PDA

View Full Version : Weight Loss and Stuff



Harold Mansfield
01-09-2009, 11:58 PM
Lately, I have been going back to re-do some sites and blogs that have been left for later.
Well now it's later.

I started this blog a few months ago but finally got something on it.

Interested in opinions. I just want to make sure it's clean . The theme designer did all the work, I just added my own products and programs to it, changed the header, and threw some articles on it to start it out.
Believe it or not, I had no interest in a weight loss blog, until I saw the theme design...I liked the colors.:o (Definitely not proper niche research )

It actually incorporates 4 different programs, and it was making a few sales which is what caught my attention and made me do something with it. The original idea was to promote iTunes iMixes for work outs. (Thinking back, that was really stupid)


Weight Loss Help (http://www.livethinagain.com)

orion_joel
01-10-2009, 02:22 AM
No idea is stupid, however maybe a little more niche research could have helped as well.

The site doesn't look to bad, there appears to be potential for a few income streams there, and with some work i think you could do quite well from the site. It could more be an article site then a blog as such, however i guess that depends on what sort of work you want to put in and what sort of content you can get for it.

Harold Mansfield
01-10-2009, 03:24 AM
Yeah, there is no doubt that articles are the way to go. I am trying to make the time. Right now I have 4 sites doing well and 42 others in limbo. As you can see, I am very far behind.

Some ideas are a waste of time. 10% of 99 cent downloads are a pipe dream, but at least I can combine all programs now.
What kills me the most is my design skills....headers and all.

KristineS
01-10-2009, 10:06 AM
The sites o.k. It looks professional, but it also looks like a million other weight loss sites out there. As someone who lost 50 pounds in 2008 and is still working on getting fit, I've seen a ton of sites like this, and I'm kind of immune to them now. I tend to like sites about weight loss that are more personal.

That said, weight loss is a huge industry and I'm sure there are a lot of people out there who will appreciate the information your site provides. If you keep it updated fairly regularly you should do well.

Harold Mansfield
01-10-2009, 01:53 PM
The sites o.k. It looks professional, but it also looks like a million other weight loss sites out there. As someone who lost 50 pounds in 2008 and is still working on getting fit, I've seen a ton of sites like this, and I'm kind of immune to them now. I tend to like sites about weight loss that are more personal.

That said, weight loss is a huge industry and I'm sure there are a lot of people out there who will appreciate the information your site provides. If you keep it updated fairly regularly you should do well.

That is one of the reasons that I have been putting this site on the back burner for so long. There is just no way that I can give it the personal touch that it needs.

The best I can do on this one is "cookie cutter" and I know it.

I actually read your weight loss journal and the content that you have provided on it would be worth gold for a site like mine. That is really what people want to hear when they go to a weight loss site.

The comparison of the two is actually a pretty good tutorial of what makes an average site, into a great site !

billbenson
01-10-2009, 03:26 PM
An idea eborg: I watch my wife who is overweight and Latina struggle. She tried atkins and did loose weight, but whats in a Latin diet, tortillas, rice, beans, etc.; all carbohydrates that she grew up on. A carb free diet isn't going to work for her. She also eats a lot, so she needs a way to get filled up. Me, I'm pretty skinny for my age, and don't really need to diet.

Maybe a series of blogs on the same site on different diets could work? What I'm suggesting is a top level page with an index of each diet. That links to places in the blog for new posts, etc, so people can find posts they want in the top page, search etc.

See if I can explain this better.

Top level page -> the diet site

Second level pages, html - Jenny Craig, Atkins, etc.

Each Second level page leads to a blog about that diet

People can create second level blogs about "their experience with atkins" etc.

------------------------
As you find diets, make sub blogs on each one where dieters can start their owe blog about their success failure on that blog.

I don't use wordpress or blog, but I suspect you can do this. Might need to do multiple installations of wp or the database.

Just a thought?

Harold Mansfield
01-10-2009, 05:42 PM
That is a good idea. I actually have a bunch of diet plans that I was going to incorporate. Atkins, Grapefruit, Cabbage, Green Tea (I had no idea that there had been so many over the years).

It's really easy in Word Press, just set up a category that will appear on the menu, and then sub categories to appear in a drop down menu when you hover.

Nice idea Bill.

orion_joel
01-10-2009, 06:10 PM
eborg,there has been literally hundreds if not thousands of diet's come up over even the last 10 years.

While there are some that are genuine, logical approaches to losing weight, there are also a large number that people create because they used such and such a plan to lose weight themselves. However just because they used it doesnt mean that it is something that will work for everyone.

While i can understand you have the lack of time the actual diets or eating plans that you would probably want to include in the site are the ones that you can find the most proof of them working, and potentially find people that are using them who could blog about their progress. This would combine, a personal touch with talking about different programs.

In regards to the number of websites, i am in a similar position to you i have maybe 5 active sites i am trying to build, and now after my domain shopping spree the other day another 8 that are waiting for me to do something with them.

Harold Mansfield
01-10-2009, 07:04 PM
eborg,there has been literally hundreds if not thousands of diet's come up over even the last 10 years.

While there are some that are genuine, logical approaches to losing weight, there are also a large number that people create because they used such and such a plan to lose weight themselves. However just because they used it doesnt mean that it is something that will work for everyone.

While i can understand you have the lack of time the actual diets or eating plans that you would probably want to include in the site are the ones that you can find the most proof of them working, and potentially find people that are using them who could blog about their progress. This would combine, a personal touch with talking about different programs.

In regards to the number of websites, i am in a similar position to you i have maybe 5 active sites i am trying to build, and now after my domain shopping spree the other day another 8 that are waiting for me to do something with them.

I really would like to think less like a marketer on this one and more like a service provider. The last thing I would want to do is post something up that would be harmful to someone.
Which brings up another thing I hadn't thought about...Does anyone think it's necessary to post up a short statement about consulting with a physician before starting any diet or weight loss regiment, or should I assume people are smart enough to know that ?

billbenson
01-10-2009, 07:47 PM
You may have just given me a reason to dig into WP Eborg. I have a MLM domain which I probably haven't looked at in a year; or modified in 3 years. It kind of parallels dieting though. There are a ton of MLMs. Some have good products such as Amway (they sell under a few other trademark names these days), some scam mlm's, and some in between. There are also a ton of strategies in that field. It could make for a really broad site!

You might have just given me a reason to play around with WP.

As to the disclamer Eborg, legally I'd talk to an attorney. Realistically, something that says "these are the experiences and recommendations of our site visitors" etc will probably suffice. You can make it salesy not a disclamer IMO.

I've had two domains that I dumped because of legal reasons. One was a gambling domain and the other was a Scientology domain. The Scientology site, because they sue anbody that disagrees with them, and the gamling sites are illegal period. One link to a casino in vegas and someone from Iowa places a bet because they got to the betting site from a link on your site and its a felony. I used the site for development of other sites and eventually just let it expire.

orion_joel
01-10-2009, 08:14 PM
I would never assume people are smart enough, i think there have been way more then enough court cases to prove the point that there is always someone who will do something stupid.

Way back when i did not know any better i had to drop a couple of domains names, which could have potentially got me for infringing trademarks, after a letter about one, i just dropped the rest to avoid any potential future issues. The ones i have now, i don't imagine should pose any problems, as they are place names or generic terms strung together.

KristineS
01-16-2009, 01:06 PM
Definitely put up a disclaimer. Some of the diets you mentioned in a previous post were extreme. You would hope that everyone would realize that the best way to lose weight is to exercise and eat sensibly, but that's not always the case. People eat cabbage for two weeks and then get ill and their health suffers and they can't understand why, so they blame the blog on which they saw the diet.

KristineS
01-16-2009, 01:09 PM
That is one of the reasons that I have been putting this site on the back burner for so long. There is just no way that I can give it the personal touch that it needs.

The best I can do on this one is "cookie cutter" and I know it.

I actually read your weight loss journal and the content that you have provided on it would be worth gold for a site like mine. That is really what people want to hear when they go to a weight loss site.

The comparison of the two is actually a pretty good tutorial of what makes an average site, into a great site !

Thank you for that. I'm pretty proud of that blog and need to get back to writing on it regularly. I guess, like most people, I let my weight loss work slide a little over the holidays.

As a side note, I do write for a living. If you're looking for content, PM me and maybe we can work out a deal.