If you have started working from home, you know that there can be some confusing times. You do not have a physical team of people with you to help you through every problem. You do have a whole team of people at your fingertips online, though. One way to gain access to these people is by using an affiliate marketing board. This is a place where you can go to ask the questions that you can not get answered fast enough via email. I have used this tool many times to get a handle on a concept I did not understand.
Sometimes, you can not solve every problem yourself. It is hard to admit that sometimes, especially as the type of personality that many small business owners possess lends itself to a certain independence. I have found that you can learn a great deal by using an affiliate marketing board to help you with some of the problems that arise in a home based online business. There are so many people just like you that are going through the same issues that you are, and you owe it to yourself to take advantage of this amazing resource. Try it today, and see how well it can work for you.
There are a few secrets that I’d like to share with you. You may have been privy to a few of them before. Actually you may have heard of all 4, but I can promise that you will finish each article with a fresh perspective. I will show you how 4 simple secrets can create a powerhouse web business. This is the third part of the 4 article series.
Before I divulge the vault of successful web business secrets I must warn you of one thing. All the information in the world will not take the place of determination and persistence. A web business is just like an offline business. It takes hard work and resolve to succeed. However working smart is heads and tails better than plain old working. These 4 secrets will turn any smart working, dedicated average Joe or Jane into a successful web business owner.
Web Success Secret #3) Pre-selling is far more effective than selling.
The first two parts of this series were geared towards both the search engines and your visitors. This article focuses directly on your visitor- more specifically your relationship with your visitor. You must gently and effectively pre-sell your visitor on your goods or services.
Anyone can sell a product or service online. All it takes is a link to a payment processor such as Paypal. The difference between successful online business owners and those wishing to make a buck is in their ‘voice’. A website has a voice. The look and feel of your website gives your visitor an impression. When your visitor reads your words they should know the persona of your business and think of you as an expert.
These words, or content, should provide tons of information in small, bite-sized chunks of text. No one likes to read 8 pages of content on a website. On the flip side, no one likes to buy a product without knowing more about it. You need to find the perfect balance between no information and providing too much.
Generally speaking, 400-800 words can do the trick. It can provide content, position you as the expert and gently pre-sell your visitor on a product or service.
In addition to how much content you provide you should focus on providing specific answers to your customer’s problems or concerns. Most visitors are on your website because they want answers. They are not surfing your site to buy something. They want answers. So give them answers!
It’s how you provide your answers that matters. There is a difference between selling and pre-selling, and how you provide the answers or information your visitor wants is that difference.
Selling is cold, distant and forceful. Pre-selling is the opposite. Pre-selling can be thought of as a recommendation or side note to all the great content you provide. You want your website voice to develop trust and rapport with your visitor. During that time you are positioned as an expert. Any soft recommendation that you make will be considered by your visitor.
Forceful selling causes people to put up their defenses. It causes them to take a step back and wonder what your motives are. Pre-selling does not affect people this way. Pre-selling should lead those that are interested to your product without hesitation and those that are not interested should be led to more general content on your website- that will again attempt to gently pre-sell them.
Pre-selling and content (part 1 of this series) are closely related. You must provide information to your site visitors. You must be viewed as the expert and as a helpful friend making a recommendation. People will not feel sold by that. People will respect that you are providing answers to their problems and making a recommendation for a product that can provide even more helpful info. It’s seen as a favor instead of a hard sell.
As I mentioned earlier, it is best to work smarter and not harder. If you would like additional guidance on how to effectively pre-sell on the Internet, contact me for a free ebook.
Having a successful web business starts with effective content. Stay tuned for part 4! If you missed Part 1 or 2 and would like a complimentary copy please contact me and I will forward it to you immediately.
Copyright 2006 Lynn VanDyke
Lynn VanDyke builds successful websites. She provides several options for business owners including a “Jump Start Your Online Business” CD-ROM. Visit http://www.LynnVanDyke.com to learn more about her and her services. Lynn’s content website is ranked in all 3 major search engines and is in the top 1% of all websites worldwide according to Alexa.
The same thing can be said about tapping the potentials of technology to easily grow your network marketing business. Here are some of the numerous ways by which technology can help you grow your business fast:
*Voicemail Systems
When you hear the word “voicemail,” the first thing that will most likely enter your mind is a brief message that instructs the caller to leave his own message for you. But have you ever thought of utilizing your voicemail system as a powerful sales tool?
If you think that most people will frown at having to listen to long voicemail messages, you better think again. Wouldn’t you call up a number and patiently and attentively listen to the recorded message if you knew that you would be benefiting from doing so?
Imagine reading an ad that says: “Call up and discover how to save up to 60% on any tour package of your choice! Free recorded message 24-7!”
If you do decide to call the said number, you will automatically expect a recording — just like the ad said. Now, if you really want to save money on that dream vacation of yours and if the recorded advertisement is interesting and provides adequate information, then you will surely listen until the end of the message, right?
Furthermore, did you know that according to some experts, the phrase “free recorded message” alone will actually boost the number of callers by up to 300%?
Now, here are some guidelines that you can follow to ensure the successful use of your voicemail system for your network marketing business:
>Prepare a stunning sales script for your recorded message.
>Practice adequately before you record your message. Make sure you do not sound boring nor should you sound too excited in your recording.
>Start your message with a great opening that will surely catch your caller’s attention.
>Speak clearly and direct to the point. Keep your caller interested.
>Make sure that your message provides adequate, clear, and accurate details regarding your offer to your caller.
>Inform your caller about the specific steps that he must undertake in order for him to enjoy your offer.
>Instruct your caller to leave all the necessary information that you may need.
*Toll-Free Numbers
Are you aware of the incredible power of a toll-free number as well as the benefits that it can give your business?
The first and the most evident benefit of getting a toll-free number is the “professional touch” that it can give you and your business or company. Somehow, a toll-free number will give the impression that your business is legitimate and well-established.
Second, a toll-free number can drastically multiply the number of calls that you receive.
Third, a toll-free number can make you and your business more accessible for your prospective clients and customers.
*Testimonial Line
An innovative marketing tool, a testimonial line refers to a phone line that prospective clients and customers can call to listen to other people make their own testimonies about working with you and your company.
This method proves the convincing power of positive feedback. As studies show, when someone else talks about your good points, he is most likely to convince others that your products are of the highest quality and your services are excellent and reliable. A testimonial line provides an easier, more modern, and more creative venue where you can let others put your best foot forward.
*Homepage/Website
In this day and age where practically everyone travels in cyberspace, the significant role that a professional website plays in promoting and developing your business is unquestionable.
Make sure to build a specially designed or theme-oriented website. Attract prospective clients and customers to your website and make sure that your site is interesting and informative enough to make them stay and have a complete view of what you have to offer.
You may also use search engine optimization articles to attract better traffic to your site.
*Group Messaging
Practically all e-mail providers offer group messaging services. Expand your network by creating e-mail groups and sending group messages to send out information to more people while saving time and energy.
*Blogs and Forums
Aside from maintaining your professional website, create and maintain a blog for a more personal touch. You can use this as a venue to interact with your recruits and customers at a more comfortable level.
Be a regular visitor in various forums or chatrooms. Get prospective clients by socializing.
*E-zines and E-newsletters
Publish an e-zine or an e-newsletter to establish a bigger list of contacts and to maintain a closer interaction with them. Use your e-publication to update them regarding any new offers in the business.
Truly, in the business of network marketing, the most crucial effort is building groups of contacts and sharing information with them. In short, effective and reliable communication is the key. So, why don’t you tap the potentials of technology to the fullest and see your network marketing business grow faster and more easily?
Daegan Smith the owner of Net MLM Articles and the leader of the fastest growing team of
successful home business enterpernuers on the net. Find out how we’re creating financial freedom all across the globe and how to get in on the action FREE =>http://www.comlev.com.
Article marketing should be the holy grail of web site traffic.
The benefits you can get are incredible. Articles can help you
* establish yourself as an expert,
* bring you an increase in sales and subscriptions,
* build trust in your product or services from proven techniques readers can try before they get to your site,
* help you get better search engine results, (not only through linking) and,
* send you traffic from sites that republish your work,
not to mention a myriad of other benefits.
Some people say the growth in new authors has made it harder to find new content. Other people say abuse of private label article rights/ghost writing has made it harder for publishers to find unique content. And of course, article marketing, done incorrectly, can have you competing against yourself to rank in the search engines (though I can think of worse problems.)
All of those things are factors, but they’re minor compared to other factors that have been around since the early days of article marketing online. Article Marketing can still bring you huge traffic and lots of prospects. If it’s not working, here are some possibilities as to why not.
1. You aren’t writing with a unique style/slant/story.
2. You’re focused only on being in web directories, and not in article banks or ezine lists that help publicize your reprint rights
3. You aren’t writing at least one article a week
4. You’re trying to do all the submission yourself instead of using distribution services
5. The quality of your articles hasn’t caught the attention of the big publishers yet.
6. Your grammar/spelling/punctuation was notoriously bad once and you started getting passed over by publishers who normally run your articles in their publications
7. Your articles are too similar to other writers
8. You aren’t following publisher guidelines (This is a big one! They vary and you really do need to have multiple formats so you can please them all.)
9. Your writing is more about search engine copy or making a sale, than it is about giving away a little free, useful information away
Make these mistakes - some of them only once - and you may be dooming yourself to obscurity as an article marketer.
Go to http://www.freetraffictip.com to learn more about all aspects of traffic generation, including blogging, article marketing and search engine optimization.
Posters can be a great and inexpensive way to promote your book. But don’t rush right out until you know the key items to include on your poster.
The Title and Author’s name
Make sure to have a bigger font than the rest of your poster to bring attention to the title and author of the book. This may be the only aspect of the poster they remember.
ISBN, Where to Purchase, Price, Pages and Cover
Be up front with where customers can purchase your book. Including the ISBN number can also help with searching for your book on line. Many times a customer will look for the price and become annoyed at having to search for it and how many pages the book contains. When having your book cover on your poster, you want it to be as clear and sharp as possible.
The Facts
Be straight forward on what your book is about. Mystery may entice a reader, but clear facts are more likely to progress to a sell if your content is what the customer is looking for.
Reviews
It’s a good idea to show blurbs of your favorable book reviews both customer and editorial.
Optional Items
A photo of yourself- Sometimes customers feel better buying with a face in mind, but this sometimes can backfire.
Table of Contents- This part may become very long on your posters so perhaps partial view of the TOC would be best.
Contact/Homepage- Your customers may have questions, please keep in mind that this could lead to spam. Directing others to your homepage would be a better option. Treat your e-mail as if it were your phone number.
Don’t forget to make sure your poster is printed on good quality paper with rich ink. Good luck!
About the Author: Laura Hickey is an up and coming author. Her work includes Mysterious Chills and Thrills for Kids and a co-writer position for the TV pilot, Officially Lush. You can read more free articles by Ms. Hickey on her homepage:
http://www.laurahickey.com
Giving items away for free is a great way to increase traffic everybody likes freebie. If you give something different away each week, you are sure to have a steady stream of repeat traffic. When you have freebies or giveaways on your site, your pages can also be listed and linked from the many sites on the Internet that list places where where people can receive free stuff.
To find these listings of free stuff, simply go to search engine and do a search on “Free Stuff Index” or “Free Stuff Links”. You will be amazed at how many people are giving things away online.
You don’t have to give something away to everyone. You could simply have a drawing everyweek. You could then ask entrants if they would like to notify them of the winner, which again gives you permission to email them.
If you want to bring only people from your target market to your site then don’t give away mainstream things like screen savers, shareware games, utilities, and so on. Try to give away something that only people interested in your industry would want. If you don’t care what traffic comes your way, and any traffic is good traffic, then give away useful things that everybody needs. Try to have your logo and URL displayed on the item. If your freebie is something that has your URL on it and is something that is generally kept around a computer, it’ll remind and encourage people to visit your site.
The best implementation of giving away freebies is by having a “Tell a friend about this” button near the freebie so site visitors can quickly and easily tell their friends. It’s the ideal viral marketing opportunities.
Heri Rosyadi is an internet marketer expert with over 5 years experience in internet marketing. Visit www.MyTrafficStrategies.Ws and get a FREE copy of his Amazing Advertising Tips Report.
Online success is found by solving pressing problems.
People go online seeking solutions to painful, nagging
problems and, if you offer those solutions, they will
gladly pay you for your assistance.
Even after three years on the Internet, we can feel
your frustrations. We, at times, suffer from the same
issues. Here is the answer we all have been waiting
for. If you understand the solutions, (there are more
than one), then you are well on the way to Internet
Success.
It is not necessary to be an Internet Marketing Guru
to have success on the Internet. Just follow seven,
(not so easy steps).
What we are about to discuss is an overview and, in
no way, a complete explanation of each topic. Books,
ezines, and articles have been written on EACH subject.
Our suggestions are “bullet points” four YOU to begin
YOUR RESEARCH.
1. email campaigns - Always include a signature, (Full
name, address, email address, website), at the end of
each email.
Always provide an optout statement, with an easy optout
link to prevent SPAM complaints. And, always put some
thought in your message to make it believable and worth
time to read.
2. Advertising copy (clever, “eye catching” ad title)
3. ad tracking - Do it!
4. Search engine placement using appropriate RELEVANT
keywords with high ranking KEI value. (10 or more, the
higher the better)
5. Use as many FREE ad services you can handle,
(NOT CLASSIFIED), like feeds, Blogs, Groups, etc.
These ads will be TARGETED to YOUR product or services.
6. Linking - Create inbound and outbound RELEVANT links.
This adds a sense of importance to your site to Search
Engines. The more inbound links the more important your
site, at least in the “eyes” of Search Engines.
7. Be prepared to invest capital, (money) - BUT, PREPARE
a monthly BUDGET, and monitor your GROSS PROFIT - (Gross
Sales minus COST of Sales).
As gross profit increases, (hopefully), increase investment
in ADVERTISING AND MARKETING.
“Targeted Marketing” of well-written email, professionally looking, (no typos, good formatting), with eye-catching
titles, sent to a targeted market, are cost effective
and very productive.
However, that only represents about 48% of your total
market. The other 52% comes from Search Engines.
Newsletters are excellent for staying in touch with your
existing customers or downlines. We use ONLINE software
whenever possible, (NO DOWNLOADS, NO RETURN EMAILS,
AUTOMATED, and excellent TRACKING).
Ad copy placed anywhere must have a catchy ad title,
and substantive copy that will create immediate curiosity.
“Tweak” the ads for better ad copy.
Ad tracking helps save money, produces better results
and increases Search engine placement (SEO), increases
sales, and will guaranty traffic; traffic equals sales.
I am a bit of a stats nut, but, it sure pays off.
A long time ago, when we first started email marketing,
we set up an ad tracking system using a spreadsheet
application.
Now, our delivery system provides highly sophisticated
stats for information, (NOT FOR TRACKING OUR READERS),
but to manage the success, or failure of a specific
campaign, based on readers’ habits.
The information is statistical not by name! This did
take a little time to set up; however, once its done,
it’s done.
TWO last words regarding ad tracking, DO IT!
A word about Search Engines - Keywords, content,
traffic, and. . . incoming and out going LINKS are
the ingredients NEEDED To optimize your website,
and improve the CONVERSION RATE of your Website.
First, find the CORE keywords people are using,
related to YOUR industry. Make sure the search
results, from the keywords you select, are relevant,
and then OPTIMIZE your site for those search phrases.
What does that mean? It, means, ONCE YOU HAVE YOUR
CORE KEYWORD, . . . YOUR “NICHE”, DO NOT CHANGE IT!
BUILD AROUND IT!
Let’s say your Core Keyword is DOG. Now, how many
dog breeds are there in the world . . . RIGHT, a
lot!!
What’s your “niche”? Spaniels? Now build from there
all the time thinking like an experienced Internet
surfer. How Many different ways can one search for
Spaniels?
Go from there. Edit down to no more than 250 characters, (includes commas and spaces), and WHAALAH!
You have optimized your KEYWORDS!
It may look something like this: . . . free
spaniels, pure bred spaniels, cocker spaniels,
black cocker spaniels, etc.
This is a very simplistic explanation to a complicated
issue, but I think it may give you an idea of where,
and how to start.
We ARE NOT DONE!
EDIT your KEYWORD PHRASES into your website in a
clever way, so that they DO NOT APPEAR AS A LIST.
That is keyword spamming, and, won’t get you a
favorable position anywhere.
The same principles of TARGETED EMAIL MARKETING
APPLY TO TARGETED SEARCH ENGINE MARKETING. Don’t
throw leaves in the wind. Very few if any will
fall at your feet.
Using Targeted Email marketing and Targeted
Search Engine Marketing will accelerate YOUR
CTR, (Click Through Rate), and expose your
offer to more interested buyers, which in
turn increases your CONVERSION RATE!
Allow me to explain the unbelievable results that
can be obtained with just marginal increases of
your conversion rate. For example if 100 visitors
per day produces 1 sale, that’s a conversion rate
of 1%.
Right?
The conversion rate is the Single, most important
factor that determines if you have a long term
profitable Internet Business or, another one of
the 95% failures.
We closely follow various Internet Search Engine
Marketing Newsletters.
In a recently published article on this very subject,
dated March 22, 2006, an excellant explanation of CTR
was discussed.
I am going to quote an example from his article:
” . . . And exactly WHY is the conversion rate so
important? When you have a higher conversion rate
you can actually get more traffic to your web site.
Read that above sentence again. Then re-read it.
Take a print-out of the above sentence and paste
that paper on to the wall opposite to your bed so
that you can read that sentence every time you
wake up in the morning.
Read that sentence until you memorize it. Read
it until you become sick of seeing it. It’s THAT
important. Done? Now let me PROVE to you why that
sentence is so important.
Let’s do some simple math. Take that web site of
yours which is getting 100 visitors a day and has
a conversion rate of 2%. Let’s assume the product
being sold, from your site is a piece of software
that costs $50. Let’s also assume, that all those
100 visitors are coming from the pay per click
engines and that you are paying $0.50 on average
for each visitor.
How much profit do you think your web site is making
per day? Well, it is generating 2 sales a day at $50
per sale. That’s $100 in revenues per day.
You paid $0.50 cents for each of the 100 visitors the
site received, and that costs $50. Therefore, the site
is making a net profit of $100 less $50, i.e. $50 per
day.
Still with me? Good..
Now, let’s say that through some black magic, the
website’s conversion rate suddenly improves from
2% to 3%, i.e., it increases by 50% . . . So, the
site now starts getting 3 orders a day. So, it’s
revenues increase to $150 per day from $100 per day,
i.e, a 50% jump.
And what are its profits?
That’s $150 - $50, i.e. $100 per day.
Therefore, the profits have increased by 100% - from
$50 a day to $100 a day. Remember, that you were paying
50 cents per click to the pay per click search engines?
Now let’s say that with a bid 50 cents, you are able to
get the #3 position for the keywords, that you are bidding
on.
However, you are now earning a lot more per visitor than
what you were earning earlier. This means that you can
now afford to increase your bids.
(You couldn’t have increased your bid earlier if you
wanted to maintain your profit margin)
Let’s say you increase it to 60 cents. And what happens
when you increase your bid? It means that you will now
get a lot more traffic. A WHOLE lot more. . . .”
Question! How do you INCREASE YOUR CTR?
Answer: By applying the principles we have discussed
in this ARTICLE, as follows:
Targeted Marketing For:
*email marketing
*search engine advertising and placement
*keywords
*linking
Important note: Crawlers determine what kind of site you
have based on one thing only: text that is visible to your
visitor. Not your code, neither your Java Script nor your
graphics, not even your movies - just your vistor-visible
text - that’s all.
I read an interesting article recently titled:
“The Surprising Truth About Ugly Websites”.
I am relieved to know I have a chance.
EXCHANGE LINKS, the process of placing your link
partner’s link on your pages improves Search Engine
ranking. Your link partner, in turn, places your link
on their site.
We do not use an automated linking service, although
there are plenty of good ones out there. DO NOT USE
“LINK FARMS”.
YOU WILL PENALIZE YOUR SITE with search Engines. We
started our exchange program 90 days ago with just
over 80 inbound links, and now have close to 1500,
and growing very rapidly each month. Some sites have
as many as 100,000, or more.
If you want more information about this contact us,
or use any one of our recommended linking programs
on our site.
Finally, be prepared to invest capital,(time and/or
money.
If you think you can earn money without investing
money you’re dreaming. Those “free” memberships
are your “test period” to see first hand what the
program offers. Does it fit your need? Will it
produce leads? Money? Traffic, etc..?
If so, invest. Here’s a warning though, stay within a
budget. The quickest way to go broke is by being a PAID
JOINER.
Make sure the program is what you need, you understand
how it works, and you can utilize it within the skill
level you have.
Or, the program you are considering, offers world-class training.
As I said in the beginning, it is not necessary to
be an Internet Marketing Guru to have success on the
Internet.
If you have questions about any topics we discuss, feel
free to contact us directly.
Happy marketing, your online friend,
Opportunities Now Internet Marketing Services.
“Your INTERNET Super-Store For Free Work From
Home Information”
James A. “Jim” Holish is an experianced, succesful, Internet marketing specialist, who provides quality consulting services
to small work from home business.
His website: http://www.bestworkfromhomeopportunity.com
was launched Oct. 11, 2005, and now is indexed on all major Search Engines.
I’m not a team sports guy. So, this time of year my head isn’t spinning with Super Bowl afterthoughts or dreams of missed calls and dropped passes. But I did watch the Super Bowl. And I enjoyed it.
See, there is a not-so-obvious element of individual competition there that I like. In fact, it’s probably the part that most of us casual observers enjoy most - the commercials. While Super Bowl commercials may not be the most cost effective use of a marketing budget (they have singlehandedly sunk large companies into financial ruin) they do provide good lessons for entrepreneurs like us.
How?
Well, it’s hard to squeeze a message into 30 seconds. Near impossible. Yet, as a home business owner you MUST do it. And you must do it effectively if you want to leave a lasting impression.
“On whom,” you ask?
On anyone and everyone you meet.
So, I always recommend that every home-based entrepreneur come up with his or her own “30 Second Face-to-Face Commercial.” Word of mouth is your most powerful source of advertising. And it’s free. But what better place to take a cue from than the $2.6 million sound bites on Super Bowl Sunday.
In 30 seconds you don’t have time for detail. Instead, you need to communicate the key messages of who you are, what benefit you provide and how your customers should feel about you.
Some commercials do it… Take FedEx’s pre-historic slant on safe, reliable delivery.
Some commercials don’t… Remember the cat in the kitchen from last year. Good. Now, remember what they were selling? NOPE.
When you’re coming up with your personal commercial, consider these three points:
1) How do I describe what I do in less than five seconds?
If it takes longer than that, you’re confusing your customer. If you make lawns greener, tell your customer that. If you help people free themselves of debt, say that. Don’t bore your customers with details.
2) What is the number one benefit my company provides over anything else?
No matter what you’re saying, your customer is thinking one thing: “How does this benefit me?” So, don’t forget to tell them that. Volvos are safe. FedEx is reliable. BMW is the “Ultimate Driving Machine,” packed with speed and performance. What are you offering EXACTLY? If you can summarize your key benefit in one sentence, you’re doing well.
3) What should your customer do NOW?
This is the part most Super Bowl commercials forget. Tell you customer exactly what they should do next. Whether you want them to call you, have one of their clients call you, visit a web site or mail in a form… tell them exactly how you can help.
Maybe if the big spenders had listened to this advice, there would be a few less teary-eyed ad executives on Madison Avenue this month.
By the way, this years winners are…
FedEx…
GoDaddy…
And Burger King.
I think the Steelers might have won the game.
