This is a follow-up to last week's insight. To refresh your memory, I told you the "7 Things You Must Know About Your Prospects."
This same information is certainly important to know about your customers as well. But your customer bios should be slightly more extensive. Here are the 7 things you must know about your customers:
1. Their Name- Nothing speaks to an individual faster than their first name. Use it to build your relationship with your customer.
2. What They've Purchased- If you know what your customers purchased in the past, you have a good idea what they will buy again. (And won't waste your time promoting products of little to no interest.)
3. How Often They Purchase- Individuals who buy rarely from you may need additional encouragement�more marketing. Whereas, consistent customers may not need extra sales pitches, but might benefit from a newsletter or coupon.
4. How Much They Spend (on average)- Why spend precious time pitching products to customers that they can't afford? It might embarrass your customer, shows your lack of personal interest, and may cause customers to lose interest.
5. The Last Time They Purchased- Have you lost a customer without even knowing it? Who's still loyal? Who has strayed (and needs to be brought back)?
6. Each Interaction You've Had With Them- Documentation is important for obvious reasons. But being able to "recall" previous conversations will make your customer feel important and appreciated.
7. How They Feel About Your Business- Feedback from your customers is the best way to improve your products/services, meet your customers needs, and attract more customers.
Note: Remembering each of your customers and all of these details about them is impossible. Be sure to keep an accurate database that can easily store and retrieve this information for you--and make you look like a star to your customers!
Common Mistakes You Need to Avoid in Affiliate Marketing
Affiliate marketing as a business will provide you a very good income whether you do it full-time or part time. Of course it depends on how you manage it as a business. It also has edges where you can fall when you make mistakes.
There are common mistakes that affiliates make and knowing them is a good starting point to avoid them:
Grabbing Every Affiliate Program Available
Affiliate marketing is all over the net. It will be easy to be drowned with affiliate programs that promise high commissions. Signing up for these programs is as quick as a few blinks of the eye. More programs may mean more profits but it is not always the case. There are times when you have to hold back and know your limits.
Imagine juggling three balls. Make it ten balls and you will get the picture. Affiliate programs are stakes you take online and these are investments that need your attention. If you cannot focus on managing them well, it
will be unproductive to sign up for every opportunity you have.
You can start with one affiliate program or maybe go for as much as three or four. Make sure that these programs blend well together and do not simply crowd your website.
Choosing the Wrong Product
You don’t pick a banana when you like some grapes. A lot of affiliates commit the mistake of choosing the products because they are hot and not because they are interested in it.
It will be very hard to sound credible when you don’t believe in a product yourself. Yes they might sell but in the long run, you cannot form the important relationship of trust and confidence with your market.
Successful marketers most of the time have purchased the products they are promoting. This way, they can give an honest review if the product is really commendable.
Copy Pasting Content
Building a website involves serious work. If you want to look credible or trustworthy copy pasting from other websites will not work.
Search engine spiders will not tag your website as an authority in your chosen niche. Content is still king. Regular updates and good keyword research are also a must.
Good search engine optimization can spell a difference of thousands of dollars in your affiliate marketing business. You can grab a free e-book from this website on SEO Optimization!
Investing in a Good Logo for Your Websites
One of the most common questions I hear from new bloggers and webmasters is: "Is it okay to use a free template on my site initially, or should I purchase a premium template or hire a designer to make a custom theme for me right away?"
The answer, as usual, is: "It depends."
If you are setting up a business website (i.e., a website where you will sell products and/or services), then having a unique and custom design is highly recommended.
If you are setting up a blog or a content based website, on the other hand, starting with a freely available template is perfectly fine.
Regardless of your situation, however, there is one item that I think is vital for any type of website: a unique and good looking logo.
Why? For several reasons:
1. Getting a professionally designed logo is not expensive these days. With $100 you should already be able to get one.
2. Despite not being expensive, a unique and good looking logo can give a lot of credibility to your website.
3. You don't need to have a custom designed theme to use your logo. If you spend some time on it you should be able to find many free templates that will integrate well with your logo.
4. The logo is the cornerstone of your online brand, so the sooner you have it out there for people to look, the better.
5. You will be able to use your logo in places beyond your website. Examples include the favicon, promotional banners, ebook covers and so on.
As you can see, for a small investment on your logo you will get a lot of benefits.
Whenever you decide to invest in your websites, therefore, remember that getting a unique and good looking logo is a priority.
Stay tuned for a future edition of the newsletter where I will share the resource I use to get my logos designed.
A Billionaires Guide To Getting Rich
by John Colanzi
The sage Zenrin once said "If you wish to know the road up the mountain, ask the person who goes back and forth on it."
Sound advice, but are you following it?
If you're like most people, probably not. So who's advice do you listen to?
** Your next door neighbor
** Your barber or hairdresser
** Your mechanic
The list is endless. You get excited about starting your own business and the doom and gloom crowd takes pleasure in stomping on your dreams.
Before you listen to them, ask yourself one question. Have they been where you want to go?
Probably not.
So who's advice should you listen to? The men and women who've traveled the mountain.
One man who traveled the mountain and amassed a fortune in the process, was J. Paul Getty.
In his autobiography Getty lists his 10 rules for creating wealth.
What do you think was Mr. Getty's number one rule for getting rich?
You must have your own business. He didn't say get a good job.
The same skills you use to make money for your boss, could be better applied to creating wealth for you.
There's an old cartoon that brings the point home even clearer.
A father is asking his son, "Wow, wouldn't you love to be a football player and make all that money?"
The little boy smiles and says, "Daddy, I'd rather be the guy that can afford to pay the whole team."
The next time you're excited, keep your own council and remember the words of Ben Franklin.
"Keep Thy Shop and Thy Shop Will Keep Thee."
Dare to dream. Be your own boss.
Noteable Quoteable ::
"The secret of genius is to carry the spirit of the child into old age, which means never losing your enthusiasm." -- Aldous Huxley
People play dirty
If you want to know how some of these "underground" affiliates are swiping their way to thousands of dollars in profits ... and aren't afraid to get your hands dirty in the grey area of the marketing world ...
You need "Dirty CPA".
They play to win, and they play dirty ...
If you're willing to play dirty, and you're looking for a system that requires no selling, no website of your own, no copywriting, and no products ... you're going to thrive in the world of CPA.
Here's the examples of the module..
Media Buying - Discover how you could create a fast cash infusion for yourself with the immensely powerful traffic method known as media buying.
TV Traffic - Find out how watching TV (yes WATCHING TV) could land you a piping hot flood of targeted traffic that will immediately scoop up the offers you're promoting (this is wicked cool).
Mini Money Magnets - Super easy to set up and achieve, the M.M.M. method can get you MASSIVE traffic for mere pennies per click. Nuff said here;)
Mobile Marketing - Find out how to turn the mobile market into your own personal cash playground (notice - get in this NOW).
Ultra Cash Clickers - Discover how to build a HUGE stream of income by setting up Polls. People are drawn to these things like white on rice... might as well be your ad they're clicking on, so YOU'RE getting paid!
And MUCH more - There's even more of these incredible businesses in a bottle that could have you laughing all the way to the bank -- once you know what we know!
Click Here - The Dirty CPA
Start listening to your customers
One struggling restaurant owner said to me, “My customers are getting older and I’m
not attracting a young crowd. It worries me. In a couple of years many will die
off. Then what?” I suggested he do a couple of focus groups with younger people in
the neighborhood who hadn’t visited the restaurant recently. His response was,
“What will they tell me? That I should lower my prices or change my menu.”
Perhaps that is what they’d say. I don’t really know because he was too stubborn to
look at the situation objectively. Maybe they would have said the restaurant décor
was too old fashioned or the lighting was dim and depressing. They might have said
that they remembered the food wasn’t very good when they visited the restaurant
umpteen years ago. Maybe they would have said something simple like they wish the
menu would offer less than the elaborate 6-course dinners they featured because they
always left the restaurant feeling stuffed.
What prevents Guerrilla’s from using research is usually a case of misplaced ego.
Most Guerrillas’ are entrepreneurs or small businesses. They tend to hold strong
opinions of what will or won’t work. They are not accustomed to looking outward for
answers and prefer to think they know best.
Ask yourself these questions, the next time you’re likely to go it alone:
1) If I’m wrong, how much will it cost me?
2) How long can I afford to be wrong before I run out of money?
3) Have I asked for input from my customers or prospects that have no stake in
whether I succeed or fail?
4) Have I asked my customers and prospects what they need and want from me and my
business?
5) Do I know if my customers think I’m giving them what they need and want?
6) Do I know what else I can provide my customers so that they’ll pay me more…and be
happier about it?
7) Do my customers and prospects know the benefits of buying from me?
8) Do I know with certainty why my prospects go to a competitor rather than me?
Open your mind. You aren’t in it alone and it needn’t cost you a fortune to tap
into the best advice you’ll ever get. Start listening to your customers.
At least once a week ask yourself this question. Can you stand to know your
customers and prospects might be smarter than you in helping you business grow?
You can contact Bob at:
The Kaden Company
6677 N. Lincoln Ave.
Lincolnwood, IL 60712
(847) 933-9400
Fax: (847) 679-2101
Jay
Jay Conrad Levinson
The Father of Guerrilla Marketing
not attracting a young crowd. It worries me. In a couple of years many will die
off. Then what?” I suggested he do a couple of focus groups with younger people in
the neighborhood who hadn’t visited the restaurant recently. His response was,
“What will they tell me? That I should lower my prices or change my menu.”
Perhaps that is what they’d say. I don’t really know because he was too stubborn to
look at the situation objectively. Maybe they would have said the restaurant décor
was too old fashioned or the lighting was dim and depressing. They might have said
that they remembered the food wasn’t very good when they visited the restaurant
umpteen years ago. Maybe they would have said something simple like they wish the
menu would offer less than the elaborate 6-course dinners they featured because they
always left the restaurant feeling stuffed.
What prevents Guerrilla’s from using research is usually a case of misplaced ego.
Most Guerrillas’ are entrepreneurs or small businesses. They tend to hold strong
opinions of what will or won’t work. They are not accustomed to looking outward for
answers and prefer to think they know best.
Ask yourself these questions, the next time you’re likely to go it alone:
1) If I’m wrong, how much will it cost me?
2) How long can I afford to be wrong before I run out of money?
3) Have I asked for input from my customers or prospects that have no stake in
whether I succeed or fail?
4) Have I asked my customers and prospects what they need and want from me and my
business?
5) Do I know if my customers think I’m giving them what they need and want?
6) Do I know what else I can provide my customers so that they’ll pay me more…and be
happier about it?
7) Do my customers and prospects know the benefits of buying from me?
8) Do I know with certainty why my prospects go to a competitor rather than me?
Open your mind. You aren’t in it alone and it needn’t cost you a fortune to tap
into the best advice you’ll ever get. Start listening to your customers.
At least once a week ask yourself this question. Can you stand to know your
customers and prospects might be smarter than you in helping you business grow?
You can contact Bob at:
The Kaden Company
6677 N. Lincoln Ave.
Lincolnwood, IL 60712
(847) 933-9400
Fax: (847) 679-2101
Jay
Jay Conrad Levinson
The Father of Guerrilla Marketing
The Key to Leadership
By: Brian Tracy
The Foremost of the Values
Winston Churchill once said, "Courage is rightly considered the foremost of the virtues, for upon it all others depend." The systematic development of the deep down quality of unflinching courage is one of the fundamental requirements for leadership in any field. Fear, or the lack of courage is more responsible for failure in management, and in life, than any other factor. It is always fear that causes people to hold back, to sell themselves short, to settle for far less than they are capable of!
Eliminate Fear and Doubt
I firmly believe that you can do, have or be far more than you now know if only you could eliminate the fear, doubts and misgivings that consciously and unconsciously interfere with your realizing your full potential.
Unlearn Your Fears
If there is anything positive about fear, it is that all fears are learned, that no one is born with fears, and that having been learned, they can be unlearned. If you want to understand the role of fear in shaping the course of your life, just ask yourself, if you had a magic wand that would absolutely guarantee you success in any one thing you attempted, what goal would you set for yourself.
The Great Question
"What one great thing would you dare to dream if you knew you could not fail?" If you had no fears at all with regard to money or the criticism of others, what would you do differently? Most people can think of all kinds of changes they would, or could, make in their lives if they had no fears to hold them back.
The Origins of Fear
The development of courage begins with understanding the psychological origins of fear. The newborn child has only two fears; the fear of falling and the fear of loud noises. All other fears that we experience as adults are learned as we are growing up, primarily as the result of well-meaning but destructive criticism from our parents.
How Fears Develop
When the curious child gets into things and makes a mess, the parent scolds and punishes the child, eventually building up a pattern of fear connected with trying or getting into anything new or different. As adults, we experience this as the fear of failure, the fear of risking, of making a mistake, of losing.
Action Exercises
Here are two steps you can take immediately to put these ideas into action.
First, imagine that you had no fears at all. What would you set as a goal for yourself if you were guaranteed of success?
Second, decide exactly what you want and then act as if it were impossible to fail. You may be surprised at how successful you are.
The Foremost of the Values
Winston Churchill once said, "Courage is rightly considered the foremost of the virtues, for upon it all others depend." The systematic development of the deep down quality of unflinching courage is one of the fundamental requirements for leadership in any field. Fear, or the lack of courage is more responsible for failure in management, and in life, than any other factor. It is always fear that causes people to hold back, to sell themselves short, to settle for far less than they are capable of!
Eliminate Fear and Doubt
I firmly believe that you can do, have or be far more than you now know if only you could eliminate the fear, doubts and misgivings that consciously and unconsciously interfere with your realizing your full potential.
Unlearn Your Fears
If there is anything positive about fear, it is that all fears are learned, that no one is born with fears, and that having been learned, they can be unlearned. If you want to understand the role of fear in shaping the course of your life, just ask yourself, if you had a magic wand that would absolutely guarantee you success in any one thing you attempted, what goal would you set for yourself.
The Great Question
"What one great thing would you dare to dream if you knew you could not fail?" If you had no fears at all with regard to money or the criticism of others, what would you do differently? Most people can think of all kinds of changes they would, or could, make in their lives if they had no fears to hold them back.
The Origins of Fear
The development of courage begins with understanding the psychological origins of fear. The newborn child has only two fears; the fear of falling and the fear of loud noises. All other fears that we experience as adults are learned as we are growing up, primarily as the result of well-meaning but destructive criticism from our parents.
How Fears Develop
When the curious child gets into things and makes a mess, the parent scolds and punishes the child, eventually building up a pattern of fear connected with trying or getting into anything new or different. As adults, we experience this as the fear of failure, the fear of risking, of making a mistake, of losing.
Action Exercises
Here are two steps you can take immediately to put these ideas into action.
First, imagine that you had no fears at all. What would you set as a goal for yourself if you were guaranteed of success?
Second, decide exactly what you want and then act as if it were impossible to fail. You may be surprised at how successful you are.
As We Sow, So Shall We Harvest,
by Denis Waitley(excerpted from The Seeds of Greatness Treasury)
Our true rewards in life will depend on the quality and amount of contribution we make. From the Scriptures to science, psychology and business, the documentation is the same. “As we sow, we reap.” Life is an unfailing boomerang. What we throw out will come back full circle.
The way we can build self-reliance is to recognize the number of alternative choices we have in a free society. And for every choice we make, there is a consequence or reward of that decision that we must acknowledge as our responsibility. God’s Law of Cause and Effect is forever the ruler.
During debriefing interviews, returning POWs from the wars in which we have fought during the past century said that what they missed most of all was their freedom of choice. There are two primary choices in our lives: to accept conditions as they exist or to accept the responsibility for changing them.
To attain emotional security, each of us must learn to develop two critical capabilities: the ability to live with uncertainty, and the ability to delay immediate gratification in favor of long-range goals. Losers let life happen to them. Winners make it happen for themselves and others. Losers engage in pleasurable activities, with no purpose or result in mind. Losers try to escape from their fears and drudgery with activities that are tension-relieving. Winners are motivated by their desires toward activities that are goal-achieving.
A number of research studies during the past decade indicate that the happiest, most well-adjusted individuals are those who believe they have a strong measure of control over their lives. They choose more appropriate responses to what occurs and they stand up to inevitable changes and daily setbacks with less apprehension. They learn from their past mistakes, rather than reinforce or repeat them. They spend time taking action in the present, rather than fearing what might happen in the future.
To be self-reliant adults, we need to set some guidelines:
Be different, if it means higher personal and professional standards.
Be different, if it means being more gracious and considerate to others.
Be different, if it means being cleaner, neater and better groomed than the group.
Be different, if it means putting more time and effort into all you do.
And be different, if it means taking the calculated risk. The greatest risk in life is to wait for and depend upon others for your own security. The greatest security is to plan and act, and take the risk that will ultimately ensure your personal freedom and independence.
-- Denis Waitley
Successful Email Marketing Without Losing YOUR ISP Account!
I like many if not most online marketers work with a small advertising budget.To be honest I hate to spend my hard earned money on advertising. Especially if I can get as good or better exposure through free or very inexpensive advertising mediums.
During the last year I've learned some pretty good ways of doing just that.
Right now I'd like to share some of those ways with you.
Calm down now. I'm not going to tell you to spend days, and days, and days running free classifieds, although classifieds do work if you have an exceptional ad. But in general what I want to share with you is much more powerful than free classifieds alone.
So how does a low budget online marketer get the best free and inexpensive advertising.
Easy. All you have to do is utilize the BEST free advertising tool ever invented to date… Email!
There are many ways you can utilize email marketing to promote your businesses or websites. To keep things simple let's break email marketing down into two distinct categories.
Targeted and Untargeted (ie. SPAM).
UNTARGETED EMAIL: We will discuss this first and expose why it is a total waste of time.
Unsolicited Commercial Email, Spamming, or sending bulk email to "unqualified" email addreses is bad netiquette. What kind of credibility and online presence can you establish if you have to hide behind a false email address or a false name anyway? I'm certainly not going to give my Visa # or checking account # to anyone who lies about their name, email address, etc. and I think a great many folks would agree with me. If you send unsolicited email to addresses that do not want commercial email, not only do you risk the reputation of your business, you can get into more trouble than you would expect.
What kind of trouble Leon?
For openers many ISPs do not allow this activity and they will discontinue your account as soon as the inevitable complaints start to trickle in. In addition several states are now threatening to take legal action against senders on UCE.
Still want to spend $400-$500 on that fancy bulk email software?
If you want better results without the risk, consider the following alternatives...
TARGETED EMAIL
Targeted email really works! Truly targeted email means getting your email to recipients that HAVE approved of it. Not only do your get better results, you won't have to worry about ISP cancellation, legal action, and more importantly, the reputation of your business.
Here are the best targeted email marketing methods I've found. (Listed from most expensive to least expensive.)
a) opt-in email list rental
b) ezine advertising
c) ezine publishing
d) email discussion group participation
Here are the details on how to utilize each one:
Opt-In:
You may or may not be aware of the fact that you can actually rent email lists of people who have approved email about certain topics. Just about ANY topic imaginable a to z and everything in between!
This method is not the cheapest form of targeted email marketing, but it works!
On average, you'll have to spend about ten to fifteen cents per address. The companies that rent the addresses even do the mailing for you. You email your sales letter to them and just sit back and wait for the orders!
There are tons of companies that offer legitimate opt-in email lists. I will give you a few good ones to get started. These come highly recommended from some experienced online marketers.
PostMaster-Direct at http://www.postmasterdirect.com/
Bulletmail - http://www.bulletmail.com
Htmail - http://www.htmail.com/customer.html
Targ-It - http://www.targ-it.com/
Ezine Advertising
I'm a huge fan of ezine advertising and regularly utilize this low budget method of advertising. I'm not just saying that to bring in advertisers for my own newsletter. Quite simply, email advertising works! It has a proven track record!
I'm telling you first hand a good ad in one of the major ezines that have 30,00-40,000 or more subscribers can bring YOU hundreds of subscribers or hundreds of hits in just a couple days! Ads in the major ezines will run any where from $30 to $200 or more.
Many of the larger companies have just started to realize this and are entering into this exciting new advertising medium. Compared with the high costs of web site banner advertising (check around and you'll be shocked!), ezine advertising is a bargain.
Ezine Publishing
One step better than "advertising" in ezines, is actually publishing an ezine of your own. If you are not already publishing your own e-newsletter, I highly recommend it! I have made more sales and signed up more reps(resellers) as a result of my ezine, and other ezine advertising, than all other advertising media I've tried combined.
Your customers, downlines and prospects will constantly be "in touch" and your ezine can keep them informed of new products and services as you make them available. You can also generate income offering classified or sponsorship advertising if you wish.
Unlike traditional newsletters that are printed on paper there are no printing or postage costs. Because of this you can offer free subscriptions, thus insuring a steady flow of new prospects.
If you want to get started publishing your own ezine, you do not need to pay for list management at first. You can manage and deliver your ezine yourself with a good email program. There are many more excellent email programs around. Many of them can be downloaded free on the
net.
Once you have your email program installed, practice mailing to a few people at once by using the BCC (blind carbon copy) feature. It's important to use the BCC field when mailing to a list. This insures that everyone on the list does not see other email addresses on the list. No one wants their email address publicized all over the net. If you want to make my blood boil and be sure not to get me even look at what you are offering; just send me an email with my address displayed with others. This is very unprofessional and will make folks not like you!
Email a few friends several times till you are able to email correctly using a list and using BCC.
After you've perfected your emailing skills, all you need is some subscribers. That's easy, simply post a message announcing your newsletter to the "NewList Announcement List". Full details on posting are here:
http://scout.cs.wisc.edu/scout/new-list/format.html.
Discussion Group Marketing
An email discussion group can be delivered via email like this email newsletter you are reading right now. But a discussion list differs from an email newsletter in one major way -- you are allowed to voice your opinion. Many are moderated and many are unmoderated.
What way can a discussion group help you and your business?
Discussion lists also allow you to ask for help from others in that same particular area of interest. What's more, you can assist people in need while your sig file (the footer you include at the end of every email message you send) invites readers to your site. Discussion group marketing works because the posts are delivered directly TO a targeted audience. Once again, push marketing
at it's finest! In addition to posting to discussion groups you should consider advertising if the group you join offers it. This is targeted email marketing at it's best.
No matter what you are marketing online, participating in discussion lists makes sense. Not only will you learn some valuable information, it's is a great way to soft-sell some of your wares.
Hard selling is not allowed in many discussion groups. Very often these lists are quite large. If you hard sell or do blatant advertising; there is a pretty good chance you might get flamed. Flamed to the tune of 20 or 30 thousand flames as soon as your blatant advertising is posted. So be careful. Sig files are fine. It's often good to check things out for a couple days before starting to
participate in the discussions.
To find some discussion groups on your particular area of interest, go to http://www.e-groups.com/. After a while you may want to start your own!
You really can use email marketing without getting in trouble with your ISP and the courts.
Enough for now, but remember, whatever email marketing method you choose, be sure that everything single email you send out includes your URL and a brief description of exactly how YOU can be of service to anyone who may be reading that email!
By
Leon Brickey
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Leon is webmaster and owner of Appalachian Online Marketing at
http://www.appalachianmarketing.com. At Appalachian Online Marketing you can
find everything you need to turn your struggling business into an explosive
moneymaker! Free subscription to Absolute Internet Marketing Resources Ezine
containing the most current, up to date online marketing resources on the
planet.
Troy White on Dr Joe Vitale
by Troy White
They call him The Worlds First Hypnotic Marketer.
Hypnotic, because the writing style he uses grabs you,sucks you in to it's mesmerizing pull… and forces you to read every word of what lays in front of you.
Marketer, because he's one of the greatest marketers of all times – consistently writing and implementing record breaking marketing strategies for himself, and his trusted clients.
Combine the two – hypnotic and marketer – and you hold the solution to one of the biggest problems in advertising today. People are inundated with marketing and advertising messages… some say upwards of 4,000 messages we are subjected to throughout an average day. Dr Vitale has a golden way of being that one piece of writing that you read, and take action on, out of those 4,000.
Any business owner who has been wise enough to hire Joe has seen incredible transformations in their sales, their profits, and the quality of their clients.
You see, not only does Dr Vitale have a way with words that compels people to take action – he also has a way of “tuning in” to the subconscious minds of their perfect clients.
Those that are in need of what's being offered of course, but more importantly, the ideal ‘soul-mates' for the company selling the products. When you find the perfect client – they buy again, and again… and again. Dr Vitale has a very rare gift that tunes into the perfect buyer then shows them exactly why it's in their best interest to become a preferred, and very regular, client.
It didn't start this way for Dr Vitale though… 30 years ago he was broke, desperate and living on the street. Through a series of odd “coincidences”, he found his inner calling and has gone on to great fame and success, along with
several best selling books. One of the top copywriters in the world, and one of the most successful, and respected, marketers in the world.
Dr Vitale is also the most generous, humble and down to earth, good people you will ever have the privilege to meet. I personally have had the honor to work with him and am astounded on how real he is, in such an unreal world. If you are looking at hiring Joe to work with you – jump on it! Your bank account will seriously thank you.
If you are considering buying one, or all, of Joe's books or products - stop considering- just do it…
The investment is truly chump change in return for the hundreds of thousands of dollars you will earn in your lifetime with his insightful, highly unique, yet effective marketing tools.
eriously, Dr Vitale will enlighten you on what really works in marketing today… and it's not the newest whiz-bang technology! Dr Vitale shares his time-tested marketing tools that worked 50 years ago, work today just as effectively, and will work 50 years from now as well.
A true friend, and business mentor, Dr Joe Vitale will show you exactly how to build your business into a profit generating powerhouse…
When you implement his marketing strategies into your business you will quickly discover why his nickname is also Mr Fire. He will literally have your web counters burning out, your sales receipts and merchant account will scream for mercy - and that burning smell you notice… is your competitors passion fizzling out.
The Hypnotic Marketing Library set is an absolute must-own for every serious marketer
Consisting of every single tool you will need at your side while you systematically build, or rebuild, the next marketing success we will hear about in Dr Vitale's next book!
Having a mentor at your side like Dr Vitale should be mandatory for everyone who registers, or starts, a new business. Lucky for you – it's not . You can be one of the wise few who partners with a master and learns, and earns, with the best (and we'll keep it your secret success formula).
Some of his accomplishments you should be aware of:
- Hypotic Library
- Hypnotic Marketing
- Hypnotic Selling Stories
- Hypnotic Selling Tools
- Hypnotic Traffic Tools
- Hypnotic Writing
- Hypnotic Writing Advanced
- Hypnotic Writing Swipe Files
- Create Advertising That Sells
- Impulse Internet Marketing
- Subconscious Internet Marketing
A lifetime of invaluable marketing education is at your fingertips. Be the one to take action on your dreams and partner with one of the greatest in your quest for success.
Enjoy and Prosper
Troy White Helps Business Owners Turn Their Words Into Wealth and can be found at http://www.smallbusinesscopywriter.com/
Working at Home? Here's 10 Ways to Be More Productive
Ah, working at home... Visions of leisurely days, conference calls in comfy sweatpants, increased productivity with fewer interruptions. But the distinctions between work life and home life soon blur. You really should throw some laundry in the wash before you write that proposal. You have an hour before a meeting: Should you balance your books or clean the kitchen? And remember to call that client back right after you empty the cat box.Welcome to the real world of working at home: unforeseen distractions, a lack of structured time, and sometimes a perceived loss of identity. But don't give up the dream just yet! By putting into place a few simple ideas, you can reap more of the rewards of working at home. Based on my
experiences and those of my associates, here are 10 simple ways to help you stay on track.
1. Separate Your Space
Keep a separate, distinct work area in your home. (This is especially difficult if you're living and working in a shoebox studio, like I was when I started my business in New York City!) If you don't have a separate room, at least define an area, and know that when you're in it, you're in "work mode." Make sure your roommates and family are aware of this as well.
2. Structure Your Time
As your business and personal time mesh, it's more important than ever to structure your day. For example, if you regularly take a walk or go to the gym, try to do it every day at the same time. Value that personal appointment with yourself - even when you're very busy. It will actually help you keep your business on track! I like to get up early and work until noon, then I take a few hours off to enjoy lunch, do some reading, and take my daily jog on the beach. Then I'm back at my desk at 4:00 until who knows when!
3. Outsource All You Can
When I began my business, I made the mistake of acting as my own courier service. I soon learned how much time I was wasting by visiting clients too much just to pick things up and drop them off. Whenever you start thinking, "Well I can do that myself," STOP. Streamline your business, making everything as automatic as possible. Use outside services to stay focused on your *real work*. Get accounts with an overnight delivery service, messenger service, virtual assistant (VA), bookkeeper, etc. Save your energy for your brilliant ideas! : )
4. Use Technology to Your Advantage
In-person meetings are very valuable when appropriate, but schedule them sparingly. Try to do most of your business via phone, fax, and e-mail using the best equipment you can afford. For most home-based entrepreneurs, when you're out of the office, you're NOT making money. So it's important that you can communicate flawlessly from where you are. And PLEASE do us all a favor and get separate lines/services for your phone, fax, and Internet! No one likes getting a busy signal.
(BONUS TIP: If your phone company offers voicemail, get it. Not only will your outgoing message sound more professional, but if you're on an important call and don't want to be disturbed, other callers can still leave you a message.)
5. Group Your Errands
Try to group your meetings and errands together to minimize your out-of-office time. Make a list in the morning of all the outside tasks you need done for the day, and attempt to complete them in one fell swoop. Even better, do what I do and designate just one day a week as your "blitz" day for errands and meetings. I like doing this, because then I need to get dressed up only one day a week! : )
6. Stay Focused
Make your workspace off-limits to other roommates or family members when you're working. For you animal lovers, this may go for pets as well. (My cat Francine gets *very* jealous when I'm not giving her complete attention!) Keep all personal paperwork such as bills and magazines out of sight, so as not to distract you from your projects.
7. Beware of Yappers
Many of your friends and family will be immediately delighted when they learn that you're working at home. They picture you lounging on the couch, eating potato chips, and waiting for their calls. When they call you simply to chat, politely remind them that you're working, and ask them if you can call them back after your day is over. It may take them awhile, but they'll eventually "get it."
8. Work With Your Moods
Keep track of your moods and productivity compared with the time of day. For example, if you find you're more alert in the morning, use this time to make important calls and do your creative work. Take advantage of your natural cycles. If you feel better after an afternoon nap, go for it! (I'm a BIG proponent of the catnap. In fact, I may start a support group. : ))
9. Suit Yourself
To bring out your best work, make your environment perfect for YOU. How do you work best? With plenty of breaks, or with no interruptions? In silence, or with some light music in the background? On a cushy couch and coffee table, or at a business desk in an ergonomic chair? (My friends thought I was nuts when I spent $700 on my Herman Miller Aeron chair, but they quickly understood why once they sat in it! And my spine thanks me every day.) Also, find some places you can do work when you need a change of scenery. How about the library, the park, or your neighborhood coffee shop? When I need to do serious reading, thinking, or editing, I take my work outside to the beach. The sea air, sunshine, and soothing waves help
me think much more clearly.
10. Break for People
Feeling sluggish, lonely, or moody? Arrange for at least one social break during the week. (I aim for two or three.) Schedule breakfast, lunch, dinner, or even just coffee with a client, vendor, or friend. Join a business networking group, or sign-up for social activities such as dance class or
recreational sports league. Don't go into hermit mode - it can be self destructive!
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Alexandria Brown's FREE biweekly e-zine gives "how-to" tips on writing compelling copy for Web sites, brochures, and e-zines. Learn how to ATTRACT NEW CLIENTS and strengthen your customer relationships! Subscribe today at http://www.akbwriting.com
The Time to Act by Jim Rohn
Engaging in genuine discipline requires that you develop the ability to take action. You don't need to be hasty if it isn't required, but you don't want to lose much time either. Here's the time to act: when the idea is hot and the emotion is strong.
Let's say you would like to build your library. If that is a strong desire for you, what you've got to do is get the first book. Then get the second book. Take action as soon as possible, before the feeling passes and before the idea dims. If you don't, here's what happens . . . .
YOU FALL PREY TO THE LAW OF DIMINISHING INTENT.
We intend to take action when the idea strikes us. We intend to do something when the emotion is high. But if we don't translate that intention into action fairly soon, the urgency starts to diminish. A month from now the passion is cold. A year from now it can't be found.
So take action. Set up a discipline when the emotions are high and the idea is strong, clear, and powerful. If somebody talks about good health and you're motivated by it, you need to get a book on nutrition. Get the book before the idea passes, before the emotion gets cold. Begin the process. Fall on the floor and do some push-ups. You've got to take action; otherwise the wisdom is wasted. The emotion soon passes unless you apply it to a disciplined activity. Discipline enables you to capture the emotion and the wisdom and translate them into action. The key is to increase your motivation by quickly setting up the disciplines. By doing so, you've started a whole new life process.
Here is the greatest value of discipline: self-worth, also known as self-esteem. Many people who are teaching self-esteem these days don't connect it to discipline. But once we sense the least lack of discipline within ourselves, it starts to erode our psyche. One of the greatest temptations is to just ease up a little bit. Instead of doing your best, you allow yourself to do just a little less than your best. Sure enough, you've started in the slightest way to decrease your sense of self-worth.
There is a problem with even a little bit of neglect. Neglect starts as an infection. If you don't take care of it, it becomes a disease. And one neglect leads to another. Worst of all, when neglect starts, it diminishes our self-worth.
Once this has happened, how can you regain your self-respect? All you have to do is act now! Start with the smallest discipline that corresponds to your own philosophy. Make the commitment: "I will discipline myself to achieve my goals so that in the years ahead I can celebrate my successes."
To Your Success,
Jim Rohn
Procrastination...
Who hasn't put off doing things at one time or another?
In It's About Time: The 6 Styles of Procrastination and How to Overcome Them, Dr. Linda Sapadin and Jack Maguire write: "Of course, everybody procrastinates occasionally. An unusually messy closet gets cursed for months without ever being cleaned, or the task of writing an especially difficult letter is put off until the last possible minute."
Root Cause
Sapadin and Maguire further investigate the problem that is procrastination and point out that its roots are deep. "For many people, [procrastination] is chronic, pervasive, and deeply-rooted," they analyze. "Because of how, as children, they were conditioned to think, speak, and behave, these individuals have a built-in tendency to not only procrastinate whenever they face a challenging situation, but to do so consistently, in the same way."
Sapadin and Maguire likewise classify procrastinators into six types: Perfectionists, Crisis-Makers, Worriers, Overdoers, Defiers, and Dreamers.
Timely Breakthroughs
While each procrastinator has idiosyncrasies that distinguish him from the rest, Sapadin and Maguire assert that all procrastinators have to take these steps to break free from the bad habit:
1. Stop the negative vibes. Chronic procrastinators have a high level of frustration. This is because they often feel angry over the fact that nothing seems to be happening in their lives. "Some direct this feeling inward and come to regard themselves--at least in certain respects--worthless, stupid, unreliable, or incompetent," say Sapadin and Maguire. So, isolate your procrastination problem and don't let it spawn more negative feelings.2. Own up to the truth. Procrastinators who don't own up to their problems may also direct "anger at the people around them" or express "resentment of the situations they're in." Own up to your procrastination problem and start finding a way to break away from it with "more productive ways of speaking, thinking, and acting."
3. Take note of your procrastination triggers. You have to pay attention to the factors that make you want to put things off. Keeping track of your reaction to certain situations would make you more conscious of the behavior that you have to correct. Take a notebook and take note of your weak moments. It's not going to be easy to do this, but you have to come clean so you can eventually move forward. You shouldn't keep making excuses like "There's no perfect time for me to do it," "I'm not ready yet," and such to avoid doing things that take you out of your comfort zone. Procrastination shouldn't become your dysfunctional "security blankets."
Good Prognosis
Chronic procrastinators need not despair. "You can solve your [procrastination] problem, no matter how long suffered from it or how hopelessly trapped you may feel," assure Sapadin and Maguire.
Seven Steps To Blogging Success For Affiliate Marketers
You've probably heard us say this often, but it's worth repeating: One of the MOST important strategies for successful affiliate marketing is building relationships of trust with your customers and subscribers.
You'll always sell the MOST products (and earn the highest commissions) if you recommend your products to your list...
... and the MORE they trust you, the GREATER the chances they'll act on your recommendations.
Now, while we've always said that email marketing is the BEST way to go about building these relationships with your customers, it's certainly not the ONLY way!
Another excellent way to create a sense of familiarity and trust with your visitors and subscribers -- and build your online credibility -- is through a blog.
A blog gives your readers the chance to get to know the "real" person behind your website: You!
By writing short, simple blog posts related to your market or area of interest, your visitors will quickly begin to view you as a trusted friend who is looking out for their best interests, and they'll also see for themselves that you're a reliable resource for information and help.
So, if you'd like to try creating a blog for your site, here are seven simple "rules" you can follow to create one that your customers will return to again and again...
... and one that will help you sell even MORE of your affiliate products:
1. Post often, over an extended period of time
The most important element of EVERY successful blog is the frequency of posting.
Posting often -- daily if possible -- over a long period of time, is the best way to build a large, loyal audience. This large readership provides the base for you to make good money, so posting often is crucial to making your business profitable.
Ideally, you want your blog readers to return every day to read your latest post. If you stop posting for a few days, you risk losing those readers.
Imagine if your favorite daily newspaper often didn't appear for a few days without warning... you'd end up finding a more reliable source of news pretty quickly!
2. Make your content relevant to your target audience
Of course, there's no point posting frequently if your content isn't relevant to your target audience. By providing valuable information and links to other web sites and resources that they can explore for more information, you will keep your readers coming back for more.
To generate sustained levels of good traffic, it's not enough for your content just to be relevant to your audience -- it also needs to be insightful, informative, and even controversial at times (within reason).
And you don't have to be the greatest writer!
If your voice is your own, your tone is genuine, and your content is worth reading, then you'll attract an audience.
3. Encourage dialog and debate through your blog
The most controversial blogs often attract the most traffic. Political blogs are prime examples.
Obviously, if you're running a business blog, you need to be careful what you write, but there's no doubt that a great way to generate large spikes in traffic is to write something new, fresh, and, if not controversial, then at least noteworthy.
Not only does this generate interest in the blogosphere, resulting in other blogs linking to you, but it encourages debate. People leave a comment and then invariably return to read the responses to it, and maybe leave another contribution.
Asking for people's opinion, experience, or ideas is another great way to invite comments.
In a business blog you need to be careful when allowing comments to be left in case someone writes something damaging to your business.
However, blog comments can be managed, and there's no doubt that this dialog is one of the standout features of a blog.
4. Promote your blog everywhere, all the time -- online and offline
To make your blog work, you need to start by driving traffic -- and lots of it -- to it.
The most successful blogs use every tool, directory, and promotional technique they can lay their hands on. And because blogs are now so popular online, there are a LOT of these tools available for you to take advantage of.
5. Make friends, link, and connect
Blogging is not a solitary activity. "Community," "dialog," and "linking" are words you'll hear constantly in blog-related discussions. And the best blogs make full use of the linking features available to link to other relevant web sites or blogs.
By "making friends" and connecting with other blogs where your target audience may hang out, you can get those blogs to link to you, providing a bridge from their blog to yours... and more traffic for you!
Every time you post a comment on a blog you like, or drop the blog owner an email, you are effectively giving out your business card -- complete with an instant link to your blog.
6. Be active in the blogosphere
Just as blogging is a social activity, it's also an active one. The bloggers who really put themselves out there... who link with other blogs... who post comments on message boards, forums, and blogs... who become recognized as an authority in a particular subject... are the ones whose blogs pull in the really big traffic figures.
And ultimately, they're the ones who have the ability to make BIG money!
Think of promoting your blog as "working the room" at your local Chamber of Commerce networking lunch. Okay, the Internet is a large, global "room," but if you find out where your target audience and the other businesses that cater to that audience spend their time, then that's where you should spend your time "networking" and making sure they know who you are.
7. Make your blog a great place to hang out!
Of course, attracting tons of traffic is pointless if you don't ensure that your blog is a fulfilling and worthwhile experience for your visitors.
The content itself is important, but your blog should also be well designed, easy to navigate, and home to features like categorized archives and image folders.
The most successful blogs combine the best elements of chatrooms, online forums, and information and news web sites -- all held together by a template that's pleasing to the eye and easy to navigate.
Many blog readers treat their favorite blogs like their favorite coffee shops -- friendly, comfortable places where they can hang out to read, chat, and socialize.
Finally, remember that you don't need to be a professional writer to write your own blog! Just be yourself, write from the heart, and make sure you're providing relevant information to your audience...
... and you'll be rewarded with increased sales and commissions!
You'll always sell the MOST products (and earn the highest commissions) if you recommend your products to your list...
... and the MORE they trust you, the GREATER the chances they'll act on your recommendations.
Now, while we've always said that email marketing is the BEST way to go about building these relationships with your customers, it's certainly not the ONLY way!
Another excellent way to create a sense of familiarity and trust with your visitors and subscribers -- and build your online credibility -- is through a blog.
A blog gives your readers the chance to get to know the "real" person behind your website: You!
By writing short, simple blog posts related to your market or area of interest, your visitors will quickly begin to view you as a trusted friend who is looking out for their best interests, and they'll also see for themselves that you're a reliable resource for information and help.
So, if you'd like to try creating a blog for your site, here are seven simple "rules" you can follow to create one that your customers will return to again and again...
... and one that will help you sell even MORE of your affiliate products:
1. Post often, over an extended period of time
The most important element of EVERY successful blog is the frequency of posting.
Posting often -- daily if possible -- over a long period of time, is the best way to build a large, loyal audience. This large readership provides the base for you to make good money, so posting often is crucial to making your business profitable.
Ideally, you want your blog readers to return every day to read your latest post. If you stop posting for a few days, you risk losing those readers.
Imagine if your favorite daily newspaper often didn't appear for a few days without warning... you'd end up finding a more reliable source of news pretty quickly!
2. Make your content relevant to your target audience
Of course, there's no point posting frequently if your content isn't relevant to your target audience. By providing valuable information and links to other web sites and resources that they can explore for more information, you will keep your readers coming back for more.
To generate sustained levels of good traffic, it's not enough for your content just to be relevant to your audience -- it also needs to be insightful, informative, and even controversial at times (within reason).
And you don't have to be the greatest writer!
If your voice is your own, your tone is genuine, and your content is worth reading, then you'll attract an audience.
3. Encourage dialog and debate through your blog
The most controversial blogs often attract the most traffic. Political blogs are prime examples.
Obviously, if you're running a business blog, you need to be careful what you write, but there's no doubt that a great way to generate large spikes in traffic is to write something new, fresh, and, if not controversial, then at least noteworthy.
Not only does this generate interest in the blogosphere, resulting in other blogs linking to you, but it encourages debate. People leave a comment and then invariably return to read the responses to it, and maybe leave another contribution.
Asking for people's opinion, experience, or ideas is another great way to invite comments.
In a business blog you need to be careful when allowing comments to be left in case someone writes something damaging to your business.
However, blog comments can be managed, and there's no doubt that this dialog is one of the standout features of a blog.
4. Promote your blog everywhere, all the time -- online and offline
To make your blog work, you need to start by driving traffic -- and lots of it -- to it.
The most successful blogs use every tool, directory, and promotional technique they can lay their hands on. And because blogs are now so popular online, there are a LOT of these tools available for you to take advantage of.
5. Make friends, link, and connect
Blogging is not a solitary activity. "Community," "dialog," and "linking" are words you'll hear constantly in blog-related discussions. And the best blogs make full use of the linking features available to link to other relevant web sites or blogs.
By "making friends" and connecting with other blogs where your target audience may hang out, you can get those blogs to link to you, providing a bridge from their blog to yours... and more traffic for you!
Every time you post a comment on a blog you like, or drop the blog owner an email, you are effectively giving out your business card -- complete with an instant link to your blog.
6. Be active in the blogosphere
Just as blogging is a social activity, it's also an active one. The bloggers who really put themselves out there... who link with other blogs... who post comments on message boards, forums, and blogs... who become recognized as an authority in a particular subject... are the ones whose blogs pull in the really big traffic figures.
And ultimately, they're the ones who have the ability to make BIG money!
Think of promoting your blog as "working the room" at your local Chamber of Commerce networking lunch. Okay, the Internet is a large, global "room," but if you find out where your target audience and the other businesses that cater to that audience spend their time, then that's where you should spend your time "networking" and making sure they know who you are.
7. Make your blog a great place to hang out!
Of course, attracting tons of traffic is pointless if you don't ensure that your blog is a fulfilling and worthwhile experience for your visitors.
The content itself is important, but your blog should also be well designed, easy to navigate, and home to features like categorized archives and image folders.
The most successful blogs combine the best elements of chatrooms, online forums, and information and news web sites -- all held together by a template that's pleasing to the eye and easy to navigate.
Many blog readers treat their favorite blogs like their favorite coffee shops -- friendly, comfortable places where they can hang out to read, chat, and socialize.
Finally, remember that you don't need to be a professional writer to write your own blog! Just be yourself, write from the heart, and make sure you're providing relevant information to your audience...
... and you'll be rewarded with increased sales and commissions!
Four Strategies to Find A New Business
By: Brian Tracy
There are four strategies you can use to find a new product or service to start or build your own business.
Search Your Own Field
The first strategy is to find a new product or service in your own field or skills. You may have a million dollar idea in your own mind. Many people have had the experience of having an idea for a product or service nag at them over and over again, and you keep pushing it away or ignoring it.
They say the average person has four ideas each year driving to and from work, any one of which would make them a millionaire if they would just follow it up. So look into your own field or skills. Look into your own mind. Look into your own ideas.
Keep Your Eyes Open
The second strategy is to find a new product or service while you travel. Keep your eyes open for opportunities.
A very good friend of mine who is now a multi-millionaire, started his fortune by traveling east and seeing a unique type of orange drink called Orange Julius and then getting the exclusive rights to sell it in a large Western city. From there, he expanded into other restaurants, into real estate, and into apartments. He developed a high positive cash flow from his Orange Julius business that made him a millionaire.
Sometimes just finding a new product or service that is doing well somewhere else that hasn't come to your market area can make you wealthy.
Get the Rights to Sell It
Remember your objective, when you find a new product or service, is to acquire the rights to sell the product or service exclusively in your market area. Sometimes these rights are available for the asking.
A gentleman I know named Peter Thomas got the rights for Century 21 to Canada simply by going to the offices and asking for them when Century 21 was a young company. From that, he turned Century 21 into one of the most successful real estate franchises in Canada. He is now worth millions of dollars, having taken the cash flow from Century 21 and channeled it into other real estate investments.
Be Sure it is Already Successful
Sometimes just asking for the right to sell it in your market area is all you have to do. Here's the key, though. Before you bring a new product or service back to your market area, be absolutely sure that it sells well somewhere else. Many people advertise products outside their market area because they are not selling inside their market area, so make very sure that the product is selling well already in other markets.
Look For Business Opportunities
Strategy number three is to keep your eyes and ears open and alert to new business opportunities occurring around you. Develop a money-making attitude. A friend of mine became very successful by building commercial property across the street from a new shopping center that was being developed. The traffic from the shopping center made that commercial space extremely valuable. He opened two businesses in it, and started his fortune. So be alert to what is going on around you.
Be Sure You Believe In Your Product
And strategy number four is this. Remember you will only be successful marketing and selling something that you believe in, use yourself and would recommend to your best friend.
Many times, I see people who make the critical mistake of trying to sell a product or service that they themselves would neither use nor afford, nor would they recommend to someone else, but they think that other people will buy it even though they wouldn't. So remember you must really, really believe it the product. You must be excited about the product. You must absolutely believe that this product can enhance the life or work of someone else and then be eager to tell them about it.
Action Exercises
Here are two things you can do to put these business building strategies to work in your own life:
First, develop a new business mentality. Continually look around you for new products and services that people need, want and are willing to pay for.
Second, develop a money making attitude. Look around you for opportunities to sell products or services that are not currently being offered, at either higher prices or in greater quantities. The possibilities are everywhere.
There are four strategies you can use to find a new product or service to start or build your own business.
Search Your Own Field
The first strategy is to find a new product or service in your own field or skills. You may have a million dollar idea in your own mind. Many people have had the experience of having an idea for a product or service nag at them over and over again, and you keep pushing it away or ignoring it.
They say the average person has four ideas each year driving to and from work, any one of which would make them a millionaire if they would just follow it up. So look into your own field or skills. Look into your own mind. Look into your own ideas.
Keep Your Eyes Open
The second strategy is to find a new product or service while you travel. Keep your eyes open for opportunities.
A very good friend of mine who is now a multi-millionaire, started his fortune by traveling east and seeing a unique type of orange drink called Orange Julius and then getting the exclusive rights to sell it in a large Western city. From there, he expanded into other restaurants, into real estate, and into apartments. He developed a high positive cash flow from his Orange Julius business that made him a millionaire.
Sometimes just finding a new product or service that is doing well somewhere else that hasn't come to your market area can make you wealthy.
Get the Rights to Sell It
Remember your objective, when you find a new product or service, is to acquire the rights to sell the product or service exclusively in your market area. Sometimes these rights are available for the asking.
A gentleman I know named Peter Thomas got the rights for Century 21 to Canada simply by going to the offices and asking for them when Century 21 was a young company. From that, he turned Century 21 into one of the most successful real estate franchises in Canada. He is now worth millions of dollars, having taken the cash flow from Century 21 and channeled it into other real estate investments.
Be Sure it is Already Successful
Sometimes just asking for the right to sell it in your market area is all you have to do. Here's the key, though. Before you bring a new product or service back to your market area, be absolutely sure that it sells well somewhere else. Many people advertise products outside their market area because they are not selling inside their market area, so make very sure that the product is selling well already in other markets.
Look For Business Opportunities
Strategy number three is to keep your eyes and ears open and alert to new business opportunities occurring around you. Develop a money-making attitude. A friend of mine became very successful by building commercial property across the street from a new shopping center that was being developed. The traffic from the shopping center made that commercial space extremely valuable. He opened two businesses in it, and started his fortune. So be alert to what is going on around you.
Be Sure You Believe In Your Product
And strategy number four is this. Remember you will only be successful marketing and selling something that you believe in, use yourself and would recommend to your best friend.
Many times, I see people who make the critical mistake of trying to sell a product or service that they themselves would neither use nor afford, nor would they recommend to someone else, but they think that other people will buy it even though they wouldn't. So remember you must really, really believe it the product. You must be excited about the product. You must absolutely believe that this product can enhance the life or work of someone else and then be eager to tell them about it.
Action Exercises
Here are two things you can do to put these business building strategies to work in your own life:
First, develop a new business mentality. Continually look around you for new products and services that people need, want and are willing to pay for.
Second, develop a money making attitude. Look around you for opportunities to sell products or services that are not currently being offered, at either higher prices or in greater quantities. The possibilities are everywhere.
Differences Between Rich and Poor Affiliate Marketers
By Jay Stockwell
If you want your affiliate business to really fly, don't treat it like a hobby.
I believe this is one of the primary differences between rich and poor affiliate marketers.
Lots of the poor affiliate marketers blame their lack of knowledge, most times technical knowledge, for the failure of their business.
They tinker with this and that, but never really get serious with one thing to make it their "business". They just fluff around. :)
The poor affiliate marketer has no strategy, no systems, no goals and no tracking. In fact, there is very little about what they are doing that even suggests they are running a business.
I get to meet and chat with lots of different affiliate marketers. From folks who are yet to make a dollar, right through to Uber affiliates who are making 50k+ profit a day.
One of the striking differences in these two sets of people is the way that they treat their business.
There are some guys I know that are doing 7 figures a year and can barely write a line of HTML.
That doesn't matter to them. They know that Donald Trump is a lousy tradesman. They know that they don't need to be good at everything. They understand that they are just the captain of the team.
They orchestrate their business by leveraging their time to the maximum by using planned methods and systems to grow their businesses.
All the while tracking and measuring what is going on to continue on a constant trail of improvement.
Overtime, they move away from working "IN" the business towards spending most of their time working "ON" the business.
They simply become the conductor of this massive online profit generating orchestra.
Staff, software and systems are the musicians.
In practice, it's difficult to execute this perfectly.
In recent times I've found myself spending way to much time in spreadsheets, accounting packages and in companies affiliate areas instead of working on growing the business.
A lot of this stuff I can't outsource and we're not big enough to have an accounting manager in-house.
So unfortunately, my ability to leverage my time was diminishing because I was so caught up in the administration. To be honest, it has been starting to get me down.
Thankfully, I recently came across StatsJunky.
It's not often that I would call a piece of software a savior. But in this case, I would say that it really has been.
Recently I was introduced by a friend to the StatsJunky crew. For the past 9 months they've been working on a piece of software that quite frankly I didn't think was possible to create.
I thought that given the level of difficulty working with so many different affiliate programs it would largely be impossible.
However, somehow they've done it.
Actually I know how. Through shear determination. They've got close to 20 people working to make this dream a reality.
What this magical piece of software does is essentially manages the time consuming and many times painful parts of your affiliate marketing business.
It downloads your stats from all your affiliate programs, as well as your PPC accounts if you use paid search.
In one neat dashboard you can see what you would normally have to login to all your different accounts to see.
You can even add in your recurring monthly costs like web hosting so you can get a full perspective on your monthly profits.
Every few days I'm now able to open up StatsJunky and see what has happened across our entire affiliate marketing business.
How much we've earned from each of our different revenue streams.
Plus, how much we've spent generating a lot of that income.
But that's just the tip of the iceberg. You can drill down for each network and instantly see which programs are generating the bulk of the income.
Very quickly you can establish where your time is going to yield the biggest return on investment.
As an example, within minutes of using StatsJunky, I was able to identify that one of our largely neglected affiliate sites was actually making us $5.04 for every click on one of our affiliate links.
It was converting at an amazing 14.63%.
Guess where we'll immediately be sending more traffic and instantly making more money? :)
Without StatsJunky, I probably would never have identified this. I'm just too busy to manually log into every account to check these kind of stats.
One other really cool thing about StatsJunky is how amazingly dedicated they are to their new users. What other company do you know that have daily Q&A webinars with their customers?
As another example, I asked them if they could add another small affiliate program that we use to the software. They immediately went to work to add it overnight.
They now support 200+ affiliate programs.
This software really is the revelation for me in 2009. I trust that it's going to be a key component of growing our business even in these rough economic times.
After all, regardless of the size of your business, one of the key aspects to seeing strong growth is the tracking of what is working and what is not.
It's not rocket science. You focus more on the stuff that is working, and drop the stuff that isn't.
If you are an affiliate marketer, I would encourage you to take your business seriously. So don't treat it like a hobby.
Put together a clear strategy with goals in place to see how you're doing. Track your goals and reward yourself when you hit them.
As part of the process put systems in place like StatsJunky so you can easily track your progress and focus squarely on the things that are making you money.
Then with the time you save, you can engage in income generating activities like increasing your traffic or improving your conversion rates.
If you want to see StatsJunky in action, check out the video I got the StatsJunky crew to make for you guys. It gives an 8 minute demo on how it works.
Check it out here:
http://www.associateprograms.com/articles/806/1/
Note: They have a FREE 7 day trial and a credit card is NOT required to get started. See for yourself just how good this thing is.
I reckon EVERY affiliate marketer should at least try StatsJunky to see just how good it is for themselves.
==========================
Thought for today: Don't waste time
==========================
"It has been my observation that most people get ahead during the time that others waste time." - Henry Ford
All the best
Jay Stockwell
If you want your affiliate business to really fly, don't treat it like a hobby.
I believe this is one of the primary differences between rich and poor affiliate marketers.
Lots of the poor affiliate marketers blame their lack of knowledge, most times technical knowledge, for the failure of their business.
They tinker with this and that, but never really get serious with one thing to make it their "business". They just fluff around. :)
The poor affiliate marketer has no strategy, no systems, no goals and no tracking. In fact, there is very little about what they are doing that even suggests they are running a business.
I get to meet and chat with lots of different affiliate marketers. From folks who are yet to make a dollar, right through to Uber affiliates who are making 50k+ profit a day.
One of the striking differences in these two sets of people is the way that they treat their business.
There are some guys I know that are doing 7 figures a year and can barely write a line of HTML.
That doesn't matter to them. They know that Donald Trump is a lousy tradesman. They know that they don't need to be good at everything. They understand that they are just the captain of the team.
They orchestrate their business by leveraging their time to the maximum by using planned methods and systems to grow their businesses.
All the while tracking and measuring what is going on to continue on a constant trail of improvement.
Overtime, they move away from working "IN" the business towards spending most of their time working "ON" the business.
They simply become the conductor of this massive online profit generating orchestra.
Staff, software and systems are the musicians.
In practice, it's difficult to execute this perfectly.
In recent times I've found myself spending way to much time in spreadsheets, accounting packages and in companies affiliate areas instead of working on growing the business.
A lot of this stuff I can't outsource and we're not big enough to have an accounting manager in-house.
So unfortunately, my ability to leverage my time was diminishing because I was so caught up in the administration. To be honest, it has been starting to get me down.
Thankfully, I recently came across StatsJunky.
It's not often that I would call a piece of software a savior. But in this case, I would say that it really has been.
Recently I was introduced by a friend to the StatsJunky crew. For the past 9 months they've been working on a piece of software that quite frankly I didn't think was possible to create.
I thought that given the level of difficulty working with so many different affiliate programs it would largely be impossible.
However, somehow they've done it.
Actually I know how. Through shear determination. They've got close to 20 people working to make this dream a reality.
What this magical piece of software does is essentially manages the time consuming and many times painful parts of your affiliate marketing business.
It downloads your stats from all your affiliate programs, as well as your PPC accounts if you use paid search.
In one neat dashboard you can see what you would normally have to login to all your different accounts to see.
You can even add in your recurring monthly costs like web hosting so you can get a full perspective on your monthly profits.
Every few days I'm now able to open up StatsJunky and see what has happened across our entire affiliate marketing business.
How much we've earned from each of our different revenue streams.
Plus, how much we've spent generating a lot of that income.
But that's just the tip of the iceberg. You can drill down for each network and instantly see which programs are generating the bulk of the income.
Very quickly you can establish where your time is going to yield the biggest return on investment.
As an example, within minutes of using StatsJunky, I was able to identify that one of our largely neglected affiliate sites was actually making us $5.04 for every click on one of our affiliate links.
It was converting at an amazing 14.63%.
Guess where we'll immediately be sending more traffic and instantly making more money? :)
Without StatsJunky, I probably would never have identified this. I'm just too busy to manually log into every account to check these kind of stats.
One other really cool thing about StatsJunky is how amazingly dedicated they are to their new users. What other company do you know that have daily Q&A webinars with their customers?
As another example, I asked them if they could add another small affiliate program that we use to the software. They immediately went to work to add it overnight.
They now support 200+ affiliate programs.
This software really is the revelation for me in 2009. I trust that it's going to be a key component of growing our business even in these rough economic times.
After all, regardless of the size of your business, one of the key aspects to seeing strong growth is the tracking of what is working and what is not.
It's not rocket science. You focus more on the stuff that is working, and drop the stuff that isn't.
If you are an affiliate marketer, I would encourage you to take your business seriously. So don't treat it like a hobby.
Put together a clear strategy with goals in place to see how you're doing. Track your goals and reward yourself when you hit them.
As part of the process put systems in place like StatsJunky so you can easily track your progress and focus squarely on the things that are making you money.
Then with the time you save, you can engage in income generating activities like increasing your traffic or improving your conversion rates.
If you want to see StatsJunky in action, check out the video I got the StatsJunky crew to make for you guys. It gives an 8 minute demo on how it works.
Check it out here:
http://www.associateprograms.com/articles/806/1/
Note: They have a FREE 7 day trial and a credit card is NOT required to get started. See for yourself just how good this thing is.
I reckon EVERY affiliate marketer should at least try StatsJunky to see just how good it is for themselves.
==========================
Thought for today: Don't waste time
==========================
"It has been my observation that most people get ahead during the time that others waste time." - Henry Ford
All the best
Jay Stockwell
Do you keep a journal?
Statistically it is over the top! Countless times over the years when meeting "Jim Rohn's greatest fan," we've been impressed with how many were the real deal. You know, the ones who followed Jim's pearls of wisdom and went on to achieve great things and, yes, had made a decision to be a collector and student of great ideas (including their own) by keeping a journal.
A journal that would chronicle their own personal story: their family, their victories, their challenges, their GOALS and DREAMS, their seminar and sermon notes, their own ideas and thoughts. All these things that they could review now and in the future and create one of the more priceless collections for themselves and their families as the years roll on.
Jim tells the story of someone breaking into his RV while on a trip, and his only major concern was if they had taken his journals. Not the furniture or the TV, but the thing that truly was not replaceable, a piece of his life—his journals.
2009 is almost here. What a perfect time to begin, renew or continue this simple, yet invaluable habit, so that at the end of 2009 you simply add your own book of your life's collection of events, stories, ideas and goals to your library and then go to work with a fresh new journal for 2010.
Here's a little from Jim Rohn on keeping a journal the past 40+ years:
"Be a collector of good ideas, but don't trust your memory. The best collecting place for all of the ideas and information that comes your way is your journal."
"The reason why I spend so much money for my journals is to press me to find something valuable to put in them."
"There are three things to leave behind: your photographs, your library and your personal journals. These things are certainly going to be more valuable to future generations than your furniture!"
"Don't use your mind for a filing cabinet. Use your mind to work out problems and find answers; file away good ideas in your journal."
A journal that would chronicle their own personal story: their family, their victories, their challenges, their GOALS and DREAMS, their seminar and sermon notes, their own ideas and thoughts. All these things that they could review now and in the future and create one of the more priceless collections for themselves and their families as the years roll on.
Jim tells the story of someone breaking into his RV while on a trip, and his only major concern was if they had taken his journals. Not the furniture or the TV, but the thing that truly was not replaceable, a piece of his life—his journals.
2009 is almost here. What a perfect time to begin, renew or continue this simple, yet invaluable habit, so that at the end of 2009 you simply add your own book of your life's collection of events, stories, ideas and goals to your library and then go to work with a fresh new journal for 2010.
Here's a little from Jim Rohn on keeping a journal the past 40+ years:
"Be a collector of good ideas, but don't trust your memory. The best collecting place for all of the ideas and information that comes your way is your journal."
"The reason why I spend so much money for my journals is to press me to find something valuable to put in them."
"There are three things to leave behind: your photographs, your library and your personal journals. These things are certainly going to be more valuable to future generations than your furniture!"
"Don't use your mind for a filing cabinet. Use your mind to work out problems and find answers; file away good ideas in your journal."
To Fifht Comment Spam - No Follow tags for Wordpress Blog
Blogs are great! People love them! Google loves them! Spammers love them!
Yup... it's unfortunate, but spammers love blogs so much that they have found numerous ways to ruin it for us good mannered folks, who used to be able to get high quality backlinks by commenting on posts in blogs.
Now known as comment spam - it's a way that bloggers spread around their garbage and they do it by mass attacking our blogs with phony comments filled with text links.
It has driven many blog owners to turn off comments or at the least moderate them.
Plugins like Akismet for Wordpress help keep a lot of the spam out, but some of them still get through.
Not too long ago Google took a vocal position on comment spam and pretty much threw it's weight around and demanded that Wordpress and other blogging platforms adopt a new policy to get rid of comment spam and help enforce the web with Google's "nofollow" tag.
The tag basically tells Google NOT to follow the links or at the very least not to recognize them as high quality links. Who knows what else the search engines do when they see these nofollow links. That's a whole other discussion.
But now Mike Liebner have found a solution and it is so simple. It's a cool free Wordpress plugin called DoFollow 4.0 and you can get it here:
http://www.mikeliebner.com/linking/free-dofollow-plugin-wordpress/
It's so simple all you do is copy the plug-in, a .php file, and drop it in your WP blogs plugin folder - upload it - turn it on and BOOM - now all the links properly pass their juice.
In fact there are actually programs and lists out there that compile addresses of "do follow" blogs - only problem is - many of the lists are out of date - because all it takes is an upgrade to WP and many of them go back to "nofollow".
Yup... it's unfortunate, but spammers love blogs so much that they have found numerous ways to ruin it for us good mannered folks, who used to be able to get high quality backlinks by commenting on posts in blogs.
Now known as comment spam - it's a way that bloggers spread around their garbage and they do it by mass attacking our blogs with phony comments filled with text links.
It has driven many blog owners to turn off comments or at the least moderate them.
Plugins like Akismet for Wordpress help keep a lot of the spam out, but some of them still get through.
Not too long ago Google took a vocal position on comment spam and pretty much threw it's weight around and demanded that Wordpress and other blogging platforms adopt a new policy to get rid of comment spam and help enforce the web with Google's "nofollow" tag.
The tag basically tells Google NOT to follow the links or at the very least not to recognize them as high quality links. Who knows what else the search engines do when they see these nofollow links. That's a whole other discussion.
But now Mike Liebner have found a solution and it is so simple. It's a cool free Wordpress plugin called DoFollow 4.0 and you can get it here:
http://www.mikeliebner.com/linking/free-dofollow-plugin-wordpress/
It's so simple all you do is copy the plug-in, a .php file, and drop it in your WP blogs plugin folder - upload it - turn it on and BOOM - now all the links properly pass their juice.
In fact there are actually programs and lists out there that compile addresses of "do follow" blogs - only problem is - many of the lists are out of date - because all it takes is an upgrade to WP and many of them go back to "nofollow".
The Power of Personal Charisma
By: Brian Tracy
Become An Irresistible Person
Webster's Ninth New Collegiate Dictionary defines charisma as "a personal magic of leadership arousing special popular loyalty or enthusiasm for a public figure."
Develop Personal Magnetism
Charisma is also that special quality of magnetism that each person has and that each person uses to a certain degree. You have a special charisma to the people who look up to you, who respect and admire you, the members of your family and your friends and coworkers. Whenever and wherever a person feels a positive emotion toward another, he imbues that person with charisma, or attractiveness.
Project Yourself Positively
In trying to explain charisma, some people speak of an "aura." This aura is a light that is invisible to most people, but not to everyone, and that radiates out from a person and affects the people around that person in a positive or negative way. The halo around the heads of saints and mystics in many religious paintings was the artist's attempt to depict the light that people reported seeing around the heads of these men and women when they were speaking or praying, or in an intense emotional state.
Control the Impression You Make
You also have an aura around you that most people cannot see but that is there, nevertheless. This aura affects the way people react and respond to you, either positively or negatively. There is a lot that you can do, and a lot of good reasons for you to do it, to control this aura and make it work in your best interests.
Sell Your Way to the Top
If you're in sales, this aura, reflecting your level of charisma, can have a major impact on the way your prospects and customers treat you and deal with you. Top salespeople seem to be far more successful than the average salespeople in getting along with their customers. They're always more welcome, more positively received and more trusted than the others. They sell more, and they sell more easily. They make a better living, and they build better lives. Salespeople with charisma get far more pleasure out of their work and suffer far less from stress and rejection. The charismatic salesperson is almost invariably a top performer in his field and enjoys all the rewards that go with superior sales.
Influence People Around You
If you're in business, developing greater charisma can help you tremendously in working with your staff, your suppliers, your bankers, your customers and everyone else upon whom you depend for your success. People seem naturally drawn to those who possess charisma.
They want to help them and support them. When you have charisma, people will open doors for you and bring you opportunities that otherwise would not have been available to you.
Enhance Your Personal Relationships
In your personal relationships, the quality of charisma can make your life more joyous, happier. People will naturally want to be around you. Members of your family and your friends will be far happier in your company, and you will have a greater influence on them, causing them to feel better about themselves and to do better at the important things in their lives.
Action Exercises
First, identify the people with whom you seem to have a lot of charisma - the people who know you, like you, respect you the most. How could you increase your charisma with these people?
Second, identify the people who have charisma to you, the people you most like and respect and admire. What is there about them that you could copy or emulate? If you think charisma, you'll have more of it.
Become An Irresistible Person
Webster's Ninth New Collegiate Dictionary defines charisma as "a personal magic of leadership arousing special popular loyalty or enthusiasm for a public figure."
Develop Personal Magnetism
Charisma is also that special quality of magnetism that each person has and that each person uses to a certain degree. You have a special charisma to the people who look up to you, who respect and admire you, the members of your family and your friends and coworkers. Whenever and wherever a person feels a positive emotion toward another, he imbues that person with charisma, or attractiveness.
Project Yourself Positively
In trying to explain charisma, some people speak of an "aura." This aura is a light that is invisible to most people, but not to everyone, and that radiates out from a person and affects the people around that person in a positive or negative way. The halo around the heads of saints and mystics in many religious paintings was the artist's attempt to depict the light that people reported seeing around the heads of these men and women when they were speaking or praying, or in an intense emotional state.
Control the Impression You Make
You also have an aura around you that most people cannot see but that is there, nevertheless. This aura affects the way people react and respond to you, either positively or negatively. There is a lot that you can do, and a lot of good reasons for you to do it, to control this aura and make it work in your best interests.
Sell Your Way to the Top
If you're in sales, this aura, reflecting your level of charisma, can have a major impact on the way your prospects and customers treat you and deal with you. Top salespeople seem to be far more successful than the average salespeople in getting along with their customers. They're always more welcome, more positively received and more trusted than the others. They sell more, and they sell more easily. They make a better living, and they build better lives. Salespeople with charisma get far more pleasure out of their work and suffer far less from stress and rejection. The charismatic salesperson is almost invariably a top performer in his field and enjoys all the rewards that go with superior sales.
Influence People Around You
If you're in business, developing greater charisma can help you tremendously in working with your staff, your suppliers, your bankers, your customers and everyone else upon whom you depend for your success. People seem naturally drawn to those who possess charisma.
They want to help them and support them. When you have charisma, people will open doors for you and bring you opportunities that otherwise would not have been available to you.
Enhance Your Personal Relationships
In your personal relationships, the quality of charisma can make your life more joyous, happier. People will naturally want to be around you. Members of your family and your friends will be far happier in your company, and you will have a greater influence on them, causing them to feel better about themselves and to do better at the important things in their lives.
Action Exercises
First, identify the people with whom you seem to have a lot of charisma - the people who know you, like you, respect you the most. How could you increase your charisma with these people?
Second, identify the people who have charisma to you, the people you most like and respect and admire. What is there about them that you could copy or emulate? If you think charisma, you'll have more of it.
The Psychology of Selling
Article: Power-Up Your Sales Letter with a "Johnson Box" - By Ivan Levison
Sixty years ago, a direct mail copywriter named Frank H. Johnson was looking for a way to increase the impact of his sales letters. He decided that instead of forcing readers to wade through a mass of copy before making the offer, he would highlight the offer in a centered rectangular box placed at the very top of the letter above the salutation.
The results were terrific, and the "Johnson Box" has been going strong ever since. And no surprise. The box stands out at the top of the letter, and the eye goes right to the headline floating within it. There are claims that adding a Johnson Box to a plain letter can shoot response rates up by 40%!
Here are some tips you can use for putting a Johnson Box to work the RIGHT way:
1. Put the right content in the box.
What should you include there? The offer. The main product benefit. The phone number to call or the URL to visit. The expiration date of the offer. The guarantee. Mix and match these as appropriate.
2. Use it in the right kind of letter.
If you're writing a non-personalized letter that's going out bulk rate in a window envelope using teaser copy, a Johnson Box will fit right in. After all, it's part of the "classic package" format. (Don't scoff at it. It still works!) But if you're writing a first class letter, in a close-faced envelope riding first class, the Johnson Box will look cheap and out of place.
3. Make it the right size.
If you're mailing an 8 1/2" x 11" letter (folded twice down to 3 5/8") you want the Johnson Box and AT LEAST the salutation line to appear above the fold. 2" deep by 3 1/2" wide is reasonable, but there's no firm rule here.
4. Use an appropriate box shape.
You can make the box out of asterisks (************) or use a fine-ruled line. For added impact, throw a screened-back second color inside the box. It's also perfectly fine to omit the actual ruled line and simply run a bold headline and subheadline at the top of the letter.
5. Use a box in the body of the letter.
There's no law that says you can't throw your guarantee into a small box somewhere within the letter. Or a few testimonials. Or a short excerpt from a glowing product review.
6. Show your fulfillment piece in a box or at the top of your letter.
If you're offering a report, guide, White Paper, Executive Summary, whatever, use a photo of it at the top of the letter and use call-outs to highlight benefits. Making the fulfillment piece "real" with a photo can really help your lead generation efforts!
7. Include a Johnson Box (without the sides) in an e-mail for extra impact.
For example:
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
This is a version of a Johnson Box without sides.
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
See how the sentence stands out?
8. In an e-mail, the Johnson box should fit easily into the reader's auto-preview box.
You don't want to make people start scrolling in order to see it.
9. Use a box at the top of a seminar or Webinar invitation.
The top of the letter or e-mail is the perfect place for a box that tells the reader: What/When/Where/Why they should attend.
The take-away message? If you want to boost direct mail or e-mail response rates, sometimes it makes sense to think inside the box.
About the Author:
Ivan Levison is an award-winning, direct response freelance copywriter. Download a free copy of his new report, "101 Ways To Double Your Response Rates!" at http://www.levison.com/subscribe. Contact Ivan any time at ivan@levison.com
The results were terrific, and the "Johnson Box" has been going strong ever since. And no surprise. The box stands out at the top of the letter, and the eye goes right to the headline floating within it. There are claims that adding a Johnson Box to a plain letter can shoot response rates up by 40%!
Here are some tips you can use for putting a Johnson Box to work the RIGHT way:
1. Put the right content in the box.
What should you include there? The offer. The main product benefit. The phone number to call or the URL to visit. The expiration date of the offer. The guarantee. Mix and match these as appropriate.
2. Use it in the right kind of letter.
If you're writing a non-personalized letter that's going out bulk rate in a window envelope using teaser copy, a Johnson Box will fit right in. After all, it's part of the "classic package" format. (Don't scoff at it. It still works!) But if you're writing a first class letter, in a close-faced envelope riding first class, the Johnson Box will look cheap and out of place.
3. Make it the right size.
If you're mailing an 8 1/2" x 11" letter (folded twice down to 3 5/8") you want the Johnson Box and AT LEAST the salutation line to appear above the fold. 2" deep by 3 1/2" wide is reasonable, but there's no firm rule here.
4. Use an appropriate box shape.
You can make the box out of asterisks (************) or use a fine-ruled line. For added impact, throw a screened-back second color inside the box. It's also perfectly fine to omit the actual ruled line and simply run a bold headline and subheadline at the top of the letter.
5. Use a box in the body of the letter.
There's no law that says you can't throw your guarantee into a small box somewhere within the letter. Or a few testimonials. Or a short excerpt from a glowing product review.
6. Show your fulfillment piece in a box or at the top of your letter.
If you're offering a report, guide, White Paper, Executive Summary, whatever, use a photo of it at the top of the letter and use call-outs to highlight benefits. Making the fulfillment piece "real" with a photo can really help your lead generation efforts!
7. Include a Johnson Box (without the sides) in an e-mail for extra impact.
For example:
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
This is a version of a Johnson Box without sides.
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
See how the sentence stands out?
8. In an e-mail, the Johnson box should fit easily into the reader's auto-preview box.
You don't want to make people start scrolling in order to see it.
9. Use a box at the top of a seminar or Webinar invitation.
The top of the letter or e-mail is the perfect place for a box that tells the reader: What/When/Where/Why they should attend.
The take-away message? If you want to boost direct mail or e-mail response rates, sometimes it makes sense to think inside the box.
About the Author:
Ivan Levison is an award-winning, direct response freelance copywriter. Download a free copy of his new report, "101 Ways To Double Your Response Rates!" at http://www.levison.com/subscribe. Contact Ivan any time at ivan@levison.com
