November 23rd, 2008
The Golden Nugget of Traffic Exchange Advertising
As someone who is trying to become a work at home Mom, I am constantly trying to learn how to promote myself. I know if I want to make money on the internet, I must always be educating myself. Here is what Jon Olson teaches about a tool used to promote yourself online.
In my previous post, I detailed the three must have resources that you should be using in the traffic exchanges. I touched on todays topic because I wanted to go into detail about the bonus tip I talked about. They are called autoresponders and they represent a huge shift in thinking that every internet marketer goes through.
Brand and build. These two words hold much more weight than I can describe but when I focused my energy and effort into branding my name and building my mailing list, success seemed to come to my business like nothing before it.
Heres why. In the traffic exchanges, we are often sold on the quick fix. The quick way to internet success, the quick way to get an early retirement, the quickest way possible to make money online.
The problem for me was that after 3 years of literally scraping by, I didnt see the big picture because I was still trying to get that quick fix.
Branding your name and building your mailing list are an ongoing task. These two things that never get old, and they never lose their importance. Your mailing list is the most important asset your business will ever generate and once it is going, it does snowball, but the problem is usually getting the snowball down the hill.
This is where branding your name and the traffic exchanges come in. By using these services, you can successfully promote your likeness or business in front of thousands of surfers, every single day. If you do this for an extended period of time, your name starts to stick and its much easier to get people into your circle of influence (ie: your mailing list). I coined the term traffic exchange brand awareness and its the ONLY thing you should be doing in the traffic exchanges.
Dont try to sell, dont try to build a downline, dont try to get user participation. Brand your name and build your list. Thats it. Once you do, you start to generate the mailing list using the autoresponder of your choice and before you know it, that snowball starts to roll
Jon Olson Owner of I Love Hits and Swattraffic.com
Google's search engines love it when you brand yourself. Happy branding!
Cynthia Walker SEO Mentor
http://cynthiashoppingrewards.veretekk.com
cynthiashoppingrewards@veretekk.com
Get your Marketing Tools here: http://thenpn.com/thepowerof1.php?id=65814
Shop online? Get a free reward card
"How Do I Get More FREE Traffic To My Website So I Can Grow My Business?"
So you wanna make money online.
Hang on there Bucky... not so fast.
There are more Internet millionaire "wanna-bes" than you might think. And many have spent more than a few years and more than a few thousand dollars in a vain effort to start a profitable Internet business.
While it may seem that "everybody" is making money online, that's simply not the case.
Since 1996 I've received literally thousands of emails from people who just can't seem to do it. They come to me for help because I've had success online.
And my guess is that for every person in need of help, there are 10 more who won't admit their frustration. People hate admitting failure.
I've got news for anyone still struggling to make it online. Failure is an important step. Failure is the best way to discover what doesn't work -- the roadblocks that stop most people. In the process, you find out how to clear these roadblocks and take another important step toward success.
Here are some of the roadblocks you will encounter as you try to earn income online.
Roadblock #1: The Initial Learning Curve
Succeeding at an online business requires mastery of several key abilities, all during the start-up phase. This can be overwhelming to many newcomers, and leaves lots of folks spinning their wheels.
For example, you have to build a user-friendly and relevant website or blog, all without making any mistakes that cause you to lose credibility in your prospect's mind and cause them to click away from your site.
Not easy!
And though there are countless experts, books, and how-to courses on how to start a business online, it's hard for a beginner to know who to believe. There are multiple online business models to choose from as well.
You also need to decide what niche you will enter and what products or services you will sell. Ideally, you want to enter a niche that interests you. But it should also be a niche that can be profitable. Careful consideration is important, and sometimes crippling to the newcomer.
In order to get through the learning curve roadblock you'll need to spend time researching your ideas and your plan. This means educating yourself on topics such as niche selection, website creation, sales letter writing, and opt-in list and relationship building.
If you get stuck on this roadblock for more than a month or two, consider sharing your ideas with someone you trust, preferably someone who has had success online.
Roadblock #2: Website Traffic
Novice Internet marketers know they want their site to be found in the search engines, but many fail to look beyond this step. They soon discover the amount of competition they have for their keywords and search phrases, and the difficulty in getting ranked well, then give up in frustration.
The Internet reality is that a top-ten ranking for popular keywords in any niche is difficult to achieve. But that's OK, because it is only one small part of a profitable Internet marketing campaign.
That's right, every new business owner soon finds out that they'll need to master the complete art of marketing online. This means using multiple methods to drive traffic to a site. And no, you do not have to spend a fortune. There are dozens of proven ways to get traffic to your site, including paid advertising as well as a multitude of no-cost traffic strategies.
The real secret to overcoming this roadblock is being willing to try multiple methods and track the results. Again, this takes time and effort, two things many newcomers are not willing to put in. However, many entrepreneurs who clear this roadblock go on to super-success.
Roadblock #3: Tempting Distractions
It is very easy to become distracted when building an Internet business. These constant distractions lead you off-course and into dead-ends, unless you're very vigilant.
If you subscribe to ezines or visit Internet discussion forums and blogs, which are recommended methods to build knowledge and connect with potential customers or partners, you're bombarded almost daily with extremely tempting distractions.
You'll constantly be tempted to try new ways to make money. New advertising strategies to try. New top-secret, never-before-revealed-to-the-public ways to get more targeted website visitors than you've ever imagined. And so on.
And while some of these strategies may be an excellent fit for a particular online business, many will not. Since inexperienced Internet marketers find it difficult to make that distinction, they waste time and money delving into new income models before mastering their own plan.
My advice to you... stay focused on your main task. Once it is yielding a reliable income stream, only then should you investigate ancillary business models.
In closing, hopefully, if you're considering starting an Internet business, or you're already in the mix, this article will help you avoid the common roadblocks keeping thousands of people from success.
It's certainly possible to make a substantial secondary or primary income online - but it's much more likely if you have a good grasp of the obstacles you'll encounter along the way.
To your Internet marketing success... Jim Daniels - JDD Publishing
The $200 Blueprint helps you with these roadblocks. It helps boost your learning curve with a step by step blueprint to follow to your success in your internet business. It has numerous tools to help lead traffic to your website. The Blueprint forums and Skype chat rooms help keep you focused on your goal. Come join us to avoid those roadblocks.
Cynthia Walker SEO Mentor
http://cynthiashoppingrewards.veretekk.com
cynthiashoppingrewards@veretekk.com
Get your Marketing Tools here: http://www.internetmarketingblueprint.net/
Shop online? Get a free reward card
The Truth Behind All These Launch Emails
Do you get multiple emails every time a new product or service is launched in the Internet Marketing arena? I got about 30 messages last week on one program alone, and that's not uncommon.
Today I will reveal the real secret behind all these "launch" emails and expose a potential flaw in your own marketing plan...
OK, so what's up with all these launch emails?
Well for starters, did you know that most of the people promoting these products never even buy the product for themselves? That's right, most of those "recommendations" are coming from people who have no idea exactly what they're promoting.
The truth is, they're doing it for the affiliate commissions. That's why you see so many "launch messages" in your inbox. In fact, that's why you see so many emails period. I challenge you to open ten random emails right now, and count how many of them are trying to sell you something.
Now I want to share the real truth behind all these "sales" emails...
They work!
That's right, email marketing really works.
Now I'm not talking about the spam emails you get for cialis and all that other crap. I'm talking about emails you get from list owners you know and maybe even trust. That's called relationship email marketing and it works as well as ever.
Now the real question... What about you? Are you using relationship email marketing? Do you have a growing email list? I certainly hope so, because if you are not collecting names and email addresses from people who are visiting your website, you are missing the boat in a big way.
In fact, it's amazing to me that more people don't build their own email lists!
I can only assume it is because it seems like a daunting task to get it all set up. And yes, it may take you a few hours or even a whole day, but it is absolutely critical if you plan to make serious long-term income on the Internet. And here's why. Most people who visit your website only do so once. By collecting email addresses you retain and recycle the traffic you worked so hard to get in the first place.
I know the word recycle is not one of those sexy words that makes people sit up and take notice, but look at it this way... Imagine if there were a way that each visitor to your site could be contacted repeatedly, (100% on autopilot) and gently urged to try your products or services, or products and services you recommend as an affiliate. Plus, anytime in the future you could contact all these same people (hundreds or thousands of them) about a new product or service.
That's what properly building your own permission-based email list is -- automated follow-up email marketing and broadcast email marking rolled into one. Another way to describe it is... the most profitable Internet marketing strategy there is.
What's the Best Way to Get Opt-ins?
Building a responsive email list starts with collecting email addresses of people who want to be contacted by you.
The easiest way to build a list is to give away a free ebook or other gift with a high perceived value. You should show a virtual 3D image of the gift, and an easy opt-in form. You can do this right on your home page, or on a pop-up page, or even a squeeze page.
Pop ups are one way many Internet marketers collect names. Contrary to popular belief, popups are still a viable way to get opt-ins. If you want to try this proven strategy, just be sure to select a popup creation tool that is not easily blocked.
Squeeze pages are also quite effective when done correctly, and can be an integral part of your on line business. A squeeze page is just a standalone web page containing some pre-selling info (video works well nowadays) and an offer - you are trading something of value to your visitor for the right to contact them in the future.
To simplify squeeze page creation, make a template with your HTML editor, which you can use over again just by making minor changes to the information, depending on your present offer. Again, you need a quality offer to entice the visitor to hand over her/his information. Preferably, this will be something of a free nature and should be something that solves a problem for the visitor. Free reports or ebooks work great and these items need not be your product but can be products for which you are an affiliate.
Remember that by using a squeeze page with affiliate products and services, you acquire the customer information rather than the affiliate site capturing them first. And that is the goal of your squeeze page - to help you build your customer list!
As to the technical details of the opt-in forms, it is really very simple. If you're like me and somewhat technically challenged, the easiest way to get those opt-in forms on your pages is by pasting some html code.
Services such as The New Plan Network automate every aspect of your list building, including the paste-in forms. I highly recommend you take advantage of one of those services.Oh, and remember to keep your form simple. Ask for only the minimum amount of information needed for the follow up - first name and email address is all you really need. People are often reluctant to give up a phone number - especially on the first contact. They fear being put on lists or being called at all hours of the day or night. It is important the visitor understand his/her information will be kept confidential.
What To Do With Your Opt-ins...
The day you start building your opt-in list you also should write a series of helpful email messages that will be sent to everyone who opts in.
This is easier than it sounds. Ideally, you'll want about 20-30 messages, but you can start with a handful in the beginning. The email messages should sound friendly and personal and should be scheduled about a week apart.
Write like you are writing to a friend. Some of the messages should simply say, "Hey, how's it going? Do you have any questions for me?" Encourage them to contact you. Forming relationships grows business and it should be a top priority.
Other messages will tell them about something they may be able to use. (Using your affiliate links of course!) This strategy really is quite simple, and extremely effective. Over the course of a few months you'll share a variety of quality products and services with them, that are directly related to their area of interest. You'll also get to know lots of potential future customers.
Oh yeah, and be sure to personalize each message with the first name of each person who downloaded your ebook or ask for your information. This is another feature that is easily implemented with either of those recommended autoresponder services...
In addition to these automated follow-up emails, you can and should broadcast special messages to your list as the need arises. While you do not want to overdo it, it is perfectly acceptable to tell them about a new product you or a colleague of yours just released. If fact, most of the web's biggest affiliate profits are realized through this very strategy.
OK, that's enough for today. You have a lot of work ahead of you. Why not grab an autoresponder account right now and get to work building your Internet Marketing list!
About the Author: Jim Daniels - JDD Publishing
Creator of ezWebBusinessBuilder.com - the world's first View it and Do It software for profiting from the web.
Cynthia Walker SEO Mentor
http://cynthiashoppingrewards.veretekk.com
cynthiashoppingrewards@veretekk.com
Get your Marketing Tools here: http://thenpn.com/thepowerof1.php?id=65814
Shop online? Get a free reward card
Establish an Online Presence for Your Work From Home Business
If you're starting a work from home business on the internet, you need to establish an online presence.
Whether you start from scratch, promote your affiliate programs, or market yourself as an independent representative of a direct sales company, starting a website is the center of your work from home online presence.
Some affiliate programs and most direct sales companies will provide you with a replicated website.
Everyone who is marketing the product will have a website that looks the same and in most cases cannot be modified except by the company.
While these websites are usually good sales tools, they are not suited to marketing your goods and services. They do nothing to promote what is unique about you and cannot be optimized for good search engine placement.
Before moving on to establishing your own work from home website, some of the common terms should be defined:
Domain - A domain is a web page address. It is what you enter into your browser to find a particular web site. This work from home group's web page domain is internetmarketingblueprint.net
URL stands for Uniform Resource Locator. This is a way of specifying the location of publicly available information on the Internet. For example, this site's URL is http://www.internetmarketingblueprint.net/
Web Host - the company that stores the files for others' web sites.
Server - a computer program that provides services to another computer program. There are many different kinds of servers. For example, file server, web server, etc.
If you are starting out (or even if you have been trying for a while) to establish your work at home business, visit the Crazy Fox Marketing Specialists for support in your endeavor. Our team works together to benfit all. Read our Free Report to find what marketing tools we have for you.
http://www.internetmarketingblueprint.net/
Cynthia Walker SEO Mentor
http://cynthiashoppingrewards.veretekk.com
cynthiashoppingrewards@veretekk.com
Get your Marketing Tools here: http://thenpn.com/thepowerof1.php?id=65814
Shop online? Get a free reward card
Balancing Yourself in Your Home Based Business With Cynthia Walker
Ben Franklin said "All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy". As someone who has a Home Based Business or is planning on having their own business at home, you need to make a plan to help you keep a balance in your life
Here are five tips to managing your time between your business and home: Plan ahead and write down your goals. Decided the best times of the day to run your business. You must have a designated area in your home to work at. The most important tip is to take breaks. You'll be able to work more productively.
Making a plan includes setting goals. Make daily, weekly, and long range goals. Be specific. Daily goals could include things like working a certain number of hours at a certain task, calling a certain number of clients, attending training sessions, and so forth. When each goal is reached, check it off the list. I have heard from more than one person involved in Home Based Businesses, "plan your work and work your plan". When you complete a goal and check it off your list, you can then focus on the next goal.
Writing down your goals makes them easior to remember and follow. You can use a journal, calendar, and/or day planner. A calendar is good for daily tasks and the journal can be used for notes regarding long range goals. Keep a copy of your goals near your computer and on your desktop. If you have a long list of things to do in one day you should decide which ones are more important, do them first and focus all your energy on them. Work your way down the list so that you don't get overwhelmed thinking about all you have to do. Don't plan to do so many things that you can't possibly get through them.
Set a daily schedule and keep it the same most days. This will keep you organized and you'll get more work done. Do your most difficult work during a time of day when you are at your best.
Make sure you have a room set for your office. If you have kids, make sure they understand that when you're in there it is important that you work. If you have household chores to do, you might put them in your plan so that things don't pile up for you. When you have finished your work time as planned, stop working and enjoy your family and/or friends.
Last, but not least, take breaks. Even if it's only five minutes, get up and strectch, move around, have a cup of tea (green or black tea has antioxidants that help give you a lift). Don't forget your meals. Feed your mind so that it will be refreshed. If you need one, take a 15 minute power nap. You have to take care of your self because what is your Home Based Business if not you?
For a successful Home Based Business you must stay focused and have a lot of self discipline, but these tips will be very helpful in keeping you on the path you want to travel to your goals.
Cynthia Walker SEO Mentor
http://cynthiashoppingrewards.veretekk.com
cynthiashoppingrewards@veretekk.com
Get your Marketing Tools here: http://thenpn.com/thepowerof1.php?id=65814
Shop online? Get a free reward card