| Internet Marketing - Why 2010 Will Be A White Knuckle Ride For Web Marketers |
[Dec. 17th, 2009|09:37 am] |
Next year may just prove to be one of the most challenging times for pursuing online or Internet marketing on the web. It may just be a watershed moment for many marketers struggling to keep abreast of all the different factors which have come into play in recent months. Most of these changes will stem from two main sources for potential upheaval: the first being the New FTC (Federal Trade Commission) Guidelines regarding Testimonials and Endorsements and the second being "ALL" the recent changes within Google.
Actually, we already have the new FTC Guidelines which came into effect on Dec. 1st of 2009, but how these new rules are enforced will play out in the coming year as test-cases are brought to court. Basically, these new rules call for absolute disclosure and full transparency regarding Testimonials and Endorsements when a product or service is being offered for sale. Any business (monetary) relationship between the endorser and the company must be made known to the potential buyer. Obviously for those in online or affiliate marketing this could have a great impact if these new rules are strictly enforced. Just imagine all the website owners and bloggers who slap a few banners or affiliate links on their sites to cover hosting or operating costs... will they now have to disclose all these business arrangements?
For professional affiliate marketers and the companies/products they're promoting, these new guidelines could cause potential headaches and/or legal ramifications since a general blanket disclaimer on their sites will no longer be suffice. To help solve this problem, many of the major companies are now placing an "affiliate" tag on all their banners and making it obvious a business relationship exists with its affiliates. In addition, many online marketers are placing additional disclaimers, affiliate seals and in other ways making it known certain links are indeed affiliate links and a relationship does exist with the product and/or services being promoted.
With these new guidelines, another big issue is email marketing, one of the major marketing techniques of most online marketers. Will a full disclosure be necessary for every email sales pitch? Savvy web marketers know the key to increased sales is in the "follow-up" and the "cookie-ing" of potential buyers; how will the new Guidelines affect this very effective marketing practice? How all these new rules or guidelines play out will make next year a very interesting one for marketing on the web.
Despite this, perhaps the greatest cause for upheaval in the coming year will be Google. There are countless reasons why Google will be a major game changer in 2010 for online marketing. Ever since Bing and more recently the potential Bing/Yahoo competition, Google has gone into complete overdrive, implementing new changes and debuting new programs like there was no tomorrow.
First, we have Google Caffeine which Google is introducing (full force) early in the new year. Google Caffeine, which is a major overhaul of its search engine, will no doubt cause many a marketer some sleepless nights as the total fall-out becomes evident. Other Google updates in the past (Florida Update comes readily to mind) have wrecked havoc on many top ranking sites, but this time Google is doing things a little different and have even given webmasters a beta version of the new search engine. Still, rightly or wrongly, many online marketers are bracing themselves for the full impact of Caffeine, will it mean smooth sailing or a stomach sickening roller-coaster ride for marketers and webmasters?
Second, we have the introduction of "Real Time" search which will be featured in Google's SERPs. This will make the social media sites like Twitter, FaceBook, MySpace... much more important. Again, the implications for online marketers could be enormous since many can now reach the first page through a different route. Will it also mean more "Real Time" spam? But more importantly, will it mean a greater marketing opportunity for the online marketer who exploits it?
Third, we are seeing Google moving more and more towards "Visual Search" with the introduction of Google Goggles for mobile phones. Just take a picture and you get the Google results instantly - no typing, just point and click. Just envision countless clueless teenagers or more importantly helpless shoppers suddenly being empowered with knowledge and wisdom. Could do more for education since the invention of the printed word and the info-commercial combined. Talk about scary! But will the implications for web marketing be just as revolutionary and enlightening?
Fourth, Google has made it known through its spokesperson Matt Cutts, that site-loading times will be a ranking factor in the new improved Google. Also, proper and correct page coding will also be more important if you want your site to be at full advantage. Broken links will be a big "No-No", while linking out to important related sites a big plus. All this is only logical, Google's main product is and has always been its search results, anything which improves those results and provides a more pleasing experience for the Google user should be front and center. Obviously, one way for Google to stay on top, is to provide the best search results to its users.
Fifth, in order to please the end-user, Google is also moving more towards "Personalized Search" which will make SEO and ranking in the top spot for your chosen keywords a total nightmare for many professional SEOs and online marketers. If everyone can choose their own top results, isn't SEO more or less, a lame duck? Again, the ramifications of personalized search will further play out in 2010, but will professional marketers like what they see?
Finally, while no one would argue Google is King of the Hill when it comes to online search, will all these new changes strengthen or weaken Google's grip? Will the combined Bing/Yahoo be able to give this giant some much needed competition? Or will Google's main competition come from an unlikely source, such as big name multi-national corporations who are moving their operations online. Can these big-name keyworded domains start directly pulling in the majority of the web's traffic, making all search engines secondary? As people become more web savvy, will they go directly to what they're looking for on the web, bypassing the search engines altogether - including the mighty Google? Such a scenario could have greater consequences for the affiliate marketer since a direct line to a company's site or product will obviously mean less sales for the online marketer, who really works in coordination with the search engines, either through organic search or PPC (Pay Per Click) advertising in these same search engines.
Overall, the new FTC Guidelines and recent changes to Google, will make next year one of the most interesting times to be pitching anything online. Throw into this the full effect what a combined Bing/Yahoo might bring to the table, and you have the recipe for a tumultuous white knuckle ride, until the dust finally settles and marketers make adjustments like they always do. Until then, hold on because things will probably get a little hectic for many web marketers before we see the light at the end of the tunnel.
...
The author is a full time online affiliate marketer who has sold millions of dollars worth of other people's stuff (mostly electronics) on the web.
His livelihood is derived from and depended upon search engine marketing and the daily monitoring of targeted keywords, mainly within Google. He operates numerous niche sites, as well as two sites on Internet Marketing, where you can get valuable marketing tips for free: Internet Marketing and Internet Marketing Tools
Titus Hoskins Copyright 2009. This article may be freely distributed if this resource box stays attached. |
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| 7 Proven Internet Marketing Strategies To Increase Your Sales |
[Oct. 12th, 2009|11:35 am] |
I am constantly amazed by the number of people I meet on
the web who have absolutely no marketing strategy whatsoever
behind their site or online marketing.
I am even more amazed by the number of people who believe
all they have to do is buy a domain, slap a few HTML pages
together and place them on a web host somewhere. Then they
expect everything else to just happen because their site or
business is on the web!
It very rarely happens that way.
Creating an online business takes some planning and strategy
if you want your site or business to succeed. You must have
a plan of action, but most of all, you must have some fundamental
marketing strategies behind your online site.
Now, I am speaking from experience here, because I also stumbled
around on the web for 2 or 3 years like the people I described above.
I foolishly thought just because I had a web site, I could do
business on the web.
Well, not very much happened. I received very little traffic
and very few sales. My site was going nowhere fast.
Fortunately, the theme I chose for my first site was Internet
Marketing! I spent those first years studying all the online
marketing material and information I could get my hands on.
I gradually learned what to do and what not to do when it
came to marketing online.
Mostly, I stumbled across some great Internet marketers like
Marlon Sanders, Neil Shearing, Ken Evoy... true pioneers of
online marketing. By studying those first class marketers and
their marketing techniques I learned how it was all done.
Over time, I learned how to become very analytical with my
sites and marketing. I started to create marketing strategies
and put them into practice with my sites. This was all new to
me because I have a background in education rather than marketing.
Now, I would like to share with you some of these marketing
strategies and practices - just things I do and things I put
into place which enable me to receive a modest but very
comfortable online income.
So here are some things you can try:
1. Know Your Market Or Audience
First and foremost, you must know your market. Know who
you will be targeting with your marketing? Know who will be
buying your products or the affiliate products that you're
promoting on the web?
I keep my eyes open for hot trends or products which everyone
is buying. You can use programs like Google Trends to see which
products are becoming hot. For example, in electronics, which
products are on everyone's wish list? Is it laptops, PCs or netbooks?
Are people buying smart phones, PDAs, Blu-ray Players or E-readers?
Just find out what products are hot? Find what products are being
searched for in the search engines... do a check to see how many
searches are made each month for your chosen product? Use WordTracker,
or a free online site such as Seobook.com to see what products
people are searching for on the web.
If there is a large demand/audience/market for your product or
subject area, then you have a better chance of succeeding online.
It is a simple marketing strategy that many first time marketers
ignore - please don't. So choose your products to match the
demand that is out there for them.
2. Buying Mindset
One of the key elements to selling stuff online is finding people
at the exact moment they are ready to buy. What some marketers
refer to as a "Buying Mindset". You find people who have their
minds set on buying something when they reach your site.
This is much easier than you think!
A simple way I found to do this is to create sites which target
keywords related to buying... such as gifts, coupons, bargains,
deals and so on. For example, a site on wedding gifts will obviously
attract customers who are interested in buying wedding gifts.
To give you a concrete example from my own site, I have a
section on "Corporate Business Gifts" which offers special
deals/coupons on corporate business gifts... someone searching
for that phrase is more likely to purchase a gift. Just simple
reasoning, but it works wonders for selling stuff online.
In the Info-Product market, many Gurus create a "Buying Mindset"
by offering special bonuses and discounts if someone buys from
their links. Another simple way to boost your sales.
3. Target Special Holidays
Along the same lines, I like targeting times when people feel
obligated to buy. Using special holidays like Christmas,
Mother's Day, Valentine's Day... in your marketing can be very
effective.
There are occasions such as anniversaries, birthdays, weddings,
graduations... when people feel they must buy something for
a loved one or special friend. Targeting those occasions with
your marketing can be extremely effective... people are looking
for a birthday gift, a graduation gift or a wedding gift - you
simply help them find what they're looking for.
On one of my sites, I target the "Back To School" market which
has proven very lucrative since I market high-ticket affiliate
items such as laptops, PCs and netbooks.
4. Place All Your Emphasis On Supplying Information
The majority of people searching on the web are looking for
information - first and foremost - even those who are ready to
buy. They want information on the subject or product they're
searching for on the web. It should be your marketing strategy
to give them this information.
All of my sites are based on supplying information to my visitors.
If you give solid information they will be pleased and take note
of your site and a few will buy the products you recommend, but
the information must come first.
Even popular selling sites like Amazon give loads of consumer
information and feedback while selling their products on the
web. Consumers want information on the products they're buying.
Supply this information and you will sell more products.
5. Target Long Tail Keyword Phrases In Your SEO
If you're selling stuff on the web, it is extremely important
that you have a SEO marketing strategy. You must use the search
engines to bring in those quality visitors and potential customers
to your site. You must rank high in the search engines for your
chosen keywords.
I have found SEO is not easy but it is also not that hard to do.
In order to rank high you must be persistent, have a six month
or yearly plan... work at it over time, even years to build up
your rankings. Most webmasters won't have the patience or resources
to stick to a long-term strategy for months, even years before
they start ranking for popular, well-searched for keywords.
However, there's another quicker and faster way to get quality
traffic from the search engines. Instead of targeting highly
competitive popular keywords, you target longer keyword phrases
that have little competition. For example, someone searching
for a particular brand and model is more likely to buy then someone
searching for a general topic. Someone searching for "cars"
compared to someone searching for "2007 Ford Mustang Shelby GT"
- the last phrase will have very few searches but it can
produce more targeted buyers.
6. Build Lists of Interested Buyers
One of my most effective marketing strategies is building
simple lists of people who want to receive further information
on the subject or product they're considering buying.
The web is a very temporary process since most people spend less
than a few seconds on most sites. So it is important that
you try and get them to opt-in to your mailing list, join
your Twitter account or FaceBook group... and so on.
You must build lists of people who are interested in finding
out more about your subject or product. This way you will
have repeat visitors to your site and you will get the opportunity
to sell to them again and again. If you build a trusting
relationship with these contacts, they will respect your
opinions and suggestions.
List building can have a very positive effect on your
sales numbers so it is one marketing strategy you should
definitely try if you're not already using lists.
7. Sell Things You Can ONLY Buy Online
This marketing strategy is so simple - it's almost laughable.
But I quickly found selling stuff that can only be bought
online do much better than selling stuff that can be bought
at your local Walmart. If buyers can only find it online,
then you will have a much better chance of selling it to them.
Therefore, marketing unique products or specialty items,
which are only available online can prove very lucrative.
This is a very simple marketing strategy but also a very
effective one. Just try it.
There are no doubt, countless other marketing strategies
you can use. But using some or all of the ones listed above
will help increase your online sales. Again, just try them
and see for yourself.
The author is a full-time online marketer who has numerous websites.
If you want to find out more marketing strategies and selling on the
web in general, just download these marketing manuals:
Free Marketing Courses
For the latest web marketing tools try: Internet Marketing Tools
Titus Hoskins Copyright © 2009. This article may be freely
distributed if this resource box stays attached. |
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| Ouch Google That Hurts! (How Recent Changes Within Google May Affect Your Rankings) |
[Jul. 20th, 2009|09:45 am] |
Google recently has been changing the whole way it ranks
or lists its results for lucrative high-paying keywords.
The playing field has not only gotten more competitive
but it has gotten a lot smaller.
What does all this mean?
Well, if you're an online marketer like me who depends on
Google (directly or indirectly) for the large majority of
your monthly checks. Your will be greatly concerned how
this affects your own keyword rankings within Google.
I have seem big shifts in some of my more lucrative
keyword rankings within Google. And I am searching for
the reasons for those drops. You can view my findings
on Goolge's recent changes here:
Ouch Google That Hurts!
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| New Search Engines - Can Anyone Beat Google? |
[Jun. 8th, 2009|10:19 am] |
| [ | Tags | | | bing, cuil, google, hakia, internet marketing, kosmix, msn, new search engines, oneriot, searchme, sem, topsy, tweetmeme, twine, wolfram alpha, yahoo | ] |
Can any new search engine beat Google, probably not, mainly
because Google isn't going anywhere but up. It is the dominant
search engine with around 72 percent of U.S. online searches
and its percentages are much higher in other parts of the world.
(Source: Hitwise) However, there are some serious new competitors
that may just take a bite out of Google's rosy search numbers.
Never know, one or several of them, may just give Google a run
for those all important search engine dollars.
Recently, there has been a whole army of new search engines
debuting on the web. If you're a full-time online marketer like
me, you really have to keep your eyes open to what is happening
on the web, especially relating to search engines which deliver
most of your quality traffic. Also keep in mind, this piece may
be fairly biased since Google is directly or indirectly responsible
for around 80% of my online revenue, so any opinions may be slanted
in Google's favor, not that they need any favors from me or anyone.
But as an online marketer you have to try to remain objective
and examine all angles in regards to these new search engines.
Despite this, in marketing and webmaster circles, everyone will know
even if you have the number one ranking for a certain keyword in
all three major engines Google, Yahoo! and MSN - Google supplies
the most traffic, hands down.
Despite its obvious dominance, Google is still basically the new kid on
the block. We have to remember, there have been many search engines
before Google and there will be many more search engines after Google.
Every entity has its day and then hands the torch along to whatever
comes next. It's one of those subtle facts of life we all learn
eventually.
Everybody has their day - empires, countries, leaders, companies...
or even search engines. Are Google's days as top dog really numbered?
Probably not in the immediate future, but there are some new kids on
the block that could definitely kick some sand in the face of Google
and stir things up, we might even see a few squabbles here and there.
In a recent article on CNN, by John D. Sutter, entitled "New Search
Engines Aspire To Supplement Google" the author examines some recent
new search engines. The author discusses: Twine, Hakia, Searchme, Cuil,
Kosmix, Wolfram Alpha, Topsy, TweetMeme and OneRiot. Each of these are
different, making your web search more personal, more visual, or connecting
your search to new social networks like FaceBook and Twitter.
Some experts say Wolfram Alpha is the most likely candidate to give
Google some serious competition because Wolfram can do something Google
can't; it can create information rather than just reading/presenting
content already on the web. Will it present a solid threat to Google's
dominance?
Perhaps, a more fitting sparring partner will come from an old
rival with very deep, deep pockets. We are talking about the
new search engine from Microsoft called Bing, which is very similar
to Google in many ways, yet different. Bing's results are very
similar to Google in a lot of ways, yet Bing serves up the results
in a very pleasing arrangement, with a nice preview button for
each listing and giving you related searches and your search history
on the left hand side. Only time will tell if everyone would rather
be binging instead of googling. To Bing or not to Bing, that is the
question? There's a very informative article on Bing by Farhad Manjoo
on Slate entitled: "Beware Google: Microsoft's New Search Engine Isn't
Half-bad." Just Bing or Google to find it!
I personally like this search engine much better than MSN mainly
because the home page of Bing is very appealing and only has the
search box on it, so you're not distracted with other news listings
like on MSN and Yahoo! One of the main reasons for Google's success,
besides the superior search results, has been its simplicity. Keep it
simple and you may just be able to compete.
Then again, this is a bit of a biased judgment, since many of my own
keywords and sites rank high in Bing; some even higher than they
are listed in Google. I routinely monitor countless keyword phrases
in all the search engines and lately Google has been favoring big
Brand Name listings on their first page results. We are also seeing
more Product Listings (Old Froogle), more video and more news listings...
competition for Google's first page has become multi-layered and extremely
competitive. What's a poor small online marketer to do when Google goes
corporate?
Actually, Bing is not my favorite search engine of the new ones
forcing their way into the spotlight.
For me, the one that shows the most promise and may give Google
some competition is Searchme, which is a visual search (much like
the iTunes interface) where you can shuffle through screenshots
of webpages instead of a list of links. Searchme, which touts itself
as the first multimedia search engine, has been around for a few years
but is not widely known to web users. Performing a search on Searchme
with a 24 inch monitor and 64-bit Windows is a hundred times more enjoyable
than using Google Search or Bing for that matter. It is a hundred times
faster than Google mainly because you can generally find your information
without clicking through to the sites displayed.
Searchme is truly an eye opener but can it give Google some serious
competition. The jury is still out, but I believe over time as web
users upgrade their computers, operating systems, and their graphics...
Searchme will be more accessible to more web users. Never know,
with the right backing and marketing, any of these search engines,
especially Searchme and Bing could blossom into a formidable opponent
even for the mighty Google.
Here's why: Human Nature!
Whether we admit it or not, most of us (Humans) are lazy, we want
the fastest and easiest route to solving any question or problem.
Searchme gives us the answer much quicker than Google and in a
much nicer way. Mainly because we are also visual creatures, given
the choice between receiving pages of text and viewing images of
sites/answers, most of us will take the visual route - we will choose
TV over radio, music videos over records... video enhanced content over
just plain static HTML. As the web turns into more of an interactive
multi-media operation; visual search will always win out over text
search any day of the year.
Most humans also have a need for speed, in our fast paced life styles,
we all want a speedy solution to our problems. Search is no different,
we want quick answers now, we want instant solutions and immediate
gratification. Nature of the beast. If Searchme, Bing or any of the
other search engines becomes faster than Google at giving the right
answer, then it's a whole new ballgame.
Google must obviously know there are challenges to its search
engine dominance. Otherwise, why would they be offering many
new features in their SERPs; we are seeing more images and
videos. Plus, Google has just introduced the "show options"
link at the top of their SERPs, which presents their search
results in many different ways. They even have introduced
the "Wonder Wheel" as another viewing option, which gives
a whole new way of using Google's search results.
Google's Achilles' Heel may just be the thing that gives
it all its revenue: text ads. There may be a backlash on
all those Google ads littered across the web, especially
among the younger computer savvy crowd using such sites like
the Google owned YouTube, where Google has nearly obliterated
the videos with its ads. Everyone dislikes advertising, no
matter what form it takes.
However, any news of Google's demise will be greatly exaggerated,
because Google, like any smart company with tons of resources,
has kept morphing and changing with the times, quickly adapting
to new features as our usage of the web keeps changing. Google has
perfected the art of staying one step ahead of the competition.
This is one champion that won't go down without a fight to the finish.
Top dogs rarely do.
If they ever present a serious challenge to Google, Searchme,
Bing or any of the above search engines, will have a formidable
opponent in the opposing corner, one that has gained almost
insurmountable prestige and brand recognition around the world.
Any major battle will instantly have a "David vs Goliath" scenario
attached to it. And we all know how that one played out!
...
The author is a full-time online marketer who has numerous
niche sites. These 10 SEO Tactics Bring Me Over 2000 Visitors Daily:
SEO Tips
To learn more Internet Marketing Tactics try:
Marketing Tools
Copyright © 2009 Titus Hoskins. This article may be
freely distributed if this resource box stays attached. |
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| 5 Reasons Why Most Internet Marketers Fail |
[May. 18th, 2009|08:30 am] |
When it comes to starting any endeavor, whether it be
learning a new hobby or starting an online business,
we all have to start at ground zero. We all have to start
at the very beginning from the very same place. Granted,
we each bring different skills and backgrounds into the mix,
but for the most part we are all on equal footing at the
starting line.
If this is the case, then we really have to ponder why is it
only a choice few go on to succeed, while most people don't.
Just what are the reasons why most online marketers fail?
This is the core question that has to be answered if you
want to fully understand Internet marketing and how it works.
What are these basic reasons?
What are the causes or stumbling blocks that hold many marketers
and webmasters from reaching their full online potential? If we
know these factors, we can learn how to avoid them and even
overcome them in our own online marketing. These reasons can be
a solid reference point or even a source of inspiration for any
online marketer just starting out.
Speaking from the viewpoint of someone who has started from the
very beginning with little to no knowledge of computers or even
marketing for that matter, I can honestly relate to the beginning
marketer. I even had to learn HTML from scratch in order to construct
my own webpages. Probably my only advantage, I did have a background
in art but designing webpages was completely different from anything
I had done previously to starting in online marketing.
Nor did I have any formal training in business or marketing,
just an art teaching background which really doesn't help
with the day to day running of an online business. I had to
learn as I went; struggling with hundreds of marketing
decisions before my sites became profitable. Don't get the
wrong impression, I have probably made hundreds of mistakes
along the way and I am still making them!
But from my own experiences I have drawn some general conclusions
about Internet marketing and why some people succeed while most
people fail. So here in my honest opinion, are some of the
main reasons why many online marketers fail:
1. Overwhelmed With Information
Perhaps, one of the biggest obstacles I faced when I first
started my website - I was bombarded with so much information
on how to proceed I didn't have a clue which direction to take
or who to believe. Thousands of different info products telling
you to do this, not to do that... so much marketing information
to absorb that you end up scratching your head and looking like
someone auditioning for a zombie movie.
Completely overwhelmed with so much information, many marketers
or webmasters enter a state of paralysis where nothing gets done.
You go from one course to another or from one method to another,
without any real understanding of how to proceed or how to get a
detailed blueprint to follow.
Been there, done that!
Information overflow can effectively crush all that novice
enthusiasm and literally kill even the most eager of entrepreneurs.
Anyone starting out must be aware of this obvious but insidious
pitfall you have to avoid at all costs. One of the best remedies,
simply try concentrating on just one or two marketing plans/marketers
for all your information. Try to eliminate the clutter by just working
on one marketing system. Just have a few key marketing resources
you go to for information, not a hundred! And do your homework,
only pick marketers who can back up their claims with observable results
on the web. One obvious checkmark - just see if those marketers have top
rankings for their sites for popular profitable keywords associated
with their sites or products.
2. Lack Of Key Marketing Basics
There are some key marketing basics or fundamentals you must
learn about marketing online. Internet marketing has some key
elements you must get right or you will have a difficult task
in succeeding on the web. Just simple factors you must get right
or it's game over before you even get started.
Most marketers fail to realize the web is "information driven"
and you must supply quality information or content in order to
truly succeed. You must provide a valuable service or function
to your visitors. You must help solve their problem. You must
give them a solid reason to use your site or product. Quality
content is and always will be King on the web.
You must also understand much of the web is "keyword driven" and you
must construct your webpages to take full advantage of these keywords.
You must have at least a rudimentary understanding of SEO (Search
Engine Optimization) and how you can use it to get top rankings
for your keyword phrases.
3. Lack Of Time And Resources
Another major reason why many marketers fail is because they
simply can't afford the time to learn and build their online
business. Most people just can't stop everything and work full
time online because they have bills to pay and families to
support. It may take months, probably years, before you can
build up a successful online business that gives you a comfortable
living. The average person just doesn't have the time or the resources
to spend months learning how all this works.
Keep in mind, getting a business or website going is probably the most
inexpensive way to start your own business. Domains are cheap.
Web hosting is cheap. Web design is cheap if you can do it yourself...
compared to starting a business in the "real" world, creating an online
business will only cost a faction of the normal expenses connected with
starting a business. But the main problem is having the resources to pay
your living expenses until your online business is profitable. Many beginning
online marketers don't have these resources and the main complaint from
these marketers: "I Simply can't afford the time to work at this online
stuff."
One solution is to work at your online marketing in your spare time and
gradually build up your business until you can afford to do it full time.
It will obviously take longer but you can still get to the same end goal.
4. Lack Of Necessary Skills
Actually, you don't need many skills to succeed online. However,
one of the major skills you must have or you must learn is communication.
You must learn how to communicate. The web is all about communicating
your points to your visitors or viewers so you must acquire good
communication skills.
It really helps your marketing if you are a good writer because you can easily
get your points across with written text or copy on your site. Writing
skills can be learned but many beginning marketers don't fully understand
how important their writing skills will be to their success. You must
be able to communicate on your site, in your newsletters, with your
customers... might sound a bit obvious but you would be surprised at
how many marketers lack this simple, yet necessary skill.
But don't fret, because once upon a time, the written word was king
online - but not any more. Videos are rapidly taking the place of the printed
word so anyone with a camera can now be a success online. Of course,
you still need good communication skills even using videos, but many
marketers have found this is a much easier way to communicate information
about their site or product.
5. Lack Of Persistence
For me, one the most significant reasons most online marketers/webmasters
fail, is because of a lack of persistence. They simply give up too soon.
They try something for a few weeks, even for a few months and then they
conclude this is not working and they give up.
Building a solid online business or viable website takes time, a
lot of time. Just because your business is online, doesn't mean
everything will fall into place overnight, it takes time to establish
a customer base. It takes time to build your business relationships
and partnerships with others in your field.
Sometimes, it may take years before you see some solid returns. It was
three years before I saw any significant revenue coming from my online
ventures, and another year before I could summon enough courage to do
this online marketing full time. If I had given up and not persisted
at this web stuff, I would not be writing this article right now.
Building top rankings for your keywords in the search engines
(especially Google) can take months, even years before you see any
results. The real key is to be persistent and keep at it, day after
day, until you get those top rankings. You simply must be persistent
or you will fail.
In conclusion, having said all that, you must also realize there are
plenty of exceptions to all of the above. There have been countless
success stories on the web where someone has come up with a novel
idea or product and become successful overnight. The web can offer
immediate success for some but for most of us, it will take some
time and hard effort on our part to build a successful online business.
Just try to avoid many of the pitfalls or reasons listed above and you
will have a better chance of placing yourself in the success column.
...
The author is a full-time online marketer who has numerous
niche sites. He contributes much of his online success to
following the teachings of some early online marketing
pioneers, mainly: Marlon Sanders
And Ken Evoy: Free Marketing Courses
Copyright © 2009 Titus Hoskins. This article may be
freely distributed if this resource box stays attached. |
|
|
| Why Profitable Keywords Are The Cornerstones Of Your Online Marketing? |
[Apr. 15th, 2009|01:41 pm] |
Keywords are ground zero. They are essential to your online success.
You must get your keywords right or it's game over before you even
get started. Mainly because keywords are the most important element
of your online marketing.
It can't be emphasized enough, especially to beginning online webmasters
or marketers, choosing the right profitable keywords will largely determine
whether or not you succeed with your online endeavors. You simply must
get this element right or your marketing will be in big trouble.
What are keywords?
Lets start at the very beginning, keywords are the exact words someone
types into a search engine to find what they're looking for on the web.
Some keywords are valuable/profitable, while others are virtually worthless.
Profitable keywords are the ones that convert into a sale, a lead or
potential client/customer for your company or product. These are the
words someone is searching in order to buy a product or hire a service.
Someone searching for "honeymoon vacation packages" is probably in the
market to book a honeymoon vacation and could turn out to be very profitable
for the right website or business.
Profitable keywords are the ones where the searcher is in the right
"mind-set" or frame of mind to buy what they're searching for on the web.
Tailor your online marketing to target these profitable keywords and
it can spell success.
So what's the whole process for finding or choosing profitable keywords
to use in your marketing? Lets look at some ways to proceed...
Number of Keyword Searches Made?
You need to find out how many searches are made for your chosen keywords
each month. Simply use WordTracker or a site like SEOBook. These will
give you a preliminary number of searches made each month for your keyword.
Highly popular, well-searched keywords with hundreds of thousands of searches
each month will be extremely hard to rank for because you will have stiff
competition from major companies with limitless resources.
I like to pick less popular keywords that get only a couple of hundred
of searches each day because my chances of getting on the first page
greatly increases. But don't get fixated on the number of searches,
some keyword phrases that only get four or five searches daily,
can still be very profitable.
For serious keyword research in a particular niche market I like to use
Brad Callen's Keyword Elite which is professionally designed software
that makes all your keyword research so much easier. But there are plenty
of free keyword tools you can use. One handy keyword tool is Google Adwords
external suggestion tool which will help you find valuable keywords.
https://adwords.google.com/select/KeywordToolExternal
Commercial Intent of Keywords?
But how do you know if a keyword is profitable? Well, one convenient
tool is from MSN which helps you with "Detecting Online Commercial Intention"
of keywords. Just type in a keyword and it will give you a percentage
or probability your keyword query has commercial benefit or intent.
http://adlab.msn.com/Online-Commercial-Intention/Default.aspx
Conversion Rate of Keywords?
Once you have your chosen keywords in place, next you want to have
a landing page that converts those keywords or traffic from those
keywords into buyers or leads for your online business. This is
another crucial element of your online marketing - you must have
a landing page or content/site that converts into a sale or you
obviously won't make any revenue.
Keep in mind, if you're into affiliate marketing, you main goal
is not to sell but to "pre-sell" your products or services.
One effective way I have found to do this is to give potential
customers/clients valuable information they can use in making
their final purchasing choice. Comparison sites do well, as
do review sites, top ten sites... potential customers use the
Internet and keywords to not only find products but more so, to
find information on those products. Your goal should be to provide
this valuable information to make their task a little bit easier
for them and they will reward you with a sale.
What are Long-Tail Keywords?
Long-Tail keywords are simply that: long three or four word phrases
that searchers use to find what they're looking for on the web.
Because they are highly specific, long-tail keywords have proven
to have better conversion rates than general keywords. This is
also just common sense, someone searching for a "2005 ford mustang
convertible" may just be in the right mind-set to buy such a vehicle;
as compared to someone searching for a more general keyword phrase
such as "sports cars."
Study your website traffic logs religiously to find long-tail
keywords that turn into a sale. Target these long-tail keywords
in your marketing. Even buy PPC (Pay Per Click) advertising in
the three major search engines - Google Adwords, Yahoo! Marketing
and MicroSoft AdCenter - for these valuable/profitable keywords.
And build higher rankings in organic search for these long-tail
keyword phrases. It's really not that difficult for long phrases,
especially if they're related to your site; many times you can
reach the top spot in a matter of days, especially in Google.
How to rank high for your chosen profitable keywords?
Of course, the million dollar question is: HOW do you rank in the top
spot for your chosen keywords? I believe the key to ranking high in the
search engines (especially Google) is to be persistent in building
your rankings for your keywords. Take a long-term view or approach,
sometimes it may take months, even years, to rank in the top Five
for your highly competitive keywords.
The best strategy is to "stick to it" and keep building relevant
links to your keyword landing page. Create related blogs with valuable
content linking back to your keywords. Write keyword related articles
and distribute them all over the web. Create Google Alerts for your
keywords and them place comments/links in the newly formed pages on
the web that Google is indexing.
Be pro-active, download the SEOQuake toolbar and find your main keyword
competitors. Check out their links and then go out and get the same
links. Write better higher quality content than your main competitors
because Google always rewards great content. Plus, use the free Addthis.com
button and let your visitors bookmark your great content in all
the social bookmark sites and build your keyword links for you.
Do keyworded Press Releases with your embedded links and spread them
all over the web. Get these Press Releases into Google news and other
important places on the web. PRWeb.com is really a great place for your
press releases since you can embed your keywords in your links.
If you can try to get your most important keywords in your domain
name. Many SEO experts argue the merits of this but from my own
experience and marketing - it is much easier to rank high for your
keywords if you have them in the domain name. Again, it is just common sense,
if you have your main keyword in the domain, this keyword is obviously
telling the search engines this is what your site is all about. I have even
bought domains and created sites specifically around certain keywords
just to rank high.
Always remember, you have to be persistent, I have been fighting some
keyword battles for over four or five years! For really profitable keywords,
it can be a constant struggle to remain on the first page, but the trick is
not to give up, just keep fighting away at your competitors. Persistence
usually pays off in the end and those profitable keywords will have your links
in the top spot. Make ranking high for those profitable keywords your number
one marketing strategy. Concentrate all your marketing efforts towards getting
plenty of quality traffic for those keywords and you will succeed online.
...
The author is a full-time online marketer who has numerous
niche sites. These 10 SEO Tactics Bring Me Over 2000 Visitors Daily:
SEO Tips
To learn more Internet Marketing Tactics try:
Marketing Tools
Copyright © 2009 Titus Hoskins. This article may be
freely distributed if this resource box stays attached. |
|
|
| 4 Quick Ways To Build Quality One-Way Links |
[Feb. 18th, 2009|10:59 am] |
Obtaining one-way quality links is often cited as the
"Holy Grail" of online success. Especially if you take
the SEO route for getting high rankings for all your
profitable keywords in the search engines. It's no wonder
then, achieving top spots for your valuable and popular
keywords should be the ultimate goal of any webmaster
or online marketer.
How well you do in this "link quest" will largely
determine the success or failure of your site or
online business. Assuming of course, you're going
after free organic traffic from the search engines
and not using PPC (Pay Per Click) or other means of
succeeding online.
Link building and achieving top placements in the
search engines (especially Google) has been my main
objective for over ten years of online marketing.
It has been a constant daily struggle to build those
quality one way links and to get those top rankings
and keep them.
Over the years, I have tried hundreds, if not thousands
of link building methods in order to get those links.
I would like to discuss briefly some of these methods
and then explain in full detail my four favorite and
most effective proven ways to get quality one-way links.
First, some general tips on how you should approach
your link building from the get-go. You must realize
the web is based on content; web surfers/users are
looking for quality content. If you can supply valuable
content that the surfers want, you will build your links
naturally. People will see your content and want to
link to it. This process is often referred to as link
baiting - you make your content/offer so irresistible,
they will not only want it but they will go out of their
way to tell others about your fantastic content.
Quality content is the first key to link building
but there are many more. Especially if you take
a more "hands-on" approach to actively building
your quality one-way links.
Be careful not to link to "spammy" link farms and it's
probably a good idea to always check the Gooogle
PageRank PR of any site or page you link to on the
web. Many cautious webmasters/marketers won't link
to anything less than a PR3 page but use your own
judgment here.
Buying links is frowned upon by Google but many
webmasters and marketers do use this method to
purchase embedded one-way links with their chosen
"anchor text" which is the clickable, underlined
part of a link. Actually, over time big business will
probably dominate most, if not all of the "profitable
keywords" on the entire web. They have the resources
to "buy" their way to the top and this process will only
accelerate, despite Google's objection or efforts to stop
it. Money talks, morality walks.
In any case, most starting webmasters don't have
the resources to buy links and it's much more
easier to get them through free methods on
the web. There are numerous ways of getting
quality links:
. place your links in directories - free and paid
. join online forums and place your links
. do recommendations and testimonials
. viral videos with your embedded links
. join social media sites like MySpace, Facebook, etc.
. use hub traffic sites like Squidoo and Hubpages
. use Google sites like Google News, Google Docs, Google Knol
. use Wikipedia to build links
. use Yahoo Answers and those types of sites
. use eBay and sites like Craigslist
. use viral ebooks and software programs
Now, I have used all of the above link building methods
and many more over the years but I would like to explain
to you my most effective link building techniques since
these are the proven methods that have worked for me.
For in the end, we can only discuss our own marketing
experiences and what has worked for us. No doubt you may
have heard of many of these link building methods before...
but here goes:
Article Marketing
This is still one of the most effective ways to build
good one-way links to your site. I know this is "old school"
but it still works. At least for now, there are rumors Google
is cracking down on article links but for now links in
your article resource boxes are still very effective.
From my own experience, article marketing is my most
effective technique at building links. My sites and my
online marketing were going nowhere until I started writing
articles. Now I do aggressive article marketing using all
the major online article directories...
The Top 5 I Use Are:
www.ezinearticles.com
www.goarticles.com
www.isnare.com
www.ideamarketers.com
www.buzzle.com
Now just look at my stats from ezinearticles alone and you
will know why I use them.
Account Statistics
Articles Views: 421,327
Profile Views: 2,573
Articles Published: 4,787
URL Clicks: 49,480
Emailed: 115
Live Articles: 203
I have roughly 200 articles which have been viewed
over 400,000 times which has sent around 50,000
visitors to my sites. Plus, I have around 5,000
places where my articles are published. And this
is only for one online article directory - I have my
articles in hundreds of them. It all adds up to a lot
of links and traffic. For a good popular viral article
I can get 2,000 to 3,000 links spread across the web.
Whether you're just a webmaster or into online marketing
you must realize all this stuff is a "numbers" game. The
more content you have out there, the more links you have on
the web - the more traffic and visitors you get coming
to your site. It's not rocket science, it's simple math.
The more links you have, the higher probability
someone will click them and come to your site.
The same goes for high rankings in the search engines,
the more good quality links you have, the higher your
rankings. Article marketing will give you highly targeted
keyword links to your web pages. I also use SubmitYourArticle
which will automatically submit my articles for me to many
different article directories. I use this service to save
time but you can hand-submit your own articles.
One last point about article marketing - you're not just
using articles to build links, you're also using articles
to "pre-sell" yourself, your site and/or your product. It's a
very effective way of funneling interested visitors/buyers
to your site. Many of my sales are already made before
visitors reach my site.
AddThis Bookmark
Now I am not really into the "social media" sites but
that has not stopped me from using them to my advantage.
And it would be a BIG mistake not to use these social media
sites for your own link building.
Sites like MySpace, FaceBook, YouTube, Twitter, Digg,
Linkedin... and thousands of others are very important
for link building. They are becoming even more important
as Google moves away from articles and focuses on the
"real interactions" taking place on these sites.
Couple of years ago, I added the free AddThis Bookmark
to all my sites. This is a simple code which lets your
visitors bookmark your site or content in any or all of
the major social media sites.
What's actually happens is that your visitors are
building your links for you. I have gotten hundreds
of links from these sites just by placing this
simple bookmark on my sites. Truth be told, I nearly
laughed at this idea at first - sure visitors to my
sites would automatically bookmark and build links for
me? No way that would happen?
Wrong again!
This really works, so if you want this simple way of
building links just use the Addthis.com bookmark to your
site or pages.
Link Building via Google Alerts
This method of building good quality one-way links
does take a little more work but it is extremely
effective, especially for getting high rankings in
Google.
Here's how it works:
You sign-up for Google Alerts for your major
keywords that you're promoting. Google will send
you email alerts whenever a new page/site/link is
created containing your keywords. You then go to
those newly created pages to make a comment and
add your link.
Many of these new pages will be on blogs so you
can easily add your comment and link. The trick
is to add valuable comments/content which the site moderator
will approve because it adds to his/her site's value.
Many will also approve your link because your link is
related to their site and this is just good SEO practice.
The key here is to put yourself and your site in the
whole discussion of related blogs, sites and forums
relevant to your content. You want your site in the whole
mix of things so that relevant links will flow naturally
from the discussion. Now all your links won't be accepted
but you can easily add 2 or 3 links each day with very little
time spent on this. Great way to build links, hope you can
give it a try.
Press Releases
I am just starting this method of link building,
but what I have seen so far tells me this is a very
effective way to build links. It's not cheap - I use
PRWeb and I believe it's $200 for a release. You can
get a cheaper price at around $80 but you don't get
the full benefits at this lower price.
Press releases are very effective because you
can embed your links with your "anchor text"
into the body of your press release. Other
sites pick up your release and place it on their
site with your keywords/links embedded. This
seems more like natural link-building which the
search engines loves, especially Google.
With articles you can only place your links at
the end. As Google cracks down on article link
building (as many experts believe they will)
then using something like press releases will
become much more important.
Again, depending on your own marketing budget,
press releases can be a very effective way of
building links. I have noticed sites going from
a PR0 to PR4 in less than 6 months using this
method and also getting top 5 rankings in Google
in the process. Keep in mind, sites/companies
displaying press releases are usually already highly
ranked in Google so some of their PR juice is passed
on to your site.
I hope this article has given you some fresh ways
of building your own one-way links. Consistently
build these links to your site over an extended
period of months or even years and you will succeed
online.
...
The author is a full-time online marketer who has numerous
websites. For the latest web marketing tools try: Marketing Tools
If you liked the article above, why not try this Free 7 Day
Traffic Course here: Internet Marketing Tools
Copyright © 2009 Titus Hoskins. This article may be freely
distributed if this resource box stays attached. |
|
|
| 8 Quick Ways To Instantly Build Your Online Credibility |
[Feb. 2nd, 2009|11:24 am] |
Regardless of what type of website or business you're
pursuing on the web, you and your site must be seen
as "credible" in the eyes of your visitors or it's
"game over" before you even get started. Visitors must
believe you are someone who "knows their stuff" and
is worth their time.
Therefore, instantly establishing this credibility is
vital to your site's success, especially online where
people are still very distrustful of what they see and
read. And if you're selling something this "distrust
meter" takes a giant leap of faith.
So here are some eight quick ways to instantly build trust
with your site's visitors and remember you only have a few
nanoseconds to accomplish this difficult task.
So try these quick trust building methods:
1. Credibility Pre-header. Many marketers and webmasters
try to get or place a credibility pre-header above their
content, especially if you're selling a product. "America's
#1 Affiliate Marketer according to Time Magazine, reveals
all his secrets..."
Or something along those lines, but keep in mind, this
pre-header must have a neutral third party blurb or statement
which can be backed up. Quoting respected important sources
such as major magazines, news programs, well known organizations
or even other important web sites will instantly help establish
your credibility in the mind of the viewer.
That's why on a lot of sites you see such things as "As seen
on Oprah" "As seen On CNN" or even the old stand-by "As seen
on TV" will add credibility to what follows... just use the
same concept on your own site. While you may not be able to
boast those kinds of claims... you can usually come up with
some important (well known websites) which feature your work
or content. I like using sites like "Featured on Ezinearticles.com",
"Featured on Buzzle.com", "Featured on SiteProNews", while those
places don't have the power of a Larry King, Dr. Phil or Oprah...
they do establish some instant credibility in the "eyes" of your
visitor.
2. Picture and Bio. Have your picture and bio at the top of
the page so that readers can instantly see who you are. Give
your major accomplishments and successes because you must prove
that you're worth their time. Many savvy marketers use a two-columned
page format where one side is used to establish credibility...
where you place your picture, your bio, any awards your site
has won and tons and tons of testimonials from your visitors
and site users.
Use this whole side column all the way down your page to establish
your credibility. As readers are reading your content or sales letter,
they can glance over to see what you're saying is backed up by
other people.
3. Testimonials. As mentioned above, you should have testimonials
on your page and plenty of them. These will give credibility to
what you're saying. You should also place a few of these testimonials
in your main sales letter as well as to use the credibility of the
person giving the recommendation to your best advantage.
Many big-name online marketers (Gurus) do have enormous credibility
in the "eyes" of those reading the content. These testimonials
can go a long way in establishing your credibility as well. Use
as many as you can possibly get. Don't forget that also adding
recommendations from the BBB (Better Business Bureaus) and placing
securely buttons/logos does also help in establishing your
site's credibility.
4. Use Videos. You have probably noticed many people are now
using videos on their sites and content. Videos are an excellent
way to immediately establish contact and credibility with your
viewers... you are indeed a "real person" and not just some written
words floating in cyberspace. Of course, the more personality
and likeability you can bring to these videos will help further
establish your credibility.
Many marketers and webmasters also use videos for their testimonials,
anyone can make up fake text testimonials and place them on a web page
but actually seeing and hearing 10 or 15 videos of customers
talking about your product or content will definitely give you
more credibility.
5. Professional Graphics and Design. We have all seen the
cheap-looking template site that immediately says "template"
in the mind of the viewer. Now the actual content on this
site may be great but surfers are becoming increasingly
web-savvy and will know a cheaply designed site when they
see one and immediately hit the back button. Ouch!
Your site must appear professional in the "eyes" of the
beholder. Using professional graphics and design will help
you establish immediate credibility for your site. In that
split second when you have to capture your visitor's attention,
you want to make that all important first impression a good
one. You want them to say "This site's a Keeper!"
6. Use Social Media Sites. Visitors want to know you're
a real person or company, so establishing profiles in all
the social media sites such as Twitter, FaceBook, MySpace,
YouTube, Linkedin... gives credibility to who's speaking.
They can check you out and see what everyone is saying about
you. They can discover who your contacts are and what kind
of reputation you have built up. These social sites can have
enormous influence in building a solid relationship with
your visitors. It can definitely help establish your credibility;
so use them.
7. Content And Writing. Of course, the proof is in the pudding,
your content must be compelling and convincing. It must show
you know what you're talking about and that you're worth
reading. All the flash and window dressing will be worthless
if you don't have quality content on your site.
It is this quality content that will ultimately establish
your credibility in the minds of your visitors. All the
other factors are important but "what you say and how
you say it" will be the main determining factor in how much
credibility and trust you earn from your site's visitors;
so choose your words carefully.
8. Pre-built Credibility. One last point on establishing
online credibility has to be discussed. I believe many
webmasters don't fully understand the importance of building
credibility BEFORE your visitor even gets to your site.
Your marketing strategy doesn't just start at your site,
it must include building your brand and reputation outside
of it.
One obvious example, getting top rankings in Google for
your major keywords does give your site a lot of credibility.
Or achieving top rankings in any search engine for that matter,
but especially in Google, I have found getting top rankings gives
credibility to your web pages. People respect Google and they
have come to respect the search results and in turn, some
of this credibility is passed along to your site.
Another more important way to "pre-build" or "pre-sell"
yourself or your site's content is to write simple
articles that are distributed all over the web. Visitors
coming to your site from these articles will already be
more familiar with you and your information. You have
hopefully already gained some credibility in their eyes
and may just be worth checking out.
...
The author is a full-time online marketer who has numerous
websites. For the latest web marketing tools try:
Web Marketing Tools
If you liked the article above, why not try this Free 7 Day
Traffic Course here: Free Internet Marketing Course
Copyright © 2009 Titus Hoskins. This article may be freely
distributed if this resource box stays attached. |
|
|
| Internet Marketing Tactics For These Tough Times (From Google and Me!) |
[Jan. 8th, 2009|03:40 pm] |
Teaser:
Google and Me! Sounds like something Micheal Moore
would say, but as we enter into some dire economic times,
online marketers need all the help they get - regardless
of the source. Some of these tips are directly from Google
& some of them are from a seasoned, full-time online affiliate
marketer - that would be me!
Internet Marketing Tactics For These Tough Times (From Google and Me!)
Copyright © 2008 Titus Hoskins
As we enter into what many enlightened souls are calling
the most dire economic times since the Great Depression,
online marketers need all the help they can get - regardless
of the source. You have probably heard of Google; but chances
are almost 100% certain, you have never heard of me. Lucky you!
Actually, the only thing you need to know about me is
that I am a full-time online affiliate marketer and I
make a very comfortable living from the web. Last year
(2008), was my best year online so far, which left me
scratching my head and saying what recession?
But that may be something of a false positive, as I will
never know how much I could have made if the economic
times had been good instead of bad. Plus, judging from
my own limited experience, selling and marketing online
may not have been hit as hard as those businesses in the
real world in 2008, since consumers are doing everything
to save a penny and shopping online has become a much cheaper
alternative for many.
As we enter into these uncertain times, online marketers
and webmasters need all the help they can get. Recently,
Google mailed a small booklet to its Adsense users;
in it Google gives "6 Top Tactics For Tough Times."
It is obviously referring to its Adwords PPC (Pay Per
Click) program and clients but Google's advice can be
applied to your own general online marketing.
These tactics include: (quoting directly from the
Google mail-out)
1. Focus your ads on low prices and savings.
2. Use Value-related keywords.
3. Ensure your ad groups are targeted and relevant.
4. Don't waste money on irrelevant clicks.
5. Make it easy for customers to buy.
6. Focus your money on your high-performers.
(End Quote)
Sound advice and I especially like the idea of focusing
your marketing on low prices and savings mainly because
people want bargains in tight economic times. I also like
the fact that you must make it easy for your customers to
buy... something as simple as putting your "order/buy link"
above the fold can increase your conversions.
Also, targeting value-related keywords, is a very effective
marketing tactic. Relating your keywords to "discounts,
bargains, cheap, inexpensive, lowest prices..." will help
increase your sales. So too, is catering to phrases that
suggest the searcher is in a buying mind-set: gifts, presents,
gift ideas, wedding gifts... shoppers searching those words
are ready to buy.
Plus, focusing your time and money on your high-performers
is solid advice. Sometimes succeeding online is simply
finding a market niche that works/performs - then running
with it. Once you have found the keywords and products
that perform well with your site or sites - focus the
majority of your time and energy developing those niche
markets.
Now here are some of my most effective marketing
tactics that have worked for me and tactics I will
be relying on in the coming years - even in these
hard times.
o Make Keywords Your #1 Goal
This is the single most important factor for my own
online success. You have to make keywords and ranking
high for them in all the search engines your main
objective if you're marketing online. Might sound
obvious, but many beginning marketers don't truly
understand how important getting top rankings for
your chosen keywords will be in your online success.
Target less competitive long tail (multi-worded)
keywords to get started and slowly work your
way up to more popular keywords. Center your
marketing around getting those first page listings
(Top Five) for your keywords. Achieve this goal,
(especially in Google) and it will be almost
impossible for you not to succeed and make
a profit with your online marketing even in
bad times.
o Autoresponders, List Building & Online Relationships
Keeping in contact with potential buyers is mission
critical. You must use autoresponders to send follow-up
messages to build trustful relationships with your
potential customers. Establishing this personal contact
or trust is very important because the Internet is
still a cold distrustful environment for most people.
So building a large contact list is essential. That's
why the social networks such as Twitter, Facebook,
MySpace can be very effective marketing tools for
building this online contact and trust. Truth be told,
all these social networks are, more or less, just
glorified autoresponders and list builders!
o Your Unique Selling Position
You must give potential customers some very good
reasons for them to buy from you or your links.
Offering special bonuses and discounts works
wonders for your sales. Some of my most successful
pages simply consists of coupons and discounts
offered by different companies. If buyers can
save $100's OFF by buying thru your links, they
will.
Always remember, besides looking for the best
deal or bargain, consumers are also looking for a
quality product. If you're into affiliate marketing,
only pick top quality products to promote. Picking
top brand names also makes it easier to make sales.
So too is only promoting popular online merchants
like Amazon, can be an effective marketing strategy.
Most importantly, always remember consumers are also
looking for INFORMATION on the products they are
considering buying, give them helpful information
and you will succeed.
o Find A Niche You Enjoy
There are millions of profitable niche markets you can
choose from - pick one that truly interests you and run
with it. Your favorite hobby or something you enjoy
doing in your spare-time. Picking a niche market that
you like is a key factor, you won't mind spending your
time exploring and exploiting it. Just won't seem like
work because you will be having fun while you do your
marketing.
o Go With The Flow
If you're marketing online, you have to follow what's
working for you. Most times you will try countless
ideas or tactics - once you have found a process or
system that works, really work it or scale it up.
Making your first dollar is the hardest, but once
you do something that earns you that dollar,
just repeat that "something" a thousand times.
Tracking what works is very important so keep a
close eye on your site's traffic logs to find where
your customers are coming from. Something like
Google Analytics is simply priceless for "fine-tuning"
your site and your online marketing. It will tell
you what's working and what's not.
o Target Recurring or Residual Income
One of my most effective marketing strategies is to
promote and sell products and services that give you
a recurring or residual income. Make one sale and get
paid for years or for the life of that referred client.
Concentrate on services like web-hosting, telephone,
marketing programs... once customers sign up to these
services, they will likely keep them for years. I am
still earning income from sales I made five years ago.
Building a large residual income could be the key to
surviving in tough economic times. This will be income
which will carry you or your business over the rough
patches since it is based upon past performance and not
on your current selling situation.
o Target the Right Customers And Markets
The biggest advantage of marketing online is you
can precisely target your customers and your markets.
One tactic I use is to target customers who are likely
to buy more than one unit of what you're selling. For example,
if you target Corporate Business Gifts, a boss or employer
will not be buying just one coffee mug but ten or even
hundreds of mugs.
Even in tough times, seasonal markets will still
perform... back to school, mother's day, Halloween,
Christmas market... things might slow down but these
markets will still perform even in tough times.
</b>
o Automate Everything</b>
The real beauty of marketing online and using computers...
you can automate just about every process in your marketing
system. Make it a point of automating everything you do...
use autoresponders to follow-up with potential buyers, use
automatic check-outs, automatic reporting... just set-up your
whole online marketing system that runs itself with little
or no supervision from you. This will free up your time to
concentrate all your efforts on marketing/promoting your
site or product. Besides, nothing beats coming back from
a vacation and finding out you have earned the cost of
your vacation and then some - all the while you were lying
in the sun and miles away from any computer.
o Find The Top Online Marketers
If you're just starting with online marketing, you
need to find the top successful marketers and "model"
what they're doing. This is relatively a new industry
and you have to seek out the experts and pioneers who
have set the groundwork. When I first started marketing
online, I was quite fortunate to come into contact with
some web marketing heavy-weights such as Marlon Sanders,
Ken Evoy, Neil Shearing... and SEO experts like Brad Callen
and Aaron Wall.
Often it is just a matter of finding the right "mentor"
to follow. You need to study their techniques to improve
your own marketing. Perhaps my best advice would be this:
find the top online marketers and stick to them like glue!
o Make Google Your Friend
Whether you love or hate Google doesn't matter, you
just have to make it your number one ally in your
online marketing. Google has just about conquered
the world-wide search market, Yahoo and MSN are
still important, but Google is the deal-breaker
when you're selling stuff online. Consumers have
enormous respect for Google, a number one listing
for a lucrative keyword simply means money in
the bank. Marketers must realize Google will
play a significant role in their online success
and may play an ever increasing role in these
tough economic times.
I have found using Google Search, Google Adwords,
and Google Adsense have played a more than significant
role in the success of my own online sites and marketing.
Google tools such as Google Analytics, Google Alerts,
Webmaster Tools... all have been invaluable and an
enormous help in achieving my "web-based" lifestyle
and livelihood. Of course, Google has also driven me
around the bend more times than I can count, but no
one is perfect.
Besides, when it's all said and done, anyone marketing
on the web must truly embrace Google if they want to
reach their highest level possible. In good times and
especially in these bad times, you must make Google your
friend. Your best friend. Even your BFF. When all else
fails, trust in Google, forget that other guy. Then again,
you better not; for you're going to need all the help you
can get in these coming tough times, regardless of the source.
...
Everyone has a story. Mine is called: "In Search Of The $100 Click
or How I Found A Full-Time Online Income And Came To Love The Internet"
It's located here: Online Income
Everyone is profiting from the web, find out how
you can too! Click here: Best Internet Marketing Training
Copyright © 2009 Titus Hoskins. |
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| Internet Marketing Tools - Creating The Perfect Sale |
[Oct. 27th, 2008|03:59 pm] |
We have all heard the expression "The Perfect Storm"
and it refers to the situation where all weather
elements come together at the same time to produce
a perfect storm. But is there an equivalent of the
perfect storm in the marketing world? A situation
where all elements come together to produce "The
Perfect Sale?"
For the moment, we will conveniently ignore the current
world economic meltdown and look only at positive situations
where this event may occur. Perhaps, the closest thing
we have to the Perfect Sale is the online product launch.
But unlike the natural phenomenon, this event is carefully
planned and orchestrated by a whole army of web savvy
marketers who know exactly what has to be done to create
this Perfect Sale.
For this "sale" doesn't just happen, professional web
marketers create their own system of events that lead
up to this Perfect Sale, earning themselves enormous profits
in the process. This is an orchestrated marketing effort
that bring potential buyers onto their contact lists and
into their marketing funnels; heading straight towards
their Perfect Sale.
These online marketers use a whole array of marketing
tactics to bring potential buyers to their sales page.
One of the most effective methods is the JV or joint
venture with other established marketers who have long
lists of interested buyers, and for a percentage of the
sales, the JV partner promotes your sales page or product.
There are even JV brokers, Mike Merz and Kenneth McArthur
come readily to mind, but there are many more JV brokers
who can arrange or line up potential partners to help
promote your product.
A certain date is set for the release of your product and
all potential partners/affiliates promote to their lists
and on their sites. A buying frenzy can be whipped up
especially if the product is limited and only a certain
number of sales will be accepted. Also a high quality free
sampling or teaser is usually given away to build up massive
contact lists of interested buyers, this freebie is used
to pre-sell to these buyers. There may even be a countdown
clock to further create excitement and urgency in the mind
of the buyer.
On launch day, everything is synchronized. JV partners mail
out to their massive contact lists, enticing all their
subscribers with extra bonuses to buy the product now before
it's gone. The sales letter page goes live and the sales pour
in... creating "The Perfect Sale."
For the non-marketing reader, this may seem a bit
far-fetched but in actual fact these product launches
are occurring online every week - creating the "Perfect
Sale" over and over again. And these launches have been
around for many years, one of the most famous being
John Reese's "Traffic Secrets" which was released
in the summer of 2004 and earned over 1 million in
revenue in one day.
There are even some savvy marketers who have perfected
the product launch system into an art form, mainly Jeff
Walker (Product Launch Formula) and Frank Kern (Mass Control)
just to mention a few of the top marketers out there
teaching and applying this marketing technique.
Key Elements Of A Product Launch
However, just like the Perfect Storm, in order to create
this Perfect Sale many factors have to fall into place
and come together. Some of these main elements are:
1. A high quality product which is in demand and desired
by the potential buyers. It must solve a problem or meet
a need within its niche market. Bit obvious but without
this demand the product won't sell in any great numbers,
no matter what tactics you use.
2. A perfectly written sales letter that converts. Your
sales page must convert into actual sales of your product.
Again, quite obvious but if your sales page does not
convert, it's game over.
3. A whole motivated group of JV partners with enormous
lists and bonuses to offer to potential buyers. Many
product launches now offer special prizes (anywhere from
a luxury sports car to the latest tech gadget) for those
partners who can bring in the most sales.
4. A whole array of orchestrated, pre-launch tactics
building up interest in your product with free high
quality giveaways to get your buyer's attention and
contact information. Even a newly created blog to keep
everyone informed about your product launch is often
used.
5. Most of the above tactics have to do with creating
the potential buyer with the right mind-set for buying
your product. Creating a limited number of products or
setting a certain time-frame for selling, and offering
special deals or bonuses will further create demand for
your product.
Product Launch Day - The Perfect Sale
Product launch day is when all the above factors come
into play creating the "Perfect Sale". Done properly
such a sale can whip up such a buying frenzy that
would put any great white to shame; earning all involved
a healthy profit. It is one marketing tactic that's not
likely to disappear any time soon, although the novelty
of such an event is slowly wearing thin as countless
marketers try to re-invent the wheel.
Regardless, as an online marketing tool, the product
launch is still one of the most effective ways to quickly
introduce your product, build your list and cement your
reputation. Not to mention, you can also earn a hefty sum
of money in a very short period of time; the "Perfect Sale"
indeed.
...
The author is a full-time online marketer who has numerous
websites. For the latest web marketing tools try: Internet Marketing Tools
If you liked the article above, why not try this Free 7 Day
Traffic Course here: Free Internet Marketing Course
Copyright © 2008 Titus Hoskins. This article may be freely
distributed if this resource box stays attached. |
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| 8 Simple Strategies For Affiliate Marketing Success |
[Apr. 11th, 2008|12:49 pm] |
8 Simple Strategies For Affiliate Marketing Success
Copyright © 2008 Titus Hoskins
It always surprises me how much you can make by
selling other people's stuff on the Internet.
The real numbers never truly hit you until you
fill out your taxes. Eight years in and the numbers
still shock me. Always.
More than the numbers, what really amazes me the
most is the lifestyle one can achieve from online
marketing. You can be your own boss, work your
own hours, carry out your business from anywhere
in the world you want to live. You can create
automatic marketing systems that work 24/7/365
days of the year. Earn money even when you're
sleeping, vacationing or out enjoying a gourmet
meal at your favorite restaurant. Total freedom.
So is it any wonder then why I am constantly
analyzing my whole marketing structure to figure
out what is working and what is not working?
Finding out just what strategies are giving me
the best returns on my efforts and time. And I
am constantly trying to discover just what I
can do to increase my affiliate sales and online
traffic.
It basically means breaking down your online
marketing into its core elements and examining
each one with close scrutiny. What can be improved?
What can be eliminated? What needs to be redesigned?
Any serious online marketer must be actively working
on these core elements to stay competitive in the
affiliate game.
With these thoughts in mind, here are some simple
marketing strategies that can affect and contribute
to your success for selling affiliate products on
the web. Marketing factors that should always be
at the back of your mind, influencing your every move.
Quality Content
People use the web to find quality content or
information. Always remember this fact and apply
it to each step of your marketing plan - give your
visitors quality content and you will succeed online.
There are no ironclad guarantees, but get this one
step right and you will probably make money online.
Design your website and your webpages around quality
content. Useful, relevant content will give people
a reason to come to your site and also give them a
reason to return. Provide good information first and
let the sale or selling be secondary. People do not
like a pushy salesperson, not in real life and not on
the web. Develop a friendly, helpful relationship
with your potential customer and you will succeed.
Keyword Driven
The Internet is keyword driven. These are words or
phrases people type into search engines to find what
they're looking for on the web. They are also your
keys to online success if you're going the SEO route,
picking the right keywords will be your main starting
point.
Professional marketers use keyword software like
Brad Callen's Keyword Elite to research and find
their profitable keywords, but there are many free
tools/sites which you can find online to help you
do your keyword research - Seobook.com is a good one.
Daily monitoring of your major keywords is also
important to keeping them in the top positions.
Any movement downwards should spark more link and/or
content building immediately.
Keep in mind, Google, which controls 60 percent of
the web's search traffic, is also a great source
of information on your keywords. Use Google to
search the sites in the top 10 spots for your
keywords; also check Google for the Paid Ads
related to your keywords and monitor these ads
over a period of time to see which ones are
profitable. Do your keyword homework and your
affiliate marketing will be a lot easier.
Niche Focused
If you're into affiliate marketing, you must
concentrate your efforts on small niche markets
where the competition is not too stiff. Choosing
the right niche markets is vital to your affiliate
success. Demand should be high and/or you're selling
a high-ticket custom item.
Once you have chosen your particular niches, concentrate
on dominating these in all the search engines. But don't
forget that the fastest and sometimes the most profitable
way to tackle a niche is through PPC (Pay Per Click)
advertising - especially if there is little or low
bidding on your keywords. Google Adwords, Yahoo
Marketing, MicroSoft AdCenter... should be explored
and tried.
List Building
The power is always in the list. Make sure you collect
the contact information of your site's visitors. Offer
free ebooks, guides, special deals or bonuses... to get
your prospects to opt-in to your AR follow-up systems.
Studies have shown that people usually don't buy until
the six or seventh follow-up.
I like building hundreds of micro-lists for all my
major promoted affiliate products. These follow-ups
with specialized information and special deals, coupons
and bonuses will increase your sales.
Traffic
Obviously, traffic is one of the key elements to
earning money online mainly because without traffic
you're dead in the water. You must explore all avenues
to generate targeted traffic to your affiliate links.
These sources are always changing; blogging and social
bookmark sites are very important now. So too are video
and audio formats so make sure you use them in your
marketing.
Article marketing has worked extremely well for me
and it is, along with search traffic, the main reason
I can earn income online. A simple marketing technique
that still works because articles will bring targeted
traffic to your site or sites.
Conversion Rates Are Crucial
In affiliate marketing or in any kind of marketing,
your conversion rates are crucial to your success.
You can get all the targeted traffic you want but
if you can't turn those visitors into a sale, it's
game over.
Your sales pages or content must convert into a sale
in order for you to succeed. With affiliate marketing
it is a little trickier because not only do your pages
have to "pre-sell" the affiliate product but the landing
page/site where you send that traffic must also convert
into a sale.
However, I have discovered one of the keys to high
conversion rates has nothing to do with landing pages,
sales pitches, etc., but has to do mainly with which
products that you decide to promote. You must thoroughly
research your affiliate products and ONLY promote the
top quality brands in your niche and you will have much
better success. Also choosing products that are only
available online will increase your conversion numbers;
so too will promoting products that offer special discount
coupons and deals.
Multiple Streams & Residual Income
Any serious online marketer will leverage their traffic
and marketing by promoting many different products and
services. They will develop different sources of income
from their sites with affiliate links, Google Adsense,
paid advertising, partnerships... are all used to develop
multiple streams of income. It one should dry up, there
are countless others still producing income.
I have found the major third-party affiliate networks
like Commission Junction, LinkShare, Shareasale, Affiliate
Window, Amazon are really good for finding and promoting
products online. These sites will handle all the record
keeping and sales stats for you. Plus, they send your
monthly checks to you like clockwork. All you have to
worry about is providing quality traffic to your affiliate
links.
However, like any professional marketer, I save my
special promotions and efforts to affiliate products
or services that will give me a high return on my marketing
efforts. Mainly, I only promote high-ticket items or
products that will give me residual income. Make one
sale; get paid time and time again. I also like forming
partnerships with companies so that I get a percentage
of the sales for the life of any client I refer. Those
arrangements have special priority for the obvious reason
they give me long-term residual income.
Testing Will Show You The Money.
Perhaps, like in those multiple-choice exams, there
is one sticking point. You can check-off "None of the
above" if you don't apply one thing for all of the "success
strategies" listed above.
You Must TEST Everything.
You must constantly test and track what is working
and what is not? Which traffic is converting? Which
keywords are converting? Which products are converting?
Which niches are profitable... you simply must TEST and
KNOW which factors are working in your online marketing
structure? Unless you test and track everything you will
be marketing blind, and that's no way to run an online
business.
I have found Google Analytics to be extremely helpful
for testing and improving your conversion rates. I am
also a firm believer in the daily reading of your traffic
logs and stats... these places will show you where the
real money is hiding. Use this information to improve
your traffic and sales.
Like any endeavor, the more knowledge you have, the more
successful you will be in reaching your goals. This is
especially true for affiliate marketing on the web. And
always remember, affiliate marketing does take some
work and time to set-up, but the rewards are extremely
rewarding. I hope you will use some of the marketing tips
I have given you so you can experience these rewards
for yourself.
...
The author is a full-time web marketer who owns
and runs numerous websites, including two sites on Internet
marketing. He contributes his online affiliate success to
using the best Internet Marketing Tools and his proven strategies at
List Building
Copyright © 2008 Titus Hoskins. This article may be freely
distributed if this resource box stays attached. |
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