6 Proven Steps To Internet Marketing Success

 

There is a misconception that you can come on-line set up a web business and be making $1000s within days. Let be put that myth to rest right away. This has not been my experience nor the experience of anyone I have come in contact with through my on-line endeavours.

You need to give yourself at least a year to make an on-line business work and budget your money accordingly. Too many times I see people ploughing a wad of cash into their businesses and again, expecting instant riches.

New marketers also make the mistake of thinking that one marketing strategy will do. Of course some avenues will produce more than others but I have found the best way is to adapt a broad based approach to your online marketing. That means spreading your time and resources over several different methods.
I will attempt to outline in this text everything I feel you need to be doing consistently to make a success of your online business.

Again I MUST point out that you need to persist is this strategy and spend your money wisely. It amazes me the amount of people who drop out after the first month or two. What do they expect, miracles? You wouldn't ditch an offline business after a month so why would you expect an online enterprise to be any different?

If you fail to plan then you plan to fail.

Bottom line is, targeted visitors = sales. This is definitely a numbers game and obviously the more targeted visitors you send to your website the more money you make. The concept is simple but you need to maintain a healthy focus to ensure that you stick this out for as long as it takes to make a profit, and progress to financial freedom on-line.

 

Here are the methods I use to send daily visitors to my sites:

1) Build Your List
It's true what they say that the money IS in the list. Most successful on-line marketers have large lists of targeted prospects that they can send their offers to on a regular basis. Anyone new to this business should begin to build this list immediately.

You have to start somewhere and it takes time but it is certainly worth your while to begin now and develop a lasting and trustful relationship with those list members who eventually will feel comfortable in purchasing your recommendations. When trust grows this targeted list will become a virtual money tree and make you cash at will. Some marketers are able to makes $1000s sending an email to their list, which takes little more than a few minutes to write. Can you see the power in this method?

I use a couple of different methods, on-line forms at all my websites encouraging prospects to add their name and email addresses plus I also purchase many of my addresses from other companies that can send me 1000s of emails for affordable prices. These addresses are spam free and can grow my list a lot quicker than I could ever do from my own websites.

I have set up some tutorials here for companies that will send you targeted visitors:
http://www.pluginprofitstraining.com/listopt.html
http://www.pluginprofitstraining.com/listmedia.html

2) Pay Per Click search engines.
Over the years I have used PPCSEs to send 1000s of visitors to my sites. This is a fast track way to drive traffic to your sites. You can be up and running and getting hits in minutes.
I use http://www.overture.com, http://www.findwhat.com, and http://www.7search.com. These are three of the most popular but there are many others which you can find here:
http://www.payperclicksearchengines.com/

I suggest you use Word tracker (http://www.workathomebiz.info/wordtracker.html) to accumulate as many TARGETED keywords as you can. The more targeted keywords you collect the more visitors you get.
The idea is to ensure that you are paying less for visitors on a monthly basis than the sales you make.

3) Google Adwords (http://www.google.com/ads/)
Google adwords is similar in principle to PPCSEs in that you pay for your visitors. I suggest you use Wordtracker (http://www.workathomebiz.info/wordtracker.html) to accumulate 1000s of keyword phrases.

4) Article Submissions
Submitting topical articles is one of the most affordable and at the same time effective marketing strategies I know of. For more info and the resources to do this visit here:
http://www.pluginprofitstraining.com/articlesubmissions.html

5) Regular Search Engines
Yahoo, Google, and MSN send me as many visitors per day as any other strategy I use. It is highly recommended that you get started immediately to begin to build the online web presence of your website and thus your search engine rankings.

I have done this mostly through a reciprocal linking campaign which has had a greater effect on my search engine rankings than anything else. I employ the use of Links manager (http://www.workathomebiz.info/linksmanager.html) to automate my links campaign for which I pay a monthly fee or you can set up your own links manager at your own site using Kevin Ocasio's excellent Reciprocal Manager (http://www.freeadvertz.com/recipmanager.html).
For affordable search engine submission software try Web Position Gold (http://www.webpositiongolddownloads.com)
Please note: This is a long term strategy, so it will take at least a few months of persistent action to see any results at all.

6) Forum Posting
One of the greatest things that happened to me in my on-line career was being appointed moderator at one on the most popular on-line internet marketing forums. This has opened up more avenues and opportunities than any other strategy. I suggest you visit the popular, high traffic on-line forums daily and make it a point of sharing your experiences and giving your advice as often as possible. Get yourself seen!

The thing about this method too is that you can have a link pointing to your site in the signature of each post you make. Posting at forums will send daily traffic to your site AND the visitors will be highly targeted.
Here are two high traffic forums that I frequent:

http://www.ablake.net/forum/
http://www.howtocorp.com/forum/
This one isn't high traffic yet but I will be there to answer your questions:
http://www.home-business-tips-newsletter.com/forum/

  

In conclusion:

I have been marketing on-line since 1998 and have tried 100s of different ways to drive targeted traffic to my websites. The above six strategies work, so I suggest you print them out and make the methods part of your daily marketing plan for the foreseeable future.

If they can work for me then they WILL work for you.
I wish you every success in your efforts.

Internet Marketing: A Journey Of Discovery

 

A summary of the journey we take 

from beginner to experienced internet marketer 

Internet marketing is an intense experience It's like living your whole life over again in a few short months or years. Read this article and decide which step you are currently at. This may give you an idea of what to expect as you progress in your internet adventure:

Step 1: Babyhood! 

You start off your internet marketing career as a brand new baby, with no idea of how the whole system works. You just follow obediently what others tell you to do, think and say, and you get to know the basics of how the whole system works.

Step 2: "Know-it-all" Teenage Years 

Then you become a "teenager", and have just enough knowledge to be dangerous to yourself and others! You go out, gung-ho, spending lots of money and telling everyone what they should be doing. In fact, you probably don't make much money in this phase because you really don't know what you are doing and you eventually find this out the hard way!

Step 3: "Study" Phase 

Then you enter the "study phase", where you decide that if you are going to make money at this, you better learn a bit more about the theory of marketing and how to apply it to your business. You realise that this internet marketing business isn't as easy as you thought it was going to be. It is tough going. This is the phase where most people drop out. You find out things about yourself that you didn't know. You grow in your personal knowledge. Even if you do drop out at this stage, it is not really a failure. You have just admitted that this is not for you after all.

Step 4: "Career Phase" 

If you tough it out and say to yourself "I AM going to make a success of this", then you enter the "Career" phase. You start taking your business very seriously and you look at how you are going to progress from here on in. Maybe you will decide you are going to build an e-zine or an opt-in mailing list. Maybe you decide to join a REAL marketing company with REAL products, and stop jumping on the bandwagon of the latest on-line ventures that eventually all go bust.

Step 5: "Senior Executive Level" 



The previous stage takes a long time. Just like a normal career, your on-line business career will develop over a period of 5 - 10 years and longer, until you are fully established in your career and are now a "Senior Executive" in the on-line business market, and you are enjoying the fruits of your hard labour! You have achieved immense personal growth, have stuck it out through the hard times and can be very proud of what you have achieved.

 

--------------------------------------------------- 
Lianne Blanch is a successful online marketer and work-at-home mom.
Visit her website today! http://www.working-from-home.biz/1721

About the Author
Lianne Blanch is a successful online marketer and work-at-home mom.
Visit her website today! http://www.working-from-home.biz/1721

9 Steps to Public Speaking Success

 

By following these nine tips, you will be able to develop a speech for any group on any subject on which you have some knowledge. Enjoy the moment and do not allow stage fright to hold you back.

During your time on stage presenting your well-prepared material, you will shine in the spotlight!It is inevitable that at times during our careers or personal lives; we will be required to provide a presentation or public speech to a group of people. 

Perhaps the group is a group of peers; perhaps the audience will be senior or top-level management; perhaps the group will be comprised of people who wish to learn something from you. This is an opportunity that can boost or hinder your career path. When the day comes to provide a public presentation, will you know what to do to create and present an effective speech? Will you put the audience to sleep? 

Or will you be able to hold the attention of most of the audience? While you may wish you had listened more during that speech coaches presentation last year, you still have to get ready to hold the interest of an audience for a specific period of time. Professional speech coaches will always stress that preparation is the key to success in public speaking.

Speech Coaches Tip 1: Know your audience: Before you begin to prepare your material to present, you need to know what group of people will most likely comprise your target audience. It is important to speak at the level of understanding of that particular audience. 

If you are speaking about aerospace to grade school children, you would want to be certain you will be speaking at the level they can understand clearly and find interesting. If you are speaking to rocket scientists about aerospace, a completely different and much more technical speech would be required. 

One way to be certain to put an audience to sleep is to talk over their heads or far below their level of knowledge. All good speaking coaches will agree that targeting your audience and their knowledge level is crucial. 

You may well know exactly what group you will be speaking to and their level of understanding of the topic. If you do not have this information, seek it out by talking to the person or group who invited your to speak or talking to members of a group likely to be similar to those who will attend your speech.

Speech Coaches Tip 2: Know Your Subject: Speech coaches sometimes state that anyone can speak to any group on any subject and hold their interest  for a short time. This is true, but only to a point. Hopefully, you were asked to present this speech because you are an expert in the field. However, that may not always be the case. You must know the subject you are speaking on to the level of detail that will prepare you to answer questions from the group. 

Research, read, search the internet, talk to experts, or whatever is required to gather the information so that you know your topic well. Remember, you will need to be able to offer specific facts or anecdotes if you are to create a lasting impression with your speech, so make sure to take at least mental notes of real-life examples to pepper throughout your speech.

Speech Coaches Tip 3: The Rule of Three: People in general can focus on three things and remember them well. Speech coaches recommend that a speaker identify the three major things they wish the audience to remember from the presentation you provide. Identify what three things you want to emphasize to your audience. 

Speaking coaches also recommend that no more than three examples or proofs of each point be made as sub-points. This will provide a basis for your outline of the speech. You will also want to repeat the three major points three times in your speech: during the introduction, while covering each point, and in the closing statements.

Speech Coaches Tip 4: Prepare Your Material: At this point, most speech coaches recommend sitting down and fleshing out the material you will be presenting the body of the speech or the three points you identified as your main points. Don't worry about opening or closing the speech at this point, just get your three points defined and formatted so that you can convey excitement and knowledge about your topics.

Speech Coaches Tip 5: Compelling Opening Statements: Now that you have bodies for your speech, professional speaking coaches recommend reviewing your material and developing a compelling and interesting opening comments section. You must give the audience a reason to listen. 

Make them want to know what you have to tell them. Humour can be used provided you are a person who can deliver humour naturally and intelligently to the target audience but it is not necessary. In the opening, you should include the three points you will be covering in the body of the speech.

Speech Coaches Tip 6: Closing Statements: You should close the speech with a brief review of the three major points contained in the speech. These should be brief, but, remembering the Rule of Threes, will allow you to reinforce your main points.

Speech Coaches Tip 7: Read and Re-Read Your Material: After you have prepared your speech, read the material until you know it well. Speech coaches recommend that you not attempt to memorize word-for-word, but that you know the material so well in your head that you can discuss the subject even if you lost all your notes! By having this material in your brain, you are prepared to delivery the knowledge to other people. 

I once attended a lecture series with a man who would enter the room, sit on top of his stack of notes, and then recite them word for word for the next three hours. The notes and speech were not even in his native language. You may never be the most dynamic speaker in the world, but you have full control over whether you are perceived as being informed and prepared.

Speech Coaches Tip 8: Audience Involvement: Speech coaches often stress that you must involve an audience to hold their attention. Depending on your audience, this can be accomplished in several ways. 

For a formal audience where you cant break the audience into groups or other physical involvement, ask questions of the audience such as What would you do if this occurred? Another technique is to ask for a show of hands of how many people have been in similar situations or had the same questions you are answering in your speech. 

Tell the audience, Now, please write this down because it is crucial knowledge for your success. If the group is small and informal, you may be able to involve the audience by asking groups of several people to write a question or comment to be collected and reviewed at the end of the presentation. 

Any technique you can think of that will involve the audience and get them to participate will work much better than ending with, Are there any questions? That ending almost never, according to the best speech coaches, results in a response from any attendees.

Speech Coaches Tip 9: Present with Confidence: When the time comes to present your speech, take a few minutes to practice deep breathing to calm yourself. Remember that body language is very important and you must be animated while speaking. 

Talk the speech rather than read it. These people came to hear you, not read your work! Make eye contact with the audience, moving that eye contact from person to person. Move your hands and if room allows, walk about the stage. Smile where appropriate, show facial expressions of concern where appropriate. Animate your body and your face to remain interesting and dynamic. 

If you make a mistake and have to correct yourself, laugh at yourself. Accept that you are human and this one speech is not the end of the world. Use short, clear sentences spoken in a clear, calm voice. Pause at main points there is no need to rush because you are prepared and KNOW you are prepared.

 

Affiliate Marketing vs. Google Adsense: Let the Battle Begin…

Lately there has been a lot of discussion on how to make tons of money with Google Adsense. In fact, many people are making the claim that Adsense sites can earn a higher revenue then an affiliate-marketing site.

So that brings us to an important question: Which is a better online business - Affiliate-Marketing sites or Google Adsense sites? 

Let's explore each one and then find out which online business is better option:

Google Adsense

How do you like the idea of earning m*ney without dealing with customers or answering emails. This is possible when you run a Google Adsense site. With Adsense sites, you can have a virtual passive-income that requires little maintaining. But is this the best option for an online business?

Here are the positives of Google Adsense sites:

· They are perfect for people who run information sites that have no related affiliate product

· You can set it and leave it. With Google Adsense, you can create a content page, and there is little need to update the content.

· Adsense sites are easy to scale. Since they require little upkeep, you can easily create multiple websites that each make a nice income.

Here are the negatives of Google Adsense sites:

· They are not a great long term solution. Instead of getting your visitors to subscribe to a mailing list, you are focusing on getting people to click on ads. Real online businesses concentrate on building assets that can use for long-term growth.

· These sites are dependent on search engines. Most Google Adsense sites make the mistake of depending on search engines for the majority of their traffic. If the SE algorithms change then your income might drop significantly.

 

Affiliate Marketing

Being an affiliate marketer is great for those who want build a theme site. With this type of business, you can easily create web pages around a topic and get people to buy products through your products. If done correctly, you can easily build a loyal following that will help you make money for years to come.

But can affiliate marketing make you more money then Google Adsense?

Here are the positives of affiliate marketing:

· A great advantage of affiliate-marketing is that you can build a long term business that will bring in a revenue stream for years.

· With affiliate-marketers you need to focus on building an email list. This list is a major asset of your business. Every time you have an offer, you can go to your list and increase your profits..

· Unlike Google Adsense sites, which only concentrates on high paying keywords, an affiliate marketing site can be centered on a topic that you have an interest in.

Here are the negatives of affiliate marketing:
 
· You have to learn how to write persuasively and get people to purchase the product that you are recommending. For many people this is a difficult skill to learn.

· Each affiliate marketing site requires a lot of effort. You must spend a lot of time writing product reviews, building your email list and creating web content.

So which is better: Affiliate marketing or Google Adsense?

The answer is that both are great solutions for an online business. Instead of choosing one over the other, you should create websites that can take advantage of both.

Here is how you can do this:

1) Create a content site on a topic that you are interest in, while paying a good amount per Adsense click.

2) Integrate your Adsense into the menu bars and the top of your web content.

3) Add web pages for affiliate-products and your opt-in email list. But, make sure that you leave out the Adsense blocks on these pages. This way you are ensuring that you are building your long-term assets.

4) Create optimized web page articles that focus on a specific keyword phrase. Place your Google Adsense in these blocks.

5) Provide your email list with good content and product recommendations. Once in awhile, email your list and provide a link to some of your web articles. That way, you can earn a little bit of m*ney from your subscribers while giving them good content.

By focusing on both affiliate products and Google Adsense, you will be building both short-term and long-term profits.

The Top 10 Secrets of Successful Authors

If you are not a successful author yet, incorporate the following 10 Secrets:

1. Treat your book as a business. 

You spend many hours creating a masterpiece to help your audience. It follows then, you need to set up a regular time schedule to market and promote it.

2. Create a flyer for each book you offer. 

Hand out your flyer at business meetings or at any public place. Ask your audience to pass the flyer along to friends and associates. Offer one free report or ezine on the flyer to get new email addresses to send promotion to later.

3. Create a line or two about your book in your signature file that goes on every email you send. 

After your name, title, and benefit statements, add something like: eBk: "Write your eBook or Other Book--Fast!" Include your addresses and phone numbers too.

4. Invest some money in book marketing. 

Contact a book coach and schedule a low-cost introductory session to see if you are a match and will get what you need. Many authors print too many copies or use an expensive service to get book finished instead of putting aside an equal amount to market it.

5. Take a teleclass on how to market your book. 

These low cost and low time investments can make your book the great seller it should be. Discover inexpensive ways to market via the phone and email. How convenient!

6. Don't get fooled by high-cost services. 

If it's too good to be true, it isn't true. When you hire someone to do it all for you, it can cost over $1000 a month with small results. Check out what services fit your budget, and get a realistic picture of what your results will be.

7. Delegate some of the marketing. 

Like me, hire a low-cost computer assistant from your local high school. They know more than many professionals. For under $10 an hour, you can multiply your promotion exponentially via ecommerce your assistant does for you 2-3 times a week.

8. Set a dollar goal for your book each month. 

Don't count copies sold. Count each month's book sales. Put your goal near your workstation to remind you of what you want. Don't price your book too low, so you'll appreciate an easy experience--getting what you deserve for all your work.

9. Learn more about Internet book marketing. 

Think about reaching hundreds of thousands of your audience every week. When you give them what they want--free information--they will eventually buy. Many authors go the traditional path of talks, ads or press releases. They don't always pay well for the effort.

10. Don't stop marketing. 

Many clients come to me and say they are discouraged their book didn't sell well in four months. Replace doubt with patience for the process. Success takes many months, but once you get it, the Internet keeps it multiplied for you.

Knowing the secrets of successful authors can help you receive the same prestige and become a household word.

Seven Secrets to Writing a Book that Sells

It's one thing to write a book, it's an entirely different thing to write one that's a saleable, viable, marketable product. Ensuring the success of a book is something even the biggest publishers have never been able to guarantee. Mitigating circumstances, flash trends, and world events will all affect buyer preferences. That said, there are still ways to leverage the sales-factor in your favour and here's how you do it.

1. Know your readers. 

We're not just talking about whether your readers are male or female. You'll want to know myriad factors about your audience. How old are your readers (age range)? Are readers married, single, or divorced? Where do your readers reader live (generally)? What do your readers do for a living? What other books/publications do they read? Develop a profile that includes where they shop, what clubs do they belong to, etc.

These elements will help you incorporate these aspects into your book *and* help you unearth salient marketing opportunities (i.e., publications and stores).

2. Know your market. 

What's the market like for your book? Is there a trend out there you're positioning yourself towards. Are you reading all the publications related to this topic rend? Are there any "holes" out there your book could fill? What's the future for this market opic? For example, let's say you're a fiction writer looking to publish chick lit. Go to any bookstore and you can't help but spot the cutsie, pink, cartoonish covers. Many thought this trend was dying out, but it has recently seen another surge. What do you know about trends related to your book opic/audience?

3. Similar books. 

What else has been published on your topic? Have you read all ten books in your category? If you haven't, you should. You'll want to know everything you can about what's out there and how it's being perceived in the marketplace. It's never a problem having a similar topic. When I published No More Rejections - Get Published Today, I knew there were other books out there on marketing. I read them all--then angled my book differently.

4. Getting and staying current. 

What's going on in your industry today? What are some hot buttons? What are people looking for? What's next on the horizon for this topic/audience? If you can't seem to gather this information through traditional channels, why not survey your target audience? There are a number of places to run free surveys, Survey Monkey is one of them: http://www.surveymonkey.com

5. Follow the media. 

What's the media talking about these days (besides the California election & Ben-lo)? Keep track of media buzz--what they're paying attention to and what they're writing about. Delve beyond the front page of your paper to the second or third page and see what's filling the pages. If you can get your hands on out-of-state papers, do a comparative review. Do you see a trend in coverage? Is there something that seems to be getting more buzz even if it's on page six?

6. Talk, teach, listen. 

One of the best ways I've found to get in touch with my audience was to teach a class and do speaking engagements. When I was putting together my book, Get Published Today, I found that the classes I taught provided valuable information for creating a great book because they put me directly in touch with my audience!

7. Timing is everything. 

When do you plan to release your tome? Are you releasing around a holiday or anniversary? Could you take advantage of any upcoming event and/or holiday for your book launch?

Top Ten Ways to Promote Your Books Through Flyers

A flyer is an excellent, inexpensive way to promote your book. What makes one flyer so much better than another? Use these top10 tips to make your flyer stand out from the crowd.

1. Include a coloured picture of your front cover. 

People want to see what your book looks like. Color is great, but not always necessary. Make sure your colored book cover copies well in black and white. If you do use color, make your book cover background white with colored lettering, so you don't go through a $35 ink cartridge too fast. 

2. Hook your prospective buyers with the headline in the top line of your flyer just as you do for your back cover. 

Here's a few gems: Why Not Publish Yourself? Read About SEX as it Really Is! Imagine Thousands of Readers Buying your Book Next Month! Quadruple your Income in Four Months! Give your audience a reason to buy--Show those benefits.

3. Include some juicy excerpts from your book.

Prospective buyers want to see a sample of your writing, especially if it's fiction. Use an analogy or short story to illustrate your book's main point if non-fiction.

4. Include your picture with a brief biography near it. 

People want to see what the author looks like. Place it on the right side of the flyer if possible.

5. Add praise from others. 

Testimonials are the most significant way to market your book. The praise doesn't have to be from famous people. Use a man/woman on the street opinion. One client/author added a testimonial from a convict!

6. Put ordering information on a coupon at the flyer's bottom.

Include your book's ISBN number, Web site URL, your email, toll-free number and discount information.

7. Make it easy for your reader to buy. 

Offer easy ways to buy: credit cards, checks or money orders. Include your toll-free 800 number. Many prefer a coupon they can fill out and mail or fax. 

8. Give your prospective buyers all the ways to stay in touch with you.

Some people will not buy online or use a credit card. While most small business people are ready for these, it's a good idea to include your street address, e-mail, Web Site, local phone and fax number, and 800 number.

9. Carry at least 25 flyers with you in a folder at all times.

Keep them in your car, so that when you pass a place that will post them for you, they are handy. Give one to every person you meet. Remember the "law of seven." After seven exposures, you have a buyer! Flyers are better than a business card because they have more detailed information on them to help the potential buyer make a decision.

10. Use the backside of the flyer. 

You really waste this space if you don't put it to use. Multiply buying results with more testimonials on the back. Include a longer excerpt from your book there.

Your flyer is a detailed extension of you and your book, and one of the least expensive ways to market your book through print. Print hundreds, even thousands, so your book buying public can easily purchase your book.
 

Judy Cullins, 20-year book and Internet Marketing Coach, Author of 10 eBooks including "Write your eBook Fast," and "How to Market your Business on the Internet," she offers free help through her 2 monthly ezines, The Book Coach Says...and Business Tip of the Month at http://www.bookcoaching.com/opt-in.shtml and over 140 free articles. Email her at mailto:Judy@bookcoaching.com