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With the present trend in marketing and online business, competition to get the a higher and better ranking is getting stiffer and a lot more complex. In order to attain the best traffic on the net, a lot of marketers and businessmen are engaging into so many highly tremendous methods of marketing. One of the most sought-after marketing tools that many are trying to experiment on is the search engine optimization, particularly the off page optimization process. You may be asking, why search engine optimization? What features does off page optimization have to be considered as one of the most sought-after marketing tools? Well, the answer to that is very basic and fundamental - traffic driven by back links.

Back links are the most essential means of generating traffic on a site nowadays. A lot of marketers and business people have seen the strong potential of off page optimization to obtain successfully numerous quality back links on a site more than its contemporaries. Back links are link addresses that you are able to generate from sites that wish to start a connection with your site. Usually, this happens under the method of SEO that requires it to be done outside the main content of the site - thus, off page optimization.

One of the best ways to get back links is through the use of the forum. If you are able to publish your message on the forum sites where you are a member, you are given the opportunity to include on the message some of your relevant information such as the company name which you represent, as well as a bit of personal information such as your name and your e-mail address. You will be given this opportunity when forum masters see your contribution to the forum site as something that is indispensable. In order to continue getting such opportunity, you continue to submit postings that contain relevancy and pertinence.

As additional information, if you are serious about generating more back links from forum sites, engage yourself into more than one forum site and allot time for each individual site. In that case, you have far better opportunity to gain mileage with considerably more net users.

Do you want to learn more about how I do it? I have just completed my brand new guide to forum traffic success, 'Secrets of Generating Traffic With Forums'

Download it free here: http://www.secrets-of-internet-success.com/2ezforums.html Traffic Generation With Forums

Sean Mize is a full-time internet marketer who has written over 1,574 articles in print and 11 published ebooks.]]> http://miraclemoneyblog.com/homebiztips/HomeBusinessTips_GHo_289/user/index.php
by Rick Roberts

A Little Background:

I have been involved in Internet Marketing and Affiliate Marketing since 1994. I must admit, however, that I am a lazy marketer. Maybe a better word is "sporadic."

By this I mean that, from time to time, I will find a product or service that appeals to me and, for a few days or weeks, I will pursue marketing it. Usually, at first, there is some level of success associated with my efforts -- but not always. Believe me, I have squandered more money on Internet marketing E-books than I have ever made from them.

In my marketing endeavors, I always wanted to find a product or service that could be set on "auto-pilot," or self running, and make an extra few bucks a month. Let me tell you -- that's hard to find.

Mostly because the world of Internet marketing is ever-evolving -- and what sells today may be a non-selling item or service next month. To date, I have found only one that both works like this and stands the test of time sensitivity. You can read more about this from the link in my Bio/Resource box with this article posting.

Affiliate marketing is a waiting game

One thing I've learned through my experiences is that affiliate marketing is a big waiting game for any return on investment. Take, for instance, being an Amazon Associate. With Amazon, you earn an overall 4% - 10% commission off of any referral sale.

Not bad on the surface, but a big drawback is their sales reporting system. It's always a 24-hour lag getting stats from your promotions, which makes pay-per-click advertising a real gamble with Amazon. The biggest catch, though, is the wait-time for any commission earned. It takes 60 days from your first referral sale to get a check or direct deposit from them.

So, again, you really have to be careful with any paid promotions for referrals to Amazon. But, if you have the money or other resources to promote Amazon referral links and can wait 60 days on your return, you can make a fairly good chunk of extra income.

Last month -- March 2007 -- I made $202 in commissions after a $96 investment in PPC advertising.

Clickbank, on the other hand, is still an iffy proposition for affiliate commissions. The plus side of Clickbank is that you get a commsion check every two weeks on the prior two weeks' referrals. So, the inital wait on your first check is about 4 weeks. But there are two main drawbacks to Clickbank.

One is that almost every product you can promote is promoted to death on the Internet, which means you are fighting like cats and dogs over getting sales from your advertising. PPC advertsing is really a gamble with the products there because the good traffic keywords are so expensive to get decent position with.

Expect to pay $1 - $5 per click for good position with Clickbank PPC advertsing.

The real money-making promotions

Of all of the things I've tried to market on the Internet, the biggest money-maker is selling either your own products, such as physical items or E-books you've written, or reselling other E-books that you have master reseller rights to.

Having master reseller rights means that you collect all of the proceeds from the sales and you can advertise the product on your own Website with your own HTML pages.

Another easy money-maker and potential big money-maker is viral marketing.

I know it sounds like an evil thing but it's not. Viral marketing is the process of giving away something that links back to your actual sales pages or affiliate links.

The two most common viral marketing methods are:

* Giving away an E-book that has your links embedded within them to either your sales page or an affiliate link to another sales page. I've found people love free items and will snap them right up with little promotion at all.

* Submitting articles written by you to article directory sites that contain links to your own sales pages or affliliate links.

Summary

To summarize, I would have to list these points:

1. If you're new to Internet or Affiliate Marketing, expect to experience a fairly healthy learning curve in figuring out what to promote and how to efficiently promote the product or service.

2. Expect to invest a sometimes sizable amount of real money in PPC advertsing. In fact, if you're new, I wouldn't recommend this approach to promotion at all. Wait until you've figured out the ropes first before gambling with what money you do have.

3. Look for products you can sell that you have complete control over in both the commsions and sales approach, master reseller rights products.

4. Don't ignore viral marketing. It's the cheapest and most bang for your buck in promoting any product or service. Plus it's enduring. An E-book can float around the Internet for months or years, providing residual on-going income.

Conclusion:

In conclusion, I would like to encourage you to check out the link in my Bio/Resouce box for a product that does work on auto-pilot and, best of all, incorporates both master reseller rights and viral marketing into one easy-to-promote package. It won't make you rich, but it will provide you with a residual income for months or even years, possibly.

Rick Roberts is an Internet marketer that manages several Websites across the Internet. Get the greatest viral marketing idea of all time and it's free to download http://www.daelectronics.com/ultimate. You will be amazed at how simple and brilliant this idea is. Plus, it has a surprise twist on the last pages of the E-book.

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by Bob Hamilton

Let us face it, eBay buyers want to find bargains when they make purchases on eBay. Those bargains equate to high quality items for low prices. For the seller who simply views selling on eBay as a hobby, or as a method to clear out excess items from their house, attic, or garage, getting any amount of money from items is a bonus.

For the seller who views eBay as a business and wants to make money on eBay selling at bargain prices creates a challenge. For that seller, he purchases items for resale with the goal of making a profit on every sale every time.

The secret to make money on eBay and still offer bargains for your buyers is lowering the costs associated with products that you purchase for resale. In fact, the goal is to buy at a low enough prices so profits are possible, even while selling to bargain hunters. The well-informed seller must pay the lowest possible price while minimizing associated sales cost.

There are several actions you can take to reduce the price of items sellers purchase for resale. Each of the strategies following can greatly reduce the cost-of-goods-sold for the seller with a goal to make money on eBay.

• Combine Orders
Just as many buyers on eBay will make multiple purchases and then combine shipping to reduce cost, so can you. Often there will be excess room remaining in boxes and on pallets of merchandise you have purchased. Use that room for additional products. Often those extra products will cost almost nothing to ship. That is especially true when you buy pallet loads.

• Buy Wholesaler Closeouts and Specials
Wholesalers often offer closeouts and specials to move excess or end-of-life merchandise. The discounts can be significant. Just be sure there is a market for the products you purchase. Use this strategy in combination with combining orders. You could save a boatload of money!

• Negotiate for a Lower Price
Many wholesalers are willing to negotiate for lower prices. Typically the trigger to make this happen is to increase the quantity in the order. Just be sure that you do not purchase so much of an item that you cannot profitably resell. One of the worst things to have happen would be to have five-thousand left-handed flanges sitting in your garage for the next 20-years!

• Split Wholesale Purchases with Other Sellers
We have used this strategy. We have split loads of merchandise and freight costs with others. This strategy requires developing enough trust so that both feel there will be a fair and equitable deal. It works especially well with sellers who are in marketplaces other than eBay.

• Cherry Pick Loads and Resell the Rest to Others
Caution: this strategy does require some labor. It opens the opportunity to make discounted purchases of mixed lots. Upon receipt of the merchandise, simply inspect, and remove the products that fit your needs. Inventory the balance and resell it on the wholesale market.

Each of these strategies has some real strength and can work for you. However, be cautious that you are not simply buying a wholesaler's problems. If you do, those problems can sit in your basement, garage, or warehouse eternally as merchandise you cannot sell. With care and planning, you can make money on eBay by using these strategies.

To make money on eBay requires that sellers never lose sight of profit. The goal is to minimize the cost of goods sold. Reducing the price that you pay for items allows your buyers to get a bargain and you to make money on eBay.

To Your EBay Success!

(c) 2007 Bob Hamilton
Bob is an entrepreneur, author, writer, consultant and trainer.
Visit http:www.OnlineAuctionsMadeSimple.net for a FREE dropship report!
http://www.MarketingSuccessCenter.com
http://www.OpeningaDollarStore.com

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By Michael Fleischner

Okay, so your marketing has paid off - you have new customers. The key to growing your business is to effectively communicate and leverage these new customers into advocates for your products and services and purchasers of additional services.

Do this in a variety of ways. Follow some basics steps to ensure retention. Here are some tips you can use to develop long-term relationships with newly acquired customers.

1. Proactively shape impressions about your business. Whether you are sending a welcome message, making the first contact via phone, or sending a letter, be sure to position you company for the long-term. Often times, individuals buy products without knowing a whole lot about the company where they are buying.

A popular tactic is sending a welcome kit or an overview letter that introduces your company, your values, and the additional resources you have available for your customers including a support email address, 1-800 number, and so on. This lets you control your company's image among newly acquired customers. Otherwise, your customers are free to form their own opinion without any guidance whatsoever.

2. Categorize your customer. Is your customer a high potential? Are they a transactional buyer that will likely never buy from you again unless you offer the lowest price? By segmenting your buyers based on your existing database or known behaviors, you can develop customized communication plans to retain them for years to come. Some communication plans focus on up-sell while others may only focus on retention. Base the communication plan you implement on the proper categorization of your customer.

3. Show your thanks. Once you have acquired a customer, do not forget to thank them. This may seem trite. However, done properly, this goes a long way. Often a hand-written note or personalized email from a company president can do the trick. The real key is to make the customer feel good about the purchase they have made and the company they have chosen.

4. Provide consistency among all touch points. Once you have acquired a new customer, you must make sure that you provide a consistent user experience. For example, if the prospect contacts your technical support rep the first day after they have purchased a product and received an answer to their question, then they call the following day only to receive a different answer, they are going to lose faith in your company's ability to provide consistent and reliable support.

You can benefit greatly by developing procedures that can be documented and delivered consistently - meeting customer expectations. This builds trust in your business and can minimize defections. If the consumer knows they can count on you to give them what they need/want, they will be willing to forgo a better price or promise of a better deal elsewhere.

5. Share customer testimonials on future marketing pieces. Many marketers believe that testimonials are only for prospects. The truth is that testimonials can help retain customers, especially new ones, with exposure to positive experiences of individuals just like them. In addition to sharing testimonials, it is always a good practice to ask newly acquired customers (within 30 days of purchase) for their feedback/testimonials.

The benefit of reaching out to your customers is that if a problem exists, you can react to it and if they have something positive to say about your product or business, it is useful to reinforce your brand. (Note: be sure to get permission to publish a customer’s testimonial).

These techniques are very effective for maximizing lifetime customer value. By shaping the image of your company, providing a consistent experience, and sharing testimonials for similar customers, you can develop a positive, lasting impression with your marketplace.

Most importantly, keep it simple. Do not overwhelm your new customers with tons of email, or direct mail. Develop a well thought-out communication plan that has a definite purpose. In addition, most importantly, remember to thank your customers for choosing your company, product or service.

Michael Fleischner is a marketing expert with more than 12 years marketing experience. He has appeared on The TODAY Show, Bloomberg Radio, and other major media. For more free marketing articles like this one, visit http://www.marketingscoop.com.

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By Richard Henderson

Benefits of Marketing Online

Marketing rules are the same no matter how big or small your business is: (1) brand your product, (2) determine whom your target audience is, (3) get the sales, and (4) establish repeat customers. Online marketing is very effective in managing all four of these rules.

Online Marketing Defined

The definition of online marketing is: Placing your business or product on the Internet for millions of users to access so you can turn your website into a strong tool to maximize your sales and business potential.

However, online marketing is much more than putting your advertising online. Marketing online includes such areas as communicating with your customers, promoting your business or product online, and making sure that your website content is useful and up to date. The great thing about online marketing is you do not need to have a huge budget to put together an effective marketing campaign. There are tools you can use to make your marketing techniques easy and profitable; such as, website templates, shopping cart templates, and online marketing templates.

What You Need for Online Marketing to be Successful

There are some important points to consider before you get into the strategies and intricacies of online marketing:

• Communication. An important part of online marketing is how you respond to your customer's e-mail. You do not want to lose potential customers after you have made the effort to have them visit your website and then contact you for more information. E-mail is a very effective and a cost efficient way for you to generate more sales. The key to this effectiveness is "consistency". You need to be consistent in your response to your customers. You will also want to make sure the tone of your e-mail corresponds with the tone you have set in your website content.

• Human Resources. If you are going to succeed online, you need to have enough people working with you. Efficient websites incorporate a personal touch with a fast response time to customers. Your goal is to turn the visitors to your website into customers. The standard time for a return e-mail is from 48 to 72 hours. If you wait any longer to e-mail back, you risk losing the customer. If you do not have the manpower to return e-mail in two to three days, you need to take another look at your marketing strategy.

• Products people want to buy online. Before you start marketing online, you need to be sure that you have a product or service that people want to buy. Customers need to find a value in what you are selling. There are two motivating factors when it comes to selling online: cost and convenience. Ask yourself if customers will find it easier to buy online than finding a local store. Is it cheaper for them to buy this from you online?

Richard Henderson runs his own internet marketing business from home and enjoys publishing articles and ebooks for websites as well as his own customers. You can visit his latest website, which is about the imminent release of Internet Marketing Quickies Volume 2 from Andrew Fox.
http://www.marketing-quickies-2.com

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By Scott White

Brand Identity is a promise, one given from business to customer to expect certain things. Whether that promise involves product quality, service, price, or a million other things; it varies from brand to brand. However, the one thing common among all brands is the need to be a strong brand.

Why is brand identity so critical?

A strong brand identity can position a company above its competition all by itself. However, acquiring a brand that strong takes time, money, and effort to develop. It is not as simple as just redesigning a logo or rewriting a tagline. Brand identity is the reason your customers choose you instead of your competition.

How to rework your brand identity.

Successful re-branding involves "evolution," not "revolution." You must impress upon your existing customers that your new brand is just a new and improved version of the same you. It is important not to get crazy with a re-branding effort because you could end up destroying fragile emotional ties and customer loyalty.

Brand identity is much more than marketing.

Having a brand identity that resonates with your market is important, but not at the expense of the people within your company. They need to get it, and be your brand's most fervent ambassadors. Do your employees believe in your company? Do they feel like they have a vested stake in its success? Companies with solid brand identities can say yes to these questions. Can yours? If not, here are some things you can do:

Get every aspect of your company on the same page: Easier said than done, right? Well, that does not mean it is not necessary. Get all your departments talking to each other and understanding each other.

# Promote everyone to the position of brand ambassador: Give everyone a common understanding of the company, its mission, and their part in it. They should feel like they have ownership-even if they do not.

# Reinforce brand values and behaviors: To do this, use the tools you have, such as internal communications...and like a good basketball coach, consistently promote these fundamentals until they are second nature.

Your employees will ultimately determine your success or failure. That is why it is so important to have them buy into your company's brand identity. However, that is not something that you can force. You, as leadership, must earn it. However, once you do, you will have a company that is full of happy, motivated, successful brand ambassadors.

Scott White is President of Brand Identity Guru, a leading Corporate Branding and Branding Research firm in Boston, MA. Brand Identity Guru specializes in creating corporate and product brands that increase sales, market share, customer loyalty, and brand valuation.

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By Dan

Sometimes I wonder if my online home business is going anywhere. Am I doing anything right? Will it just become another one of my failures in life? I will admit, many times I have felt that I should cut my losses and move on. Then I consider why I am trying to succeed in making money online in the first place.

The idea of earning money from the internet has fascinated me for a long time. The thought of working on a computer to earn money to put in the bank, to buy whatever my heart desired, to help others, became a driving force to make it a reality.

Several years ago, I saw an infomercial with Chuck Woolery, on selling items on EBay, and that it could bring financial freedom. I researched at length on how to profit from EBay, and the idea of drop shippers, and wholesalers, and all that marketing mumbo jumbo. Unfortunately, that idea never got off the ground. Looking back, I guess it was too much for me to handle at the time.

Later, a Youtube video, showed a professional video gamer. It had his brand of computer and gaming hardware. (Look for "playing video games for a Living" on Youtube.)

He said his business would be a good way to secure his future now. Someday his hand-an-eye coordination and reflexes will not be as good. Now, he can make money doing something he loves.

I am a big gamer myself. I also realize that my quick thinking skills, eyesight, and reflexes will begin to decline someday. I will not be able to play as well as I did in my prime. I try to make money online in hopes that I will be able to help pay my way through life, and be able to make money by doing something I spend a lot of time doing, which is being on the computer.

Am I crazy for doing this? Probably. Am I foolish for doing this? Probably, even more so. Noticing that I have a sign up, is proof beyond all reasonable doubt, that it is possible to make a decent quantity of money through the internet. That's one more sign up towards my goal. It makes all the work I put into this all worthwhile. It could take months, maybe even years before I start making a generous profit, but it is from little acorns that big oak trees grow.

Visit Dan's site to find the best rated home based business opportunities so you can earn residual income (http://www.ez-online-money.com/).

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by Charlie Cook
http://www.marketingforsuccess.com

========================================
Summary:
Want to hit your revenue numbers this year? Discover
which numbers to pay attention to.
========================================

Everyone wants to see growth in sales and net revenue. It's important for small business owners to set income goals and to watch sales results, but too much emphasis on these numbers can prevent you from reaching your goals.

Using your revenue figure to guide your marketing is like driving by looking in the rear view mirror the whole time. That number tells you where you've been. It doesn't tell you how to get where you want to go.

There are a couple of key numbers and ratios to keep in front of you that will help you get to your sales 'destination'.

Like an Iowa farmer growing soybeans, you've got to carefully plant seeds and nurture plants to maturity to ensure a good harvest and a good profit. The amount of seed you plant and the percentage that germinates and grows well determines your farm's profitability. The same is true in marketing and sales; the number of leads you generate and the number you convert to sales determine your income.

These are the two most important numbers to pay attention to in marketing. Use them to evaluate your marketing and determine how many sales you'll generate:

1. The number of qualified prospects in your database.

These are people who've told you they have a concern or problem you can help them with and who want to hear from you again.

2. Your prospect-to-client conversion rate.

The percentage of qualified prospects you convert to paying clients.

The math is simple; the more qualified prospects you have and the higher your conversion rates, the more revenue you'll generate.

Your sales will stay frozen at present levels if you focus on how much revenue you're making and ignore the importance of building your list of qualified prospects. You could double your business in the next few months by building your database of qualified prospects and improving your conversion rates.

Marketing Numbers

You don't need to be a math wiz to become an expert at marketing math. Pay attention to these numbers on a weekly basis;

- The number of people who saw your ads, read your articles or received your mailings.

- The percentage of these people that responded to your ad or article. It's not how many ads you run, but how many people pay attention to your ads that matters.

- The percentage of respondents that actually gave you their contact information and added themselves to your database. These are the people who have identified themselves as qualified prospects who are interested in learning more.

If you're marketing through your Website, it's incredibly simple to identify these numbers daily and weekly to track the success of your marketing. Here's how;

1. Look at the number of unique visitors to your Website daily or weekly.

2. Divide this number by the number of people who contacted you. This is your conversion rate of site visitors to qualified prospects. If your site is set up correctly, at least one out of ten people should be contacting you and adding themselves to your list of qualified prospects. If you use Google Ads to drive visitors to your site, you can send visitors to specific landing pages and increase your conversion rate to 20% or even 25%.

What should you expect from your Website? For every hundred unique visitors to your site per week, 10 to 25 should be sending you an E-mail requesting more information about your products and services. Each month, your list of qualified prospects and your sales should grow.

Before you finish this article, make a commitment to apply this simple marketing math to grow your business. Set a goal for your business. Look at how many qualified prospects your marketing is currently generating.

Write this number down, then put a diagonal line across it and next to it write down the number of qualified prospects you want to add to your database each week.

I've been doing this little exercise for two years with my current Website. My goals for acquiring qualified prospects get larger each month as my business grows. My latest goal is 500 new prospects per week. This translates into 6 to 7 percent more business each month. With a little planning, you can see your business grow just as fast.

2006 © In Mind Communications, LLC. All rights reserved.

The author, Charlie Cook, helps service professionals, small business owners and marketing professionals attract more clients and be more successful. Sign up
to receive the Free Marketing Strategy eBook, '7 Steps to get more clients and grow your business' at http://http://www.marketingforsuccess.com.]]> http://miraclemoneyblog.com/homebiztips/HomeBusinessTips_GHo_289/user/index.php
By Allison Thompson

People will find themselves in difficult financial situations, at times. It may be because their business has not worked out and is on the verge of becoming bankrupt or it could be for personal reasons (a divorce settlement is not what it should have been). At any time, the need for financial support is important. When faced with situations such as shown previously, a loan to help them recover is hard to find. There are many reasons why getting a loan could be difficult, it may be they have a poor credit rating or they have no equity to act as security on a loan that lenders will normally provide. However, now there are moneylenders around called ‘bad credit’ lenders who can assist these people when their state of financial affairs is so dire.

You will find that ‘bad credit’ lenders are institutions or organizations that are able to provide loans to people who are in desperate need of financial assistance. One type of option that these kinds of lenders provide is a private loan (also known as a hard money or ‘bad credit’ loan). This type of loan does not require the borrower to have any equity, and as a result, are able to provide such loans but at an increased rate of interest.

Different types of ‘bad credit’ lenders exist, and banks are one source. Should you need to arrange a ‘bad credit’ loan, you could first consult a bank. Many banks require some sort of equity against the loan that you are looking for. It is advisable that you seek assistance from a bank where you have been a customer from some time. This provides the bank with a guarantee of knowing who you are and they will have full details of your banking records.

If this does not work out, there are a number of companies around which also act as ‘bad credit’ lenders. Such companies will provide you with a loan proposal, but be aware that they will often charge much higher rates of interest than usual.

Many financial experts say that when looking for the right sort of ‘bad credit’ lender, it is wise to do as much research as possible. Obtain all the information you can on each lender. Make sure you are aware of what sort of loan programs these lenders have and what the interest rates are that they offer on their loans. After getting this information, it is wise to compare each one. See which ones suit you and the one you will not have difficulty in making repayments to.

Allison Thompson, an expert author, after becoming a work from home mum, runs a small real estate company in Spain. Due to her involvement in the property market she has carried out extensive research relating to all financial matters. If you would like to learn more, please visit http://www.centrallendingservices.com.

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Let’s face it, the internet has grown and moved away from being just a place to surf the web for interesting factoids, run tax software or play games. Now it is a vital communication link for both businesses and family. Internet video technology is the next the next major shift in communication. These are the Internet Video tools you will soon be using. Video mail and instant messaging will be used daily by most for both business and family conversations. Think about it. Wouldn’t you rather have a face-to-face chat with your customer without leaving your office? Wouldn’t you rather smile and talk then type another email? Don’t you think your customer will be happier to see a brief video from you than read yet another email? Yes, yes and of course.

Video-mails, (emails with video in addition to text) and Video Instant Messaging are the Internet video technology tools that will soon be part of your daily life. If you weren’t born with “IT blood” running in your veins or if are over 25, can you learn to use these tools to stay connected on the internet and expand your business? The answer is Yes. Let me explain exactly what these Internet video technology tools are and how you can use them.

Video mail is an email with a film strip that, once it is clicked on, plays a short 2-4 minute message. All of your facial expressions are displayed, which alone increases the retention of information from 10% to 50%. Your words, when delivered directly face-to-face, have a much greater impact than reading a traditional written email. Here is where you set yourself apart from the others that are offering similar services. You become known by your potential customer.

Next: Instant Messaging. You might be familiar with the traditional style. When you log onto the computer, a business associate would be notified that you are available and you begin communicating. However the process is awkward and time-consuming... you type, and you wait while they read your message and type a response. Meanwhile, your business associate has to wait until you read and respond.

Upgrade this IM with a video IM. Simply have an IM appointment to meet on the computer. Now you can have a “virtual meeting”, a true face-to-face and real -time communication with one or more colleagues. Imagine saving you and your company the hassle and the expense of battling the local traffic, the weather and airport delays, as well as disruption of spending time with your family. With a Video Instant Message you can do presentations or discuss any business situation. Now with the tool of video instant messaging, you can maintain face-to-face connection to your satellite offices, co-workers or sales staff. Your Video IM could include associates from different offices or even different countries all talking together while each staying in their own office.

Using this same technology, the Video Instant Message tool will allow you to schedule a weekly family chat with your children and grandkids. Let the cousins grow together, sharing their lives even if they live thousands of miles apart. It is a Grandparent's dream! The use of Video Instant Messaging will keep the family connected regardless of where ever individual resides.

These are the internet video tools that everyone will be using in the next year. Relax, they can be point-and-click easy. So get ready to show your face to your colleagues and friends via your computer.

If you would like more information on Internet Video technology, try [http://www.dranney2.info]Dr Anney’s Technology

To read a few chapters of my book, Money From the Inside Out, visit my website at [http://www.dranney3.info]Dr Anney.com.]]> http://miraclemoneyblog.com/homebiztips/HomeBusinessTips_GHo_289/user/index.php
By Shouvik Mazumder

There are many membership sites on the web. Some of them are paid, some are free. All these membership sites provide information on a range of topics in forms of ebooks, softwares, videos, teleseminars, podcasting etc.

In addition, there are many ebooks available on the net (both for free and for payment) containing information on various topics.

Now have you ever considered, “why does an ebook or membership site provide information for free, while others are providing the same information only after receiving some payment?”

The answer is quite simple: The information is NOT the same.

There is a gap (and this gap can be quite wide) between the quality of information for the free and paid versions. This is what makes the paid version a paid version.

When you read a free ebook on anything, you always feel you are missing something important. Reading a paid ebook does not make you feel like that.

You may feel you can find much information, about a topic, by yourself, within a short period, by searching through search engines. But, in reality ............ you are going the wrong way.

This is simply NOT possible. Not all the information is available via the web. I know because I have tried to do this myself, and failed. Even after spending 1 month on searching a topic, I have gotten more information on that topic, (which I never got earlier through searching), through other marketers.

When you try to gather information on any topic through searching (in other words, when you try to get information for free), you perform the following tasks:-

1) First, you write down some keywords related to your topic

2) Then you go to your favorite search engine and enter those keywords in the search box.

3) After that, you read information on the resulting webpages.

4) Then you decide which information will benefit you.

5) Lastly, you arrange your gathered information in a step-by- step, easy-to-read format.

Now, believe me, doing all these steps will take a lot of your time and energy. What if you can not give the time required? Further, if you suddenly encounter more valuable information about that topic, it will be very difficult for you to rearrange the whole thing.

Therefore, here is the importance of paid version of information over free version of information. Paid version of information is ready for you to read and digest. You don’t need to search for anything. The research is already done for you, by the information product developer. The information product developer is charging you for this.

The info product developers are always at a distance. They know they need to put valuable information into their info product that must benefit the readers, and which would justify their charging. They spend their time on thorough research, and then spend carefully craft their information product. They include valuable tips within their info product, which you will not get from anywhere else. They are a master over a certain topic. Their vast exposure on that topic reflects on the quality of the product they create.

A General Approach: From Free To Paid

In general, to sell their information products, many information product developers first create a free version of the information product, (like a free report) on the theme of the paid version. Next, they input a “useful, but incomplete approach” within that report. This means they first discuss some problems and solutions within the free report relating to the theme of the paid version, not fully disclosing everything). Then they create urgency in the mind of the readers of the report to buy the paid version from them so that the readers can get all the solutions for all the problems on that topic.

This is a good way to sell. The readers know they can trust the author and his recommendation, as they have already read his report. The author, on the other hand, can be certain of creating some credibility in the mind of his readers, and hence can expect some sales.

This article is composed by Shouvik Mazumder. To get a special report on "Information Product Marketing", click below:
http://www.realtimedeal.com/shouvik/infoezine.html

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By Madison Lockwood

We are quickly evolving from a digital world where information was THE marketable commodity to a communications market. New methods of communicating, networking, and socializing become the new consumers of online attention and time, introduced to us on a rapid-fire basis. Blogs, wikis, RSS newsfeeds, podcasts, video socialization are built around applications like YouTube...all of these are recently formulated methods of communication that seemingly overnight have developed millions of participants.

One of the networking methodologies evolving from Internet architecture is the phenomenon of "social bookmarking." One of the more popular sites is del.icio.us. On this site the notion is that you, the web surfer, share interests with others who have web access via your bookmarked URLs. It's the same concept as bookmarking favorites with your browser, but the collection of favorites has a coding system and is shared with others. You build a library of URLs that reflect your interests and you consider worth visiting. You add a personal "tag" with a keyword that characterizes the site.

You can "subscribe" to tags so you can see every new post with that tag. That in turn can take you to the poster's entire list of favorites, which may prove to be a new trove of information for you, and del.icio.us, allows you to go through the same exercise with podcasts, which are now scattered across the Internet galaxy like asteroids.

Others on the web have access to your library and to your personal interests. Utilizing a web based application (in this case, del.icio.us), participants are able to search through sites that others have bookmarked, using not only a standard search term but the tag that has been used to characterize the site. Tags form a collective body of URLs and thus, a body of knowledge - and collective access to those tags forms a community of people with common interests. Included in the process is an optional personal profile, which provides your email address and allow others to communicate with you personally.

The drawback to this format is that a tag search is going to get you every commercial website out there that has laid claim to the same keyword. It takes a lot of scanning and scrolling to find sites that have been tagged by individuals instead of search engines.

There are several platforms out there for social networking. Flickr (www.flickr.com) is a site that uses uploaded photos for networking purposes instead of URLs. You can upload your travel experiences, travel photos and travel interests along with your profile at www.43places.com. Wists (www.wists.com) is a "social shopping" exchange where the bookmarks are all about commercial shopping sites. The level of personal communication allowed by social networking sites is up to you: on 43 Places you can post your photo but refuse personal email. You can also hold the line at public access to your favorite’s library on del.icio.us.

Other social bookmarking platforms (or tools) as they are called, include:

- Backflip
- Blinklist
- blogmarks
- Connotea
- de.lirio.us
- feedmarker
- Jots
- Lookmarks
- Scuttle
- unalog
- Spurl
- Simpy
- Wists
- Yahoo! My Web 2.0

They all have an assortment of tricks and widgets that make their sites a little different. Some of them have fairly sophisticated search methods for their subscribed users; some allow you to "bundle" tags for search purposes; most provide lists of the most popular bookmarks and the recent posts. It's all an interesting experiment in 'distance sharing'. Making use of it for professional (research) or personal uses simply requires taking the time to become comfortable with the methodology and then learning how to get maximum usage out of the tagging system.

Madison Lockwood is a customer relations associate for http://www.apollohosting.com. She helps clients understand how a website may benefit them both personally and professionally. Apollo Hosting provides website hosting, ecommerce hosting, & VPS hosting to a wide range of customers.

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By Jane Wyvern

No matter the kind of job you have or business you own, it seems like meetings are a part of life. They are necessary to make sure vital information is shared and employees are kept in the loop, but they can be a major expense to the employer.

This is especially true for corporations that need to fly employees across the globe for face to face meetings with other employees or clients.

Thanks to the internet and the latest innovations in communications technology, meetings can now occur over the internet via web conferencing. Today’s web conferencing solutions are state of the art, thanks in part to the availability of high-speed internet access.

Corporations can hold meetings and the employees don’t even need to leave their offices. All they need to do is hook into their web conferencing application;--this works well—similar to face-to-face meetings.

The savings in time and money to business owners is quite substantial when you add up travel time, overtime, and person-hours away from the job to attend meetings in an offsite location.

Productivity and efficiency remain at peak levels and the company saves money at the same time. It is no wonder web conferencing has taken the business world by storm.

It isn’t only big business that benefits. Small businesses and startups who work from home can now compete on a global scale thanks to web conferencing and the ability to communicate instantly with anyone on the planet that has access to internet technology.

There are a couple of options to consider when it comes to web conferencing. The choice will ultimately depend upon the budget of the company. In any case, the money saved by utilizing the web conferencing solution will pay for itself in no time.

For higher end solutions, there are full featured stand alone video web conferencing applications. For most small companies however, initiate a simple web conferencing program over the internet, which saves the expense of purchasing equipment and dedicated communication lines.

Web conferencing is a particular boon to those who work at home. It is relatively inexpensive to set up a web conferencing system utilizing a home computer and high speed internet line. Web conferencing provides a link to employees who work from home and gives those with a home business a more professional outward appearance.

Jane Wyvern is an established freelance writer. You can find more of her writing at http://www.webtalkcentral.com and http://www.webhostmatters.com.

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By Izzy Camacho

If you have been looking into selling products online, then you have probably heard some "expert" recommend that you create a web site, fully automated to help you make money 24 hours a day. While that might sound great, they often forget to tell you HOW to do this.

Well, I'm going to tell you right now, in this article!

First, what IS a Fully Automated Web Site? A Fully Automated Web Site can be defined as one equipped with an integrated suite of both e-commerce and internet marketing tools allowing you to be the most profitable with the least amount of effort.

Most e-commerce systems are equipped with the following essentials:

- A shopping cart.
- Acceptance and processing of credit cards.
- A maintenance system that allows you to add/change products.
- An order-retrieval system that enables you to fulfill orders.

However, what most of them are lacking are marketing tools. If your website hits it big and you don't have the proper tools in place, then you will be a slave to e-mail and order processing. I'm sure that's not what you intended.

There are several marketing strategies that are essential in the creation of a successful e-commerce web site:

- Email marketing (broadcasting) of prospects/customers
- Effective use of autoresponders (generate automatic email messages)
- Online Newsletter
- Online Form / Survey to capture your prospect's email address
- Electronic Product Delivery (if you sold a digital product)
- Advertisement (Ad) Tracking
- Back End Sales
- Affiliate program

Now, if you had a system to support the integration of ALL of these marketing tools, in addition to the necessary e-commerce essentials, then you would have a Fully Automated Web Site. After all, it has been shown that it often takes 7 or more ad exposures before prospective customers actually make a purchase. Consider the following scenario:

A prospect clicks on an advertisement in an online magazine.

These action increments a counter for this particular ad to help you determine how well it is working. They do not decide to buy as of yet, but join your newsletter. They are now considered a prospect. You begin to send them a monthly email newsletter. Additionally, an autoresponder kicks in to thank them for joining the newsletter, as well as, scheduling them to get email twice a month for the next 90 days, reiterating your product benefits, and inviting them to purchase.

Upon sending them one of your "juicy" offers that they couldn't refuse, they finally purchase. They will automatically be removed from your prospect list and added to your customer list.

Based on the particular product or service they have purchased, they will receive a series of emails every two weeks for the next 6 months offering complimentary products.

This will be the engine that will drive your back end sales and keep your customers coming back to your web site.

Being able to play out a scenario such as this using one integrated system, would be impressive, don’t you think?

The internet big boys do this with expensive e-commerce platform suites produced by vendors such as IBM, Microsoft and Oracle.

Having your system automatically perform these follow up tasks frees you to spend more time on your business, your health or your family!

=====> What can you do to create a fully automated web site?

Fortunately, there are ways you can automate your website similar to the way the big boys do. The best and most cost-effective way would be to sign up with one of the handful of Application Service Providers available on the internet, which provide a shopping cart integrated with a full suite of marketing tools. Normally, the shopping cart and tools are very flexible and can be incorporated into any website.

=====> Are there any other ways to automate your business besides working with a total solution provider?

You can accomplish some level of automation without an integrated shopping cart system. However, it will require manual intervention and of course, it would be incomplete. I believe the most important asset of your e-commerce business is your email lists. Therefore, concentrate on the implementation of a good autoresponder/list server system to "enhance" your present e-commerce website. There are several good ones on the market.

Look for providers that allow you to:

- Create multiple lists.
- Add prospects via a web form, email, or manually through a management console.
- Send out an unlimited number of autoresponder messages.
- Send out an unlimited number of email broadcasts.
- Set up and distribute a newsletter.

When setting up your autoresponder system, create one list for your "prospects" and another one for your "customers". Now, here's where you come in: when a person orders your product, you will have to perform the extra task of logging into your autoresponder system and manually remove them from the prospect list and add them to the customer list. This action will then trigger your customer autoresponder series of messages to be sent.

Remember, the key to building a successful e-commerce web site is to automate your marketing engine, as much as possible, and drive your prospects and customers back to your web site. This will certainly create a money magnet e-commerce web site for you!

© Izzy Camacho

****************

To learn more about website automation and to download the complimentary ebook, "Easy Ezine Marketing", visit Izzy Camacho at http://www.internet-marketing-made-easy.com/Automation.htm.

Izzy Camacho is an accomplished software developer with approximately 20 years of experience. He has a degree in computer science from a distinguished university. For the last several years he has been involved in the creation of web site applications for corporate America.

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By Aviva Brown

After you have a website, you start to learn a lot of tips and tricks for doing business on the web. One of the best marketing tools you have is on your server, and you would be amazed at how many people don't use it. That tool is your website statistics. If you have never examined your web stats before, you are missing a real gold mine of information. They are usually found in the control panel section of your web hosting company. Most web hosts will email them to you if you can't access them yourself.

Learn Important Pages Viewed Information

You are most likely familiar with your "hits" on your web stats for finding out how many people have visited your website. Most stats programs will not only tell you how many visitors you have had to your site, but what pages on your website they visited, how long they stayed on a particular page, and what page they last viewed on your website before they surfed on.

Valuable Keywords and SEO

If you're interested in search engine optimization for your website and you aren't sure what keywords to use for your site; there is usually a section in your web stats file that shows you what keywords a person entered to find your site and what search engine they used. You can put those keywords around your website on various relevant pages to increase the search engine optimization of your site. That will not catapult your website to the number one position on Google overnight, but it will increase your rankings if done correctly.

The Magic of Referrers

Another great feature is the referrer section. Know what sites or search engines are referring your website visitors. Referrals can come from other websites, news groups, clubs and forums, or even competitors - if people are being referred to your website, find out by whom. In many cases, someone who had a great experience with your firm will be referring your company to someone on a message board that is looking for a similar product or service.

Use Your Web Stats

If you notice people are leaving within a few seconds of hitting your index page. Look at it in a few different browsers because they are not all created equally. What loads like a champ in Internet Explorer may look like garbage in Firefox or Opera browsers; or it simply may take too long to load. If you notice people are leaving at a point in your shopping cart - either your shipping is too high or your program may be faulty. Find out what items are getting the most looks and promote those to bring in more visitors.

Now that you know how your web stats can work for you, jump-start your Internet business today.

Aviva Brown recommends that you promote your website by submitting it to http://www.avivadirectory.com/.

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By Donna Gunter

Listening to podcasts is not something I enjoy or take time for, frankly. I am a visual learner and prefer to read something rather than listen to it, as I find reading a much quicker way to gather the info that I need. However, with the proliferation of audio listening devices, like the whole iPod family and other mp3 players, I have to acknowledge that I am in the minority, I believe. The world is listening to a wide variety of audio files, much more so than ever before in history, and I need to get on the bandwagon or be lost in the dust.

What is a podcast, anyway? A podcast is an audio file that you create in .mp3 format. You can upload it with an RSS (Really Simple Syndication) file to your server for your target market to download any number of programs created to receive or subscribe to your audio file. You can listen to it at your leisure on the computer or a personal mp3 device.

Why should you create a podcast? I think it serves as a marketing tool for the solo service professional, who might want to do one of the following:

--create an Internet radio show, or talk show, in which you create content-rich broadcasts for your target market

--conduct a teleclass series in which you interview experts who have solutions to problems faced by your target market

--promote a printed book, ebook, or CD/DVD series by releasing promotional snippets to a wider audience

--provide short and valuable expert tips to your target market (my Get More Clients Online, podcast consists of the weekly article I write for my newsletter)

Many podcasts are about an hour in length, especially when they consist of recordings of radio shows or teleclasses. However, I think the listening threshold for most people is about 10 minutes. This means your podcast needs to be 10 minutes or less in length. If it is longer, you really have to grab their attention in the first 10 minutes to keep them listening for the full amount of time.

Good content and a good speaking voice are essential to maintaining interest. Do not make your podcast one long advertisement for your services or products -- share some useful information with your target market to help them solve their problems. You need to have a good speaking voice. Nothing is worse than listening to someone read a speech with a monotone delivery. So, for maximum impact when you record your podcast (especially if you're just recording yourself), get up and walk around, smile, gesture, or do whatever you normally do when you deliver a speech. Modulate your voice, much in the same way you would when you have a 1 on 1 conversation with someone -- put feeling and emotion into your words. I pretend like I am talking to my best friend, and that helps me with a livelier delivery.

What are the steps to creating a podcast?

1. Listen to a few podcasts to get a feel for what others are doing. To listen, you will need a podcatcher (podcast reader), which permits you to subscribe to podcasts in the same way you subscribe to blogs. I favor iTunes as my podcatcher of choice, which is a free online download. You will also need to find podcasts. The quickest way to do that is via podcast directories, which include the iTunes store. Podcast Alley, one of the most popular podcasting sites, has a large podcast directory, and Yahoo Podcasts has a podcast search. To find others, simply search online for "podcast directory."

2. Plan your podcast. Who is your target market? What do they want to listen to? How will your podcast be unique from others in your industry? What is your format (interview others, host a teleclass, or record yourself)? How long will your podcast be? How frequently will you deliver your podcasts?

3. Record your podcast. Many people choose to record their podcast with a free piece of software called Audacity. It has an easy learning curve and advanced features for more experienced podcasters. Mac users might want to check out Garage Band. For best recording sound, do not use the microphone that came with your computer or the one built into your laptop. You will want to get a more professional one, such as the ones offered at Plantronics or Radio Shack.

4. Save and upload your podcast to your server. Once you have created your podcast in an mp3 file, now you have to save it, and upload it to a server, via an FTP program (like CuteFTP) so that it is readily available. You can upload it to your website, or use one of the many podcasting hosting services available. The problem with uploading it to your website is that audio files are space hogs, and you can quickly exhaust all the storage capacity of your hosting account, not to mention your monthly bandwidth capacity if your podcast is popular and is downloaded frequently. That is why I use a fee-based audio service hosting company, Audio Acrobat, which offers me generous storage and bandwidth capacity for a semi-annual fee. Another popular podcast hosting company is Hipcast.com.

5. Create your podcast feed. You can create your podcast feed from scratch. However, I recommend you use a feed service to do so. If you use a podcasting hosting service, this feature is included in your service package. For everyone else, the quickest way to create your podcast feed is through Feedburner.com. This same service creates RSS feeds for blogs. The advantage of creating your podcast feed from this site is that you can create a browser-friendly feed, track your circulation, and enhance your feed with its SmartCast technology.

6. Publish and promote your podcast. If you use a podcasting hosting service, the service will publish your podcast and notify various podcast directories about the availability of your new podcast. Alternatively, you can enter the info directly into the major podcast directories. You will also want to promote the podcast on your website, blog, and in your email newsletter. One of the easiest ways to do this is to add feed subscription buttons (called Chiclets) to your sites. You will have to cut and paste the HTML code into your templates to create the chiclets. You can get directions on how to publish subscription buttons from the various podcasters you want to feature. Lastly, you will want to create "album art" for your podcast, or a graphic representation that many podcatchers upload with the mp3 file. Album art may be from 170x170 to 300x300 pixels square at 72 dpi. Any graphic designer can help you create this graphics file.

7. Make money from your podcast. Advertising on podcasts is still new, but some companies like Fruitcast.com or PodcasterAds.com are places to start. Another option is to place Google AdSense listings on all of your sites to list your podcast, or seek sponsors for your podcasts, just as you would for a radio show.

Do not let the audio world pass you by! Podcasting is a very inexpensive way of helping you get the word out about what you do and what you offer to the world.

Copyright (c) 2006 Donna Gunter

Online Business Resource Queen (TM) and Business Coach Donna Gunter helps self-employed service professionals learn how to get more clients online. To sign up for more FREE tips like these and claim your FREE gift, TurboCharge Your Online Marketing Toolkit, visit her site at http://www.GetMoreClientsOnline.com. Read about running an online biz at her blog, http://www.getmoreclientsonlineblog.com or subscribe to her Get More Clients Online Podcast at http://dgunter.audioacrobat.com/rss/get_more_clients_online_podcast.xml

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By Kanaga Siva

Free Membership, Free Submission, Free eBooks, Free Websites, Free Downloads, Free Classifieds, Free to Join; yes, anything Free has an incredible pulling power in both Internet and Affiliate Marketing.

It is simply amazing how this four letter word, ‘FREE’, can capture the imagination of the newbies, and also the most seasoned and experienced Internet Marketers, and Affiliate Marketers.

The Success of your Internet Marketing or Affiliate Marketing Business depends on several inputs such as Determination, Dedication and Motivation, among others. In spite of possessing these qualities, financial limitations can be a dampening factor in your endeavor to succeed. Therefore, an offer of free tools, free eBooks, free classifieds, etc. can be just the thing you have been longing for to boost your confidence and help you succeed in your business.

Even if you are not short of funds to operate your Internet or Affiliate Marketing businesses, the offer of free items that could be helpful to develop your Internet business is something no sensible entrepreneur wants to ignore. Why pay for something when you can get it for free?

It is important to note that in spite of the prominent display of the word Free, some items are not always Free, and some are useless; nevertheless, the urge and desire to try them out persists.

There are many scammers who capitalize on this, to make a quick buck. This is where the newbie has to be watchful and not fall prey to scammers.

Many genuine smart Marketers do take advantage of this inherent weakness of both man and woman and offer free items to promote their businesses.

There are several great free webmaster tools that are extremely popular with Internet marketers, Affiliate marketers, Internet home based business entrepreneurs, and other online entrepreneurs.

Similarly Free eBooks and Articles written sincerely with the sole purpose of educating the audience are also very popular and sought after by webmasters.

There are websites dealing exclusively with Free items that are very popular in the Internet.

Another Free item extremely popular with low budget business entrepreneurs are Free classifieds.

There are also several very much sought after Free to join affiliate programs that are long standing, safe and secure, and global in nature, who provide you with free tools, free web sites, and great support systems.

Thus the Internet abounds with all kinds of free items. Some have hidden charges. Some lead to scams. Some have both free and paid versions. Some are totally free with no strings attached.

Regular visits to the Search Engines such as Google, Yahoo, MSN, and Altavista and studying these various free items will help you to weed out the Good from the Bad and the Ugly.

Great people do exist out there in the Internet World. They are prepared to share their knowledge and expertise with the rest of the Internet fraternity for Free. Webmasters and Online Entrepreneurs should indeed be grateful to these Individuals and Organizations who are constantly making the Internet experience much easier, cheaper, pleasant, and enjoyable for millions of Internet users.

The Incredible Power of the word FREE without doubt continues to captivate the hearts and minds of the Internet Marketing and Affiliate Marketing world, until a more powerful substitute is discovered.

Copyright © 2006 Kanaga Siva Kanaga Siva has a wealth of experience in Marketing and operating a successful Home Based Business. Visit his http://www.business-fromhome.com Website for Tips, Ideas and Advise to start and operate a Home Based Business.

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by Mary Hanna

Successful free article submissions to directories on the internet are an effective way to market your article and get more traffic to your websites. Submitting to an article directory is a great way for people to find a free article written by you. There are a few problems with this system, but you can overcome them and become more proficient in marketing articles. The trick is to submit your articles without being considered a spammer.

The weakness of the article submitting techniques is; it is very time consuming. I have submitted articles in three different ways: by Hand, with Article Submitter, and Instant Article Submitter software. Many directories require a login, ID and password, so each directory must be visited and a login established before submissions are accepted.

When submitting by hand, you have to cut and paste each section of the article into the individual directories. There are a lot of sections; first the Title, then the Category (very important – I’ll get into this later), Author, Author email, Website Address, Keywords, Article Summary, Article Body, and About Author box. That is nine cut and pastes to submit to ONE article directory. If you wish to submit to 150-200 directories, a good part of your time is spent doing grunt work which does not allow you to pursue other avenues of traffic generation.

Now we come to the "semi-automated" submission software programs. Yes, they are easier, some more than others, but you still must go to each directory individually. It is crucial that you select a Category for your article. If this is not done, the article directories will know you are using automatic submitting software and will treat your article as SPAM. Many directories especially frown on the "Automated Article Distribution Services" for just that reason. Therefore, you will not be published and not only have you wasted your time writing your article but you may be classified as a spammer.

Within the "Article Submitter" Software, they have 138 auto-fills, and 25 manual-fill directories listed. A visit to a majority of the directories must be done first in order to establish a login. You have the option of adding other article directories on your own, which is a nice touch.

The software will open to a page with a form for "User Information". There are typical information requirements you would find in any sign up sheet like, name, company, email, website, etc. Then hit the tab for "Articles" where you will place the article for submission. You will fill in the Title Section, Article Body (including About Author), Summary, and Keywords. Then choose the "Websites" tab. You can "select all" or pick and choose. Click on "Auto Fill" and it will take you to your first directory. A flaw here is that you can only have one article posted in the article section at a time.

Sounds easy, right? Well with "Article Submitter" you must be very careful. Once you have chosen your Category, check each section. This software does not always put the right information in the right box and it leaves some boxes blank. Again, if the directories feel you are using software carelessly, they will delete your article. The manual sites are just that, manual top to bottom. It took me a full day for each article, so it is still a time consuming process.

Then my partner found "Instant Article Submitter" which I have tested thoroughly. It is by far the easiest and quickest available at this time. Set up is still a bit tedious. Once again, you have to establish your logins, but only once. I found them much more accurate in filling in the necessary submission forms. Yes, you still must choose your Category, but only once, for each niche.

They have 100's of Article Directories listed, but there is a tab where you can mark your "Favorites". At first, I was a little intimated, but it is easy to follow and saves you a lot of time. I submitted to over 150 directories in about 4 hours and that was my first time using the software, so I was on the learning curve. Be careful not to hit the "Next Site Button" until after you have the confirmation that your article has been acknowledged.

Therefore, that has been my experience with these three systems for submitting articles to an Article Directory. I do not recommend hand posting – it is much too difficult.

For me the most convenient and least cumbersome was Instant Article Submitter for getting my articles out there to many Article Directories in the least amount of time.

Copyright © 2006 Mary Hanna All Rights Reserved.

Mary Hanna writes eBooks, Software Reviews (for people who are technically challenged like her) and Practical Articles on Internet Marketing, Cruising, Gardening and Cooking. Visit her websites at: http://www.WebMarketingReviews.com http://www.eBookSecrets-Exposed.com and http://www.CruiseTravelDirectory.com.

This article may be distributed freely on your website and in your ezines, as long as this entire article, copyright notice, links and the resource box are unchanged.

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By Craig Bucknall

Do you need an easy way to update your customers with your company news? Try adopting an email newsletter or e-Newsletter on a regular schedule. It can keep them informed, and it may even generate more business.

An e-newsletter combines the benefits of company information and marketing opportunities with little cost to compose and savings realized by using email technology rather than traditional postal means.

Some things you need to consider when preparing your e-Newsletter;

• Frequency – Make a plan to publish your newsletter on a regular basis

• Content – Keep the content focused on the audience, don’t try and oversell any product or service as these emails tend to get deleted very quickly.

• Size – Try to keep the newsletter to 3 – 4 bullet points, in short attention grabbing sentences that lead to full stories on your website.

• Bandwidth – Try not to over indulge your newsletter with too many graphics. Keep in mind many users still have low speed internet connections, and large image sizes will have an impact on downloading. Try to keep your newsletter to less than 60Kb

In this article I will show you the easy way to create a newsletter based on tables in Microsoft Word ready for importing into your email program for distribution.

Step 1: Open a blank word document and insert a table with 3 columns and 6 rows. I recommend merging the top 3 cells and the bottom 3 cells into header and footer rows. You can easily add the company logo on the header row and your address details on the footer row.

Step 2: Merge the left side rows of the remaining rows into 1 column.

Step 3: Add your logo image or Business Name to header area and Address details to footer area. Do not forget to add email and website URL links here, as well.

Step 4: Formulate a welcome message to introduce your newsletter and its content.

Step 5: Keep the information in the newsletter brief and to the point. If you have more information on your website, make sure you link directly to that article or news/product item on your website. Introduce bullet point’s news snippets with links in the left side column.

You have now created A HTML newsletter that looks like a webpage. Modify colors and graphics to suite your corporate colors, etc. You now have a simple easy to edit Word Document ready for publication via email.

Save the document for future editing, and then selecting the entire table, copy and paste into an open blank email.

Tip: Send the email to a friend, or your free email accounts (hotmail, gmail, etc), to see how the finish product will look when your customer receive it.

If no formatting issues are found after test email is sent, send the newsletter to your predetermined list of contacts.

Remember: Frequency is the key to gaining new and repeat business, so compiling and sending regular updates will help educate your customers on your products and services.

Craig Bucknall is the owner and Managing Director of the Sydney based Website Design studio Bullie Graphics. See their website for more information about http://www.bulliegraphics.com.au website design also checkout the http://www.bulliegraphics.com.au/blog website design and seo tips blog.

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By Scott Lindsay

A difficulty that standard brick and mortar stores face is in providing follow-up to their customers. When you make a purchase with a normal retailer, your contact information might be used to send sales flyers or an invitation to a ‘customer only’ event. There is very little personal contact with the customer, although a growing number of these stores may ask for email address or other contact information to alert you to upcoming events.

With online marketing, this scenario is quickly resolved using autoresponders (sometimes referred to as auto responders). If someone sends your company an email, an autoresponder can send a return email instantly to advise them their question will be addressed very soon.

This idea has been expanded to include an autoresponder message when a customer concludes an online sale. Once the credit card information is completed and authorized, an autoresponder message is executed providing an immediate thanks for the sale and confirms their order. Generally, these messages are in rich text (html) and can provide pictures, company logos, and other unique design features. Customers will also find contact information and a tracking number in most cases.

Most opt-in mailing lists also provide autoresponder messages that welcome the new member and provide control functions for changing their subscription when they need to.

Online business can take advantage of the many uses for autoresponders by utilizing multiple email addresses for a variety of business applications. Each email address should be set aside for a specific business purpose so an autoresponder message can be put in place that is specific to the intended purpose of the email address.

One of the functions for an autoresponder is important for online business because they can independently send out a series of timed messages that provide a broad overview of your business and provide a welcomed means of learning more about your business.

In essence this means if you have a series of six messages that you plan on sending to customers over a six-week period, you can set up autoresponder software to automatically ship these six messages once a week, for six weeks. On the same day, your software could be sending out each of these six emails to customers who purchased from your online store at separate times. Autoresponders can take the guesswork out of follow up by insuring that every contact you receive will automatically receive a return email.

While this is a broad overview on the subject, hopefully, you gain an understanding that autoresponders provide a meaningful and many times, multiple step mechanism for developing, maintaining, and keeping your customers.

Scott Lindsay is a web developer and entrepreneur. He is the founder of HighPowerSites and many other web projects. HighPowerSites is the easiest do-it-yourself website builder on the web. Get your own website online in just 5 minutes with http://HighPowerSites.com at http://www.highpowersites.com.

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By Jack Doren

Difference between RSS Submit and RSS Feed Submit.

Let's compare the two solutions...

a] Both tools are desktop software, which essentially submits your feeds to the appropriate places online. As such, both tools provide the same functionality.

b] RSS Submit will submit your feeds to 78 engines and directories, while RSS Feed Submit covers 75. Not much difference here, although it seems that RSS Submit might be doing a better job at keeping their tool updated (I've been using them since April and already have received many updates that made the software easier to use and added new engines and directories).

c] Certain search engines and directories require more information than can be provided through a fully automated submission process. RSS Submit tackles this problem by first asking you to fill-in a longer form. It will automatically take you to each of the manual submission sites, where it already pre-fills the forms and only asks you to confirm manually. RSS Feed Submit makes this even easier, first requesting that same information, but then doing all the work automatically. The only question in my mind is the quality of submissions. How do they compare to each other?

d] Ease of use is a strong factor. RSS Submit takes the game here. It allows you to submit multiple feeds at the same time, save them in the management interface, and track how many times you submitted each of them. RSS Feed Submit allows you to do one at a time.

e] As far as expanding the basic functionality of the tool, RSS Feed Submit is the clear winner. It allows you to add new search engines and directories by yourself, even tackling those that would otherwise require a manual submission. This is a great user-interface for adding new sites.

f] The final differentiating factor is the price, with RSS Submit starting at $44.95 for the Personal Edition, and RSS Feed Submit selling for $29.95.

Source:

http://www.rssdiary.marketingstudies.net

Jack Doren

I am working on http://www.softwareriviewblog.com. I usually publish articles regarding latest software tools of different categories which are mentioned in my weblog. I am also handling article marketing of this Blog.

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By Scott Lindsay

Building a successful online business is more than simply attempting to place a product on a webpage with the belief that visitors will be drawn to it like a moth to a flame.

If you spend a little time on the web, you will find many such sites with very little in the way of visual interest or compelling reason to explore the product any further. Many of these sites appear to have been created in the mid 90’s, with only marginal skill in website creation. That is not to say they receive no business, after all, their entire website is still up and running. However, if you turned away from the site quickly, chances are many others have too.

The idea of a successful website takes strategic thinking, planning, and execution. The development of an online marketplace requires research and marketing. You need to find a niche and learn to market to that niche. It may also be advisable to discover a niche that is actually of interest to online buyers.

You will likely need to learn certain online software applications and terms that allow further development of your site for easy navigation. The successful optimization of keywords and phrases allow your site to rank higher in the search engine results.

There will be security issues to address along with ezine options, RSS feeds, and the best use of autoresponders. A good website will also make use of affiliate programs for residual income and determine a course of action for a finely crafted website design.

As you roll out your website, you might want to include phased-in plans for video streaming as a means of demonstrating your product or services, or podcasting with experts in the field.

If all of this seems a little too much for you, please understand the reason I bring up so many different marketing tools is to spark the idea that there is as much that is a part of the development of an online business as there is in establishing a brick and mortar storefront.

It may seem easy – even tempting – to throw a site together, but without a plan the site is likely to perform on a mediocre level, at best.

Take the time to visit some of the more successful online stores. As you look through their webpages, you will gain some idea of the things that work on an e-commerce website. A well-defined purpose for your website will go far in determining the initial launch and success of your foray into web-based sales.

Scott Lindsay is a web developer and entrepreneur. He is the founder of HighPowerSites and many other web projects. HighPowerSites is the easiest do-it-yourself website builder on the web. Get your own website online in just 5 minutes with http://HighPowerSites.com at: http://www.highpowersites.com.

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By Scott Lindsay

You will need a shopping cart application to facilitate ecommerce, in order to sell products or services online. While your customers simply want a way to make a purchase, if they are interested in your product, you will have already considered tough choices.

For Instance...

If you want a full solution for invoicing, statements, receipts, and company financial history, there are solutions to cover all of this with an application for a shopping cart connected to company financial data. One such company is COREsense based in New York. This service requires less redundant work, because data entry on sales to a separate accounting software application is not required due to the full integration of financial data. For most companies, this solution will fall outside normal budget constraints.

If a shopping cart does not fit your budget, you have a couple of solutions that might work depending on your technical expertise. OSCommerce is available at no cost. This product is a fully customizable solution for a shopping cart, but it does require personal programming. In many cases netrepreneurs will hire a programmer to set this shopping cart up for them.

If you have no up-front budget for a shopping cart, PayPal makes one available at no cost. However, they do retain a fee, as well as, a small commission on each sale. The power of PayPal may make this a trusted source for online transactions for your customers.

Yahoo and eBay provide shopping cart services, at $30-40 per month, and offer a few features unavailable with the low-cost or no-cost checkout solutions.

There are other online solutions for cyber transactions with the tipping point based entirely on the size and needs of your online business. If you are a large company with thousands of online transactions, it may ultimately be less expensive to purchase a shopping cart system requiring a monthly fee. In the end, the fees and commissions associated with no-cost carts could outpace a standard monthly fee from other ecommerce transaction solutions.

Your customers have a choice in where they shop online and you have a choice in how you manage online transactions. Spend some time checking out the services offered and how the fees will affect your bottom line, both now, and as your company grows.

As with all ecommerce sites, your business will not do well if it is difficult to checkout. Make sure the transaction solution you choose allow your clients to make a purchase easily. If the process if too difficult, the prospect may bow out before the sale is complete.

Scott Lindsay is a web developer and entrepreneur. He is the founder of HighPowerSites and many other web projects. HighPowerSites is the easiest do-it-yourself website builder on the web. Get your own website online in just 5 minutes with http://HighPowerSites.com at: http://www.highpowersites.com

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By Sharon Housley

What are Content Sites?

If you are like many of those starting out with intentions of making millions online and struggling to capture the attentions of the large search engines, you are in good company. Times have changed, and due to the low cost of entry, the online world is becoming very competitive for businesses starting out. Unless a website has a regional appeal or caters to a very niche product or service, it is rare that a webmaster can create a website that is only focused on selling.

What is the answer?

The answer is content. The concept is not new; it comes down to the simple concept of bartering, give something in order to get something. In this case the trade off, is free information in exchange for website traffic and search engine ranking. The key is to create a website with content that other webmasters, bloggers, and publishers will want to link to. In order to generate interest and incoming links that result in web traffic, you will need to provide unique content. Related content drives traffic; understanding what makes one website a standout when others fail is the key to building a content rich portal.

How do I use content to sell my stuff?

First off, the content you provide must be of interest to potential customers. If you are selling a product, why not provide dimensions, customer ratings, reviews, warranty information, additional product suggestions, color or size charts. In addition to additional product information, consider your demographic, and find content that will be of interest to individuals (or businesses) that you feel typify a potential customer. It is also best if the content you provide relates to the product you are promoting.

Lets take a look at some content rich examples:

Gourmet Living (http://www.gourmet-living.com )

How does the site Gourmet Living focus on selling cooking items, use content to promote their products, and sell their wares? Gourmet Living uses recipes to draw in individuals interested in cooking. The topic (recipes) relates closely to the products they are selling (cookware and gourmet cookbooks), additionally the recipes target their potential audience, those with an interest in cooking. The Gourmet Living website uses additional food preparation tips and articles that discuss gourmet cooking to generate additional interest.

Recipe Directory - http://www.gourmet-living.com/recipe-directory.htm

Tips for Food Preparation - http://www.gourmet-living.com/category.html?category=preparing+food

Along with articles that discuss gourmet cooking - http://www.gourmet-living.com/gourmet-articles.htm

Dog Pound (http://www.dog-pound.net)

How does Dog Pound, a website promoting products for dog care, use content to generate website traffic? The Dog Pound website has educational articles related to dog breeds and training. In addition, the dog pound website has videos of common dog breeds, cute pet photos, and free recipes for dog treats. My recommendation would be to take the photo section a step further, encourage individuals to send in their favorite doggy photos and conduct a dog beauty contest.

Articles about dog training - http://www.dog-pound.net/dog-articles.htm

Videos with dog breeds - http://www.dog-pound.net/videos.htm

Dog Treats - http://www.dog-pound.net/other-dog-treats.htm

Photos - http://www.dog-pound.net/dog-photos.htm

Security Port (http://www.security-port.net)

How does security port, a website that does not sell anything and profits from advertising, use content to attract traffic and promote their website? The security port focus is on aggregating a host of security resources, from security glossaries to security forums. By creating a topical portal with information relevant to security, they are providing one stop shop for security information.

Searchable Security Databases - http://www.security-port.com/security-databases.htm

Security Blog - with related security news - http://www.security-port.com/blog.htm

Security Articles - http://www.security-port.com/security-articles.htm

Remember, at the end of the day, all of the advertising campaigns and attractive affiliate programs will only result in traffic spikes, which will be transient. Generating a content rich website that is useful, educational, or entertaining will attract and retain customers. While it is hard to assemble a content-rich site that motivates others to link to you, it is certainly not impossible. Keep in mind that search engine rankings influence the amount and quality of a website's content. Provide content that will make webmasters want to link to your website.

Sharon Housley manages marketing for FeedForAll http://www.feedforall.com software for creating, editing, publishing RSS feeds and podcasts. In addition, Sharon manages marketing for NotePage http://www.notepage.net a wireless text messaging software company.

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