internet mareting digect - issue 2
DESCRIPTION
Issue 2 of IMD focuses on Mobile Marketing.TRANSCRIPT
CELLLULAR & PC F R E EINAUGURALISSUE$50
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I S S U ETHE BIG MO N EY
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CONTENTSStuff we put loads of effort into
Developing Realistic Financial
Assumptions in Your Business Plan
3 Effective Tactics Every Business
Should Implement
$3 Million in 6 Months
Do You Have What It Takes?
Back-End Products…
Business Plan Writers
Hello Im Johnny Cash
How to Make Your Computer your
Personal ATM
Define Social Marketing
Enhance Your Social Marketing Campaign
Mobile Marketing- Text Message
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OFFLINE MAGAZINE
Small Business Tips
Analyzing Customers In Your Business
7 Online Business Plan Scams and 1
Real Deal
Are you Satisfied with your Business
just as it is?
Checklist For Starting A Business
Finance Your Small Business
Franchise Opportunities
Alternatives to Credit Cards
100,000 Subscribers in 30 Days?
5 Mobile Marketing Productivity Tips
Social Marketing Jobs
More stuff we put loads of effort into
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CONTENTS
INTERNET MARKETING DIGEST
Editor’s NoteHi Readers
Welcome to this edition of Offline Magazine. In Offline
Magazine we teach you everything you need to know to
make your business a success online.
Every month, we cover topics like:
Social Marketing
Small Business marketing
Mobile Marketing
Franchising
and more…
Your contributions and feedback to this publication are
highly valued, so please use the links to our Facebook
page, twitter feed, email and our website to keep in touch
and help keep us on track to make this the best publication
possible.
We also specialize in helping small businesses become
hugely successful online. Should you require any
professional assistance with your online strategy, please
get in contact with us, as we’d be happy to give you a free
appraisal of your current online performance and suggest
some improvements to help boost conversion of your
prospects into customers.
Thanks for investing your time to educate yourself by
reading our publication. We look forward to serving you
and your business now and well into the future.
Have fun,
The Editor
Developing Realistic Financial Assumptions in Your Business Plan
Many investors skip straight to the
financial section of the business plan. It
is critical that the assumptions and
projections in this section be realistic.
Plans that show penetration, operating
margin and revenues per employee
figures that are poorly reasoned,
in ternal ly inconsistent or s imply
unrealistic greatly damage the credibility
of the entire business plan. In contrast,
s o b e r, w e l l - r e a s o n e d f i n a n c i a l
a s s u m p t i o n s a n d p r o j e c t i o n s
communicate operational maturity and
credibility.
For instance, i f the company is
c a t e g o r i z e d a s a n e t w o r k i n g
infrastructure firm, and the business plan
projects 80% operat ing margins,
investors will raise a red flag. This is
because investors can readily access the
operating margins of publicly-traded
networking infrastructure firms and find
As much as possible, the financial assumptions
should be based on actual results from your or
other firms. As the example above indicates, it is
fairly easy to look at a public company’s
operating margins and use these margins to
approximate your own. Likewise, the business
plan should base revenue growth on other firms.
Many firms find this impossible, since they
believe they have a break-through product in
their market, and no other company compares.
In such a case, base revenue growth on
companies in other industries that have had
break-through products. If you expect to grow
even faster than they did (maybe because of
new technologies that those firms weren’t able to
employ), you can include more aggressive
assumptions in your business plan as long as
you explain them in the text.
The financials can either enhance or significantly
harm your business plan’s chances of assisting
you in the capital-raising process. By doing the
research to develop realistic assumptions, based
on actual results of your or other companies, the
financials can bolster your firm’s chances of
winning investors. As importantly, the more
realistic financials will also provide a better
roadmap for your company’s success.
3 EFFECTIVE
TACTICS
EVERY%BUSINESS%SHOULD%IMPLEMENTDo you remember your first day as a business owner? You
were probably just like the rest of us... pretty darned happy
and bit on the proud side. Yeah, back then we thought we
could conquer the world. Now we're too busy conquering
our own little corner of the world to pay a lot of attention to
the rest of the world... unless it's to learn a few tips from
successful marketers just like us who have made it big. Tips
just like these... that will apply to every market - regardless
of the product or service - are a great motivators to try
something new. Yeah, you never know when the next idea
will be worth a million dollars!
1. Create a Special Offer
A special offer is exactly that... an offer that is special.
Normally, customers would not be able to purchase this
product or combination of products, and once the products
are gone... sorry!
You don't have to go out and order a bunch of new
products to put together a special offer. It don't take a whole
lot... just use what you've got. Grab a few items that are
related, group them together, discount the price, and your
customers will be excited to be getting a good deal. Think
about it from your standpoint... you've sold three or four
items rather than one. Yeah, combination offers are winning
deals for everyone!
2. Address the Small Customer Groups
Niche markets are everywhere, right under your nose!
Within the customer audience that you serve right now are
groups of people who share common traits. Think about it...
maybe you have a group who speaks Spanish, a group of
teens, and a group of middle class family men and women.
Evaluate these classes of people, and discover the unique
needs and desires they share. That will set you up to
customize your advertising campaign directly to them. It’s
not hard to take your current ads, and make a few changes
to adjust to the niches. They’ll be impressed that you
understand THEM, and the increase in your profits will be
the best thanks you can get.
3. Set Up a Winning Referral Program
Successful marketers develop the ability to turn their
customers into advocates. Often, they don't even
have to directly ask customers to refer them to
others. Their willingness to go the extra wins
customer loyalty and support. Naturally, satisfied
customers refer their friends and family to the place
that will take good care of them.
Quality service and is the first step toward referrals,
but you can easily take it one step further. Studies
show that every satisfied customer tells three people
about you. What would happen with a little incentive
added to the picture? Yeah, a lot more. Give
customers who refer friends a thank you - whether it's
a discount, special gift item, or a simple thank you
card - and watch the referrals spiral!
You can get two birds with one stone by implimenting
customer surveys. A few quick questions about what
the customer does and doesn't like about your
product, followed by a request for the names and
addresses of friends and family who would benefit
from the product, and you're all set to go with the
contact information of a prospective customer!
IMD 5
$3 MILLIONIN 6 MONTHS
WITH ADSENSE!Markus Frind, the creator of Plentyoffish.com is a success
story worth noting, as he has managed to take a niche
formerly ruled by giant corporations and give it his own brand
of marketing savvy. A case of David vs. Goliath, where the
little guy comes out on top in the end. Markus is the top
"individual" adsense publisher in terms of pageviews. Lets
find out what some of his secrets are as he shares some
advice with our readers. Feel free to comment!
Markus, what is your experience in computer programming
and how did it prepare you for becoming a webmaster?
The average pageviews a day is around 14 million for the last
week. I'm getting another 80 million pageviews a day from
users polling the site to see if they have new messages.
Really intensive bandwidth wise!
When I go to your website, I notice that the ads are targeted
to my region, yet I have not even registered- can you explain
to our readers how you accomplish this feat?
I'm just using ip2location.com- Basically i take your IP, look it
up in the database and it tells me what your city is. I then
bring up a list of users in your city, nothing magical about it at
all.
Are most of your visitors coming primarily from search
engines (SERPS), or are you finding that they come from
other avenues? Do you actively advertise in the media?
Search engines account for something like 2% of my traffic.
The vast majority of my traffic, like any other site with over 5
million pageviews a day comes from word of mouth, and
repeat visitors.
The services on your site seem to be offered at no cost to the
registrants. Is there some advantage you have over your
competitors that allows you to do this?
I've developed new algorithms that allow me to create a mega
site for next to no cost. Several years ago I created algorithm
that was thousands of times faster then the algorithm used in
the 1990's to find a string of 22 prime numbers. At the time a
professor used several super computers and hundreds of
regular computers over the course of several years to find a
record. I did the same thing on 1 computer in 2 weeks.
Fascinating! Are there any other sites you currently maintain,
or is plentyoffish.com the only one?
Its the only site at the moment. I've got a few other sites I
registered for friends so they could learn to do marketing/
affiliate stuff. At this point i think 1 site is enough.
Any tips for those looking to create a profitable endeavor on
the internet?
IF someone else thinks what you are doing is a cool idea I'd
say it isn't... Find something no one else thinks is important
and build up a site with big traffic in that area. Also keep in
mind, sites that have low monetization today but have traffic
may be the gold mines of tomorrow. In the internet world
anything and everything will be monetized at some point and
traffic is king.
Traffic is King- very wise advice, Markus. One last question-
How do you find the time to maintain such a large commodity
on the internet? Surely you must have some other interests in
life besides programming and website monitoring?
It only takes a hour a day on average, but its very tiring work. I
spend the other couple of hours reading and seeing what is
going on.
IMD 6
DO YOU HAVE WHAT IT TAKESDo%you%have%what%it%takes%to%be%really%successful?
Have%you%ever%thought%about%what%you%must%be%prepared%to%endure%and%do%in%order%to%be%successful%in%business%or%your%career?
I%think%I%have%been%asked%at%least%5,000%Omes%what%it%really%takes%to%be%successful%in%business,%so%I%joQed%down%10%quesOons%you%can%use%to%gauge%whether%you%already%have%what%it%takes,%or%if%you%need%to%do%a%liQle%“work”%to%get%there.
Many%years%ago%I%heard%Jim%Rohn%say%that%you%either%pay%the%price%of%discipline%or%the%price%of%regret.%Discipline%weighs%ounces…regret%weighs%tons!
With%that%said,%here%are%10%quesOons%to%ask%yourself:%
•%Are%you%disciplined?%
•%Do%you%take%rejecOon%personally?%What%about%criOcism?%
•%Do%you%bounce%back%quickly%from%making%errors%or%failing%over%and%over%again?%
•%Are%you%a%planner%or%do%you%do%things%by%the%seat%of%your%pants?%
•%Are%you%prepared%to%take%risks?%Moderate%or%Big?
•%Do%you%stay%focused%on%one%thing%and%one%thing%only%unOl%the%result%you%want%is%achieved?%
•%Do%you%have%the%stamina%to%keep%going%long%a]er%everyone%else%is%Ored?%
•%Can%you%delegate%well,%or%are%you%the%only%one%who%can%do%things%right?%
•%Do%you%wait%for%things%to%happen%or%do%you%aggressively%go%a]er%what%you%want?%
•%Do%you%do%whatever%it%takes%to%achieve%your%goals%or%just%what's%convenient?%
These%quesOons%are%criOcal%for%you%to%ask%yourself%in%order%to%get%a%true%picture%of%your%nature%and%behavior.
What%I%have%found%is%that%successful%people%are%aware%of%the%consequences%of%not%being%efficient%in%these%areas,%and%find%other%ways,%resources%or%people%to%manage%for%them.
Food%for%thought?
Remember%to%create%a%masterpiece!
You%have%permission%to%publish%these%arOcles%electronically%or%in%print,%free%of%charge,%as%long%as%the%bylines%are%included.%A%courtesy%copy%of%your%publicaOon%would%be%appreciated
?
t%Below%are%ten%killer%strategies%you%can%use%to%sell%your%backcend%products%to%your%exisOng%customers:
Back-End Products.The Key To Lasting Profits
If%you're%not%trying%to%sell%backcend%products%to%your%customers,%you're%making%a%big%mistake.%It%is%easier%to%sell%to%exisOng%customers%than%it%is%to%sell%to%new%ones%who%don't%trust%your%business%yet.%
1.%When%you%ship%people%the%first%product% they%bought,%insert%a%flyer%or%brochure%for%your%backcend%product%in%the%package.%
2.%Give%customers%a%free%subscripOon%to%a%customers%only%eczine%when%they%buy%your%product.%You%could%include%your%ad%for%your%backcend%product%in%each%issue.%
3.%Send%your% customers%greeOng%cards%on% holidays% or% on% their%birthday.%Include%a%small%adverOsement% inside%the%card%for% your%backcend%product.%
4.% A]er% people% order% your% first% product% from% your% web% site,%take%them%to%a% "thank%you"% web% page%and% include%your% backcend%product%ad%on%that%page.%
5.%Send%customers%a%free%surprise%gi]%a]er%they%order%your%first%product.%You%could%aQach%another%ad%with%the%free%gi]%for% your%backcend%product.
6.% If% you're % selling% an% electronic% product,% like % an%ebook,% include% your% ad% for% your% backcend% product%somewhere%inside%the%electronic%product.%
7.%Give%your%customers%a %free %membership%into%your%"customers %only"%private %site.%You%could%include%your%ad%for%your%backcend%product% somewhere %inside%the%private%site.%
8.%Contact%your%customers%by%phone%and%ask%them%if%they%were%happy%with%their%purchase.%You%could%tell%them%about%your%backcend%product.%
9.%Send%your%customers %a %thank%you%leQer%by%mail %or%ecmail.% You% could%menOon% your% backcend% product%somewhere%on%the%leQer.%
10.%Ask%your%customers%if%they%want%to%be%updated%in%the%future%when%you%have %new%product%offers.% You%could% have%them%sign%up% to% receive %ecmail %or% snail%mail%updates.%
Your%business %will %have%a%greater%chance%of%surviving%when%you%aQempt%to%sell %backcend%products %to%your%exisOng%customers.
Below%are%ten%killer%strategies%you%can%use%to%sell%your%backcend%products%to%your%exisOng%
BUSINESS PLAN WRITERS: SHOULD YOU HIRE ONE?
Are% you% interested% in% star8ng% up% your% own%business?% %If%so,%you%should%carefully%consider%wri8ng% a% business% plan.% % The% thought% of%preparing% a% business% plan% tends% to% fill% most%business% owners% with% dread;% it% can% be% a%difficult,% stressful,% and% 8me% consuming%process.% %For%this%reason%alone%you%may%want%to%think%about%seeking%assistance.
One%of%the%many%ways%that% you%can% seek%help% to%write%your%plan%is%by%hiring%a%professional,%who% in%this%case%is%a%professional%business%plan%writer.
What%Is%a%Professional%Business%Plan%Writer?
Before% deciding%whether% or% not% you% should% hire% the%services%of%a%professional% business% plan% writer,% you% should% first% clearly%understand% what% they% are.% % In% most% cases,% you% will% find% these%individuals% to% be% experienced,% professional% writers% who% are% well%versed%in%business%terminology%and%who%can%effecOvely%understand%the% needs% of% businesses.% % It% is% important% to% understand% when%wriOng%anything,%even%a%business%plan,%that%it% is%the%wording%which%makes% all% the% difference;% the% words% used% can% be% the% difference%between%success%and% failure.%That% is%why%a%large%number% of% small%business%owners%turn%to%professional%writers%for%assistance.
What%a%Professional%Business%Plan%Writer%Can%Do%For%You
When%it%comes%to%searching%for%a%professional%business%plan%writer,%you% will% find% that% different% writers% perform% different% duOes.% For%example, %a% large% number% of% writers% will% merely% take% your% ideas,%which% you% have% already%thought% out% and% developed, %and% present%them%in%a%professional%maQer;%they%will% just%present%your%plans%in%a%more%professional%way%than%you%could.
Then%there%are%the%professional%business%plan%writers%who%will%work%with%you%to%develop%your%plan%from%the%incepOon%of%the%basic%ideas%for% your% business% to% the% finish% document. % % Naturally% since% more%work%and%Ome%goes%into%to%assisOng%you%with%developing%a%business%plan% from%the%boQom%up%you%will%probably%find%that% the%services%of%these%writers%cost%more%than%tradiOonal%ones.
Why%Hire%a%Professional%Business%Plan%Writer?
There% are% a% number% of% different% reasons% why% small% business%owners%turn%to%professional%business%plan%writers.%One%of%the%key%reasons%is%of%lack%of%experience%when%it%comes%to%purng%ideas%on%paper% and% not% knowing%what% format% a%plan%should% take. % %If%you%have% never% created% a% business% plan% before% you% can% easily% find%yourself%staring%at%a%blank%piece%of%paper%for%hours%on%end!
Although% it% is% relaOvely% easy% to% learn% how% to% create% your% own%plan, % it% can% be% a% Ome% consuming% process% to% undertake% the%research% and% get% into% the% appropriate% mindset.%With% the% right%experience,% a% professional% business% plan% writer% will% be% able% to%create%a%detailed,%professional%business%plan%in%half%the%Ome%that%it%would%take%you%to%create%the%same%plan.
How%Do%You%Find%Someone?
If% you% are% interested% in% acquiring% the% services%of% a%professional%business% plan% writer,% you% have% a% number% of% different% opOons.%%One%of%those%opOons% is% to% search% for% someone%locally.% %Dealing%with%a%local%business%plan%writer%is%great,%especially%if%you%want%to%deal%with% someone% facectocface.% %Your% search%can% focus%on%your%local% government% business%advice%centers% or% even% asking%fellow%business% colleagues.% If% there% is%a%wriOng%group%or% circle% in% your%locality%then%you%can%approach%them%for%potenOal%names.
The%only%problem% that%you%may%find%is% that%not%all% areas%of% your%country%will%have%professional%business%plan%writers.%%This%means%you% may% have% to% turn% to% the% Internet% for% assistance.% By%conducOng% an% online% search% you% will% find% a% large% number% of%professional%writers%who%specialize%in%creaOng%or%wriOng%business%
IMD 10
"Hello, I'm Johnny Cash" -
Surprising Lessons For Work At Home
Moms
I've%unearthed%some%surprising%bits%of%wisdom%for%new%wahms%by%listening%to%Johnny%Cash%lately.%I%thought%I%would%share%some%of%these%Odbits%from%the%Rockabilly%legend.
1)%Understand%Your%Man%...er,%target%market!
That's%right.%Do%you%understand%your%target%market?%Are%you%aware%of%her%needs,%desires%and%driving%ambiOons?%Does%your%website%speak%to%your%target%audience?%If%not,%perhaps%you%should%make%some%changes%or%your%website%visitor%or%customer%will%be%"as%gone%as%a%wild%goose%in%winter"%too!
2)%A%Boy%Named%Sue
Life%ain't%easy%for%a%boy%named%Sue...and%life%ain't%easy%for%a%wahm%either.%In%your%business%you%will%have%those%confidence%killers,%dream%stealers,%fun%suckers...whatever%you%want%to%call%them.%You%will%have%people%who%try%to%tell%you%that%you%can't%achieve%your%goals,%that%what%you%try%won't%work.%Don't%let%them%get%you%down!%
Sue's%father%told%him,%"This%world%is%rough,%and%if%you're%gonna%make%it,%you've%goQa%be%tough."
How%can%you%get%tough%in%your%business?
3)%Man%In%Blackc%or%Branding%101
J.R.%Cash%didn't%don%the%all%black%suit%because%he%didn't%have%anything%else%to%wear.%It%was%his%trademark.%He%wore%all%black%for%a%reason.%
What%about%you?%Are%you%working%on%your%brand?%In%a%world%full%of%Elvis%Presleys%and%Jerry%Lee%Lewises,%how%will%you%stand%apart?%And%remember,%your%target%market%doesn't%have%to%be%just%like%youc%Johnny%Cash%wrote%Folsom%Prison%Blues%and%connected%with%inmates%when%he%had%never%yet%step%foot%in%jail!%
4)%The%Legend%of%John%Henry's%Hammer
This%song%has%two%bits%of%wisdom:%
John%Henry's%Daddy%told%him%to:%"Learn%to%a%turn%a%jack,%learn%to%lay%a%track,%learn%to%pick%and%shovel%too."%Are%you%learning%all%you%can%about%Internet%MarkeOng%so%that%you%can%succeed%in%your%business?%Do%you%reinvest%in%ebooks,%coaching%and%mentoring,%and%so]ware%like%John%Henry's%hammer?
b)%Technology%has%its%place%but%it%can't%take%the%place%of%humans.
When%the%steam%engine%threatened%to%take%the%place%of%men,%Johnny%proved%that%in%the%end,
humans%are%more%valuable.%Learn%to%use%technology%(like%autoresponders)%but%remember%that%your%website%visitor%is%a%human%and%inject%some%of%yourself%into%your%markeOng%efforts.
5)%One%Piece%at%a%Time
This%ballad%is%about%a%man%who%decides%to%build%a%Cadillac.%He%steals%one%piece%at%a%Ome%from%the%assembly%line%"and%it%didn't%cost%him%a%dime".%But%in%the%end,%it%didn't%work%out%exactly%like%he%planned!
Does%your%website%look%like%a%pieced%together%jalopy?%Are%you%unwilling%to%spend%any%money%on%your%own%domain%and%hosOng,%content%with%a%free%site%cluQered%up%with%ads?%
6)%In%The%Jailhouse%Now
Please%don't%throw%away%your%hard%work%by%doing%one%of%the%following%things:
Spamming%
Copying%other%people's%arOcles%or%content
Stealing%graphics
Clicking%on%your%Adsense%ads
Not%keeping%records%and%neglecOng%to%pay%taxes
It%just%isn't%worth%it,%and%you%may%find%yourself%in%the%jailhouse.%Much%beQer%to%Walk%the%Line%so%you%can%sleep%at%night.%
How to Make your Computer your
P e r s o n a l A T M
Do%you% think% that% ATM’s%are%only%available%at%banks%and% credit%unions?% % Think% again.% % Your% computer% can%become% your% own%personal%ATM%machine.%%How%can%you%turn%your%computer%into%a%money% making% machine?% % Jump% into% the% world% of% internet%markeOng.%%An%Internet%markeOng%business%is %not%only%profitable,%but%can%be%started%quickly%and%affordably.%%
What%should%you%do%first%to%help%you%start%an%Internet%markeOng%business?% %You%need%to%create%a%website%that%reaches %millions%of%potenOal%customers%all%over% the%globe.% % There% are%hundreds %of%so]ware%programs,%companies,%and%offerings%out%there.% % If% you%are%not%familiar%with%Internet%infrastructure%then%you%may%have%a%difficult% Ome% trying% to% find% the% right% company% to% host% your%website.% %We%have%taken%the%confusion%out%of% this%situaOon%for%you%by% providing% references%for%the%best%so]ware%tools%to%help%get%you%started.
First,%you%will%need%a%domain%name.%%Domain%names%are%the%text%that% users% will% type% into% the% Internet% to% access % you% website.%%Think%carefully%about%your%domain%name%so%that%it%is %relevant%to%your%product%or%service.
Once%you%have%a%domain%name%in%mind,%you%need%to%make%sure%that%it%is%not%taken.%%You%can%type%it%into%your%Internet%browser%and%see%if%anything%comes%up.%%However,%it%is%good%to%check%this%through%the%domain%provider%we%recommend%which%is%www.godaddy.com.
When%you%purchase%a%domain%name%at%www.godaddy.com,%make%sure%that%you%only%purchase%the%domain%name%and%none%of%the%extra%services.%%Godaddy%has%a%tendency%to%jack%up%the%prices%on%these%services%when%you%can%find%them%much%more%affordably%at%www.fronOerpowerhosOng.com.
FronOerpowerhosOng.com%will%be%your%web%hosOng%service.%%This%web%hosOng%Service%Company%is%top%notch%because%you%receive%your%OWN%IP%address.%%It%is%criOcal%to%have%your%own%IP%address%so%that%your%emails%are%never%blocked%due%to%an%email%spammer%that%has%the%same%IP%address.%%FronOerpowerhosOng.com%also%has%excellent%customer%service%phone%support.%%In%addiOon,%FronOerpowerhosOng.com%provides%an%“Email%Tracker”%feature%which%enables%you%to%track%your%emails.
FronOerpowerhosOng.com% also% will% provide% you% with%informaOon% regarding% the% deliverability% rate% for% any%emails %you% send.% % This% informaOon%will%help% you% tailor%your%markeOng%efforts.
Next%you%will%need%to%setup%a%“smart%Autoresponder”.%%A%smart% Autoresponder% is% one% that% automaOcally% sends%emails % or% forms% to% users% in% order% to% capture% their%personal% informaOon.% % Make% sure% that% your%Autoresponder%captures%the%following%informaOon:% %first%name,%last%name,%email%address,%Ome%and%date%stamp.
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Once% you% have% these% tools % in% place,% you% are% ready% to%create% your% website.% % Change% your% personal% computer%
IMD 12
Define Social Marketing?-Old Wine in A
New Bottle
Generally, social marketing can be defined as a new
concept (not so new though) to market or promote an
endeavor using the internet and the web2.0 based tools.
Started with this small approach, social marketing has
now gained a new level as many people across the world
are joining the worldwide business chain with several new
ideas and strategies. The purpose of social marketing is
to provide fast and quality service using the World Wide
Web. All the enterprises of online business market are
aiming to be part of global economy and take their
business to next level with the help of social media
marketing. In essence, social marketing is the key word to
get a worldwide platform and succeed in business. Apart
from this brief definition social marketing has different
other wings that needs a proper co-ordination for proper
marketing.
Social media sites were basically created an online
network of people who wanted to communicate with each
other and stay in touch. Business owners and corporate
houses used the social media tools for marketing their
businesses, services or products. Just from its beginning,
social marketing has succeeded to create a difference in
the world of business. Businesses houses that made
careful and strategic use of social media sites created a
revolution in the marketing world but at the same time
careless and casual dealing spelled doom for many
businesses.
If you are a newcomer to the world of social media
marketing then you need not worry a lot about the results
of your efforts because there are thousands of online
resources from where you would be able to learn some
vital tips and tricks to crack the social networking or social
marketing nut. Online reviews, e-books available on
"soc ia l market ing" would prov ide you wi th a
comprehensive picture of social media marketing world.
The pros and cons of this business and survival strategies
are also discussed thoroughly in these books, journals or
articles. Here, in this blog we will discuss the two most
potential social media - Facebook and Twitter and
strategies that would get surprising fast results from.
Facebook:
Let's start with Facebook that has been ranked as the
second most popular (Google is still number 1) social
media site for its popularity. With the introduction of
Facebook, social marketing has taken a new turn and
the generation now defines social marketing in a
single word, which is Facebook.
Business owners are making the most out of
Facebook and taking the opportunity to measure their
performance from both positive and negative
comments on their products and services. Using
Facebook, clients can research on the needs and
demands of customers, which changes frequently. At
the same time one can provide updates on the
upcoming services or products fan pages to keep the
visitors engaged. Spending a few extra dollars on
Facebook and let visitor's know about your company
directly from Facebook.
Twitter:
As a social media site, Twitter has been ranked tenth
and is being used widely to deliver short messages at
incredible speed. A short message of 140 characters
reaches the inbox of your consumers in a minute and
the tweets will spread to the mass in an explosive
manner. There is no other cost-effective and time-
saving marketing idea than tweeting about a product.
Twitter has more preference among the busy users
who prefer to get product updates just right to the
point. The most important fact about twitter is that it
always contains relevant messages, so the customers
will read them thoroughly, instead of just ignoring
them.
Now, it depends on your business and the product
when you get down to choosing between Facebook
and Twitter - choose the one that suits your business
needs perfectly.
Enhance Your Social Marketing Campaign
Social Media marketing has ushered in a new
age of advertising and promotion that business,
groups and organizations around the world have
readily adopted. Today social media campaigns
are actively promoted on various networking
engines through onl ine promotions and
marketing. So the question is, among numerous
brands how does one stand out in social circles?
I want to bring to your attention a new article by
John Jantsch and Hugh at Hide and Seek media
titled "5 Tips to Enhance Your Social Media
Marketing Campaign". The article is essentially a
how to guide to build and develop your own social
media marketing campaign.
The 5 tips are Integrate, Amplify, Re-purpose,
Generate Leads, Learn. For a detai led
understanding of each of these areas I suggest
(and highly recommend) that you read the
original article. I would however like to take a
moment and summarize each area.
Integrate: This is in my opinion the starting step
for any successful marketing campaign.
Remember every social platform has its benefits
and drawbacks, so it's important to understand
the needs of your business and what online
marketing tools will give you the best bang for
your buck.
Amplify: I cannot stress the importance of
amplifying social profiles. This is the key
between a successful campaign that will lead
to consistent growth for your business and a
one-time spike in your online traffic. People
that are a part of your social graph want to
know that you care about their opinions and
genuinely want their attention. A lack of
follow through can cripple a social marketing
campaign before it even starts.
Repurpose: Its all about marketing in as
many ways or methods as possible. With any
news or update, you should be writing blogs,
actively posting on your Facebook fan page,
creating podcasts, essentially building your
brand in as many ways as possible.
Remember, just about any medium you can
think of can be and should be used to
market your business.
Generate Leads: The key here is to make
sure you generate leads elsewhere, you
don't need to be actively selling on your
campaigns, instead these campaigns should
provide links to an area where prospective
buyers' needs can be fulfilled.
Learn: Don't reinvent the
wheel, learn from those
who have done a good job
marketing their brands.
Learn not only about how
they do it but where they
do it. Is there a new social
network where you can
market? Is there some
unique way to market
brand? Do your research!
Mobile Marketing - Text Message, the Leading Medium
Mobile Marketing is the fastest growing advertising
technique and can communicate instantly with customers.
Businesses may send a text message blast to all
customers that have given permission to receive them,
offering a keyword or promotional offer. Customers will view
the text message moments after being sent containing a
link to the website or simply by reading the message and
showing it to the business. Compared to other types of
mediums such as TV, print, and radio, mobile marketing is
less expensive, personable, and instant.
It has become effective due to the technological cell phone
age that has created an instant gratification public. Text
messages are more likely to be opened and responded to
than emails or direct mail, primarily because customers
must opt-in for the mobile promotions. These customers
want to be advertised to and are more likely to use the
coupon promotion bringing customers to the business more
effectively. With customers providing permission to contact
them, they are trusting businesses leading to brand loyalty.
Cell phones are a very personable item that people
continuously use 24/7, allowing advertising to reach
consumers at a high rate.
The reach of mobile marketing not only advertises to smart
phone users but to traditional cell phone users also. Mobile
traditionalists comprise 60% of mobile users that website
advertising cannot reach. Text messages can reach an
audience of 100.7 million compared to the web at 34.1
million. People have their devoted attention to their cell
phones and interact with them uninterruptedly. With web
and TV, the audience is most likely distracted by numerous
attempts to gain attention. Mobile marketing breaks through
the clutter and advertises to customers as an individual.
Cel l phones have become personable through
individualized apps and reflect an active user perspective
on consumers. Marketing professionals can detect where a
customer has been, what they've been doing, and
essentially know that customer. This allows businesses to
better fulfill the needs of their customers, relating their
product specifically to their habits. People use their cell
phone for just about everything now, carrying it
everywhere, checking their personal accounts, and leaving
intimate details about themselves. Businesses can relate
relevant and valuable information to customers creating a
deep relationship.
GPS location is also a successful tool that mobile marketing
utilizes. It can direct the text message blast within a certain
mileage of the business or target certain demographics
specifically. By reaching a more precise target, there is no wasted
circulation and the message is delivered to the intended target
audience. Through the help of mobile carriers, there may be user
profiles to better pinpoint a target audience. Mobile marketing
uses geography to make advertising integrate into a campaign,
focusing at home or away.
The use of an effective mobile marketing campaign has the
chance to double a business' revenue but at the cost of $100,000,
in 2007. In a recent campaign I conducted for a counseling
business, the use of text message appointment reminders and
online booking doubled the profit intake for the business. Since
mobile marketing is a recent advertising campaign, there are still
challenges to be considered. But, it has proven to be an effective
and upcoming marketing medium.
The beginning of mobile marketing has been successful and
shines hope on upcoming advances for companies such as
AdMob, Quattro Wireless, Millennium Media, JumpTap, and
InMobi. Future mobile marketing may include video messages,
advertising with games, screen savers and coupons. Mobile
marketing has proved to be a success for many businesses, and is
an upcoming leading medium in the advertising world.
IMD 15
Small Business Tips
Owning and running your own small business
is a great thing to do, but it is not always easy.
If you want to have success with your small
business, there are some ways to do it, though.
Here are some small business tips to maximize
your profits and minimize your headache, even
early on with the business.
The first of the small business tips that you
need to remember is that in the early time of
the business, you want to keep your profits as
high as possible. This is not always an easy
thing to do because often, especially when your
business has first opened, your customers are
pretty low, and therefore your money is pretty
low. In order to make this happen, keep your
spending as low as you can. Avoid buying
anything that is unnecessary in order to keep
all the money that you can.
Another of the great small business tips that
you can use is about advertising. If you want
to get customers, which are necessary for
the success of many businesses, you will
have to advertise in order to get them.
Advertising is something that you should
always make room for in your budget. Of
course, finding the most affordable methods
of advertising early on will make quite a bit of
difference. It may take more work, though.
If you want to start your own small business,
the market for a business is something you
should consider. If there is no market for your
business, you will not have any success with
it. So, make sure that the people in your area
will want to purchase the products or
services that you will offer them. This is a
very important part of having any sort of
success with a business - possibly the most
important in some cases, because it can
often determine the success or failure of a
business.
Another of the great business tips that you
can use is to always take advantage of the
Internet. Even if your business is not one
that would benefit in any way from a website,
it is a great idea to advertise on the Internet.
This can greatly expand your ability to get
customers. And what's even better - Internet
advertising is far more affordable than many
local newspapers. This is advantageous for
additional advertising at a great price, which
is especially great for young businesses that
don't have a lot of money to spend on
advertising.
If you have a successful small business,
then you will experience all of the great
advantages of it. But, you have to have a
successful small business in order for that to
happen. These small business tips will help
you make your business more successful so
that you will actually make money. Keep all of
these in mind when you buy a business or
when you start one of your own. They will be
helpful in both cases to get your business
established and help you actually make
money.
Analyzing Customers in
Your Business PlanThe Customer Analysis section of the business
plan assesses the customer segments that the
company serves. In it, the company must 1)
identify its target customers, 2) convey the needs
of these customers, and 3) show how its
products and services satisfy these needs.
The first step of the Customer Analysis is to
define exactly which customers the company is
serving. This requires specificity. It is not
adequate to say the company is targeting small
businesses, for example, because there are
several million of these types of customers.
Rather, the plan must identify precisely the
customers it is serving, such as small
businesses with 10 to 50 employees based in
large metropolitan cities on the West Coast.
Once the plan has clearly identified and defined
the company’s target customers, it is necessary
to explain the demographics of these customers.
Questions to be answered include: 1) how many
potential customers fit the given definition? is
this customer base growing or decreasing? 2)
what is the average revenues/income of these
customers? and 3) where are these customers
geographically based?
After explaining customer demographics, the
plan must detail the needs of these customers.
Conveying customer needs could take the form
of past actions (X% have purchased a similar
product in the past), future projections (when
interviewed, X% said that they would purchase
product/service Y) and/or implications (because
X% use a product/service which our product/
service enhances/replaces, then X% need our
product/service).
The business plan must also detail the drivers of
customer decision-making. Sample questions to
answer include: 1) Do customers find price to be
more important than the quality of the product
or service? and 2) are customers looking for the
highest level of reliability, or will they have their
own support and just seek a basic level of
service?
There is one last critical step in the Customer
Analysis -- showing an understanding of the
actual decision-making process. Examples of
questions to be answered here include: 1) will
the cus tomer consu l t o thers in the i r
organization/family before making a decision?,
2) will the customer seek multiple bids? and 3)
will the product/service require significant
operational changes (e.g., will the customer
have to invest time to learn new technologies?
will the product/service cause other members
within the organization to lose their jobs? etc.).
It is essential to truly understand customers to
develop a successful business and marketing
strategy. As such, sophisticated investors
require comprehensive profiles of a company’s
target customers. By spending the time to
research and analyze your target customers,
you will develop both enhance your business
strategy and funding success.
IMD 17
Angel Investors:7 Online Business Plan Scams
and 1 Real DealWe've all seen the hype: "We'll put your plan in front of thousands of investors!" "We'll write you an award-winning online business plan!" "Only $3,000 for thousands of investors to learn about your company!"
I cringe every time I see one of these ads. Vultures are preying on honest business people who want to fund their businesses. Here are some ways to spot them:
1. "Only qualified investors see your business plan." Yeah, sure. And
who "qualifies" them? Have a friend try to sign up as an investor (that
part is usually free). How is she "qualified"? Is there a background
check? Does she submit a financial statement? Odds are that she
will be asked to do nothing more than sign a statement that she has
a certain net worth. That's no "qualification" in my book. So who are
these "investors"? Who knows. One could be your strongest
competitor.
2. "You approve anyone who sees your business plan." Okay. So
what are you going to do to qualify the potential investor? Are you
going to run a background check? ask for ID? ask for tax returns? or
just be so happy that anyone wants to see your business plan that
you jump on the idea? (That's how these scams get away with
charging thousands of dollars -- too many entrepreneurs are
desperate for funding.)
3. "It's only $500 (or $300 or $100) to register." What does it matter if
it's free? If it is diverting your time and energy and resources away
from finding a viable investor, it's not worth it.
4. "Your idea is great, but we need to put it into our format. This will
only cost $800." Don't walk -- run from these guys.
5. "Your idea is so great that we want to invest $2,000 in it." (That's
after you spend $5,000 to put it into "their" system.) Do I really need
to comment on this?
6. "Talk with a satisfied customer, or 2 or 3." Here's this entrepreneur
who just got $2 million in funding, and he has nothing better to do
than sell the web scam to you? Trust me, entrepreneurs who just get
funded barely have time to eat, let alone talk.
7. "Look at all these written testimonials." This is harder to disprove
because the testimonials look so real -- even the companies might
be real. But unless the testimonials, and the companies, can be
verified independently, I wouldn't trust them. And I'll lay odds that
they cannot be verified independently.
There is one huge exception to this: ACE-Net (http://
activecapital.org). This is more properly the Access to
Capital Electronic Network run by venture capitalists,
institutional investors and individual accredited investors.
It was developed by the U.S. Small Business
Administration's Office of Advocacy to encourage the
creation of a national marketplace for investors to find
and invest in equity offers by small companies.
ACE-Net isn't for all companies. Those seeking under
$1 million will probably find the paperwork daunting.
Those seeking over $5 million won't qualify. There are
special qualifications, and of course lots of forms to fill
out -- but nothing like the forms required for a formal
initial public offering.
But for those who do qualify, it's an amazing tool in
raising financing. Spend some time with the website and
the forms, and see if your local SBA office can put you
in touch with another company that went through the
process.
As with any investor tool, don't rely exclusively on ACE-
Net. Use it in conjunction with your personally
developed targeted funding search. This, combined with
an exceptional business plan, doesn't guarantee
success but it places your company head and shoulders
above all the rest.
IMD 19
Are You Satisfied With Your Business Just As It Is?Did you know that satisfaction is the number one emotion
people want to experience about their life and business?
Yes, fame and fortune are up there, but satisfaction is
the key. Satisfaction is about contentment, gratitude and
pure joy. Are you satisfied with your business and your
life? If not, read on and see how you can transform your
life in the simplest method possible.
To be satisfied is to enjoy each step along the way, to
be able to integrate the practical with the fanciful, to
continually refine your dream or vision.
You need a vision for your business. You had it at least
once in your life, especially if you chose to go into
business for yourself. You may be making the money
that you want, have fame in your community, but still
are unhappy and wonder - "Is that all there is?"
If you are in any way unhappy or dissatisfied with your
life or your business, you need to re-ignite your original
vision or create a new one. But wait, you say, you already
have a business plan. Isn't that sufficient for your
business success?
Why Isn't a Business Plan Enough?
A business plan is for banks and credit institutions, but
outcomes are based more on desire than on business
plans. Vision with a Capital V is bigger than a business
plan. The difference is, if your vision is not articulated,
you cannot include it in your business plan.
Who Besides Me Benefits from My Business Vision?
Customers know when you have a clear, passionate
business vision. The benefits clients, customers and
vendors receive are a result of your clarity about the
dream of your business. The more you can relate your
vision to your family and community, the more you can
excite everyone. More excitement attracts the customer
of your dreams.
Lance Armstrong wanted to win the Tour de France. Once
he achieved this goal, his vision was to win more Tour de
France's than anyone. He did just that; he created a World
Record of six wins. What he also did benefited the country
of France, even though he is an American. France's
tourist dollars increased. American television advertising
grew as more people tuned into these races. Armstrong's
battle with cancer increased donations to the American
Cancer Society. Benefits abounded for anyone connected
to bicycle riding, including manufacturers and sports
clothing providers.
Do Independent Professionals and Micro Businesses Need
a Vision Too?
Definitely! Independent professionals and micro businesses
require the clarity of a vision. Martha Stewart started
small. She was a caterer after she completed her career
as a model. A product of her times, the 1950's, Martha's
first thought was to make a home look warm and inviting.
As a great cook, Martha created elegant, well-designed
meals and events. She had her vision for success.
When Martha Stewart dreamed well into the future, she
had a vision of a conglomerate business, with far-reaching
rewards. She created OmniMedia, with her own magazine,
television shows and products; all sold worldwide. From
small business visions, big business visions grow. Even in
prison, Martha continued to expand her Vision with a Capitol
V to include two new television reality shows. Martha
never stops expanding her Vision with a Capital V.
You now have the key to your business future, the joy that
can make your efforts worthwhile. You will also achieve
fame and fortune as an outcome, but satisfaction is the
key. Be satisfied with yourself. Create a Vision that helps
move you forward.
Enjoy yourself, your business and your life.
IMD 20
Use this comprehensive checklist to plan each step of your new business and transform your dream of entrepreneurship into reality. These steps may not necessarily be completed in the order listed; however, you can use them as a guideline for completing all of the necessary business startup tasks.
-Determine what kind of business you want to start.
- Learn about the industry for your business.
- Analyze the market for your business.
- Study your competition.
- Educate yourself on running a business.
- Join trade associations.
- Name your business.
- Perform a trademark search.
- Register a domain name.
- Design a website.
- Obtain a logo.
- Determine business structure (sole proprietor,
partnership, or corporation).
- Evaluate your personal budget.
- Write a business plan.
- Write a marketing plan.
- Locate financing.
- Create a list of start-up supplies with budget.
- Set up a system for accounting and payroll.
- Apply for business license, fed tax ID, fictitious
business name.
- Select a location and set up shop.
- Order signage.
-Obtain business tools (computer, printer, fax, postage,
office supplies, and fixtures).
- Order business stationery (business cards, letterhead,
brochures).
- Obtain inventory.
- Create an operations and employee manual.
- Hire employees.
- Set a launch date.
- Plan a grand opening event.
- Send announcements to everyone you know.
- Send press releases.
- Turn on the OPEN sign!
- Revisit your business plan and update often.
- Evaluate your marketing strategy often.
- Prepare a realistic business plan.
Do not expect to conquer the world with your first year's business returns. Starting a business is a life changing undertaking and one you must be patient with. The rewards are there, but make sure you set yourself achievable targets - when you reach them they will give you the confidence and satisfaction to set
new goals and to continue building your business' success.
Checklist for starting a business
FINANCE YOUR SMALL BUSINESS: SO MUCH MONEY – SO LITTLE TIME
$37.4 million funded from venture capital today. $86.4
million funded yesterday. $51.4 million funded the day
before.
These numbers are not made up. They are actual
numbers from actual reported venture capital funding. I
get these notices emailed to me day after day, rain or
shine.
I’m not personally looking for business financing – but
the entrepreneurs who read my website are. These
numbers are a constant reminder to me that companies
– lots of companies – are getting funded every day.
And these numbers just reflect the reported venture
capital funding. There is probably double that amount
from angel investment and unreported fundings, and
millions more from the $16 billion pool that SBA has this
year.
All in all, it’s a lot of money. That’s a lot of companies
and banks and groups and individuals actively investing
in small business.
So how come you’re still looking for financing?
Perhaps you aren’t presenting your company effectively.
Or perhaps you haven’t located the right lender.
It’s also possible that your concept just isn’t very good,
but I doubt that. The fact that you are reading this article
means you are a serious entrepreneur, with a serious
business.
So where do you go to find all these investors? Here are
some starting points:
For standard business financing, talk with the local office
of the Small Business Administration.
It’s a new agency, with new programs and services, and lots of money
to lend. Although much of the focus of the SBA is on minority
business enterprises, the SBA still has a lot to offer non-minority
companies.
Also talk with your local banks. (That was plural “banks”, not “bank”.)
Talking with a number of local bankers will rapidly bring into focus the
wide ranging priorities of the various banks, and where your company
fit in.
As for venture capital and angel investors, there are several options.
One option is to go to online sources. There are a number of online
services, such as VFinance, that sell the names and addresses of
possible investors. It’s not expensive, perhaps $2-5 per name. The
idea is that once you get the list of 200 or 2,000 names in hand that
you will contact each with a written executive summary or business
plan, and then wait to hear from one of them. This is a very passive
approach, roughly akin to throwing paint on the wall and hoping that
something will stick.
If you are like most entrepreneurs, patience is not your strong suit, so
sitting and waiting for a response is not quite your cup of tea.
Another option is to go to one of the many directories of venture
capital firms. These directories typically include addresses, phone
numbers and emails, along with the geographical areas of interest
and the types of investment that each is seeking. Most businesses
can narrow down their list of prospective investors to several hundred
venture capital firms this way. And again you are faced with the
prospect of sending out written material for each one, and waiting for
a response.
A third option is to take a more proactive approach. Identify your best
prospects yourself from a number of reliable sources. Get
introductions where possible. Learn everything you can about your
target investors, and then go after it. Typically a phone call is the first
contact, not an anonymous executive summary. Knowing that you are
calling your best prospects, you know too that they are open to
hearing from you. You have names, you have investment histories, you
have everything in hand to make a real connection with the target
investors. Then go do it.
IMD 22
Franchise Opportunities
Are Not Always As Good As
They SoundFranchise opportunities are out there and if you look, you’ll find more than you can count. In order to find out if a business franchise truly is an opportunity of a lifetime, there are a few points that you must evaluate.
Point 1: Market Trend Most franchise opportunities are based on current market trends. You will see a lot of franchises that promote the current size of the industry along with potential market. But just because it’s a large industry does not automatically guarantee opportunities for success. In cases like this, you should check with industry associations to determine two things. Firstly, the growth stage of the industry you are interested in, and secondly, whether or not that industry has experienced a positive growth over the last few years.
Point 2: Territory Coverage As you know, if a franchise decides to spread itself too thin, it won’t do well. Over saturation and rapid growth are not necessarily good things. Having a protected territory is important when you sign up for franchise opportunities. This is because being protected means that your competitors will remain outside the franchise company. So before you sign up with franchise businesses, check your contract and find out if you have first refusal rights if or when a franchise becomes available in your local market.
Point 3: Company Support
As you might have guessed, success comes with a
strong support network and good franchise
opportunities provide a full level of support. This is
to ensure higher success rates for your franchise
business. Support can come in terms of training,
marketing, management and even field support.
Signing up for a business franchise that does not
offer these things might have you running a
franchise without heads or tails. This in turn leads
to a low chance of success with your franchise.
Point 4: Exit Strategy
As with all contracts, they will not run indefinitely
so it’s important that you determine early on the
terms and costs to end your business franchise
contract. Before signing up for anything, find out
the franchise company’s expectations when it
comes to the renewing of the franchise contract in
the future.
Point 5: Franchise Business Plan
Franchises are considered great business
opportunities simply because they have a higher
success rate than regular start up businesses.
However this does not mean that a business plan
is not required. Having a franchise business plan
will be invaluable as it will help you understand
your franchise business better as well as the
market you are about to tap into.
ALTERNATIVES TO CREDIT CARDS
Are you one of those people who only ever got a credit card for the convenience of being able to pay
without cash, or because you weren’t aware of any other easy way to borrow money? Millions of us
are, thanks to the unavoidable advertising of the credit card industry, and few people realise just how
many alternatives to credit cards there are. Let’s take a look at a few.
Debit Cards
Debit cards are often used in many
European countries, but are relatively
unheard of elsewhere. Basically, they’re
just like credit cards and are accepted
everywhere credit cards are accepted -
the only difference is that they take any
money you spend directly from your
bank account, instead of you getting a
bill at the end of the month. You should
be aware,though, that you aren’t as well-
protected from fraud with a debit card as
you would be with a credit card.
Pre-Paid Credit Cards
These are cards that work just like credit
cards, except that you can’t have a negative
balance - you have to put money on the
card before you can spend it. That means
that you ‘top-up’ the card, like you would a
mobile phone. This is good if you want to
know how much you’re spending, not to
mention that you can even give the cards to
children. They’re also safer than debit
cards, since someone who stole the card
could only spend whatever money was on it
at the time.
Real Loans
When you’re buying one big thing at a
fixed price (like a car), or you’re going to
spend all the money on one type of
thing (home improvements, for
example), it’s worth budgeting it all out
and going to a bank or another loan
company. They’ll be able to lend you the
money at a much better rate than a
credit card would, simply because they
know why you’re taking the loan and
can set regular monthly payments for
you to repay it.
Bank Overdrafts
A good bank overdraft, used together with a credit card, can be a far
better way of borrowing money than using a credit card. Your
overdraft limit is set by the bank according to how much you gets paid
into your account each month, and you don’t need to pay it off until
you want to.
Basically, it just gives your account the facility to go into minus
numbers, if you want it to. Many banks charge relatively high interest
rates for overdrafts, but rarely as high as a credit card - and they will
give much better rates for good customers.
Credit Unions
Credit unions are like banks, only more local. They are co-
operative, owned by their members and run by the community,
and are a great place to borrow money. This is because there
are limits in law on how much interest credit unions can charge,
and they don’t need to make a profit for owners or
shareholders, because they don’t have any. It’s well worth
checking if there’s one in your area.
IMD 25
100,000 SUBSCRIBERS IN 30 DAYS?Two years ago, I sat in Joel Christopher's "Master List Builder
Seminar" listening to ideas on how to build my list faster. The
room was filled with seasoned on-line and off-line marketers. They
all told us that the money was in the list... something we all
knew intuitively.
People in the room shared just about every method imaginable
for building a list. They covered what worked, what didn't, and
what you definitely should not do. They shared their personal
experiences and the results of their latest list building tests.
A few of the speakers had tremendous impact on me. One was
Paul Myers, whom I previously knew primarily from on-line
discussion forums. I had also enjoyed several LONG phone calls
with him. The other speaker whose message intrigued me was
Frank Garon. Frank spoke of buying lists of new subscribers for
less than a penny a name. He spoke of something called
"co-registration."
Terry Dean also validated for me the impact writing good ezine
articles can have at that seminar.
Frank Garon REVEALED that he and other top marketers
regularly joined together and bought batches of tens of
thousands....
maybe 100,000 names. These names were gathered via on-line
forms
placed on high traffic websites. The forms offered more information
on the types of products and services that Frank and his friends
offered. The websites' visitors checked this box requesting more
information, and these names (along with datestamp, IP address
and other relevant information) was passed to the opt-in
name purchasers.
As I listened to this talk of building a list of 100,000 in a month
or less, I wondered, if it's so great, why isn't everyone doing
it? The answer that later became clear is that many of the top
marketers ARE doing it. It's not their only method of building
a list, but it's definitely one of their most profitable.
The next question that popped into my tiny mind was, "Are
these really subscribers or will I be accused of spamming if
I send emails to these people?" These people do actually opt-in
to receive more information about starting an on-line business.
They do physically check a box requesting more information
be sent to them. That does technically make them opt-ins.
Later, my coaches and mentors would share with me many
SECRETS. One was that when you have access to one of
these list, it's all about return on investment. We all know
that names purchased via co-opt systems are less responsive.
They are less responsive because the subscribers don't know
you - they don't have a relationship with you.
These mentors went on to share that there was a proper
way to legitimately turn these opt-in "LEADS" into
subscribers. The method is very simple. In your first,
and every email to them, you remind them that they
requested more information of this type through an on-line
form. It doesn't hurt to include the date, IP address and
email address they subscribed from. Then you go on to
share some fantastic information with them... maybe in
the form of your ezine. In every contact with these
purchased names you also include an easy method for
them to unsubscribe.
If you provide genuine value, over time, you will build a
relationship with many of these leads. Many will
unsubscribe, but again - the important metric is return on
investment. that's what you need to track. If you start out
with 100,000 names but 6 months later that list has
dwindled down to 10,000 or maybe even 1000, what is the
lifetime value of those list members remaining? That's
the question you need to ask. You answer that largely
based upon what you currently earn for each subscriber
on your list.
Another concept that sank into my head at Joel's
workshop was the concept of building sub-lists. These
are lists that are kept separated based upon the source.
This allows you to send emails/offers to your lists based
upon list demographics or how they were acquired.
I now have many sub-lists. These sub-lists are from
articles I written, teleseminars I conducted, interviews
I given, course I've authored, website forms, joint ventures,
and co-registration purchases. Each list is generally
set up as an autoresponder that I can send select messages
to. My autoresponder system allows me to send out an
unlimited number of both scheduled and unscheduled
messages.
The primary system I use cost me $19 per month for
an unlimited number of autoresponders with an unlimited
number of messages. I can pre-schedule message for
up to 24 months. This fantastic autoresponder deal is
available through http://ProfitAutomation.com
ProfitAutomation.com does have very strict policies on how
these autoresponders can be used to prevent spam accusation
problems! There is also a limit on the number of new names
you can import at a time. For that reason, I recommend that
when dealing with co-registration emails you use the
autoresponders at: http://Therealsecrets.com/co-reg/
I also recommend that with co-registration names you not
email to them too often. I send them a few emails, spaced
over several months. In those emails, I provide information
of genuine value... on the topic of building an on-line
business AND I invite them to join my regular ezine list. In
each email, I inform them of how and why they are getting
the email AND provide a convenient unsubscribe link.
Over the years, I've spent many thousands of dollars on
co-registration lists. The quality has varied. The best deal
I have discovered is through the "Nitro Guys." They can
deliver 100,000 names in 30 days. If you want less, they
have an "auto-ship plan" where they send you 25,000 names
a month. These names are in CVS format which mean you
can import them directly into many list management and
autoresponder systems. Some systems, including
ProfitAutomation.com, mentioned above, do limit the number
of names you can import at a time... so read the terms
of service before signing up.
1. Have daily goals.
Every day have a set of goals that bring you closer to your grand
goals. May be as a mobile marketer you want to dominate your
chosen niche of text message marketing. You will need to do
something daily that moves you closer.
A goal that is written down is better than one that is in your mind.
The mind thinks in pictures and when you write a goal down it
brings conviction as more senses are involved when writing.
Keep your goals simple, realistic and attainable. This will require
honest self-analysis that will help you estimate the time it takes to
complete a task and the resources you require to do it.
2. Start with the toughest task first.
When you start with the toughest tasks you defeat procrastination
and your day becomes a success. Small wins motivate you to
conquer others.
Tough is relative and what's tough to someone may be easy to
another. In addition, what is tough today may be easy 6 months
from today after you are used to doing it. However, I think you know
what is tough to you. To some people its writing articles, for others
it calling customers, yet for others it is doing workout.
3. Maximize your peak times.
You need to identify your peak productivity cycles and schedule
your most important tasks during this period. Minor tasks can be
performed during off-peak times.
You may find that writing a newsletter to your clients is the most
important task and that your peak time is morning 6:00 am to 9:00
am. What you need to do is write the newsletter during this period
when your mind is fresh and alert. From my past experience, I have
noticed that, most people's peak times are in the mornings.
Therefore it would be unwise to reply emails or update your
Facebook pages during your peak time if these are minor activities.
It would also be wrong for you to watch an in-depth CNN coverage
of an earthquake in Iran. This certainly can be done during off-
peak seasons.
4. Learn to work in solitude.
Productivity is highest during long uninterrupted blocks of time
working solo. Sometimes it is difficult to work in solitude especially
for mobile marketers who work from home surrounded with their
family members. However, success is about solving problems. And
you can solve this by either working late in the night or early in the
morning when everyone is asleep or locking yourself in a room for
minimum 60 minutes.
This is especially important when you are doing key tasks that
require concentration. Your clients will not understand that when
you were writing them your 2-year old son was pulling your
trousers and you failed change their names on the emails. Now
John is receiving an email meant for Elizabeth.
5. Identify milestones.
You need to have small and big milestones on your work. A small
milestone may be to write 1000 words. A big milestone may be to
write a 150,000-word eBook. To boost productivity have a
milestone that you work towards and you don't stop till you hit it.
Once you pass the milestone you can reward yourself with a cup of
coffee or a pat on your back.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/6737422
5 Mobile Marketing Productivity Tips You Need To Know
Making more money does not
necessarily mean working more hours.
You can increase your output and so your
income by being more efficient. You can
raise your productivity and income by
being focused. In addition, you can form
good habits that automatically enhance
your productivity. Apart from those
factors, here are five specific tips you can
use to boost your productivity.
SOCIAL
MARKETING
JOBSSocial marketing jobs have become more popular in recent
years. The popularity of social media web sites have caused
businesses to include jobs in social media marketing.
Traditionally, jobs in marketing focused on print, television, and
radio ads. Marketing professionals used these mediums to
influence the buying behavior of targeted markets.
Corporations are discovering that social marketing is less
costly and quite effective. People tend to buy products based
on recommendations from friends and family. There is a trust
factor that plays heavily into the buying behavior of
consumers, so marketing professionals can target the captive
audience on the internet.
Studies show that people are spending more time online than
ever. There are billions of users on the internet, and this
number continues to grow every day, so the potential market is
enormous. In addition, many forums are developing around
certain interests, so this leads to a captive audience that is
interested in certain activities and products. This is the perfect
environment for a marketer. Jobs in marketing depend upon
the professionals being able to reach and influence their target
audience. The internet has made this easier in some ways.
Social marketing also includes brand and reputation
management. A company must pay close attention to what
consumers are saying about their products and services. One
person having a negative experience can negatively affect the
public perception of a product or service; thus, social media
professionals have a duty to effectively manage the brand of
their clients.
Also, social marketing provides an environment where
consumers can communicate with companies. This
communication line opens up a direct method of active
dialogue. Customers can critique products and services, and
the corporation can use this market research to improve their
products and services.
Fo r e x a m p l e , o n e c o m p a n y
recen t l y c hanged the i r l o go.
Consumer s we re vehemen t l y
opposed to the change, and
ultimately, the company changed
back to the old logo. Customers
were ve r y unha ppy w i th the
change, and this company realized
that they should have done more
market research before making a
change of this nature.
This type of social interaction
b e t w e e n c o n s u m e r s a n d
companies is impor tan t . The
internet is a excellent way to
ex c h a n g e l a r g e a m o u n t s o f
i n f o r m a t i o n i m m e d i a t e l y .
Information can reach people
around the world within a few
seconds. This type of marketing is
cost efficient, and marketers are
able to track the effectiveness of
their marketing campaigns. They
can see the direct effect that a
social marketing campaign has on
the sales of a product or service.
Also, a campaign can be adjusted
quickly if it is not effective.