Internet Marketing & Home-Based Business

Archive for the ‘Marketing’ Category

Setting up an email newsletter on your site is pretty easy. Previously, I explained why you should put a newsletter on your site: here and here. Now I’m going to give you simple step-by-step instructions for doing it yourself. Don’t worry. If you have any trouble, there are plenty of freelancers who can do it for cheap.

Step 1: Sign Up with Aweber

When dealing with email newsletters, there’s a lot to keep track of. Spam laws, subscriber metrics, autoresponders, and so on can eat up a lot of your time if you try to do it yourself.

Sign up with Aweber, and they’ll take care of all the details for you. Aweber is the only newsletter service I use, and I’m very pleased with them. They take all the work out of managing an email newsletter.

Once you sign up, the very first thing you should do is read the Get Started Guide. Look for it at the top of the page, to the right.

Step 2: Realize That Your List is Your Friend

According to every single Internet Marketing guru I’ve ever talked to or listened to, email newsletters are the best thing you can do to grow your business. Fortunately, setting up a list is easy.

If you haven’t set up your Aweber account yet, do that before you continue: Aweber signup.

Step 3: Create a Web Form

Start your list by clicking Add New in the upper left area of your management page. Alternatively, you can just alter the default list, which comes with every Aweber account. Make sure you follow all the instructions and set up the return email address and such.

Then, hover over List Settings and click on Web Form. Click the button that says Create New Web Form, follow the on-screen instructions, and you’ll be ready to go.

Once you get it set up, you’ll get some javascript that you can insert into your page code to display the form on your site.

Step 4: Set Up an Autoresponder Series

The next step is to set up autoresponders. These are messages that are sent out to your subscribers. The first one will go out immediately after they confirm their subscription. Then, if you have more (which is highly recommended), they will be sent out automatically at intervals you choose. So, if you set up some messages to go out four days apart, they’ll do it. You can find the autoresponder creation area by hovering over Messages and clicking Follow Up.

I recommend a welcome email to be sent immediately, and then six or seven messages spaced out every three to eight days. These messages probably shouldn’t sell right away. They need to provide information of value to your readers so they A) don’t unsubscribe, and B) start to see you as an expert on the subject.

Step 5: Create or Acquire Your Free Sign-Up Bonus

To get sign-ups, you really need to offer something for free, like an ebook, report, or how-to guide of some kind. People don’t like giving out their contact information for no reason. Give them some incentive. You can upload it to your web server and link to it from your welcome message.

When people see a free bonus for signing up, they are more likely to do so. When you keep sending them valuable information, your prospects are less likely to unsubscribe, and more likely to buy from you in the future.

Step 6: Create Your First Broadcast Message

Once you have at least one subscriber, you need to start creating Broadcast Messages. These are going to be special announcements and your regular newsletter. Basically, anything that doesn’t qualify as an autoresponder should be sent out as a broadcast.

Broadcast messages are sent out at once — and just one time — to every member of your list, old and new. To set one up, hover over Messages at the top navigation area of your Aweber admin page. Click on Broadcast, and you’ll end up on your broadcast messages page. Here you will be able to view your past broadcasts, as well as create a new one.

Just click on the Create Broadcast Message, and make it. You can use just plain text, plain HTML, or you can use an HTML template to create some great-looking messages. Create it, save it, test it, and then send it out to your list.

Step 7: Test and Tweak to Maximize Sign-Ups

Having an email newsletter is all about creating a relationship with your readers, listeners, and prospects. Your goal should be to have as big a list as possible. The more people you have that want to hear what you have to say or offer, the more success you’ll find.

Just like any marketing efforts, you’ll need to test and tweak until your results get better and better. Never stop testing, and never stop improving. Some ways that you can test your sign-ups and list is to change the offer, change the way you ask for sign-ups, and change the location of the sign-up form.

If you find something that increases your sign-ups, stick with it for a while and then start looking for ways to improve it.

Bonus Info: How I Went From Zero to Several Sign-ups a Day

On one of my sites, I went from zero sign-ups to several a day. I have an online shop that sells outdoor and survival gear, and I was getting anywhere from 150 to 200 page views a day. Not much traffic for a shop, and I wasn’t getting anyone to sign up. So I made some changes and things started coming together.

First, I offered a free ebook with the purchase. The sign-up form was on the bottom of every page, and it didn’t get anything. No one signed up. I quickly decided to do something different. So I did some research and borrowed some strategies from more successful list owners.

Since I wanted to promote my shop, I decided to offer a coupon as the sign-up bonus. Everyone that signs up gets a 15% off coupon they can use once. I created a lightbox pop-over form (a lightbox is a cool effect…check out my shop to see it), and also kept the form at the bottom of the page.

I started getting sign-ups the first day. After a little while, I began to get three or four sign-ups a day, with about the same amount of traffic. I get at least one a day still, and my traffic is increasing, too. Additionally, those coupons have turned into sales…which is good. Overall, I’ve seen an increase in traffic and sales, and the only thing I’ve done is institute an email newsletter.

Do it now if you haven’t already. It’s worth a few minutes of your time.

Extra Bonus Info: Where to Find Help When You Need It

And if you don’t have any idea how to do this, or if you just don’t have the time, hire someone to set it up for you. Go to Elance or Guru.com and find a freelancer to do it for you. You should be able to find someone who can set it up quickly and for a reasonable rate.

If you don’t have an email newsletter on your site(s), you need to start now. Get a newsletter going, start collecting leads, and grow your business.

Aweber is the only service I use and recommend. Use them and you’ll be happy.

In this third and final installment of Cube Escape’s How to Blog series, I’m going to tell you about two things that are key to your blogging success: Traffic and Money.

Generating Traffic

Generating traffic to your blog is tricky, and usually slow. Very few sites get an instant hit of traffic. Unless you have a lot of money to pour into promoting your blog, you’ll have to do it the old fashioned way.

First, you need to write what is known as “pillar” or “core” content for your blog’s topic. Core content articles are posts that describe how-to do something, define something, or list out characteristics of something (the “something” is related to your blog topic). This article you’re reading now is a core article in a series of core articles. If you’re site is about knitting, you could have a “how to knit” article as some core content for your site.

Social networking is another way to get people to notice your blog. Unless you have great core content articles, the search engines won’t be enough to drive sufficient traffic to your site. You’ve got to tell others yourself. Social media is the best way to do that. Here are some sites to get you started:

Technorati – This is a huge blog site / search engine. Get an account and claim your blogs here. You may or may not get much traffic from Technorati, but it’s a great way to get started telling others about your blog.

Stumble Upon – I get a lot of traffic from people “stumbling” onto my site. What I do is stumble my site and then stumble each of my posts individually. Once I do that, those posts start to get traffic from other people with interests similar to my post. It’s really handy.

Facebook – This is just a basic social networking site, but it’s no where near as spam-oriented as MySpace. I don’t even use MySpace anymore because of the whole “spammer’s paradise” aspect of it. Facebook is clean and simple. Use it for your passive promotion efforts. When I say “passive,” I mean that you should just post what you do, and not try to shove it down everyone’s throat.

Twitter – Kind of a micro blog where you can post what you are doing in 140 characters or less. Once you get a fair amount of people following your tweets (a tweet is a Twitter post), you will start to get traffic from this service.

Tweet Burner – A separate site from Twitter, but its service posts directly to your Twitter account. Basically, this is a service where you can shrink long web addresses into short ones, then post it right to your Twitter account. Tweet Burner also tracks how many users click on your tweet web addresses. It’s a handy metrics tool.

Entry Level Blog Monetization

When you start getting some traffic to your blog, you should think about some basic monetization strategies. There is no sure thing here. But generally speaking, the more traffic you have, the more money you can make.

Start off with Google Adwords. Head over to Google and check them out. It’s easy to set up and get started. Adwords works like this: Set the size, type, and color scheme in Google, then copy and paste the generated code into your blog code (like in the sidebar or something – seek professional help if you need it), and then wait.

The funny thing about Adwords is that it doesn’t work for every site. Well, it’s simple and typically works, but sometimes there is no real money made – just a few cents here and there. This can be true even with sites that have a lot of traffic. Test it and see if it works for you.

Beyond that you can join affiliate networks, like ClickBank, and start promoting products that your readers might be interested in. You will get a percentage of each sale that you refer. This is not hard to set up, but it can be hard to make money with affiliate marketing. Affiliate marketing is the topic for another article entirely, so I won’t be going into the details here. Just know that you can make money by promoting other people’s products…if you do it right.

Using a Blog to Funnel Online Prospects to Your Offline Business

You might think that this last section doesn’t apply to you – if you plan on running an online-only business. Still, you should read it anyway. Good ideas sometimes come from odd places. Maybe you will see something you can implement in your online-only business.

If you already have an offline business, a blog can serve as a traffic funnel from online interest to offline sales. I’ve seen it happen before, so I know it works. Here are a few ideas to get you started:

• Email Marketing – Using an opt-in form on your blog, you can build an email marketing list you can use to send informational articles about your niche or industry and special promotions designed to drive sales. For example, once a month you could send special store-use coupons to your email list to generate some extra sales.
• Coupons to Print Out – Like the email coupons, you can have a section on your site to hold coupons people would print out and take to the store. Without the coupon, maybe no sale, but with the coupon…who knows? You don’t lose any money, but you might get more sales.
• Generate Interest in General – Sometimes all you need is more exposure to get more business. A blog can be a great way to do this. Tell the world about your business, special events, and such. You can also post a “Frequently Asked Questions” page where prospects can learn more about your company without tying up your customer service staff.

These are just a few ideas. Use your imagination. The Internet is still young, and blogging is even younger. Help it grow with good ideas.

In Conclusion…

Now that you’ve read all three parts of Cube Escape’s “How to Blog” series, you’re ready to tackle your own project. You’ve learned what a blog is, how to set one up, and how to promote a blog once it’s set up. What are you waiting for? Go promote yourself!

Oh, and in case you missed parts 1 and 2 of this series:

• How to Blog – Part 1
• How to Blog – Part 2

What Do You Want to Write About?

The first thing you need to decide before you set up your blog is your topic. It doesn’t have to be anything fancy or unique. Your topic just needs to be something you are passionate about. Something you love.

Make your blog topic as focused as possible. For example, if you want to write about dogs, don’t make your blog topic “Dogs.” Choose your favorite breed, or maybe even your favorite dog characteristic, and make that your topic. Having more focus will force you to really tighten up your writing and bring in more readers who are interested in your particular topic.

To Domain or Not to Domain

Once you have your topic, it’s time to make a choice. Your first option is to set up a web hosting account with a web hosting service, register a domain name, install blogging software, and start writing. That’s how this blog is set up – I have a web hosting account. When I started this blog, I registered the domain name www.cube-escape.com and installed the software.

If that’s too much for you, or you don’t want to invest any money to begin blogging, there are free services. With these services, you create an account, select a theme, and go. It’s easy. Here are the two most popular free blogging services:

Blogger – This one is owned by Google, so you know it’s rock-steady. You can even sign in with your existing Google account (if you have one).

WordPress – WordPress is one of the top names in blogging. Not only does it offer a free service similar to Blogger, but it also has stand-alone software you can download and install for free on your own web server.

With both of these services, you will create an account, name your blog, select a theme, and start writing. Your domain name will end up looking something like this: iheartpugs.wordpress.com or guarddogstories.blogger.com (I just made those two up. If they are real blogs, I have no idea).

If, however, you want to register your own domain, you’ll need to set up a hosting account first. I recommend Hostgator. They have great customer service (instant online chat can really help if you get stuck installing your blog software) and an uptime guarantee. Based on my personal experiences, it’s the best web host for the money. Check them out here: Hostgator. Remember to register a domain name that is like your chosen blog topic, preferably with keywords in the domain (like iheartpugs.com or something).

I use one blogging platform for all of my domain sites, and I recommend it above all others. It’s free, it’s easy to use, highly customizable, and easy to install. WordPress is the way to go. There are other software packages out there that have blog-type features, like Drupal or Joomla, but if you want a blog, go with WordPress. Download WordPress here. I’m not going to go into the technical aspects of setting up a hosting account and blogging software right now, because that is another topic entirely. Fortunately, it’s all easy, and there are instructions both at WordPress, and, most likely, in your web host’s help files.

Another option is TypePad. It’s not free, so this won’t appeal to everyone. This is a paid service that is aimed more at small businesses (and big ones, too, I guess). I don’t use it, since there are really good and really free options out there, but you should still take a look to see if it is something you might want. Check it out here: TypePad.

What Are You Waiting For?

Don’t wait. Get started right now. Becoming a good blogger isn’t about reading all the blogs you can to really get a handle on how it’s done. Instead, learn blogging by blogging. This is especially true if you ever hope to monetize your blog. You have got to learn how to create a good blog with interesting content that people will want to read.

Pick out something you love, get a blog started, and start writing!

The third and final installment of this “How to Blog” series will be about traffic generation and entry-level blog monetization.

If you missed part 1 of this 3 part series, check it out here: How to Blog Part 1.

A blog is an automated system for easily getting content on the web. So easy, in fact, that anyone who can run word processing software can run a blog.

The Technical Specifics

A blog, or “weblog,” is an online journal with posts displayed with the most recent one first. All of the posts are categorized and displayed in reverse chronological order.

Blogs are run by blogging software, which is installed on a web server. Many web hosts have blog software you can install with a hosting package, or you can hire someone to install it for you. Another option is to join a blogging service and have everything done for you. Don’t let this technical stuff bog you down, because you’ll get the specifics later.

Why Are Blogs Great?

1. Ease of use
2. You can let the world in on what you want to say
3. Search engines love them
4. More importantly… readers love them

If you’ve got something to say, a blog is the perfect platform for you to start saying it. Not only will your friends and family have a place to read your writing, but so will the rest of the world. In addition to attracting readers, you can also establish yourself as an expert in something.

Say your blog is about knitting, as opposed to just being a diary of your inner most thoughts. Then let’s say that you are really good at knitting and write blog posts about how you became good at it. Throw in some how-to posts, some pictures, and you’ve got a site that says to the world, “I know knitting.”

Once you do that, you have some monetization potential.

Now that you know generally what a blog is (Hint: you’re reading one right now), you’ll want to learn how to set one up. That’s part two of this three part series.

Stay tuned for the next installment: How to set up your blog.

I’ve come across a new video social networking site. It’s not exactly new, but it’s not known widely enough to be commonplace yet. At least, it’s not as popular as YouTube… I’m talking about Viddler.

I came across it while reading a health and wellness newsletter I subscribe to. I went and checked it out and immediately saw the benefit. I’ve joined and have started posting some videos (one business-oriented video and a couple of personal ones).

I’m going to take full advantage of the social networking aspects of the site to help get some exposure and brand-building going on. I encourage you to do it, too. Social networking is a great way to get exposure to your products and your brand. Video networking sites, such as YouTube and now Viddler, can help you, too.

Naturally, you’ve got to have some video. If you don’t have a video camera, try your web cam, the video feature of your digital camera, or just borrow something. Get yourself out there — start small and then build up to something that will work for you.

Click here to go to Viddler.

I’m starting on a new article that should be of interest to anyone who has a business-oriented presence on the web. SEO copywriting is very important in today’s online market. There are just too many things competing for attention. Your site has to stand out. One of the ways you do that is with a little bit of SEO copywriting.

If you haven’t yet subscribed to the Cube Escape Newsletter (over there on the right), then you should now. I’m writing this SEO article for the newsletter, so you should sign up if you want to read it. And then there’s also all the other content you’ll get from the newsletter. Sign up today!

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I’ve been quite busy lately, working, Christmas shopping, and whining about how much I need a vacation. The vacation is coming soon, but it’s only a week, which is 1/600 of the actual vacation I need.

Let’s see what that actually is, since the number 600 just popped into my head while typing. Well, that’s 11.54 years, which is a mighty fine vacation if you ask me!

I digress. I’ve got some plans for the coming year… Money-making plans. Business ventures — maybe adventures is a better choice of word. I won’t tell you all about them right now. Instead, I’ll tell you about them as I implement them. Let’s just say that my current ventures are making money, but could be making more, and I’ve got some ideas to tap into other markets as well.

Some may say that if I do too many things, nothing will be good. Whereas that might have been true in the dark ages, we have the internet now. My plans will work out something like this: Create machine, plug machine into internet, let internet do the actual work while I maintain machine. Maintaining a few machines isn’t really much work, and will add some variety to what could be an otherwise bland week. So you see, it’s not really spreading my focus out thin, so that nothing gets enough attention. It’s just creating machines that make money while I rest. Sure, I’ve got to maintain them, but that’s no big deal. I’ll keep my machine count down to a manageable level and everything will be fine.

Making money on the internet isn’t really hard, but it’s not easy either. I would say that it’s somewhere in the middle. I’ve definitely had some false starts and bad ideas, but I’m getting the hang of this now.

I have branched out into another area of promotion: Podcasting. I haven’t really decided on the specifics yet, but I’m not worried about it. I’ll get it all worked out soon.

The podcast I have is in the iTunes podcast directory, and can also be found on my career education directory. Here is the podcast page. The general theme of the show is commentary about life, careers, and education. But really, each show will end up being whatever I want it to be. I’m not going to limit myself to just those topics. Sometimes I like to freestyle it.

So check it out, and be sure to subscribe to it via iTunes, or whatever is your preference. I’ll probably have a weekly show/talk, and then supplementary material uploaded whenever. And don’t fret about the quality. I’ll get a proper setup and nice software soon.

I had set a deadline for myself to have the first draft of my current copywriting project done by the end of this week. Well, that was officially yesterday. It’s not done. Nothing is done on it. I did absolutely no work on this project the entire week. No worries, as it’s purely academic. Real money would have meant real work would have really taken place.

I just started back on it tonight, but I didn’t do any actual work. I’ve been reading through the project specs and thinking of research possibilities. I could only come up with four sources off the top of my head, so I’ll have to do some more digging around to find more usable data.

On top of that, I really need to get a base site together for my copywriting services. I have a site, but it’s little more than a placeholder. I need to get some actual content and real information up there. I suppose that even though I’m technically still learning, I should go ahead and offer my services for the world to use. I do have some cashflow generating copy out there on the internet right now. So maybe I’m not really learning, but just learning more, and how to write more better. See what I did there?

Yeah, that’s it. I’m just furthering my training. Time to sell!

I am going to be experimenting with marketing via YouTube. I have a few ideas, but I need some time and some software to implement them. However, I have already begun. I created a quick little commercial and uploaded it to YouTube. You can see it here.

Nothing fancy. I was more interested in seeing how it would work than putting out a quality commercial. But don’t worry, if you want to see some good content, I can do that. I’ve just got to buy some software and maybe some hardware first. I’ll be creating commercials and instructional videos for my career education directory.

I’ll post more links when I get some more videos up. And I’ll also keep all of you informed of any traffic improvements via YouTube.