Marketing Idea Shop

Internet Marketing 101

Today's question comes from Jackie Ford, who says: "I am about to retire and want to start an Internet business, but I cannot seem to decide exactly what route to take. Please help."

Many of you Brainy Marketers who visit here have learned a thing or two about Internet marketing, and I know they'll be able to help Jackie, too. Post your ideas and comments here.

And Lois says...

About half the people who sign up for my Brainy Tidbits newsletter ask for help with Internet marketing issues, and the rest of my subscribers would like help getting clients (or generating sales from existing clients), creating a passive income stream or learning how to market their businesses without investing much money. So you're asking the million-dollar question, Jackie.

Everyone wants to make money like the big guys--Yanik Silver, Tom Antion, Jim Edwards and others. Some people make money right out of the gate, but many don't. What should you do?
First, research, research, research until you find a product in a market that isn't saturated, yet has a target market that's big enough for you to create a business.

The first key to making big bucks is having something to offer that is different than what others are selling. And the second key is to sell something that people want to buy.

If you're planning to sell marketing services, you'll probably have a tough time because there are tons of great marketing gurus. But if you discover that retiring boomers have fallen in love with iguanas because they are the coolest pet today...and you're selling iguanas, cute little outfits for them and all the supplies anyone could want for their pet iguana, then you just might be onto something. Not only can you sell the pet, supplies and products, but you can also start creating information products about how to take care of your pet iguana, how to provide for it after you die, where to buy the best ones and lots of other great information.

There are a ton of ebooks and seminars available for how to make money on the Net, but my favorite is Tom Antion's system that he presents in his ebook, Click: The Ultimate Guide to Electronic Marketing for Speakers. And if you want to learn his system in an intense, fast-moving manner, then I recommend his Butt Camp CD (so named because you sit on your butt and learn everything you need to learn to start making money on the Net).

posted by Lois Carter Fay @ 7:06 PM 4 comments

Internet Marketing Guru, Corey Rudl, Dies in Car Crash

I just heard that Corey Rudl, the Internet marketing whiz kid, died in a racing incident June 2. He was only 34, but he has left quite a legacy for us all. He set the stage for Internet marketing many years ago, and made it big before he was 30.

He's very famous for his Internet Marketing Center and "Marketing Tips" newsletter, among other things. He also created the "hover ad" program that I use on my websites to invite people to become subscribers.

If you'd like to read the LA Times article, you'll have to register first (it's free).
http://www.latimes.com/news/local/state/la-me-speedway3jun03,1,3734695.story?coll=la-news-state&ctrack=1&cset=true

Corey was newly married and full of fun. It's a sad day for all who knew him.

posted by Lois Carter Fay @ 2:14 PM 0 comments

Musings on a Tired Friday

April 15, 2005


Greetings!

Thanks for visiting my blog. In this posting, you'll learn a lot about me--perhaps more than you want to know--and I'll tell you about lots of things I'm doing that you might learn from, too, so keep reading!

I'm not getting much sleep lately. It's not just one thing. One would be easy!

Let me explain...No, it's not that today's tax day in the U.S., either. My taxes are filed and behind me. I hope yours are, too.

There are a lot of little things that keep me from sleeping, and a couple of bigger ones. You see, I'm a very light sleeper, so it doesn't take much to wake me. The only thing I can sleep through is snoring. And that's a good thing, since both Don and I snore like freight trains.

First, it's allergy season for me (hence, the snoring). I've always taken over-the-counter medication in the past, but this year I've been bothered so long--actually since January--that the OTC stuff doesn't seem to work anymore. So, I talked to my doctor and she prescribed Zirtec-D. It's a miracle for me. No itchy, watery eyes. No stuffy nose. No miserable, want-to-be-in-bed-all-day feeling.

But I think there's a catch. Since it's a non-drowsy medication--you know where I'm going with this, don't you?--I think it's one of the things that keeps me awake at night. Even though I'm dead tired.

Then, I decided it's time--after almost 10 years--thatI absolutely, positively MUST get off my hormone drugs, which I started taking because I had such severe menopause symptoms beginning at a very young age. And it was a last resort after trying every nutritional supplement, herb, tea, getting rid of spicy foods, giving up coffee (Can you believe I'd give up coffee? That was a tough one), keeping it 50 degrees in the house (yes, I'm exaggerating), getting exercise, trying to lose weight (an ongoing battle), and so on. So I went on the HRT replacement and--another miracle--in two days I had NO symptoms so you can see why I'm loathe to give up my miracle drugs. But then, a few years ago, the studies came out saying we shouldn't take the drugs for too long or we could suffer increased risk of various cancers and heart attacks. Grrrr.

So I talked to my doctor and she said to start taking the pills every other day, then every three days, etc., but every time I'd get to every three days, I'd start to suffer. And boy, do I hate suffering. That was two years ago.

So now I've decided I'm just a wimp and I should just get off the HRT cold turkey. (Is it hot in here?) Anyway, that's another reason I'm not sleeping like a rock lately.

Then, it gets lighter earlier. So the birds pretend they're my mother. Her philosophy was, "If I'm up, everyone should be up," and she'd come in and vacuum right next to your bed. So about 4:30, the birds are pretending they're my mother.

Right after I got back to sleep yesterday morning, the phone rang. Yes, it was a wrong number. But who in their right mind calls ANYONE at 5:00 in the morning?

Okay, so now it's 5:30 and my husband's alarm goes off. He never gets up at that hour, mind you. He's someone who needs to have the alarm go off a half hour before he's really going to get up. Me? I'm not so tolerant of that since I set the alarm for the time I need to get up and when it goes off, I actually get up. Maybe it's because I'm a morning person. Or maybe it's because I've already been through 18 million things that wake me up all night long.

So, the alarm goes off at 5:30 and my brain starts working because I'm so jazzed about all the stuff I'm doing in my business. Besides the client and pro bono work I have to complete, I just listened to a teleseminar where Frank Kern interviewed Yanik Silver, who I think is the best copywriter alive today. Of course, I haven't read stuff by EVERYONE yet, but he's my favorite so far. He has recently announced his Internet Copywriting Home Study package. It's amazing!

Yanik's new course grew out of a two-and-a-half-day workshop he just did where he charged almost $5,000 per person to attend. He recorded the whole thing on 15 CDs that you can listen to anywhere, 12 DVDs that you can watch at your convenience, AND four complete manuals with copies of his best "swipe files." (That alone is worth big bucks!) Plus--and this is the BEST one--when you buy the course, as a bonus, you'll get 3 copywriting critiques by Yanik himself. And that can make you millions. It has for many others. And he's offering a bunch of other bonuses, too. If there was one course I'd love to buy, it's this one. Why don't you read all the details here:

The Ultimate Copywriting Home Study Course by Yanik Silver

I've also been trying to revamp my websites to incorporate AdSense ads in strategic places for better results. I listened to Christopher Knight's recent teleseminar with Joel Comm, aka Dr. AdSense, about how Joel makes $500 a DAY with the program (yup, that's $15,000 a month. He gets his check delivered overnight!). And, of course, I bought Joel's ebook,"What Google Never Told You About Making Money with Adsense!", which I've read a couple of times and I'm slowly implementing his suggestions.

It's a fabulous book. If you're thinking about puttingAdSense on your website, I highly recommend this ebook. It's very practical. You can pick it up with the link below, but you'll need to grab it soon if you want the discount because he just let me know he's raising the price to $99 (from$79). But he didn't tell me when. So save yourself 20 bucks and buy it here now:

And then I start thinking about the fun, cool thing that Joel did yesterday. He set up a new website and sent all of his subscribers an email to check it out. And of course I did. You can check it out, too, here:


If you "buy Joel dessert," you can get a permanent link backto your website from his high-traffic site. For as little as $2. Or become a sponsor and get a priority link for just 20 bucks.
Well, I'm always thinking about my clients, too, so got him to put up a picture and description of Rowena's Double Chocolate Cake. (Of course, he wanted to do it because it's a great looking--and tasting--cake and he can "charge" $25 for that one. Who knows? Maybe some people will "buy" Joel one of Rowena's cakes. I did.)

Anyway, since Rowena's is one of my clients, I like to promote the company. It's owned by Rowena Fullinwider and the company makes the most delicious pound cakes and fruit curd sauces. Yum! I never have to worry about holiday gifts.I just go to Rowena's website and send a cake to my clients. And you should, too! Later today, Rowena will also be listed as a sponsor with its own link. Go take a look.

And just as an aside, Rowena's makes the most fabulous sugar-free cakes. They taste EXACTLY like the full-sugar versions and each piece of cake is only 5 points on the Weight Watchers scale. (Yup. You got it. I'm still trying to lose weight. 12 pounds so far. Only 35 to 40 more to go.) You can see beautiful, full-color pictures of ALL the desserts at Rowena's. And if you want to read about Rowena Fullinwider and how she runs her business so successfully, visit:

Success Secrets of Women Entrepreneurs

Okay, so another reason I'm excited about everything I'm doing lately is that I've got Janet Switzer scheduled for my next teleseminar, April 27. Why am I so excited about Janet? Because I've heard her speak.

I have a CD of her interviewing a woman from Minnesota--sorry, I don't remember the woman's name or the name of her business so let's call her Mary. Anyway, Mary is in the "hotseat" with Janet--just like YOU have an opportunity to do at my upcoming teleseminar.

Mary bought a business a couple ofyears ago. Her company updates and prints a library-bound reference book telling people how to start a business ands he sells it to libraries for $159, grossing about $85,000 a year.

By the time Janet finished discussing how Mary could "slice and dice" the book to make other products and create compatible products, like a subscription for audiotapes, separate books on start-up accounting for businesses, marketing, sales, and so on, and a mentoring/coachingprogram for $99 per month (the same as mine, by the way. See Marketing Idea Shop Mentoring Program for details.) ... Mary is aware that she can actually make about $300,000 a year MORE than her current income. It's fabulous.

And the seminar I'm holding with Janet is going to be just as good, if not better, because it won't be Mary on the hotseat, it will be one of YOU. You can read more about it and sign up here for
How to Build a Million-Dollar Information Empire.


And, I'm jazzed because I'm working simultaneously on three new products that I could use your help prioritizing. So how about taking this short survey for me? I'll take you about 5 minutes. I'd love your feedback on my ideas. That's it. Just seven questions to answer. Go here now and take the survey, okay?

And here's one more thing I'd like to share. You know, I like things that are fun. My daughter, Erin, sent me a website that is hysterical. Well, actually, she sent me a link to a newspaper clipping about a guy she knew when she was young because they both went to the same babysitter.

His name is Johnny Lechner. He likes to be called JohnnyLechner.com and that's pretty funny in itself. Don'tyou think? Johnny's been going to the University of Whitewater in Wisconsin for 11 years...as an undergraduate. He thought he might graduate this year, but he decided to postpone it because the one thing he's never done while an undergrad is run for president of the student association. Of course, he has more than enough credits to graduate--250 of them, as a matter of fact. Johnny, who's 28, used to date Rhiannon, a friend of Erin's, for about three years.

And next weekend, Rhiannon is marrying another guy. I'll bet her parents were happy the relationship with Peter Pan--I mean Johnny Lechner--didn't end up in marriage. Take a look at his site for a little bit of entertainment today, and don't think about dating him unless you're about 19. That's one of the things Johnny likes about being in college. The never-ending sea of beautiful, fresh 19-year-olds. Go here to check him out:

JohnnyLechner.Com

Well, that's about as much entertainment as I can provide today. How about doing just 8 quick things for me?

1. Take my survey and help me prioritize my new products. And if you want to tell me anything, there's a spot for that, too.

2. Go right now and sign up for "How to Build a Million-Dollar Empire" with Janet Switzer.

3. Go visit Joel Comm's site and feed Joel dessert.

4. Buy Joel Comm's Adsense ebook and get busy with AdSense.

5. Take a look at Yanik Silver's new copywriting home study course.

6. Take a tour of Johnny Lechner's site and be glad he's not marrying your daughter:

7. Reward yourself for getting to the end of this crazy blog post with a delicious cake from Rowena's.

8. Enjoy your weekend. Get some sleep for me. And keep in touch.

Best,
Lois Carter Fay, APR
Marketing Guru
Marketing Idea Shop
411 Rainier Road
Massanutten, VA USA 22840
Voice 540.289.3840 or 800.203.8660

Websites: Marketing Idea Shop and Success Secrets of Women Entrepreneurs
© 2005 Marketing Idea Shop, LLC. All rights reserved.

posted by Lois Carter Fay @ 9:38 AM 6 comments

Can "Traffic Secrets" Master, John Reese, Do it Again?

Today, John Reese, author of the comprehensive package 'Traffic Secrets,' is trying to do it again. That's right. He's unveiling is new edition of 'Traffic Secrets' and a brand-new website that discusses successes people achieved when they followed his comprehensive traffic-generating plan.

I was lucky to get one of his original packages. I say lucky because the original 'Traffic Secrets' sold out within 24 hours last time. And true followers of these principles have had amazing results. If you want success like this, read on...

I just received the letter below from John Reese (one of the few TRUE experts in online marketing). It reveals some shocking test results that can transform your online business forever. Because the info in this letter is so critical for your online marketing success, I am including it below, UNEDITED. Just as John requested.

I whole-heartedly agree with what John has to say, and I strongly recommend you act on his recommendations IMMEDIATELY after reading this letter. It's that important. (You'll find out why in the letter below.)

Lois
=============================
An Open Letter From John Reese
To: Every Online Marketer Who Is Serious About Flooding Their Web Sites
With More Traffic Than They Can Handle
Tuesday, April 5th, 2005 ( 8:34 a.m.)From: My home office in Orlando, Florida

Dear Information or Online Entrepreneur:

John Reese here.

Because the information in this email is absolutely critical to your online marketing success, I have specifically requested that it be posted for you WITHOUT changing a single word.
I have a very important question for you...

'Are You Next?' (Let me explain.)

A little over 6 months ago, I did something that absolutely*shocked* the Internet.
(And even ticked some people off!)

I unleashed a full scale marketing 'attack' and released my 'Traffic Secrets' home study course to the public -- a course that revealed how I had generated over 1.57 BILLION WEB SITE VISITORS to my sites since I started marketing online.

(And most of these visitors didn't cost me one single penny!)

You were probably one of the people that got *bombarded* by the promotions for my course. They might have even made you mad since they filled your inbox!

Many people got a little 'tired' of seeing news about 'Traffic Secrets' everywhere they turned. It was unavoidable.

And when the dust settled (as you probably heard) the course sold over $1,080,496.37 worth in the FIRST 24 HOURS.

It became one of the fastest selling marketing courses in history. (And probably one of the fastest selling courses on ANY topic.)

'Traffic Secrets' owners are now in more than 52 countries around the world!

Although many entrepreneurs quickly snatched up their own copy of the much anticipated course, several others were yelling...

'SCAM!'

'IT'S ALL HYPE!!'

'THIS SOUNDS TOO GOOD TO BE TRUE!!!'

Tens of thousands of people were extremely *SKEPTICAL*.

Many people were saying this 'Traffic Secrets' course must be just hype or some kind of scam because my marketing was 'too good.' They figured since the promotion for it was so heavy (unlike anything the Internet had ever seen) that the product must be CRAP and just some ripoff 'scheme.'

It's hard to blame these people for feeling that way...

The original marketing launch for the course was so MASSIVE that it really must have seemed like it was 'too good to be true.' And since the course was just released, not many people had a chance to actually put the course to the test and get results -- so no one knew if it really *worked* or not...

*** BUT SIX MONTHS CHANGES EVERYTHING ***
(It's actually just over 7 months now.)

The results are in...

Not only does 'Traffic Secrets' work for growing the traffic to any web site, but the course itself has already CHANGED THE LIVES of several entrepreneurs that invested in the course.
THERE'S NO DENYING *PROOF*

I have just released (this morning) a brand new web site that you'll definitely want to take a look it if you're serious about generating an income from marketing on the Internet...

On this site I have put together REAL success stories of entrepreneurs (just like you) that got their own copy of the (8) DVD, (5) CD-ROM Tutorial, 550+ page ebook, 'Traffic Secrets' course and put it to the test to grow their own web site traffic and sales.

And these success stories share *detailed* information about how the course changed their business forever -- many include screenshots of their web site traffic logs and even merchant account statements to give you PROOF of what they accomplished.

And this site doesn't have just 2 or 3 success stories...

It also doesn't have only 5, 10, or even 15.

THIS NEW SITE HAS OVER *100* FULLY DOCUMENTED SUCCESS STORIES!

And I'm not just talking about 'testimonials' where people give their opinion on how great they think a product is. I'm talking about true SUCCESS STORIES where people applied the course and got REAL RESULTS.

AND GET THIS!

These are just the results from the first 6 months or so. What's important to realize is that these people will be able to grow their business almost FOREVER by continuing to apply the strategies in my course.

So the new web site traffic (and profits) they have already received is just the BEGINNING for them.

Here are just a few highlights:

** Chris Pizzo skyrocketed his website sales from $5,552 a month to $41,195 a month, in just 6 short months!

** Brian Campbell raked in $43,890.58 in the first 14 days of January alone... with a BRAND NEW website that was less than 2 months old!

** Chris Hickman's website traffic soared from 150 unique visitors a day, to over 8,700 unique visitors a day! (That's a 5,700% increase!)

** And this is just the tip of the iceberg!

(Keep reading to find out how many success stories there are. It will blow you away!)

DISCLAIMER: These results are not typical. In other words, I'm not going to make some ridiculous claim that if you get a copy of 'Traffic Secrets' you will get the exact same results. It would be against the law for me to tell you that.

NOTE: If you see anyone online promising to make you rich, or guaranteeing that you will make 'X' amount of money, in almost every case they are breaking the law making such claims. So be careful.

But what I *am* telling you is that tons of people got my course, studied it, and then took action to apply the step-by-step system and *did* get AWESOME RESULTS!

You'll definitely want to check out all of the amazing success stories so they can motivate you to grow your own online business! (Whether you get the course or not.)

You can learn some great techniques just by reading the information that's on the site. (No purchase necessary.)

* There's over ONE HOUR of VIDEO and AUDIO clipson the web site.

BUT WAIT!

Before you head on over to the site to read about all of the incredible success stories, I need to tell you something...

I Am Going To Create *Many More* Success Stories!

I want to see THOUSANDS of other entrepreneurs have their lives changed forever! So I want to make you a special offer (you can take it or leave it. It won't hurt my feelings.)

If you go to the site and end up ordering your own copy of my 'Traffic Secrets' course, I'm going to give you some very VALUABLE (but extremely limited) bonus gifts--but only if you HURRY.

For The Next 900 People That Get A Copy Of My Course...

I am going to send them (3) All-New DVDs at zero cost!

• 'Business Building' How-To DVD
  - This DVD will give you a powerful A-To-Z training on how to structure and grow ANY online business.
  
• 'Traffic Conversion' How-To DVD
  - This DVD is all about tricks and techniques you can use to squeeze more cash out of your web site visitors.
  
• 'Affiliate Marketing' How-To DVD
  - This DVD is all about methods and strategies for making money by marketing other people's products. So even if you don't have your own products you can still make a massive income online.

But this offer can only be guaranteed for the next 900 people that get their copy of 'Traffic Secrets.'

And just to give you a FAIR WARNING... The last time my course was launched it sold over 900 copies in the first 16 HOURS alone.

So you don't want to delay on this if you're even partly interested. Check out the site *NOW* and read about all of the powerful, profit-producing strategies.

Get All The Details Of Over *100* Success Stories:http://www.trafficsecrets.com/lfay

Are *You* My Next Success Story?
Visit the amazing success story site and find out...http://www.trafficsecrets.com/lfay

Yours For Online Profits,
John Reese

P.S. YOU RISK NOTHING. Because you get to 'test-drive' my course for a full 90 days entirely on my risk. If 'Traffic Secrets' doesn't dramatically boost your website traffic and online sales... or... if you're not absolutely thrilled for ANY reason, just send it back for a prompt refund, no questions asked! :-)

So go here now to read the success stories and claim your own copy along with the (3) DVD limited set: http://www.trafficsecrets.com/lfay

This is Lois again...Well, that's it. Except that if you do decide to buy the Traffic Secrets course using this link, I'll throw in attendance at all of my teleseminars for the balance of 2005 for F*REE, a value of $359. So what do you have to lose? Get the course. Send me a copy of your receipt, and I'll make sure you can attend all of my 2005 teleseminars for f*ree.

Take a look:http://www.trafficsecrets.com/lfay

And watch for Brainy Tidbits a little later today.

To your success,
Lois Carter Fay, APR
Founder, Marketing Idea Shop, LLC
Brainy ideas. Better results.
411 Rainier Road, Massanutten, VA 22840 USA
Phone: 540.289.3840 or 800.203.8660
Fax: 540.289.3839
Web: http://www.marketingideashop.com/ and http://www.womenmarketing.com/
Email: lcf@marketingideashop.com

Sign up for our 3 email newsletters!
http://www.MarketingIdeaShop.com/subscribe.html

posted by Lois Carter Fay @ 10:07 AM 0 comments

Boomer Marketing

Sharon Sultan Cutler of MatureResources.org asked this for discussion our recent teleseminar about getting publicity with Joan Stewart, The Publicity Hound:

"Our audience is baby boomers through seniors. Since we are a small e-publisher with a for-profit business directory within our website, do you have any publicity ideas to get free national news stories describing how we can set up seniors in their own business?

"We will be offering seniors the opportunity to become their own bosses as independent business contractors at MatureResources.org to sell Internet advertising profiles to companies of all types wishing to reach local, regional and national consumers looking for their type of products or services. Sales territory is national.

"They will pay a fee for the start-up kit which will include training, sample consumer rack cards, promotional ideas, business cards, etc. Every sale they make will have an excellent commission structure, which is annually commissionable to the sales associate. [ Editor's note...I'm not sure what annually commissionable means. Does this mean the commission is paid annually, or the payment structure is reviewed annually?]

"Are there any news angles you can suggest? Do you have any ideas about what you can call this type of contractor as I realize it is not a franchise. A unique title like "Senior Advertising Consultant" or something really clever?

"I understand more and more seniors are starting new service businesses and this is a great way for a senior to become his/her own boss working for the benefit of helping seniors via resources, referrals, etc."

And Lois responds...

Let me see if I understand this correctly. You want to essentially hire seniors to sell advertising for your website, and you want them to pay you for the priviledge? AND you want to get P.R. coverage in national magazines because you are hiring independent contractors to sell Internet advertising?

Hmmm. There doesn't appear to be a news angle here.

But having said that...I suspect what you really want is publicity for your website in general, and you want to find some good independent contractors to sell advertising for you. Let's look at the question from these angles.

Sharon, what will interest the media is facts, figures, trend stories, and perhaps unique lifestyle stories. Do you run a weekly or monthly poll of your website visitors focusing on some issue of importance to seniors, and then release the results of the poll to the media? For instance in January each year, you might ask your Boomer and senior visitors, "How much did you spend on gifts during the recent holiday season? Is this more or less than in previous years?" Ask them to fill out demographic information, as well, so that you know age, gender, what part of the US or what country they are from, and whether they are retired or employed. Then tally all the responses and issue a news release saying "X% of respondents to a recent survey by MatureResources.org said thus and so about their holiday spending."

Each month, run a different poll on questions related to important issues for seniors, such as finances, love, marriage, being in touch with relatives, online purchases, and so on. The next year you can use some of the same polls and compare them to the previous year's results.

Create a Top 10 list of media, too. These would be the top 10 publications, broadcast outlets, and Internet sites that you feel your audience will frequent. Get to know the media and the editors and reporters who work for the media outlets. Focus most of your publicity efforts on them.

When you notice a trend in your market, notify your local media and issue a news release on one of the wire services: PRWeb.com, PRNewswire.com (requires payment) or BizWire.com (requires payment). Remember that sometimes local articles are picked up by the national AP or other wire services, so local exposure can be helpful beyond your community, too.

Write articles about trends that you are noticing or issues of importance to your target market and post them online. One great place to do this is with Ezine Articles. See if you can write a monthly column on seniors in your local newspaper. You may also work to get this column placed in other papers, or possibly syndicated, too. Remember that you will have to keep your copyright to do this.

Always include a resource box in your articles that links the reader back to your website. You can also include a statement saying you are looking for independent contractors to work with you selling advertising space, as well.

To get exposure on the national scene, you will need news that is of national importance, or you will need to create expert status for yourself, and then work your way up the "media food chain." That is, you'll need to publish the information locally, then regionally, then a bit wider, and finally nationally. To create expert status, follow the steps listed in the free white paper from the National Speakers Association (link is halfway down the page on left), "The Expertise Imperative White Paper."

I'm afraid that you will likely have to run paid advertising to find your advertising reps. But you can add a link to your website, "Job Opportunities," and have it link to a page that provides more information. That would be an easy way to begin recruiting sales reps.

I hope this helps. Good luck with your publicity efforts.

posted by Lois Carter Fay @ 8:43 AM 0 comments

How Do I Get Advertisers for My Mail-Order Book Catalog?

Recently, Toni from Beaconhill Books Catalogue, asked for this help: "I circulate a book catalogue by mail displaying ads from self- and small-press published authors and writer-related businesses. These same ads are also published FREE on my website. I have trouble getting enough authors/advertisers signed up to finance the mailing. I would love some tips on how to achieve this. I have been on list-servs for self-published authors for the last couple of years. Thanks for whatever advice you can share."

Joan Stewart, The Publicity Hound writes: You must explain the benefits of advertising with you. Here are ways to do that:

--> In your catalogue, include testimonials from ad buyers who have gotten great results from their ads. Tell them to be specific when offering testimonials. How much more did they sell as a result of the ad? And be sure to use their real names and where they're from. Anonymous testimonials are worthless.
--> Include a sales page at your website listing all the benefits of advertising in your catalogue. How many people does it reach? Are they decision-makers? What kinds of products and services do they buy?
--> What's the benefit of the catalogue? Does it simply list books for sale? Or does it also include great free content that will help the catalogue readers solve a particular problem? Once the catalogue becomes more valuable to the readers, they will start paying more attention to the ads.

And Lois offers this...Authors and publishers often have little money to spend on advertising, but they are willing to do it if the return looks like it will be worth it. I have a few ideas for you.

==> Create a contest with the grand prize a high-value advertising package. Publicize it to your in-house list, through other ezines, and on PRWeb .
==> Get to know other companies whose target market is the same as yours. Create a creative, joint marketing effort.
==> Start doing a one-topic (therefore, not too burdensome) ezine (opt-in, of course) and promote your book catalogue in each issue.
==> Create an announcement of your soon-to-be published catalogue and submit it to Dan Poynter for inclusion in his newsletter.
==> Advertise in ezines that have a similar target market.
==> Get to know Annie Jennings, Dan Janal and other PR consultants who work specifically with authors and publishers.
==> Create a compelling direct-mail postcard campaign and send it to small publishers.
==> Attend tradeshows that small publishers and authors attend. Get on a speaking panel, if possible.You can also learn lots of ways to help you improve your selling by reading the ebook I wrote with Jim Wilson, "Sales Success! Strategies for Women." Click on the link and read more about it or download it and be learning new ideas in just minutes.

posted by Lois Carter Fay @ 2:58 PM 4 comments

How Can a Creative Services Rep Attract Clients?

Recently, Kay Johnson-Suglia, a creative services rep for ad agencies in the New York City area, wrote: "For about the last 10 years I've been enmeshed in production, account direction and business development for agencies in the interactive/Internet industry. As of April3, 2005, I am going out on my own and focusing solely on business development. I've taken this route to establish a work-from-home business and to have more control over what I do day-to-day and over my earnings (I had pretty much hit a dead end at the agency I'm currently working for in terms of position and income potential). So I'm looking forward to all the advice and expertise you can share. My biggest challenge is securing clients (big brands, particularly those located in NYC area) for my clients (creative agencies)."

Robert Grede, author of "Naked Marketing" and owner of The Grede Company , replies, "When I worked in the ad industry, we secured new business by writing an industry White Paper." And Rob offered a special report on writing White Papers that you can download FREE here (You do need to go through the shopping cart to get this, but you do not need to fill out any credit card info).

Robert Warren, an independent marketing writer, writes: Niche very tightly; she's not going to get far at first by aiming for general markets, because she'll be up against far more formidable competition both in-house and not. By narrowing to a single lucrative sector, Kay can set herself up as a boutique operation. Her background in interactive technology makes that field an ideal start.

Second, be a networking monster - not in the "let's swap cards, let's do lunch" way, but in the sense that she knows everyone and just has an endless supply of personal connections and relationships. There's a certain individual here in Orlando who has built an entire business empire around just making introductions; he knows everyone, can get nearly anyone to pick up the phone, and so his firm does business development. Local companies hire his firm to open doors for them, and people nearly trip over themselves to get onto his radar.

She could do something similar, once again in a very tightly niched way; she'd want to start with her current address book. (One important point - this Orlando individual I'm talking about is known as a man of high caliber; he's involved in a number of charity and nonprofit programs and projects in this town. He wouldn't have the power he has without that reputation for integrity.) It'd all take time, but if she has the time to invest, she'd do fine by those strategies.

Joan Stewart, The Publicity Hound, offers these suggestions: If you want big-name clients:

==> Do public speaking engagements at events where these clients are likely to attend. These can include trade industry conventions and seminars, business networking groups, etc.

==> Write how-to articles offering free advice on how to solve a particular marketing problem. Offer these free articles to print and online publications read by the kinds of people you want to attract.

==> Publish an opt-in ezine or tip of the week that offers free advice on how to solve marketing problems. Make it the type of publication that is likely to be read by your target audience.

==> Create tips sheets and booklets and give them away.

==> Ask people you know for referrals.

These are five of 25 ideas from "How to Attract Clients toYour PR Practice," teleseminar Joan did with Marcia Yudkin. Actually, the ideas can be used by people in any industry. You can order the CD or downloadable transcript. Read more about it here.

And Lois says: I suggest you call upon all of your contacts over the years and let them know what you're doing. Your first order of business is to gain the confidence of the advertising agencies you'll represent, assuring them that you will keep their information confidential and also how you will fairly handle divvying up the work since it's possible that you will represent competitive firms. You'll, of course, learn all you can about their specialties, what type of clients work best with them, and what makes them different, and be able to give thrilling examples of great work and success to your prospects.

Then, to interest the potential big-name clients, first pursue some that have big names but aren't actually national accounts, like the up-and-coming software development company or a large regional chain of department stores. Work with the agency personnel to pitch accounts as you hear about them, with you, of course, being the lead dog on the team. If you've done this successfully during your employee days, you'll be able to transfer these skills easily. You'll need to network your way in to the prospect's company. Learn to network in places where your prospects frequent and get a good introduction. Try to find the associations, organizations and networks where you'll meet the right prospects without lots of competition--like intellectual property attorneys association. If you are the only marketing person there, it will be easy to shine...and get those necessary introductions.

For more ideas on how to network your way to the right people, pick up a copy of the recorded teleseminar I just did with Adam Urbanski, "Secrets of Successful Networking." Read all about it and order it here.

posted by Lois Carter Fay @ 3:28 PM 0 comments

How to Get Your PR Releases Delivered

In today's spam-filled email world, it's sometimes VERY difficult to get your news releases and PR pitches to the media person you are trying to reach. These tips hold true for personal emails, too, so even if you don't do P.R., this article holds some important email tips.

Here are a few ideas to help you be more successful in reaching your target.

==> Write the release with spam filters in mind.
There are many words that trigger spam filters these days. Learn to write alternative words, substitute zeros for Os or add * in the word to avoid the spam trap. You can find out which words are likely to be a problem in this excellent list provided by Dr. Wilson.

==> Check your content to see what your spam filter rating is.
There are free sources to check your email. One of them is Lyris Content Checker, which checks it against the SpamAssassin database.

==> Send each email individually, not as a CC or BCC.
The CC function allows everyone to see who you sent your email to so you definitely don't want to do that. The reporters will get irritated when they see you have sent it to all of their competitors. As my grandmother used to say,"It's better to keep some things to yourself."

The BCC function allows you to hide the list of recipients from everyone who receives the email, but it doesn't hide it from the email programs and filters. These programs know that you are sending a BCC message to a list, and if you send it to 10 or more, it will automatically trigger the spam filter.

You can send your emails efficiently from many database programs. I use ACT! and it allows me to not only send to a group, with each email going individually, but it also keeps track of what I sent to whom.

There are also systems available, like the one I use to deliver my ezines, designed to send hundreds and thousands of emails all at the same time. And the best thing is, you can tailor your release to add personal details about each recipient, such as their name and the industry they cover.

==> Include the recipient's name in the subject line.
When someone sends me an email that begins, "Lois,...", I pay attention. I know that this person either knows me or I have subscribed to their ezine or asked to have them communicate with me for some reason. And I NEVER report these people as spammers. If I don't want to continue receiving information from them, I politely unsubscribe or email them to take me off their list.
Think about it. You respond better when someone uses your name, don't you? It's a terrific way to get someone's attention.

==> Include [News] or [Pitch] in brackets at the beginning of the subject line.
Again, you need to give the reporter an easy way to spot your news as legitimate. So tell them up front you are sending them news or a pitch and watch your email delivery rate soar.

==> Include the reporter's column or beat in the first paragraph.
A reporter is always going to pay more attention to your pitch if you are one of their faithful readers. If you start out your email with something like, "Jane, in last week's Tech Tips for Consumers column, you said...", you will surely get the reporter's attention.

==> Include all your contact information
Nothing's worse than getting an email that you want to respond to immediately and having no way to contact the person except by email. Give the reporter all your phone numbers. And don't forget your physical address and website domain. Make it easy for them to contact you.

==> Never include any attachments.
Unless you've been living in a cave without Internet access, you know that attachments are the way that most worms and viruses are spread on the Net. Windows XP strips off most attachments, and most corporate entities don't allow attachments to come through their systems. They can even get you blacklisted so your emails cannot get through. So don't be stupid. Don't send attachments unless someone asks for them.

==> Provide a link to your website to download photos, graphics, graphs, bios and other background information.
Just about anything that you need to deliver to a reporter can be uploaded to your website. You can include product photos, people photos (remember to make them 300 dpi for print/ 72 dpi for online and in various sizes, so that the media can choose which size they want to use), bios, background information, sample chapters, and even an entire digital book. If the reporter wants you to send the product or a physical book, then you'll have to mail that, of course.

==> Always include a subject line, but never put "Hi" or"Hello" in the subject line, especially alone.
Emails without subject lines are usually spam, and those that say hi or hello are usually viruses, so no one is going to open them. Be thorough. Include a subject line.

==> Follow CAN-SPAM rules and allow an easy unsubscribe method to your email list.
Even if you don't include a one-click unsubscribe, you should at least include a statement that tells the reporter how they can get off the list or let you know that their beat has changed. A simple statement that says, "To get off this subscriber list, simply hit 'reply' and put 'remove' in the subject line" will suffice. And don't forget to include your name and address.

Once you have their attention, there are many more things you can do to position yourself as an expert. On March 23, Joan Stewart, The Publicity Hound, and I are doing a teleseminar to give you loads more publicity tips. It's called, "How to Use the Media to Market Your Expertise."

Read more about it and register here.

posted by Lois Carter Fay @ 2:44 PM 7 comments