One of the biggest mistakes affiliates make....

The biggest mistake many affiliates make is not setting up a list. They will often direct traffic that they generated to their affiliate links, instead of a list. When this occurs, they may not know it, but they are wagering that their visitor will purchase on first contact. Unfortunately for the affiliate marketer, this is usually not the case. Visitors many times need to be warmed up to the product with several visits and more information before they decide they may wish to buy from a business or person (you). This is where building a list become effective.

When you build a list, you, the affiliate, can remedy this problem. In addition, you can keep traffic and then proceed to warm it up, and then point it to different purchases down the line. What this means is that it is not a one-shot deal. You can make the effort to sell the same person other products over the course of time and you use you existing traffic instead of going out and finding new prospects.

Now, to pull this off with success, you the affiliate in question must purchase the required tools. We personally suggest using the autoresponder service listed at the bottom. It is relatively inexpensive ($18/mo.) and comes with a large range of services, including macros and spam checkers and macros. I believe it is also whitelisted by many email clients and boasts a near 100% delivery rate. This autoreponder service will not only manage your list, but it will also help you grow it. It comes with many free tools that enable you to create hover-ins, web forms and pop-ups, all of which can be employed to maximize your opt-in rate.

Besides buying the autoresponder service, you should also setup your own site if you do not already own one. I often use Yola to create one in minutes, give it a try. The first five you set up don't cost a thing! Of course if you already have a related site, you can simply add your opt-in form to a page on your existing site. This applies to blogs too.

After you have your site and your autoresponder setup, you only have two steps remaining: the first is creating a course or several articles that are related to the affiliate products you will sell; and the second is creating an opt-in form for you site or blog.

The first part is rather easy. Begin by figuring out what your topic will be and then outline it over a period of five to seven days. Write everything as if you are talking to a person, you don't want it to look like a formal article.

If you don't want to write the articles yourself, hire a ghostwriter at elance for $5-15 per issue, depending on the size.

After you have created your autoresponder articles, load it into your autoresponder with advertisements in the text for the affiliate product you are going to sell, and then create an opt-in box for your list.

The opt-in box is very important. Most marketers often neglect this which is strange since they have spent the time to create a good course, inserted affiliate links that don't look too obvious and decided on the delivery dates on all of the emails.

How to make your opt-in page convert...

First, remember that the main purpose of an opt-in page is simply to collect opt-in email addresses and/or phone numbers. You don't want Google Adsense ads all over them and you definitely will not include a navigational menu that readers can use to browse your site. Why? Because they detract from your main purpose which is to get visitors to opt-in to your list.

I personally suggest what is called a “squeeze page” which will “squeeze” new visitors for their email addresses and names. Here's a few things an effective squeeze page should include:

1. A nice graphic header. Make sure it's not a blurry header created from using using terrible templates. I suggest you visit BZ9 (see below)

2. A grabbing headline. Before you request someone to opt-in to your list, you must reach out and GET their attention with a red headline in large font. Make sure your headline is clear and very COMPELLING. No fluff, keep it simple.

3. Use compact text that is two paragraphs at most. All you want to do is basically tell them “Look! Here's a really great reason to opt in to my list. Did I mention it is free? Please opt in now”. Consider also giving them a free report for opting into your list, which can be downloaded as soon as they opt-in. Nothing like a good incentive that will push them to join.

4. Your call to action. Tell them to stop kicking the tires and join now. Tell them their future hangs on it.

5. Your signature. It will immediately provide you with credibility. People want to see one, so write yours down, scan it; and add it to your squeeze page or use the below tool.

6. A no spam clause. Let them know that you will not spam them or sell their information. Telling them that will make them far more likely to opt-in.

Once you have your opt-in form set, the only thing left is to drive traffic sources to your opt-in list (see resource box) collect their email addresses – and then wait for the money to roll in.

Larry G Potter
Pres, KIM-LAR INC.
Good Autoresponder: http://budurl.com/FastAutoResponder
Squeeze Pages: http://budurl.com/InstantOptinPages
Signatures: http://www.vletter.com

Using Email Marketing

Email marketing is important in the business you’re in. Marketing is based on communication, either with your exisiting costumers or prospective customers. Email marketing is an easy way to communicate.

Email marketing is one of the cheapest marketing tools you’ll find. We use AWeber, at only $19 a month.

With AWeber, you can reach your contacts easily and over and over again.

When you collect information about your current or potential customers it’s important that you collect their names during the sign-up process or following a purchase. AWeber will let you insert their names into a mass email. Your e-mail message will start out addressing each customer personally and will arrive to each recipient personalized with their own name.

Studies show that targeted email campaigns such as newsletters or sales announcements with a link to your website have approximately a 30 to 50% chance of obtaining a new customer, a sale or both.

Whatever your goal is with your information, it’s important to build a list of contacts and communicate with them by using email. Email marketing should bring your business up a notch, it’s inexpensive and it’s fairly easy, you won’t spend much time setting it up.

I also suggest you look into Audio Postcards with your emails. Here is a sample I just used very effectively. Enjoy.

http://budurl.com/afvh

Larry Potter

www.ATrafficPlan.com

What is You, Inc?

In a typical home based business, people are trying to build a 'downline' and they assume that they are building a business. A downline in a network marketing program is not a real business. You don't own anything. You don't own any assets. You don't own any significant equity in the company, it's plant, equipment or goodwill. Real businesses allow you to have and own real assets. Most home based businesses position you as a commission only sales rep.

The company can take away your business at any time.They can strip your database from you because if it's on their server it's NOT your property, they can take back all the other distributors in your group and they can forfeit your commissions for a wide variety of reasons. This puts you at risk as an entrepreneur. Your entire business does not belong to you and you don't really control anything other than making sales today.

Companies touted that you were building a legacy that could be "willed to your children". This has RARELY, if ever happened. If you are not constantly building and working your business… your business is dying.

This is how you can own a real business where you have equity, own assets that nobody can take away from you and where you can generate multiple income streams from building one system.

YOU INC.

The concept of You,Inc consists of you building and owning:

1. Your List/Social Networks - Distribution Channel. Asset. The List IS your business

2. Building a Relationship with your list which gives it its value. Goodwill. Equity. Net Value.

You are now the creator and the OWNER of a valuable distribution channel.

For people who doubt that this simple concept works, it's how professional marketers are able to send out a collection of 3-4 emails to their lists promoting an information product or coaching program that is relevant to their list and they generate over $239,221 in sales in a matter of days.

This happens consistently online with marketers that know how to build a list and build relationships with the people on their list. This is powerful leverage. That is the power of the You, Inc. business model.

Let's Break Down The Formula:

1. Build Your List

2. Build Relationship with your list

3. Market to your List

Let's cover each step in a bit more detail:

1. Build A List. List Building IS Your Business.

Advertising and driving traffic online using Facebook, Twitter, Articles, Search Engine Marketing, Videos, and Pay Per Click ads, etc. You drive this traffic to lead capture pages that capture the prospect's contact information so you can follow up by using an email autoresponder service to send out a series of education and relationship building emails. You offer value and relevant information to build trust. People buy from sources they know, like and trust.

2. Relationship Building with the people on your list.

This creates the most important value in your list, which is basically your own distribution channel. In order to build effective relationships with the people on your list you must be willing to GIVE without expecting anything in return.

Giving them value FIRST without want. How can you serve others more? Reciprocity, leadership, trust, value, and equity are some of the qualities and tactics used in attraction marketing to endear you to your follower list. You don't need the biggest list around. You need to build a responsive, valuable list that knows, likes and trusts you so they will buy from you.

3. Market/Monetize Your List

Being able to build a list that buys from you gives you the ability to basically generate free leads. You advertise consistently for traffic, which builds your list. You then offer them compelling information that generates profits to you up front before they join your primary business opportunity. These sales help you offset the cost of generating them in the first place and now you can use your follow up system to generate repeat sales long term.

Leads are not cheap to buy or generate. The average lead costs about $5 each. It's critically important to generate them for free. You can use effective online advertising to generate them for $5 each. You can then use a marketing funded proposal to earn $10 back each. This income gives you the leverage to keep advertising indefinitely and generate more sales on the back end of yourmarketing system. This Builds true leverage.

An email autoresponder series can teach and train and promote to your prospects on autopilot. It produces sales, profits and leverage. You can set up 12 months worth of messages and put your business on cruise control.

This concept allows you to:

Systematize List Building, systematize (not automate)relationship building, systematize the monetization into multiple sources of sales, and it allows for instant downline building.

Leaders who are skilled in this tactic are the ones who can join a company one day, recommend it to their list via an email and invite their prospects to a webinar, or conference call or web site that explains the opportunity and generates an instant downline, overnight. It's exactly how that is done.

You now have ultimate security. The only way to lose this type of business and equity is to lose your reputation and credibility with your list (if you screw up and that happens you simply build another list). You do not have this with a Business Opportunity program alone. With this optimizedbusiness model you create a couple important things:

You now own a distribution channel. You have a relationship with that channel. You monetize that channel.

This provides the ultimate in:

Leverage.

Security.

The details behind these steps are found in a variety of courses and ebooks, audios and videos available online. The actual step by step action items you can take to build this are easily accessible. This is a simple to understand and follow blueprint that allows you to tap into and harness theinternet to build a real business. It can work for anyone, anywhere in the world.

Own a real asset and a real business. Be able to produce as many leads as you want for free. Be able to tap into the power of multiple streams of income. Be able to sponsor people automatically into your primary. Be able to create cash any time that you want to. Just by sitting down and sending out an email…

That is what today's online marketing world is all about. If you feel you received value from this post please feel free to click on the button below and share this with others too. Thanks!