What is the Best Marketing Method? by © Judith Tramayne-Barth

After five years on the Internet, I read constantly where "search engine placement" is the key to success and I am here to tell you this is baloney. Yes, it is a necessary ingredient but not something you should hyper-ventilate over.

To be an effective marketing person on this Information Highway, you must put up road signs all over it. Search Engines are just a small part of what you should be doing. My site is 125,000 something out of the top 900,000 websites according to this site:
http://www.trafficranking.com

This service is provided by 7Search and I want to add, I have never paid them or anybody else for any type of advertising or submission services **ever** in my five years. So why my site would be listed with them who knows.

But it does show me that my method of marketing works. No I am not unhappy with the 125,000 figure considering the millions of sites on the Internet. But it does give me incentive to become one of the top 100 sites.

So what is the best and most time-efficient marketing method?

==> Writing Articles

Yes, I know you've read or heard this thousand of times before but guess what folks — it works! Read these articles to find out why:

http://www.agoodread.com/articlewriting3.html
http://www.apromotionguide.com/increasetraffic.html

Now if you're saying to yourself "I can't write" — I say "yeah right, then you woke up" because I'll bet you email someone every day. And, basically that's all an ezine article is — you writing to a friend on a subject you know.

To get your articles accepted by most ezine publishers, there are a few guidelines you should use:

Publishing Permission Statement

This is usually at the top of your article and is similar in wording to:

This article may be freely published in your newsletter, on your website, or in your free eBook, so long as you keep my byline and resource box intact with a clickable link back to my site.

By putting this statement in, you will not have to play email tag with all the different ezine editors. It saves you both time if this simple statement is included.

Article Title with your name as Author

Make it attention grabbing and short if you can. Not only because you want ezine owners to read it when you email your article to lists on Yahoogroups or Topica but a great title helps when you add your article to portal sites like:

http://www.ebooksnbytes.com/articles/
http://ezinearticles.com/add_url.html
http://www.ideamarketers.com

First Paragraph and Body of Article

You have exactly 5 to 10 seconds to grab your readers attention so make sure your first paragraph does this. Then each paragraph after that should be concise, flow easily and never waiver from your main subject.

Your last paragraph should conclude your article either by recapping your main points (how-to articles) or have a slight twist leaving your readers smiling.

Resource Box

The reason you wrote the article in the first place besides wanting to share your knowledge. This is how you get targeted visitors to your site.

So spend your time on this and get it perfect. Write, rewrite and write it again so the 3 or 4 lines you are allowed entices the readers to click on your link.

Make It Easy For Ezine Owners

Ezines or newsletters are sent in emails and most owners use a 65 character line length. They are constantly under a deadline so if your article can just be copy and pasted versus one that has to be reformatted — which do you think they are going to use?

An easy way to accomplish this is to set your email client to a 65 character length and send your article to yourself. The article should be anywhere from 500 to 750 words. Follow the above guidelines when writing your articles, submit them and you'll be enjoying the best marketing method on the Internet!

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About the Author:

Judith Tramayne-Barth's site is http://www.agoodread.com
which has free books, articles and link pages you'll love. She also writes excellent "how-to" books.

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What Do I Put In My Ezine?
by © Terri Seymour

You are so excited because your website is finished. Your business is officially open. You are going to start an ezine to help build your business. You have an idea of what to do with your ezine and know how you are going to promote it. The only questions you have left are what do I put in my ezine and where do I get it?

There are a lot of good ideas for your ezine. You must always remember your goals with your ezine. You should promote your business and provide useful resources and information for your subscribers. You also want to build trust and relationships with your readers. Giving subscribers a good ezine with a lot of good info is the way to do it!

Informative Articles - You definitely want to provide some good articles that have some useful, practical information and maybe some resource links. There are a lot of good article writers and you should also try to write some articles. It is always good to have some original content and articles are a great way to promote your business also. Visit these sites to find and/or post articles:

http://www.connectionteam.com/art.html

http://www.ideamarketers.com

http://www.makingprofit.com/

http://www.the-best-list-site-in-the-world.com/lotsart.html

Email lists for posting or requesting articles:

Free-Content-subscribe@yahoogroups.com

PublishInYours-subscribe@yahoogroups.com

article_announce-subscribe@yahoogroups.com


Resource Links - You should provide links to sites that have resources and information pertaining to your ezine subject matter.

Question & Answer - You could have a Q&A section for answering some commonly asked questions about what your business entails.

Add a Little Fun - Throw in a joke or a link to a fun site. It never hurts to add a smile to someone's day!

Ad Swaps - You should always have room for ad swaps. This is a great way to get good content for your ezine as well as additional exposure for your business. To find publishers to swap with:

http://www.yoursalesoffice.com/Ezine_Joint_Ventures.html

http://www.adswap.net/

http://www.businessstructure.com/ezineadswap.htm

http://www.bizpromo.com/ezinetrades.htm

Reader Feedback - You can provide a section for your readers to voice their opinion on your ezine or something that pertains to your business. This is a good way for readers to get involved with you and your ezine.

You - Have a section where you talk to your readers and let them know they can contact you whenever they have questions. This is a good place for you to keep your readers informed on what is going on in your business, with new product updates, changes in your website, etc. This also lets your readers get to know you, which helps build trust.

General Interest - put links, tidbits, news, products, etc. which you think might interest your readers. These do not always have to be business, but anything that is interesting or useful. To find out more about ezine publishing go to: http://www.e-zinez.com & http://www.ezineuniversity.com

Experiment with your ezine. Change things around, add new things, change the design. Make your ezine an extension of you and your business. Take the time to publish a quality ezine and your business and reputation will flourish!

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About the Author:

Terri Seymour is the publisher of Web Success Ezine and owner of Web Success Central. You can contact her at ter02@newnorth.net. Subscribe to Web Success Ezine and receive two free gifts by sending any email to web-success-subscribe@yahoogroups.com or visit Web Success Central at http://www.websuccesscentral.com
for lots of resources, helpful information and moneymaking programs.

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That's Not Spam, That's My Newsletter!
By Jessica Albon

For those of us who receive way too many unsolicited emails, Spam filters are a blessing. Switch to the publisher's side of the desk, though, and Spam filters can become problematic.

Before you can keep your opt-in newsletter out of the Spam filter's reach, you have to learn a little about the kinds of Spam filters available. Currently, options range from those installed by an ISP, like Spam Assassin, to those that run with another program, like Microsoft's Outlook, as is the case with cloudmark's SpamNet. Spam Assassin uses a point system to determine whether or not a piece of email is Spam. The more points a particular email collects, the more likely it is to be Spam. SpamNet not only filters based on key words (free!, for instance), but also allows users to submit Spam to then be blocked for other users. Most Spam filters use some sort of blacklist of known Spammers to block emails.

The other component you'll need to be aware of is the blacklist. As mentioned, most of the available Spam filters use one or more of these collections of email addresses and domain names that send out a lot of Spam. Blacklists are primarily compiled by volunteers. In other words, you mail them the Spam you receive in your inbox, they take a look at it and then decide whether or not to add the sender to their list.

Because Spam filters have both a computer component (such as the points system used by Spam Assassin), and a human component (such as the blacklists and the new system from SpamNet), you'll need to make sure your newsletter doesn't raise flags in either camp. Here are some suggestions for avoiding problems. So your newsletter convinces people

1. Never send your newsletter unsolicited, not even to current or past customers (it's easy enough to ask them if they'd like to be subscribed with a personal email). In fact, it's a risk even to send your newsletter to a list you've purchased no matter what you've been told about the intent of the list's subscribers-can you be sure all of the subscribers expected to receive your email on widgets just because they checked a box saying they were interested in widgets? This will help keep you off the "blacklists" that are available to Spam filters.

2. Provide what you say you will, when you say you will. Don't mislead your audience at the subscribing stage and don't send out emails with manipulative subject lines. Not only is this not good for your reputation, but it may also trigger common Spam filters.

3. Don't type all in caps. A hallmark of the Nigerian Bank Scam, typing all in caps isn't just rude; it may get your newsletter forwarded to a blacklist. Additionally, make sure to capitalize the beginnings of your sentences and otherwise use professional grammar and punctuation. An unprofessional email may be more likely to arouse the suspicions of your readers.

4. Leave them wanting more. If your newsletter is really, really valuable, subscribers who don't get it will miss it. Some ezine publishers have found their ezines are so popular, people who stop receiving the emails actually complain.

5. Make your policy clear. Tell readers how to unsubscribe at your website and in your newsletter. Let them know whom to contact if they have any trouble. And, of course, make sure to follow through immediately. So your newsletter convinces the computer

6. Steer clear of subject lines that scream SPAM! Words like "free," "limited time," and "money" often trigger Spam filters. Take a look at the Spam in your own inbox for examples of words not to use.

7. Offer directions for "subscribing" and "unsubscribing." Spammers often use the word "remove" in their emails, so you'll want to avoid it at all costs. Plus, in some Spam filters, you actually lose points (the fewer points, the less likely an email is Spam) when you offer subscribing and unsubscribing instructions.

8. Send it from a reputable domain name, or better yet, your own. Free email addresses are often used heavily by Spammers, so you'll want to stay away from them if at all possible.

9. Don't send attachments. Most email readers regard attachments with suspicion anyway and the attachment may trigger Spam filters set up to screen adult material. Both are good reasons to send your entire email in the body of the email. Still not convinced? Many of your readers will have limited inbox space-by avoiding attachments you won't give them an extra reason to delete your newsletter unread.

When you keep up-to-date on the latest Spam filter technology, you may find Spam filters are actually your allies-they may mean your newsletter will have less competition in your reader's inbox.

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Jessica Albon is the Focusing Chief of The Write Exposure, a company that helps businesses attract and retain customers with powerful newsletters. For more information on The Write Exposure's services visit http://www.designdoodles.com/

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Simple Low Cost Marketing Methods Often Produce the Best Results
by Bob Leduc

Simple, inexpensive marketing methods often produce the best results. I discovered this by accident many years ago while trying to find a better way to get sales leads. We were mailing hundreds of direct mail letters and brochures every week to new business owners promoting our service. Folding all those letters and brochures, inserting them into envelopes, sealing the envelopes, addressing the envelopes and putting stamps on them was expensive and time consuming. But, it produced enough qualified leads to be profitable.

AN EASIER WAY

One week I decided to test a simple and less expensive way to get my leads. I had the following benefit statement printed on 1,000 postcards: "I can help you increase your profits, save taxes and reduce financial risk." I added my name and phone number at the end of the message, addressed the postcards and mailed them. Printing and preparing the postcards took only 1/5th of the time it took for the letters and brochures. Plus, the Postage and materials cost only 1/3rd as much.

To my surprise, I got over 40 inquiries that week from the postcards instead of the usual 20 to 25 inquiries I got from my letters. Almost overnight my sales and commissions shot up by over 50%. I was soon getting so many inquiries every week that I began selecting only the best ones to use myself and passed the others on to reps who didn't have enough appointments for the week. They were happy to pay me a percentage of the commissions they received from sales produced by my leads. The results from that first postcard mailing taught me a valuable marketing lesson I never forgot. Simple, inexpensive marketing methods often produce the best results.

A LOW-COST WAY TO TEST CLASSIFIED ADS

About 5 years ago I discovered another simple and inexpensive marketing tool while looking for a quick way to test some new classified ads. The deadline for accepting ads submitted to printed publications is usually 3 to 6 weeks before publication. It often takes 2 months before the ad starts pulling... or before you find out it doesn't work.

I discovered how to reduce this 2 month delay to less than a week. Simply post the ad on one of the online services such as America Online and place it in several email magazines (ezines) distributed to your targeted market. A 3 line ad in a well-known ezine with over 300,000 subscribers costs less than $40. Many ezines with a smaller number of subscribers will accept ads for $5 or $10 per run. Best of all, your ad runs a few days after you submit it.

After developing a profitable ad online, place it in the print media. Be sure to use print publications read by people in the same targeted market you tested online. That's how you can be assured of getting the same successful results offline as you got online.

DON'T LIMIT YOUR MARKETING TO THE INTERNET

The low-cost and fast results of online advertising encourages some new businesses to restrict their marketing exclusively to the internet. They completely ignore traditional marketing methods. That's a serious mistake. There are a huge number of people without internet access. You're missing a large part of your potential market by ignoring these people. Use the internet to test new advertising. When you have a proven ad, continue it online and also place it in the print media. Don't limit your profits by ignoring any part of your potential market.

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Bob Leduc retired from a 30 year career of recruiting sales personnel and developing sales leads. He is now a Sales Consultant. Bob recently wrote a manual for small business owners titled "How to Build Your Small Business Fast With Simple Postcards" and several other publications to help small businesses grow and prosper. For more information... Email: BobLeduc@aol.com
Phone: (702) 658-1707 (After 10 AM Pacific time) Or write:

Bob Leduc
PO Box 33628
Las Vegas, NV 89133

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The Top Ten Lessons I Learned in My Internet Business...
By Shelley Lowery

Since starting my Internet business back in 1997, I have learned many lessons along the way. These lessons have played a major role in my success, and I'd like to share them with you.

Lesson #1

Collecting your visitors' email addresses should be one of your top priorities.

Start collecting email addresses the moment you put your site up. Developing a list of targeted potential customers is an absolute must.

Although publishing an ezine is usually the best route to go, it is not a necessity. You can use your list to send out web site updates, product updates, or whatever you'd like.

Lesson #2

Your web site can either make or break you.

A professional looking web site will play a major role in your success. If you aren't secure in your abilities to design a professional looking site, you will be much better off hiring a professional.

Lesson # 3

If you want to make a lot of money, you must create a niche.

A niche fills a specific customer need.

People want products and services that fulfill a specific personal need. If you are the first to fulfill the need, you'll reap the rewards.

Lesson # 4

Generating web site traffic takes a lot of time and effort.

The key to generating a lot of traffic to your site is getting your link on as many sites as possible. Sure, listing your site with the Search Engines is your first step; however, you must not solely rely on Search Engines to bring you traffic.

My two biggest traffic generators are as follows:

Affiliate Program - Having your own affiliate program is one of the best ways to get hundreds, even thousands of links to your web site.

Providing a Free Product or Service - Providing your visitors with a free product or service is a great way to drive traffic to your site.

For example, I offer a free article syndication service. This service provides free content for web sites branded with a link to my site.

Lesson # 5

Selling your own products and services is much more profitable than marketing affiliate programs.

Some of the top Internet sellers include:

• Software
• Information
• Private sites
• Internet services

Lesson # 6

People do not like to be sold.

You will be far more successful if you have a sincere desire to assist your potential customers. This can be accomplished by writing informative articles, courses, tutorials, or even providing advice within discussion forums in your area of expertise.

Trust plays a major role on the Internet. You must build your credibility with your target audience.

Lesson # 7

Automation can save you hours of valuable time.

Although there are certain areas of business that must be personally dealt with, there are many areas that can be completely automated:

• List management
• Customer follow-up
• Welcome messages
• Thank you messages
• Order processing
• Order fulfillment
• Order confirmation

This can be accomplished using autoresponders, scripts and software programs.

Lesson # 8

Organization is an essential part of developing a successful business:
• Create a daily work schedule for an organized approach to each day.
• Use an email program that will filter your messages into specific folders.
• Organize your computer folders and files for quick and easy access.
• Create a "Frequently Asked Questions" page to lessen support requests.
• Create templates for frequently used messages.
• Create a page (residing on your computer) that contains a list of affiliate programs you're promoting. Include your log-in information and hyperlinks for easy access.

Lesson # 9

Customer satisfaction and support should be your top priority.

Lesson # 10

You have to spend money to make money.

You must be willing to invest in your Internet business including:

• Computer
• Internet Access
• Software
• Domain Name
• Web Hosting
• Education (books, courses, etc.)
• Advertising

Lesson # 11 (I know, there were only supposed to be ten, but this one is important...)

SPAM is a four letter word and will be treated as such.

Although this list is far from complete, these lessons should provide you with some basic guidelines to assist you in developing a successful online business.

Copyright © Shelley Lowery 2003. All Rights Reserved

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About the Author:

Shelley Lowery is the author of Web Design Mastery - An in- depth guide to professional web design. And, Ebook Starter - A complete ebook design kit. Subscribe to Etips and receive a free copy of the highly acclaimed ebook, "Killer Internet Marketing Strategies."
http://www.ebookstarter.com/

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