In addition I’m now providing a free PDF “The Internet Lifestyle Manifesto.”

Simply go to that page and download it. No subscription required to get the free PDF.

It shares my simple system to…

- Find the intersection of passion and profits where you create a business that provides both fun and fulfillment in your life.
- Follow my blueprint where you combine your website, social media, and unique value to reach your income goals quickly.
- 5 Ways to Profit from this fun and fulfilling business you create.

You’ll notice a few of the most recent posts on this blog included in the report (the Passion and Profits series).

I did record a new audio that also takes this message to a deeper level. It is currently available only to free email subscribers. You can register for that after you download your free PDF gift also.

Go here now for “The Internet Lifestyle Manifesto.”

Often the story is the reason why the business was created. For example, many inventions were created because of a problem the inventor had in their own life. They wanted to solve their problem first. Later on they chose to share it with the rest of the world.

Note: this is often how I come up with product ideas in my own business by looking at the same difficulties I’ve had to overcome. A problem needs a solution. If you have a problem it’s likely others do also and are looking for a solution you can help them with.

Think about the story I share…about how I came out of dead end jobs like delivering pizzas to setup an online business. My original intention wasn’t to teach others about online business. It was to sell products produced by others. But I was so successful doing this that people started asking me to teach the same methods I was using. I taped into that story of the pizza delivery driver turned success online, because it is MY STORY.

Look at weight loss ads as another example. How many weight loss or muscle building ads have you seen where the author talks about his/her transformation story. The skinny 100 pound weakling gets sand kicked in his face, builds a ton of muscle, and never gets bullied again. The 300 pound mother takes a good look at herself, hates what she sees, and then does an about face all the way down to 120.

Those are examples of the “rags to riches” story. Loser tries everything but eventually finds the secret to success. While it doesn’t always fit, it’s a story you see very often. Our “hero” confronts an obstacle, whatever that may be, initially loses against it, finds the secret, and overcomes. The underdog becomes the winner.

Another type of hero is the “reluctant hero” story. This is the person who initially doesn’t want to get involved. Because of the need and the reality of the situation must take action and help others. They get pulled into the story because of some defining “moment.”

This one fits best especially if you have some life changing event – something that occurs that makes it easier to take action than sit on the sidelines any longer. You’ve probably noticed this one occurring quite often in “health” type issues. A person experiences the pain of loss or the pain of an illness either in their own life or in the life of someone close to them. After trying all the normal routes, they do everything they can to find the solution eventually stumbling on some methods to help others with the problem.

A third type of story is the “us versus them” fight. I’ve seen this one DOZENS of times in the financial field. Those dirty Democrats in office are out to destroy your money through inflation. Perhaps it’s all the jerks in Congress. Maybe it’s the greedy Wall Street bankers taking your money. In health this one is used as the greedy pharmaceutical companies who are lying to you.

You’re on a mission to confront these enemies and share the truth with your audience. This one can best be used WHEN you become very passionate about the subject. You get ANGRY when you think of what is being done to people in your market. And you can funnel that righteous anger into helping people achieve the results you know are possible for them.

These are just a few of the common stories people work from in their business. I’m not giving you these so you can sit there and think up a “story.” I’m sharing them with you because I want you to choose a market that you have TRUE STORY to share. That story is your competitive advantage!

Do you have a life changing event, a failure to success experience, or passion that could be channeled toward an enemy? This isn’t 100% essential, but it definitely makes you stand out more in the market…especially if you don’t have any other strong competitive advantages to work from. This really all comes back to the core question…what’s your advantage?

Passion and Profits Part 1…

Passion and Profits Part 2…

I’m not someone who says, “Do what you love and the money will follow.” I’d really like to say that, but it’s not always true. What I found is what you love often becomes a PORTION of your business, not the whole thing. Sometimes you still have to do some things you don’t enjoy – at least until you can afford to outsource it.

You have to balance all these principles together. Will it fit your personality and business style? Do you have a natural curiosity toward the subject? What value can you provide to others? And are others making money from it today? For example, a lot of people love to be artists. But what if you don’t have the talent (value you provide to others) or what if you do have the talent but you just love painting? If I told you to do what you love (paint), and the money would follow.

That would mean you don’t have to market. Most people who love art don’t love to market, yet that’s a requirement if you want to be profitable.

Accept the facts. You can build a business around a subject you have passion for and something you enjoy doing, but it’s likely you’ll have aspects to the business you don’t enjoy. Some of those aspects like bookkeeping can be outsourced (or hired) from day one. Other aspects like the marketing will often require your participation at least during the initial growth phase.

Now onto to profitability. I don’t ever like being the pioneer in a brand new market. Several times while researching a market I was extremely excited when I found there weren’t any Google Adwords ads. The market was “wide open.” What I later learned in both of these situations is there was a reason there wasn’t anyone advertising there. The visitors wouldn’t buy. They wouldn’t subscribe. And they were a waste of money.

That’s why I told you earlier that you need to figure out what business models are succeeding in a field. If your goal is simply to sell low cost ebooks (maybe you love writing those) but you can’t find any ebooks that can afford to advertise on Google Adwords or aren’t listed well in the Clickbank marketplace, then you might be in the danger zone.

I like to spend some time looking to see what’s already selling. Here’s where you go to do your homework:

1. https://adwords.google.com/select/KeywordToolExternal

2. http://www.clickbank.com/marketplace.htm

3. https://www.paypal.com/shops

4. http://pulse.ebay.com/

5. http://www.amazon.com/gp/bestsellers/books/

All the above links help you find what is ALREADY selling. On the Google keyword tool, you can find out what people are searching for. When you’re searching for potential keyword phrases, also try adding in a few modifiers like review, buy, purchase, shop, or even ebook. All of those phrases mean someone is looking for purchase something.

For example, if I sell camcorders (or am an affiliate for camcorders), I might look for a keyword phrase such as “Canon HV40 review” because it definitely means someone is considering buying this camcorder soon. Or someone could be looking for “online video ebook” which means they’re looking to spend money to learn how to do online video.

The Clickbank marketplace allows you to search in categories and by keyword phrase to find what digital products are being sold. In addition, they allow you to search by gravity score. While Clickbank uses a complex scoring system for their gravity score (basically each separate affiliate making a sale counts as a point but those points degrade over time), on average higher gravity scores means more affiliates are making sales for those products. So when I’m researching the market I like to look for higher gravity scores as proof those products are selling well.

Paypal Shops allows you to see how many Paypal sales a store has made. So if you go to a website selling fishing lures and it shows that they have 5,000+ transactions, you know they’re doing a lot of sales (as Paypal can’t track other sales if they use other payment processors or have their own merchant account). Again look for subjects that have a good amount of sales to prove that the business model is effective.

On eBay you can find out what the hot items are. A majority of these products will be physical products with a very small margin on them (eBay attracts bargain shoppers), but even if you’re planning on a doing an information product you can still see what industries and subjects are hot sellers on eBay. In addition you will find some information products that make it into this list. Choose category “Books” and then “Nonfiction” to find out what big nonfiction books are selling.

Over on Amazon you can find the bestsellers in any category. Normally I start in the book section to see what book sellers are hot (if people are buying one book they will buy others). I also will search other categories for potential ideas. For example if I had a site about camcorders I’d definitely be looking in the best sellers for electronics to find out what I should cover. You can find out a LOT about what people are really buying online by spending a good amount of time in the Amazon best sellers section. Even if you don’t sell any products of your own, you will still sell affiliate products from others and need to know what’s selling.

Passion and Profits Part 3 can be found here…

He released the bad news this week – that he is retiring many of his products. Please note he is not personally retiring, just some of his products are as he is simplifying his business. I definitely understand that. Having a large number of products becomes a major issue whenever changes need to be made.

The good news is that he is having special prices on the products before he closes the door on each one. I’ve purchased many of them including his Membernaire Site, Outsource Weekly, and his list building courses (yes I actually bought all of these – not received them as a gift).

If you don’t know Jimmy or haven’t purchased from him before, I’d highly recommend you start with his $10 Homepreneur Habits course available here…

It’s one of the products on sale right now, and it was already underpriced. Most people don’t fail at online marketing because they lack information. They often have too much. They fail because they lack focus and a step-by-step plan. That’s what Jimmy covers in Homepreneur Habits – establishing your plan. Check it out.

Without further ado, here’s Jimmy.

4 Keys to Getting Started With an Online Business
By Jimmy D. Brown

Have you ever wondered why some people never get their businesses off the ground? You see them on marketing forums for years, yet they’re not making any money. They’re spinning their wheels. They’re completely overwhelmed by all the available information on the market… so they end up not taking any action at all.

It’s a common affliction – but it doesn’t have to happen to you. Avoid spinning your wheels by follow these four keys to starting a business…

1. Choose One Business Model

One of the first decisions you need to make is which business model you’ll use to pave your path to success. These include models such as affiliate marketing, making and selling your own information products, drop-shipping products on eBay® and similar models.

So, which one should you choose?

Truthfully, it doesn’t matter. If you’re selecting from a list of proven business models like those listed above (and not some unproven “fad”), then any of them will make money for you. As such, the one you choose depends on your likes, dislikes and your ability to do the required work.

Example: Making and selling your own products is a great model and usually considered one of the most profitable models. However, if you hate doing things like creating products or dealing with customer service issues, then you might not enjoy this model – and thus it probably wouldn’t be your best option.

Point is, choose a model that’s a good fit for you. And once you’ve made your choice, move to the next step…

2. Select One Training Course

Just as there are many models to choose from, there are also many gurus and training courses that can teach you about the model. Again, make a list of proven courses and teachers – and then select just one. It should be more than enough to get you on the path to success.

If you don’t know which course is best, then ask someone you trust for a referral, or ask for a recommendation at one of the forums.

Tip: Yes: Later on, you can purchase additional materials to take your business to the next level. But for now, stick with one course. It’s much better to digest and apply ONE course of action than to get yourself in the middle of “information overload” and get nothing done.

3. Take Action

Now you have a model and you have the training you need to use this model to make money. Your next step is to take action on what you just learned.

You might feel overwhelmed when you consider all the work you need to do.

Here’s a tip: Stop thinking of it as a big project, and instead break it down into easily manageable steps. So instead of thinking, “I need to build a website,” instead break this task down into little steps such as choosing a domain name, buying hosting, installing a WordPress blog… and so on.

4. Stick With It Until You See Results

One of the reasons many people fail is because they don’t stick with their model or training long enough to see results. They see something else bright and shiny, and they abruptly move in a new direction.

Example: The person might set up a blog, make a dozen posts and then write ten articles to promote the blog. But before the blog makes even one sale, the marketer decides to drop the blog and try domain name flipping instead. End result: He chases every new idea and never makes a dime from any of them.

You can avoid this simply by committing to stick with ONE thing until you see results.

Example: If you decide to become an affiliate marketer, then follow your training guide’s instructions exactly, and stick with it until you see results. No matter how alluring other models or new products on the market are to you, just keep your eye on your goal.

Tip: Set mini milestones and goals for yourself, such as getting so many visitors or so many subscribers. That way you’ll see some measurable results early on, which keeps you motivated and focused.

Summary

The keys to starting a successful business include choosing one model, choosing one training guide, taking action and staying focused. And here’s one final key: Start now, because there will never be a better time!

——————————-

Jimmy D. Brown is “retiring” all of his products and services! After 10 years as an internet marketer, Jimmy is closing down all of his current sites … removing all of his ebooks, reports, membership sites, software programs, coaching programs, etc. To find out what’s still available, click here…

What if I have an idea for a business, but when I look in the top ten of the Google results (both free and paid) and notice every single one of them has a phone sales process? They collect leads and have people follow-up in a long series to make the sale. If I have a growth maven personality, that’s fine. I’ll build up my in house sales team and build that business.

But if I’m the lifestyle guru type, that means I’ll likely have to team up with an outside call center. More than likely I’d need to partner with a call center to go deeper in this project. If I don’t have a contact to help me set this up, this likely isn’t a business concept I’ll pursue on day one.

The business model needed in that market is important to what you choose. When you look at your competition (top ten in Google and then on the Adwords side), whatever you see is likely what you will have to build to be successful in this field. Of course you can innovate and bring in new ideas, but consider your future business by what you see today. It’s the most practical and honest way to look at what your future holds.

In addition, are you passionate about the subject? Notice I didn’t ask if you’re a premier expert on the subject.

You don’t have to be “the expert” today, because your expertise will grow in anything you focus on for years. And that’s the key, remember you will be dealing with this subject for years to come. This means more than anything else that you must have a native curiosity about the subject. You’re curious and want to keep digging.

Let’s say you want to create an information product in the subject (my favorite business model). You don’t have to be the expert to create the product. You could find a collection of experts and do an interview series.

I’ve done many products as interviews both in doing a group of different experts and also digging in deep with one expert. For example I did an 4 hour interview with Fred Gleeck on how to do interviews.

Was I the expert there? No. But I was very curious about the subject. I wanted to find out how to improve my interviewing skills, and he has done over 700 products based on interviews.

That means he is a premier expert on that subject. And I wanted to know more. So I took advantage of my curiosity for the subject and really dug in deep to find out every step in the process. Now I sell that as one of my products (he does also).

But doing a one off product and studying a subject for years are two different things. What subjects have ALREADY interested you for years or will you stay interested in the future? Make a list of work experience, hobbies, and interests.

Make a list of what you’d love to be able to study intensively for years…such as if you were going to college on the subject. Although your school is going to be the school of life here the commitment is very similar. What is it you want to “major in” for your business?

Unless you’ve already chosen your subject, make your list now. This report will be waiting for you until you get back. Pull out a blank sheet of paper and write all your ideas down. DON’T judge them yet. Nothing should be marked out at this point. Just let all the ideas flow using your work experience, hobbies, and interests as guides. Use the judge of curiosity as the road map. Do it now.

OK. You’re back now. Hopefully you did your first assignment and you have a list of possibilities (none of which have been marked off yet). Next you’ll ask yourself the question, “What value can I add to the world?”

Add Value to the World

“When I chased after money, I never had enough. When I got my life on purpose and focused on giving of myself and everything that arrived into my life, then I was prosperous.”
Wayne Dyer

How can you best add value to the world? You’re a unique person. There is no one else just like you. You have skills and gifts no one else has. You have passion and energy that is unique to you. There are things that get you fired up that don’t excite others around you.

And you’re here for a purpose…not just to make money. Working night and day to build the momentum in your business won’t be worth it if it’s only about the money. It has to be about something deeper if you want to last. It has to be not just about what you can produce for yourself and your family, but also what you can do for your customers and clients.

What unique value can you offer the world? That’s what makes the internet so exciting. Your business isn’t limited just to your local area. It is a worldwide business you can run from your kitchen table. And there are people out there searching for the value you can provide.

Have you heard about all the “Google slaps?” People call it a Google slap when Google goes through and eliminates a group of advertisers by raising their bid prices to a ridiculous level like $10 per visitor. Usually when Google does this, they do it to a whole series of advertisers at once. For example, several times they seem to have targeted affiliates.

Was it all affiliates who were targeted? Nope. They targeted all those affiliates who Google feels were NOT adding value to the transaction. If the affiliate simply linked over to their merchant, they didn’t see that as adding value to the transaction. What did Google want? They wanted affiliates who added their own unique slants, content, and value before the click.

Their goal isn’t just to have advertisers. It’s to have advertisers who help their searchers find what they’re looking for. Google has a long-term view that we need to model in our own businesses. They could have continued taking those advertiser’s money and kept the bid prices higher.

Instead they canceled all those advertisers because in the long-term the best course of action is helping the end searcher find what they want. They’re looking for value. You’re the one to give it to them.

What knowledge in your life can you share with others? What curiosity can you build on to empower the world? What is that you’re passionate to talk about to all your friends? What value has been put into your life that is the key to your online business?

Here’s another exercise. Contact 5 to 20 of your friends/coworkers. Ask them what skills they see as coming naturally to you. Ask them what they rely on you for. You can send them over an email so it’s a little less scary to ask for this response. You’ll find that often other people are better at spotting your strengths than you are.

The majority of us are “too humble” to see our strengths. You’ll find as you start marketing whatever products and services you choose that one of the biggest motivators in almost every market is low self-esteem.

People buy products to feel good about themselves. The beauty product makes them feel beautiful again. The “make money online” manual gives them hope and confidence in themselves. Even the video game manual helps them pawn the noobs (win the game). I guess I could write it, “pwn da noobs.”

Your lack of self-esteem will get in the way here also. So ask your friends and co-workers. Let them describe to you what value you can provide the world. The likelihood is they won’t give you the complete solution, but they will give you some direction and a few clues to what you can follow.

In a few days I’ll post Part 2 of this article…but if you want to dig deeper on how to choose the right market for you, I highly recommend you check out the Monthly Mentor Club where the very first monthly lesson is all about how to choose the right market including a score sheet to look at all the options.

Basically there are two kinds of entrepreneurs: growth mavens and lifestyle gurus. The growth maven is the kind of entrepreneur who has the big dream. They have a vision they want to see happen. They’re ambitious and see themselves someday competing with the Fortune 500 companies out of a lush corporate office. They want to employ people from their community and motivate them to push forward with the vision.

Simply put, they wouldn’t be satisfied to “stay small” and stay in their home office. They may start today out of a home office to keep the expenses down, but they have the dream of moving into their office with multiple employees surrounding them and pushing the vision forward.

The lifestyle guru is of a completely different mindset. They have NO desire to have any direct employees (they use outsourced workers only). They also would be happy to never move out of their home office. In addition, they enjoy the work they’re personally doing and don’t ever want to “promote themselves” out of it into managing others.

Talk about a big corporate office and they’ll be sick to their stomachs. That is not a part of their vision or their plan for business. They might not make millions per year but they can earn a very respectable six figure income and possibly even push a little way into the seven figure level. And they’re totally fine with the Bill Gates and Steve Jobs of the world earning more who are willing to take on that corporate responsibility.

Personally, I’m 100% on the lifestyle guru side. I enjoy what I do. I love writing. I love producing videos. And I love coaching clients. Employees – yuck. Just the thought of having them around makes me upset. That’s why I’ve had to learn how to use virtual assistants and technology to grow the business even when I’m not working.

In fact, for a couple of years I felt there was something wrong with me. Everyone else had all these huge visions and these big growth plans. There have been years where my plans were how I was going to slow down the number of clients in one element of my business or sell that portion off to someone else.

By the way, one of the most exciting elements for a lifestyle guru personality is when you can generate royalties, long-term commissions, and passive income coming in from work you’ve done in the past. That’s their bread and butter.

Which Personality Are You?

If you don’t decide which type of entrepreneur you are and build your business accordingly, you can end up building someone else’s dream business. For example, since I’m fully on the lifestyle guru side, having a “growth maven” company would be insanity for me.

If I had to go into an office and be responsible for two dozen employees (even with a professional manager you are still “responsible” in the end) along with working long corporate hours, it would be a nightmare. Even if the company was bringing in $20 million a year, I’d still HATE my life because it’s not me…or what I want.

And along the same lines, what if I took someone who was a clear growth maven and tried to stick them into my home business where I don’t have a single official employee (outsourced workers many of them in foreign countries such as the Philippines)? They’d likely go stir crazy. They wouldn’t feel like they have enough control over the workers, and they wouldn’t feel the company’s vision is “big enough.”

Since I coach entrepreneurs of both types, this was confusing to me at first. I would encourage someone to hire an outsourced worker, but they weren’t happy. They wanted to hire an employee instead (even with all the hassles I see involved there). It surprised me that anyone would choose to have employees, because it’s a radically different personality from me.

Yet I’ve seen the results they get from having employees. With good training they can be MORE productive than the outsourced workers. And they fit the growth maven’s personality and vision. It’s an important lesson. Not everyone is like you…and everyone has their own vision for what they want out of their business.

Don’t let anyone else’s dream for your business cloud your senses…and cause you to build a monster you don’t want. Decide which lifestyle fits you best. Then build your business based on a life you’ll love. Because it’s not just about the money – it’s about the lifestyle you live. And your lifestyle may not be what I want for myself.

Let’s say we time travel 5 or 10 years into the future. Let your imagination run free.

How do you see your company?

Are you still working full-time at home or do you also have an office you possibly go into a couple times a week?

Do you have staff or is everything outsourced?

Are you a well known brand or do you have a smaller number of clients and a good reputation?

Have you built an enduring legacy out of your business or do you simply have consistent creative work with a collection of customers who enjoy what you do?

Most of the time, the growth maven would consider what the lifestyle guru wants as failure. It’s not big enough. It’s not their dream and it’s not affecting/helping enough people. On the other side, the lifestyle guru would give up in frustration or run for the hills if they had to have the corporate structure the growth maven wants to build.

Which one are you…and what type of business is right for you?

I was writing a report today when I stumbled upon this quote by the Australian actor. My first thought was WOW…that’s the exact problem many people experience when trying to succeed online.

Everyone loves to talk about the big product launch that generates a large amount of cash, but what about the day-to-day routine that builds up to that launch?

They love the “overnight success story,” but not the 3 years of foundation put in place first.

Successful people are disciplined. They have a regular routine. If you’re a writer, those flashes of inspiration are great. They remind you of the runner’s high where everything just flows. But the majority of writing isn’t like that.

Often it’s sitting down to write even when there aren’t any great lines going over and over in your head. Sometimes you just slug it out. You sit down and write. Maybe nothing is coming out. You just writing blah, blah, blah until ideas begin to form in your head.

Perhaps you end up deleting the whole first page of what you wrote ONCE you’re in the editing phase. That’s OK.

What if you’re not willing to write blah, blah, blah? Then maybe you sit there staring a blank page. DON’T DO THAT. Write anything. Do something. Get our fingers moving on the keyword to get the momentum started. Ideas will come as you get in motion. Just because you write it doesn’t mean you will publish it.

Quick copywriting tip: If you’re stuck on copy, it’s often good to start with the benefit bullets (write a bunch of exciting bullet benefits and you’ll get in the mood).

You’ll find the best writers have a specific time of the day where they write. Everyday they sit down and write their 1,000 words…or whatever their goal is. Perhaps they have a specific place they sit down to write. Some use an egg timer to write for 33 minutes and 33 seconds. Some even have writing clothes they throw on like a bathrobe or hat.

The key here is they have a routine for writing. What is your writing routine? What? You don’t have one? So that’s the problem…

What about marketing your business? What’s your daily routine for marketing? Perhaps you spend 30 minutes examining your Adwords account, writing new ads, and finding new keyword phrases every morning. Or maybe you spend 30 minutes contacting new JV partners. I could name off a lot of possible marketing routines here.

Sometimes it’s not as much as about what all is in your routine as the fact you have one. And no, reading forums is NOT a marketing routine. It may be research for your real marketing routine, but it is not marketing.

What is it you do EVERY day to push your business forward even when nothing “exciting” is going on?

The same advice to getting started in your business. A lot of people are waiting for everything to get in place. They want to know exactly what to focus on in their business. They want to know beyond any shadow of a doubt that their product sells. They want to get just the right design on their website before they start.

All of those are excuses for getting out there and getting the momentum going. Get your site up and start working on it. Add some content. Once you get some feedback (notice that little comment tab on this site) you’ll know what to change to better target your market.

Instead of spending a fortune on design on day one, test the market and make sure they’re actually interested in what you’re offering. Then use the profits to pay the designer.

Instead of wanting to be the “overnight social media sensation,” just get involved. Setup your Twitter account. Subscribe to some great people like that wonderful @TerryDean or perhaps a little @BenSettle with a side of @healymonster.

When you start publishing to your email list, you have to start with one subscribe…YOU. Maybe your mom if you can convince her.

Everything starts slow and you have to use daily momentum to get it moving. And while there are products that help you succeed faster, there’s no shortcut to the daily action. In fact, putting yourself in daily action is one of the most important elements of your success which everything else takes a backseat to.

Make a committment right now to set a time where you will write for your business, market your business, or do some other vital business building activity every day at the same time.

Here’s a quick video showing the basics of using Socialmarker.com to bookmark your site on the DO-FOLLOW bookmarking sites.

Once you go through the setup process for each site, you’re able to bookmark for all these links in just a few minutes.

What’s a beginner to do?

I was thinking about this today. When I started I learned everything by trial and error. There was almost no one online proclaiming they had the “secret to online riches.”

Today we’re surrounded by the message. Everyone tells you they have the missing secret. For just $1 (and a million payments of $99 per month) you’ll have the answer to your dreams…and money will come flowing in like a flood.

When I came online, since no one was proclaiming they had the “answer,” I KNEW I would have to work my butt off to figure it out. What would have happened if I came into this mess of confusion we have online today? I don’t know.

But what I do know is that many people flounder around for years – trying all these different messages before they come to the correct realization.

There isn’t one secret that will transform your life.

It is a progression. It is a process of learning. And yes, quality information products can shortcut some of the learning process. But they will never eliminate the work factor.

It’s all about momentum.

Think about this. It takes a lot of power to get a train moving. Once it’s moving, it then becomes difficult to stop it.

When does the space shuttle expend the most energy? It’s during liftoff. It has two separate boosters and an external fuel tank JUST for the liftoff process.

Getting started is HARD. But once you’ve got the momentum, you simply need to keep doing and expanding on what’s working (sometimes that can be a challenge in itself).

And it’s only made harder by the fact there’s hundreds of “foolproof systems” promising to make it so much easier.

Put a hundred gurus in a room…is it a mastermind or a fight?

It all depends on which clique those gurus come from. Almost reminds me of high school all over again (oh the horror)!

We’re got the internet marketing joint venture list crowd. They’ve got a new $2,000 product launch for you every week. Something else down the pike is the secret of life and happiness you’ve been waiting for. Note here it isn’t the price I’m complaining about but the overhyped pitches of how it’s the greatest solution on the planet (at least till next week’s launch).

What could you learn from them? You can learn the main key, which is that the big money really comes from a list – and from doing joint ventures with others who have your target audience. No matter what “instant traffic” solution they promote – notice how their entire business is based on their list and their joint ventures/affiliates.

We’ve got the social media crowd who have 45,000 Twitter followers, but have trouble selling anything except a course on how to get 45,000 followers on Twitter. They say it is ALL About being social – and spending day and night building friends on these sites. Often they’re also big time bloggers and write half a dozen posts before lunch (like I really want to see a photo of the ham and cheese sandwich they had for lunch).

What could you learn from them? You can see that they do KNOW how to build their social media lists and how to tap into these lists. They’re building audiences, just often they have trouble converting them into profits. Now they simply need to learn the key is to get people OFF of these sites and onto their own list in addition to using social media as a way to contact joint venture partners (see above for what we learned from the internet marketers).

We’ve got the direct hitting seo crowd who constantly complains about the social media people. They know the conversion numbers from social media are pitiful…enough to make anyone who gets a lot of seo or joint venture traffic to want to tear their eyes out for looking at the hideous conversion numbers.

They teach us how to target the BUYING phrases people are already looking for (all keyword phrases are NOT created equal). They also share how important it is to get those incoming links with the right anchor text to rank well on the search engines…targeting those who are looking for information or products on the subject RIGHT NOW.

But too often they don’t want to be associated with “evil” internet marketers with lists, so rely on Adsense ads or some other limited method of profits instead of maximizing their profits with smart marketing.

I could continue with the groups as there are more. Put them together and they hate the others. They’ll often even refer to the stupidity of each other.

Is anyone else getting recollections of high school like me now?

What’s a beginner to do? Each group (and as mentioned the groups break down much deeper than this) is demanding your attention, saying their way is the right way, and promising you the BIG SECRET.

I’ll let you in on the big secret for free here.

The BIG SECRET is focus and hard work.

I originally wrote the above sentence backwards. I put the hard work first and focus second. That’s wrong. It’s focus first…then the hard work (working hard on all the wrong things will not produce what focused work does).

Choose something you’re passionate about where people are spending money. Build your site (I recommend using Wordpress to manage your site and content). Produce content focused on your audience AND the search engines (since that is what your audience is searching). Build links from social media and other sources. Concentrate on your list. Make the sale.

This flows back to a statement I keep saying now:
“Internet marketing is simple, but it’s not always easy.”

When you’re starting out, it’s not easy. It is simple though. We simply overcomplicate and make the process difficult. Find an audience. Tap into a source of buying traffic. Make the sale.

Which high school group should you follow: the preppies, the jocks, the cool kids, etc.?

The true answer is they ALL have some value – if you don’t get blinded by all the extra baggage that comes with them.

Which training course is the best?

Mine of course! I had to say that…because this is my website. And if I DIDN’T feel that way, I wouldn’t be selling them. I’d sell someone elses.

A more complete answer is you’ll likely buy multiple courses in the future. I don’t know a single person who reads one golf book and never buys another. That person who cares about their game is constantly looking for ways to improve.

The same truth applies to every subject you can learn. Colleges don’t have ONE CLASS…and then you graduate. You learn multiple subjects about your chosen profession. Expand your knowledge and keep growing.

And here’s something a lot of people forget to do. Go back and RESTUDY some of the same courses you’re purchased as your knowledge grows. Recently a client mentioned to me how he went through one of my courses a 2nd time and was shocked of everything in the material…much of which he missed on his first run through.

If you want to keep expanding and growing your knowledge each month as you build your business, I highly recommend you check out the Monthly Mentor Club. In addition to a load of bonuses, it starts you off the very first month with a lesson on choosing the right market at the intersection of passion and profits.

Click here now to find out more…

It used to be difficult and time consuming to get videos up and running online, but now we have low cost tools that make it very simple.

For $80 or less, you can pick up a HD webcam. There are free screen recording tools such as Jing. And it costs under $200 to get a pocket HD camcorder.

Watch this quick video using the Logitech Webcam Pro 9000 that costs right around $80 from Amazon. I’m using the built-in webcam mic for this shot instead of my separate lapel mic. Not great, but not too bad.

If you’re curious about the video intro, it was done by Killer Sales Videos. Besides this intro, I’ve also purchased 4 template videos for several different projects which you’ll see up and active in the next few weeks. Please note this is an affiliate link…

When you’re just starting out, it’s tough to BELIEVE you’ll see the results. You might work on your business, and not see any results from it for weeks or months. You ‘re going through the foundation building process.

Successful entrepreneurs face a similar issue. One you get to certain levels in business, it’s easy to get satisfied. You’re happy with where you’re at. It becomes difficult at times to keep things moving and advancing. And yes, I know this because I deal with it at times. I’m quite happy where I’m at in business, so it’s tough at times to find the motivation to push forward, learn more, and advance.

When you deal with internet business, you’re ALWAYS learning more.

How do the masters of motivation do it?

I’m not just talking about the big self-help speakers and business leaders, although they’re obviously masters of motivation to do what they do.

What about other industries? Video game companies for example are absolute masters of motivation.

I like to play games at times (I own an Xbox 360, PS3, and have a separate game computer).

The entire industry is based off of getting you to spend more time playing their games. They have to “motivate” you to keep playing so you’ll keep buying.

Their industry makes ours look like child’s play.

For example, you here a lot of people excited about big million dollar product launches. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 sold 4.7 million copies in 24 hours (that’s $310 million in sales). That’s a nice product launch.

What about continuity income? Well, World of Warcraft boasts of 11.5 million subscribers paying in the neighborhood of $15 a month each (they have several subscription plans). That’s serious business.

How do they keep their customers paying them month after month?

Do searches online and you’ll find there are a dozen plus sites targeted to helping people with “World of Warcraft addiction.” They’ve built a game that people play so much that it’s called an addiction (whether or not that is true is not the point of this article).

What have they done in their game that makes people so motivated to play it and ignore the rest of their lives (which of course is obviously bad)?

It’s all about the carrot on the stick.

Players keep playing day-after-day and month after month to get to that next level for their character to get another piece of armor for their character. They’re receiving constant little rewards. They get more rewards the more time they spend playing.

That’s how they keep their members for months and years. What about a one time purchase game like the Call of Duty? They’re considered a big game for playing online against other players (and co-op playing together). As someone plays online, they earn experience for their accomplishments and unlocks additional options such as weapons, character upgrades, etc.

So they’re applying the same type of reward system. You’ll find this common through the majority of popular games today.

How can you apply a little of this concept to your online business?

When talking to Glenn Livingston one day, he gave me an idea that helped working with Adwords. He said to think of Adwords as a video game. You’re trying to improve your score in all the major areas (better conversions, CTR, quality score, etc.) Each day when you’re playing the game, you’re keeping track of these scores.

Not only that, but you’re playing pvp (player-versus-player) on Adwords because you have all these other companies in your industry trying to beat you at the game.

If we added the carrot on a stick idea to this video game idea, that would mean we’d also add little rewards for reaching specific “levels.”

How do you reward yourself for the accomplishments in your business? Instead of just listing some ideas here, I want to hear from you. Have you built any rewards into your business? What are they?

If you want to get motivated, check out this video over at Meet the Giants. It removes ALL excuses and rights to complain about your situation (plus you can sign up to get a load of additional motivational tips while you’re there).

Note: The above is an affiliate link.

It’s an important question. People buy from those they know, like, and trust? Are you hiding behind a website or are sharing a little bit of who you are with your audience?

For example, does your audience know if you have children or pets? Do they know what you like to do? Do they know anything about you other than you teach ______ and sell _____ online? I’ve had several discussions with my clients about how important this is long-term to your business. Here’s a short video on the subject:

Here are a few ideas to share a little of yourself with your audience:

1. Write a post or an email about something that makes you angry.
2. Tell a story that involves your spouse, child, or pet.
3. Toss in a little story or even a mention about how where you live relates to your business.
4. Mention a movie reference that illustrates a point you want to make.
5. Shoot a video or even a photo of you, your family, or you doing a hobby (even if it’s unrelated to your main subject).

In most cases, they were well deserved.

Of course some people will be hit unfairly. It always happens when there is any type of crackdown. Some innocent people get categorized with those doing business dishonestly. For anyone who loses their merchant account, and didn’t participate in the junk, it is truly sad.

The reason I say it was well deserved is from all indications (both from public discussion and what I know privately), they were specifically targeting people with high chargeback ratios who ran continuity programs which weren’t well enough disclosed. In addition, they’re targeting those using multiple merchant accounts in the same upsell process (you buy product A and they charge in one merchant account 1, during the upsell you buy product B and it is charged to another merchant account in an effort to hide the overall transaction from the merchant accounts).

The continuity may not have been totally hidden, but it wasn’t obvious.

And of course, along with the cancellations, a few merchant account providers (who found themselves as targets because of number of companies they associated with like this), are really tightening the screws on all their merchants. They need to keep themselves out of trouble.

You can see the first post on this subject by Ryan Lee here: “Forced Continuity and Free Trials Are Almost Over! READ THIS NOW!”

He is simply reporting the news of the letter and his discussions with the merchant account providers that the free offers with forced continuity aren’t going to be allowed.

Don’t take the news the wrong way though. NOTHING is wrong with continuity itself. The problem is how some people are selling it. Those free CD and free DVD offers where you pay shipping and you’re automatically signed up in continuity are the ones who are having issues. If you sell a straight membership site where they pay to join and it’s obvious there is a monthly continuity, you should be safe (notice I said “should” because again things go overboard).

Basically people simply need to clean up their act.

Check out Ryan Healy’s “Internet Marketing on Life Support.”

Let’s see. It currently shows 174 comments (and 374 comment/tweets if I’m reading it right). Sounds like Ryan really hit the controversial nerve here by actually naming a few names.

If you’re ever wondered why I avoid giving names, it’s because often the worst offenders aren’t obvious from the outside. You don’t found out about some of the real junk that goes on inside the business unless you end up in a few private conversations (which you can reveal).

In addition, I find that naming specific names makes the overall tone turn very negative. Clients and friends have asked me before about writing posts that name out specific people, and I’ve always told them to be very careful here to deliver all the facts (not the emotions) of the situation. In addition, they need to make sure to switch the negative into a positive note by the end.

We don’t want to dwell on the negative. We don’t want to dwell on those doing business dishonestly, because it gives the wrong impressions to people.

In news, they say, “If it bleeds, it leads.” The negative side will always bring more attention, but it rarely helps us accomplish our goals.

I think Ryan’s post above is an excellent one where he did his research, but take notice how the comments take an negative turn…including several attacks on people (where the whole story may not be known).

I agree with what Michel Fortin says here, “On Not Playing the Blame Game.”

His wife, Slyvie Fortin, put out her Internet Marketing Sins report a few years ago. She did not name any names, but talked about the sins. Their reasoning is they want to be advocates for the marketplace, not judges.

I agree completely.

Over at his blog, Greg Nemer asked, “Am I a Pansy?”

Nope. You’re not Greg. You said, “One of the policies that I’ve made for this blog is to never use it for negative purposes. I won’t even do it in the comment section.”

That’s a good attitude. Even when it’s a negative subject, you’re better off turning it into a positive. It’s what’s best for us and our readers.

And unless anyone thinks that this is something unique to “internet marketing trainers,” It’s most definitely not. I often read a few of the news headlines every morning. Visit those top news sites and you’ll find tons of very scummy offers. In fact, you’d be hard pressed to visit a news site (major ones like Fox News, Wall Street Journal, etc.) where there isn’t still an ad for a “flog” (fake blog).

The free offers and hidden continuity featured on these sites are outrageous. Including such statements as this in the small print at the bottom, “Please recognize the story and comments depicted on this site and the person depicted in the story are not real.”

The entire story of the incredible results this Gainesville mom (it shows Gainesville for me since that’s the closest large city to me) are a lie. They’re fake. Yet the entire sales piece relies on that fake story which isn’t revealed as a “story” anywhere except in the small print at the bottom.

You see that kind of garbage for all types of promotions (health products, whiter teeth, work at home, etc.).

Basically as consumers, we all have to be careful in our online dealings.

There are many companies that are all about making that one time initial sale (and then charging you forever for it if they can get it), and aren’t really about delivering the best experience to their customers.

The good news is that things are changing. The FTC and VISA/Mastercard are doing what they can, BUT they will never accomplish the greatest changes in the marketplace.

Social media, your ability to contact others and correspond with others online, is going to be what transforms the industry as a whole over time.

And I’m glad of it.

Go back twenty years. There wasn’t anyway to to easily contact others about their experiences with a company. Today you can find out the opinions of others quickly. Sure, there are growing pains. People are abusing the system, but eventually the power of the free marketplace will win. For examples of abuse, it’s often easy to see them on sites such as Amazon. If a book has almost all 5 star reviews, but the reviews are very similar and promotional in nature, you know the publisher is influencing them by having them written.

When you look for it, the abuse does stand out. So we all need to be thankful that we’re in this day and age.

There have always been scammers out there. I remember my mom telling me as a child, if something sounds too good to be true, it probably is. I think all moms say that.

We live in the day of the power of the consumer though. Look at the 3 Marketing Lessons From Building a Pool. I did my homework first, because that information is available to us now.

There are growing pains with the Internet, but we can see the brighter day.

A few days ago I told you how “different” the recent Mark Hendricks conference was from the majority of other Internet marketing events.

Normally you get one sales pitch after another…with only a small amount of content you can really take home and use. This workshop format turned it on its head, and attendees were able to go home not only knowing what to do, but having practiced on a lesson after every single speaker.

That’s the key…they got to take action AT THE EVENT…no waiting till they got home.

Mark Hendricks has now released the workshop manual and the recordings of the event, and I’m authorized to resell them to you.

I’m not going to do a long sales pitch here. You can see the sales copy he put together at this link. You can see some of the testimonials of the attendees below to see what they say.

The one statement I want to make is that if you pick this up, MAKE SURE to do the assignments. You’re missing out on a majority of the value if you just listen and don’t do the workshop projects just like the attendees did. Don’t just let it go in one ear and out the other. Put it into practice to see the results in your business.

Click here now…

“It is refreshing to attend a conference where I actually learn strategies and techniques that I can put into action right away…

Mark,

I want to thank you for putting on another awesome Internet Superstars Conference. It is refreshing to attend a conference where I actually learn strategies and techniques that I can put into action right away. The speakers, the workshops and even the other attendees provided the information I needed to take my business to the next level.

Also, I really appreciate all the conferences you sponsor because I feel welcome and not intimidated by marketers that are further along than I am. That environment is the direct result of your leadership.

Thanks again and you will see me at your next conference. I wouldn’t miss it!”
Chris Cobb – MyBonusBlog.com

Click here now…

“I was so overwhelmed at the amount of genuine kick butt information and workshops where we applied our new found knowledge…

First I would like to say that Mark Hendricks “Rocks”. This is the first Conference on Internet Marketing that I have attended and lucked out, after learning of other conferences, not saying all of the others are just sales pitches mind you.

Personally I have seven digital products that I have produced, affiliate hub, personal blog and driving traffic to them. Even though I feel comfortable as an online marketer, I was so overwhelmed at the amount of genuine kick butt information and workshops where we applied our new found knowledge to prove to ourselves that it works, it blew my mind!

It is my second day back home and I am already putting it to work on a new blog with affiliate products, automated newsletter with affiliate links, social bookmarking, 15 minute Press Releases and becoming a Jedi Knight with regards to twitter.

Now after saying all of this, not to discount the powerful speakers that spoke, it was Mark Hendricks life lessons that brought my main priority back to the path of life, respecting the creator and myself. I also look forward to supporting Joe Marsh from your group, with holding meetings here in Florida monthly.”
Robert Ratcliff – BobRatcliff.com

Click here now…

“I was amazed and delighted to see that there truly was no hype or hard sales pitches of any kind…

The Internet Super Stars Conference was just what I needed to jumpstart my business. As a new internet entrepreneur, I often work in isolation. The Internet Super Stars Conference gave me the opportunity to connect with others who have proven that success is a very real possibility if I stay focused on what matters.

The information provided by the speakers was chock full of valuable tips. They gave step by step ideas that I can immediately implement. I was amazed and delighted to see that there truly was no hype or hard sales pitches of any kind. Instead there was an abundance of pure information and strategies that I can use right away.

Absolutely, without a doubt, the very best part of the Internet Super Stars Conference was the networking. It gave me the chance to rub shoulders and exchange ideas with successful internet marketers. The speakers were there at lunch and during breaks to answer any questions and to give me feedback specific to my business.

I highly recommend that anyone interested in making money online get out of their office and head straight to the next Internet Super Stars Conference.”
Sherri Frost – Hypnosis-Self-Help.com

Click here now…

“The conference information was solid, realistic, and doable…

As a business owner for 38 years, I have looked several years for legitimate training in the internet marketing industry. Too many times I found the ‘get rich quick’ schemes and ‘$4000 experts.’ How refreshing to call with a question before the conference and have Mark Hendricks answer his own phone.

The conference information was solid, realistic, and doable by a novice. Now I can roll up my sleeves and work a definite plan. Thanks, Mark, for a solid training with people of high integrity!”
Pam Salem – BoomerBizNetwork.com

Click here now…

“And the bonus was how welcomed we all felt…

I feel like a really lucked out.

The Internet Super Stars Conference was my very first internet marketing conference and it was no “pitchfest”…it was all content, only a mention or two about each speakers’ product at the very end of their talk. And I know from others attending that the total focus on educating us versus promoting your own product was quite rare.

Not only did we get the chance to try out the ideas and teachings in short workshops at the end of each talk, but I came home with enough new information to last me a year. And the bonus was how welcomed we all felt, how willing each teacher was to answer our individual questions no matter our level of expertise and no matter when…it could have been dinner, breaks, it was just continuous new information.

And most importantly, I would do it again in a heartbeat.

Thanks Mark.”
Gloria Waite- JustAskGloria.com

Click here now…

Disclosure: The people who provide testimonials for this website are not paid for their comments. These comments are from their personal experience and not to be taken as what you will experience. Only you will be responsible for your results.

I remember a couple where the majority of presentations were simply sales pitches for products without delivering any content (even though it was constantly mentioned how great the content was).

In addition there are a couple of popular speaking courses that teach you step-by-step how to build an hour (or longer) “training session” with no more than a couple of minutes of real content. The rest being a covert sales pitch. How do I know that’s what they teach? I bartered for one and bought another when wanting to improve my speaking ability – only to find out I couldn’t use what they taught.

This weekend was different.

Mark Hendricks put on an excellent event which I spoke at yesterday in Orlando. There was a good group of speakers including experts like Willie Crawford, Doug Champigny, Elsom Elridge, Jr., Joey Smith, and others (please don’t anyone be offended for me not publishing a full list – everyone did a great job).

But Mark didn’t something a little different that helped create the tone of the event. He had each speaker do their presentation and then do a 20 minute workshop on a subject they discussed. During the conference, attendees wrote a press release, wrote a post for their blog, prepared goals in multiple areas of their life, scheduled their weekly plans, looked for potential JV partners, choose projects to outsource, and more.

They didn’t just sit and listen. They put what they learned into practice.

I’ve been at a few other workshops like this in the past (I remember speaking at 2 Joel Christopher did like this). Without fail, including this workshop element increases the value for everyone involved. It’s been true every time I’ve seen it used.

The workshop element with every presentation not only forces the audience to take action (and to see just how easy the actions really are), but it also forces the speakers to think in terms of providing a step-by-step system the attendees can follow.

I recommend attending workshops like this instead of just “seminars” because there is so much more value in this type of setup.

Another element I noticed is how the message stayed pretty consistent throughout the weekend.

Many of the speakers for example talked about how a Wordpress blog (like this one) is the “center” of their business. Content is provided here. Products are sold out of the blog. Participation in social media is directed back to the blog. It’s your center of authority in your business.

Instead of promoting a dozen different sites (products and services you may offer), you focus on pulling people back to your blog site and getting them on your list. Then everything else flows out of here.

The other major core emphasis I could see was on quick and easy product development. Instead of struggling for months on products (like many people do in the beginning), get started quickly and test the market with quicker, easier products such as an interview with an expert. IF that first product sells well, then expand out to larger kits and more complete elements.

By the way, here’s a quick statement Elsom Elridge Jr., author of The Obvious Expert, and Linda Elridge said about me. I have a ton of respect for them and HIGHLY recommend The Obvious Expert as a great book to pick up if you want to be seen as the obvious expert in your market.

Whenever I make any big purchase I always think back over the buying process – and what felt right or wrong about everything.

It’s good practice because all of us like to think we’re such “logical” buyers, but we rarely are. We’re emotional…and emotions influence every buying decision, large or small. I suggest you do the same. Examine during and after buying how you felt each step in the process.

Lesson #1: Trust and Credibility is Key

We were new to the area when buying our pool and no one we knew had a pool built recently. So direct referrals weren’t possible. How did we choose a pool company?

We collected all the possible companies in the area. Step one was to do my online research looking for complaints. It’s surprising just how many there were against some companies. Very quick way to eliminate the majority of possibilities.

Next step – I eliminated every single company that “hid” their prices. My feeling was anyone who would be price competitive at all would have at least a basic price list to start from. Without fail in my past experience, contractors who said they only did “custom work” with no starting points were overpriced.

At this point there were only a couple left to choose from. They each came out, gave quotes, and we choose one. At this point it was almost all based on the emotions of knowing, liking, and trusting them. Of course we looked at the other work they had done, but as much people don’t want to admit it, it was about who “seemed like they would do the best job.”

The question for us is how well are we managing our online credibility. Before someone buys from you, it’s likely they’re searching your name and company name. What are they finding out? Is it good? And then do you also make it easy to buy from you or is a complicated process?

Lesson #2: Every Customer Contact is Important.

It’s interesting, but I’ve noticed in comments my wife and I have made to others about the builders that the comment we most often make is about the workers. All the workers have been polite in every contact. Any of them has been willing to answer questions…not just the ones in charge. And I imagine I’m a little of a pest because I’m almost always here when they’re working so I do “bug” them at times.

My one complaint about them is they’ve been a little slow at times (they’re working on a lot of jobs at once). But they’ve always communicated well so it is the customer contact that is going to cause me to recommend them to others. Look at how I wrote that “complaint” sentence. I immediately gave them an excuse and reason why they were slow, because I was happy with them personally.

How can you apply the personal touch in your business? And how can you make that memorable even if there are problems somewhere (and there will be problems at times in your business – nothing is perfect)? Personally I can’t think of any company I have an attitude against who didn’t show a customer service problem. Other problems are resolved, but bad contact with the company is remembered.

Lesson #3: Figure out what else your customers want to buy.

The pool builders don’t do solar, but I want solar heat. They should have had a company ready to go that they get a commission or perhaps just cross referrals on. Since they didn’t, I found my own.

It’s the same with the landscaping. The grass needs to be sod and the sprinklers need to be fixed. They suggested a sprinkler company, but that company doesn’t do the rest (sprinklers, sod, landscaping around the pool). So they will lose out here also.

The lesson for us is to make a list of EVERYTHING your customer may buy right before and right after the purchase with you. If you can’t service those needs, then JV with other companies who can. Whether it’s a referral fee or trading referrals, this is a way to expand on your business.

For example, let’s say you do dog training in your local area, you should hook up with pet food companies, pet supplies, vets, dog sitters, and maybe even pooper scooper companies. For your blog, what all are your customers’ buying, and how can you make that buying experience easier and safer for them by helping them select the right choices?

By the way, here’s a quick video of the pool (look at that dirt the line spit out when it started up).

I have. And not just once, but several times. I remember for example the $100,000 I lost on a real estate deal, but that’s another subject entirely.

In internet marketing I’ve been careful. I learned in the beginning to do small tests so my financial risk on any of my ads were low UNTIL I knew something was working or not. Try 3 ads…lose a couple of hundred dollars on two of them, but one works. The winner quickly earns more than the losers in the tests.

But most clients I work with have figured that out. You keep your investments and risks low until something proves it will pay off.

Simple to understand. So let’s talk another issue…that of opportunity cost and conversion.

The #1 issue that still shocks me when I run into it for an experienced online marketer is when they’re not tracking anything.

Yes, that’s right…I said an EXPERIENCED marketer.

When I coach a beginner, that’s understandable. They’re a beginner so you expect them to make some mistakes such as not tracking. But experienced marketers earning a full-time living online still make this mistake all the time.

It’s easy to keep creating new products and finding ways to generate more traffic. That’s why you see me talking so much about the importance of FOCUS and how running multiple frontend items splits your focus.

The most profitable clients I have focus heavily on one primary frontend product – and a strong funnel system to move their visitors and prospects through that funnel. Get the visitor on the list. MAKE THE FIRST SALE of this product. Follow-up with upsells and additional backend sales.

Work on conversion all the way through this process (higher subscriber numbers, more frontend sales, and so on). Make that frontend offer the best deal possible to give your customers the results they’re looking for quickly.

Then pump the traffic through…with PPC, affiliates, and other forms of advertising.

I’ve made the mistake of not having this focus personally many times in my own businesses. This isn’t a lecture for anyone else as much as it is for myself. I get bored too easily with my own projects and continually want to create new ones. That’s my issue and problem, but it’s common for others I work with as well.

You will ALWAYS bore of your project much faster than the market does.

I remember the story of a company that was discussing a new series of ads. The ads made their rounds several times through the executives. They edited them. They added updates. They made changes. And they kept making their rounds.

Eventually one of the executives made a comment to another one that they needed new ads now instead of continually running these. That would be possible, except for the fact the ads never ran in public yet. He was tired of seeing the ads making their rounds inside the company before they were published.

I have that same issue. By the time I publish an ad I’ve often done so many revisions I’m tired of seeing it anymore. But once it’s published, that’s when you really have to pay attention because you need to track and test the results. You need to run split tests of different headlines, photos, and intros.

Only testing a live ad produces the best results possible.

This brings me to my $36,000 mistake. I ran an ad for over a year WITHOUT doing any testing on the sales copy. Just put up the sales copy and let it run. After a year, I had another copywriter (John Carlton), give me some suggestions for test headlines. One of his test headlines was only a MINOR change to the headline.

Yet this little changed boosted sales on that site by over $3,000 a month. One change in the headline meant that much more money every month. All I could think about at the time was how this ad had already been running for over a year, so I lost out on $36,000 in real sales I could have had. No additional traffic needed. Just $36,000 never to be seen again….a big mistake.

Why did I make this mistake?

I simply didn’t take the time to setup a few simple tests for the site. Every time I setup a site I think back to this experience. It keeps the importance of testing in my mind and convinces me to setup the tests needed.

I wonder how much you may be losing right now if you’re not testing.

Sometimes it those simple tests that boost your conversion enough to turn a losing ad into a winner. Or they improve your conversion to the point where it’s a worthwhile promotion for your affiliates. Or they enable you to expand your advertising into directions which weren’t affordable before.

In other words, the REAL KEY to traffic is getting your conversion up to the point where generating traffic simply becomes an investment in the growth of your business. You can afford to buy traffic by the profits you make from your sales.

All traffic has a cost associated to it in either time or money. Your income from the traffic needs to make whatever you’re investing worthwhile to continue the traffic flow.

If you’d like to learn more about developing a real, sustainable online business using step-by-step principles, check out the complete blueprints available here…

In 10 modules, my friends and I cover each aspect you need to start your own profitable information empire online. In addition to each module, you’ll receive a checklist that corresponds with everything you learned – which you can print out and keep as a reference on your desk as you follow along with us.

Find out more here…

We were assigned and area and had to canvas the area contacting all the home owners about buying a TV sattelitte dish.

My area was a little north of Hagerstown, Indiana.

On my first day in this territory, I did what the average beginner would do…I focused on the nicest looking farms in the area (it was a rural community).

Obviously…the people who had the nicest farms would have the most money and would be more open to buying these large satellite dishes which ran in the several thousand dollar range.

Each time I knocked on a door though, it was an Amish person.

My great hopes for a sale dashed against the rocks.

If you’re from the Midwest, you likely know who the Amish are. They’re a community who believe in simple living, plain clothing, and ignoring most of modern conveniences such as electricity, telephones, and cars. You’ll see them driving around the area in their horse drawn carriages.

My chance of a sale was zero to none. So I’d thank them for their time and go on to the next house.

By experience and talking with other sales people I learned the real best chance of a sale was to a mobile home owner who didn’t have a visible satellite dish. And I wasn’t supposed to judge the home or yard. Some of the biggest purchases were from very dumpy yards (cars up on blocks, overgrown grass everywhere, etc.).

Jeff Foxworthy would be proud.

Too bad I wasn’t a very good sales person…and didn’t last long enough at the job to find out. Never made a single sale personally. Another proof that if I can do an online business, anyone can.

But I did carry that lesson on to the Internet.

The DESIRES of your target market are more important than anything else.

Copywriters will brag about how incredible their conversion numbers are, but some conveniently leave out this important truth. Audience is MUCH MORE important than copy.

Let’s say I was a super-salesman, the kind they say could sell ice to the eskimos. Would I have a shot at selling the Amish who didn’t use electricty a satellite dish? Nope. Wouldn’t happen.

So rule #1 of effective online marketing is to find an audience who WANTS what you sell.

Notice I said WANTS, not needs. My own mind told me at the time that the people with the “poor looking” yards didn’t need a satellite dish. They needed a lawn mower! But the successful sales people shared with me that a satellite dish is exactly what this audience wanted.

So rule #2 is it’s NOT your job to decide what the audience wants to buy. You’re not in charge of their lives. You’re NOT their judge. Who knows what situation their lives were in or why their yard looked like that (maybe they were disabled or a thousand other possibilities). Don’t judge your customers. Simply find out what they WANT (proven by what they’re already buying).

Remember those two rules to save yourself a lot of pain and heartache online.

The very first monthly module (of twelve full training modules) in the Monthly Mentor Club is all about choosing a profitable market.

http://www.MonthlyMentorClub.com

In addition to giving you my detailed step-by-step plan of how to choose profitable markets (discovered over 14 years of online business and coaching), I also recruited Glenn Livingston who has successfully entered 17 radically different markets. He shares with you his proven mathematical formula for comparing the money available in multiple markets.

It’s easy to make money when you nail this point. Find the right audience. Find out what they’re buying. Make them a better offer. Do this right, and you don’t have to be a worldclass copywriter. You just need to get your offer in front of the right audience.

So he decided to teach him something basic – like how to meow.

The cat pulled Rover aside and said, “All you have to do is open your mouth…and MEOW comes out. Ok…now you try.”

The dog sits there…eventually whining.

So the cat tries again, “No, it sounds like this, MEOW.”

The dog sites there…and barks.

Now the cat is frustrated. So he tries one more time, “It’s like this, MEOW.”

The dog sites there…sees his own tail wiggling…grabs it falling over in a pile.

The cat walks off in frustration saying, “I TOLD you dogs were dumb.”

Why this stupid little story about the cat and the dog? I don’t know about you, but I’m totally annoyed at all these internet gurus who sell coaching programs, but it’s NOT the expert doing the coaching. It’s a $10 an hour employee they’ve handed a little manual to with instructions to teach an entrepreneur how to succeed online.

The cat has a better chance of teaching the dog to say meow.

Employees and entrepreneurs think differently. In fact, part of the challenge when coaching someone who is just starting out in business is helping them get over the employee mentality.

Entrepreneurs aren’t paid for the hours they work for example. They’re paid for the value they create. As they leverage their efforts, both the risks and the rewards grow.

I’ve had several companies contact me recently with the offer to run “coaching services” for my customers. They did all the normal name dropping of everyone they worked for and how good they were at closing people into high dollar coaching programs.

Yet when I did my research on these people’s coaching programs (the people they said they worked with) the majority of what I found were complaints about high pressure sales tactics and unhappy clients.

In my opinion…it’s because cats can’t teach dogs to meow.

Can coaching entrepreneurs be leveraged? Of course it can, but it is NOT through employees. You can do group coaching programs. You can use the same coaching strategies in a product (in the Monthly Mentor Club I’m teaching you DIRECTLY from questions and strategies my one-on-one coaching clients needed).

And you can rest assured…I do all the writing personally for the club.

And you’ll find several organizations who taught their coaching strategies to other entrepreneurs interested in running their own coaching businesses. They just don’t have employees doing the coaching.

Below is a quick video of me meowing at my german shepherd Champ. I wanted him to give me the head tilt (he has tilted his head so far at times it goes completely sideways), but instead he just complained about it. Or maybe he was trying to Meow at the end.

Rest assured. No dogs were harmed in the making of this video…although Champ was quite annoyed.

I am. I’m always excited to see what’s going to happen during the next year.

I’ve made my predictions and talked about what to focus on for next year (based on what I see working best in client businesses). Today I simply want to talk about a few characteristics I find in those who are most successful in business compared to those who flounder around.

If these traits don’t describe you, work on them. Cultivate them till they’re a part of your life.

Trait #1: Confidence

This one is actually hard for me to describe, but those who become successful often exhibit a confidence even from the beginning. They KNOW they can do this.

In my own life this was true. Even with all the failures I had before I came online, I still somehow “knew” I could do this. Having a wife that kept encouraging me, telling me I could do this, definitely helped.

I also see this trait in some of the questions my clients ask. I’ve never kept any clients from asking the questions they want or need. Remember the old saying, there aren’t any stupid questions.

But I do notice after a while the kinds of questions they ask the most. The clients who are struggling to get confidence are the ones usually asking things like how quickly can I make money…or wanting to confirm every little element of their plan before taking a single action. Since I don’t answer questions on weekends, they may sit around all weekend waiting for Monday so they can ask me whether they should spend two hours trying to write their first article.

The most successful ones will often be running minor tests which I don’t hear about UNTIL after they have a question about the results. They do it. Then they ask what I think of the numbers that came back.

I’m not sure if I’m getting this across correctly here, because it’s not simply that they’re asking basic questions. All beginners ask basic questions. The difference I’m talking about is that willingness to take a few risks…and not have everything laid out perfectly for them (which is impossible no matter how much experience you have because there are some differences in every market).

Business has risks. There is no foolproof plan. I used to write in sales copy that something was foolproof, but I’ve learned better. Anything you say is foolproof hasn’t been tested by enough people yet (no offense intended to anyone in that statement but its true).

There is a reason why many some frozen dinners give you the directions to “defrost first,” Nytol Sleep Aid says “may cause drowsiness,” and the manual that came with the dishwasher says not to allow children to play inside the dishwasher. The spray paint can says do not spray in face. And the drug says for oral use only.

I bet they’ve all learned from experience that someone has tried it.

If you want to KNOW you’ll earn $20 per hour for your work, it’s called a job. You will take risks in business…and you have to be willing to take those risks. The key is to take very small intelligent risks…that you can grow into successful businesses after testing.

Trait #2: Quick Action

This stands out very obviously to me when coaching. You discuss a new promotion with one of the successful clients, ask them when do you think you can have this sent out. Their answer, “Hmm….kind of busy today…I think we can have it sent in about 3 hours.”

The less successful person’s answer, “about a month.” When a month comes, they still didn’t do it because they bought so-and-so’s course and they talked about doing it this other way.

You have to go from idea to implementation QUICKLY. It’s a key factor in success.

Let’s say for example that you attend a conference. At the conference you hear a dozen things you feel will help your business. That’s OK, but more important are the 3 things you wrote down to finish BEFORE the week is over. Even better if you choose a partner at the event to call and make sure you did it.

We ALL have this issue at some point or another. I have this problem at times just like you do. You hear it…and think that’s a great idea. You’ll get to it eventually. Probably not. The best thing is to break it down or even a small aspect and put it in action immediately…meaning today.

While you’re reading this article, what is it you’ve been procrastinating about your business? Stop reading right here and go DO IT.

What are you still doing here? I told you to go do it. This article isn’t going anywhere. It will be here when you get back.

Trait #3: Willingness to Take the Right Advice

I say “right advice” because a lot of people are willing to give you the wrong advice. They’ve simply read what they’re referring to you somewhere or they’ve had their one shot success story to tell you about.

But I’m wary to say the common, “Only take advice from those who’ve done it.”

Why? Because I’ve experienced people who are able to give excellent advice very quickly. An example of this is when I’ve done website reviews at conferences. You have someone come up and show their website. Then you come up with suggestions to improve the site. After I’ve done a couple of these, the audience could do the rest without any other involvement.

They quickly know exactly what they’re looking for…and ALL of us have experience being a customer online. You’ve had times you were frustrated so you know what frustrates you. You’ve had purchases that you loved so much that you went back to buy more (why did that happen).

So almost everyone has at least some experience in the online world…at least from the buying side (think specifically about companies you KEEP buying from – not one time purchases).

And sometimes good advice is just using good common sense…instead of parroting what has been shouted from the rooftops by the gurus.

Here’s a measuring stick to help judge right advice. It should always involve small steps that can be easily tested. It should prove true in multiple different markets. And it should be fine with your conscience (if something doesn’t “feel right” then don’t do it).

How to Start 2010 Out Right

On January 15, 16, and 17, I’ll be speaking in Orlando along with Mark Hendricks and other experts. Our goal is to help you setup that successful internet business that provides the freedom you deserve.

But the best part isn’t just the information you receive. It’s the connections and networking that takes place all during the event. Be surrounded by people who are serious about creating a successful online business – and want to do it right.

And of course I like the fact it’s in Florida. In January. Can’t ask for better weather especially if you live up north (I’m glad to have left the snow behind). Sounds like a good time for a vacation.

Find out more here…

Make sure to use this coupon code: 100discount

It entitles you to $100 off the prices you see currently posted on the site. And hurry. The price goes up again in just a few days.

Find out more here…

I hope to see you there.

It’s EASY to be distracted. And it’s easy to concentrate on the minor issues instead of the ones really making the money in your online business.

In my last post on this subject, I looked back at what was working in 2009: Successful and Failed Experiments

Now it’s time to apply what has worked…and hasn’t worked to my plans for next year. I suggest you do the same. Go back over the entire past year and look for what is working best.

It’s surprising just how often the 80/20 rule comes into play. Twenty percent of your work produces eight percent of the results. Where’s your 20%? Where should you center your attention at next year?

When you do your own numbers, you may find some differences to what I’ve seen. That’s fine and normal. We likely work in different markets and you’ll see unique results for your market. The key is to focus on what’s working best and eliminate anything holding you back.

EVERYTHING you do has an opportunity cost attached. By focusing your attention here, you don’t have time to focus on another element. So even profitable elements of your business have to be slimmed back to make room for what produces the greatest results for you and your customers.

Don’t ignore the opportunity cost of anything you do. That’s a key element, because you’re always limited in attention and focus for your business. What is the best producer you can concentrate on?

Here are five of my suggestions based off the results I’ve seen in my own business and my clients.

1. Focus on joint ventures.

You could call this your affiliate program, but joint ventures go further than just your affiliate program. You can joint venture to create products, share free interviews, or drive traffic to your sites. You can even partner to build a business together (for example a content writer and a designer or copywriter working together).

The best source of traffic I’ve seen for making sales comes from other people’s promotions of my products. This means I need to concentrate more attention here…on partnerships and promotions (which can be difficult at times since I avoid the big product launches which I feel aren’t good for the “internet marketing” niche).

2. Focus on outsourcing routine activities.

Everyone is talking about outsourcing, but you’ll sometimes end up with MORE work if you’re not careful when you’re outsourcing. If you hire a low cost writer, and then you have to rewrite everything they produce, you end up with more work than when you started.

Also I’ve seen several business owners who you could rely on their product quality who have lost serious points with me over the past year. Why? Because their main products were obviously outsourced and lower quality than what they produced in the past. You definitely have to keep a close eye on your outsourcers if they’re producing paid materials for you.

Even with transcriptions I’ve had the experience of hiring a good quality transcriptionist versus a poor one. It’s so much more work when you get someone who does a poor job. It’s worth it to pay a little more for quality work. Think about that with any of your outsourcing.

It’s worth it to pay for quality work that saves you time and money in the long run.

3. Focus on a Continuity Program

Every client I have who is doing a good income (20k a month or more) has a continuity program that’s producing a good level of income for them. A couple of my clients have 2 or more continuity programs they’re relying on to bring in the income. Where’s yours?

I have noticed the past year that it’s a little tougher to convert people to a continuity program and people do cancel earlier UNLESS you’re giving them exactly what they want. This simply means you need to focus more on the value you’re providing in the membership, and if there is anyway you can add more community and value in the program.

On the conversion side, a lot of this has to do with trust. There have been so many ripoffs and people who make it impossible to cancel. In fact I had a client tell me he tried to cancel from one popular internet marketer’s continuity and still wasn’t canceled after he sent a registered letter! When people contact my support system to cancel, they seem surprised at times when we simply reply back they’ve been canceled and thank you for being a member (as long as they include their name and email so we know who they are they get canceled immediately).

This simply points back to building more credibility in your emails and in the professionalism of your sites (along with the reputation you develop).

4. Focus on a High Ticket Offer

For my own business, this means I will test running several group coaching programs over the next year (if they work the way I like I’ll expand on them). Anything that involves direct feedback from you on an individual or group level is a way to sell a higher ticket product that gives people what they want.

Even if you KNOW what you’re doing, you still like to have that feedback and support. Perhaps a little change in how you’re doing something produces a huge change in results (there is that 80/20 rule coming into play again). In your current business, how can you offer a product or a service that pushes up the value of the average sale. What is your customers really want?

Besides coaching, another high ticket element to include are tools. For example if you sell to a specific business industry, perhaps they want ads to run, websites designed for them, or even a complete turn-key email follow-up series they can simply add to their site. “Done for You” is a key element to higher ticket products. What can you provide for them that’s ready to simply install and go?

5. Focus on Your Autoresponder Series

The first 30 days someone is on your list is a defining time. Do you simply send content to build a relationship, are you an aggressive sales person they want to ignore, or do you have a balanced mix. My answer from many previous tests is to be balanced and similar to your long-term approach.

When I’ve consulted people who focused on simply giving a ton of value the first month without making sales, they had the lists which were the HARDEST to convert into sales long-term. They established a trend from day one that they simply gave great information away. When we tried to sell, the list got offended at us…and complained like crazy.

The other imbalance is to focus just on selling without any value. When you do this, you don’t go deep enough in developing the relationship…and you’re simply seen like a slimy salesperson. It’s a BALANCED approach from day one where you provide value that also converts people into the sale. You’re in a business and you don’t apologize for selling products. It’s the product sales that fund the emails you’re sending.

The first 30 days is a priority time for this. A majority of your initial sales will take place during this period. You’re also establishing that long-term relationship. Look back through emails you’ve sent to your list over the past year. Which ones had the best open rates and made the most sales? Will they fit in your initial autoresponder series? What about those with the most comments about how much they appreciated the email? Will those fit in the initial series?

Look at the emails which have already worked to add them in at the very beginning when someone subscribes. These become your initial autoresponder series.

This is such an important element, it’s what I’ll be covering in the Monthly Mentor Club in the upcoming January issue…how to produce a strong autoresponder series to make the sale. The right series can easily double or triple your conversion rates. In some markets, it’s the difference between a wildly profitable business and even staying in business.

Look for it coming soon in January…

It’s Christmas week and I’m using this time off to have fun with my family. I love taking a break during this season as a great opportunity to think about next year…and the plans coming up.

Today I simply want to feature a few great posts from other authors to help you earn more, work less, and enjoy life.

Tis the Season to Tell Lies by Ryan Healy

Ryan makes very good points about telling stories in advertising…and making sure they’re the truth. You see a lot of stories being told. Which ones are true? Which ones aren’t? Where should you draw the line?

Using the Search Query Report For CTR Boosting Ad Copy Ideas by Glenn Livingston

Glenn shows how you can look at the search query report in your Adwords account for ideas on new ads…ideas coming directly from your searchers. This is a very good way to come up with some additional ads to test using the mindset of your customers themselves.

My Experience With A Virtual Assistant by Zac Johnson

Good review of working with a virtual assistant. Notice how he gets good work back, but finds himself working MORE with his new assistant. This is actually a pretty common problem people have when they first start outsourcing (working more because they’re also handling additional work and training for their assistant).

Do Coupon Codes Increase Checkout Abandonment by Eric Graham

Good test results here. It appears has been testing those coupon code fields in most shopping carts and has found they cause additional shopping cart abandonment. How many orders are they costing you? Nice quick fix to most order systems here.

5 Ways to Make Next Year Your Best Yet by John Jantsch

Unique ideas on transforming your business next year. It’s great to see a post that doesn’t just give us the normal, set goals and plans for next year. His focus on an ideal customer is especially important because I’ve found this a great way to increase profits while having more fun in your business.

Or at least it seems like it when you get the right partner working with you.

What’s the fastest way to create a product?

Get a partner whose an expert on the topic. Make an outline. Do an interview. There you go…almost instant product. If you did a great job on the outline and you work well with your partner, you can even create an excellent product this way in less than one fourth the time it would take you to write an ebook about it yourself.

How about creating a quick sales piece?

Sure, I do some heavy research at times, but let’s say you need a quick shortcut to get a small product out fast. Get a good listener who knows how to ask the right questions on the phone with the product developer or a customer, and watch as indepth information about the real attention grabbing story comes out.

How about traffic for your new product and site?

There it goes again. Find a partner that already has the attention of your desired audience. Maybe they have a large email list or a popular blog. Get them registered as an affiliate and run a special deal to their audience. Your new partner just generated more sales with one email than you could all month experimenting with other traffic methods.

The Partnership Principle

A lot of people think it’s easier to go it alone. Then you don’t have to deal with disagreements or problems that come up (issues do come up at times). The only problem is that you’re only making life difficult for yourself. This isn’t math class. One plus one doesn’t equal two. There is a multiplying effect that comes into play.

Find people who have different skill sets than you. Perhaps you LOVE writing, but you hate doing the work it takes to get traffic to your site. Bring on a partner to work together. Maybe you want to grow your affiliate program, but don’t want to spend any attention there. Bring on an affiliate manager who you give 20% of all affiliate sales to. In other words pay them well if they’re worth it to you.

Here’s a secondary affect you often don’t think of. Having the partner also working on a project with you adds a measure of accountability. Now it’s not just YOU that’s being slowed down by your procrastination at getting the project done. You’re also hurting the person working with you. You have to get it done because so-and-so is relying on you.

I don’t care how dedicated you are, sometimes it’s easy to let your own projects slide. It’s not so easy once someone is working alongside you.

Partners also allow you to make up for your weaknesses. If you’re a great writer, the best way to make money is to keep you writing as much as possible. Let someone else handle the other stuff that gets in the way. Perhaps you’re an incredible speaker, but generating traffic to your site is a pain in the butt. Bring a partner in to schedule you a whole collection of joint venture partners to hold teleconferences for you.

Here’s where to start. Look at anything in your business you’ve been putting off…or you simply can’t find the time to get to. It’s rarely because you “don’t have the time.” It’s more often that you’re putting it off because it’s not something you enjoy doing. Then think about whether you have anyone in your life or in your circle of influence who can do this much better than you. Contact them and see what it is going to take to get it done right.

One of the simple ways to begin working with partners is through creating an info product together. I’ve seen dozens of people drag their feet about this. But the moment they get a partner, they get it done quickly. Choose the interview model for this first product…and make a committment to get it done before the New Year.

If you need help with discovering how to create products using partners, check out the Ultimate Interviewing Pro product I did with Fred Gleeck. It covers step-by-step how to put together your own high profit projects quickly. Click here now…

If I asked you to raise your hand, everyone’s hand should be up.

One of the steps I take at the end of each year is look back over the past year for what worked and what hasn’t worked online.

I’ve made it a habit from the very beginning of my online business to look at EVERYTHING as a test. And you learn just as much from the stuff that doesn’t work as you do from what does work.

This attitude also allows you to not take any specific failure personally. It was simply a test. Some things work. Some things do not.

At the end of the year I go back over my notes and figure out what worked best during the year and what failed. Obviously this is so I can do MORE of the stuff that’s working best in the future.

I suggest you do the same in your business.

So what exactly are you looking for?

Show Me the Money

First of all, look for which products are producing the most money. In my shopping cart I’m able to pull up Analytics and see how much money is coming from each product for the year. My one-on-one coaching clients come from another payment system (not the main shopping cart) so they weren’t included in this listing.

The most profits came from the Monthly Mentor Club, yet I didn’t even promote it that heavily for a majority of the year. In second place was the Internet Lifestyle System. In 3rd, the A-to-Z Internet Truthprints. There is a LARGE dropoff in numbers after these 3 products.

My failed experiment for the year was trying multiple lower cost products as lead generators ($10 to $27). They were profitable, but the numbers show I would have been much better off focusing more attention and promotions on the Monthly Mentor Club.

This fact holds true for clients I’ve worked with this year as well. You’re better off focusing heavily on a strong lead generation and conversion system on one primary product than trying multiple doorways into your business. It simply separates your attention to much to go for the multiple approach.

All of this means heavier focus on the Club next year.

Where’s the Traffic?

More important than where the traffic is coming from is where the BUYING traffic is coming from.

The #1 way a majority of people find me the first time is through the search engines, specifically Google. They land on a page of this blog. Normally they visit a couple of additional pages here. Then they subscribe to the email list. Then the email list makes the sales (almost all sales come from people who are already on the email list).

The next biggest way that people are buying from me is through affiliate JV partners. I’m referring to them as JV partners because the ones making sales all have a few things in common:

1. They have a large email list (audience).
2. It was a special contact we had. I may have spoken to them over the phone, they’ve been a subscriber for a while, etc. They weren’t just random affiliate signups.
3. We often did some unique for their promotion – special price, extra bonus, or at least a fully custom set of emails for their list.

A third method visitors find me is through OTHER people’s blogs. What has surprised me from a few tests is just how valuable participating on other blogs is (posting comments, writing content for, etc.). Everyone gets so excited for the social media, but the simple step of high quality comments has produced better in tests.

You’ll notice I didn’t mention PPC. I still like and use PPC, but I’ve noticed my use of it has been decreasing over the year. It is very useful (especially for testing), but it is not essential to my online marketing.

What about failed traffic experiments? Any paid ad on a social network has failed for me. Stumbleupon for example sells paid clicks. Wasn’t worth it. Bought reviews from blogs. Wasn’t worth it. They send visitors, but not buyers from my experience.

Where’s the Content?

What kind of content has done best for my emails and blog posts? First of all one interesting test I’ve been running consistently lately has been the first name used in the subject of an email versus not using it. It has been a close race with multiple trials for MY list. The winner is not using the first name in the subject line. I’m still using in the opening of the email but not in the subject line anymore for this list.

What about emailing a full post versus posting on the blog with a short teaser to the email list? For sales offers, the full email wins. For shorter posts (say 800 words or less) sending it all in the email again wins. Once you get longer posts or multimedia (audio/video), you’re better off with the short teaser taking them to the blog for the rest of the post.

What types of posts have done best at generating traffic and sales? Obviously straight up offers have been the best at producing sales…a discount for a limited period of time.

Here’s a very interesting stat I’ve noticed from my own results and that of my clients during 2009. It seems that on any specials, a huge majority of the sales are made in the last 24 hours. In fact, several times I’ve run a special and thought it was a failure because very few people bought on the first day or two.

Very consistently it seems that 60%+ of sales even on a week long special have been coming in the last 24 hours. So running 24 to 48 hour specials are where it is really at right now. I’ve found this interesting because it wasn’t true a year or two ago. Sales were pretty consistent over the sales period, but not anymore.

For generating visitors and subscribers, the best producing content for me has been lists…those posts where I tell you 5 predictions, 21 ways to increase sales, and so on. Those posts are also fun to write. You simply brainstorm all the ideas for the post and then write a quick couple of sentences for each.

So you’ll see even more of those in the future.

So now it turns to you. Feel free to add what you’re seeing in your results over the past year from your business in the comments section below.

1. More Focus on Real Useful Content

Right now seo is pretty much a popularity contest. Whoever has the most links with the right anchor text wins. That’s it. If you want to rank well, get more “content” (whether good or bad) and get a ton of incoming links to that content that uses the keyword phrase you want.

I don’t know if it will happen next year, but I predict there is coming a time that the big search engines figure this out and institute a way to “judge” how useful this content is to their visitors.

Already Google appears to keep track of how long their visitors stay at ads they click through in the Adwords program. If a large number of visitors click on your ad and immediately click back to Google in a competitive market, you’ll see your quality scores start dropping. That technology could also be used in the free results to start categorizing the sites people are visiting.

Whether they’ll use that, a voting system, or some other method I don’t know, but we can expect they will eventually find a way to provide better results to those who are giving visitors what they’re looking for. Any business built off of tricking the search engines is eventually doomed to failure (because if you’re tricking search engines you’ll also likely tricking your visitors).

Build an authority site with quality content on your subject. Connect with others in your market to build real links. Deliver what your visitors and customers are looking for.

2. Improved Sales Videos

Video will continue to grow. Right now in tests it is running a pretty close contest between “long copy” and sales videos to make the sale. Tests seem to lean toward whatever is your strongest skill set (meaning those who are great writers do better with written sales pieces while those more comfortable on video do better with sales videos and webinars).

Over the next year we will see an improvement in the quality of these sales videos. Right now the majority are simply a talking head or a Powerpoint presentation. We can expect to see more demonstrations of products on sales pages, plus better use and editing for video.

Right now online sales videos lag way behind TV commercials in quality. We will see a little closing of this difference with more stories told through videos in the coming year. You can expect the best selling videos will also have TV commercial quality titles and transitions in them.

If you’re not already developing your video skills, 2010 is definitely the year to get started.

3. More Focus on Site Design & Functionality

The old one page long sales letter model is not working as effectively for new visitors (it still seems to win when delivering to previous customers and list subscribers). In some recent tests, videos have been winning (as mentioned above). In others, splitting the page into multi-step pages is working (one page that lists the primary benefits and starts the story with the rest on future pages).

In other tests I’ve been doing the design itself has proven very important. People look at your site to see how professional it looks. They check the photos to see if they integrate into the sales message. Where we could ignore design a couple of years ago, that is changing.

You can even shorten copy by making part of it interactive where it only opens up for those who are interested in hearing more. Michel Fortin provides the javascript you need to do this in his post “How to Make Salesletters Interactive.” Bookmark that post to use the code he provides.

The Internet is NOT just a direct marketing sales medium, like we have treated it for years. It is also a communication tool to have a conversation with your customers and prospects. It’s a dialogue instead of a monologue. We’ll probably see smaller businesses like us institute some type of real feedback mechanism into our sales copy instead of simply listing all the testimonials.

I’ve noticed an online purchasing habit of my own lately. I see someone advertising a product. Almost without fail I open up Amazon.com and search for the product there. Because I want to see REAL reviews of the product since Amazon allows both good and bad feedback. I may go back to the site to purchase, but I wanted to see those reviews before buying first.

How exactly we’ll integrate this (and keep competitors from taking advantage of it and posting bad reviews) is yet to be seen, but you can expect it’s coming. Use the dialogue nature of the Internet to expand on your credibility.

4. Longer Sales Funnels

If you made no changes to your site, you will notice that conversions are down over the past year. They vary by market but a 20% to 30% drop is common for those who haven’t been testing and improving their sales copy. Of course with the right testing and improvements, your conversion should be up…not down!

This connects in with the other issues above…and people are not as likely to making instantaneous purchases online. The clients I have who have the best conversion look at it as a funnel and a process…not a one shot sale.

This means you get them on a list. No surprise there. And you follow-up by email, teleconferences, webinars, and offline mailings. That first 30 day period after someone joins your list is the big sales period (when a majority of sales are made), but we’re finding sales coming further out this year also.

You’ll also find that the majority of sites doing extremely well are running multiple upsells after the first purchase. You purchase A…and then are offered B…and then C…and so on. This is where the real profits come in a competitive marketplace. This means you have multiple products for sale (or affiliate products you can recommend in the series).

These follow-up upsells aren’t always “required,” but you’ll find them vital in competitive markets. And once you put them in place you’ll see how a good portion of the net profits are coming from them…not from the first low cost product sold.

5. Deeper Businesses

Google hates affiliates. Ok, they probably don’t hate them, but their actions make it seem like it at times. This past week was another cleaning out of affiliates from Adwords. Many affiliates who promote directly or who promote a landing page that takes you over to an affiliate link had their accounts canceled again.

Google is only one source of advertising, but affiliates sure have been put into pain over this multiple times during the past few months.

Google’s logic appears to be they’re only interested in affiliates who build up their own substantial site and content. Those who have been focusing on an authority site and getting people on their own personal list have mostly survived through these purges.

You can get mad about it. You can use other sources of traffic (and you should). But in the end it is part of a longer trend. You need to find a way to build a deeper, more substantial business.

This means that while you promote affiliate programs, you’re not relying on a specific one in your market. Instead you’re finding multiple products and services which are related. You’re building up your heavy content rich site. You’re building a list. You’re promoting the core programs plus other related items. In addition you may run ads for sell on your site.

You’re building your business and your authority. If an affiliate program screws you over, you switch and promote a different one. You’re the one in control. It’s your list and your audience.

For product based businesses, you need to find multiple items you can sell. Some are yours. Some can be from others. But you still have to build the deeper business model.

What Does It All Mean?

All this simply means the Internet is growing up. The Wild West attitude is thankfully disappearing. This is also why you see me constantly talking about how this is a REAL business. I believe it’s the best business in the world because you can follow your passion, have a load of fun, and make your own schedule. But it is not simply a “business opportunity” where you push a few buttons and money comes out.

Here’s looking forward to 2010…and the growth of your business!

We could discuss many different items, but you’ll find people are more forgiving than we give them credit for. And no I’m not suggesting you go out and mistreat your customers…not by any standard. But we are all human…and we make mistakes at times. You won’t find any business owner who has everything perfectly together.

A fast growing business often slides behind in customer service for a while (which they hopefully fix and improve on). Products don’t work correctly or have bugs in them at first. A weird occurrence for example in my business is we had a customer ticket last week that all the DVDs from our big course were in the wrong boxes (weird I know). Faulty DVDs go out and times and need to be replaced, but the customer said they had all the DVDs – just in all the wrong cases.

So what is it that customers will not forgive you for?

Being BORING. Why can’t they forgive this? Because they simply don’t pay attention to you anymore. You’ve lost them.

There are THOUSANDS of messages every day clamoring for a cherished spot in our limited attention. And there isn’t going to any let up on this in the future.

Why should they “pay attention” to your message (paying attention is a very correct analogy as it is costing you something – your time)?

You can give me all the logical reasons someone should pay attention to you such as how you’ll improve their lives. But every one of your competitors says that as well.

I remember when I was back in college.

I had this professor who can easily be in the running as the most boring teacher in existence.

I’d sit there. He’d drone on and on in a monotone voice, never changing his pitch. I remember one specific day where he simply read from the textbook for at least an hour – although it seemed like all day at the time.

I looked at my watch. I doodled on my notebook. I watched a student sitting next to me reading notes from his last class. Gave a quick glance at the professor to make sure he knew I was paying careful attention. Back to the watch…

If life was a science fiction movie, the evil mastermind must have slowed down time.

For all I know he might have been explaining the meaning of life, the universe, and everything. I’ll never know because it was simply too painful to pay attention anymore.

The question is…do you ever do that in your blog, your emails, or your speaking?

Do you make it easier to ignore you than to pay attention?

A quick tip to combat this is to USE STORIES. Even that teacher had his moments. He would quit reading the book for a minute…and tell a story about something that happened to him.

Those who were still awake perked up and listened intently. You could see them look up from whatever they were doing at the time.

Story connects you with the audience.

You’ve had a great selection of teachers if you can’t think back to a teacher/professor you’ve had who was similar to the above. They BORED you to tears by loading facts, figures, dates, etc. on you with no passion or excitement. There was nothing to connect you with the subject. If you’ve never had an instructor like this, consider yourself very lucky!

This means we’ve had a shared experience. We have a connection and an understanding from this experience.

How can you use stories in your business to accomplish the same purpose?

The above story is short and not too detailed. I could have went into much deeper detail and threw in some personal tidbits, but I feel it was enough to get the message across. Go out and spend time reading some great sales copy. How do they use stories to hold your attention and build connection with you?

How about the last audio you listened to? Did they use any stories about their life or their business? Did you notice how your attention focused as the story was told? What about some of your favorite blog posts? Sure there are those 101 ways to… type of posts, but how many others are there that grab your attention because of a story (especially a humorous story)?

Think about the ways you can integrate stories in your sales copy, your emails, and your presentations…all your business communications.

The December issue of the Monthly Mentor Club is coming out in a few days on December 10th at 9 AM EST. Click here now to subscribe and get all your instant bonuses…plus December’s issue when it’s released.

It’s all about Story Telling. Learn how to find your stories, what makes a good persuasion story, and how to integrate those stories in all your online communications.

And this isn’t just for the small home based business. Even big companies tell their stories. Watch the majority of commercials and you’ll see the simple story they’re telling. Some work. Some don’t. But they all KNOW they need this connection. How well are you using stories for persuasion?

Click here now to join the Monthly Mentor Club…

Business is all about getting the momentum up and running…and it just keeps rolling and growing.

I see a lot of disappointed newbies who never seem to get that momentum going.

One of the reasons this happens is they just dip their toe in the water. They are just testing the business, but they never go all out. They never jump in the water. It never becomes sink or swim to them.

I remember when I started online…it wasn’t a maybe. Maybe this would work out. It was either this works out…or I don’t know what I’m going to do. I came at it with a desperation inside of me. It had to work. There wasn’t any other option. I had already tried everything else and it wasn’t working.

And you know what…I’M GLAD I was in that position.

If I wasn’t, I’ll bet you I would have gave up when it got hard. I would have gave up if a product I sold didn’t make any sales. I would have given up when people complained about the sales email I sent them (that old line of everything on the web should be free was told then too).

There is ALWAYS another opportunity to give up. There is always another distraction to grab your attention. There is always a reason to lose your focus.

It’s that dedication and that desperation that keeps you moving and keeps you going.

Sometimes we see disagreements about whether you have to be truly passionate about your subject or not. While I believe passion is an important element, it’s not vital. I’ve seen many people build successful businesses when the subject wasn’t really one they absolutely loved. I’ve seen people who are very successful who do something totally different with their free time.

But I don’t believe I’ve ever seen someone who succeeded without passion or desperation.

Passion is a motivator. So is desperation. Both of them can cause you to overcome obstacles and keep working when it doesn’t seem like anything is going the way you want. Both can keep you moving forward.

Both allow you to get that momentum moving for you.

This is where so many people have trouble with internet business. This isn’t a job. On a job, if you work an hour, you get paid for the hour. If you work 50 hours this week, you get your normal pay and then you get overtime pay also since you went over the mystical 40 hours.

Online business is more like investing. And I’m not talking about day trading or short-term investments. It’s more similar to buy-and-hold investments. But instead of investing your money, you’re investing your time…to see your investment grow and payoff in the future.

Work 20 hours this week…and you might not see any return at all. But you’re building the foundation, the knowledge, and the experience so you can be paid MUCH MORE months or years into the future.

The other issue is that it’s not a nice easy growth line either. Wouldn’t it be great if your income grew with a beautiful curve of you earn $100 this month, $200 next month, then $400, then $800, and so on as it multiplied nice and neatly each month.

You’ll have plateaus and breakthroughs. Everyone does. For the brand new beginner it’s earning that first dollar or making that first sale. It seems so tough to get over the hurdle. Then you break it…time for celebration. Most people then move up to a few hundred dollars per month and it seems like they get stuck here.

Usually the next level is broken through once you understand something new about your customer, how to increase your conversion, and then expand out your marketing.

Then you move to the several thousand a month level. That’s a nice income. For some it’s just a little extra money while others it might enable them to leave their job to focus more on this business. Either way it is often another sticking point in business. Once you breakthrough here another one occurs in the ten to twenty thousand a month level. And so on.

Yet we like to think in nice looking graphs that just flow up one month after the next. I went looking for a photo to display here to show what I’m explaining…and it was TOUGH. Why? Because all the graph photos I found were showing that nice regular growth for every business. It’s how we think, but it’s NOT how things work out in reality.

In fact, the plateau effect can be seen in almost everything – not just business. For example if you’re losing weight you’re experience the same effect. You lose weight for a while and then all of sudden everything seems to stop for a while. At these points you can’t give up. Instead you need to switch something up and refire your desire to get it moving again.

And that’s where it comes down to in business. How bad do you want it?

Once you’ve started seeing some success, do you still have that desperation or passion pushing you to reach the next level? Are you willing to do what it takes to get moving again.

Because it all comes back to that momentum…that sink or swim marketing attitude.

Are you just dipping your toe in the water or are you jumping in?

So I thought, “Hey, why not go out and see what all these Black Friday sales are about?”

To my surprise, the stores I visited seemed to have everything in order. While there were large crowds things were moving well.

I went to Sports Authority, Dicks Sporting Goods, and Wal-mart. All of them had every register open. All 3 had staff members everywhere answering questions, and I didn’t see any “craziness” that you often hear in the media.

What I did notice is how well these sales affected you emotionally.

At Sports Authority they had nice Florida Gator sweatshirts for $14.95. Planning to pick up one, once I grabbed it…checked and label and saw the normal $49.95 price…I ended up buying 4 of them.

Beside that rack was a GPS that showed a regular price of $249.95. It had a big sign over it saying “door buster” for $99.95. I bought it even though I hadn’t really wanted or needed a GPS. How could you pass up a deal like this!

I noticed a similar pattern at each of the stores. No need to share with you all the extra money I spent because of these money saving deals. For example at Walmart, many movies were $2. I bought a load of them – some of which I don’t even know what they’re about.

Once I saw the regular price – and then the discount offered – I felt the tug to purchase. All I could think about is how I would miss out if I didn’t buy immediately.

A lot of times I think we miss out on this powerful discount strategy online.

And no…I’m not talking about how you get $12,327 of items for only $19.95. That has been so overdone with ebooks that you don’t believe the value anymore.

That’s a key principle of what I saw going on. I bought a running outfit for 50% at Dicks Sporting Goods for example. I bought the SAME type of outfit in a different color for 15% off two weeks ago. So the sale was very real!

And that’s what’s missing from so many internet businesses…the sale that is REAL.

When is the last time you had a real sale in your business?

You’ll notice whenever I release new products I always have them discounted for a period of time. And here’s an interesting stat which wasn’t true a couple of years ago. Over the past year I’m finding 24 to 48 hour sales are the best length because almost all sales come in the last 24 hours.

But I haven’t been doing enough “regular” specials after products have been released. The majority of them have been during mini product launches.

That’s one of the values of building your opt-in email list. Now you can run specials and sales to your audience for products and services whenever you want. In fact, several of my clients run regular specials on each of the holiday sales right along with the stores…and these are their BIG selling periods also.

Another element is really proving to your customers that your special is a real special. For example, let’s say you’re including an ebook bonus you say is worth $47. OK, but how do you prove it is really worth $47 (there is the problem of everybody throwing in so much with ebooks)?

At the stores, I knew the sweatshirts were a good deal at $14.95 because I know what they cost at the other stores. I know what they cost regularly. I see those normal prices all the time for that SPECIFIC product.

This means the best solution is to often SHOW a link to the actual product offer. So if you say the ebook bonus is worth $47, show me a link to where you’ve been selling it for $47.

If you’re giving it to me as your free subscription offer on your squeeze page, link over to where I could buy it for regular price instead if I want.

In other words, give me a real deal…and then prove it’s a deal.

One issue with having these types of sales. Whenever you run one, you will often get customers who purchased the product recently for regular price?

What do you do in those cases? I noticed most of the stores don’t do anything. But online what about when customers ask for it? If you give them the discount, you’re getting rid of the value of the sale and possibly going back on your word depending on what you said about the sale. If you don’t do something, they can be disappointed or angry about their purchase.

Best solution I’ve found so far is to give them a similar level discount off another product or a coupon towards another product you offer.

Here’s an example of a special. Today is the last day you can register at the LOWEST PRICE for the Mark Hendricks conference I’ll be speaking at in Orlando for January. The price goes up on December 1st (although Mark has not said at what time of day the price goes up).

Reserve your seat now…

If you purchase a gold ticket, you will also get a load of additional bonuses (in addition to a license to sell the recordings from the event).

While I can’t speak for all the bonuses since they’re not mine, I do know that mine normally sells for $97. You can buy it from my site at that price any day.

It is still going to be included in the package if you order in a few days, but you will pay more for your ticket (and that goes up again on Dec 15th).

Act now…

Then all of a sudden something happens. In one day everything goes bad. Sales stop coming in. The money disappears.

Why does it happen?

More often than not, they simply didn’t develop multiple arms to their marketing strategy.

They relied on ONE big affiliate or one strategy to generate all their customers.

Instead of building long-term relationships with their customers, they went for the quick sale…and constantly had to find new customers for their business.

What is Octopus Marketing?

It’s when you develop MULTIPLE traffic generation methods…with multiple backend products/services to offer in your business.

For example, you don’t rely on JUST Adwords. You don’t rely on just SEO. You don’t rely on just affiliates.

Instead you build out your system through as many different traffic methods as possible.

Wait a minute…am I now contradicting myself from previous articles? For example, I’ve often told you to FOCUS on one method starting out. That’s still true! But you don’t want to stay there…and nothing says YOU personally have to be the one who works on every method in your business.

You might focus on seo for example. You could hire a PPC management company and an affiliate manager to pull in customers in other ways.

But you don’t want to do that all at once. It’s part of the growth of your business. You focus and drill down in one method till you maximizing results there…and then you use what you have to learned to expand into other types of marketing. For example, let’s say you choose PPC as your first method. That means when you move over to seo you KNOW which terms have buyers on them from your tests. Or if you went to affiliates first, when you expand out to other methods you’ve drilled down on the conversion of your site until you know which product and offer works best…for maximum bang for your traffic buck.

That octopus marketing strategy also means you reach customers in different ways. I find the most profitable ones are those who subscribe to my email list. So that’s a primary goal here…and on any of my sites.

But some may choose just to read your RSS feed (so that is available here). Others may want to watch your Youtube video channel. Others prefer audio files they can listen to while doing something else.

In addition, all these marketing angles are additional ways to keep in contact with your customers and prospects. You might have been able to get away with the one shot sale years ago, but competition has increased and attention spans have gotten even worse. You need to get people plugged into you with emails, blogs, videos, etc.

As they begin to know, like, and trust you…then they’re willing to make the purchase.

Instead of being the one shot wonder, you need to become that octopus who reaches out to your marketplace with a variety of techniques:

1. Multiple traffic generation methods.
2. Multiple ways to follow-up and contact your customers.
3. Multiple formats of media to share.

You DON’T have to do it all yourself. You just need to get it going and find a system of each that works for you…and take advantage of other people’s expertise to expand how you share your message.

My free teleconference is coming up Wednesday at 12 noon EST time. Make sure you’re registered as either an attendee for the upcoming conference or a free subscriber to the teleconferences by clicking here…

I can easily imagine someone asking that question at the front of the room to get a crowd cheering and ready to go. But I want to ask you that question directly. Are you really ready for success online?

It means some things in your life have to change. For example, you may have to turn off the TV. You may have to set aside time from hobbies to work on your business.

And it DEFINITELY means you will have to grow as a person. Staying your comfort zone is so easy, but you’re required to move out of it to go to a new level.

Most of the time you only hear the excitement and all the money in internet business, but there’s a lot of work involved also. And when you put yourself “out there” you’re going to have to deal with criticism. You might find yourself learning things that are difficult at first, and in the beginning stages you even have to do some work you don’t enjoy (as the money comes in you start outsourcing those activities).

Coming up on January 15, 16, and 17 in Orlando, Mark Hendricks is hosting the Internet Super Stars Conference. I’ll be there. Will you?

You can find out more about it here…

There is an extra special price available for pre-registration before December 1st. Don’t miss out.

What if you can’t attend for whatever reason?

You should still get over to that link immediately to register for the FREE ticket option to listen in on all the pre-event calls starting on November 23rd.

These are held over teleconference for Free and Paid attendees over the next couple of weeks. Here’s a quick list of who is speaking on each of these:

Nov 23 – Jeanette Cates
Nov 24 – Cindi Dawson
Nov 25 – Terry Dean
Dec 1 – Elsom Eldridge, Jr.
Dec 2 – Doug Champigny (3pm)
Dec 3 – Joey Smith
Dec 4 – Joe Marsh
Dec 7 – Ross Goldberg
Dec 8 – Chris Lockwood
Dec 9 – Gina Gaudio Graves
Dec 10 – Criss Bertling
Dec 11 – Willie Crawford

Click here now to register for the conference OR to register simply to listen in on all the free calls…
You have to scroll down about 2/3rds of the way to find out about the free teleconference calls and how to register.

I plan to be at the Orlando event for all 3 days. So if you’re on my list, hopefully we’ll have a time to chat over the weekend. I look forward to meeting you!

Register here…

It doesn’t matter whether you’re in the affiliate business, promote ecommerce products, a local business owner, or a consultant. All of them still need content for their site…to build customer relationships and generate traffic to your site.

We talk a lot about link building, because links are a key element of good search engine positioning. You can create links from blog carnivals, blog commenting, forum participation (and profiles), setting up link hubs and wheels, social bookmarketing, etc.

But what’s the absolute best way to get a large number of high quality links? Create outstanding content others want to link to.

What’s the best way to create that kind of content? I could talk about writing long lists and controversial posts, both of which are good ideas, but the real secret…volume. The more posts you have, the more likely some of these will hit those hot subjects.

What tools can you use to make all this content?

Here are some of the ones I use.

Google Reader

Need ideas? Create a LOAD of them by using Google Reader.

Most people simply set up a few RSS feeds in Google Reader, but they don’t take advantage of everything else it does. Sure, subscribe to the top blogs in your industry and others you find of interest. I had cut down my list, but I’ve actually added to it lately with around 35 blogs in the RSS reader. Here’s the secret, I don’t read all of them – not even close. I just skim the headlines. If there are 50 to 80 new posts when I check the reader, I may only read 5 of them.

But you can go much further. Come up with a subject bullseye keyword phrase, and subscribe to a Twitter feed on that subject. Add Google Alerts on this subject. Add Google News on this phrase. Now you have a large collection of information coming through on the subject. You will want to setup folders now for all this information to be collected and organized (Twitter for example can pump out a TON on even just one keyword phrase – 200+ a day is common).

You’re NOT going to read all t his. You’re simply going to skim headlines and read the most important information. Read stuff that stands out to you. If this doesn’t generate more than enough ideas for you, I don’t know what will!

Mind Mapping

The easiest way I find to organize my thoughts at first is through mind mapping. The biggest benefit here is you add so many additional items you would have forgotten any other way. The software I’ve been using for it is iMindmap because I love the graphical interface here…and how easy it is to use. In the past I used other programs, but I’m hooked now on this one.

Outline autoresponder and blog series. Create products. Come up with all these long tip articles.

Wordpress

If you were to look inside the administration side of my blog you’d see a large number of “draft” posts. When I come up with a ideas (using Google reader, my personal life, or responses to clients), I’ll often write a preliminary headline and a few key points. I’ll save them inside of Wordpress.

Then when it’s time to write, I can simply open up that post and write it. Every writer knows the biggest problem with starting out is staring at a blank screen. If you write these little mini-outlines whenever the ideas come to you, you’ll have a whole collection to go in and write with. Login your account, pick an article, and write it.

Of course you can also use the scheduling feature in Wordpress to schedule your future posts. Once you finish writing, schedule for when it will be sent out. If you also email out your posts, you can copy and paste out of here into your email system (most of them allow you to schedule broadcasts in advance also).

Recording Skype Calls

The above covers writing posts. What about audio content? A quick way to create is to do interviews with experts in your field (from short 10 minute slots up to hour long presentations). I’ve used Powergramo for quite a while now. Pamela is another choice many recommend.

Here’s a quick tip for the real world also. I’ve found looking at the person’s contact info on Skype is a quick way of keeping track of time differences. Whenever you do interviews, you find the the different time zones all over the world can be an issue…a quick glance here helps you organize your thinking.

Use a Teleconference

If Skype doesn’t give you good sound quality, always have a backup plan in place. For me, it’s simply being registered with a free teleconference service. This way you can both call into the teleconference from land lines and do your recording. I use a free one here because it’s my 2nd choice to be used in emergencies.

Audio Editing

For editing your audios, you can use the open source program Audacity. It has more than enough features to edit audio. Best of all it’s free.

I also use Sound Forge Audio Studio because I like the layout better, but I really don’t know if it adds any additional features to what you can get for free in Audacity.

Recording Videos

Want to record videos from your screen or Powerpoint presentations? Or simply put together a series of slides with narration? Camtasia is the tool of choice for PCs. You can even do quite a bit of editing of the videos here plus output them in online or DVD ready formats. I LOVE Camtasia.

If you’re not ready to pay the $300 for Camtasia, you can get started with their free screen recorder called Jing. If you’re on Mac, there is a Camtasia for Mac version, but feedback from my Mac friends says Screenflow is still a better option (as Camtasia on the Mac seems to have very limited options).

Video Camera

I have two camcorders I use. The first is a little Flip HD. It’s small, affordable, and easy to move video onto your computer. If you want to carry one with you, it’s an almost perfect little solution. It’s one weakness is no separate mic input. This means the sound is NOT as good as it could be if you were using a mic. With this little guy, I also have a little stretchy Flip tripod that cost me around $15 and sets on a desk (or can be wrapped around something).

My 2nd camcorder is a Canon HV30. he new version is the Canon HV40. It cost quite a bit more and its picture is better. The primary difference in in the audio input here though for online use. While still a small camcorder, it’s much larger than the Flip so I don’t like using it quite as much unless it is already setup. I’d recommend someone start with a Flip camera for online video. If they’re using it ALL the time and they find they want better audio, then go to a second camera.

Video Editing Or DVDs

There are a lot of video editing programs available, and I’ve tested several of them. For very basic editing you could use Camtasia Studio. If you want to move to more advanced editing or create DVDs, you can pick up Sony Vegas Movie Studio. MAKE SURE the version of Movie Studio includes Sony DVD Architect if you want to produce DVDs (it’s much easier than other options).

Sony Vegas allos you to do a lot more with video that you’d have to pay quite a bit more to get a more professional solution (and you’d have a much longer learning curve with those higher level solutions).

Disclosure: My business purchased at retail every product mentioned above except from Screenflow and Pamela (those were listed as secondary solutions). No affiliate links were used above.

If you are, I’ll bet you find building an online business quite difficult.

The Internet is awesome because you have a worldwide audience. The Internet is a pain in the butt because you have worldwide competition.

That competition means EVERYONE is clamoring for attention. The next website is only a click away. Those websites are filled with shiny new gadgets. There is more free content online than ever before. And there are more items being sold than ever before.

Worst of all, it appears your audience’s attention span is dropping with the use of both TV and the Internet.

The good news is that there’s a solution…but it won’t be found in being NORMAL!

You need to become an extremist for your viewpoint.

Look at those who stand out. They’re a voice. They’re extreme in their viewpoint.

For example, take any political talk show host that’s popular. Are they “normal?” For example, is Rush Limbaugh normal? Neither the people who love or the ones that hate him would likely consider him “normal?” And that’s a key there – most people either love him or hate him.

Now take any of the stars that come out of “reality” TV. Are the ones who stand out and recognized normal, just fit into the group types? No. They STAND OUT.

That’s what I’m talking about when I’m pushing you to become an extreme writer, an extreme internet business owner, and an extreme stand out personality.

What kinds of strategies can you use to become extreme in your writing?

The big one is to QUIT being a parrot. Quit repeating what everybody else says…and get a voice. Maybe someone will disagree with you. Great. That means they’re listening. The worst thing your audience can do is simply tune you out.

Here are a few idea jogging questions to get you thinking about what you can write about…

1. What are some of the biggest lies commonly told in your industry?

2. When have you been the angriest in your business life?

3. What’s the biggest mistake of your life…and how does that relate to your subject?

4. What’s the big vision for your business – how do you want to uniquely change the world?

5. What are some of the best qualities of your competitors? What COULD you recommend them for?

6. What’s one personal or business story that changed your life? What’s the biggest “life change” you had?

7. What do you “stand for” in life and/or business?

Write a post or email about a couple of the ideas above. And be real in it. Give a story. Let them know how you feel.

I looked back at my previous posts on this blog…and #1 in comments…is still the totally OFF TOPIC post about my golden retriever Rocky dying last year. It has zero to do with internet business, yet it had the largest response.

The secret here is I wrote the post the next morning when I still very upset. My emotion was obvious.

What can you write about where your emotion will shine through?

This applies to blog posts, emails, sales copy, videos, etc. Show yourself to be a real person instead of just a content machine.

In addition be willing to meet with your customers and clients OFF the internet instead of just being an online personality.

This is somewhere where I’ve been a little lacking as I have to admit to being somewhat of a hermit. I don’t like traveling so don’t go to most business events (and I don’t always like what goes on at many events).

But I am speaking at an upcoming event in Orlando, Florida in January 2010.

As someone who moved out of Indiana because of the cold, where could be a better location to be than Orlando in January?

Find out more about the internet super stars conference here…

There is a special discount price for anyone who reserves their ticket before December 1st. So check it out today. You don’t want to miss out on the special pricing (even the normal price is much lower than other events of its type and many individual internet marketing products).

Check out it out for a very pleasant surprise…

It has been a long time since I did one. Personally I found it frustrating at first…you have all these pieces and don’t know where to start.

So you start off slowly by putting together some of the outside edges.

Then you look for specific colors such as the sky or anything distinctive to fill in.

The further along you are in the process, the easier it gets. The picture begins to unfold in front of you.

It all just seems to come together as you do one step at a time.

Similar to running an internet business.

Someone brand new to internet business hears all those confusing phrases (like autoresponders, blogs, upsells, affiliates, etc.). They’re confused about where to start and how to get going. And they’re often sold products that promise them instant wealth by simply clicking a few buttons – which makes the confusion much worse when they don’t see anything happening that quickly.

It looks like a confusing puzzle.

But if you take it slowly and start by filling in the edges (which would be choosing your first market to get started in), and then getting your first site up…you’ll see that it gets easier and easier the further you go along in the process as everything just seems to come together.

Each day is another step closer to the goal…and you can see your business taking shape before your eyes.

At least that is how it SHOULD be…BUT there is another problem in the internet business world.

We always feel like we’re missing something. Maybe there is some “secret” you haven’t tapped into yet. Maybe you need to get another viewpoint.

So BEFORE we finish our puzzle, we go out and buy 3 more puzzles. And instead of letting them sit on the shelf until we finish the first one, we dump them all out on the table.

Now you have a half finished puzzle plus 3 additional ones all mixed in together.

If you thought it looked confusing and frustrating when you started this puzzle, you couldn’t have imagined the half of it. Now you have 4 puzzles sitting in front of you all mixed together, not knowing where any of the pieces go. Unless you are a super puzzle master, your chances of success just went down the toilet.

I’ve never seen anyone do this when putting a jigsaw puzzle together, but I’ve seen thousands of people do this in their internet business.

How Do You Escape This Danger Zone?

Pick a system. Follow it. Sure, you can bring in other SUPPORTING information from other experts, but stick with the business model you’ve chosen. Apply persistence and passion to keep it moving forward.

Because it’s so important to follow a step-by-step system I’ve recently added a NEW addition to my Monthly Mentor Club over the past month.

Previously you received a huge load of bonuses on how to create products, run PPC ads, write ad copy, etc. You still get those plus a couple of more surprise bonuses not listed.

You also received a monthly PRINT newsletter along with the PDF edition which you can download online. You still get these print issues. This month is all about building an irresistible offer and online brand to dominate your marketplace.

A couple of months ago I started added companion online videos to go with the print newsletter, normally an hour or so (more or less time is possible depending on the subject). You still get these for watching in the membership area.

Join now to get all these benefits…

So what’s the new addition?

There is now a monthly online training series for the first 12 months you’re a member. The back issues of the newsletter have been taken and organized into a step-by-step system to follow for building your business. All these issues are downloadable in PDF form OVER a period of 12 months. This means you get access to the ones about choosing your market the first month…and then each month after that builds upon what you learned before.

Why is this important? It means that while you’re getting your monthly issue in the mail, you’re also able to access a step-by-step module in the site. Perhaps one month’s issue is more advanced than what you need right now. Read it. Use the portion that applies. Then come back to it later. Login to the membership area and follow the NEXT PIECE OF THE PUZZLE in the online site.

The cost for all these new additions…no price increase…YET. It’s all about making it easier for you to get the results you want from your business.

November’s print issue is sent for mailing tomorrow morning at 9 AM EST. If you want to get a copy sent to you, subscribe today.

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I’ve covered before that it’s entirely possible to build a profitable business doing something you don’t enjoy…but the big question is WHY would you want to do that?

There are SO MANY opportunities online. There are so many ways you can make money. Why force yourself to do something you absolutely hate.

Here’s a video I enjoyed that really demonstrates the “passion” you can have in business. I didn’t especially enjoy the ‘language” he uses or agree with him fully on the message, but the passion is evident.

Gary Vaynerchuk is well known online from his Wine TV site.

This video would be rated PG (so please don’t watch if you’ll be offended).

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It’s only half true. The truth is the money is in a relationship with a list. People buy from those they know, like, and trust. It’s those factors that make it so important to build a list.

For example, I work with Glenn Livingston quite a bit. He has entered more than 17 markets successfully. In every single one he did his research…so he knew the prospects better than the competition.

But that research was only one element of the success. He then used that insider knowledge to build opt-in email lists loaded with information and point of difference benefits.

The email series is what separated him from any competitor….it had more in depth content based on what they already wanted than available anywhere else.

You’ll notice I follow the same approach in this business. I share quite a big of information here. I also do surveys at times to find out what my readers and customers are looking for. In addition, notice how many ways I give you the ability to subscribe to my list.

- You can subscribe in the box at the top right.
- The first 3 visits to the site you are presented a way to subscribe at the bottom of every post.
- I also have a footer ad appearing to ask you to subscribe.

All three ways to subscribe are for the same list. I also run squeeze pages that ask you to subscribe to this list (so that makes a fourth way).

Can you see what I want a new visitor to do?

Yes, that’s right. I want them to subscribe.

Then I want to follow up by providing information, sharing parts of my personal story, and letting them get to know me. Let me follow those steps of Knowing, liking, and trusting.

I also offer products and services focused on helping you reach your goals. Some offers are for you, while others may not be. No offer is 100% perfect for everyone. I’d love to say it was, but it’s not.

How do I build the list…over the long-term I obviously use search engine optimization and pay-per-click heavily (I generate a lot of visitors now through Google and the other search engines).

Search engine optimization takes a lot of time. And pay-per-click takes money.

What about when you want to build a list FAST – and you want to do it without spending any money?

Simple. You have to figure out how to tap into other people’s traffic sources. Notice I said it was simple, not always easy.

Who already has the traffic and subscribers you need…and how do you set-up a Win-Win-Win deal where the list owner, the customers, and you all win?

Basically you have to figure out WHAT the list owner/site owner wants most – and how to provide it to them.

Here are a FEW ideas of how to do this effectively.

1. Write guest posts for high traffic blogs.

A majority of blogs in any industry will accept guest posts…if the post is exclusive and filled with high quality content.

You provide value (a great article) in exchange for the link back to you…and a chance for their subscribers to get to know you.

Why does this work? Because I’ve yet to meet anyone who publishes TOO MUCH CONTENT. Nobody says, “Wow, we sure have too much content around here. We don’t want anymore.”

They’re always looking for more content. If you can provide high quality content that matches their theme and helps their subscribers, you’ll often find this a way to tap into their traffic.

Why are the majority of guest posts rejected? Because they’re simply promotions for their product or their site. NO ONE wants you promotional piece, but they want your content piece. If you wouldn’t think of sending the article into a magazine on the subject, don’t suggest it to the blogger either.

2. Write content for someone else’s membership site.

This is similar to #1. But instead of writing for a free site, you write specifically for a PAID membership site. Or you provide audios…or videos to the site.

Not as many people will view your content, but the ones who do are PAYING customers. Buyers are worth much more than free subscribers (by a 10 to 1 ratio or even more).

Are you a member of any membership sites? What could you create or already have that you could offer their subscribers for FREE?

Perhaps you sell a related product that fits perfectly in with their theme. You could provide a copy for all their customers.

The same principle applies here as in #1, it has to be GREAT content instead of a promotion for your offer. In fact, it has to be even BETTER CONTENT since it’s part of a paid product.

3. Do list mailing trades.

Trade a mailing with another list owner.

They mail for your list. And you mail for theirs. No money has to be exchanged. You don’t need to be an affiliate.

Simply find other publishers with list sizes comparable to yours…and mail for one another.

Instead of promoting a product, promote the freebie they get for signing up for your list. I have a couple of clients that used this as one of their primary list building methods. They built up a basic list (of a few hundred) and then immediately set to growing their list by finding others to cross-promote. They’re growing their lists by hundreds every week (at zero cost).

4. Setup a squeeze page for your affiliates.

Take a look at the majority of internet gurus. How do they promote their products and build their lists? Affiliates.

What are they doing for a month (or even longer) leading up to their big product launch? They’re promoting “content” and getting their affiliates to send over subscribers.

Build that list using free traffic where you only pay when a customer buys your product/service.

The key here is to create strong momentum coming into the launch…and having a high conversion system to pay your affiliates.

5. Promote a low cost product with 100% commissions.

Have you seen all those offers for $7, $10, $14.95, and $19.95 digital information products?

The purpose of these isn’t the profits you can make. Sure you can make a few hundred dollars (maybe even a couple of thousand with a big list). The real purpose is building a list of BUYERS.

You can also set these up through Paypal so all the money is given to the affiliate. They promote your $10 product…and keep ALL the money. You get the list.

That’s a pretty enticing offer for the affiliate. In addition it’s not uncommon to get a 10% conversion or higher on this type of offer.

If you’re beginner, which one would you feel is easier…writing sales copy for a $10 product or a $100 product?

Would You Like a Complete Step-By-Step System for Building Profitable Lists Fast?

Lee McIntyre built a highly profitable list from scratch starting with no contacts, no products, no JV partners.

Find out how he did it…and how you can follow in his footsteps in the Super List Building System.

He’s one of the few people I feel who really knows how to teach in a simple easy to follow manner (probably because his last job was as a teacher).

Click here now to find out more…

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Someone decides to make a break from the routine. They step out and become an entrepreneur. But many of those who have taken the first step…they overcame their initial fears of starting their own business…they still go back into the routine. They simply follow along and do exactly like others.

For example, you’ve probably noticed that in the internet marketing space the majority of people sound the same. They make the same overarching promises. They promote the exact same items – often all at the exact same time. In fact, many of them even use the exact SAME email.

I recently did an affiliate promotion, I was given an affiliate email to send out. In the email it talked about my “good friendship” with the author. The first thought in my head was, Hmmm, I’ve only spoke to him once on the phone. I wouldn’t call that a good friendship. Sorry. So that had to change.

What About Content?

Then I noticed there wasn’t any content in the email. That had to change. I don’t like sending very many emails or blog posts that don’t include content. Even if you don’t take advantage of my offer, you still walk away with value and with ideas for your business you didn’t have before.

Things weren’t worded in the email the way I would have done it. So change again. Basically I rewrote almost everything (except the title of the product and the author) before sending it out.

It had to not just be from me. It had to be me. My name was in the from address so I had to feel what was written was from me. Nothing else was worth sending.

And that’s a key principle to those who are successful and those who aren’t. I’ve been doing this for more than a decade now and I’ve seen people from both sides – those who are successful and those who aren’t.

Sometimes both those groups do very similar activities. They might both focus on building a blog and list for example. Yet one achieves success much faster than the other.

Often the difference comes back to them simply injecting their personality and style into everything you do. They put themselves OUT THERE on the line.

That’s Not Always Easy

I know how hard that is at times. The internet is a cold place. If you put your personality and style out there, you’ll find thousands of people who want to “judge” you for it. Some won’t like you. Some will even tell you how much they can’t stand your very existence. And you have to develop that thick skin to keep moving…and keep building your audience.

That’s it. You’re building YOUR audience – the ones who like you and like your style. It’s not going to include everyone, not even everyone in your chosen market. You’ll build a core group that wants what you share and wants to do business with you.

And that’s what makes the difference. Are you building your core audience today…or are simply going along with the flow?

How Lee Did it

One of the “names” that seemed to fly up out of nowhere is my friend Lee McIntyre (I do consider him a friend as we’ve chatted multiple times). He has even posted a testimonial for me here about a coaching call I did with him.

Why did he succeed faster than almost anyone I’ve seen? He didn’t just join the crowd. Instead he did things his own way. He showed personality and his style. He got out there and did what it took quickly.

He developed his unique systems for building a list and profiting from it.

That’s right. Instead of focusing just on building a “free list” like so many others have advised, he zeroed in on building a smaller list of paid customers and targeted followers. That’s why even when his list only numbered 603 subscribers he was outselling lists of tens of thousands.

When he shared his list building methods with other marketers, some of them were outright shocked of what could be done even with a TINY little list.

To share with others what he did and why it worked so well, he did a step-by-step webinar training called the “Super List Building System.”

Because I believe in this product and it’s value, I licensed it from him.

This full DVD training course shares how to build a super responsive list without spending even a penny in advertising, why small lists can out earn lists of tens of thousands, and how to build powerful relationships with your subscribers to where they’re eagerly awaiting your next email.

Click here now to find out more…

Should you copy everything Lee does exactly? Nope. You should use his system, but apply YOUR personality and style to it. The world isn’t looking for another Lee McIntyre. One is enough of them. But they are looking for the REAL YOU.

That’s what you should be looking for in a course like this…the opportunity to find a system to follow that ALLOWS the real you to stand up and be noticed…no matter where you are today.

Click here now to find out more…

If not, you must not be doing it right!

Glenn Livingston recently posted to his blog about why he felt the Work/Play attitude was a wrong way to look at things.

Of course I agree. I have a LOT of fun in my business, but I also had a few disagreements with his original post. So we emailed back and forth for several days about them.

We decided to get on the phone with each other and discuss what we felt the work/life balance meant to each of us….to you.

Would you like to…

- Have more fun while working
- Discover several fun and easy brainstorming exercises
- Find a few new techniques for improving your website conversions
- Learn how your personality affects your online business style
- Improve your business while enjoying your life.

If so, this 48 minute mp3 audio is exactly what you’re looking for. And it’s FREE.

We mention our sites in the audio, but don’t do any direct promotions. It’s simply here to help you have more fun at work.

Please note there is a clicking sound at the very beginning. That goes away pretty quickly (in about 20 to 25 seconds)…and we really start digging into the material after a few minutes.

Click the little play button below to play the audio or right click below and choose “Save Target As’ or “Save File As” depending on your browser.

You’ll notice that both click and I were having fun while doing the audio. It’s a very free form discussion.

Here are a few of the resources we talked about on the audio.

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Wow - Losing Money Sure Is Easy!

You’ll learn more about how this strategy works Monday when I post a free audio Glenn Livingston and I did together on How to Have WAY More Fun in Your Internet Business.

Since we’re always talking about how to make more money, let’s turn it in reverse and have a little fun coming up with ways to lose money from our websites.

If your goal is to make money (like most readers), maybe you should make sure you’re not following any of these tips (because a few of them are rather common).

Strategy #1: Buy EVERYTHNG you can get your hands on about internet marketing but don’t put any of it into action.

With all the product launches going on every week, I’m sure you could easily spend $50,000 over the next year doing this. As long as you make sure not to apply anything (even better if you don’t actually read it), then it’s a guaranteed way to lose money. Doesn’t get much better than that when your goal is to lose money online.

Strategy #2: Spend a majority of your time in the social networks.

Since social media people are often the hardest people to sell to, spend a majority of your time here to make sure your business isn’t profitable. They can generate a LOT of traffic to your site which doesn’t click on ads and doesn’t buy products. And isn’t that really your goal when you want to burn money?

Strategy #3: Subscribe to EVERY single email list you come across.

You want to make sure you’re getting tons of offers every single day…especially if strategy #1 and #2 aren’t emptying your bank account quick enough. You’ll be teased and tempted with all the missing “secrets” keeping you from being successful online. Especially make sure to stay on all those lists that ONLY sell products and never offer any content whatsoever.

Strategy #4: Choose a tiny micro-niche market where there aren’t ANY competitors.

If there are competitors there, it means someone must be making money. And we don’t want that. So make sure to narrow your niche down to the point where you have zero competition – no one at all is competing against you. Because if you do this, it virtually guarantees you a market where no one else has ever made a profit.

Strategy #5: If your market does have competition, make sure to do everything exactly like them.

Obviously every competitor in the market knows more than you. So you should simply parrot exactly what they’re doing and saying. Don’t start any arguments or stir up any controversy. If you make yourself EXACTLY like them, then people won’t be able to tell the difference…and they’ll have no reason whatsoever to listen to you or buy from you. And that’s the goal, right?

Strategy #6: Buy the most expensive, highest traffic keyword phrase in your market on Adwords and send them directly to your home page.

Most of the time the highest traffic keyword is NOT the keyword targeting specific buyers. It’s just people looking for initial information. So if you go for it right from the beginning, you can be almost assured to lose money. And to guarantee you lose money, send all those visitors to a general home page on your site. The less specific about what they’re searching for, the better it is for making them leave quickly.

Strategy #7: Jump on EVERY brand new traffic scheme immediately.

You’ve probably heard how you have to jump on new traffic techniques immediately. Look for these “loopholes” constantly and always take advantage of them. Avoid any long-term proven traffic methods (like seo, PPC, affiliates, etc.). Whatever is the newest and most hyped solution must be the best!

Strategy #8: Build dozens of different sites all at the same time.

What if one site doesn’t work? Create dozens of them…all at one time. That way you’ll have multiple streams of income…even if you do lose your sanity in the process. By building your market wide you only have time to do the minimum for each site…and won’t ever be burdened by profitable steps like backend products for each market.

Strategy #9: Copy the big product launch sales letters exactly for your market.

Since they’re using them, they must work…even though they have tons of other pieces coming before the sales letter. You’re heard of a swipe file. Make sure to put all these sales letters intended for current “hyped up” customers into your swipe file instead of what the big mailers send out by direct mail (where they spends months working on the copy with the top guns competing with each other).

Strategy #10: Join a Mastermind group of people who just sit and around and complain about what doesn’t work.

Sometimes these are commonly referred to as online forums, but other times they can be a local business group. Mastermind has been proven to help people make more money. So to make sure it helps you lose money, only join groups where people don’t have successful experience in the topic. That should help. And then follow the most common opinion that everyone votes on…instead of listening for any golden nuggets that do appear at times.

There you have it….10 ways to make sure you lose money online. If you’re currently doing any of these, you’re going the right direction for that goal. If you want to turn it around and make money online, figure out how to eliminate these from your “Internet plan.”

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But the real question is what are your goals? And to get deeper into the heart of the matter…

What Does Success Mean To You Personally?

Here’s the funny thing. We could have several dozen people comment…and the likelihood is success would mean something a little different to each person reading this.

Does success mean earning a million dollars a year?

Does success mean owning your home debt-free and a large RV where you can travel the country?

Perhaps success means you can travel to two dozen countries this year?

Maybe success is earning enough to pay your simple bills while you get to spend time home schooling your children?

Maybe success is having time to spend down at the homeless shelter helping out because your bills are already taken care of?

Or perhaps success is simply being able to do a job you love and are good at?

Maybe it means working a few hours each day to finance your free time of hobbies and other interests.

So What is Success to You Personally?

That’s the first question you have to answer. Because unless you know where you’re going, how could ever plan to get there?

Let me give you an example of a mistake in coaching others I’ve made at times in the past in regards to this.

One of my personal definitions of success is to have work outsourced and have NO in-house staff. I don’t want in-house staff. Period. Because that is a portion of my priority for success, at first I translated that same qualification to others when coaching them. I was wrong.

I found several clients DEFINITELY want in-house staff. They love staff that works in a office with them. One of their definitions of success is a fast growing company with team members working together in an office environment. If I tried to enforce my definition of success on them, it would cause them emotional pain.

What good is it to build your business around someone else’s definition of success…including mine?

One aspect I’ve found is that:
Success is not a destination. It’s a journey.

Your definition of success will change in the future.

For me in the very beginning of my online business, success was simply defined as GETTING OUT OF DEBT and being able to pay my bills (all my jobs up until that point didn’t even pay enough to make a living).

As you can expect, my goals and my definition of success has expanded since then.

My next definition success became, “Creating enough passive income to pay all my monthly bills without having to work.”

Then…it expanded to, “Creating passive income streams WHILE ENJOYING the work I do.”

Then it moved onto, “Creating low hassle income streams while helping others create Internet lifestyles and enjoying the work I’m good at doing.”

Notice how in none of those really mention a specific amount of money. Obviously my definition of success includes having more than enough for myself and to give to others, but I FOCUS more on how the money is generated than I do on the overall amount. Am I having fun while doing it is more of the key now. For example, coming to me and saying, “I have a way you can make an extra $25,000…” doesn’t even catch my attention (partly because everyone tries that pitch). But if you came to me and said, “Here’s a way you can have even more fun in your business…” you have my attention.

In addition, I added in that balance in the rest of my life is just as important. This includes relationships, exercise, playing with my dogs, eating healthy (somewhat healthy, OK maybe just healthier . It includes finding and following my purpose/calling from God.

In the beginning, I just desperately wanted to be able to pay my bills. That was a VERY STRONG motivator. Creditors calling you all the time can do that…give you a sense of desperation. Working 12 hours a day – even if I hated every minute of it – was OK. If that was what was required, fine. But that motivation eventually went away BECAUSE circumstances changed.

How do you stay motivated? You expand on your definition of success.

Your own personal definition of success grows over time…and it is more than just one simple answer. It incorporates your entire lifestyle.

Once you DEFINE success, now you can start building your plan for moving towards it…following your journey of success.

No wonder so many people are “lost in internet business.” They’re trying to make a journey without knowing where they’re going. I’ve learned enough from working with clients now that I have to find out what their definition of success is…and what they really want. If you try to build the business based off a model and plan they don’t enjoy, they’ll never have the dedication and committment necessary to see it through.

With every business decision…ask yourself, “Does this fit with my lifestyle goals?”

So the big question is what does success mean to you? Feel free to post in the comments about this…and your opinions on the subject. If everyone were to post their definition of success, we’re likely to see dozens of different answers (and they’d all be right answers for the individual who posted them).

Posts about it are ALL over the place. No point in linking to all of them. Do a quick search for “FTC and Bloggers” and you’ll be overwhelmed with posts.

You might have even heard it was the end of online marketing…the end of affiliate marketing…or the end of blogging.

Everyone has been yelling, “The sky is falling.”

The good news is that’s not true. It’s not the end of the world. The bad news is that you might have a few changes to your sites.

Here is a link to the FTC PDF about it.

Here is another PDF the FTC has published showing example testimonial scenarios.

Mike Young has published a PDF you can download for free here called, “How to Comply With the New FTC Compensation Guidelines.”

I’m not a lawyer…don’t play one on TV…and should be completely ignored when it comes to any legal issue.

What is causing the biggest issues and frustration for everyone involved is that the FTC seems to have purposely left everything as unclear as humanly possible. It’s so unclear in a few places that only the government could have created it. The example testimonial scenarios they released later makes a little more sense than the original.

This is likely so they have strong ammunition to go after whoever they want without regards to what’s ethical or not. They simply don’t like to lose.

I think the basic idea behind this is good. Get rid of the scammy fake blogs that are just there to promote garbage. Get rid of those overhyped testimonials from endorsers who may have never even used the product. Force people to honestly say when they’re making money from something instead of keeping it hidden.

Who could disagree with any of that? It’s the application that leaves some to be desired.

Because of this confusion, you even see many of the big internet gurus telling you to eliminate all testimonials – just remove them all.

They’re wrong.

Here are a few key points that may affect you.


#1 – Bloggers need to fully disclose any relationships with people, products, and sites they review.

On blogs I see this as a very good step.

You’ll notice I already regularly tell you I get an affiliate commission for some link, someone sent me a free copy of their product, or that someone is a friend of mine. This is a for-profit blog and I make no excuses for that. This change will simply mean I’ll be even more conscientious about making sure all readers know this.

I think Michel Fortin did an excllent job of posting his blog Disclosure Policy here.

This hits those bloggers who do paid reviews more than anyone else. In addition if you’re a reviewer and people send you free copies of their products, you need to state this now. Again no big deal. A lot of people talk quite a bit about transparency in blogging, so I don’t understand why they would get so upset about having to reveal this type of information.

The bigger difficulty comes when you move over to social media and sites like Twitter. How do you reveal your correct connection to something when you’ve very limited in the number of characters you can use? That’s going to more difficult and confusing about what needs to be done.

#2 – You can be held responsible for what your affiliates say about your products.

This one is another one that is going to cause a lot of hassles for us small businesses. You need to police everything your affiliates say about you on their sites, in their blogs, and in their emails. Wow…that’s a lot of work.

For some, it’s going to discourage them a little from having “open affiliate” programs. Instead they may focus on having invitation only affiliate programs or all affiliates have to be approved first (not a bad idea actually).

But the reality is that we should have already be monitoring what affiliates say about us. What promises are they making? Whenever I’ve seen affiliates making hyped up claims, we’ve contacted them with the threat to remove them completely. Now we’ll have to do more in this area in keeping an eye on our affiliates.

If you think about it, network marketing companies have already had to do that for decades. They had distributors and had to watch what their distributors shared. Now we have to do the same with any of our affiliate distributors (for those of you who run 2 tier affiliate programs there are even more similarities).

#3 – Testimonials must be more representative of typical results.

This is a hairy one. What is the typical results for example for someone who buys an internet marketing ebook?

In my OPINION the average result is that they completely ignore it and buy another one without ever using it. Then of course they generate exactly zero results.

But notice I said that was my opinion. From the FTC’s examples, it sounds like we simply need to be much more clear about the testimonials and how they achieved the results.

What else was behind the results that we’re not seeing.

For example, in the internet marketing field you sometimes see someone said, “I bought so-and-so’s product…and made $83,000 in just 3 days.”

Will the typical customer get those results? Nope. No way. Not going to happen. Why did they do so well?

Perhaps they already had a large customer list. Perhaps they already were making $300,000 monthly and one tip helped them bump the response way up. For example, with coaching clients I’ve found it much easier to take someone who is at $10,000 a month to $20,000 a month than it is to get a brand new beginner from $0 to $1,000. It’s because of momentum. Just making a few changes to their sales page can sometimes do that.

So the FTC wants to make sure we being more clear on WHY someone achieved much better than typical results to give people a better understanding. This means we will have to go in more detail about what happened and why.

Instead of being lazy and just letting testimonials come in, we need to contact our best ones and find out more details. In other words, turn them more into case studies instead of “hiding” anything going on behind the scenes.

Here’s another example. If you’ve ever looked at “weight loss” ads in men’s magazines, they often feature a man who makes an incredible transformation. Yet if you look closely he appears to be very muscular (such as an amateur bodybuilder who’s been training for 5 to 10 years) with just 20 pounds or so of extra fat on him.

He loses weight incredibly quick, but it’s quite possible he is USED to already doing that because of competitions. He bulks up and then loses weight. Perhaps the product they’re selling only influenced him with a couple extra pounds or he did it one day quicker (assuming the product does actually work). To not reveal that factor is being very deceptive.

Recently I asked my subscribers for testimonials and feedback. Below are some of the ones I received. Many of them seem like they would still be fine under the new regulations, BUT take notice of the first one. It is most definitely NOT what the typical customer can expect…not even close. This is one of the ones I’ll have to check more into.

Very few people ever generate $60,000 in 10 days. This means I’d need to contact David and find out more details about this before I could ever use it. The typical beginner won’t get that result. So how do I classify him and what sets him apart from the typical buyer? That’s what I’ll have to find out now.

"Terry Dean has played an instrumental part in my success online. His protege' instruction on Joint Venture Marketing alone led me to generate over $60,000 in sales in just 10 days! If Terry says "this is what's working", you can take it to the bank."
Dave Lovelace
Pinehurst, North Carolina
30DaysTo1K.com


Here are some of the other ones without specific income claims.
And a special thank you to EVERYONE who sent in a testimonial even if I don’t have yours listed here.

"As an Internet Entrepreneur...Have you ever felt alone? I mean REALLY alone. I felt like it was usually the blind leading the blind or me just solo on a journey to space...beating my head along they way. At last I had been granted what I was looking for. A Mentor that REALLY helped me. Other Mentors say they will personally help you but then come to find out that their assistant will help you at best! Terry personally emails you and speaks to you on the phone! He also happens to be a courteous, kind person who is full of integrity - now that's hard to find. I feel like I struck gold!"
Nancy Hayssen, New York, NY
LookSexyNow.com


It has to be! If your whole existence is about making enough money to support your lifestyle, that’s a very dreary life indeed.

Being an entrepreneur is about using everything you are to enrich those around you while living a life you love.

And someone who finds themselves in that position doesn’t want a “four hour work week.” Why would you only want to work four hours a week if you enjoy what you do?

When I first started online, YES, it was about the money. There was no question about that. I couldn’t make a living delivering pizzas or signing people up for credit cards in front of a store. It just wasn’t happening. Each month we went deeper in debt.

In fact I hated the very word “work.” It was what you did to just barely scrape by to get enough money to have fun. But today things have changed quite a bit. I do have a few of those “passive automated income streams” everyone talks about. And I definitely live below my means.

So why keep working, expanding, and growing in business?

It’s simple. You find work that is ALSO FUN. Without meaningful work, you will experience a feeling of “something lacking” in your life. In some cases, you can’t quite put your finger on it. It just feels like there is something missing.

On the other side of the fence, when you find yourself putting in too many hours doing things you don’t enjoy, you quickly burn out. In fact, I’ve found it possible to burn out on something you enjoy by doing it too much (I’ve had that happen both in work and in hobbies).

So there is also a point of balance in your life. Let’s see how long your marriage and family last if you all you do is work (and your health for that matter if sleep and eating habits are sacrificed).

A big key here is to find work you enjoy…that you have to pull yourself away from. Instead of dreading work, you look forward to it and love it.

The recent recommendations I’ve made for Steve Little’s PerfectBizFinder program can help you with this…

If you were like me and hated ALL the work you did before becoming an entrepreneur, how do you go about finding work you love and your life purpose?

Here are a few ideas and exercises that may help you.

#1 – Write your obituary.

I first heard this one back in college. Plan your obituary for decades in the future (be optimistic here). What accomplishments will you have made? What will you be known for? How will you be remembered? Keep it light hearted as you write this (don’t discourage yourself). It should be a fun exercise, because you’re going to the end result. Then you can work back from that point. If you’ve accomplish such-and-such by the time you die, what steps lead you up to that point? What should you be doing now?

#2 – What would you do if you could not fail?

If there was no chance of failure, and no one could stand in your way…what would you be doing? I like this question because it’s often our fears that hold us back from becoming who we really want. EVERYONE has problems with self-esteem in some area of their life. Where is fear holding you back? Open up a word processor and start writing about this. You may write several dozen versions of this before you come to the real bottom line (there is a lot of junk on the service from other people’s opinions, desires, etc.).

#3 – Who are you heroes and who would you most like to meet?

Who are your heroes? Who do you look up to? Why? What have they accomplished that you identify with? What did they overcome? What connection is there between them and your life purpose? You’ll often find there is some connection (although not always directly) between what they’ve accomplished and what you want to do. And remember, your heroes don’t have to be famous. They could be someone who influenced you in life. What common values do your heroes and you share?

#4 – What do you LOVE to do?

What do you love to do? When you’re doing this activity, time just seems to fly by. You’re in the zone where you time has no meaning to you. In business, you may find this only happens with a few very specific activities. How can we focus more of your time doing that (and outsource the rest)? In fact, I’ve found that most people LOVE certain elements of what they do already. Part of the entrepreneurial process is discovering those and finding ways to spend more time there.

#5 – What is your true purpose in life?

Open up your word processing program again. Ask yourself that question. What is your true purpose in life? Answer it. Then answer it again. Refine your answer. Just like a copywriter may write several dozen or several HUNDRED headlines to find the attention grabber, follow the same strategy here. Keep answering the question until you feel the connection…till it hits you emotionally. You will “feel it” when you’ve hit something that connects with you.

What to Do About It

Once you find your purpose, what can you do about it? While some people are able to accomplish this through their job, the majority find they have to become an entrepreneur to really let their gifts shine. Find a business model that allows you to focus on this. Then build a team you can delegate or outsource to for all the activities which don’t suit you and your gifts.

Click here for a resource to help you find your perfect business…

It’s not just about the money. It’s about building a lifestyle you love. And that’s not accomplished simply by working as little as possible. It’s about discovering who you are…and how you can best build sellable value for others.

The links above are to an affiliate program for the PerfectBizFinder manual and monthly membership site.

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Did you take it?

(If not, you’ve got to check it out – plus it’s free)

Wasn’t it impressive how accurate the results were?

When I took the survey, it revealed strengths that took me 5+ years to learn in my online business. If only I had something like this available to me when I started!

For example, you’ve probably heard about how being an extrovert is required for being an entrepreneur. I’m most definitely NOT one! I’m an introvert and proud of it.

Trying to FORCE myself to become an extrovert like some people suggest was frustrating me to no end. Hearing all the advantages extroverts have was always painful also. Instead I’ve learned to focus on the advantages introverts have.

I apply good listening skills to coach clients. Instead of working in large groups, I prefer private clients or small groups. I also enjoy working alone in my office on writing, creating videos, etc.

It took me years to realize my personality had advantages to take advantage of and let shine.

In Steve’s Survey, he goes into 6 core entrepreneurial compentencies. The extrovert/introvert is simply the first one. You may be surprised like I was when I first took the test.

I scored totally opposite of what most people consider to be an “entrepreneurial skillset” in several areas. Yet each of these areas has presented very specific advantages I’ve learned to use over the years.

Let his survey help you find and apply your strengths instead of taking as long as I did.

Click here now…

I have a copy of my full report printed out on my desk. I’d be interested in seeing your results also (and how you feel your entrepreneur personality affects your business). Feel free to share your results here.

I also want you to know that this survey is not even the half of what Steve has to offer you.

He is a 40 year veteran entrepreneur and he has made it his mission to help as many people as possible become successful entrepreneurs by finding and creating their perfect business.

Take a couple minutes right now and take the survey.

Once you complete it, Steve will send you your customized 24 page report detailing all of your strengths and weaknesses (also free)

He will then continue to teach you valuable lessons in being a successful entrepreneur like:

- The difference between being an entrepreneur vs. proprietor

- How to find out if you are a Lifestyle Guru or a Growth Maven

- The 11 Golden Rules to running a successful business

- How to master what he calls “The Value Principle”

- How to discover your Entrepreneurial DNA®

- Plus much much more.

You’ve got to check it out – It can change your life!

Be sure to let me know what you think.

Note: The above links are affiliate links to his free survey. After you take the survey you will also be offered his ebook and membership site (but no purchase is required to receive full survey results).

Recently I met a millionaire entrepreneur named Steve Little. After speaking to him for only a few minutes, I knew his message was right in line with what I’ve been seeing with the results of my clients.

He has created an fantastic survey which tells you all about your individual entrepreneurial strengths.

Click here now to go to take the free survey…

Then he teaches you how to leverage those strengths into the success you desire with a series of 20 excellent video lessons.

And he’s made what it all available to you for free.

Click here now to go to take the free survey…

Go check it out. It only takes a minute to get your survey results but the insight you get is invaluable.

Let me know what you think.

Click here now to go to take the free survey…

It doesn’t matter if you’re looking to start a business right now or you’re already in business, you’ve got to hear what he has to say.

Please note: The above is an affiliate link to the free survey and the course he also makes available.

As a matter of fact, you don’t even have to be in business to know that. Just watch the retail industry and how even minor holidays become major events.

Every weekend seems reason for a new sale. Obviously this is because these events are working. And they work online as well.

The below article was originally written for my offline business owner training guide. That’s why you see the references to restaurants, stores, etc. BUT these same pricinples apply to online business owners as well. Sometimes it’s to your advantage to LOOK OUTSIDE your industry for ideas of what’s working.

Big breakthroughs aren’t usually something totally brand new. They’re little variations created as a marketing strategy is moved from one industry to another.

This is one of those posts you will want to print out and keep on your desk whenever you need more special offer ideas.

Another one of my posts covered the 3 Rules of Making Offers. Combine that one along with the ideas from this one.

Here are 15 ideas to get you started in creating your special offers. The key principle to any offer is to give your customers/clients a benefit for taking action now.

What can they get right now which they don’t normally receive at your business?

Remember, it is never about you. It is about your customers/clients. Everyone is tuned into one radio station, “What’s in it for me?”

Offer #1 – Free Giveaways

FREE is one of the most powerful words in marketing. It makes people’s ears stand at attention. In Robert Cialdini’s “Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion,” he lists reciprocity as one of the key influencing factors. This simply means that when someone gives a gift, the receiver feels the need to give back to the giver. It’s hard-wired into our system. If someone gives you a Christmas card or a present, you feel a need to give back to them. This is also the reason why many charities send you address labels in their request for donations (this method has been tested and proven to increase gift giving).

The restaurant can offer a free lunch to a new customer. The optometrist can offer a free eye exam. The health club can offer a free 1 month membership. The chiropractor can offer a free first visit with x-rays. The dentist can offer free teeth
whitening. All of these offers can be totally free with no purchase required. Nothing beats the word free when applied to generating new customers. That $5 free lunch doesn’t cost much when you compare it to the restaurant with the $500+ Lifetime Value.

All you have to do is specify it is for new customers only to give you a try. The restaurant that just opens up could launch quickly by giving out the free coupons to business owners in their area as a gift to all their employees. The health club
can give their free 1 month memberships to the health food stores and sports clothing stores as free giveaways to all their clients. A consultant, lawyer, or accountant could give a free 30 minute consultation as a gift to all the customers/clients of a noncompeting business in an endorsed mailing or Christmas gift. A house cleaning service could promote themselves by giving away a free house cleaning as a mother’s day present idea (in card and gift shops, florists, and publicity).

Offer #2 – Sales

This is the “normal” offer for most businesses. You place items on sale or run your 30% off President’s Day sale. The sale has become the normal way of buying for retail businesses. Every single holiday elicits numerous sales. The newspaper is filled with sales for Christmas, Thanksgiving, Easter, President’s Day, etc. There is a reason why businesses have sales for every possible event. They work. People love buying at a discount. Collect the newspapers on Thanksgiving for the day after Thanksgiving sales.

You’ll see all kinds of tactics to get people in the stores. There are huge discounts, door prizes, free gifts, etc. Everyone is competing for the biggest shopping day of the year. A good percentage of coupons are also of this type. They may give $10 off or a 20% discount until a certain date. This type of discount can be used in almost any business. You receive a discounted price or percentage off the product you’re selling. A “sale” I’ve personally loved to do is to offer a discount on one of my more expensive products whenever someone purchases a lower cost item from me. For example, if someone purchases a $97 item, I may send them a $97 discount off a $497 item if they purchase within 30 days. In essence, they get the first item free for upgrading to the larger purchase.

Offer #3 – Private Sales

This is a variation on the sale, but it is only offered to a specific segment of customers. It takes the “exclusivity” motivator into account. Customer appreciation sales are common. You can send out a direct mail letter, postcard, email, or even phone call to your current customers. You alert them to a special sale good only for current clients. It may be a special on your website or something offered over the phone only. It could be a special they need to come into your office to receive on a specific date or dates. This is a good way to activate previous customers and to increase the Lifetime Value of your clients. Everyone likes to receive exclusive deals and to be made to feel special.

This can also be used when you’re marketing to a specific group of new customers. You could make an offer to all the employees of a business that works next door by contacting the business owner. You could run an offer that is only good for members of a specific group (senior citizens, college students, Lion’s club members, etc.). Many endorsement deals where another business endorses your products or services make use of some private type of sales. For example, you could have the business promoting you send out a letter for a special discount. Anyone who comes into your store must bring the letter and hand it discretely to the sales associate because no one else receives this private sale price.

Offer #4 – Free Trials

Let’s say salesperson A offers you a $1,000 vacuum cleaner. He tells you it will be easier to use, reduce your workload, and last at least 10 years or more. All you have to do is act now and you’ll get it for $500. Salesperson B offers you the same vacuum, BUT on a trial basis. He’ll leave the vacuum with you for free for the next 30 days. You try it out. You use it whenever you want. In 30 days he’ll return to give you the opportunity to keep the vacuum and make monthly payments or he’ll pick it up and take it with him. If you decide it isn’t for you, you don’t owe a penny. There’s no obligation to purchase. Which offer is more enticing?

With mail order offers, this type of trial offer has been proven to triple sales in many markets. This works extremely well for products people use regularly and won’t want to live without once they’re used to it. It gives your prospect zero risk and allows you to use the puppy dog close. “You don’t have to decide today. Try it out free the next 30 days. If it isn’t everything I say it is, just send it back. You owe nothing. If you decide it does benefit, benefit, benefit…just keep it and simply pay this price.”

Offer #5 – Two For One

This is another common type of sale you see in grocery stores, but it has much greater application than this. In retail it is simply buy this product, get one free. In other applications it can be used to double your customer base. The health club can run a buy one membership, get another one free to get two clients in the door. The restaurant can follow the same principle since no one likes to eat alone anyway. Magazines offer a free subscription for your friend when you buy one. Seminars often earn the same or greater profits from purchases at the meeting, so they can run a bring-a-friend free promotion. The more people at the conference, the more they’ll make in back of the room sales.

This tactic is also used to increase the volume of sales. Buy four and get one free. Nobody might ever want to buy four of something, but the bonus one convinces them to go all out and increase the overall sale value. You may test this type of upsell offer for your business. Whenever someone purchases one bottle of whatever, offer them a free bonus one if they upgrade to a purchase of three.

Offer #6 – Better Terms

We’ve been trained to think in terms of monthly payments. You pay for your house in monthly payments. You pay for your car in monthly payments. In many cases, people don’t even think in overall price anymore. They simply think about the low monthly payments and how much they can afford. Many businesses simply take this low monthly payment road as part of their primary marketing offer. You can find sales with no interest for a year. There are low interest rate sales.

The business consultant can offer a pay as you profit monthly plan. The real estate agent can find the best mortgage brokers for lower interest rates for their clients (they wouldn’t earn anything from this but they’d increase the number of clients who could buy). Any retail store could offer a store credit card plan. The plumber could offer a payment plan for those who don’t have the money for an emergency service. Many lawyers offer contingency deals where you pay only when you win.

Offer #7 – Bonuses

Make an offer with special bonuses. For example, in the newsletter business you often “sell” the bonuses. A monthly newsletter may offer a set of training CDs as the offer for subscribing now. In the majority of cases, they’ll even put more attention on the free gifts than they do on the subscription itself. People want results now, and newsletters are products you receive overtime. So bonuses you can receive instantly work extremely well in this market. Sports Illustrated is one of the most well known magazines who does the bonus offer. They “sell” you on whatever bonuses you get with your paid subscription. It may be a special swimsuit issue, a phone, a DVD, a jacket, etc.

Whatever the bonuses are at the time, you’ll notice them in the offer they make. You’ll notice that when you purchased this course it came with a multitude of bonuses. You received bonus reports on copywriting, joint ventures, headline writing, and more. In fact, you should have noticed the value of the bonuses exceeded the price of the product itself. That was done on purpose and every one of the bonuses really does cost that much when sold separately. A service business can offer a set of other services along with the main service people purchase. For example, if someone purchases an hour of time from an accountant, they could give them a free tax savings CD or CD set. The printer could find and purchase resale rights to a copywriting course and offer that with a certain volume of orders from local businesses. The dry cleaner could offer free delivery and pickup for a certain size order.

You often see the bonus offer used in retail and restaurants as well. The pizza restaurant may offer a free 2 liter with delivery orders. Another restaurant may run a special coupon in the paper for a free dessert when you buy an entrée. A retail store may offer a free dust buster with a vacuum. A make-up purchase may come with a free carrying bag. The men’s body spray has a bonus shaving lotion with it (notice on this one that they’re also getting you to try another product). No matter what business you’re in, there is a way to run a special offer with some type of related bonus.

Offer #8 – Package Deals

This is related to the free bonus but comes at it from a different direction. The make-up counter may put together a package with all different items in it for a discount price. You get A, B, and C for only $50 instead of the individual total price of $75.

Automobile manufacturers put many of their most popular options together in package deals (such as off-road packages consisting of larger tires, chassis modifications, etc.). The restaurant may offer a complete meal for two including appetizer, entrée, dessert, and roses all for one price during Valentine’s Day. They could even make a “deluxe” larger offer at the same time to include the previous dinner plus a limo ride (through a joint venture deal with a limo company).

The basic and deluxe package deals can be applied to a lot of business offers. A vacation company could offer basic vacation packages with no frills. Then they offer the deluxe version including hotel upgrades, dinner at nice restaurants, etc. The electronics business could offer a home theater system package including surround sound, subwoofer, amplifiers, and TV (or projector system). They could also offer the deluxe version which includes high quality items across the board. The gym could package a membership, personal training sessions, and nutritional supplements together in both a basic and deluxe version.

Package deals also make great upsells. If someone just wants to purchase an entrée, you could tell them about your discounted three course meal package deal. The garage offering oil changes could offer a package of other routine maintenance items as an upsell. The pet store could offer a deal on dog food, treats, flea medicine, and toys all as a discounted package upsell. Any service business could figure out how to combine several services together to make their upsell package.

Offer #9 – Continuity Programs

Too many companies allow their business to be based off one-time sales. Look carefully at whatever you offer and figure out a way to build a continuity plan. The tree trimmer may get hired to do one service, but after doing the service they could offer their 4 times per year plan including the one today in the rate. My furnace and air conditioning company offers me a twice a year plan where they come in and service the furnace in the fall and the central air in the spring. A large number of mail order businesses offer autoship until cancelled programs.

The garage could offer oil changes 4 times a year for a discounted continuity rate. The nail salon or stylist could offer a yearly discounted plan for their services. Even the young person who has a summer job of mowing yards could offer a seasonal plan for every service. In each of these plans, you’re doing the customer a benefit. They’re getting a discount rate for buying the larger service program and they’re also using your services on the regular schedule they need. You benefit because you’ve locked-in business in advance. What way can you build some type of continuity plan into your business?

Offer #10 – Guarantees

You should find ways to build guarantees into every offer you make. The more risk-free you make your offer for your prospects, the easier it is to generate new business. If whatever you sell doesn’t work for your clients, they should have a way of getting it fixed of getting their money back. Risk reversal should be a part of your bottom line way of doing business. You can also take guarantees even further and make a special offer based simply off your guarantee.

The accountant could run an offer to guarantee savings on a tax return, or your money back (it then costs you NOT to use them). A company offering any type of business service could give businesses a call and offer a “try-us-out deal.” If the company doesn’t save money or make more money than with their current vendor, they owe nothing. The copywriter or business consultant could guarantee results by charging a small fee and then taking the majority of their income through a percentage of increased profits.

This could even be used outside of owning a business. Want a promotion in your job? Offer to work at the higher level position at your current salary for the next month. If you enjoy the new job and your employees see the good work you do, your salary can then be raised to that level. If either you or your employees don’t feel you’re right for the position, you can go back to your old job. As a business owner, don’t you wish you received that offer?

Offer #11 – Contests

Your offer could be based off a contest. Since you don’t want to be involved in running a lottery, this should be used on your free offers (consult with a lawyer for the legalities for contests). You can collect names for your new email list by offering a monthly prize. Restaurants collect business cards for a free dinner. Vacation and timeshare companies give away cars for people to sign-up to receive more information. Is there any reason why your business isn’t collecting names, addresses, business cards, etc. to build your opt-in email and customer lists?

On the Internet, you can run contests for people who sign-up through your opt-in email form. At your physical business you could ask for people to come in and drop off their information to enter your contest (getting them into your place of business). If you’re running a contest with very nice prizes, you can even use publicity to promote it for free around the area or in your niche market. Another idea is to have a “testimonial” contest where people tell you the results they’ve achieved from using your products/services in the past.

Offer #12 – Charity

You could run an offer based on giving to charity. All your proceeds from a certain sale may go to charity. Ten percent of all your proceeds may go to a specific charity. You could even have customers pick one of several charities for 10% of their proceeds to go to (for example, a Christian bookstore could offer to give 10% to different churches in the area). If you wanted to generate new customers/clients and were willing to give up all the profits on the front-end, you could offer your product to charities for free for them to sell by phone, in letters, or by door-to-door marketing. They keep all the money, but you generate a new customer. You can donate products/services to the charity auction to generate new clients.

A good example of this is a marketing plan used by Bill Philips of EAS who sells sports supplements. He wrote a book called, “Body for Life,” and all proceeds from the book were given to the Make-a-Wish Foundation. The book gave you the complete workout plan he used and then told you about his Body-for-Life contest where you get your body in shape in 12 weeks or less (they had other time frames as well). Everyone would submit before and after pictures along with an essay on their results. The contest was sponsored by EAS offering multiple products to help you achieve results faster (to win the contest and the prizes). This whole plan combines both charities marketing with contest marketing. It even generates “testimonials” through the essay and pictures sent in. It shows you how you can combine multiple offers in one plan.

Offer #13 – Events

Hold a special event as your offer. Get people into your bookstore through a book signing or a special author presentation. The Mercedes dealership could have a fashion show in their office. The restaurant could have a “sports” night with a popular sports hero. The website could run a teleseminar, webinar, or live conference for their memberships to meet a celebrity in the industry or simply to network with each other. The clothing store could have a fashion show or a clothing consultant to help their customers choose their garments.

Combine the charity offer with an event and hold an event at your place of business to promote through publicity. You could offer free advice on whatever business you do at a charity event. A real estate agent can offer advice on improving home values. The chiropractor could offer advice on taking care of your back. The massage therapist could give free massages. You’ll generate leads while helping out a charity at an event such as this.

Offer #14 – Limited Availability

The big offer you make may simply be how limited in availability something is. The consultant may only be able to take five new clients. The professional speaker may only have a few available dates left. It’s built into our natures to want what we can’t have. If you have loads of free time available to take on numerous new clients, no one wants you. If you can only take on a few new clients and are booked solid, everyone wants you. Part of your offer in any service business may simply be that you don’t work with everyone. You’re extremely selective and pick-and-choose your clients.

Disney has marketed many of their videos by offering them for a short time and then pulling them off the market for decades. If you don’t get them now, you won’t get them for a long time. The collectibles market is built off this principle. There is only a limited amount of this, so it must be expensive. Everyone wants it, but we’re only making a very limited number. Automobile makers design limited editions of their regular models. Toy manufacturers have found it successful to design a more upscale limited edition of some of their lines (some even create extremely expensive versions for the publicity to sell the regular versions also).

Your offer could be about how “exclusive” something is. You may create a membership for your best customers only. Maybe your top 100 customers received preferred status and seating at your restaurant. Your “gold” members may be the only ones who get special notices and offers in the mail. Your “platinum” dental members could be those that get immediate emergency service no matter what. People love to be appreciated and they love to be a member in an exclusive club that doesn’t allow just anyone.

Offer #15 – Free or Low Cost Information Product

This is one of my favorite offers for lead generation in service businesses of any type. You create a report, CD, or DVD on a subject of interest to your target market. For example, the real estate agent does a report on, “How to get Top Dollar for your Home in Today’s Market,” for sellers and a, “How to Find Home Bargains in Today’s Market,” for buyers. The account does a report on, “7 Ways to Save Money on Taxes That the IRS Isn’t Telling You.” The window installer offers a report, “How to Save 30% or More On Heating Bills This Winter.” The plumber does the report, “How to Keep Your Pipes From Freezing in the Cold Winter Months.”

You then offer your report free in your advertising, in your Yellow page ads, on your website, and through free publicity. Your goal is to brand yourself as the expert on your market. It also puts you in an entirely different light from all your competitors. They’re simply out there trying to get money from the prospects, but you’re educating them. You’re helping them. You’re taking the role of an advisor instead of a salesperson. You’ll learn quite a bit more about this subject as we’ll cover it more in depth later on.

The accountant, lawyer, advertising agent, and business coach could have a special free or low cost seminar on how to improve the profits of your business while saving money on taxes and legal fees. You can send out press releases and do media interviews about your free information product. You could speak on the subject at local events. Everyone wants to deal with the expert, and you’ll also notice experts get to charge the premium prices.

Has any of the information on this blog, my product, or my coaching benefited you and your business?

If so, could I ask you to do something for me?

I’m testing a new feedback system which you can see below.

If you can say I have helped you in your business, please post below. Please be as specific as possible.

It can be for this blog, for a specific product, for my print newsletter, or for my coaching services.

After you post, it will also give you the opportunity to leave a voice message. You can leave your phone number (it’s optional) and the system will automatically call you on your phone almost instantly. After it calls you, simply record your message for us to use.

If you have a photo you’d like to add, you can also upload this.

As you may have guessed already, I’m testing out a new feedback generation system…

Any testimonials given will be reviewed first and may be used on the sales pages for those products or here on this blog.

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Today we’re doing it by highlighting some of the best articles I picked out of my RSS Reader to share with you.

An Open Letter to Marking Newbies

Ben Settle is an email marketing maniac. In this post he shares tips for the newbies to make more money online. Pay special attention to his last tip. Also love this one, “Consume a good “how to” product at least 10x’s before buying the next one.” There are very few books I’ve read ten times (Claude Hopkins Scientific Advertising is one) but I do go through the best ones multiple times. It shocking what you pull out the 2nd and 3rd time you go through it.

Another Reason Internet Businesses Fail: The Myth of Work Versus Play

Glenn obviously hit a nerve with his audience on this one as comments keep coming in. While I don’t agree with everything Glenn says here, he makes some very good points. Perhaps Glenn and I will get together and discuss this if you are interested (where I would share a little bit different of a viewpoint and how it relates to each of our personalities).

Which Subject Line Won?

Ryan Healy talks about going deeper than just surface testing of subject lines. This is an important one for EVERYONE who tests. You do test, don’t you? It’s easy to misinterpret the results or look at the wrong numbers if you’re not careful. Notice how he pinpoints something I’ve been talking a lot about lately – everyone on your list is NOT going to be a buyer. Write the ones who will be.

Website Redesign Pulls in More Sales?

A long time ago in a galaxy far, far away design wasn’t that important. It was all about the copy. In my recent tests, this isn’t true anymore. Presenting a professional appearance to your website is becoming more and more important today. Read about how Michel Fortin is currently generating 4 times as many sales by doing a redesign on one of his sites.

5 Social Media Lessons I Learned from Working With a Hollywood Actress

Some very good tips are included here. I especially like the finding your blog’s core purpose. Focus. That’s what it is all about. What is your bullseye phrase? What is your goal? What is the purpose of each element in your business? Don’t promote or do anything online simply because “others are doing it.” What is the right focus for you?

Yet affiliate marketing isn’t as easy as some people make it out to be. You can’t just post a few affiliate links and hope money comes flowing in. If only it was so easy!

Here are 10 tips to help you earn more affiliate income.

1. Look for Continuity Income

While you can make very good money promoting one time sales, try to find some continuity programs to add to the mix. Even better than receiving checks in the mail is receiving a check from work you did a year or more ago. It’s one of those ways you can generate long-term passive income in your business. You can have income coming in that meets all your needs from work you did in the past. Excellent way to grow everything else you want to do today.

2. Build Your Business First

This is more work, but I always recommend you build your OWN authority site in the market you’re working in. Don’t just send visitors directly to the affiliate site. That works in the short-term but over time you want to build your own equity in the field. If one program disappears, promote another. As you grow YOUR business you can promote multiple related items. Instead of earning one check for your effort, you earn multiple.

3. Run an Opt-in Email List

This fits with #2. Build your opt-in list and your business. I’ve worked with several affiliates where our lead was getting them signed up for their list. Then we split tested affiliate programs to see which one was best for promoting immediately after someone joined our list.

4. Write Case Studies and Reviews

The “easiest” way to promote is to simply send out the ad copy the affiliate program provides you with. The only problem is this is also the worst way to promote. Instead the best promotion is one where you can write a case study of using the product yourself. What results did you have? Or what results did someone you personally know have? Second best is to simply review the product – give your opinion on what is both good or bad about it.

5. Offer Special Incentives

Why should someone buy the product from your affiliate link instead of anywhere else? That’s right. A unique selling position can apply to you as an affiliate just like any other business. Do an interview with an expert (such as the product owner) to give away to all your buyers. Or create a quick report you wrote to go with it. On a higher ticket item you could even include a consultation or some other type of personal service as a bonus for those who buy from you.

6. Leave Footprints on Other Sites

You’ve been told to write and submit articles. You’ve likely heard you can produce videos to promote affiliate links. But have you realized that those who do best are ALSO creating links to these footprints. For example, everyone knows that ezinearticles.com often ranks well on the search engines, but to help boost your article’s rank you should generate a few incoming links to it (such as submitting out another site using automated software linking back to your ezinearticles.com article). Then the resource box of your ezinearticles.com is linking to your site – passing more authority on to you in the end.

7. Track EVERYTHING

At the very least get Google Analytics installed on your site to see where your traffic is coming from. In addition you should ALSO be split testing your landing pages, review pages, and opt-in pages using a tool such as Google Optimizer. No matter how much we talk about traffic everything really comes back to conversion. The person who can convert best can spend more time and money in bringing in traffic (with better conversion you get “more time” by being able to hire more outsourced workers).

8. Hide Your Links

My favorite way to hide affiliate links is by buying a domain name and having it cloak. So when you visit http://www.MyArticleTraffic.com notice how it keeps that URL in the browser window, but it is for article submission software I’m an affiliate with. You probably don’t want to do this for every affiliate link you promote so you can always use a plug-in like Pretty Links to shorten affiliate urls on your blog.

9. Outsource Work to Others

With the emphasis on your own site, emails, and footprints all over the web you need a lot of content. Producing it all yourself becomes unmanageable as your business grows. Instead find the activities you enjoy the most and outsource the other work to others. You’re in an affiliate BUSINESS. Treat it like one.

10. Create a Low Cost Product

This one is a little more advanced technique but it is one of my favorites. Create a low cost product such as an ebook, audio interview, short video course, etc. Promote an affiliate program (or a couple of programs) in the course. Now you can build your own customer list through your product and make money off the backend through the affiliate programs you’ve included.

We can even move this to another level by selling reprint rights to the product you created. Now you have others out there promoting your course…and you’re earning the backend income from those who purchase from the affiliate links. If you find a two-tier affiliate program you could even have a higher reprint rights level where you allow them to sign up under you and change the affiliate link. Then you’re getting the overrides from their promotion.

And as you can imagine, now that you have your own product, you can run your own affiliate program. Even if you gave away 100% of the sales to affiliates, you’d be making money on the backend.

Check out the Ultimate Interview Product Solution for more information on developing your own product quickly using other people’s information.

…their ability to LEVERAGE.

More specifically, their ability to leverage…

1. Their TIME

2. Their EXPERTISE

and…

3. Their MONEY

To become wealthy you MUST be able to leverage your time, expertise and your finances.

The obvious and best way to leverage your time and expertise is to either…

1. Hire internal employees

or…

2. Hire external help (outsource)

You’ll NEVER build a big business without building an internal team or outsourcing to external help. PERIOD.

And when you hire internal help or outsource to experts you are leveraging your money.

The $100 you pay for outsourcing (if you’re doing it right) should produce $200 or (a lot) more in revenues.

That’s called leveraging your money.

This week I’m participating in a Telesummit series wth 14 other experts on how to Leverage Your Time, Catapult Your Growth, and Explode Your Growth through the power of Virtual Outsourcing.

Register for Free Now…

In the Outsourcing Telesummit you’ll discover exactly how to find, hire, and skillfully manage your own fully outsourced staff.

Some of the information the speakers are presenting is so exciting I’ll be listening to the audios myself.

Best of all, listening into the calls is free.

That’s right. No purchase is needed to listen in to these calls.

After you subscribe you will receive an opportunity to purchase the recordings and a transcript of each call for a discount price. These recordings will be available later at a HIGHER price.

But you don’t need to purchase ANYTHING to receive all the benefits (you do need to be there for the calls though).

My call is scheduled for Tuesday (22nd). I’ll be talking quite a bit about system development and running your own intern program. BUT don’t wait for my call. We have 3 speakers participating today.

Register now.

“Make the lie big, make it simple, keep saying it, and eventually they will believe it”
Adolf Hitler

Why in the world would I quote Adolf Hitler here?

Obviously he knew how to run a propaganda machine.

The quote above applies to a lot more than just politics (although it seems some politicians in both major parties are masters of it).

Where does this apply to internet marketers?

This industry is loaded with propaganda.

The myths are big. They’re simple. People keep repeating them. And many believe them.

The propaganda machines roll out…with launch after launch in our industry.

Here are just a few of the lies being told.

1. You can make money overnight.

This is probably the biggest one. All you have to do is buy the super-duper widget and money will just show up at your doorstep. Push this button on your computer and money comes out. I’m still trying to find that BUTTON! Must only be on Macs.

“If you’re not making a million a year online, you must be doing something wrong” kind of fits in here as well. Perhaps that’s not the business model you’re going after…or you simply haven’t been growing your business long enough.

It takes work to get anything accomplished online. AND it takes a heavy learning process. I can’t say it’s hard work, because delivering pizzas in a blizzard was much harder work than anything I’ve ever done in internet business.

But you will have to think. You will have to learn. You will have to grow. And you’ll have to face your fears (this is a big one).

You have to learn how to create and share value with others to receive income in return. That’s why no one is ever going to hand you a complete whiz-bang income without you doing anything. The biggest problem with “biz opps” is that people have unrealistic expectations. They feel they will never have to “think” again…just buy the system that does it for them.

Ever wonder why we talk so much about testing…and yet so few actually do it? It’s because testing requires you to take time and think about how each element works in your business.

2. You only have to work 4 hours a week.

Sorry to burst your bubble, but I don’t have a single client who works a 4 hour work week. Nope…not one.

The most successful person I’ve worked with who worked the least was putting in about 15 to 20 hours a week. And they worked DOWN to that point. They worked much more when they were getting started.

In my own businesses, I have several passive income streams I don’t “have” to do anything for currently. They’re enough for a full-time income, but they DIDN’T happen overnight. It was a lot of work to get them to this point. But do you realize that even if you get to this point, you’d be bored if you only worked 4 hours a week?

When I first read the 4-Hour Workweek, my first thought was that he spends more than 4 hours a week just doing interviews from what I’ve seen.

The book still has some good information in it on outsourcing and your lifestyle design, but the title gives people wrong expectations.

It can be done, but you have to build a lot of systems in place and work more than 4 hours a week to get it there.

Glenn Livingston recently wrote a post on his blog about how it takes 10,000 hours to master a subject (you can make money before this – he is talking about being a master at it).

3. Give your absolute best information away for free.

You’ve probably heard the expression, “Moving the free line” and “give your absolute best information away for free.” It sounds good, and it is true to a point. You should give some valuable and useful information away for free.

But have you ever purchased from a business that followed this principle to the letter?

I have a couple of times…and I felt cheated.

There are a couple of sites I feel have much better free information than what is in their products. I continue to subscribe to their site feeds, but I won’t buy from them again.

I think Jimmy Brown nailed it when he said, “useful, but incomplete.” This means the information you give away is useful and it will add value to your reader’s lives. Incomplete means they would get MORE VALUE out of it by buying the product you recommend.

What does that mean in a blog like this? It means I try to guide you and give you good information. People have commented how they have started profitable businesses using only the information that is free on this site. BUT you would get their faster and get more detailed systems in the products I offer.

I even try to mix in the informational approach into sales copy. All of my recent sales pieces include several tips that can improve your business right in the copy itself…even if you never purchase the product. That is giving you motivation to actually read the copy – not just skim over it.

4. If only you knew this ONE secret, you would succeed.

This is the basis of many information products. There is one element you’re missing that’s holding you back from achieving success. If only you owned this software program, it would all be solved. If only you knew this one step, everything would fall into place.

Yes, I know people have breakthroughs. I have breakthroughs when everything seems to automatically click once you realize a missing piece.

But take a look at EVERY breakthrough you had…it was a building process to get you up to that point. The majority of the time, the building process took place as you grew in one of the 3 skills we all need to master.

So it wasn’t just the ONE secret that caused the breakthrough (although it was worth whatever you paid for that missing piece). It was the whole PROCESS of learning to get to that point.

That’s why I tell people to MASTER those three skills: content, traffic, and persuasion. They’re the skills your web business is based on.

Yet, when you think of those 3, it sounds more difficult than just the missing piece. Throughout your business you will find many missing pieces that will enable you to move to the next level.

It seems to be a process we all go through. You work…work…work…and not much seems to happen. You hit a breakthrough and things start flowing, but you plateau. You search…and then over time find another breakthrough to move forward.

There really isn’t anything “new.” It’s just new to us. It’s a secret to us until we discover it.

5. There is only one successful business model.

Let’s randomly take 100 people who are earning full-time incomes online, put them all in a room together, and ask them what is the best business model.

Watch them fight!

You probably have already figured out I like using an email list (and blog) to build relationships, give content, and make sales. I recommend to almost EVERYONE that they should run a list.

Yet I have 2 coaching clients right now who don’t have a free email list. And they’re doing quite well online without one. One goes for a very low ticket sale to build a customer list (so they do have a list – but its only customers). The other one makes money as an affiliate directing people into affiliate funnels.

What about traffic?
SEO is best. PPC is best. Social media is best. Affiliates are best.
See the fight coming?

The key is finding the right business model that fits what you want to accomplish.

I love the post Nicole Dean published on Jimmy Brown’s blog about considering your lifestyle when making every business decision.
(no family relation with Nicole by the way).

Vilfredo Pareto first discovered the 80/20 principle in 1895 when he discovered 80% of the land was owned by 20% of the population. Since then we’ve seen how this rule can be applied to virtually everything in our daily lives. To put it simply, 20% of the activity produces 80% of the results.

This is NOT a hard and fast number. For example, if you’ve ever had affiliates promote for you, you know that 99% of the results are produced by 1% of the affiliates. So the number does vary based on the situation, but the principle holds true.

The majority of your results come from a small percentage of your actions. Which 20% of your marketing is producing 80% of the results?

This principle is the basis of the recent Adwords Bullseye product Glenn Livingston and I did together. Instead of focusing on ALL the keyword phrases and actions every is telling us to use today, we zero in on a bullseye…and grow everything out from there. This saves a MAJORITY of your time…all that time you would have been wasting on ineffective techniques.

It’s also the basis of some of my other recent articles such as One Way to Success Online. When looking at how all my most successful clients operate, I noticed each of them focuses on ONE primary content method, traffic generation method, and conversion method. They focus on the right method for them….their 20%.

When I discuss outsourcing, I’m always thinking about the 80% you’re better off outsourcing to others…those routine activities that drain your time that others could do for you. And hopefully you eventually move that 80% to 90% or more you can outsource.

How does the 80/20 rule apply to YOUR online marketing?

1. Focus on the best visitors.

I don’t know very many sites that have a 20% sales conversion rate…opt-ins yes, but sales, no. So the numbers are even worse here. Let’s say you knock a home run sales piece and convert 10% of your visitors into sales. That means 90% of your visitors don’t buy.

Why would you worry about the 90% who aren’t buying. Your goal isn’t to write your sales piece to them. It’s to write to the 10% you can convert into buyers.

This means you’re not writing to the 90%. You’re writing to the 10%. Once you start thinking about it this way, it eliminates some of the complaints about longer copy, “Well most people won’t read all that.” Nope they won’t. Ninety percent won’t buy anyway. We’re writing only to the ones who buy.

Even if your sales presentation OFFENDS some people…that’s OK if it resonates with the potential buyers. Quit trying to please everyone who visits your site. You can’t. All you can do is build your following…your tight knit group of members and buyers.

What features, benefits, and emotional end results are your customers looking for?

2. Focus on your best subscribers.

Recently a coaching client told me they received some complaints to a few of the emails they were sending out.

The first thing I told them to do in response to this is check those people against their customer database. Are the people complaining customers or are they just list subscribers who haven’t invested in their business yet?

I don’t think I’ve ever sent an extremely effective email that didn’t get a few complaints. If people emotionally identify with your email, they respond either favorably or unfavorably. If NO ONE is emotionally affected by your email, it probably didn’t do very well.

They may love you. They may hate you. The worst thing you can do is simply have them ignore you.

You want to watch the reactions of your core group here. These are those who cheer for you, buy your products, and recommend you to others.

You may be reading this and thinking, “Well what about those who haven’t bought yet, but they might in the future?”

It’s tough to judge those, but we do KNOW that the majority of your list members will not be buying…so the odds are against it. Our best evidence to look at is the response of those who are buying right now. They are our core group.

How do buying subscribers feel about what you’re sending them by email?

3. Focus on your best customers.

Eighty percent of profits are produced by twenty percent of your customers. Glenn Livingston even takes this further because he did out the numbers to find you could square the Pareto principle in this area. Fifty percent of your profits are produced by 5% of the buyers. Glenn calls these the hyper responsive customers.

Are you focusing your product development efforts and your offers to this 5% who drive the rest of your business?

These are the ones who buy everything you sell, join your high ticket clubs, and share your information with their friends. They’re the influencers in the marketplace who open the doors to dozens or even thousands of new customers for your business.

This is one of the biggest problems with surveys. It’s tough to pull out who are the most responsive people from those who won’t buy anyway. This is also why I pay so much attention to what my coaching clients ask questions about and have problems with. They’re my “hyper responsive” customers – they’re the ones that allow me to look into the mindset of my customers.

Always think about how you can create a focus group not of the general population…but o