I’m going to let you in on a very dirty secret:
There is one question that is being dodged by experts in EVERY market. Answer that question and you’ll corner the market, be worshipped forever and get more customers and sales.
If it was that easy, why aren’t other experts answering these questions?
It’s because they fear an informed audience. That’s outright silly! But, we’re not going to tell them that. While your competitors run scared, you’ll be getting more sales since you’re going to follow the steps I outline in the article below. You will educate your targeted audiences, get more website traffic, teach people how to buy from you and increase your sales.
Now, are you ready?
Step 1: Find the questions that are being dodged by other experts in your industry.
I can’t tell you what these questions are. It will vary from industry to industry. . So, how do you find these golden questions to answer?
* Go to Yahoo Answers and type in your keyword. Examine the questions carefully and see which ones keep popping up. If people are asking the same questions, that means that people have the same questions. There’s a need that’s NOT being fulfilled.
* Go to forums and watch what your audience is discussing
* Survey your clients, customers and list of prospects
Step 2: Answer the questions in as many formats as possible
For each question create a blog post. Do NOT date these blog posts – you will see why later on. Once you create your blog post, expand it into an article. Then, turn your article into a video, special report, podcast and audio interview. You should also create online press releases. If you need help with writing your articles and blog postings, I have templates that will help you write your articles in 30 minutes or less. Just go to http://www.StartWritingArticlesFaster.com
Step 3: Answer the Questions in As Many Places As Possible
* You should submit your blog posts to as many RSS feeds as possible
* You should bookmark your blog posts using Digg, Technorati and De.li.cious
* You should submit your articles to the top websites, ezines and article directories that accept article submissions.
* You should submit your videos to YouTube and Viddler. You may even want to think about investing in the TrafficGeyser.com video submission service
* You should post links to your blog, articles and videos on Twitter, Facebook, Myspace and Linked In.
* You should post your articles on social marketing websites sites like Scribd and Squidoo
* You should submit your press releases through PR Web or Webwire. If you use Webwire.com, all you have to pay is $20. But, I do suggest comparing the two services and see which one matches your needs.
* Videos teaching people how to buy from you or how to use your product should be on your website.
* When people opt-in for your special reports, ebooks or other free offering, you should have an auto-responder series that gets people to go back to your blog or website. If you have lots of blog postings that answers your prospects’ top questions – all you have to do is create a summary for each blog posting and send people back to your blog every day. This way each blog posting will get the visibility it deserves. And, by not showing the date, these postings become evergreen.
Follow these steps and you will increase website traffic and get more sales, because you’ll be educating your prospects, answering their questions and teaching them how to buy from you.
About the Author:
Article Marketing Expert Eric Gruber uses the power of articles to create online opportunities for Internet marketers, small business owners, authors, entrepreneurs and speakers who want more publicity, prospects and profits. Now, you can get his instant article writing templates that will help you write your articles in 30 minutes or less. Get 3 of his favorite article writing templates for free at: http://www.TryMyFreeArticleTemplates.com
Month: September 2009
One of the best ways you can grow your list practically overnight and interact with your audience is to host your own Teleclass. After all they are a low-cost, yet simple, marketing strategy that you can implement on a regular basis to reach your target market, and they have the advantage of you being able to interact with your audience – they’ll be able to hear your voice and you will become more ‘personable’ to them.
Just some of the reasons why teleclasses are so popular are:
* They show off your expertise
* Easy to set up
* Fun to host
* You get to interact with your target market
* Build your list a.k.a. your online community
But a couple of the downsides, and probably why many solopreneurs don’t take advantage of this simple marketing strategy, is that:
* You need to spend some time preparing the material and organizing event.
* It can seem a bit daunting if you’ve never hosted a Teleclass on your own before.
So what I’d like to do today is share with you my 7 simple steps for organizing your own teleclass so that it’s fun, brings you a TON of new subscribers, and gets you interacting with your audience.
Step 1 – Decide on a topic. Take one of your most popular articles, or if you have written several articles around the same theme use those, and turn the content into a teleclass.
Step 2 – Decide on a format – will it be a teleclass or a webinar? How long will the event last for? If this is your first time at hosting an event – keep it simple – 25 minute presentation (which includes your introduction) and 20 minute open Question & Answer session (which also includes your offer and closing statement). Make it as easy for yourself as possible.
Step 3 – Decide on a date and time. Pick a date and time that is most convenient for you to host the teleclass. Just because a lot of teleclasses seem to be hosted in the evening, doesn’t mean this is when you have to host yours! Mine are usually hosted late morning because this fits my schedule best. Also consider the different time zones too.
Step 4 – Book the line. Create an account with your teleconference company and schedule the call. Make sure that your teleconference company has conference recording capabilities.
Step 5 – Prepare your marketing materials. Create your sales page, autoresponder sequence, and promotional emails. Make sure on your sales page you let the participants know that by signing up they’ll also receive a copy of your newsletter. In your autoresponder sequence be sure to include all the call-in details (and on any subsequent broadcasts you send out).
Step 6 – Announce it. Announce your Teleclass to your subscribers and post to the various Teleclass announcement sites and your networking groups. Create a list of places where you want to post to and use this as a checklist to ensure you get everywhere covered.
Step 7 – Record your Teleclass (this is essential). Not only will it encourage sign-ups – even if they can’t make the live event they’ll get the recording – but it also gives you the opportunity of repurposing your material. You can turn your recording into your ‘free taste’ on your website, a bonus product, or add a workbook to it and sell it as a for-fee product.
And on the day of the event:
* Ensure you send out a reminder on the day of your call.
* Dial in to your teleclass at least five minutes before it’s due to start. People do dial in early, and you want to be there to greet your participants as they turn up.
* Have your class notes all written out and in front of you, along with teleclass timings.
And most importantly, remember: you are the expert. You know something that your participants don’t, and they have come along to learn from you. That thought alone will stop the nerves… I promise.
That’s it! In just seven simple steps you can be on your way to hosting your very first teleclass.
Even with the ongoing recession, building a business online remains a viable approach for any new start-up. Why? Well, while even online retailers are feeling the pinch of a tight economy, they are also expected to pick up market share at the expense of traditional retailers during this downturn. So, an online approach is both more sustainable during a slowdown and a way to get more out of the next economic recovery.
According to a recent study of 151 online retailers, most expect growth to slow over the next year, and most are seeing the recession impact their bottom lines. However, 80 percent of the survey respondents see online retailing as better equipped than traditional retailing for countering the effects of the recession. This is why online retailers should continue to take market share from more traditional competitors.
However, that does not mean that all online businesses will succeed. There are some fundamental steps that will help an online business get off the ground more smoothly.
1. Research Online Demand For Your Products and Services. Online Research should help you determine several quantitative facts about your potential market, including overall size, demographic makeup, growth rate, and income level. These facts can serve as an initial reality check on your business plan, as well as help you make initial projections about the scope of your business. Beyond the quantitative benefits though, some fundamental market research should help you form a mental picture of your typical customer. This mental picture can subsequently inform a variety of other business choices, from web site design and development elements, to where to promote your site, to what range of related products or services to offer.
2. Understand Who Is Your Competition. Your market may look attractive in isolation, but next you need to assess the competition. Who are the market leaders, and what are their strengths and vulnerabilities? Who are the new entrants into the market, and which ones are picking up market share? Knowing your competition will help you determine where you fit into the marketplace, and this in turn will influence your product, promotion, and pricing strategies.
3. Back-Office Infrastructure Payment Processing. For one thing, an online business relies on a technology infrastructure that is affordable and yet will stand up to spikes in volume due to seasonality or successful promotions. Then there are key details such as credit card processing -and a merchant account– things that make the buying process as seamless as possible. For most start-up businesses, basic infrastructure issues such as the technology platform and credit card processing are outside their primary areas of expertise, so outsourcing solutions should be considered. Always compare credit card processing prices and merchant account prices before you select the one that best fits your business needs.
4. Attractive Website Design to Increase Traffic and Conversions. Now you can think about setting up shop. That’s precisely how you want to think about web site design–it is your place of business. The look and navigation of that Web site help you project an image to your customers. Are you hip, or are you traditional? Are you complex, or easy to access? Different positioning calls for different images, but there are two universal rules to website design: don’t look amateurish, and don’t make it difficult for visitors to make a purchase. This is another area where outside, specialized help can make a big difference, as opposed to spending time on something beyond your reason for being in business.Compare Web Site Design Prices to select the one that best meets your needs.
5. Use Internet Marketing and SEO to Promote Products On Your Web Site. An online business should focus its promotional strategies on capturing an online audience. This means some non-traditional promotional strategies, such as search engine optimization (SEO) and internet marketing. SEO helps associate your product or service with Internet searches on related topics. Internet Marketing allows you to pay for Internet advertising according to the amount of activity it generates, and to monitor the results of that activity. Because the Internet is still a relatively new business medium, promotional techniques and consumer behaviors are changing rapidly. Fortunately, there are internet marketing specialists who can help you stay abreast of evolving strategies in Internet marketing. Use an online service to find and compare SEO prices and internet marketing price quotes.
Summary
Overall, there are two important principles to apply when starting an online business:
1. Your business plan should represent a combination of traditional business methods and techniques specific to the online medium
2. You should identify the tasks where your organization can add value, and outsource functions outside your primary expertise.
Applying these principles using the steps described above, should help you get your online business off to a successful start.
Awhile ago, I got an email from one of the “gurus” I follow and it shocked me. The gist of it was this person wanted to trade services for a household item.
To say it floored me would be an understatement.
What was worse was a few days later this person started sending emails promoting their coaching program. How could anyone who had gotten the “trade” email even consider signing up for their coaching program?
Now this was a pretty obvious blunder, but there are other, smaller blunders, you might be making that are hurting your business reputation and your ability to attract clients. But first, I want to make something clear.
The problem isn’t that you’re struggling right now. That happens. It’s the nature of business and every seasoned business person knows it.
Businesses will lose money or be flat from time to time. There’s no shame in it, you just need to keep doing something about it (i.e. marketing, analyzing your offerings or your target market to see if you need to make a change, etc.)
The mistake happens when you make this too transparent. I’m not saying you should lie and say business is great when it’s not. (In fact, please DON’T lie. That’s another way to hurt your business reputation big time.) But (and this is ESPECIALLY true if you have a service business) don’t make it obvious you’re struggling. No one wants to hire a consultant who isn’t busy. In the back of people’s minds is the worry if the consultant isn’t busy they must not be good. So you MUST not come across as too eager or that you have too much time on your hands.
No matter how desperate for customers you are, you must get that under control. People will sense desperation and either run from you or try and take advantage of you. Neither is all that good for you (either your business or your psyche).
So what can you do? Here are 3 tips to help you stay strong no matter what’s going on in your business.
1. Keep marketing. Now is the time to step up your marketing. You have the time, why not write extra articles so you have them “stockpiled” when you do get busy again. Now might also be a good time to do a promotion but do NOT say it’s because business is slow.
Find some other creative way to do the same thing (for instance, maybe you have a “back to school” special, now that the kids are back in school you have some extra time to take on an additional client or two.) Or your promotion can be around a product or a group program. (Having a promotion around your product or group program doesn’t carry nearly the social stigma of pedaling your service.)
2. Don’t answer your phone. Yes, you heard me. Let voice mail pick it up or keep your virtual assistant on to return phone calls. Busy people don’t sit by the phone willing it to ring. You need to get your mind off your phone (or your inbox) and on to drumming up customers.
3. Don’t drop your fees. Your fees aren’t the problem. Something else is the problem. Either you aren’t marketing enough or your target market isn’t the right target market for you anymore or you need to tweak your offerings or something else is going on. But the moment you start dropping your fees or doubting yourself is the moment you’ll start down a vicious downward cycle.
(Now, this doesn’t mean you can’t put together a lower priced package and promote it. That’s fine and it may be a smart business decision. But to lower your hourly rate — not a smart move.)
Despite the global economic gloom, we continue to see smart entrepreneurs and businesses introduce innovative new business ideas to the market around the world. If you want to be in the know, this free report by our sister website CoolBusinessIdeas.com is for you.
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