I am reasonably certain that anyone reading this article is familiar with all the free online advertising methods such as the all-too familiar Sp-m emails, Classified Ads, FFA pages, Banners, Text Ads, Traffic Exchanges, Newsletters, Guaranteed Visitors, Paid to Read, Paid to Join, Link Swaps, Pop-ups, as well as many other types of 'In-Your-Face' advertising, some of which may have been dreamed up since this article was written.
What I would like you to consider is this: What do you think when you see this kind of stuff yourself? More to the point, what is your 'Frame of Mind' at that moment?
My guess is you think, "Here we go again..." and your shields go up. You pull up your waders and trudge on through, oblivious to the thousands of messages ricocheting off your armor as you collect a few more hits for your own website promotion or product offer.
With Millions of would be online Millionaires doing this hour after hour and day after day, is it any wonder that the Internet slows down to a crawl and even stops at times?
Now consider the "Frame of Mind" of a visitor that came looking for you to see what you are doing. Maybe even to ask a few questions and give you permission to email them. Does this sound like a more productive environment?
The online equivalent to this scene is being played out today and every day and you can participate for free. It is called 'Social Networking' and more information on this is easily found with your favorite search engine.
Imagine if you are no longer perceived as another 'Salesman' but as a "Fellow Business Person" with similar problems and often good ideas for their solutions. Much like Napoleon Hill wrote about in his world renown-book, "Think and Grow Rich", you could be a team member of a virtual Mastermind Group. Chamber of Commerce Mixers have been an example of this approach for years and have been very successful for some who get it. Now you can accomplish nearly the same thing for your home business from your own computer.
Keep in mind, this should not be just another place to plaster your links. The strongest relationships are formed by giving first. Do a mental inventory and come up with something you know or have that would help others more than yourself. Find a way to offer it with no strings attached, no signup or email address required, just give it freely. I know it sounds crazy in this dog-eat-dog world, but trust me it works.
Alright, now it is all up to you. Continue contributing to the degradation of Internet bandwidth with the huge numbers of attempts required (many not even reaching their target) to get a single response, or try something that builds future relationships with new friends that are truly interested in what you are doing and not just trying to sell you something.
Monday, February 28, 2011
Thursday, February 17, 2011
Advertise to millions - Multiple marketing techniques
It has been said that “what matters is not what you sell but how you promote it.” So, the secret to success lays within your marketing techniques. That’s why it is very important for business owners to develop skills which allow them to increase the sales of their products.
One of the most important skills you must have is the ability to reach a lot of people quickly. To do this you need to realize how powerful media is an how it can drastically increase your revenues.
– Newspaper ads –
Americans read their newspapers a lot, that’s a fact. Check the statistics and you will realize that the newspaper have always being a good place to advertise. Depending on the kind of products or services that you sell you could use the American’s newspapers to generate new sources of income for your business.
It doesn’t matter whether you live in the USA or not. For example if you own an international e-business this could bring you good profits. I think this is another way you can diversify your marketing strategies.
There is a website called Nationwide Newspapers http://www.nationwideadvertising.com/, which allow you to post your ad in thousands and even millions of papers all around the country for a low fee. Imagine how much publicity you can get from that! You choose your budget and everything. They have different advertising packages to suit different business needs.
Whatever you choose to market, always use powerful phrases in your messages. The most effective ads are brief but they have the ability to act upon the feelings of the readers. Motivate them, intrigue them, make them feel the heat. Always remember that short phrases with a strong emotional impact are the most effective ones.
– Highway billboards –
If you want to advertise outdoor some companies may help you with this project like for example http://www.billboard-ads.com/. Keep in mind that this is an expensive type of advertisement. To rent an ad space on a well populated area will usually cost you a few thousand dollars per month.
On the other hand, I think the best choice you have is to buy a piece of land in or near a mayor highway and set everything up by yourself. Learn about the laws and regulations in your specific state. Probably the most important agency you will have to contact is your state Department of Transportation.
Visit http://www.tdot.state.tn.us/links.htm to find your state agency. They can give you specific information about this subject. Basically you will have to fill out an application where you affirm that you own the land where the billboard will be placed and you will pay an annual fee which may range from $100 to $500 depending on the state you live. To have someone design and create the ad for you will cost you $1,000 to $3,000. That’s a one time fee you will pay.
How much publicity can you get from this? A lot! But it all depends on your ad’s location. If your ad is next to a highway with a high traffic volume, let’s say that on average 45,000 different drivers travels through said highway everyday, then there will be more than a million individuals watching it every month.
That’s a lot, but to be honest with you, this kind of advertisement works better for local businesses like nearby restaurants or real estate Companies than for other kinds of businesses. Also transnational corporations with a large advertising budget, which would like to build reputation would want to have many billboard ads across the nation.
Small business owners usually prefer to market their products using other less expensive techniques. Anyway, I included this information here because I thought some of you would like to read about it. After all this is another way you can reach a vast amount of individuals in an everyday basis.
– TV Commercials –
To advertise on television will have a powerful impact on your business revenues. Different factors will determine how much this marketing strategy will cost you. For example the price vary depending on the channels you choose, how often you will advertise, etc.
There are some Companies which can help you reach your clients easily. I think the two most popular are http://www.nationaltvspots.com/ and http://www.metromarkcorp.com/. In National TV Spots some marketing packages start as low as $26 for a 30 seconds spot. This is other way to diversify your marketing techniques.
– Magazine Ads –
You can advertise on magazines and save up to 80% off the regular price. There is a company called Media Bids - http://www.mediabids.com, which allow you to meet other marketers as well as to choose among different marketing packages available. The service is free. You only pay for an ad if you choose to make a purchase.
One of the most important skills you must have is the ability to reach a lot of people quickly. To do this you need to realize how powerful media is an how it can drastically increase your revenues.
– Newspaper ads –
Americans read their newspapers a lot, that’s a fact. Check the statistics and you will realize that the newspaper have always being a good place to advertise. Depending on the kind of products or services that you sell you could use the American’s newspapers to generate new sources of income for your business.
It doesn’t matter whether you live in the USA or not. For example if you own an international e-business this could bring you good profits. I think this is another way you can diversify your marketing strategies.
There is a website called Nationwide Newspapers http://www.nationwideadvertising.com/, which allow you to post your ad in thousands and even millions of papers all around the country for a low fee. Imagine how much publicity you can get from that! You choose your budget and everything. They have different advertising packages to suit different business needs.
Whatever you choose to market, always use powerful phrases in your messages. The most effective ads are brief but they have the ability to act upon the feelings of the readers. Motivate them, intrigue them, make them feel the heat. Always remember that short phrases with a strong emotional impact are the most effective ones.
– Highway billboards –
If you want to advertise outdoor some companies may help you with this project like for example http://www.billboard-ads.com/. Keep in mind that this is an expensive type of advertisement. To rent an ad space on a well populated area will usually cost you a few thousand dollars per month.
On the other hand, I think the best choice you have is to buy a piece of land in or near a mayor highway and set everything up by yourself. Learn about the laws and regulations in your specific state. Probably the most important agency you will have to contact is your state Department of Transportation.
Visit http://www.tdot.state.tn.us/links.htm to find your state agency. They can give you specific information about this subject. Basically you will have to fill out an application where you affirm that you own the land where the billboard will be placed and you will pay an annual fee which may range from $100 to $500 depending on the state you live. To have someone design and create the ad for you will cost you $1,000 to $3,000. That’s a one time fee you will pay.
How much publicity can you get from this? A lot! But it all depends on your ad’s location. If your ad is next to a highway with a high traffic volume, let’s say that on average 45,000 different drivers travels through said highway everyday, then there will be more than a million individuals watching it every month.
That’s a lot, but to be honest with you, this kind of advertisement works better for local businesses like nearby restaurants or real estate Companies than for other kinds of businesses. Also transnational corporations with a large advertising budget, which would like to build reputation would want to have many billboard ads across the nation.
Small business owners usually prefer to market their products using other less expensive techniques. Anyway, I included this information here because I thought some of you would like to read about it. After all this is another way you can reach a vast amount of individuals in an everyday basis.
– TV Commercials –
To advertise on television will have a powerful impact on your business revenues. Different factors will determine how much this marketing strategy will cost you. For example the price vary depending on the channels you choose, how often you will advertise, etc.
There are some Companies which can help you reach your clients easily. I think the two most popular are http://www.nationaltvspots.com/ and http://www.metromarkcorp.com/. In National TV Spots some marketing packages start as low as $26 for a 30 seconds spot. This is other way to diversify your marketing techniques.
– Magazine Ads –
You can advertise on magazines and save up to 80% off the regular price. There is a company called Media Bids - http://www.mediabids.com, which allow you to meet other marketers as well as to choose among different marketing packages available. The service is free. You only pay for an ad if you choose to make a purchase.
Tuesday, February 15, 2011
Subliminal Advertising - How To Use It
Some of us scoff at subliminal advertising techniques. We like to think our minds are entirely logical and immune to the influence of others. This just isn't true, as any good salesman knows. After studying the subject for some time, I have come to accept that I will not just buy things, but I will be "sold" things, even by way of subliminal techniques.
What I CAN do is learn the techniques that are used on me. Then, if I want to, I can use them too, when I believe it is ethical to do so. More importantly, I can protect myself from these techniques, or at least be sold the RIGHT things. Want to do the same? Would you like to learn a few subliminal advertising techniques? Start with the following sales pitch:
"Does public speaking make you nervous? What if it was easy? Imagine standing at the podium, knowing exactly what to say to make them love you. Wouldn't that feel great? Just apply our simple methods, and you'll have that power. Use the form below to order right now."
Okay, let's dissect the sales pitch, sentence-by-sentence.
Sentence #1 : Does public speaking make you nervous? This gets the reader to say yes, which is habit forming. Getting a prospect to say yes is a classic old technique that still works. It also introduces the problem, for which the solution is coming.
Sentence #2 : What if it was easy? This suggests the possibility of a solution, creating hope and anticipation in the reader.
Sentence #3 : "Imagine standing at the podium, knowing exactly what to say to make them love you." The word "imagine," gets the reader to do just that. Helping a prospect to create a scene in their mind creates desire for that scene to be reality, and creates good feelings too.
Sentence #4 : Wouldn't that feel great? This suggests a positive emotion and gets another yes. Questions involve a prospect more, and it is better to suggest an emotional state (by asking) than to tell a person how to feel.
Sentence #5 : Just apply our simple methods, and you'll have that power. The "and" is used to infer cause and effect (you'll have the power because you used our product). This is subtle way of getting the reader to accept the benefits of a product uncritically.
Sentence #6 : Use the form below to order right now. The last line directs the reader with "Use the form below." The "order right now" is called an "embedded command," because putting it in italics subtly draws attention to it, and influences a prospect without him noticing consciously.
This simple paragraph uses many so-called "hypnotic sales techniques." The idea is that by using the right words and techniques, you can put a person into a kind of "buying trance," in which they are much more receptive to your offer. Do these techniques work?
When I first learned about them, I used them to rewrite the subscription page for the Brain Power Newsletter. A free newsletter may be an easy sell anyhow, but I immediately started to get four times as many subscribers from the same traffic.
This is powerful stuff. Four times the response? I was either the worst copy writer prior to my changes, or these techniques really work. And I was only using a few of the dozens of subliminal advertising techniques available.
What I CAN do is learn the techniques that are used on me. Then, if I want to, I can use them too, when I believe it is ethical to do so. More importantly, I can protect myself from these techniques, or at least be sold the RIGHT things. Want to do the same? Would you like to learn a few subliminal advertising techniques? Start with the following sales pitch:
"Does public speaking make you nervous? What if it was easy? Imagine standing at the podium, knowing exactly what to say to make them love you. Wouldn't that feel great? Just apply our simple methods, and you'll have that power. Use the form below to order right now."
Okay, let's dissect the sales pitch, sentence-by-sentence.
Sentence #1 : Does public speaking make you nervous? This gets the reader to say yes, which is habit forming. Getting a prospect to say yes is a classic old technique that still works. It also introduces the problem, for which the solution is coming.
Sentence #2 : What if it was easy? This suggests the possibility of a solution, creating hope and anticipation in the reader.
Sentence #3 : "Imagine standing at the podium, knowing exactly what to say to make them love you." The word "imagine," gets the reader to do just that. Helping a prospect to create a scene in their mind creates desire for that scene to be reality, and creates good feelings too.
Sentence #4 : Wouldn't that feel great? This suggests a positive emotion and gets another yes. Questions involve a prospect more, and it is better to suggest an emotional state (by asking) than to tell a person how to feel.
Sentence #5 : Just apply our simple methods, and you'll have that power. The "and" is used to infer cause and effect (you'll have the power because you used our product). This is subtle way of getting the reader to accept the benefits of a product uncritically.
Sentence #6 : Use the form below to order right now. The last line directs the reader with "Use the form below." The "order right now" is called an "embedded command," because putting it in italics subtly draws attention to it, and influences a prospect without him noticing consciously.
This simple paragraph uses many so-called "hypnotic sales techniques." The idea is that by using the right words and techniques, you can put a person into a kind of "buying trance," in which they are much more receptive to your offer. Do these techniques work?
When I first learned about them, I used them to rewrite the subscription page for the Brain Power Newsletter. A free newsletter may be an easy sell anyhow, but I immediately started to get four times as many subscribers from the same traffic.
This is powerful stuff. Four times the response? I was either the worst copy writer prior to my changes, or these techniques really work. And I was only using a few of the dozens of subliminal advertising techniques available.
Thursday, February 10, 2011
Advertising Defined, What's It Good For And How An Online Campaign Can Really Save You Big Bucks
A variety of definitions of advertising exist but the best I've found yet to cover what advertising is can be summed up in the following 2 statements:
ad•ver•tis•ing n.: The activity of attracting public attention to a product or business, as by paid announcements in the print, broadcast, or electronic media.
Also defined as "the non personal communication of information through various media, paid for by the advertiser and is usually convincing in nature about the need to buy products and services" - the advertisers of course.
Advertising your company's products and services to your targeted audience is essential to maintain a long lasting and prosperous relationship. If you're not continually winning your customers over than the competition will.
So, What Does An Advertising Agency Do?
If your business can afford it an advertising agency will really help you allot. Advertising agencies spend all day long just doing advertising for various businesses. They will already know the cost/thousand numbers of the various media available in your area, they'll also have a good idea of what will or will not work well for your type of business. This will come at a price but will definitely be the short track to your businesses success, unless your time is not worth much to you, and in that case go ahead and waste it if you'd like. (:--) A successful advertising campaign will strongly depend on how the advertising agency has designed your advertisements; therefore I've provided the following help.
Tips For Choosing An Advertising Agency
1) The popularity and reputation of the advertising agency
2) The charges / work ration of the advertising agency
3) The working efficiency of the advertising agency
The longevity and overall success of your business can be obtained by the help of a good advertising agency saving you precious time and huge amounts of money should you not know what your doing.
The Latest Types Of Advertising
Now a days advertising on the internet has become a very popular and effective tool to promote and reach your target audience. Known as digital advertising, pay per click advertising or internet advertising marketing, the benefits are huge. Considering the cost savings of knowing ahead of time what the consumer response of one advertisement over the other is will be essential information to a great ad campaign.
With an online advertising campaign you have the immediate benefit of testing of your campaign rather than waiting till it's over with traditional media. Through text advertisement programs like Google Adwords for example you can have a campaign up and running within minutes to test how well various words will be clicked. You can than test this further to ensure the clients that are going to your site are the type of customers you want and not just "tire kickers" so to speak.
Once your online advertisement campaign is able to draw the right clientele you'll be in a better position to launch an offline, more expensive traditional style advertising campaign.
An online advertising agency can help you plan, design and implement internet advertising of your products and services to take the confusion out of the web if online advertising is new to you.
Many advertising careers exist and have for years. With the advent of the net of course a new stream of advertising career has been opened up for those desiring to work from their computer rather than the traditional face to face approach. Myself, I recommend a combination of both online and offline for total success of your business.
ad•ver•tis•ing n.: The activity of attracting public attention to a product or business, as by paid announcements in the print, broadcast, or electronic media.
Also defined as "the non personal communication of information through various media, paid for by the advertiser and is usually convincing in nature about the need to buy products and services" - the advertisers of course.
Advertising your company's products and services to your targeted audience is essential to maintain a long lasting and prosperous relationship. If you're not continually winning your customers over than the competition will.
So, What Does An Advertising Agency Do?
If your business can afford it an advertising agency will really help you allot. Advertising agencies spend all day long just doing advertising for various businesses. They will already know the cost/thousand numbers of the various media available in your area, they'll also have a good idea of what will or will not work well for your type of business. This will come at a price but will definitely be the short track to your businesses success, unless your time is not worth much to you, and in that case go ahead and waste it if you'd like. (:--) A successful advertising campaign will strongly depend on how the advertising agency has designed your advertisements; therefore I've provided the following help.
Tips For Choosing An Advertising Agency
1) The popularity and reputation of the advertising agency
2) The charges / work ration of the advertising agency
3) The working efficiency of the advertising agency
The longevity and overall success of your business can be obtained by the help of a good advertising agency saving you precious time and huge amounts of money should you not know what your doing.
The Latest Types Of Advertising
Now a days advertising on the internet has become a very popular and effective tool to promote and reach your target audience. Known as digital advertising, pay per click advertising or internet advertising marketing, the benefits are huge. Considering the cost savings of knowing ahead of time what the consumer response of one advertisement over the other is will be essential information to a great ad campaign.
With an online advertising campaign you have the immediate benefit of testing of your campaign rather than waiting till it's over with traditional media. Through text advertisement programs like Google Adwords for example you can have a campaign up and running within minutes to test how well various words will be clicked. You can than test this further to ensure the clients that are going to your site are the type of customers you want and not just "tire kickers" so to speak.
Once your online advertisement campaign is able to draw the right clientele you'll be in a better position to launch an offline, more expensive traditional style advertising campaign.
An online advertising agency can help you plan, design and implement internet advertising of your products and services to take the confusion out of the web if online advertising is new to you.
Many advertising careers exist and have for years. With the advent of the net of course a new stream of advertising career has been opened up for those desiring to work from their computer rather than the traditional face to face approach. Myself, I recommend a combination of both online and offline for total success of your business.
Saturday, February 5, 2011
The Secrets of Google Adsense
It is no surprise that Google Adsense still remain the top favorable income source for most Webmasters. However, as Google implement changes to the advertisement format and behavior, there were considerably a number of Webmasters who are upset about these changes that eventually reduces their earnings.
In order to stay unaffected by the constant changes enforced by Google, a Webmaster has to go back to the basics – creating value to the users. This article will illustrate how you can go about creating valuable content and eventually, pulling in at least hundreds dollars from Google Adsense.
First, the most important factor is to attract the right type of traffic. It makes no use having 100,000 regular visitors per day to your site as compared to 50,000 unique and first-time visitors. Most regular visitors will not click your advertisement. This explains why most blogs with most of its traffic coming from bookmarks do not perform using Google Adsense.
There is only one type of traffic that convert the best for Adsense earnings – Search Engine traffic. Most clicks on the advertisement are triggered by first-time visitors especially if they were referred from search engines. Therefore, in order to increase your earnings for Adsense, focus on Search Engine Optimization. Some of the proven optimization techniques include titles shortening, keywords allocation, article submission and social bookmarking for gaining links popularity.
Another critical impact is the advertisement format. Despite all the various school of thoughts, the most effective format is one that is able to blend into your content and appears natural (in terms of content, colors and fonts). Advertisement placed in boxes also perform better than when they were in the rectangles. Advertisements that are placed above fold also did a good job attracting clicks. However, you should limit the advertisement to 3 unit per page. Anything more than that will make your page looks unprofessional and low value.
One very useful tip to increase your Adsense earnings is to use the horizontal link unit. This type of advertisement appears like navigation menu and thus, making up most of the clicks in an average site. Most of my sites generate over 70% of my income from this particular type of advertisement format.
To summarize, there are only two things to worry about – Traffic and advertisement format. Once you can get the right type of traffic flowing into your site, you can then focus on capturing the clicks from the traffic by displaying natural advertisement.
In order to stay unaffected by the constant changes enforced by Google, a Webmaster has to go back to the basics – creating value to the users. This article will illustrate how you can go about creating valuable content and eventually, pulling in at least hundreds dollars from Google Adsense.
First, the most important factor is to attract the right type of traffic. It makes no use having 100,000 regular visitors per day to your site as compared to 50,000 unique and first-time visitors. Most regular visitors will not click your advertisement. This explains why most blogs with most of its traffic coming from bookmarks do not perform using Google Adsense.
There is only one type of traffic that convert the best for Adsense earnings – Search Engine traffic. Most clicks on the advertisement are triggered by first-time visitors especially if they were referred from search engines. Therefore, in order to increase your earnings for Adsense, focus on Search Engine Optimization. Some of the proven optimization techniques include titles shortening, keywords allocation, article submission and social bookmarking for gaining links popularity.
Another critical impact is the advertisement format. Despite all the various school of thoughts, the most effective format is one that is able to blend into your content and appears natural (in terms of content, colors and fonts). Advertisement placed in boxes also perform better than when they were in the rectangles. Advertisements that are placed above fold also did a good job attracting clicks. However, you should limit the advertisement to 3 unit per page. Anything more than that will make your page looks unprofessional and low value.
One very useful tip to increase your Adsense earnings is to use the horizontal link unit. This type of advertisement appears like navigation menu and thus, making up most of the clicks in an average site. Most of my sites generate over 70% of my income from this particular type of advertisement format.
To summarize, there are only two things to worry about – Traffic and advertisement format. Once you can get the right type of traffic flowing into your site, you can then focus on capturing the clicks from the traffic by displaying natural advertisement.
Wednesday, February 2, 2011
Flyer's Positive and Lasting Impression
Studies conducted have proven that strong command of communication skills is directly related to raising money, launching a new product or service and sustain a long-term business. Moreover, to get your business edge, your marketing tools are on the average level or greater. To excel in communications is the key to attract more people. Moreover, when you make promotional items, say flyers, they must be well articulated.
How do you do it? Here are the steps to make a positive and lasting flyer..
1. Use a fragile hand in drafting the contents and the layout. Keep it simple yet daring so as to draw instant attention. Since flyers do not have much for a space, try using more pictures. They can also tell a lot about your business and your goals. With regards to your texts, use short yet catchy sentences or phrases. Just a few can catch the attention of a multitude. Build your message in a nice and honest way. Never claim false pretenses. It will just turn the enthusiasm off.
2. Create a center of attention. Flyers must have a catchy image or idea highlighted to immediately elicit eagerness on the part of the readers. Center that image or idea to give the flyer focus and dominant visual element. You emphasize it by making it bigger and putting more density.
3. To give an organized look, separate your images and contents using boxes and borders. You group your information and enclose it in a separate box. You can also use light lines to emphasize division.
4. Flyer printing services must be entrusted to skilled and expert printers. Be sure that the printer you choose is also a reputable one. That way, you can get your promotional item at the stipulated time and with the quality you wanted.
5. Once you have created a flyer, stick to it. Same message and design must reach other potential customers. To repeat customers, your message will be pretty much familiar.
Now that you have created a positive and lasting impression, expect a raise in your sales percentage.
How do you do it? Here are the steps to make a positive and lasting flyer..
1. Use a fragile hand in drafting the contents and the layout. Keep it simple yet daring so as to draw instant attention. Since flyers do not have much for a space, try using more pictures. They can also tell a lot about your business and your goals. With regards to your texts, use short yet catchy sentences or phrases. Just a few can catch the attention of a multitude. Build your message in a nice and honest way. Never claim false pretenses. It will just turn the enthusiasm off.
2. Create a center of attention. Flyers must have a catchy image or idea highlighted to immediately elicit eagerness on the part of the readers. Center that image or idea to give the flyer focus and dominant visual element. You emphasize it by making it bigger and putting more density.
3. To give an organized look, separate your images and contents using boxes and borders. You group your information and enclose it in a separate box. You can also use light lines to emphasize division.
4. Flyer printing services must be entrusted to skilled and expert printers. Be sure that the printer you choose is also a reputable one. That way, you can get your promotional item at the stipulated time and with the quality you wanted.
5. Once you have created a flyer, stick to it. Same message and design must reach other potential customers. To repeat customers, your message will be pretty much familiar.
Now that you have created a positive and lasting impression, expect a raise in your sales percentage.
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