different topics in the niche your CPA offer is targeting. Try to find a few different topics you can target. Then create a simple new document on your word processor and start to write about the specific topic. If you’re using a word processor such as Microsoft Word, you can also choose one of the templates that the software comes with to create a nice layout for your document. I usually go with the “Reports” templates.

Add some helpful information in your document – anything more than 5 pages would do. The more helpful and the more closely related the information you share is compared to the CPA offer you are promoting, the higher the chances of getting more conversions on your clicks. Make sure you add a couple of links to your CPA offer in the document!

Share your documents on as many document sharing sites as you can. Be sure to add unique descriptions for your document on each site, and also include a link back to your CPA offer in each description.

#4 – Use Instagram

Instagram is a social media network that focusses on multimedia – images and videos. This network is owned by Facebook, and it’s almost as popular as Facebook. Instagram received millions of unique daily visitors, and there’s millions of new images and videos posted every day.

With Instagram, you can post images and videos, and you can tag them so people can easily find them. You can also like another person’s posts, as well as comment on them. The more comments and likes your post received, the better chance of going viral.

Instagram also allows you to follow other people, and offers a “timeline” view with the latest posts by the people you follow. The more followers you get, the more exposure your posts get.

Now to drive traffic back to your CPA offer using Instagram can take a while to get started, but once you’ve tapped into this market, you can drive hundreds of dollars’ worth of conversions each and every day from Instagram alone.

To use this method, you should create a new Instagram account. Name your account something that relates to the offer you are promoting. You also need a landing page / squeeze page hosted on a custom domain – you CANNOT link directly to a CPA offer or you will be banned.

Add a profile picture that relates to your niche, and then add a bio that relates to the offer you are promoting. And finally add a link to your squeeze page in the “Website Link” field while updating your profile.

Now you should add only 1 new image / video per day on your Instagram account. You can find millions of images on the internet related to your niche. Tag your image with popular tags – there’s many different apps and websites that will give you the most popular and trending tags. Then hit publish.

Once you’ve added your image, start to follow a couple of people in your niche. Also like some of their pictures, and also comment on some of their posts. Do NOT spam – be thoughtful and considerate, and find a good balance between posting new images / videos, following other people, liking other’s posts and commenting on posts.

Continue doing this and you’ll soon start building up followers and driving traffic to your squeeze page. Just be-aware that this drives MOBILE TRAFFIC so you need to ensure both your squeeze page and the CPA offer you are promoting are mobile-optimized.

#5 – Use PPV Advertising

The last strategy for gaining a lot of profit with CPA marketing is to use PPV advertising. PPV advertising is pay-per-view promotion, which means you pay an amount based on the total number of views your ad receives.

This type of advertising works, you just need to find the right network. There’s several different PPV networks that you can make use of, and it will take some trial and error before you finally succeed – but keep at it and you will soon hit your first $100 day!

PPV advertising can cost you as little as $0.01 per visitor, which is really cheap. Imagine being able to convert offers at $0.01 per visitor. That’s insane!

The only downside to using PPV advertising is the fact that most PPV networks require a large amount to start with. Most PPV networks will only allow you to start off with an amount of $50+ – this means you should have some startup capital if you want to use PPV.

If you don’t have this much to spend right now, don’t worry. There’s still an upside to this!

I’ve shared with you 4 different strategies you can use to drive traffic to your CPA offers without having to spend a lot of money. Most of them are actually completely free. This means you can drive free targeted traffic to your squeeze pages and CPA links. So if you follow the first 4 strategies, implement them and keep with them, you will be able to push up your CPA earnings to the point where you have enough to invest in PPV advertising.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/9344685

Highly Recommended Web Marketing Company In Santa Barbara: Search Engine Pros

We are writing to express our gratitude today for our web marketing company, Search Engine Pros, a local Santa Barbara marketing firm specializing in Google adwords, search engine optimization and social media marketing that has delivered significant shifts in profitability for Yost Appliance, Inc.  We are pleased announce our success in working with Taylor Reaume, and his team of internet marketing experts. The price is right, and the results have been fantastic.

Search Engine Pros has a strong track record of supporting local Santa Barbara businesses with online marketing goals, and we are happy to recommend their cost-effective local marketing plans.

Behind all the hype about SEO and social media marketing, there is a hard truth: it’s labor intensive work! To keep up with it, you need help. Instead of giving you a to-do list, Search Engine Pros roll up their sleeves and help you execute on the strategy. Search Engine Pros web marketing services will build your internet presence and increase your brand awareness.  Most business owners are unknowingly spending too much money on marketing, or spending money in the wrong way with a disconnected web strategy.

Founder Taylor Reaume and his Santa Barbara marketing experts will help you grow your businesses on Google and the search engines.  See TaylorReaume.com

Ask Taylor for help with internet marketing statistics, Google search marketing, paid search engine marketing, organic seo, ethical seo services, web design, social media strategy, adwords strategy, link building strategy, ppc bid mangement and more.

Visit their office located at The Hangar, 201 W. Montecito St. Santa Barbara, CA 93101.

If you need help attracting more traffic to your web site and building your internet presence, fill out their form at http://TheSearchEnginePros.com to receive a free web site analysis and rank report.  Subscribe to Founder Taylor Reaume’s internet marketing column on Noozhawk for web marketing tips.  Call 800-605-4988 and book a consultation with Search Engine Pros, your full service web marketing team.

6 Ways To Improve Your Web Site

It’s summer in California and who wants to spend time worrying about websites when there is so much else to do? You’ve got Father’s Day, graduations, weddings, and backyard barbeques. But your web marketing strategy can’t wait until September unless you don’t mind letting your competitors steal all your customers! As a web marketing agency, Search Engine Pros develops websites that work hard all year long. Here are six things you can do this summer to improve your website performance and attract more customers:

1. Know Your Keywords: This is a crucial factor in search marketing Research your top ten keywords and provide title tags that include these words. This one step alone will capture the attention of the search engine “robots,” and could propel your site up the search engine rankings.
2. Update Your Content: Nothing kills rankings faster than stale, outdated content. Your SEO marketing strategy must include a constant stream of educational, topical, relevant information.
3. Use Great Photos: The old saying “a picture is worth a thousand words” is especially applicable with online marketing. Website visitors decide in seconds whether a site is worth perusing. Grab their attention and tell your story with dynamic photos, and they won’t be inclined to leave.
4. Build Inbound Links: Word-of-mouth and referrals are still two powerful means of attracting prospects. One sure way to build “authority” is to have other sites link to yours. Part of your marketing plan should include promoting non-competitive businesses on your site, and reaching out to them to reciprocate. It builds awareness for both companies, and helps each reach a new audience.
5. Offer Something: You never want to have someone visit your site and leave without making some type of connection. Your website should include a way to engage prospects and build that relationship. This could include an informational newsletter, a download of a “Top 10” regarding something that is pertinent to your business, a white paper, or some type of free sample or demonstration.
6. Make it Mobile: More and more consumers are using smartphones and mobile devices to search online. Top web design practices demand websites that are functional across all digital devices.

Your website is a strategic part of your online marketing plan. Spend some time this summer making sure yours is working hard, or contact Search Engine Pros and ask about our web marketing services.

 

Taylor Reaume

 

About Search Engine Pros: Search Engine Pros is a marketing group that provides full-service online marketing consulting, social media consulting, web programming, internet web marketing services, custom WordPress themes, and SEO services. Visit the website at http://www.thesearchenginepros.com to learn more about “How to Wine and Dine the Google Spider.” “Like” the Facebook page for regular insights on web marketing and SEO, WordPress CMS tips, and SEO tools. Call 800-605-4988 to request a complimentary copy of 101 Ways to Drive Traffic.

– See more at: http://www.thesearchenginepros.com/summer-improve-website-performance.html#sthash.p06u4TQF.dpuf

ERIC EDSON’S STORY EXPO 2015 TAKE AWAYS

If you have been following my blog or social media updates, you know there is nothing that I enjoy more than sharing my knowledge about scriptwriting with others. That is why I was once again honored to be one of the 100+ world-renowned speakers at this year’s Story Expo, which took place September 11-13 in Los Angeles. The Expo brings together top speakers, writers, vendors and communicators in one forum to give screenplay writers the technical tools and motivation they need to excel at their chosen profession.

Michael Hauge and Eric Edson at STORY EXPO 2015

For those involved in any facet of writing a movie script, Story Expo is the one conference you must attend. It attracts professional writers from film studios, TV networks, production companies, universities, school districts and writers’ guilds, and grows yearly in popularity, prestige and importance. Attendance this year grew by 33% over 2014, which was already up 28% over 2013’s figures. Writers from over thirty U.S. states and eighteen countries attended, including The Netherlands, England, France, Russia, Germany, Canada, Brazil, Italy, South Africa, Ecuador, Nigeria, and Singapore. In fact, there was an entire class from the Writer’s Guild of South Africa, paid for by the South African government!

Derek Christopher, founder and chief driving force behind the Story Expo, has been the go-to guy for the top consultants in the screenwriting industry for over a decade. By organizing major events, seminars, and speaking engagements, Derek hopes to open the exciting world of screenplay writing to many more people.

As always, I had a great time speaking about creating great characters, character growth and how to build plots. It was great to get feedback from people who attended the presentations, to answer their questions about writing a screenplay, and to know that people came away with a better understanding of story structure and character growth. In case you did not attend, here are some of my impressions and takeaways from the great people I met and saw at this year’s event:

• Michael Hauge: Spoke on anatomy of a screenplay, love stories and character arc, and Hollywood secrets. Michael is a story and script consultant, author and lecturer who likes to work with writers and filmmakers on their screenplays, novels, movies and television projects. He has coached writers, producers, celebrities and directors on star-studded projects, and worked with every major studio and network. I truly enjoyed hearing his insights about how to sharpen story and development skills and employ advanced principles of structure, character arc and theme to skillfully communicate a story’s strengths and weaknesses.
• Steven Kaplan: Spoke on the hidden tools of comedy and the romantic comedy. For almost 15 years, Steve has been the industry’s most sought-after expert on comedy. In addition to having taught at NYU, UCLA, Yale and other top universities, he created the HBO Workspace, the HBO New Writers Program and was co-founder and Artistic Director of Manhattan Punch Line Theatre. He regularly serves as a consultant and script doctor to such prestigious companies as HBO, Paramount, DreamWorks, Disney, Touchstone and others.
• Jen Grisanti: Spoke on how to write a TV pilot that sells and TV staffing and development. Jen is an acclaimed story/career consultant and writing instructor for Writers on the Verge at NBC, a former 12-year studio executive, a blogger for The Huffington Post and author of the books, Story Line: Finding Gold In Your Life Story, TV Writing Tool Kit: How To Write a Script That Sells and Change Your Story, Change Your Life: A Path To Your Success.
• Kathie Fong Yoneda: Spoke on pitching fantasy and mythic stories and the art of networking. With over 25 years of industry experience, Kathie has worked for such prestigious studios as Paramount, Columbia, MGM, Universal, 20th Century Fox, and Disney, specializing in story analysis and development of live action and animated projects. Her career includes executive positions with Walt Disney TV Animation where she has evaluated more than 18,000 submissions.
• Pamela Jaye Smith: Spoke on alpha babes, the female hero, and making a memoir mythic. Pamela is a mythologist, writer, international consultant/speaker, and award-winning producer/director with over 35 years in the media industry. She helps enhance stories with the timeless and universal power of mythic themes, archetypes, and symbols.

On the vendor side, Alejandro Seri was there as the Corporate Marketing Director for Final Draft, a professional screenwriting software. Alejandro is an award-winning, bilingual screenwriter, director and instructor at the UCLA Extension Writers’ Program. While a nineteen year old UCLA college student and screenplay writer he approached studio executive David Garcia with the idea of starting an alternative film school. With the help of ten additional students, they formed Cyberpix Film School in downtown Los Angeles.

Those interested in writing screenplays come back to this event year after year. In fact 96% of this year’s attendees said they will recommend Story Expo 2016 to a friend or associate. Plan now to attend Story Expo 2016, which will be held September 9-11, 2016 at the Westin LAX Hotel in Los Angeles. Take control of your stories by learning the craft, determining in which medium your stories are best told, studying the business of storytelling, identifying and using the tools and resources available to you, understanding how to package and pitch your ideas and scripts, and using social media and other techniques to start and maintain a successful writing career. You can also pitch your scripts and stories to top production companies, agents and managers in the Story Expo Pitching Room and network with peers from around the world.

Keep writing!

Eric Edson

About The Story Solution: Eric Edson’s The Story Solution provides screenwriting tips for those interested in writing screenplays. Acclaimed by many as one of the best screenwriting books, Edson outlines 23 actions used in screenplay writing to create three dimensional heroes. Visit the website at http://www.TheStorySolution.com to listen to audio clips about creating characters.“Like” the Facebook page to receive tips on scriptwriting. Call 818-677-3192 for more information about writing a movie script.

The Power of Social Media in Education

Ever since its inception, the Internet has become an intricate part of life where persons depend on its access for daily activities such as shopping, social networking, education, banking, home security and other related activities. Among these, social networking, which seems to be the major attraction of the Internet, can be seen as a blessing and curse. Notably in education, social networking is seen as a positive indicator of advancement in education and its practices. However, we cannot deny the negative influences that can accompany it, which seems be a distracter for many students today.

Students frequently familiarize themselves with computers as they navigate these social networks. They gain valuable skills on an instrument that has become indispensable in the world they reside as students and the one, which they will enter upon completion of their studies. Also, it encourages networking with a variety of people, which can be viewed as a necessary skill in the business environment. This is also the case for teachers and administrators. With the existence of social blogs, Twitter and Facebook, teachers are able to share and record through various mediums, methods of instruction as well as teaching theories and practices in real-time. Furthermore, many are able to expand on techniques for learning and also interact with students on a consistent basis outside of the classroom.

On the contrary, the rise in social media and advancements in other interactive communicative technologies have produced negative impacts in and outside of the classroom. While social media can be seen as a positive tool for education, this tool has the potential to hinder student performance, social growth, and communication skills. Similarly, it can affect a teacher’s overall efficiency in several ways. To what do we owe a decline in academic performance as a result of its impact? What are the social ramifications of social media? What factors are directly responsible for the inability to educate students effectively? How are teachers affected by social media both in and out of the classroom?

For most, access to the Internet for educational purposes would be seen as a great resource for information; however, for students, the Internet poses many problematic factors in academic performance. In general, children who spend more time online find it harder to concentrate resulting in shorter attention spans. Students who rely solely on social media for information rather than researching other resources are likely to experience difficulty focusing on learning and information retention. It significantly affects study habits as students are attempting to multitask and end up becoming easily distracted because they are too busy tweeting and/or posting messages to Facebook in lieu of completing assignments.

Advancements in and excessive access to technology are direct factors on how social media has affected the student in and out of the classroom. Today, students spend most of their time on these networks via mobile devices. Some schools prohibit the use of these devices however; many of them sneak them into school. They use these devices to record videos; take photos of themselves and others, search the Internet, tweet and log on to Facebook, thus making it difficult to concentrate during instruction time. These activities also seek to inhibit effective instruction. In addition to this many of these activities have led to many problems in the school and community for example, fights, harassment, law suits etc. Excessive, unproductive time spent on social networks can therefore be very unhealthy, thus having a negative effect on teens and children. We can then argue that teaching/learning, is in direct competition with Social Media, when they should be partners in educating students.

The use of social networks has also significantly decreased the use of proper grammar and syntax in writing. Students have found it difficult to differentiate between the proper use of language as a result of abbreviated writing and shortened forms of word formulation. Many slang terms have become common in written class assignments. These terms IDK (I don’t know), SMH (shaking my head), BTW (by the way), YW (you’re welcome), TNX (thanks), IMO/IMHO (in my opinion/in my humble opinion) just to name a few, have crept up in students writing so much so that they are unable to understand the differences between the right and wrong way of spelling correctly. Teachers see the decline in proper writing in capitalization, punctuation, and subject-verb agreements, to name a few. Students are so immersed in poor grammar usage while online that they rely heavily on computer devices to autocorrect their mistakes resulting in the decline of their command over the use of English language. Subsequently creating a conflict in grammar usage.

Another key point not to be overlooked is the effect of social media on face-to-face communication. Clearly, if students spend more time on social networks then we can agree that they spend less time socializing in person. Lack of face-to-face interpersonal interactions can be directly linked to lack of social skills and etiquette. We learn important behaviors and emotional cues from close personal contact that cannot be learned online. As a result some students never learn to read body signals and other nonverbal cues, like tone and inflection. Social networking sites should not be seen as a replacement for personal contact but a valuable addition that can create a well rounded socially adjusted individual.

Today many students have become less social with one another preferring to interact online and live a virtual world based on false personas made easily accessible by social networking sites. This of course can have a lasting effect on the family unit, where effective face-to-face communication is essential in maintaining healthy relationships. Can we then cast some of the blame of today’s social ills and break down in family structure on social media? Often times, we go to restaurants, or other public spaces and everyone is busy on a device, thus very little face- to- face communication is going on. The question is how can we create a balance? How do we compete with this valuable tool we call the Internet whilst still maintaining healthy relationships?

Social media/networking affects both students and teachers alike. For instance, cyber-bullying can be seen as the leading negative proponent of social media. Many times violence in schools has started via a social networking site. Teachers are also affected by cyber-bullying. The perpetrators are sometimes students and/or parents. This abuse can be very damaging for a teacher as it decreases overall efficiency and confidence in the classroom. Teachers experience climbing levels of emotion stemming from being sad to becoming angry over online harassment. The experience can be humiliating and embarrassing. Defamation of character is quite common in the cyber world and continues to affect both teachers and students alike.

Social Media obviously affects all of us in some way or the other whether positively or negatively. Technology will continue to evolve, therefore; it is imperative that parents, teacher’s administrators and students all join hands together in encouraging positive, productive, effective, safe and responsible use of this valuable tool. The long-term effects of misuse can be very dangerous to progress in education and social development.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/8557487