Online Advertising for Dummies

Whether you are checking your email, shopping on a website or just searching for information, online ads are everywhere! A new marketing landscape, the Internet offers a new and cheaper advertising space, as compared to traditional spaces like print, television, radio and outdoor advertising. It’s a revolution of sorts and small and home business owners are making the most of it.

For a home based start up, online advertising is a potent tool that can maximize visibility, drive traffic to the company’s website, up the sales and build a solid brand in the process. Going to an expensive advertising agency to run your campaign would most definitely burn a hole in your pocket. The good news is you don’t have to do that. Just remember the twin mantras of focus on what you want and a strong dose of imagination; and you’ll be on your way.

Take the guesswork out of online advertising

Online advertising is not a function of elaborate guesswork and a myriad of hits and misses. Like the traditional offline version, online advertising must also follow some basic rules. Know what you want your advertising to do, where to get it and what to do with it once you have it. Here are some guidelines to get you started.

http://www.marketingprofs.com/preview.asp?file=/2/honabach1.asp




Define your advertising objective: Shut the door, switch off the lights, take a deep breath and think why you need to advertise. Clearly define the goals you want your advertising program to achieve. Is it generating new leads, increasing the number of hits on your website, making your company visible in the market place or to increase on/off -line sales? Each goal will have a different advertising path. You can only expect your program to maximize returns, if you know for sure what you want your advertising to do.



Decide “where” you want to be seen: It makes a difference to be seen in the right places. Like in offline advertising, the placement of your ad is very crucial to success. Advertising (Co-advertising for higher benefits) on websites that are most relevant to your line of business would be the best place. Also consider top Search Engines, Online Yellow pages, Service Provider directories and large sites or networks. Explore trade –specific websites for a more focused audience.


Tailor the message for your target audience: when you want the caveman to listen, beat your chest! Craft your message to appeal to the target audience. Your message for a visitor on a trade forum’s website would be different from what you say to the guy clicking on your ad on a home business site. The trick here is to align your message to the mindset of your audience. Equally important is that the message should convey the promotional goals your advertising desires to accomplish. So if you are selling ice to an Eskimo shopping in an Internet mall, don’t forget to mention the discount on your season sale!


Be Creative: In a marketplace teeming with new ads you can easily get clobbered on the head with run-of-the-mill ad copy. Your most valuable asset in this crowd is your creativity, which will make your ad stand out. Be creative not only in the copy, but also in the placement of the advertisement. An online contact lens clinic pulls hundreds of people every day to take an eye test with a simple ad. The small 1” X 2” banner says, “ Think You Don’t Need an Eye Test?” in the same format as you see on the reading sheet in an optometrist’s clinic, with alphabets running vertically in a decreasing order. This is a classic example of a simple but creative idea getting the desired results.

Add more depth to your advertisement by using rich media like HTML, DHTML, Java and layered ads. Use animated messages doubled with pull down menus for better use of space and for expanding possibilities of response.


Choose the advertising medium well: They say, “Well Begun is Half Done”. If you are going to spend a sizeable amount of money on creating and placing ads, they should do more than just wiggle and pop. To maximize response, choose the advertising medium carefully. You have several choices like banner ads, contextual advertising, ezine advertising etc. Research and read on various formats and the factors for each one’s success. Then decide on what format works best for your campaign. Once you have decided on the format, it is equally important to choose the vendor. If you have decided on banner advertising, research and list the websites that would give you the maximum exposure to the right kind of audience. Check out the option of using advertising networks and the pay-per-click options as well. http://a1portal.com/

Once your campaign has been set in motion, take care to monitor response and be ready to change or completely redo your copy and the advertising vehicles you use. Keep a track of the ROI (Return on Investment) for every advertising purchase that you make. This way you can figure out which forms of advertising are working for you and which ones aren’t.


All online advertising is aimed at inducing “action”. Every online ad that you see is built to make you act: ‘Register for a free newsletter’, ‘buy now and save dollars’, ‘get a quote on your requirements’…the list goes on. The thing to remember here is that once the prospect has been pushed into an action, there should be real value for him at the other end of the pop- up. Unless you can fulfill the promise your brand is making, your online ad has been wasted.

A well-planned and well-executed advertising campaign can fuel the growth of your home business tremendously. Use online advertising following some simple guidelines and see how it impacts your sales, visibility and brand building, all at the same time.

Also see: http://www.web-source.net/internet_advertising.htm Daegan Smith is the Ex-NCAA Wrestler Turned Webmaster of Perfect Home Based Business Opportunities - The Net’s Top Growing Source for Home Business Information.
Attention: Webmasters & Web Publishers Make Money with our Free Home Business Content for Reprint at Free Web Site Content

Source: http://www.shoppingmall-onlinestore.com/article/

10 Benefits of B-to-B Email Marketing

If there is any single tool that we should be enthusiastically embracing as marketers, it is business to business email marketing.

There is simply no way to match the value that business to business email marketing provides for communicating with prospects and customers.

The amazing thing is most of us are not actively engaged in any form of email marketing yet. At best, we send an occasional email blast to our customer base to introduce a new product or announce an event.

Many of us have NEVER sent a single promotional email to a list of prospects or customers. So if you are among the few who have, reach right back and give yourself a hearty slap on the back.

I have my theories about why most of us do not use business to business email marketing to its greatest advantage, which I will not go into here, but I suspect it is heavily related to the following barriers:

1) We must frequently rely on IT and/or our Web team to provide the enabling infrastructure and we are low on their priority list.

2) We do not have direct access to the mailing and tracking tools and have to rely on outside resources to put our strategies into play.

3) We do not know exactly how to implement an effective business to business email marketing strategy.

4) We fear being branded as a spammer at the slightest indiscretion.

Regardless of why business to business email marketing is not more widely accepted, the fact remains that it is a marketing tool that we must have in our toolbox.

Those marketers who jump on the bandwagon now will have a decided advantage versus the competition when they deploy their 'secret weapon'.

Benefits of Business to Business Email Marketing

1) Low cost

Compared to any other form of direct marketing, business to business email marketing is fantastically cheap. When you cultivate and mail to your own opt-in email list, the cost per message is so low, you can almost call it free.

You do need to invest in some kind of infrastructure, but if you are smart and careful, you can keep your costs below $1,000 a year.

If you only send 10 messages to a list of 2,000 subscribers, your cost is just $.05 per message. You can see how a serious business to business email marketing program could cost just a fraction of a penny per message.

2) Metrics Galore

With business to business email marketing, almost every step in the buying process can be measured and tracked on an ongoing basis. You can easily track the total clicks on every link in each message, the conversion of clicks to sales or clicks to leads, and with some programs you can measure opens (how many people opened your message) and forwards (how many people forwarded your message) You can take what you learn from one campaign and apply it to future campaigns with a high degree of precision.

3) Permission based

Unless you are spamming (sending unsolicited emails), all effective business to business email marketing is conducted to an opt-in list. This means that every subscriber requested to be on your list, they want to receive emails from you. Because of this, business to business email marketing is one of the purest forms of permission-based direct marketing. Very few direct mail or telemarketing campaigns can claim the same.

4) Easy to implement

If you aren't implementing business to business email marketing in your business right now, it may seem a daunting technical challenge to build the infrastructure and tools required to pull it off. But rest assured that adding business to business email marketing to your mix is not as difficult as it sounds.

There are many great tools available on a subscription basis that allow you to outsource the complete infrastructure required for effective business to business email marketing. You will find two great tools listed at the bottom of this article.

5)A gile Marketing Tool

All marketers and business owners are painfully aware of the fact that the speed of doing business continues to steadily increase. This relentless acceleration drives the need to be supremely responsive to new trends and opportunities in your market.

There is no more responsive tool available to marketers than business to business email marketing. You can literally deploy the tactical elements of a campaign moments after the strategic and messaging elements have been developed. In other words, you can decide on a new strategic direction in the morning, develop your message and offer in the afternoon, and have a message waiting in your prospect's inbox the next morning.

That is rapid communication!

6) Highly Targeted

business to business email marketing is the only medium I can think of where you can not only easily segment your list based on demographic attributes, but also where you can segment your list based on the behavior of your prospect. With some of the simplest systems available, you can begin to develop a profile of your prospects based on the kinds of offers they respond to. With the more complex systems, you can track and store ALL of the actions individual prospects take as a result of your email efforts.

7) Can be Personalized

It is very easy to merge database fields in to email messages to add personalization. Simply adding your subscriber's first name to the subject link has been shown to increase readership dramatically.

The real power of personalization in email marketing comes when you can personalize an offer based on information you have added to your subscriber profiles based on their past behavior. Sending someone a personalized message like the following is a great way to leverage email marketing as a sales tool.

'Ted, I know you bought product x from us last month and I just wanted to check in to make sure it is working as well for you has it does for our other customers. I also wanted to let you know that we have replacement filters for product x available at a 30% discount for the remainder of this month. While you probably don't need filters yet, in a month or two you will. Why not buy now to take advantage the special price and make sure filters are on hand when you need them?'

8) Relationship Builder

Through frequency, personalization, and targeting, your marketing communications can be transformed from a traditional broadcast approach into a system that helps you build relationships with your subscribers.

Studies have shown that qualified prospects require 3-7 contacts from a company before they will respond with a purchase. The main driver of this need on the part of the prospect that they want to feel a level of trust in their relationship with the company.

business to business email marketing allows you to develop a personal presence with your subscribers and the low cost per contact makes it easy to contact subscribers frequently (within reason).

9) High Response Rates

There are many variables that contribute to response rates, but most direct marketing experts agree that email generally pulls a higher response than other direct marketing choices.

One of key reasons is that if you read a compelling offer in an email you can respond immediately by following a hyperlink to an order page or to get more information.

Responding to a direct mail piece requires one to pick up the phone and dial a number, a much more active response requirement.

10) Develops a Maturing Asset

The larger and more mature your list is, the more valuable it becomes. Your client database continues to be enriched with additional information about your subscribers and subscribers continue to develop a deeper and deeper relationship with the company.

Over a period of years, your opt-in database is likely to become your most valued marketing asset.

Ok, so there are a lot of compelling benefits...but what does one do to overcome the barriers I outlined at the beginning of this article?

The most important thing to do is to start doing something now, even the smallest steps will lead to big successes in the long run, just put some element of an business to business email marketing strategy into play within the next few weeks.

I've also listed some tips for overcoming the barriers below.

We must frequently rely on IT and/or our Web team to provide the enabling infrastructure and we are low on their priority list.

This one is easy. The best and fastest solution is to outsource. You can task a marketing communications agency with helping you set up a program, or you can subscribe to one of the hosted email solutions and do it yourself. I list some places to start investigating self-service solutions under point the next point.

We do not have direct access to our mailing and tracking tools and have to rely on outside resources to put our strategies into play.

This is why I prefer a do-it-yourself solution, at least in the beginning. Being able to touch and modify your campaigns directly is not only a great way to learn, it will save you a ton of money and help you ensure that your business to business email marketing strategy is truly a low-cost solution.

Here are a two popular tools you can look into...

1AutomationWiz:

This is the tool I use to publish this ezine and to automate all of the email follow-up on my site. I chose it because it provides the subscriber acquisition and database management tools I need, allows me to send text or HTML emails, doesn't restrict the number of emails I can send in any given month, and (most importantly) provides unlimited sequential autoresponders. The autoresponder feature is a must-have if you want to truly automate your program.

To learn more about 1AutomationWiz visit http://www.1AutomationWiz.com

Mailer Mailer

This is an excellent tool as well. Mailer Mailer provides a lot more HTML support than 1AutomationWiz (including complete, fill-in-the- blank templates). If your goal is to create good looking HTML messages, Mailer Mailer makes it really easy.

Another thing that this tool has that 1AutomationWiz does not is the ability to track opens (how many times your message was read). What it is lacking is unlimited sequential autoresponders.

To learn more about Mailer Mailer click visit http://www.mailermailer.com

We do not know exactly how to implement an effective business to business email marketing strategy.

There are a lot of resources on the Web to help get you started, but this is definitely an area of need. As I look around, I find that there aren't any great, step-by-step guides for setting up an business to business email marketing strategy within a business. In fact, I see such a need that I've started writing a book about it. I'll keep you posted about the progress, but if you have immediate questions, please email me and I'll try to include answers in the Subscriber Q&A in the next issue.

We fear being branded as a spammer at the slightest indiscretion.

Spam is an epidemic, but this concern is overblown when it comes to emailing your customers. If you send an unsolicited email to a customer with legitimate information that they are likely to want, you will not be accused of spamming. Be reasonable, provide an easy way to opt-out, and check your ethics, and you won't have a problem. The best rule of thumb is to give first...then ask. Provide excellent, useful information, and then make an offer.

Of course, if you are mailing (as you should be) to people who have opted-in to your mailing list (thorough a Web form or some other means) then you are in safe water.

Good luck in building your business to business email marketing program!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Doug Hudiburg is the founder and key contributor to Business-Marketing-Advisor.com a central source for marketing insight and resources for businesses of all sizes.

http://www.business-marketing-advisor.com

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~


About the Author

Doug Hudiburg is the founder and key contributor to Business-Marketing-Advisor.com a central source for marketing insight and resources for businesses of all sizes.
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Source: http://wwww.shoppingmall-onlinestore.com/article/

31 Ways to Get Your Name in the News

A news release is sent to editors and journalists in order to generate a news story in a newspaper or magazine. It's one of the easiest and cost-effective, ways to get your message out there. If a reporter decides to run your release, your business receives space for free - and more credibility than just running an ad.

Many businesses ignore the fact that reporters are looking for news, not just as rehash of an advertisement or promotion. Ultimately, if the release is newsworthy, it won't be put in the trash

So what's news?

Cherry offers 31 suggested press release topics:

1.A new product
2.An old product with a new name or package
3.A new version of an old product
4.An old product available in new materials/colors
5.A new application of an old product
6.New accessories available for an old product
7.The publication of new or revised sales literature
8.A speech or presentation given by an executive
9.An expert opinion on any subject
10.A controversial topic
11.New employees
12.Promotions within the firm
13.Awards or honors given to employees
14.Awards or honors given to the company
15.Original discoveries or innovations
16.New branches, departments or facilities
17.New sales reps, distributors or agents
18.Major contracts awarded to the firm
19.New clients
20.Joint ventures
21.Strategic alliances
22.Management reorganization
23.Major achievements
24.Unusual people or products
25.Unusual ways of doing business
26.Case histories of successful applications
27.How-to advice
28.Change of company name, slogan or logo
29.Opening of a new business
30.Special events such as an open house or tour
31.Charitable acts


About the Author

About the author:
Shannon Cherry, APR helps businesses and nonprofit organizations to be heard. She’s a marketing communications and public relations expert with more than 15 years experience and the owner of Cherry Communications. For more tips and tricks – or information about her services, visit www.cherrycommunications.com. Contact her at shannon@cherrycommunications.com.

http://www.marketingonlinepro.com/marketing-articles/31_Ways_to_Get_Your_Name_in_the_News.html

35 Quick Tips for Writing A Press Release

35 Quick Tips for Writing A Press Release

Layout
1. 1-2 pages in length.
2. Double-space.
3. 1.5 to 2 inch margins.
4. Use company stationary with logo and slogan.
5. Avoid bright or dark-colored paper.
6. Center "News Release" at top.
7. Place a "release date" under "News Release".
8. On second page, type "page 2".
9. Use company stationary with logo and slogan on page 2.
10. Leave out "release after" date on second page, all
else should be the same.
11. At end of press release, type "-30-" or "# # #".
12. Include both black & white, color, and a variety of font
sizes (but no more than four).

Format
13. Inverted pyramid (biggest point or major message first).
14. Straight to the point at the beginning.
15. First and second paragraphs devoted to your main
message.
16. Secondary information comes AFTER main message.
17. No pussyfooting around, be clear up front, at the very
beginning.
18. Don't go on and on.
19. In the third section, establish a connection with you.
20. Use a problem/solution format.
21. Comparing and contrasting ideas can be inside the
problem/solution format.
22. Be careful of your facts, spelling and grammar
23. Only one news release per e-mail or envelope.

Information to Include
24. Newsworthy information, not sales copy
25. All the Who, What, When, Where, Why and How elements.
Their order depends on level of importance.
26. Enticing headline which summarize the material/news.
27. Photos if available, or where they can be accessed
in press section of your web site. No stock images.
28. No cover letter.

Distribution
29. Don't send press release out in a mass e-mailing
30. Don't pester contacts
31. Editors will not distribute anything sloppy, difficult
to read, or understand.
32. Mail release by first class mail.
33. Don't use any type of labels, including your return
address.
34. Add "PRESS RELEASE" and "Release Date:" on outside of
envelope.
35. Places to send press releases: writers@[magazines];
writers@[newspapers]; trade journals in your industry;
print magazines on the topic; online agencies that
distribute news releases.

(c) Copyright 2004, Catherine Franz. All rights reserved.

About the Author

~*~*~*~ Resource Box ~*~*~*~

Catherine Franz, is a certified life and business coach
specializing in marketing and writing,Internet and
infoproduct development. For other articles, and ezines:
http://www.AbundanceCenter.com.
http://www.marketingonlinepro.com/marketing-articles/35_Quick_Tips_for_Writing_A_Press_Release.html

Affiliate Marketing Tips

. Learn the basics about affiliate programs and advertising on the major search engines. A great place to learn this is the Internet Cash System.

2. Partner with only legitimate affiliate programs. You want to make sure you get paid don't you? See our affiliate directory for the best affiliate programs on the net.

3. Learn a little about websites and setup your own website. Many hosting providers have templates that make creating a website easy. See reviews of website hosting providers at Best Web Hosting to find a great provider.

4. Keep track of everything. Why? For starters you can't really see how well you are doing if you don't know where your traffic is coming from. Be sure and keep all receipts for any expenses for tax purposes.

5. Serve an industry, not a particular product or program. Products and programs may go away, but industries don't. You will notice we have tons of programs for health related content. Sign up for all of them and market all of them.

6. Stay up to date on what is going on in the affiliate world. A great way to do this is to join our affiliate newsletter.

Join our free affiliate tips newsletter at the Affiliate Directory.

About the Author

J. Ratliff is author of the Affiliate Directory.
http://www.theaffiliate-business.com/affiliate-marketing/Affiliate_Marketing_Tips.html

Three Ways To Boost SalesNOW

For many businesses, sales are getting harder and harder to come by. The economy is slowing, consumers are more cautious, and businesses are cutting back. A period of drooping sales can throw a roadblock in front of your plans to earn a profit.

Fortunately, there are some tried-and-true strategies to focus your business and get profits flowing again. Here are three things you can do today to almost certainly get sales jumping.

Write down your USP and promote it.

Your USP is your Unique Selling Position. It's the one thing you have that your competitors don't. When you promote your USP you get more customers. It makes your business easy to remember. You stand out from all the others.

Your USP could be a product or service that people want but the others don't sell. It could be something a bit more intangible like friendly service.

One search engine promotion firm I worked with NEVER answered email. Another always replies within hours. There is never any question which will get my business.

Put your Unique Selling Position on your business card, in your newspaper ads, and front and center on your web site.

If everybody in your business keeps their prices a big secret, publish yours right out in the open where anyone can examine them (you might be surprised how many of us won't buy if we aren't given the price without having to ask).

If all the others have the same products, point out how your products are original, one of a kind, first to market.

Flaunt those customer comments!

Nothing sells products and services like good comments from past customers. Prospects believe the word of a customer long before they'll buy into even the best written ad or most lavish TV commercial.

But how do you get good testimonials, especially if your business is new?

1. Nobody says YOU can't provide the testimonial. If you have personally used the product you are selling and truly believe it's the best thing since sliced bread--put that in a testimonial. Put your own words in quotations.

2. Get someone who is a recognized name in your field to say something good about what you sell. Let them mention their own interest in the testimonial. This is why blurbs on book covers go, "Best book I've ever read," Joe Blow, author of How to Get Rich. Joe lends his good opinion as a way to get a mention for HIS book.

3. Put up a comments form on your web site. Clearly mention that some comments may be selected for display on your site or in your promotional literature. Some people will say good things (which I sure they mean sincerely) just to get their name in print.

4. Always include the person's first and last name along with the city they live in or the business they work for. Otherwise, people will think you made up the testimonial.

Let your Order Form also sell.

Many times the order form or order page is the drabbest part of the sales package. A brochure will feature color photos and imaginative copy, yet the order form will be plain black on white. The same goes for web sites where lively web pages lead to a legalistic shopping cart with hard-to-understand instructions.

This is a mistake.

Most customers have very busy lives and don't always remember what they did and where. When I worked in radio, we were often stunned to learn people often couldn't remember which station they won a prize from.

The same goes for customers. People may buy from you, then forget who they bought from just a few weeks later. That is a real problem if you are depending on word of mouth (which you should!).

Put your logo bright and bold on every one of your order forms. Make sure your name is stamped onto your customer's memory at the time of the sale.

Some smart business people turn their order form into a brochure. They include an ad and a full list of their products and services. The order form is on the final page. The brochure also gives you space to include a coupon for the next purchase.

Be sure to include customer testimonials on your order form. Most prospects need an extra bit of encouragement just before they commit their money to a purchase.

Kevin Nunley provides marketing advice and copy writing, including web copy, sales letters, press releases, and ads. See his free 10,000 marketing ideas at http://DrNunley.com Reach Kevin at mailto:kevin@drnunley.com or 801-328-9006.
http://www.asianbusiness.bz/business-articles/Three_Ways_To_Boost_SalesNOW.html

Essential Guide To PayPerClick Advertising

Which Engines Should You Use?

Following Goto.com's (now known as Overture) phenomenal success
with pay-per-click (PPC) advertising, more than 160 PPC startups
have sprung up.

Out of these 160 PPC engines, only a few may actually have the
search volume to generate a respectable number of clicks for your
site.

Most PPC startups require between $10 to $25 of setup fee which
can be applied to clickthroughs. They offer low minimum bids of
$0.01. But with limited search volumes, they may bring you only a
few clicks each day!

My recommendation is to go for established PPC engines with high
search volumes that can generate higher clickthroughs. The big
boys are Overture (previously known as Goto) at
http://www.overture.com, Sprinks at http://www.sprinks.com,
FindWhat at http://www.findwhat.com.

Overture is the best because they serve over 2 billion search
queries monthly through their partnership with major search
engines such as America Online, Lycos, Altavista, Netscape,
Hotbot and InfoSpace.

You can test the startup PPC engines but commit only the minimum
setup fees. If they generate decent traffic, you can always top
up your account. That way you minimize your risk to only $10 to
$25 per PPC engine. For a list of over 160 PPC engines, see
http://www.payperclicksearchengines.com

How To Find Relevant Keywords?

Since you are paying for each clickthrough on your bid, it makes
good sense to ensure that your keywords are relevant to your
target audience.

One of my favorite tools is Overture's Search Term Suggestion at
http://inventory.overture.com/d/searchinventory/suggestion/

Enter a keyword and it shows the number of times the word was
searched - which indicates its popularity. The more popular the
keyword is, the higher are your clickthroughs. Overture also
generates a list of similar keywords and their search counts in
the previous month.

Overture's tool is one of the best ways for finding good keywords
to bid on. Another alternative is to download Good Keywords at
http://www.softnik.com/products/gkw/index.htm

Enter a keyword into this free software and it will display a
list of relevant search terms and their search counts across
multiple PPC engines.

You can also try JimTools' Keyword Toolkit at
http://jimworld.nu/keywords.html

JimTools can generate a list of related keyword possibilities,
some with search counts, from Goto, Google, Magellan and
WebCrawler.

How Much Do I Bid?

The bigger PPC engines such as Goto and Sprinks require a minimum
bid of $0.05. Startup engines have lesser minimums of $0.01.

How much to bid depends on your return-on-investment (ROI)
calculations.

For example: If you bid $1.00 per visitor, and 1 in every 10
visitors buys your product, your cost-per-sale is $10.00.

So if each sale of your product produces a gross profit of $15,
then your net profit will be $5.00 ($15 gross profit minus $10
cost-per-sale).

Your return-on-investment (ROI), before non-marketing expenses,
is 50.0% ($5.00 net profit / $10 cost-per-sale). Always price
your bids to achieve a positive ROI!

A great tool that you can use to compare bids for a specific
keyword across multiple PPC engines is at
http://www.compareyourclicks.com

To read about how you can maximize your returns from PPC engines,
go to http://internetmarketingfocus.com/article.php?sid=53

You'll learn how to reduce your bids while still maintaining the
same ranking or get a top 3 position for maybe just 1 cent more!

How Do I Track Clicks?

Most of the time, you'll notice that the number of clicks tracked
by yourself is between 15% to 30% more than the clicks the PPC
engine reports.

This is because reputable PPC engines such as Overture have
installed anti-cheating mechanisms that prevent your competitors
from repeatedly clicking on your listings and wasting your bid
fees!

They will count multiple clicks within a specified timeframe from
the same computer as only one clickthrough while your own log
will usually register the multiple clicks.

There was once when I noticed that my log was registering less
clicks than Overture's reports. They were experiencing some bug
which prevented clicks from being properly delivered to the
advertiser's website.

Because I was tracking my clicks, I notified them of the problem
and they credited my account for the bad clicks. Tracking your
clicks give you a more reliable picture of how well your PPC
campaign is performing.

If you have access to your CGI directory, I recommend LnkinLite,
a small yet powerful tracking software that can track clicks to
your site in the background. Get it at
http://www.dtp-aus.com/cgiscript/lnkinlte.shtml

Otherwise you can consider free online trackers at
http://www.hypertracker.com or http://www.linkcounter.com


About the Author

Michael Low is a widely-published marketing consultant. He
provides top-notch press release (PR) services at affordable
rates. Check out his full-range of PR services at
http://www.prbuilder.com/pr.cgi?a003

http://www.marketingonlinepro.com/advertising-articles/Essential_Guide_To_PayPerClick_Advertising.html

To Increase Your Advertising Effectiveness Stop

How many times have you heard the old adage, “The customer doesn’t want a drill, he wants a hole in his wall”? While I may disagree with parts of that phrase, one thing is for sure… if you want to increase your advertising effectiveness, you have to stop selling what YOU want the customer to buy and start solving his problems.

What exactly does that mean? For starters, it means finding out who your customers are and what challenges they face. It also means that your ad copy, your tag line, your Web site design, your brochure, your customer service plan and your support need to all work in concert to provide the solutions to those challenges.

The most effective advertising pieces don’t sell… they fulfill. They don’t talk about the company… they talk about the customer. They don’t push price… they provide solutions.

When you focus on the customer in your advertising copy, when you get inside the mind of your customer and speak to their emotional needs, you will see greater results.

Here are 7 tips for creating copy that does not sell… but provides a solution.

1. Talk TO the customer, not ABOUT the company. Yes, you have to mention your company name so they’ll know who you are. But the majority of your copy should speak to the customer and his/her needs. Not: “ABC Web Site Designers has been in business for 13 years. We do great work. Our clients think this or that. We provide design, java and cgi. Our customer service can’t be beat. ABC is the best and you should use us.”

2. Use “you” and “your” and write as if only one person were reading your ad or site. Make your copy personal.

3. Get Real! Use real-life examples in your copy. Reach your customers on their level by identifying with them. Instead of something like, “You can get more organized and stay that way” say “You’ll be able to find your keys in 5 minutes or less and never again wonder if you or your spouse is supposed to pick up the kids today.”

4. Get emotional! Most buying decisions are emotional. Your ad copy should be, too! Bring out their frustration, their anger, their greed. Whatever the situation calls for, use those emotions in your copy. Example: “After you throw the plunger across the room and SCREAM… call ABC Plumbing.”

5. Benefits, benefits, benefits. I know you’ve heard it 1,000 times, but you simply must fill your copy with benefits. Always answer the question, “What’s in it for me?”

6. Show them they’ll get results. Tell your customers what life will be like AFTER your product or service solves all their problems. By showing them that they will get their desired end result, you make a very persuasive argument for your product.

7. Be their friend. Let your copy portray you as “easy-to-like”. Show your customer that you’re their friend who is willing and able to help instead of just another business who wants them to buy.

When you put the focus on the people with the money… the people who keep your business up and going, you can work wonders with your copy. You’ll see your sales improve if you just quit selling!
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Most buying decisions are emotional. Your ad copy should be, too! Karon is Owner and President of KT & Associates who offers targeted copywriting, copy editing & ezine article services. Subscribe to KT & Associates' Ezine "Business Essentials" at
join-businessessentials@lyris1.listenvoy.com or visit Karon’s site at
http://www.ktamarketing.com.
http://www.marketingonlinepro.com/advertising-articles/To_Increase_Your_Advertising_Effectiveness__Stop.html

10 Orchestrated Ways To Multiply Your Profits!

1. Use reward programs to keep people revisiting
your web site and buying your products. You could
reward gifts or discounts for revisiting or buying.

2. Publish e-zines for other web sites to increase
your traffic. You could do it at no charge and in
return just ask for a sponsor ad in each issue.

3. Trade endorsement ads with other e-zines. They
pull more hits and sales than just trading classified
ads because it gives your ad instant credibility.

4. Test your ad copy before you start taking orders.
Tell your visitors to e-mail you if they want to be
notified when you launch a new product.

5. Get your visitors excited about your product by
letting them know how excited you are about it. Tell
them why you're excited and use exclamation points.

6. Use incentives to gain referrals if you don't have
an affiliate program. Tell people when they refer
customers you will award them with free products.

7. Tell your visitors the reason why you're having a
sale so they don't think your products are cheap. It
could be a holiday/seasonal sale or clearance sale.

8. Stay away from overloading your web site with
high tech gadgets. They can create a slow loading
web page and distract people away from your offer.

9. Cut out words, phrases, and paragraphs in your
ad copy that aren't selling or supporting your product.
This will stop people from getting bored with your ad.

10. Keep people at your web site as long as possible.
Allow them to download free ebooks, sign-up for
contests, use free online services, etc.

About the Author

Larry Dotson is the co-author of "The Hypnotic
Writer's Swipe File" a collection of hypnotic words
and phrases that sell. You can visit his web site at:
http://www.ldpublishing.com
http://www.marketingonlinepro.com/Marketing-articles/marketing4/10_Orchestrated_Ways_To_Multiply_Your_Profits!.html

Six Models of Success

If you want to build something...first find a model!

During the past week, I have spent a large amount of time studying successful web sites and finding out what it is that is separating them from all of the run of the mill web sites which are just there.

It is really interesting when you stop for a moment and look at why certain sites are becoming extremely successful on the Internet. What really stood out to me more than anything else was the variety of different types of businesses there were out there.







I researched extremely successful sites which focused on web hosting, business opportunities, pet products, golf, computers, information, and even paint thinner! Anything, if planned appropriately, can be sold online.

The other thing that has stood out to me is the variety of different models of success there are out there. A key to being successful in any venture is to find a business which is already doing what you want and model after them. Play follow the leader.

I can't go into every model of success I have found, but I do want to introduce to you six different models which kept springing up over and over again in successful sites.

As you look over these models, you may find that you are on your way to becoming just like that type of business. If so, good. If you don't see anything listed here which is what you are trying to do, you really should stop for a minute and organize your plans to more closely follow a successful web site model.

You may even find that your business fits into more than one of these categories...if so, again you are probably following the right road in your business.

Model #1 - Free Information Provider and Opt-In List Builder

These two things go hand in hand. For months you have heard me tell you over and over again that the profits in an online business are in the Opt-In List. Well, it is still true and I am going to keep right on telling you this.

Look at the most successful business online and almost without fail they are the same businesses which are building the Opt-In Email Lists. One key that you have to remember though is that you MUST provide high quality information to your list and not just a bunch of ads. If your newsletter is just an ad sheet, you can be assured that it will almost NEVER grow!

Then, learn how to write effective offers which ride right along with each of your mailings to the list. Once your list begins to grow, you will find out just how easy it is to build a Guaranteed Monthly income on the Internet.

Advantages: You can build your list up each month and watch your guaranteed monthly income go up right along beside it. It can be an easy way to create a Residual Income no matter what products or services you are selling.

Disadvantages: You have to like to write. If you hate writing and only want to send out pure advertising without value, you will find that this is a very hard road to travel.
http://www.marketingonlinepro.com/Marketing-articles/marketingarticle12.html

Direct Mail Advertising Email Is Not Like Postal

You may use this article as long as the byline, resource
box, and links remain intact. If the article does not fit
your Web site/newsletter guidelines, please request
adjustments. mailto:bobette@WebSiteMarketingPlan.com .

Please notify the author of use and provide a sample copy of
the publication.

Word count: 627

Formatted 65 characters per line.

Email questions to mailto:bobette@WebSiteMarketingPlan.com.

Author Photo: Available to copy from Web site.
Color: http://www.websitemarketingplan.com
Black and White:
http://www.websitemarketingplan.com/about_bobette.htm

Autoresponder:
mailto:EMailMktg@WebSiteMarketingPlan.com

HTML:
http://www.websitemarketingplan.com/Arts/DirectEmail.htm

Copyright 2002 Bobette Kyle. All rights reserved.

____________________________________________________________

Direct Mail Advertising; Email Is Not Like Postal Mail.

by Bobette Kyle

One of the most popular and potentially effective advertising
methods is direct email. If you deliver a well- written message
and execute delivery properly you will be rewarded with new
leads, sales, and traffic to your Web site. If the message is
poorly written or you commit a netiquette faux pas, however, your
efforts could end in disaster.

If you are new to Internet marketing, you might equate direct
email to direct postal mail. The concepts are very similar; in
both you broadcast a standard message to a large number of
individuals in hopes of receiving positive responses. To the
uninitiated, it is logical to assume you can approach the two in
the same way. It seems like the only difference is the means of
communication. If you are thinking this way, STOP! STOP! STOP!

Many people perceive unsolicited commercial message (UCE) - spam
- differently than junk mail from the postal service. The sender
pays for direct mail sent through the postal service. Not so for
UCE. Spam on the Internet ties up the recipient's resources by
using storage space, slowing down systems, and sometimes crashing
equipment. For this reason and others, many abhor spam. Some
assertively condemn spammers. If you spam you will undoubtedly be
reported to your ISP and email provider. Depending on the
circumstances, your accounts could be closed and your Web site
may be shut down. Need I say it? This is NOT the result you are
looking for from your email marketing program.

Some email advertisers feel that as long as there are unsubscribe
instructions in the email or they only send one message it is
okay to send unsolicited email. A few use never-passed
legislative proposals in their defense. In marketing, perception
is far closer to reality than loophole rationalizations. Some
recipients are offended whether the unsubscribe phrase is there
or not and they are offended even when they receive only one
message from you.

Different individuals define spam differently. Some consider all
forms of UCE or unsolicited commercial postings spam. This means
that if you send advertisements without prior permission from the
individuals you will get complaints. In all likelihood you will
be reported as a spammer. Because service providers generally
have user agreements that are stricter than current U.S. state
and federal laws, you are likely to be reprimanded, have your
site shut down, and/or be put on a blacklist if you send out UCE.

* Spam/UCE Law

As of this writing there are no U.S. federal laws governing UCE.
Some states, however, have laws that regulate UCE. These states
are California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Idaho, Illinois,
Iowa, Louisiana, Maryland, Missouri, North Carolina, Nevada,
Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Tennessee, Utah,
Virginia, Washington, and West Virginia. Depending on the state,
allowable claims range from $10 per message up to unlimited
damages. Most state laws allow opt-out procedures. In other
words, companies can *legally* add a recipient's email to a list
without his/her knowledge as long as a means of removal is
provided. For details by state, go to
http://law.spamcon.org/us-laws/index.shtml.

International laws are stricter. Seven countries - Austria,
Denmark, Finland, Germany, Greece, Italy, and Norway - have opt-
in laws. In order to legally send UCE, you must first have the
recipient's permission. Other countries have opt- out directives
or pending legislation. EuroCAUCE provide details at
http://www.euro.cauce.org/en/countries/index.html.

Worldwide, there is much discussion about UCE and laws are
changing quickly. There are several sites you can monitor for
details about UCE. These include the SpamCon Foundation
(law.spamcon.org), the Coalition Against Unsolicited Commercial
Email (CAUCE, www.cauce.org), and the spam section of The Open
Directory Project (dmoz.org/Computers/Internet/Abuse/Spam).

* More Email Marketing Resources

SpamCon Help for Email Marketers:
http://www.spamcon.org/marketers/index.shtml

SpamCon Links to Blacklists:
http://www.spamcon.org/directories/shared-blacklists.shtml

WebSiteMarketingPlan.com Links to Email Advertising Resources
http://www.websitemarketingplan.com/sr10.htm

Wilson Internet Links to Email Advertising Articles
http://www.wilsonweb.com/cat/cat.cfm?page=1&subcat=me_Email- Gen

About the Author

Bobette Kyle is author of "How Much For Just the Spider?
Strategic Web Site Marketing." She used techniques detailed in
the book to bring her own site, WebSiteMarketingPlan.com, from a
ranking of 17 million to 59 thousand+ in less than four months.
http://www.WebSiteMarketingPlan.com/sr.htm

Copyright 2002 Bobette Kyle. All rights reserved.
http://www.marketingonlinepro.com/advertising-articles/Direct_Mail_Advertising_Email_Is_Not_Like_Postal.html

Balancing SEO and Other Forms Of Advertising

Search engines are by and far the largest supplier of traffic to
your web site. Moreover, its targeted, meaning the visitors that
arrive at your site were looking for information that you are
delivering. At least this is the goal of the search engines: to
deliver high quality results to web surfers.

Recent major changes in Google, Yahoo and MSN have put the
internet market however in a frenzy. As the search engines battle
it out to be the one producing the highest quality results by
frequently altering their index algorithm, search engine
optimization has taken an almost obsessive importance.

The problem I see is that the battle is not going to end soon and
repeatedly trying to stay ahead by optimizing after each re-
indexing is truly a never ending battle. A balance must be struck
between search engine advertising and other online venues.

Starting out with an online home business business is
intimidating. There is pressure to build a quality site, offer
valuable information, promote, build subscribers,...and the list
goes on and on. Having a few different forms of advertising that
you slowly utilize can payoff big in the long run. With a market
that can change on an hourly basis, you musn't focus too heavily
on any single form of site promotion.

Think of it as your advertising bag of goodies. You reach in and
pull out one method and give it a try. Don't dump all of your
resources into it. Spread them out. Reach in and pick another,
until you have a few in the works. Now pause and see which is
working. Tweak a bit here and there and sit back again.
Continuously re-evaluating your advertising campaigns, you will
begin to grow a deep feeling as to which works for your online
business.

Here are a few types of advertising for your home business you
should consider:

(1) Classified Ads - cheap and short to write.
(2) Article submission - write an article and post for free.
The rewards reaped can be enormous in the long term.
(3) Paid ads in E-Zines - hit those seldom used small niche
markets!
(4) Link exchange - can you bring in traffic from another
site? You betcha!
(5) Newsgroup and Discussion lists - join in on discussions
and pass out a small blurb about your business at the end.
(6) Sig files - after all your online! Make use of all of the
emails you send out daily.
(7) Flyers - yep, offline!

The bottom line here is not to stagnate. Search engines are
important but not the only way to promote. Its better to balance
your site optimization with other promotion strategies. If one
method fails you at least have others to fall back on.


About the Author

Dan J. Fry is an independent researcher and owner of
e-Kinetic.com, a site devoted to providing resources for small
budget home businesses. He has a PhD in Physics and is married
with two daughters and two cats. Subscribe to his free E-Zine on
home business resources at mailto:e-kinetic@GetResponse.com or by
visiting his site at http://www.e-kinetic.com . He can be reached
at mailto:comp@e-kinetic.com .


http://www.marketingonlinepro.com/advertising-articles/Balancing_SEO_and_Other_Forms_Of_Advertising.html

Advertising The Key to Success

You have got a great idea, and your website is now complete. You are ready to open for business but where are your customers? Simple – you are going to have to go out and get them. It sounds easy, but advertising can be a pitfall that can cripple many e-businesses.

There are several methods of advertising on the Internet. Some are free, some are low cost, while others are insanely expensive. The first thing you will need to look at is how much you are willing to pay for traffic, and how far your advertising dollar can go.

One of the most effective, and cheapest, methods of advertising is through e-zines. There are thousands, if not millions of e-zines published every single day. The best way to approach e-zines for advertising is to join a couple that fit your product profile and that you find interesting. Most e-zines offer incentives to new businesses signing up, and will even run your ad for free just for subscribing. You can find many e-zines that offer ads for as little as a dollar. It is a fantastic way to reach thousands of people who are already interested in your type of business.

In fact, you can utilize e-zines to promote your product for free, if you can write an informative article. E-zines are desperate for content, and will often offer to publish your article in exchange for a link back to your site. If you go this route, make sure that your article is informative and not just a sales pitch. For example, if your e-business deals with making money from home, an article about how working from home decreases stress would be very well received. You can rely more on making a good impression with the article and a simple link back, than a hard sell that might not even make into print.

Link exchanges are another free alternative to costly advertising. Be prepared to get lost in the shuffle if you choose a popular site. The best way to make use of this method is by running your own link exchange from your site and offering a free posting in exchange for a link back to your site. My links page, for example, can be found at http://www.iscaweb.com/Links.html

Targeted advertising is by far the best way to bring in traffic to your website. By using targeted key words, your customers are not just stumbling into your website. Half the work is already done by the key words. You just need to supply the information. Google Ad Words can be used very effectively as well as other targeted key word companies. Most of these operate on a pay per click basis, so you will need to research your key words and supply the best possible words to ensure a good cost-to-click ratio.

Press releases are a great way to get the word out about your site and possibly create media buzz. While this method is more expensive than the above methods, it has the potential to bring in substantial traffic. Before sending out your release, make sure that it is formatted correctly and contains a powerful first paragraph. News editors are inundated daily and you do not want to get lost in the shuffle.

When writing your press release, it is important to make it news worthy, instead of a plain announcement. Using our example above, if a recent study is released about stress management and working from home, it would be a perfect time to send out a press release that mentions the study and your business. Be prepared to receive phone calls and answer questions if your release is a hit.

You don’t necessarily have to wait for an event to happen to send out your release. If all else fails, get creative! There are many ways to tie in your business to current events, all you need is a little imagination.

We have covered just a couple of ways to effectively advertise your new or existing e-business. The best advice is to start wisely, plan your advertising budget accordingly and get the word out as effectively as possible.


About The Author


Julie Martin ©

Julie Martin is the publisher of “Iscawebs Internet Income eZine” a weekly eZine dedicated to increasing your online profits, no matter what you are selling. Julie also uses the “Plug-In-Profit” system to GREAT effect!

To subscribe to the eZine, or to learn more about the Plug-In-Profit system visit: http://www.iscaweb.com

http://www.marketingonlinepro.com/advertising-articles/Advertising__The_Key_to_Success.html

Pay Per Click Advertising Works If You Do It Right

The fastest way to get your product or service out to the
marketplace is with a pay per click advertising campaign. In a
matter of minutes you can be on page one of some of the most
popular keywords relating to the theme of your website.

A pay per click advertising campaign is easy to start. You will
open an account and deposit some money as a starting balance
with the search engine company that you are advertising with. To
start you enter your site's URL, title and description and bid
on relevant keywords. A site selling jewlery would bid on
keywords such as, "jewelry," "gold jewelry," "silver jewlery"
etc.

When someone searches for "jewlery" the details of your site
appear, in the form of a search result with the URL, title and
description you entered. If they then click on your listing,
your account is debited the amount you have bid on that keyword.

What makes this so effective is that someone who has searched
for your product is already qualified when they come to your
site, which is selling the product or service they are looking
for.

It is important that your keywords are relevant and link to the
page that contains information relating to that keyword.

Also be sure and only bid on keywords for the minimum bid amount
when you are first starting. Generally you can bid as low as .05
cents on lesser searched keywords. This strategy makes it more
affordable for you as you learn how to use pay per click
advertising more profitably. It will take you more keywords to
get the traffic you want, but it will cost you less.

An excellent source for information on pay per click advertising
is payperclicksearchengines.com. You can find out everything
from how to set up your own campaign to the top 10 pay per click
search engines to advertise with. You will find ideas and
articles on pay per click search engine advertising or pay per
click internet advertising as it is also called. Here's that
website:

http://www.payperclicksearchengines.com

The key to pay per click advertising lies in choosing keywords
that people are searching for, but spending the least amount of
money doing it. This will take you some time to develop your own
list of keywords, but once you have done that you are off and
running.

Assuming you have a product or service that people will buy
there is no end to the amount of money you can make. You are
only limited by the amount of websites you want to build and the
time you want to spend managing your pay per click advertising
campaign.

The bottom line is this. Pay Per Click programs allow you to
compete with the big boys in your niche. A targeted advertising
campaigin is a very fast way to get on top of the search engines
without spending hours and hours optimizing your own website
with the search engines.

If you have a small amount of money to get started then there is
no reason not to use the pay per click strategy. As your website
becomes more profitable you can reinvest some of your profits
back into more advertising and more expensive keywords.

This is exciting. You are off and running with your own pay per
click advertising program and making sales that your competition
isn't because you have mastered this targeted advertising medium.


About the author:
Jeff Schuman is the owner of Team-Schuman.Com
Team-Schuman.com contains the best of everything you need to
make money online. Their pay per click advertising website contains
links to the Top 10 webites to help you start your own pay per
campaign today.
http://www.team-schuman.com/pay-per-click-advertising.html
http://www.marketingonlinepro.com/advertising-articles/Pay_Per_Click_Advertising_Works_If_You_Do_It_Right.html