SitePoint is having a Christmas Countdown sale, with a new featured special every day. Today they have an excellent marketing bundle up for sale, which includes my book, Online Marketing Inside Out, The SEO Business Guide, and SitePoint’s new Facebook Ads 101 course – all for only $99!

First, Online Marketing Inside Out is an introduction to online marketing, covering topics from planning your marketing strategy, email marketing, website optimization, pay per click marketing, and much more. The SEO Business Guide has everything you need to optimize your website for search engines, and was just updated in October 2010 with the newest information.

Facebook Ads 101 is a brand new course which starts on December 16. You’ll participate in a structured online video course with lessons
and tutorials, as well as have access to a private Q&A system. Once you purchase this deal, we’ll email you a link to enroll. Click on
the link, enroll, and you can start your lessons anytime.

Normally all these products would cost almost $275, so this is a huge discount. If you’ve got a website but need help getting to the next step, or are thinking of starting one, this bundle is for you. Head on over to SitePoint’s Christmas Countdown for more information.

• Online Marketing Inside Out ($29.95 value)
• Darren Rowse’s 31 Days to Build a Better Blog eBook ($19.95 value)
• The Web Site Revenue Maximizer Kit ($197 value)

At a value of $226.95, it’s a great deal at only $99.95 + shipping. The only downside is it’s only good today, December 4, 2009. You can order the bundle here.

(Disclaimer: NOT an affiliate link but it does include my book so I am a little biased)

I really enjoyed writing the newsletter and told SitePoint if they ever needed another guest author, or had a more regular position come available, I’d be very interested and would like to be considered.

I’m excited that SitePoint has asked me to coauthor the Tribune with the current host, Miles Burke. I’ll be writing every other weekly issue, starting with the very next issue, coming out this Thursday.

I’ll be writing about the business side of our industry, client dealings, productivity and anything else that comes to mind. If you’re not already getting the Tribune, go subscribe now.

Back in February I mentioned that I was writing a book about Online Marketing with Shayne Tilley. I’m excited to announce that the book, now titled Online Marketing Inside Out, has been released and is now available for purchase on SitePoint.

If you have a web site and you want to promote it but are unsure where to start, this book is for you. It covers all aspects of Online Marketing including press releases, search engine optimization, pay-per-click, social media, email marketing, and more.

Special Bonus from Darren Rowse of ProBlogger

As a special bonus, if you order from SitePoint direct you’ll also get ProBlogger Darren Rowse’s “31 Days to Build a Better Blog” workbook FREE (a $20 value). Darren’s workbook is packed with valuable content from his recent “31 Days” series on ProBlogger.net, plus over 6,000 words of new content in a professionally designed ebook. Hear what Darren had to say about Online Marketing Inside Out:

It is a great resource for those wanting to market products or services on the Web. This book shows you how to reach customers through podcasting, blogs, social networks, video, email, and contextual advertising and much more.

You’ll also get the satisfaction of knowing you helped me feed my family… SitePoint giving me a generous commission on books sold through the links on my site.

Here’s a peek at the Table of Contents:

1. The Changing Face of Marketing
2. 21st Century Public Relations and Media
3. Turn Page Views into Profit
4. Search Engine Optimization
5. Social Media
6. Email Marketing
7. Affiliate Marketing
8. Online Advertising
9. Tying It All Together

So what are you still doing here? Go over to SitePoint and buy Online Marketing Inside Out today!

Still with me? Okay, if you’re still not convinced, check out this awesome shot of the book after it arrived at SitePoint headquarters earlier today, fresh off the presses…

I should probably have written a SxSW recap when it was still fresh in my mind, but after being out of the office for more than a week I was swamped. I also came back to a few small changes for the book, which didn’t take long but still added to the overall workflow.

Four of us from Kelsey Advertising & Design trekked down to Austin this year, up from just two last year. It was myself, Brant Kelsey (Principal and owner of Kelsey), Brian Handley (illustrator and web developer), and Roman Alvarado (graphic and web designer). Overall, I would consider South by Southwest to be a big success. I really didn’t feel the conference itself was as energized or had the impact it had on me last year, but the people and parties definitely made up for it. I spent a lot of time just hanging out and meeting people, one on one in small personal settings.

I met a ton of people, and saw a ton of friends and acquaintances from other conferences. Some of the highlites are below… I’m sure I’m forgetting someone (it has been over a month). If we met at SxSW, drop me an email! I probably just didn’t have your card and my memory is aweful.

I spent a lot of time hanging out with Brant Kelsey, Patrick O’Keefe, and James Dasher, especially in between sessions and at lunches. I met up with James, who I knew back in the early days of SitePoint, and ended up hanging with him for a good part of the trip. Patrick introduced me to Wayne Sutton at Mohawk at one of the first parties. Wayne’s a cool guy, and I’m looking forward to seeing him speak at future conferences.

I saw Wendy Piersall of Sparkplugging at a party, and even though we’ve met twice at other conventions, last year at SxSW on the Chitika Beer Bus and again at Blogworld, she still didn’t remember me! It was actually pretty funny, and I don’t think she’ll have as hard of a time remembering me at the next one… I actually think Wendy felt pretty bad about not remembering me. At any rate, I enjoyed talking to Wendy as usual, and look forward to seeing her again at Blogworld in October. I saw Rick Calvert of Blog World Expo at the same party, and also met him at SxSW last year. Rick talked me into going to Blog World Expo last year when I met him, and I was glad he did! I only spoke to him briefly, but look forward to talking to him more at Blog World this year again.

I saw Jason Falls at one of the many parties at Mohawk (a bar in downtown Austin). He threw a small unofficial party for Maker’s Mark. I said hello, but it was nearly impossible to hear due to the loud music. I did run into Jason later in the Blogger Lounge at the conference, and enjoyed talking with him about social media and picked his brain for a few minutes about the best way to “pitch” a blogger. I’m hoping his tips will come in handy as we promote the book in the months to come.

One day at lunch, Ted Murphy, founder of IZEA, tweeted that he was looking to grab some lunch. After a series of tweets and DM’s back and forth, we finally met up with him and Ashley Edwards of IZEA for lunch. We tried two or three different locations (one closed, others packed) and ended up at Buffalo Billiards. Ted’s a really cool guy, and also runs IZEAFest conference, which I’m seriously considering for this year.

After an amazing panel, I spoke to Gary Vaynerchuk who was kind enough to give me a quick 30 second video interview. I still haven’t gotten the video up, though remembering it now I think I’ll go do that… I also met Gary at Blog World Expo where he was keynoting. Gary is an amazing speaker, but he’s a more amazing person. See him on camera? That’s Gary, all the time. I met him in the halls of BWE and walked with him to his keynote. He’s truly one of the most down to earth “superstars” I’ve met, and I wish I had 10% of his DNA. I’d love to be able to stay that positive and always “kill it” as he says.

I almost got through the entire conference without meeting up with Aaron Brazell or Jeremy Wright, two old friends from SitePoint. There are so many different panels and parties, it’s entirely possible to never even be in the same place at the same time. Fortunately, the last day of the conference I ran into both Jeremy and Aaron in the Blogger Lounge. Though it was a hectic day with people in meetings and such, I really enjoyed talking to both Jeremy and Aaron. I was able to pick Jeremy’s brain for a bit about book marketing, a subject he knows well having published Blog Marketing way back in 2005.

Chris Brogan was hanging out at the Pepsi Podcast Lounge one morning and sat down next to me at the bar. I think I met Chris last year at Blog World, but I can’t remember for sure. Anyway, he’s a very approachable guy

I’ve been an author, member and Community Advisor of SitePoint for 8 years now, so when I heard Matt Mickiewicz, the founder of SitePoint, was coming to SxSW I was pretty excited. For some reason, we just couldn’t seem to hook up at the conference. I’d see Matt tweet that he was at one room, and I’d be on the exact opposite side of the convention center. On the last day of the conference, I heard someone talking on a mobile phone… he said “This is Matt with SitePoint.com…” He was sitting right next to me. It couldn’t have worked out better. Matt didn’t have a lot of time, he was running off to a scheduled appointment in about 10 mintues, but we talked for a few minutes and he introduced me to Jason Aiken of 99designs. Matt also interviewed me about my new book coming out in May, published by SitePoint, “The Art & Science of Online Marketing,” co-authored with Shayne Tilley. It was great to finally meet Matt in person.

I almost met Guy Kawasaki. I’ve seen him at several conferences, and he’s a very engaging and entertaining speaker. When we were at the airport waiting on our flight home, Guy was sitting at a terminal just down the way from ours. He was on a phone call when I walked past to grab some lunch, and when I came back he was already boarding the plane. I would’ve loved to have met him, but I’m sure I’ll get a chance at another conference or event. My favorite quote from his keynote, “If you live for the weekends and vacations, your shit is broken!”

In addition to all the great people I met, we also had a few funny or embarrassing, all captured on Twitter for posterity of course! The first full night of parties (which included the Madison and Mohawk) we ended up at Stubs. I don’t remember it all too well, and not because it’s been a month since SxSW. I do remember eating the best smoked wings I’ve ever tasted, which seemed to arrive 30 seconds after we ordered. I also vaguely remember offering to take a photo of two ladies with their camera… and apparently I couldn’t even figure it out because after about 5 tries they just took their camera back. I think Brant may have gotten it on tape, too, but fortunately I haven’t seen the footage.

The next night after a few hours at the Google party, I ventured out alone and ended up at the Pure Volume Lounge. I made it back to the VIP area without a VIP pass, just wandered back not knowing what it was. The second time I tried to walk back I was stopped by a security guard. He was really cool and gave an interesting perspective about how locals perceive SxSW’ers. I did manage to find my way back to the VIP area again, just before someone apparently sprayed a fire extinguisher, ending the party early (at 3:20 AM). I walked about a block before realizing it was really late. Fortunately the cabbies were out in full force, so I made it back to the hotel fast and safe.

Brant rode a mechanical bull at the closing party, which was caught on video! Unfortunately, I’ve been told I can’t post it on YouTube, but it is posted on my Facebook. All you have to do is friend me to see it… The closing party was a pretty good closing to the trip. We had a great time, even though I had a lot of party left in me it’s probably best that I called it quits a little early (i.e. 2 AM). Travel days are no fun.

I was pretty excited about this particular trip to South by Southwest because it couldn’t have come at a better time. With my book being released in May, it was a great chance to talk to people who’ve done it before and get some advice. I’m extremely thankful to everyone that stopped for a few minutes to answer a question or just lend a word of wisdom. I learned so much and met so many great people! We had just a blast, and every day (and night) was an adventure.

I already have almost every SitePoint book written and still contributed. 100% of the proceeds go to help the bushfire victims. It’s a no-brainer – go buy the books now.

On Saturday the 7th of February Victoria had its hottest day ever on record, peaking at 47.3 degrees Celsius (117 degrees Fahrenheit), with hot gusts of wind travelling at over 100kmh (60mph). The fire danger rating climbed to 400, where a rating of 100 indicates an uncontrollable fire.

The bushfires that occurred in the rural areas around Melbourne [2] are considered to be the worst in Australian history and rank among the worst in the world [3]. More than 170 people have lost their lives, 5,000 are now homeless, and several small towns have been completely destroyed. These numbers are expected to grow as fires continue to burn.

SitePoint staff members have been personally affected by this disaster; friends have lost their properties, their homes, and their lives.

SitePoint staff were unanimous in wanting to make a substantial contribution; the bushfire emergency relief effort has seen an unprecedented response to a natural disaster in Victoria, and we want to do our part. The Australian Red Cross has announced that money is what’s most needed [4], and no administration costs will be deducted from donations to the 2009 Victorian Bushfire Appeal.

So we’re taking one day, working around the clock to plan, package, and execute our best book deal ever in order to raise funds for the Red Cross as soon as possible. Our ambitious plan is to raise over US$50,000. Every single cent generated from this promotion will go directly to the bushfire relief effort—so if you spend $29.95 purchasing 5 books from SitePoint, the whole $29.95 will go directly to supporting this cause. We feel that’s the least we can do.

The money raised will be donated to the Australian Red Cross Victorian Bushfire Appeal 2009. It will go to aid the many Victorians whose homes, livelihoods, and loved ones have been lost [5], and who are now faced with the struggle of rebuilding their lives.

I was a little surprised when Shayne contacted me and asked if I would co-author the book. I’ve been involved with SitePoint since 2001, so I think it’s only fitting that my first book is published by them. I have wanted to publish a book for a couple of years now, but life has always gotten in the way. Things have really just fallen into place for this to work out…

I’m extremely excited about the book… it will be an excellent resource for people who are interested in online marketing but don’t know where to start. The book will cover online advertising, search engine optimization, pay-per-click, social media and PR, email marketing, and affiliate marketing.

I’ve owned an e-commerce business since 1999, and have been consulting with clients on online marketing since 2000. In that time, I’ve seen Google grow from a tiny search engine to the most powerful force in online marketing in the world. I’ve seen search engine optimization change and evolve to really focus on quality content and incoming links. And I’ve seen Facebook and Twitter spring up and create an entirely new market, social media.

Online marketing is exciting, but it can also be complicated. Hopefully, Shayne and I, with our years of combined experience, can explain online marketing in a way that anyone can understand.

Things are still in the early stages, but I’ll post more details (such as links to preorder, book cover, etc.) as they become available.

Thanks to Patrick O’Keefe, for his advice and encouragement (having done this before) and Brant Kelsey, for pushing me to set ambitious goals this year.