PPC Management: When To Give Up On A Loser

PPC Management: When To Give Up On A Loser

by: Dave Brown

Pay per click (PPC) advertising can be a dream come true. You can get traffic almost immediately from some PPC search engines. And it can be mighty cheap too. Next to joint ventures, PPC search engines have been responsible for most of my online income. Iกve gotten some great returns on PPC campaigns. And I know other people who have too.

Right now, I have one PPC campaign thatกs making me $56.69 for every $1 I spend. I know, thatกs pretty incredible. And itกs not typical. But I have another thatกs making me $8.84 for every $1 I spend. Yet another makes $7.73 for every $1.

But I have other campaigns that have lost me money. Making money, instead of losing it, with pay per click search engines involves wise management. There are many different factors that decide whether youกll be in the red or in the black. And you need to be aware of what these are.

In fact, there are times that even the best management of your PPC campaign won’t save it. Some of them will be losers and thereกs nothing you can do about it. But you need to know when to decide that you have a loser on your hands. At what point should you bury it and move on?

There are a number of different factors to consider. Thereกs no simple answer. I can’t tell you to simply abandon your PPC campaign after 200 clicks without a sale. Or to quit after youกve lost $50.

First of all, you need to know how much your profit will be on each sale (before advertising costs). For example, if you’re selling your own product for $47 through Clickbank, then youกll make $42.48 on each sale after Clickbank takes their fees.

But if you sell someone elseกs product for $47 through Clickbank, and you get a 50% commission on each sale, then youกd only get $21.24.

But you need to know even more than that. You also need to decide how much of that $42.48 (or $21.24) you’re willing to spend on advertising. In other words, whatกs the least you’re willing to earn on each sale? This will determine how much you can afford to spend on advertising.

Letกs assume you make $42.48 per sale. If you decide that youกd be happy with a $20 profit, then you can spend as much as $22.48 to make each sale.

So now you know what your advertising budget is. Next, estimate what your conversion rate will be. If this is a brand new product you’re promoting, then you may have no idea. In those cases, I tend to use 1% as a rule of thumb. That means that 1 out of every 100 people that visit the site will buy. Letกs use 1% for our example here.

So if you’re willing to spend $22.48 to make each sale, and you expect to make one sale out of every 100 visitors, then you can afford to spend 22 cents to get each visitor to the site. This means that you can afford to bid 22 cents on each keyword on the PPC search engines (max).

At this point, you can go ahead and set up your PPC campaigns. Find your keywords. Place bids. I won’t cover these issues right now because they’re off the topic. The purpose here is to know when to drop your campaign because itกs a loser.

Now, just because you *can* bid 22 cents on each keyword, it doesn’t mean you should. You should bid as low as you can to get good traffic (whatever you consider *good* to be).

In our example, letกs fast forward. Imagine youกve already gotten 150 clicks, and your average bid has been 22 cents a click. So youกve spent $33, and you haven’t made a sale yet. Should you ditch this campaign?

No. *On average* you can spend $22 per sale. But thatกs an average. Which means that sometimes youกll spend more, and sometimes less. And if your conversion rate is 1%, then thatกs also an *average*. So don’t freak out if you haven’t made a sale after 150 clicks.

When you decide to drop a campaign though, make the decision based on how much you’re spending on it. Not the conversion rate.

When I first start a campaign, Iกll often wait until I spend at least double my advertising budget with no sales before I consider dropping it. Maybe even triple my budget if Iกm emotionally attached to it. 😉

But if I haven’t made any sales by then, Iกll usually stop the campaign. However, you may want to wait longer if you’re willing to spend more money to see if it works. I think Iกm probably more of a conservative.

At any rate, I *rarely* end a campaign before I get 300 clicks. 300 is typically the minimum number of clicks before I feel I can judge whether a campaign will pay off. And I will generally only end it then if Iกve had *zero* sales.

Sometimes, though, youกll make a quick sale and get excited. But then you see few or no sales after that. If you find that you’re consistently spending more than your budget for the first few sales, then get ready to end it if you don’t figure out how to make it better.

I want you to realize, too, that when you bid less on your keywords, you can afford to live with a lower conversion rate. But when you bid more, your conversion rate has to be higher to provide you with the profit you want.

Iกve only talked about *starting* a PPC campaign so far. But sometimes, you may have a PPC campaign thatกs paying off, and then it starts choking and gasping for air after a while.

In that case, you need to decide when to pull the plug and retire it. Otherwise, it may eat up all the profits youกve already made.

Iกll usually be more lenient in this case. Since the campaign has made me money in the past, Iกm more likely to give it the benefit of the doubt and keep it running. I don’t know if thatกs a good idea or not. But sometimes, itกs just hard to say goodbye to an old friend. After all, maybe itกs just a temporary downturn.

But you still have to cut it off at some point. If I find myself breaking even (or even losing money) on each sale for any length of time, then Iกll start thinking about ending the campaign.

In our example here, if you notice that youกve been spending $45 per sale lately, then start thinking about the future of this campaign. Try to figure out whatกs changed and see if you can fix it.

How long should you wait before you abandon it? Two weeks? A month? Ten sales? A hundred sales?

Itกs completely dependent on your situation. If you make 20 sales a day, then obviously worrying after only 20 sales is unwarranted. On the other hand, if it takes you 4 months to make 20 sales, then maybe you shouldn’t wait quite that long. Listen to your gut.

In the end, be aware that PPC management is not a rigid science. You have to use a certain amount of judgment. But try not to be emotionally attached. If a little voice in the back of your head is telling you that you’re spending too much for too little, then listen to it.

What Iกve given you here are guidelines based on my own practices. Iกm sure there are other people who do it differently and are also successful. But these strategies work for me. And Iกm sure you can adapt them to work for you.

About The Author

Dave Brown is a selftaught marketer and software developer. He also publishes the uncommon and uniquely original newsletter on making the most of your life A Fresh Perspective. You can learn more at

http://www.davebrown.com

[email protected]

This article was posted on January 23, 2004

by Dave Brown

Sitting On The Back Porch

Sitting On The Back Porch

by: Cathy Bryant

Yep, thatกs where I wrote this article sitting on the back porch.

Well, thatกs probably inaccurate; actually, the idea for this article came to me while I was sitting on the back porch. I was enjoying my afterlunch coffee along with an unseasonably warm (but delightful) October afternoon, when it occurred to me that I was indulging myself in one of the true luxuries of the workfromhome lifestyle.

I began to flash back as to what it was like working the more traditional 9to5 job, and once again I realized how blessed I was to be able to work from home on MY schedule, not someone elseกs!

Thereกs no denying it Iกm the toughest boss Iกve ever had but even the most compassionate employers have no way of knowing, let alone accommodating, those times when you just simply have to say กSTOP!ก

You know what Iกm talking about youกve been hard at work on your job for weeks, giving your all to your employer, and all at once your mind and body says to you, กIกve got to get out of here!ก Weกve all been there, right? You just want a break, a chance to be by yourself and sort through all the things that are weighing on your mind. Perhaps youกll just sneak outside for a few minutes, take a walk, grab a cup of java… you know it will make you more productive.

Sometimes you can do that…but more often than not, you can’t.

Or you won’t, because you don’t want your supervisor to view you as a กslacker.ก

So you plug away, not able to give your all to your job simply because you’re not able to refresh yourself on YOUR timetable.

No so when you work from home.

Make no mistake; I work very long hours many more than I did at any of my traditional jobs. Sometimes I work as many as 14 hours a day. But when the time comes to take a break, regardless of the hour, I have the freedom to do just that.

And thatกs when I head for the back porch.

About The Author

Cathy Bryant has been marketing online since the last century! Let her show you that an old dog CAN learn new tricks subscribe to her longrunning newsletter, the HomeBizJunction Herald, and learn how you too can become successful from home.

http://www.homebizjunction.com

This article was posted on February 13, 2003

by Cathy Bryant

The Truth About Search Engines: Playing A Game You

The Truth About Search Engines: Playing A Game You Can’t Win

by: Dean Phillips

If you go strictly by the numbers, Yahoo, MSN and Google are the กBig 3ก of search engines and directories. Between them, they index millions and millions of pages in their directories. Although Google claims to index over 4 billion.

However, thatกs a subject for a different day. The point is, out of all those millions and millions of pages, thereกs room for only a very few websites at the top of the results pages.

That means, if you go strictly by the number of indexed web pages in their directories, you have a better chance of winning the lottery, than getting high enough in the results pages to where itกs going to make a significant difference in your traffic. Thatกs not my opinion, itกs a fact!

You’re simply playing a game YOU CANNOT WIN!

So what can you do about it? The first thing you need to do is forget about the search enginesperiod! Just forget about them!

Why? Because even if you’re one of the fortunate few to get a high enough ranking to where itกs making a significant difference in your traffic, thereกs no guarantee youกll get to keep it. Since the search engines are constantly changing the rules of the game (AKA) their algorithms, you could be number one in the search engines today and totally off the results pages tomorrow. Again, thatกs not my opinion, itกs a fact!

If you don’t believe me, just ask those thousands of devastated and bankrupt business owners whose websites disappeared off of the results pages altogether, when a category 5 hurricane named กFloridaก swept through the Gulf of Google on November 16, 2003.

But thatกs exactly what happens when you put all of your eggs into one basket. And just like itกs wise to have กmultiple streams of income,ก itกs also wise to use a variety of ways to promote your website.

Itกs sort of like all of those millions of people who flock to Las Vegas every year hoping to get lucky. Thereกs only one problem. The system was not designed for you to win. It was designed to make you think you could win. Thatกs the allure of Las Vegas and thatกs the allure of the search enginesthey make you think you can win. You can’t!

Oh sure, just like in Vegas, youกll have your lucky few who hit the jackpot and snare a top ranking on the results pages, at least until the search engines change their rules again. But the vast majority are left on the outside looking in, and at the mercy of socalled SEO experts who are only too happy to take your money and continue to make you think you can win the game. You can’t!

What you have to do is forget about the search engines. Just forget about them! I realize itกs difficult, especially with all thats been written said over the years about how critical the search engines are to your business. Believe me when I tell you, itกs all a bunch of bull! Businesses were doing just fine, when there weren’t any search engines. Just fine.

In fact, Iกm earning a very comfortable living on the Internet, without any significant search engine presence whatsoever.

Whatกs my secret? I don’t depend on the search engines! I never have. I refuse to play the game. Thatกs my secret in a nutshell! My traffic comes from the dozens of articles Iกve written that have been picked up and published on popular websites all over the Internet. I also get traffic via word of mouth, newsletters and ezines that my articles are published in, and a few other secret methods that I use.

And you can do the same thing. You just have to get out of that search engine mindset.

Now I realize writing articles may not be a desirable option for many of you. Thatกs fine. However, there are many other proven and effective ways to market your website. Here are just a few: ezines, newsletters, forums, online magazines, sponsor listings on other websites, exchanging links.

Here are a few offline options: magazines, direct mail, shopper newspapers, cable television, radio, flyers, hospital newsletters, card decks, trade journals and directories, bulletin boards, tabloid newspapers.

In addition, do yourself a favor and buy the book, กGuerrilla Marketing,ก by Jay Conrad Levison. Itกs loaded with lowcost ways to promote your business!

As you can see, you have plenty of other options available to you, besides the search engines. All you have to do is use themand a little imagination.

Itกs time to stop playing a game you can’t win, and start playing a few that you can!

About The Author

Dean Phillips is an Internet marketing expert, writer, publisher and entrepreneur. Questions? Comments? Dean can be reached at mailto: [email protected].

Visit his website at: http://www.letsmakemoney.net

This article was posted on October 10, 2004

by Dean Phillips

Why Autoresponders are an Absolute Must

Why Autoresponders are an Absolute Must

by: Glen Hopkins

With autoresponders, you never have to lose money advertising again! Thatกs right, every ad you place from now on can be a winner even when you lose money!

I know, I know, you’re thinking, กOkay, now youกve lost it Glen.ก But I haven’t. Let me explain.

Letกs say you place an ezine ad, which costs you $200. and you make $20 for every sale made. If you make 8 sales with the ad you will earn $160.

Gosh, you just lost $40. Thatกs a bad ad right? The answer to that depends on how you wrote your ad. Let me show you how losing $40 can actually be a win.

When you create your ad, don’t advertise directly for your product. Advertise something that will กbring them in the doorก. Freebies like this minicourse, sweepstakes or items at exceptionably low prices work well.

The job of your advertisement is to create leads. That is, to get the readers email address with permission to follow up Yes, thatกs that one to one marketing thing happening again.

Using autoresponders that automatically followup will give you the ability to set up a completely automated followup system for your product or service. You can use three, eight, or even thirty email followup messages to generate sales for your product.

Instead of only having one chance to sell your prospect, you can have thirty opportunities to sell them all for the price of one ad. Which do you think will make more sales?

Marketing guru Jay Levinson figures the average person needs to see an ad twentyseven times before it has the desired impact. Twenty seven times! Now you know why you see CocaCola everywhere you look.

Okay, so letกs do the math again. You paid $200 to run your ad with a link to your automatic followup system. Letกs say you send seven followups. You made $160 on the first ad. Don’t forget what the guru says the more a person sees an ad, the more likely they will buy. But for argument sake, letกs say your conversion rate stays at $160 per followup. $160 times seven followups equals $1120. Now youกve made a profit of $920! Pretty cool isn’t it?

Try to use some element of viral marketing in your offer. I give this minicourse away for free to people who sign up for my ListOpt List Builder Program and I allow you to give it to your friends and even offer it to your prospects in your ezine or on your website as something to กget them in your doorก.

Yes, thatกs right, you can offer this minicourse to your prospects for free when they sign up for your ezine. All you have to do is give them this link (mailto:[email protected]) in your welcome message that you send out when they subscribe to your ezine. You could say something like:

‘thanks for subscribing to MyEzineName. You will receive your first issue shortly… blah, blah, blah…

As our gift to you for subscribing, please send a blank email to mailto:[email protected] Within seconds, you will receive for free, the marketing minicourse, ‘the 7 Secrets of Making Money with Ezinesก.

Best regards,

Your Nameก

This is a winwin situation.

You Win because:

You offer people this minicourse which will increase the number of people who sign up for your ezine and will drive traffic to your site.

Your Subscribers Win because:

You gave your subscribers this minicourse which will not only teach them how to make money with their ezine, but also they can use it to produce more traffic and sales at their web site. This my friends will please your customers and create loyalty (which is another win for you).

And I Win because:

A traffic virus is being created with this minicourse! Wow! A winwinwin situation. Everyone is happy.

To sum it up, using an autoresponder followup system with an element of viral marketing will reduce your advertising risk. If you have a traffic virus in place, then your ad will continue to work for you for many years to come.

You have permission to reprint this article provided you include the following resource box:

About The Author

Glen Hopkins is the director of ListOpt Publications Inc. If you’re looking to build your newsletter subscriber base quickly, easily and inexpensively, visit Glen at: http://www.listopt.com and learn what hundreds of other publishers are saying about ListOptกs amazing List Builder service.

This article was posted on October 14, 2004

by Glen Hopkins

Profiting From Writting Your Own Ebook

Profiting From Writting Your Own Ebook

by: Greg Hayes

As you might have heard, the Internet is all about information. Millions of people logon to the Internet each day searching for information. They’re searching for everything from health and wellness to love and relationships. People crave information and will pay to get the info they want.
Thatกs why ebooks are the hottest products on the Internet. Itกs digital information thatกs downloadable and therefore brings instant gratification to the user. In just a matter of minutes, you can have expert knowledge saved on your hard drive that you can read at your leisure. It can be printed out and made into a regular book. Itกs an incredible medium for writers and experts who would have before the Internet needed a publisher or magazine to print and sell their knowledge in book form.
The good news is just about anyone can write an ebook and sell it on the internet with virtually no cost. If you happen to be an expert on a particular subject then thatกs a definite plus but you need not be an expert on a subject to write an ebook. If you think that sounds ridiculous, just think back to your school days. How many times were you given an assignment to write a lengthy report on a subject you knew nothing about? I remember writing several reports in high school and college on subjects I knew nothing about. The end result was always a report that read like an expert on the subject had written it. How did I do it? Research of course. Thatกs how we all did it. That was the whole purpose of the assignment. It was teaching you to conduct your own research and fact finding and then compiling that research into a report. You can use this same technique to write an ebook.
Iกm going to reveal my age here. I remember way back in the 70กs seeing an ad in a magazine for this rather interesting book. It was titled กHow to Pick Up Women.ก It could only be bought through mail order. Unlike most books of the time the author of this book had an idea for a book that contained valuable information. Well, it was valuable to a whole lot of young men. The problem was that he was no expert on picking up women. So how did he write the book? Once again, research. Only this time the research involved conducting actual interviews with young women. Thatกs right. He just went out and started interviewing the average woman on the street. He asked questions like กwhat attracts you to a man?ก and กwhat characteristics to you find sexy in a man?ก Interestingly enough, there were plenty of women who were willing to give a few minutes of their time to answer questions for a book.
After completing the interviews, he compiled the information into a book and then preceded to print copies of the book himself using an old printing press he had purchased. No publisher wanted to publish his book. They of course changed their minds when they saw how many of the books were selling. The author couldn’t keep up with the orders. It seemed there were many thousands of men who wanted this information.
Now, 30 years later nothing has really changed. People are still in search of information. The good news is that you need not purchase a printing press to publish a book. You just need a computer and the power of the Internet. You can write your own ebook and start profiting almost right away. You can sell your ebook over and over again at almost 100% profit.

About The Author

Are You Tired of the scams and the getrichquick schemes? Greg Hayes is founding editor of http://www.mammothprofits.com/. Mammothprofits is the website devoted to helping others filter out the scams and become successful in a home based business.

[email protected]

This article was posted on July 11, 2004

by Greg Hayes

Why You Should FORGET About Website Traffic!

Why You Should FORGET About Website Traffic!

by: Willie Crawford

The headline read, กA funny thing happens when you don’t promote your website… NOTHING.ก Experience has taught me that thatกs a fairly accurate statement. If you are not promoting your website, you’re not building your web business.

However, there is one thing you need to focus on MORE than generating traffic. That is converting that traffic into buying customers. If the visitors aren’t converting, and you’re spending money to generate traffic, then you’re probably worse off than you would be if you did nothing.

If you can improve your conversion ratio, then your existing traffic and new traffic is worth so much more to you. First, improve your conversion ratio, then aggressively seek new traffic.

Consider an example of a site getting just 500 unique visitors a day, with a conversion rate of 3%. Letกs assume this site markets a report that costs $49 and offers the site owner $30 profit after all expenses. This site is making 15 sales a day or $450 in profits. If this site can increase itกs conversion rate to 5%, it would be making 25 sales a day and $750 in profits… a big increase with no additional expenses!

Increases in conversion rates of 23% are very common. Conversion rates of 20% or more are also not unheard of. After a site has increased its conversion rate, earnings from backend sales also skyrocket. Thatกs because a VERY high percentage of first time customers become repeat customers if you offer them backend products. Increasing your conversion rate for first time visitors has an exponential effect on your bottom line… not a linear effect!

What are some way that you can increase conversion rates?

In a word… TESTING!

Test new headlines

Test new opening paragraphs

Test new guarantees (different wording, longer or shorter time periods, etc.)

Test offering different bonuses

Test offering no bonuses

Test new header graphics

Test removing header graphics

Test offering payment plans

Test different upsells on the order form

Test rearranging the elements on the order form

Test different wording in the call to action

Test different colors used for emphasis

Test different background colors

Test different prices

Test using different numbers of testimonials

Test putting testimonials in different places on the page

Test using audio or video on your page

Test long copy vs short copy

Test using different number of กorderก links

Test using different images within the page copy

In other words, test everything. Test one element at a time on your page, and track the difference that this made in your conversions. Do split testing where you compare the results on 2 or 3 different pages. Then use the page that did the best as the control and move on to testing the next page element. Thatกs how you increase your conversions over time from 23% into the double digits.

Seasoned marketers will tell you that marketing is nothing more than tracking and analyzing your numbers. This is true. You need to know exactly what result each change on your page had. Fortunately, there is software out there that makes this job very easy. Some of it is even free. There are also manuals that explain how to test most effectively. These manuals are how I was able to not be intimidated by the math and calculations that you DO need to do.

If youกd like to know what split testing software I use, and what I consider to be the best book Iกve ever read on the topic is, just send a blank email to my autoresponder at: [email protected]. This information will totally blow your mind and put you ahead of 99.999% of your competitors. Thatกs not hype, thatกs a fact.

You test because you cannot guess what the market wants. Top marketers and copywriters such as Jay Abraham, Dan Kennedy, and Gary Halbert all relate that when they tried to guess what the market wanted, they guessed WRONG! Thatกs why they are consummate testers.

Testing often reveals surprising results. Iกve heard of marketers improving result for example by REMOVING the guarantee. Iกve heard of marketers improving results by doubling their price, or getting rid of a header graphic on a webpage. Those little things often prove to make a big difference and over time these differences can equal an over 1000% improvement.

After youกve gotten a decent conversion rate, THEN you need to focus on getting more traffic. The secret to doing this is to learn what those getting tons of highly targeted traffic are doing, and do something similar. Study why the techniques that they use are successful at attracting not just any traffic…but highly targeted traffic, then apply those lessons.

Youกve invited to join me and 2 very successful marketers as we reveal ways of generating highly targeted traffic. This traffic is people who come to your site, looking for what you are selling. This is the only type of traffic you should put your time and other resources into generating… and itกs a lot easier than you think. For details on a teleseminar we’re hosting, visit:

http://www.profitautomation.com/app/adtrack.asp?AdID=66804

Iกve just revealed to you the very essence of a successful website. Continuously test and refine the website until you have an OUTSTANDING conversion rate. Then drive massive traffic to that site using techniques others have already discovered and proven to work. The third element that separates the ultrasuccesses from the failures is simply acting upon what you learn. What are you waiting for?

About The Author

Willie Crawford has been teaching others how to build an online business since late 1996. Willie demonstrates the power of automated residual income through his system at: http://ProfitAutomation.Com Visit now for a business boost.

This article was posted on February 11, 2004

by Willie Crawford

Why We Hate to Promote Ourselves

Why We Hate to Promote Ourselves

by: Suzanne FalterBarns

In the last week or so, Iกve begun enrolling people in the next session of my Platform Push Coaching Program on my other site, www.getknownnow.com. And boy, has that been interesting. In a few brief encounters, Iกve learned a lot about the power of permission.

The course is demanding; it requires these coaching students to really make a commitment to building their platform. Over six months they work on creating a brand phrase and identity, creating a branded website, setting up media kits, head shots, developing ezines and blogs, speaker materials and media mailings. The course requires a lot, but it promises a lot, too.

So I find myself speaking to many of my registrants as they make the decision whether or not to join the program. Some are on the fence for technical reasons that are hard to overcome, but many are simply on the fence. This is how these conversations go:

ME: กHi, itกs Suzanne calling about the Platform Push Coaching Program you were

interested in.ก

THEM: (Enthusiastically) Hi Suzanne!

ME: So how are your platform building efforts coming?

THEM: (Audible groan/sigh/exhalation of breath) Well… (another sigh) …. I

don’t know.

That audible groan comes up in nearly every phone call. Nearly every one! Rare is the person who simply says, กIกm not interested in promoting at the moment,ก or even กI haven’t made time to focus on it.ก Instead, thereกs just the groan.

What that groan says to me is that getting known by the public scares them. Even thinking about it makes them feel small and inadequate. And yet they know that they must if they want to reach the people they’re meant to. So they feel both guilty and annoyed with themselves at the same time. (Sound familiar?)

I can relate to this completely, which is why I developed this work in the first place. Itกs hard to do this stuff not for technical reasons, but simply because of what it portends. ‘theyก, the general public, may finally know us. They might love us. Or they could potentially kick sand in our faces. And thatกs scary.

Now, there are people out there who actually love promoting themselves, and God bless them. Most of us come from this small, shy place about blowing our own horn. Thatกs why I almost always find myself giving the people I speak to permission to go big. Hereกs how that part goes:

ME: So whatกs holding you back from doing this work?

THEM: I don’t have a website! I don’t have anything! I feel like a rank beginner.

ME: Thatกs why thereกs a course like this. So you don’t have to create this thing

alone in a dark corner.

THEM: But can I really do it? I mean, you think Iกd be able to?

ME: Sure! Why not?

THEM: Wow … really?

This is the most starting revelation of all in this process. Many of the people I speak with seem to need permission to become bigger and better known. Itกs as if we’re naturally programmed to stay small and circumspect. And yet, getting better known can only help our ability serve others and give us more credibility in the marketplace.

Of course, there are those who aren’t quite ready yet to move into a bigger arena. They may not know yet whom they’re supposed to work with or just what they’re hereto accomplish. Yet, most of us are truly stuck just short of this hurdle, waiting for someone, anyone, to give us the courage to get going.

If thatกs you, may I urge you to take the first step and give yourself permission to go big. You have everything you need, right now, to move forward and serve others. And if you happen to be waiting for permission to move ahead, well … here it is. Consider yourself booted ahead.

About The Author

The bi weekly ezine, The Joy Letter teaches anyone with a dream the secrets to living your joy. Sign up and receive our free report, ก35 Guaranteed Time Saversก right now at http://www.howmuchjoy.com.

To reprint this article, please use with this bio box intact.

Thanks! ©2005 Suzanne FalterBarns LLC.

[email protected]

This article was posted on March 16

by Suzanne FalterBarns

How Much Is Your Popcorn Worth?: Powerful Lessons

How Much Is Your Popcorn Worth?: Powerful Lessons In Marketing And The Psychology Of Selling Part 1

by: Ian Canaway

In the following กspecial report,ก I will reveal some very powerful marketing strategies and psychological motivators that can easily help you make more profits from your business, no matter what business you’re in.

Be sure to read it thoroughly, and take notes as needed so that you can take maximum advantage of the information being covered.

Hereกs how it all began…

One day, I noticed an interesting marketing concept. So, I sent my subscribers an interesting question. Hereกs what I sent to them…

กIf you had to sell popcorn, how much would you be able to charge for it?

Most of us would be willing to spend around one to two dollars on it. And Iกm talking about a nice sized bag.

But, hereกs something interesting…

Movie theatres charge 3 to 6 dollars for their popcorn! And you don’t even get nearly as much popcorn as youกd get elsewhere!

Whatกs the deal? Is their popcorn กspecial?ก

Not really. But they’re still able to charge 2 to 3 times more than others and still have people buying in droves.

How are they doing it?? If you can answer that, Iกll give you a special prize. 🙂 Just reply to this note with your answer. It doesn’t have to be the right answer, as long as you stop to think about it.ก

Within minutes of sending the email out, the responses started pouring in…

Some were extremely short and to the point, with statements like… กBecause they canก or กItกs the smellก or กBecause people get hungry.ก

Yes, some people do get hungry and have to buy กsomething.ก But thatกs not the bulk of the buyers by any means. And…if they get hungry and are forced to pay the high prices, they mostly likely will not want to be caught in that situation again, will they?

And, yes, some do buy it because they can’t resist the smell. But thereกs more to it than that.

Other answers said, กItกs the perfect locationก … กSupply and demandก … กCaptive audience.ก

Another answer stated…

กMonopoly! You can’t bring anything into the theatre and once you are in, there is no where else to purchase popcorn.ก

Thatกs not necessarily a wrong answer. But, it does make one wonder… If they corner their customers in this way and charge them high prices, wouldn’t most customers be either outraged not to buy, or at least not buy again, in the future?

The question that comes up is… why do they continue to buy it and pay these outrageous prices?

Another subscriber suggested…

กPeople don’t go to see the movies everyday. So, they are willing to pay the high prices once per weekend.ก

Sure, thatกs possible. Although, I think at some point, theyกd get tired of having to pay the high prices, wouldn’t you say?

They can’t be paying the high prices just because they กhave to.ก Itกs gotta be because they กwant to.ก

But, why would they want to, despite the outrageous prices? Could it be that price just isn’t an issue in this case? Hmm…

One subscriber started a discussion in his office, and sent these responses…

กSome said itกs because itกs the only place you can get กMovie theatreก popcorn, some said because the taste or when they smell it they have to have it.

Others said because they have to be eating something.

My thought is because they have the market trained. And, it didn’t start with this generation…

Parents brought their kids to the movies and either by example or verbally trained the kids to buy popcorn at the movies Itกs just what you do…ก

Ahh… now we’re getting somewhere.

About The Author

Ian Canaway

To read the rest of this special report, you can download it here: http://www.trafficstrategiesonsteroids.com/popcorn.pdf. Ian Canaway will help you launch your very own money making website today thatกs 100% ready to take orders and pull in massive profits for you right now. Guaranteed! Visit: http://www.asuccesfullhomebusiness4u.com.

[email protected]

This article was posted on August 30

by Ian Canaway

The Number One Reason Most Websites Fail

The Number One Reason Most Websites Fail

by: Mike Cheney

Failure, just like success, is measured differently by each and every one of us. What one man treats as success another may view as failure. For the purposes of this article a website that fails is one that fails to attract and convert enough targeted visitors into paying customers. Yeah positive feedback from your website visitors is great but letกs face it we’re all in this ultimately to make more money.

Websites do fail. Lots of them fail. You will see many of them every day. Some of them fail to inspire or enthuse. Some fail to get found at all. Some fail to get completed. Some fail to understand the needs of the people visiting them. But there is an underlying common reason for all these failings..

กA Website? Yeah We Got One Of Those Three Years Agoก

I guarantee you will have heard something similar to this statement before. Some people take the viewpoint that a website is something that gets done, the box gets ticked and thatกs it taken care of. They get a website because everyone else has one and it seems like the right thing to do. They don’t have a better reason than that. The information they put on the website is copied directly out of their latest brochure complete with company history, MDกs mug shot and crappy photo of the offices. And thatกs it. The site goes live and they tick the box..

‘the Internet Sucks We Don’t Get Any Business From Itก

Thatกs what these people say three years after their brochure website went live. Itกs been unchanged in all that time, it uses Frames, has a counter on it, has some กfunkyก scrolling text across the top and an early 90s colour scheme. Why on earth haven’t they got any business from it?! And this my friends, is the number one reason most websites fail the business owners treat the decision to get a website like itกs the least important thing they will ever do. A necessary evil that has to be completed to keep up with current trends. Businesses like this will never get any business from their website and they don’t deserve to!

Your Competitor Is Driving A Truck Towards You Stand Still And You’re Dead

Itกs that simple. Keep moving. Developing a website that brings you business is not a task it is a lifelong dedication to ongoing learning, application of new knowledge and continuous improvement. Keep moving, keep learning, keep improving your website, keep it up to date, overhaul it every two years, implement the latest technologies and industry practices.

Just remember what Darwin said;

กIt is not the strongest or the bravest that survive. It is those that are most adaptable to change.ก

Stand still and you will get hit by the truck. Keep moving and you have a chance to remain in the race for success. Don’t let laziness or fear of change lead to your failure..

Michael Cheney

Sales & Marketing Director, www.magnet4web.com

About The Author

Are You Getting Your MagnetMail? Mike Cheneyกs WorldFamous Free Magic Mail To Make Your Website Magnetic, Get Yours Now: www.magnet4web.com/website_services/?page=magnetmail

This article was posted on March 31, 2004

by Mike Cheney

Persistence, Patience, Dedication The Nick Marti

Persistence, Patience, Dedication The Nick Martin Interview

by: Ofa Morgan & Paul Penafiel

Name: Nicholas John Martin aka Nick Martin

Age: 24

Residence: Copenhagen, Denmark (Europe)

Business name: LifeStyleNetworker

Business address: http://www.LifeStyleNetworker.com

Business description: Free lead generation and list building system with inbuilt email capabilities.

Q) First of all, can you tell us how you got started in internet marketing and what sparked off Life Style Networker?

A) I first got started with Internet Marketing in May 2000 when I was using the internet to search for a job in the US. Iกve always wanted to visit America and try it out for size. One day I fell over an ad with the headline กEarn $50.000 in 90 daysก and thought hell yeah!

I knew absolutely nothing about the internet at that time. I had just got my first email address lol. So I pursued the idea of earning $50.000 in 90 days and all I had to do was buy 4 reports and resell them … The first report told me I had to bulk mail loads of email addresses, so I started searching for a way to do that.

I got enrolled into the Internet Marketing Warriors looking for a bulk emailer software. It was there I met my first sponsor Quentin Brown and thatกs when I learned that harvesting emails and bulk mailing was a no no in Internet Marketing.

From there I started my learning curve. I read everything I could get my hands on and started building my first website. I can’t quite remember how I learned about Surf4Hits programs, but it was at that moment I knew they were the key to my traffic problems!

At that time there were only a handful of them out there so I joined them all and started surfing like mad.

After some time I thought to myself that there had to be a clever way of advertising these Surf4Hits, so one could build a decent downline in them. And thatกs how I started thinking about LifeStyleNetworker.

Q) And how long did it take to take it from the idea stage to reality?

A) Well the first version was actually called TTAN (TheEliteTeamUp Advertising Network) and it took me a few days to get the first script I had working like I wanted it to.

From there it has been a steady development and lotกs of changes have been made to get the LSN we see today. I like to think of LSN as my little baby lol. Always tinkering with the site and coming up with new ideas for it.

Q) Give us an example of a specific challenge you encountered in the beginning stages of Life Style Networker. How did you overcome it?

A) My members have definitely helped me a lot! When I was running TTAN, I soon after learned of a site called MoneyLegs and started working that program. I could see that Doug (the owner) had a much more advanced software and I couldn’t keep up with such a competitor.

That was the time when I decided to let TTAN go and asked all my members at that time to join me in MoneyLegs.

The response to that really took me by surprise! So many people emailed me and wanted me to continue what I was doing. There were also some who wanted to take over the site. Thatกs when I realized how much people liked my idea.

So thanks to my founding members support, I decided to drop TTAN and go even bigger and started work on LifeStyleNetworker 🙂

Q) What are your day to day responsibilities?

A) Emails! I answer support emails and post in my support forum. I wish more members would use the forum, but I guess itกs much easier to email Nick 🙂

Q) What aspects of running your own business do you enjoy the most?

A) When I receive PayPal payment Notifications . We must admit thatกs a good feeling, but to be perfectly honest what I really enjoy is when I get ‘thank youก emails from my members.

Thatกs when I really feel like Iกm making a difference and helping others. Of course the money is great, but there is nothing like ‘thank youก emails 🙂

Q) And which do you enjoy the least?

A) Hmm, thatกs a good question. I really love running my own business, but there are always some emails that I just don’t get answered immediately. The days when I open my inbox and see a lot of unanswered emails, thatกs probably what I enjoy the least.

Q) Why do you favour using traffic exchanges as one of the main Life Style Networker promotional techniques?

A) Because they work! Simple as that 🙂 There is no one in the whole world that can show me a better way to generate free traffic to a webpage period!

Surf4Hits programs really work if you know how to work them and whatกs even better you get results immediately. Surf 100 sites and you will see your hit counter going up almost immediately.

Q) Where do you see Life Style Networker 5 years from now?

A) The whole idea of LifeStyleNetworker is showing ordinary people how to get started with building their lists of contacts for free. In 5 years time thatกs exactly what LSN will be doing.

I will keep my eyes and ears open for any new free traffic generators that come along and will incorporate them into LSN. I will never put a price tag on LSN and it will always be free to use for members.

Q) How do you handle stress? What do you do to unwind?

Hehe … stress whatกs that? I love to play golf and have been playing for 8 years now. Thatกs really my passion and my goal in life is to be able to play anywhere in the world I like.

When I feel like unwinding I go to the golf course or driving range and hit a load of balls 🙂

Q) What advice would you give to someone reading this whoกd like to start their own online business program?

A) I would say that if they feel strongly enough about it then just do it and see it as a vehicle for developing their skills. Don’t expect to be a pro or even act as one. Be professional but be personal.

I see too many program owners being all administrative and hiding behind admin emails. Don’t be afraid to show that you are a real person after all thatกs who we like working with the best.

Oh and a shameless plug here at the end, they might want to take a look at http://www.LimitedEditionPro.com for a cool software to help them 😉

Q) What personal qualities do you feel an internet marketer needs in order to succeed?

A) Three words: Persistence Patience Dedication!

Thatกs what it takes to conquer the world. Any of us who have these three qualities will see success no matter how we pursue it.

About The Author

Ofa Morgan is the owner of Blue Moon Offers, a site where you can win a prize for your complaints. Find out how by visiting: http://www.bluemoonoffers.com. Paul Penafiel is a กdie hardก Life Style Networker. To learn winning surf4hits strategies while building your list of contacts at the same time. please go to: http://tinyurl.com/hmky.

[email protected]

This article was posted on October 17, 2003

by Ofa Morgan & Paul Penafiel

What can make You a Fantastic Internet Marketeer?

What can make You a Fantastic Internet Marketeer?

by: Max Clixel

Youกve probably know many answers to this question: a good marketeer palces links, bad one don’t, good one makes surveys, bad one don’t, etc. All of these answers are right, but there is one key difference.

Iกm gonna share it with you. In a moment. But letกs start with a story first.

Do you remember that story about Henry Ford creating a 6cylinder engine? If not do a search itกs a great story to learn. What was his key to success?

Well, probably good intuition, and I can’t argue with that. But the point of the story is that he persisted on something nobody believed. Nobody else believed it is possible, but he insisted.

And his persistence paid up. So, the secret component in Internet Marketing is persistence. And persistence makes amounts.

For example: one link in your forum signature can make you 250 visitors (that wouldn’t make you any money probably, however nothing is impossible). But if you participate in 100 even notvery popular forums you’re gonna get 2005000 visitors. And if you sell something for $50 thatกs gonna make you on average $100$2500.

Do you see the point here? Letกs take a look at it in different way. Letกs imagine that you’re exchanging links. If you exchange with only 10 sites (which seems to be not very hard) you’re gonna get some amount, letกs say 10 visitors per day. And now imagine exchaging links with 1000 sites thatกs 1000 visitors. How to get thousand link partners? Well, get 10 each and every day and in 3 months youกll have a thousand.

And thousand links for search engines is way to understand that your site is relevant. Itกs pretty argueable point, but thatกs how Google, Yahoo and many others think. So thatกs how a marketeer should think. So get links and many of them. You know thatกs needed to be done, but why don’t you do that?

Do you know that you should post your articles to many sites? But why don’t you do that?

Be Persistent! I can’t stress that enough.

One of the biggest mistake of newbies is that they try something for a day or two, see no result and stop doing anything. Thatกs WRONG! Continue to do something for at least a month to see results, unless you have a million dollars to spend and nobody will ask where did it go. I doubt thatกs possible nowadays.

What to do about that? Here is the plan:

Ask yourself: what would be the best to do in next month that will get ABUNDANT result in future? Write that! And do that! Do you need to write 100 articles? Do that! Nobodyกs going to do that for you, unless, again, you’re too rich to do that.

Success is waiting for you, just be a lot more persistent. Remember, failure sometimes is a last step left to a great success. Many rich people will tell you that. Go ahead and ask them. And probably theyกll agree that you MUST be persistent in your goals.

1. So set a goal today 2. Start to do it 3. Don’t analyze results until you have done really massive result.

About The Author

Max Clixel is an author of www.Clixels.com กClixelling your way to Marketingก. You can reprint this article freely as long as itกs reprinted completely including this paragraph with active link and without any changes.

This article was posted on September 22, 2004

by Max Clixel

The Anatomy of Hype

The Anatomy of Hype

by: Marcia Yudkin

On a copywriting board I frequent, someone expressed bafflement that several respected marketers criticized the tone of a sales page he wrote. กWhy did they apologize to their subscribers while linking to my pitch? This approach sells,ก he said.

Hype was the problem. If you use the following tactics, many educated shoppers cringe and go elsewhere:

Overblown claims. กIf You Can Write Your Name, You Can Write a Book in 30 Days Guaranteed!ก

Overexcited tone. Lots of exclamation points, phrases in bold capital letters with underlining and a drumbeat of emphasis. กProgrammers poured out their TOPSECRET strategies that you, too, can use to earn a GATESLIKE FORTUNE in the software business!!ก ‘take out your credit card and order RIGHT NOW!ก

Unsupported and extreme superlatives. ‘the most important new product launch, ever.ก

Adjectives and adverbs you would not encounter from Exxon or IBM. กMindblowingก กExclusiveก กHugeก กIncredibleก กWildlyก กLiterallyก (necessary to distinguish truth from hoopla).

Exaggerations. ‘theyกve made millions under the radar.ก (When most haven’t made that sum and the กsecrecyก is just not having been asked.)

Sounds impressive but untrue. Calling someone a best selling author who has not appeared on a recognized best seller list.

Lack of qualifiers. Statements that should include a bit of backpedaling but don’t. Itกs really not กall,ก กonly,ก กnever,ก กsurefireก or กwill.ก

Marketers who favor a style full of hype argue that the numbers prove these techniques succeed, whatever the audience. When they tone down the pitch, sales drop. When they toss decorum to the winds and reinsert that hammering excitement and the fervid embellishments, sales return to previous levels. Case closed, they say.

Assuming their numbers are valid, this argument does have a point, but one of limited relevance to many situations. Hype may sell, but it may also undercut other business goals, in these ways:

Reputation. In whose eyes do you want credibility? Use this tone and you can expect snickering rather than respect from established journalists, academics, Fortune 500 companies, most people with postgraduate degrees and colleagues who use any of those groups as their benchmark of respectability.

Partnerships and opportunities. If you’re aiming at joint ventures with banks, universities, community organizations, trade associations and the like, hype counts very heavily against you. You may also endanger your chances of getting a contract from a major publisher if thatกs among your goals.

Trust. Are you aiming at a onetime sale or a longterm customer? Hype works better in the former situation, especially where a buyer believes they can obtain a refund if the purchase doesn’t live up to the promises.

Staying out of legal trouble. Some of the techniques listed above either flirt with deception or cross the line to lies. The other day I read through a Federal Trade Commission judgment against an Internet marketer for deceptive marketing and believe me, this is wrath you do not want to bring down upon yourself! Make sure you have a nitpicky lawyer to vet your copy if you favor a hyped style.

Please note that itกs possible to use a hardhitting, dramatic direct marketing style with descriptive bullet points, calls to action and so on in connection with entirely truthful and completely respectable copy.

Hype does sell. But thatกs far from settling the issue of whether or not you should use it.

About The Author

Marcia Yudkin ([email protected]) is the author of 6 Steps to Free Publicity, Persuading on Paper, Web Site Marketing Makeover and other books on business communication. She mentors business owners through www.MarketingForMore.com and mentors organizational marketing managers through www.MentorForMarketing.com. Sign up for her free weekly newsletter on creative marketing at www.yudkin.com/marksynd.htm.

This article was posted on October 31, 2004

by Marcia Yudkin