My Random Internet Marketing Observations

I was sitting here, thinking about my blog and I couldn’t settle on any particular subject to blog about.  So… in a rather haphazard fashion, I’m going to throw down some random internet marketing thoughts here.

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It is confusing to add an OTO to your product or promote another product on your “thank you” page, but it’s worth it. I have to map out by hand how the whole thing will work with arrows pointing different directions so I can see it, but once it’s in place I don’t have to mess with it and it makes me money.  I have an OTO on a product right now that converts 1 sale in every 4. 

When I try to market a specific product either to my list, through the Warrior Forum or Twitter, or as a guest poster, sometimes it leads to making more sales of other various products I offer, NOT the one I’m promoting. Weird, huh?

I look like a savvy internet marketer to people who don’t sell online, but I don’t know jack compared to some of the gurus.  I can live with that.  When I’m feeling particularly online stupid, I look at where I started and realize I have come a long way. 

Sometimes dollars speak louder than words.  It wasn’t until I started writing down, with a pen, how much I’m making every single day and my goal for the month that I really started picking up my pace.  The internal dialog mostly goes like this: “Crap, if I want to make my goal of $$ this month, I’d better hurry up and create another product fast or write some PLR bundles to sell!”  Having a monetary goal also helps me to think of how I can creatively market the VRE I already have.

You can’t be afraid to put yourself out there and walk and talk like a real marketer.  No one will buy my product just because I created it and know it’s good.  I’ve got to be my biggest promoter. I’ve worked hard to get over my reluctance to be a marketer.  Still, I aim for less cheesy and less hypey.

Not every internet marketer tells the truth.  Just because someone promises to promote my product to their big list, that doesn’t mean it will happen.  I had a HUGE disappointment in this area, but I chalked it up as a painful learning experience.  Consequently, I make sure I don’t promise when I know I can’t deliver.

Sometimes I get a chip on my shoulder about Twitter… it seems like a popularity contest.  Reminds me of how popular I wasn’t in high school.  But I noticed something pretty neat - if I don’t worry about it and just be myself and have some fun, Twitter works for me.

I like to be a lone wolf, but it’s more fun and profitable to build relationships. You can bounce ideas off one another and help your friends out. They’re also there for you when you come unglued because you can’t get your footer to look right in your HTML editor.

Lists are people too.  I’ve become friends with people on my lists who email me with their thoughts, questions, and advice.  Yes, it takes time to answer everyone and I hate admitting when I don’t know something, but I wouldn’t have it any other way.

Any random internet marketing observations you’d like to share?

Have You Ever Done This?

I’ve decided to add a new category called “Have You Ever Done This?” It’s the spot for us to put any quirky items or tricky little tips that have to do with Internet Marketing and our personalities.

I’ll go first with one thing I did recently… and you can tell me if you’ve ever done this, or something similar, or something not even remotely similar but you want to talk about it here.

Last week I had to go to the dentist for some “repair work”. I really don’t like going to the dentist and was feeling very uncomfortable about it.  So what I did was set up a promotion to go out to my list right at the time the dentist was going to start torturing, er, working in my mouth.  That way, while in this situation I could think about something that makes me happy (making a few bucks), instead of laying there all uptight with my hands balled into fists.

Now it’s your turn. Have you ever set up a promotion to go out in the middle of some negative event in your life? Or anything else?

How to Use PLR

I just wrote a rather lengthy guest blog post on John Yeo’s internet marketing blog. It’s about using your PLR articles to create a short report. I gave as many details as I could considering I was writing a blog post… if you want to know even more I have a short report about it here.

Have a great day.

Growing My Small Business

In this post I’d like to share some thoughts about growing my small business and outsourcing. Here’s a post by Shay Rockhold that caught my attention. I like her story and analogy.

I have a hard time outsourcing my personal projects. I feel like I can do everything better myself, so I do it all myself.

But as I was buying coffee this morning, it hit me.

I have worked in retail stores where I was the manager. I called the shots. The owner was free to have multiple stores (and make more money) because he hired people (like me) to run his stores. Those owners were wealthy, played golf, and had little stress (that I could see).

But I have also worked for owners who always worked by my side. They micromanaged. They were limited because they could only work a certain amount of hours. They were limited financially. They worked 6-7 days per week. They stressed. It was miserable. In some cases, they made (after expenses) even less than I did.

The person serving me my coffee this morning was an employee. The owner would probably do a better job of running the store, but he was free to do other things because he outsourced.

I have a dozen niche blogs. I do not post on them nearly enough because I do not outsource. I did use PLR material once, but then did not do so again. (Again, because I felt I could do things better myself.)

So, in order to take my personal business (not my ghostwriting business, obviously) to the next level, I need to start outsourcing.

That was the most educational cup of coffee I have ever bought.”

- Shay Rockhold
www.shayswahideas.blogspot.com

I had the same problem as Shay… I’m a writer, I like to write, I’m pretty good at it and no one else is quite as good, I like to use my own voice…. and so forth.

I also had big problems with spending the money. I mean, why should I spend that much on something I could do easily (and better) myself? Especially when I wasn’t getting much traffic and few sales. I was hung up on the cost because all I could see was that I was spending more on the outsourcing than I was making on it, or the cost of the outsourcing was leaving me with little profits.

What I couldn’t see was the time factor. Yes, I could write my own quality article or rummage around for a free website header so I wouldn’t have to pay someone else, but I was so busy doing that kind of thing that I didn’t have time to take a step back, look at the big picture of where I wanted my small business to grow, plan it out, and decide what actionable steps I would take next.

I was so busy taking care of the small things (that I could easily do myself) that I didn’t have time for marketing, networking, and managing my business.

What I was telling myself, every time I wrote an article, was that my time was only worth $14 an hour. That’s not thinking big, is it? That’s not the way successful business owners conduct their businesses.

In the offline world, soon-to-be business owners take out loans and get seed money to start their businesses. Why is it that Internet Marketers (me included) feel they should do everything on the cheap? Maybe it would be better if we started our online businesses getting a small loan?

It makes me think of Monopoly. You can buy your houses and hotels in budget district, but you also don’t make very much when someone lands on them. Now, if you buy the luxury properties - sure they’ll cost more, but you get a much bigger return on your investment.

Now that I’m all outsource-enlightened, I see that in order to have “multiple stores” as Shay put it, I need to let others take over tasks they can do. That way I can have time to do strategic planning, gather my thoughts, start creating my next income stream, and grow my income.

Okay, I’ll stop now because I’d really like to hear what you think. Do the comment thing, please.

How To Write Popular Blog Posts

How To Write Popular Blog Posts

Maybe you’ve been blogging for a while but sometimes you feel like you’re talking to yourself.  You would really like to know how to write popular posts - the kind that people thank you for and link to because they liked it so much. You want your blog to be popular and get lots of dates on the weekends. Oh wait… that was my wish in high school.

But let me dive into that analogy…

The popular kids in high school had the best clothes as well as some of the best opportunities to succeed because everyone, including the teachers, liked them.  They were forgiven when they made mistakes and were sought out because they had qualities other kids wish they had themselves.  They were followed and copied and quoted by kids who wanted to be like them.

Having a popular blog is like that.  Your blog is well-liked and the occasional mistake or off-base rant is forgiven.  Your blog is followed, copied, and quoted and that means lots of traffic to your site.  You, the blogger, are given the best opportunities - JV partnerships, affiliate promotions, backlinks, interviews, and more.

But every post you write doesn’t have to be an award-winning post, so don’t feel overwhelmed with the pressure here.  You do need to take a little more care with some of the blog posts you write so that you’re giving some really killer content.

A popular post will have some “wowness” to it for the reader.  They’ll bookmark your site, Digg It, blog about it themselves, and leave comments.  You’ll see more traffic, an increase in opt ins, and make some money with your promotional links. 

Here are some tips for writing popular blog posts:

• Take some time choosing a great blog title.  Of course you should put your keywords in it, but you should also make it attention-getting.  You want to grab people’s attention so they’ll read your post.  A “How To” or “Top 10″ or “Action Plan” not only make good posts, but make for good blog titles.

• Make your first paragraph killer.  The post is for and about them, not you.  So explain what’s in it (the article) for them. Be interesting, draw them in.  There’s no place for fluff here; it’s your last chance to get them to read the rest of your blog post.

• There is no guarantee that an article is going to be a homerun.  But if you want to try for a grand piece, or pillar post, as Yaro Starak calls it, then spend a little more time writing it than you usually would.  Do your research, write the post, check for errors, let it simmer, and polish it before hitting the publish button.

• Look at the content in your post.  Are you giving people what they really want to know?  Are you helping them or just knitting air because you haven’t posted in a while and you know you should?  People can spot the difference.  Be helpful, try to give details not everyone already knows.

• Make your post easy on the eye.  Use a font that’s not too small and easy to read, add a picture and/or screen shots, and use numbers or bullets.  Make your paragraphs short to keep the reader’s attention from wondering off.

• Don’t be afraid to ask your readers to Digg your post, rate it, or leave comments.  Sometimes a simple request does the trick.  Comments help create buzz and even more perceived value.

• Consider linking to another site(s) in your post. The sites you link to may return the favor and that will give you some backlinks.  They may even reference your article to their list subscribers or blog readers which will bring you more eyeballs.

Sometimes what end up being popular blog posts on your site may come as a surprise, but usually the articles where you spend time giving quality information that the reader really wants are going to be the winners.

Please Digg this article if you liked it. And comments are always appreciated!  Thanks.

I’ve Come a Long Way Baby

I love doing WSO’s (Warrior Special Offers) on the Warrior Forum - the thrill, the excitement of money to be made and people to make happy, the not sleeping at night because of the temptation to check email for PayPal notifications… it’s a rush for sure!

But I didn’t always feel so comfortable running a WSO. My insecurities made me worry that no one would buy or if they did, they’d leave mean comments about it. I was anxious I wouldn’t even make enough to cover the $20 cost of the WSO.

In fact, my best selling WSO did get a couple comments that made my heart plummet. They weren’t  mean but I thought my WSO was sunk. But I took their constructive criticism and made the product better. I sold even more after that!

So I didn’t die or shrink into the wall or anything, and that gave me confidence to do more WSOs.

I remember the first time I did a WSO for my PLR articles, which was before my best seller WSO. I was an unknown and untried PLR writer who had no social proof. I thought deep down that I was a good writer, but no one else knew that and I offered that WSO kind of apologetically. That’s no way to market yourself!

I’ve come a long way baby. 

I just put up my latest PLR WSO http://cli.gs/HhQWJn and I did so with lots of eagerness. I know my articles are well-written and I’m glad people will buy them and put them to good use.  Sometimes people email me and show me what they’ve done with the PLR - a new blog post, a PDF, etc. That is so cool!

That’s it for this post, I’ve got to check my email to see if PayPal is calling.

Twitter Success Stories

So you may (or may not) be wondering what the new product I launched the other day is.

It’s called Twitter Success Stories.  

It came about when I realized there were people using Twitter very successfully to market their businesses and they all had a fantastic story or two to tell.  They’re using Twitter to brand themselves, increase their lists, sell products, and to get all sorts of lucrative business offers.

 

So I spent a couple months rounding up their stories and bundled them up for you. Here’s who graciously gave me their stories:

 

Felicia Slattery
Bev Clement
Jack Bastide
John Taylor
Dana Willhoit
Willie Crawford
John Yeo
Beverly Mahone
James Francis
Heidi Richards Mooney
Thom Scott
Craig Ballantyne
Connie Ragen Green
Coffee Groundz
Paulette Ensign
Sean Malarkey

Not only did they share their stories, they gave their favorite Twitter tips too.

I can honestly say their stories inspired me and have shown me some cool ways to use Twitter to grow my business.  Check it out - it’s an awesome ebook! (and I can say that since I didn’t actually write it - I just bundled up the stories and tips all pretty like.)

And if you’d like to be an affiliate and make money selling this book to others, click here. I’ve got some tools for you to use.

Internet Marketing vs. Vacation - Which One Wins?

Last week was spring break and we went to Florida - Disney World and the coast.  Now, maybe you think an almost 15 year old boy and a 17 year old girl are too old for Disney World but I’m here to tell you you’re wrong.  We had a blast!  I guess we’re all kids at heart when it comes to make believe.

I did have a problem, though, and I’ve learned a valuable lesson.  Don’t schedule to release your new product 2 days after your vacation.  It will cause you nights of little sleep on your trip as your mind kicks into overtime thinking about what all you have left to do, who you need to still contact, if you should tweak the product yet again before it goes live, etc, etc.

It wasn’t bad during the day, but when the outside world around me calmed down at night, I wasn’t thinking about Mickey Mouse, I was thinking about my business. I had that feeling in the pit of my stomach… you know the one you got when you were school-age and you were doing something fun when you should have been writing your big essay?

So my question to you is:  How do you COMPLETELY let go of work while you’re off having a much deserved vacation?  How do you totally turn off your marketing mind when it shows up at inappropriate times - like when it’s supposed to be going night-night?

Tips and hints appreciated.  Just hit the comment button and let me have them.

Thanks,
Peggy

Internet Marketing Profit Machine

I’ve become friends with a guy names James Francis through Twitter. I’d hop over to his blog when I got a chance to see what he had posted.  We would chat through DM and then email. I was impressed with his Internet Marketing knowledge. I mean, this guy knows a lot and yet he doesn’t go around tooting his horn and shouting “Hey, look at ME!”  You know those types.

Anyway, James has just come out with Internet Marketing Profit Machine.  He has been working on this thing non-stop for the past 6 months so my expectations were really high.  He’s finally let me take a look around and I was not disappointed.  Mind you, I didn’t watch every single video in there, but what I did watch I was impressed with.

It’s hard to sum it up in one sentence, but I’ll try even though it’s early and I haven’t even had my coffee yet. 

Internet Marketing Profit Machine looks to be a total “How To” package with videos, templates, and resources that can help you get started, and even jump ahead in your quest to make money on the Internet and it’s all in one place.

Sorry that wasn’t a very pretty sentence, was it? I’ll add now that James has put everything he can think of in this package and even included links to outside resources to further help you.

Having been burned a few times buying internet marketing products I’ve come to learn that knowing the product creator’s reputation and knowing if I could trust him/her is so important.

James is a good guy and he is so eager to help people. That means a lot to me and that’s why I recommend you take a look at this package. 

No, Internet Marketing Profit Machine is not for everyone.  If you’re up and running and making good money already, then don’t bother. Although I think everyone should study how he put everything together with his sales page/videos/free website templates.

Which reminds me… grab his website templates free! That’s the first thing I did when I started nosing around there.  Why not?

Wedding Bells

Yes, I do believe I hear wedding bells.

Not for me… I’ve been married 18 years and I’m holding out for an exotic trip on our 20th. Shhh, he doesn’t know that yet.

No, the wedding bells I hear are for those of you in the wedding niche, because NOW is the season for weddings and the time for you to kick it into high gear with your site.  And to help you with your quest to make some money in this lucrative arena, I’ve got wedding PLR for you.

It’s set up the same way as the Baby Boomer PLR through mynicheplr.com - 12 articles and 1 short report each month zipping through cyberspace right to your email. Once a week you’ll get 3 articles (and the report once a month) for just $9.95 per month!  And if you order through this link:  Wedding PLR  you will get a bonus of 5 free articles.

The advantages? 

* QUALITY PLR to add to your sites so you can keep front and center in the search engines.
* You don’t have to waste time looking for PLR, it comes to you.
* You don’t have to write articles yourself!
* Add affiliate links to the PLR articles to cash in.
* You get a short report you can give away to grow your list.
* Put some of the PLR together and you’ve got a product of your own to sell.

Just let me know if you have any questions.

Wedding PLR is the link.  Here are the titles for the first month.
It’s limited to 100 members, but if you get in now you’ll be among the first to get your hands on the articles!

Peggy

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