Want to market your business in a fun and easy way?
Try these promos.
Publicize your business by putting it on pencils, bookmarks, pens, magnets, caps, tee shirts and hundreds of other products which will help get the word out about your new business. These promos are very effective. Give them to your friends, doctor, dentist, child's teacher or whomever you come in contact with during your daily travels.
The Lillian Vernon catalog (1.800.545.5426 or email: www.lillianvernon.com) has 40 personalized pencils for $9.98. Need more? 40 extra pencils cost $7.98. Buy five sets get one free.
You can buy a package of three white tee shirts at Wal-Mart for $7.98 and hand stencil the name of your business with logo on the shirt or buy some tee shirt transfers at Staples, print your URL or business on transfer sheet, then iron on transfer to tee shirt. Cost of stencils & pens are about $10.00 and can be reused. Transfers are about $1.00/transfer and there are 25 per box. The possibilities are endless.
I wore a tee shirt with my URL on it, just for the fun of it, when I went to the grocery store, post office, bookstore, and department store; you know, one of those days dedicated to zipping around town to pick up this, that, and the other thing. When people asked about www.pamelabeers.com on the front of my shirt, I was all too happy to explain the writing services I provided, leaving them with a business card and a personalized pencil with my URL on it.
Within two weeks, I started generating over $1000 worth of business. I was pleasantly surprised; never thinking the tee shirt trick would be that successful. At this point in time, a portion of my business continues to come from promo advertising, but the remainder comes from public speaking, networking and referrals.
As you know, It is important to get out there and generate interest, which will generate questions, which will generate business. For a few dollars you can advertise your business and get surprising results.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Pamela_Beers
7/18/08
Retail Jokes
A retailer was dismayed when a competitor selling the same type of product opened next-door to him, displaying a large sign proclaiming "Best Deals."
Not long after that, he was horrified to find yet another competitor move in next door, on the other side if his store. It's large sign was even more disturbing—"Lowest Prices."
After his initial panic, and concern that he would be driven out of business, he looked for a way to turn the situation to his marketing advantage. Finally, an idea came to him. Next day, he proudly unveiled a new and huge sign over his front door.
It read,"Main Entrance!"
hahahahahahahahahaha........................
source:
http://www.marketingideashop.com/marketing_jokes.htm
Not long after that, he was horrified to find yet another competitor move in next door, on the other side if his store. It's large sign was even more disturbing—"Lowest Prices."
After his initial panic, and concern that he would be driven out of business, he looked for a way to turn the situation to his marketing advantage. Finally, an idea came to him. Next day, he proudly unveiled a new and huge sign over his front door.
It read,"Main Entrance!"
hahahahahahahahahaha........................
source:
http://www.marketingideashop.com/marketing_jokes.htm
The Difference Between Optimism, Pessimism & Marketing
The Optimist says, "The glass is half full.
"The Pessimist says, "The glass is half empty."
The Marketing Consultant says, "Your glass needs re-sizing."
hehehehehehehe.........
source:
http://www.marketingideashop.com/marketing_jokes.htm
"The Pessimist says, "The glass is half empty."
The Marketing Consultant says, "Your glass needs re-sizing."
hehehehehehehe.........
source:
http://www.marketingideashop.com/marketing_jokes.htm
7/17/08
The Best Kept Secret of Successful Differentiation
A successful differentiation is not imitated by your competitors, even though it brings you unmistakable success with consumers. It seems impossible,isn't it? Not quite so.
I am about to reveal to you the unexpectedly simple and wonderful secret of successful differentiation: you must think beyond the core benefits of your product category. Think: Off-Core Differentiation.
"Core Benefits" are the benefits that the consumer already expects to receive from a product like yours. This is the list of "what's important to the consumer" in your product or service category. "Core Benefits" are more than the essential product benefits. The core benefits of today's cellular phones include much more than the possibility of conducting a conversation while you're in motion. Everything that the consumer has already come to expect from the product is included in the core benefits.
These are the benefits that all of your competitors offer, because they compose the essence of the product and it is impossible to compete in the market without them.That is precisely the reason why if you really invest your efforts and are truly brilliant and make a major break-through in improving core benefits - do you know what will happen?
They'll imitate you as fast as possible. That's what will happen. You must understand: in that case, your competitors can't allow themselves not to imitate you. You'd do exactly the same thing.
Many companies have learned this the hard way. Volvo, for example, created its brand around a central core benefit: safety. They did everything humanly possible! They invested limitlessly! And they succeeded! They especially succeeded in convincing their competitors that it is very important to invest in safety. Today, no one will tell you (except for a few out-of-date marketers) that safety is Volvo's differentiation.
In order to create a differentiation that won't be imitated, you have to think beyond the core benefits that are (already or even just in potential) considered important in your market.
Think about "what's important to the consumer" in other product or service categories that you can be the first (or better yet: the only) one to supply in yours. It works time after time.
The companies that have succeeded in maintaining their differentiation over the years and weren't imitated even though they were making tremendous profits are those that innovated in qualities beyond the core benefits of their market. The farther you look, the more successful you can become.What are they waiting for?
Let's look at some examples of off-core differentiation.
Swatch decided to treat the watch face and band as a design area. What does this have to do with the core benefit of a watch? (Nothing) Exactly!
So no one has imitated them. Not really.
Grey Goose vodka is the only vodka produced in France. This differentiation is so way-out of the core benefits of the vodka industry! No vodka connoisseur in his right mind would imitate that.
What about The Body Shop? There's no place for another cosmetics chain that actively fights against animal experiments, for the environment and for the needy wherever they are. No one even thinks about imitating them.
The mob and the mobile, sometimes an off-core differentiation can become eventually a core benefit.
This happened to Nokia. It happens when the differentiation is not really off-core but is actually based on a deep insight into the direction that the market is going and of consumers' future needs. Nokia took the global market with a seemingly off-core strategy.
While Motorola was busy developing better and better mobile phones, Nokia predicted that mobile phones were going to be a popular product. When people will start carrying their cell phone around with them as they go about their everyday life, it will become an apparel item, a fashion statement. And thus the idea that helped turn Nokia into the world leader was born - the idea of the exchangeable panels that let you match the phone to your clothes.
It didn't seem like a core benefit of the category back then. Totally not connected to what a mobile phone is supposed to do.But when the technology of most mobile phone manufacturers became similar, they began to compete over design.
Samsung, Sony Ericsson and yes, even Motorola, started to beat Nokia, using its own weapon. As I am writing, Nokia's share of the market is still double that of Motorola's (do you realize what a lead Nokia was able to open?).
But Nokia has lost its differentiation.
You may say that only a few companies have become leaders by means of an off-core differentiation. Let's not argue what is many and what is a few. By the way, most companies never become leaders, nor need they become. However, if you are in a competitive market and trying to make a living, an off-core strategy is the best chance you have to give a group of consumers a good reason to devotedly prefer you and even create a private monopoly for you.
Open a window, I'm not trying to argue that differentiation within the core benefits is a bad idea, if you can do it. It opens a window of opportunity for you, until they start to imitate you.
For a man like Michael Dell, that was enough to become a billionaire. Dell changed the way in which personal computers are sold. Michael Dell understood that from the moment that personal computers became standardized (thanks to the IBM clones on the one hand and to the foresight of Microsoft in the 1980's, on the other hand) - people would buy them over the phone and later, over the internet.
Dell also understood that since personal computer components are standardized anyway, you can put them together to suit each user's needs. That wasn't an Off-Core Differentiation. Dell simply saw where the trends are leading to. Today, everyone sells computers this way, but the period of time in which he had this shining differentiation made him one of the richest people on the planet.
by: Dan Herman
I am about to reveal to you the unexpectedly simple and wonderful secret of successful differentiation: you must think beyond the core benefits of your product category. Think: Off-Core Differentiation.
"Core Benefits" are the benefits that the consumer already expects to receive from a product like yours. This is the list of "what's important to the consumer" in your product or service category. "Core Benefits" are more than the essential product benefits. The core benefits of today's cellular phones include much more than the possibility of conducting a conversation while you're in motion. Everything that the consumer has already come to expect from the product is included in the core benefits.
These are the benefits that all of your competitors offer, because they compose the essence of the product and it is impossible to compete in the market without them.That is precisely the reason why if you really invest your efforts and are truly brilliant and make a major break-through in improving core benefits - do you know what will happen?
They'll imitate you as fast as possible. That's what will happen. You must understand: in that case, your competitors can't allow themselves not to imitate you. You'd do exactly the same thing.
Many companies have learned this the hard way. Volvo, for example, created its brand around a central core benefit: safety. They did everything humanly possible! They invested limitlessly! And they succeeded! They especially succeeded in convincing their competitors that it is very important to invest in safety. Today, no one will tell you (except for a few out-of-date marketers) that safety is Volvo's differentiation.
In order to create a differentiation that won't be imitated, you have to think beyond the core benefits that are (already or even just in potential) considered important in your market.
Think about "what's important to the consumer" in other product or service categories that you can be the first (or better yet: the only) one to supply in yours. It works time after time.
The companies that have succeeded in maintaining their differentiation over the years and weren't imitated even though they were making tremendous profits are those that innovated in qualities beyond the core benefits of their market. The farther you look, the more successful you can become.What are they waiting for?
Let's look at some examples of off-core differentiation.
Swatch decided to treat the watch face and band as a design area. What does this have to do with the core benefit of a watch? (Nothing) Exactly!
So no one has imitated them. Not really.
Grey Goose vodka is the only vodka produced in France. This differentiation is so way-out of the core benefits of the vodka industry! No vodka connoisseur in his right mind would imitate that.
What about The Body Shop? There's no place for another cosmetics chain that actively fights against animal experiments, for the environment and for the needy wherever they are. No one even thinks about imitating them.
The mob and the mobile, sometimes an off-core differentiation can become eventually a core benefit.
This happened to Nokia. It happens when the differentiation is not really off-core but is actually based on a deep insight into the direction that the market is going and of consumers' future needs. Nokia took the global market with a seemingly off-core strategy.
While Motorola was busy developing better and better mobile phones, Nokia predicted that mobile phones were going to be a popular product. When people will start carrying their cell phone around with them as they go about their everyday life, it will become an apparel item, a fashion statement. And thus the idea that helped turn Nokia into the world leader was born - the idea of the exchangeable panels that let you match the phone to your clothes.
It didn't seem like a core benefit of the category back then. Totally not connected to what a mobile phone is supposed to do.But when the technology of most mobile phone manufacturers became similar, they began to compete over design.
Samsung, Sony Ericsson and yes, even Motorola, started to beat Nokia, using its own weapon. As I am writing, Nokia's share of the market is still double that of Motorola's (do you realize what a lead Nokia was able to open?).
But Nokia has lost its differentiation.
You may say that only a few companies have become leaders by means of an off-core differentiation. Let's not argue what is many and what is a few. By the way, most companies never become leaders, nor need they become. However, if you are in a competitive market and trying to make a living, an off-core strategy is the best chance you have to give a group of consumers a good reason to devotedly prefer you and even create a private monopoly for you.
Open a window, I'm not trying to argue that differentiation within the core benefits is a bad idea, if you can do it. It opens a window of opportunity for you, until they start to imitate you.
For a man like Michael Dell, that was enough to become a billionaire. Dell changed the way in which personal computers are sold. Michael Dell understood that from the moment that personal computers became standardized (thanks to the IBM clones on the one hand and to the foresight of Microsoft in the 1980's, on the other hand) - people would buy them over the phone and later, over the internet.
Dell also understood that since personal computer components are standardized anyway, you can put them together to suit each user's needs. That wasn't an Off-Core Differentiation. Dell simply saw where the trends are leading to. Today, everyone sells computers this way, but the period of time in which he had this shining differentiation made him one of the richest people on the planet.
by: Dan Herman
7/16/08
e Marketing Strategy 7 Dimensions to Consider the e Marketing Mix
What is e-Marketing?
e-Marketing is still quite a controversial subject to talk about, since no one succeeded to unify the various theories around it; however there is one thing upon which there is no doubt – that e-Marketing first appeared under the form of various techniques deployed by pioneer companies selling their products via the Internet in the early 90's.
The frenzy around these new marketing techniques created by e-tailors and supported by the Internet rapidly gave birth to a new dimension of what we knew as Marketing: the e-Marketing (electronic Marketing).
There are many definitions to what e-Marketing is, the simplest and shortest one being formulated by Mark Sceats: e-Marketing is Marketing that uses the Internet as manifestation media. A working definition is that coming from a group of CISCO specialists: e-Marketing is the sum of all activities a business conducts through the Internet with the purpose of finding, attracting, winning and retaining customers.
e-Marketing Strategy
The e-Marketing Strategy is normally based and built upon the principles that govern the traditional, offline Marketing – the well-known 4 P's (Product – Price – Promotion – Positioning) that form the classic Marketing mix. Add the extra 3 P's (People – Processes – Proof) and you got the whole extended Marketing mix.
Until here, there are no much aspects to differentiate e-Marketing from the traditional Marketing performed offline: the extended Marketing mix (4 + 3 P's) is built around the concept of "transactional" and its elements perform transactional functions defined by the exchange paradigm. What gives e-Marketing its uniqueness is a series of specific functions, relational functions, that can be synthesized in the 2P + 2C+ 3S formula: Personalization, Privacy, Customer Service, Community, Site, Security, Sales Promotion.
These 7 functions of the e-Marketing stay at the base of any e-Marketing strategy and they have a moderating character, unlike the classic Marketing mix that comprises situational functions only. Moderating functions of e-Marketing have the quality of moderate, operate upon all situational functions of the mix (the classic 4 P's) and upon each other.
1. Personalization
The fundamental concept of personalization as a part of the e-Marketing mix lies in the need of recognizing, identifying a certain customer in order to establish relations (establishing relations is a fundamental objective of Marketing). It is crucial to be able to identify our customers on individual level and gather all possible information about them, with the purpose of knowing our market and be able to develop customized, personalized products and services.
For example, a cookie strategically placed on the website visitor's computer can let us know vital information concerning the access speed available: in consequence, if we know the visitor is using a slow connection (eg. dial-up) we will offer a low-volume variation of our website, with reduced graphic content and no multimedia or flash applications. This will ease our customer's experience on our website and he will be prevented from leaving the website on the reason that it takes too long to load its pages.
Personalization can be applied to any component of the Marketing mix; therefore, it is a moderating function.
2. Privacy
Privacy is an element of the mix very much connected to the previous one – personalization. When we gather and store information about our customers and potential customers (therefore, when we perform the personalization part of the e-Marketing mix) a crucial issue arises: that of the way this information will be used, and by whom. A major task to do when implementing an e-Marketing strategy is that of creating and developing a policy upon access procedures to the collected information.
This is a duty and a must for any conscious marketer to consider all aspects of privacy, as long as data are collected and stored, data about individual persons.
Privacy is even more important when establishing the e-Marketing mix since there are many regulations and legal aspects to be considered regarding collection and usage of such information.
3. Customer Service
Customer service is one of the necessary and required activities among the support functions needed in transactional situations.
We will connect the apparition of the customer service processes to the inclusion of the "time" parameter in transactions. When switching from a situational perspective to a relational one, and e-Marketing is mostly based on a relational perspective, the marketer saw himself somehow forced into considering support and assistance on a non-temporal level, permanently, over time.
For these reasons, we should consider the Customer Service function (in its fullest and largest definition) as an essential one within the e-Marketing mix.
As we can easily figure out, the service (or assistance if you wish) can be performed upon any element from the classic 4 P's, hence its moderating character.
4. Community
We can all agree that e-Marketing is conditioned by the existence of this impressive network that the Internet is. The merely existence of such a network implies that individuals as well as groups will eventually interact. A group of entities that interact for a common purpose is what we call a "community" and we will soon see why it is of absolute importance to participate, to be part of a community.
The Metcalf law (named after Robert Metcalf) states that the value of a network is given by the number of its components, more exactly the value of a network equals the square of the number of components. We can apply this simple law to communities, since they are a network: we will then conclude that the value of a community rises with the number of its members. This is the power of communities; this is why we have to be a part of it.
The customers / clients of a business can be seen as part of a community where they interact (either independent or influenced by the marketer) – therefore developing a community is a task to be performed by any business, even though it is not always seen as essential.
Interactions among members of such a community can address any of the other functions of e-Marketing, so it can be placed next to other moderating functions.
5. Site
We have seen and agreed that e-Marketing interactions take place on a digital media – the Internet. But such interactions and relations also need a proper location, to be available at any moment and from any place – a digital location for digital interactions.
Such a location is what we call a "site", which is the most widespread name for it. It is now the time to mention that the "website" is merely a form of a "site" and should not be mistaken or seen as synonyms. The "site" can take other forms too, such as a Palm Pilot or any other handheld device, for example.
This special location, accessible through all sort of digital technologies is moderating all other functions of the e-Marketing – it is then a moderating function.
6. Security
The "security" function emerged as an essential function of e-Marketing once transactions began to be performed through Internet channels.
What we need to keep in mind as marketers are the following two issues on security:
security during transactions performed on our website, where we have to take all possible precautions that third parties will not be able to access any part of a developing transaction;
security of data collected and stored, about our customers and visitors.
A honest marketer will have to consider these possible causes of further trouble and has to co-operate with the company's IT department in order to be able to formulate convincing (and true, honest!) messages towards the customers that their personal details are protected from unauthorized eyes.
7. Sales Promotion
At least but not last, we have to consider sales promotions when we build an e-Marketing strategy. Sales promotions are widely used in traditional Marketing as well, we all know this, and it is an excellent efficient strategy to achieve immediate sales goals in terms of volume.
This function counts on the marketer's ability to think creatively: a lot of work and inspiration is required in order to find new possibilities and new approaches for developing an efficient promotion plan.
On the other hand, the marketer needs to continuously keep up with the latest Internet technologies and applications so that he can fully exploit them.
To conclude, we have seen that e-Marketing implies new dimensions to be considered aside of those inherited from the traditional Marketing. These dimensions revolve around the concept of relational functions and they are a must to be included in any e-Marketing strategy in order for it to be efficient and deliver results.
Author:Otilia Otlacan
A young Marketing certified professional with expertise in e-Marketing and e-Business, currently working as independent consultant and e-publisher. She developed and teach her own online course in "Principles of e-Marketing" and is also a volunteer Economics teacher.
www.TeaWithEdge.com
e-Marketing is still quite a controversial subject to talk about, since no one succeeded to unify the various theories around it; however there is one thing upon which there is no doubt – that e-Marketing first appeared under the form of various techniques deployed by pioneer companies selling their products via the Internet in the early 90's.
The frenzy around these new marketing techniques created by e-tailors and supported by the Internet rapidly gave birth to a new dimension of what we knew as Marketing: the e-Marketing (electronic Marketing).
There are many definitions to what e-Marketing is, the simplest and shortest one being formulated by Mark Sceats: e-Marketing is Marketing that uses the Internet as manifestation media. A working definition is that coming from a group of CISCO specialists: e-Marketing is the sum of all activities a business conducts through the Internet with the purpose of finding, attracting, winning and retaining customers.
e-Marketing Strategy
The e-Marketing Strategy is normally based and built upon the principles that govern the traditional, offline Marketing – the well-known 4 P's (Product – Price – Promotion – Positioning) that form the classic Marketing mix. Add the extra 3 P's (People – Processes – Proof) and you got the whole extended Marketing mix.
Until here, there are no much aspects to differentiate e-Marketing from the traditional Marketing performed offline: the extended Marketing mix (4 + 3 P's) is built around the concept of "transactional" and its elements perform transactional functions defined by the exchange paradigm. What gives e-Marketing its uniqueness is a series of specific functions, relational functions, that can be synthesized in the 2P + 2C+ 3S formula: Personalization, Privacy, Customer Service, Community, Site, Security, Sales Promotion.
These 7 functions of the e-Marketing stay at the base of any e-Marketing strategy and they have a moderating character, unlike the classic Marketing mix that comprises situational functions only. Moderating functions of e-Marketing have the quality of moderate, operate upon all situational functions of the mix (the classic 4 P's) and upon each other.
1. Personalization
The fundamental concept of personalization as a part of the e-Marketing mix lies in the need of recognizing, identifying a certain customer in order to establish relations (establishing relations is a fundamental objective of Marketing). It is crucial to be able to identify our customers on individual level and gather all possible information about them, with the purpose of knowing our market and be able to develop customized, personalized products and services.
For example, a cookie strategically placed on the website visitor's computer can let us know vital information concerning the access speed available: in consequence, if we know the visitor is using a slow connection (eg. dial-up) we will offer a low-volume variation of our website, with reduced graphic content and no multimedia or flash applications. This will ease our customer's experience on our website and he will be prevented from leaving the website on the reason that it takes too long to load its pages.
Personalization can be applied to any component of the Marketing mix; therefore, it is a moderating function.
2. Privacy
Privacy is an element of the mix very much connected to the previous one – personalization. When we gather and store information about our customers and potential customers (therefore, when we perform the personalization part of the e-Marketing mix) a crucial issue arises: that of the way this information will be used, and by whom. A major task to do when implementing an e-Marketing strategy is that of creating and developing a policy upon access procedures to the collected information.
This is a duty and a must for any conscious marketer to consider all aspects of privacy, as long as data are collected and stored, data about individual persons.
Privacy is even more important when establishing the e-Marketing mix since there are many regulations and legal aspects to be considered regarding collection and usage of such information.
3. Customer Service
Customer service is one of the necessary and required activities among the support functions needed in transactional situations.
We will connect the apparition of the customer service processes to the inclusion of the "time" parameter in transactions. When switching from a situational perspective to a relational one, and e-Marketing is mostly based on a relational perspective, the marketer saw himself somehow forced into considering support and assistance on a non-temporal level, permanently, over time.
For these reasons, we should consider the Customer Service function (in its fullest and largest definition) as an essential one within the e-Marketing mix.
As we can easily figure out, the service (or assistance if you wish) can be performed upon any element from the classic 4 P's, hence its moderating character.
4. Community
We can all agree that e-Marketing is conditioned by the existence of this impressive network that the Internet is. The merely existence of such a network implies that individuals as well as groups will eventually interact. A group of entities that interact for a common purpose is what we call a "community" and we will soon see why it is of absolute importance to participate, to be part of a community.
The Metcalf law (named after Robert Metcalf) states that the value of a network is given by the number of its components, more exactly the value of a network equals the square of the number of components. We can apply this simple law to communities, since they are a network: we will then conclude that the value of a community rises with the number of its members. This is the power of communities; this is why we have to be a part of it.
The customers / clients of a business can be seen as part of a community where they interact (either independent or influenced by the marketer) – therefore developing a community is a task to be performed by any business, even though it is not always seen as essential.
Interactions among members of such a community can address any of the other functions of e-Marketing, so it can be placed next to other moderating functions.
5. Site
We have seen and agreed that e-Marketing interactions take place on a digital media – the Internet. But such interactions and relations also need a proper location, to be available at any moment and from any place – a digital location for digital interactions.
Such a location is what we call a "site", which is the most widespread name for it. It is now the time to mention that the "website" is merely a form of a "site" and should not be mistaken or seen as synonyms. The "site" can take other forms too, such as a Palm Pilot or any other handheld device, for example.
This special location, accessible through all sort of digital technologies is moderating all other functions of the e-Marketing – it is then a moderating function.
6. Security
The "security" function emerged as an essential function of e-Marketing once transactions began to be performed through Internet channels.
What we need to keep in mind as marketers are the following two issues on security:
security during transactions performed on our website, where we have to take all possible precautions that third parties will not be able to access any part of a developing transaction;
security of data collected and stored, about our customers and visitors.
A honest marketer will have to consider these possible causes of further trouble and has to co-operate with the company's IT department in order to be able to formulate convincing (and true, honest!) messages towards the customers that their personal details are protected from unauthorized eyes.
7. Sales Promotion
At least but not last, we have to consider sales promotions when we build an e-Marketing strategy. Sales promotions are widely used in traditional Marketing as well, we all know this, and it is an excellent efficient strategy to achieve immediate sales goals in terms of volume.
This function counts on the marketer's ability to think creatively: a lot of work and inspiration is required in order to find new possibilities and new approaches for developing an efficient promotion plan.
On the other hand, the marketer needs to continuously keep up with the latest Internet technologies and applications so that he can fully exploit them.
To conclude, we have seen that e-Marketing implies new dimensions to be considered aside of those inherited from the traditional Marketing. These dimensions revolve around the concept of relational functions and they are a must to be included in any e-Marketing strategy in order for it to be efficient and deliver results.
Author:Otilia Otlacan
A young Marketing certified professional with expertise in e-Marketing and e-Business, currently working as independent consultant and e-publisher. She developed and teach her own online course in "Principles of e-Marketing" and is also a volunteer Economics teacher.
www.TeaWithEdge.com
Internet Based Affiliate Marketing
How to Set Yourself Apart From Your Competitors
Internet based affiliate marketing industry has grown significantly over the years. It believes to be one of the best and easiest ways to earn money online. The concept of affiliate marketing bases largely on revenue sharing and commission-based payment schemes. Many people attracted to this business, which means more competitors for you. In most cases, you and your competitors will promote the exact same program, in the same exact zone, or even the exact same websites. In this very competitive industry, there are some aspects to consider setting yourself apart from other affiliates. Have your own website. If you are serious about your business, it is very essential to have your own website. Your website will act as your showroom where you display your products or services. Your potential customers will visit your website to learn about your products or services. If they found what you are looking for, they will then make the purchase. Write your own ads When you join an affiliate program, many times the merchant will provide you with some ads to promote. However, these kind of generic ads are not too effective. People usually just ignore the same ads they saw repeatedly. By writing your own ads, you can tailor your ads to encourage people read your ads and be curious to click through your website. Have your own product. Once your website is running, it's important to have some products that your customers can't find at other affiliate's sites. The best way to keep your customers come to your site is by having your own products or services. Build strong relationship with your customers. To fully answer the query of your potential customers, it is best if you buy and try the product yourself. You will be able to share your personal experience with the product to your customers. Build your credibility. It is important to be honest to your customers. If you find out the program you are promoting is a fraud, stop promoting it and inform your customers about it. You will gain trust from your customers. Admitting your mistakes also will increase your customer's confidence in you. Focus on one niche market. So many products or services on the market you can promote. However, it is not a good idea to promote everything you find. It is better to focus on one market and promote products that the market would want, which called niche marketing. Internet based affiliate marketing is a huge business that continue to grow. It is likely that the industry can potentially become a profitable way to earn income. However, it will not happen over night. Like everything else in life, you are going to put a lot of hard work to make it a success. Be ahead of the pack with Internet based affiliate marketing program that works at: http://www.plug-in-4-profit.com
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Lily_Boynton
Internet based affiliate marketing industry has grown significantly over the years. It believes to be one of the best and easiest ways to earn money online. The concept of affiliate marketing bases largely on revenue sharing and commission-based payment schemes. Many people attracted to this business, which means more competitors for you. In most cases, you and your competitors will promote the exact same program, in the same exact zone, or even the exact same websites. In this very competitive industry, there are some aspects to consider setting yourself apart from other affiliates. Have your own website. If you are serious about your business, it is very essential to have your own website. Your website will act as your showroom where you display your products or services. Your potential customers will visit your website to learn about your products or services. If they found what you are looking for, they will then make the purchase. Write your own ads When you join an affiliate program, many times the merchant will provide you with some ads to promote. However, these kind of generic ads are not too effective. People usually just ignore the same ads they saw repeatedly. By writing your own ads, you can tailor your ads to encourage people read your ads and be curious to click through your website. Have your own product. Once your website is running, it's important to have some products that your customers can't find at other affiliate's sites. The best way to keep your customers come to your site is by having your own products or services. Build strong relationship with your customers. To fully answer the query of your potential customers, it is best if you buy and try the product yourself. You will be able to share your personal experience with the product to your customers. Build your credibility. It is important to be honest to your customers. If you find out the program you are promoting is a fraud, stop promoting it and inform your customers about it. You will gain trust from your customers. Admitting your mistakes also will increase your customer's confidence in you. Focus on one niche market. So many products or services on the market you can promote. However, it is not a good idea to promote everything you find. It is better to focus on one market and promote products that the market would want, which called niche marketing. Internet based affiliate marketing is a huge business that continue to grow. It is likely that the industry can potentially become a profitable way to earn income. However, it will not happen over night. Like everything else in life, you are going to put a lot of hard work to make it a success. Be ahead of the pack with Internet based affiliate marketing program that works at: http://www.plug-in-4-profit.com
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Lily_Boynton
7/15/08
Make Money Online
A few ways to make money online
There are many ways of making a residual income or just a little bit of extra cash in your pocket by using the internet. It can be very hard to make money online, but if you have the right tools and the confidence, it can become very easy and make you very wealthy. Making money online is a great way to live, and if you are good at it, you can get out of those 9-5 jobs that we all hate! A few ways to make money online: Online surveys -Most of these will not make you very rich, but can give you quite a bit of extra money in your pocket and all you have to do is give your personal opinion. MLM (Multi-Level-Marketing) -These are programs you can sign up for and invite people to join and use the site product and get paid. These are kind of like pyramid schemes, which are illegal by the way, except these have other products. (some are free but others will have an initial fee or monthly fee) Affiliate Marketing -This is a great way to make money online. You get paid to traffic people to sites and can get paid with pay-per-click or pay-per-sale using affiliate programs. Works good if you have your own website. Selling- If you have products that you can sell, using the internet is a great way! Anyone can make money online. All your really need is a computer with access to the internet, your brain, and the initiative and confidence to accomplish success! Learn how I make Money online!!!
http://makemoneyonline-jeffehboy.blogspot.com/
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Jeff_G_Charles
There are many ways of making a residual income or just a little bit of extra cash in your pocket by using the internet. It can be very hard to make money online, but if you have the right tools and the confidence, it can become very easy and make you very wealthy. Making money online is a great way to live, and if you are good at it, you can get out of those 9-5 jobs that we all hate! A few ways to make money online: Online surveys -Most of these will not make you very rich, but can give you quite a bit of extra money in your pocket and all you have to do is give your personal opinion. MLM (Multi-Level-Marketing) -These are programs you can sign up for and invite people to join and use the site product and get paid. These are kind of like pyramid schemes, which are illegal by the way, except these have other products. (some are free but others will have an initial fee or monthly fee) Affiliate Marketing -This is a great way to make money online. You get paid to traffic people to sites and can get paid with pay-per-click or pay-per-sale using affiliate programs. Works good if you have your own website. Selling- If you have products that you can sell, using the internet is a great way! Anyone can make money online. All your really need is a computer with access to the internet, your brain, and the initiative and confidence to accomplish success! Learn how I make Money online!!!
http://makemoneyonline-jeffehboy.blogspot.com/
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Jeff_G_Charles
Discover How You Can Write an Article That Will Excite Your Target Market and Make You Money!
I am often approached and asked, how do I write an article that will get published in other people’s e-zines, newsletters, newspapers or other publications, and it's a VERY good question.
It's not a case of sitting down and writing just anything... There are some tricks to doing it, and I'm going to share with you some the basic process you need to follow to get started in the right direction.
First of all why even bother to write an article? Well for one, it's a fabulous way to gain FREE exposure to a target market you want, but don't have yourself. It's also a terrific way of increasing your own personal profile, as articles build your credibility as an expert of the topic you're writing about.
STEP 1. Start with something that you have an interest in. Even better is something that you are really passionate about and that your target market is interested in too!
After all, it is not going to be effective if for example I wrote about my love of holidaying! My target market is going to be thinking well so what!!!! Make it relevant!
STEP 2. Still don't know where to start? Well ask or listen to your customers, what problems are they facing, what do they need solutions to and how can you be instrumental in that.
Then write about it! People will pay big money to solve their problems, so they may as well spend it with you, yes?
STEP 3. List out some things you like to cover in the article, do some research for inspiration if you get stuck. Success is in the planning. So be organized in your content.
It has to be written professionally otherwise it will do more harm than good for you. After you list a few key points you wish to cover, put them in the order you wish them to appear and then sub elaborate on them.
All of a sudden you have content coming out your ears!!!!
STEP 4. Link it all together and write it in a way that it has emotion coming through to your reader. It HAS to be exciting and interesting enough that it will hold your readers attention (you don't want them yawning!) And don't make it a sales pitch or advertisement for your product. It HAS to be valuable information and educational for your reader and as if it conversational.
At the end of the article you can promote your product/service etc, but never during the body of the article, and in addition to that the product/service needs to be relevant to what you’re writing about. You need to look at around 750 - 1000 words.
STEP 5. Have a title. THIS is one of the most important things when writing an article and it can make or break the decision of whether a person will read it or not. It needs to leap out at your reader and speak right to their need, emotion and curiosity. Your heading needs to have the person saying to themselves I MUST read this otherwise?
Missing out on something valuable here (and they would be right!!!!) It also needs to be shouting out the benefits that someone will have as a result of reading it.
STEP 6. Write a short paragraph (no more than 4 sentences) on who you are, what your product is and how people can contact you including your website. This area is often known as the authors or resource box. Check mine at the bottom here as an example.
STEP 7. Proof read it 3 times and then proof read it again! And then get someone else to check it for you to if you can! Also do the all important spell check!
STEP 8. Promote it. Research where you like to send it so that your target market have a chance at seeing it and email or submit it to the site for free use as long as it has your authors details in tact. There are countless Internet sites that will take it, and many magazines/publications that are directed at your target market PLUS there is also an array of local press AND media who may also use it too!
Remember there's a host of industries that have their own newsletters that often look for content, such as fitness industries, medical, health, new age, business, etc. If sending your article to a newspaper, add your head shot of yourself too. They would like to have to add photos. Also beneficial to send a little intro to them describing briefly what your article is about and why you’re sending to them and the fact they are welcome to use it for free!
STEP 9. Follow up to those you have submitted the article to. A quick email or call is all that you need. So remember who you sent it out to OK!
STEP 10. Be positive, persistent and patient! Like anything the more you do it the better you become. You will have some people turn you down, BUT you will also be getting closer to someone saying YES! So keep sending it out! Please all the people ALL the time. So don't stress if someone says no. It’s useless if you don't implement promotion of it.
I have sent one article off to over 50 different places. NEVER give up! Schedule it in to do and DO IT! And remember, a great marketing tool that can spring off this initiative is to add more information, content and detailing and sell it as an E-book!
I love articles and the diversity of them. You can simply use, change, add, delete words to build it into a very profitable marketing exercise. Have fun and good luck!
Reference: Rachael Bermingham Article
http://www.marketingtosuccess.com, http://www.globalsuccesscommunity.com
International Success Strategist, Entrepreneur, Mum, Wife, Business woman, and Coach who teaches and helps others how to develop and use their passions, skills, and talents for profit
It's not a case of sitting down and writing just anything... There are some tricks to doing it, and I'm going to share with you some the basic process you need to follow to get started in the right direction.
First of all why even bother to write an article? Well for one, it's a fabulous way to gain FREE exposure to a target market you want, but don't have yourself. It's also a terrific way of increasing your own personal profile, as articles build your credibility as an expert of the topic you're writing about.
STEP 1. Start with something that you have an interest in. Even better is something that you are really passionate about and that your target market is interested in too!
After all, it is not going to be effective if for example I wrote about my love of holidaying! My target market is going to be thinking well so what!!!! Make it relevant!
STEP 2. Still don't know where to start? Well ask or listen to your customers, what problems are they facing, what do they need solutions to and how can you be instrumental in that.
Then write about it! People will pay big money to solve their problems, so they may as well spend it with you, yes?
STEP 3. List out some things you like to cover in the article, do some research for inspiration if you get stuck. Success is in the planning. So be organized in your content.
It has to be written professionally otherwise it will do more harm than good for you. After you list a few key points you wish to cover, put them in the order you wish them to appear and then sub elaborate on them.
All of a sudden you have content coming out your ears!!!!
STEP 4. Link it all together and write it in a way that it has emotion coming through to your reader. It HAS to be exciting and interesting enough that it will hold your readers attention (you don't want them yawning!) And don't make it a sales pitch or advertisement for your product. It HAS to be valuable information and educational for your reader and as if it conversational.
At the end of the article you can promote your product/service etc, but never during the body of the article, and in addition to that the product/service needs to be relevant to what you’re writing about. You need to look at around 750 - 1000 words.
STEP 5. Have a title. THIS is one of the most important things when writing an article and it can make or break the decision of whether a person will read it or not. It needs to leap out at your reader and speak right to their need, emotion and curiosity. Your heading needs to have the person saying to themselves I MUST read this otherwise?
Missing out on something valuable here (and they would be right!!!!) It also needs to be shouting out the benefits that someone will have as a result of reading it.
STEP 6. Write a short paragraph (no more than 4 sentences) on who you are, what your product is and how people can contact you including your website. This area is often known as the authors or resource box. Check mine at the bottom here as an example.
STEP 7. Proof read it 3 times and then proof read it again! And then get someone else to check it for you to if you can! Also do the all important spell check!
STEP 8. Promote it. Research where you like to send it so that your target market have a chance at seeing it and email or submit it to the site for free use as long as it has your authors details in tact. There are countless Internet sites that will take it, and many magazines/publications that are directed at your target market PLUS there is also an array of local press AND media who may also use it too!
Remember there's a host of industries that have their own newsletters that often look for content, such as fitness industries, medical, health, new age, business, etc. If sending your article to a newspaper, add your head shot of yourself too. They would like to have to add photos. Also beneficial to send a little intro to them describing briefly what your article is about and why you’re sending to them and the fact they are welcome to use it for free!
STEP 9. Follow up to those you have submitted the article to. A quick email or call is all that you need. So remember who you sent it out to OK!
STEP 10. Be positive, persistent and patient! Like anything the more you do it the better you become. You will have some people turn you down, BUT you will also be getting closer to someone saying YES! So keep sending it out! Please all the people ALL the time. So don't stress if someone says no. It’s useless if you don't implement promotion of it.
I have sent one article off to over 50 different places. NEVER give up! Schedule it in to do and DO IT! And remember, a great marketing tool that can spring off this initiative is to add more information, content and detailing and sell it as an E-book!
I love articles and the diversity of them. You can simply use, change, add, delete words to build it into a very profitable marketing exercise. Have fun and good luck!
Reference: Rachael Bermingham Article
http://www.marketingtosuccess.com, http://www.globalsuccesscommunity.com
International Success Strategist, Entrepreneur, Mum, Wife, Business woman, and Coach who teaches and helps others how to develop and use their passions, skills, and talents for profit
7/14/08
Dropped Jaw Syndrome, Your Fastest, Most Reliable Market Test
Business owners should be more like doctors. Forget selling and start asking your customers where they hurt. Broken leg? Ulcer? Empty wallet?
Don't sell, diagnose!. And what are you as a doctor looking for?
Well, of course: that ever-illusive, yet ever- profitable disease called Dropped Jaw Syndrome. OK, it may not be in any medical book. But Dropped Jaw Syndrome, however rare, is known to anyone who ever tried to sell something.
The customer walks into your store, listens to your pitch and falls into an awestruck trance. "I'll take three of them.”Joking aside, the dropped jaws, or at least its symptoms, are the fuel behind every sale. When a customer is persuaded to buy, their reaction isn’t logical. You’re connected with the part of their brain that decides if you and your product are believable, the limbic system.
Sure, you still need to persuade with facts, but logic is a distant second to their desire to buy, their reflexive dropping jaw. Diagnosing Dropped Jaw, the key is finding the dropped jaw, tracking the symptoms back to their source. But it’s there. And it’s quite easy to find once you stop thinking about your product for a moment and focus on the customer. . . I mean, patient.
Don’t believe me? Well, put on a white coat, hang a stethoscope around your neck and do some market tests of your own. But this is a test you have to do face to face. Forget the demographic studies, sales plans and benchmark reports, and get in front of a customer. Now, take his temperature, make your pitch. And follow it through the customer’s reaction. Did his jaw drop? Hmm. You must have done something wrong.
Try again, but listen like a doctor searching for a heart murmur. Ask a question, offer information, and then hear the subtleties of his response. And when you’re diagnosing a customer, instead of trying to sell your product, something changes. You become more attuned to the subtle dropped jaw and related body language. And you ask more accurate questions. You notice which of the claims and benefits penetrate the customer? Protective indifference, sparking real interest.
Of course, most salespeople already do this to a degree, but it must be done intentionally, consciously. The true advantage of Dropped Jaw Syndrome comes from changing your role for a moment, from selling and telling to assessing what customers want, even when they can’t say it in words. Demand that you live up to their desires.
Because if you’re not dropping jaws, you’re in danger of falling behind the competition.
Worse, you’re probably overlooking your company uniqueness. Diagnosing Your Pitch In searching for dropped-jaw reactions, some companies have made unbelievable claims central to their promotions. We’re all seen the TV commercial where "Crazy Joe" says he’s so insane he’s practically giving away the furniture in his store.
Better are claims that are striking and stand out from the competition, but don’t Over-promise. Consider "Have it your way" (Burger King) or "It takes a licking and keeps on ticking" (Timex). In establishing your own unique proposition, the dropped jaw test is quick and reliable. Customers, whether they know it or not, are very good at distinguishing between businesses they trust and those they don’t. Let them tell you how you’re doing.
Building Customer Confidence discovered the Dropped Jaw Syndrome years ago. It started with my claim that I can assess the health of a business by looking only at its business card. And when I would point out the subtle messages on their cards, most of them unintended, people? Jaws would drop. The value of the dropped jaw test is the perspective it imparts.
By listening to the customer or putting yourself in her shoes, you’re more likely to notice the "small potatoes" signals you’re sending. Such telltale signs aren’t based on the business size or age. But once you recognize them they can be easily repaired. As you play doctor, it’s your job to notice what hurts the customer and cure it. When you find ways to make your customers jaws drop, you’ll take their pain away. And that will make your business a healthy one.
Reference: Dr. Lynella Grant article, expert on the signals that make up the body language of a business.
Author of The Business Card Book and Stop Looking Like Small Potatoes.
www. giantpotatoes. com
Don't sell, diagnose!. And what are you as a doctor looking for?
Well, of course: that ever-illusive, yet ever- profitable disease called Dropped Jaw Syndrome. OK, it may not be in any medical book. But Dropped Jaw Syndrome, however rare, is known to anyone who ever tried to sell something.
The customer walks into your store, listens to your pitch and falls into an awestruck trance. "I'll take three of them.”Joking aside, the dropped jaws, or at least its symptoms, are the fuel behind every sale. When a customer is persuaded to buy, their reaction isn’t logical. You’re connected with the part of their brain that decides if you and your product are believable, the limbic system.
Sure, you still need to persuade with facts, but logic is a distant second to their desire to buy, their reflexive dropping jaw. Diagnosing Dropped Jaw, the key is finding the dropped jaw, tracking the symptoms back to their source. But it’s there. And it’s quite easy to find once you stop thinking about your product for a moment and focus on the customer. . . I mean, patient.
Don’t believe me? Well, put on a white coat, hang a stethoscope around your neck and do some market tests of your own. But this is a test you have to do face to face. Forget the demographic studies, sales plans and benchmark reports, and get in front of a customer. Now, take his temperature, make your pitch. And follow it through the customer’s reaction. Did his jaw drop? Hmm. You must have done something wrong.
Try again, but listen like a doctor searching for a heart murmur. Ask a question, offer information, and then hear the subtleties of his response. And when you’re diagnosing a customer, instead of trying to sell your product, something changes. You become more attuned to the subtle dropped jaw and related body language. And you ask more accurate questions. You notice which of the claims and benefits penetrate the customer? Protective indifference, sparking real interest.
Of course, most salespeople already do this to a degree, but it must be done intentionally, consciously. The true advantage of Dropped Jaw Syndrome comes from changing your role for a moment, from selling and telling to assessing what customers want, even when they can’t say it in words. Demand that you live up to their desires.
Because if you’re not dropping jaws, you’re in danger of falling behind the competition.
Worse, you’re probably overlooking your company uniqueness. Diagnosing Your Pitch In searching for dropped-jaw reactions, some companies have made unbelievable claims central to their promotions. We’re all seen the TV commercial where "Crazy Joe" says he’s so insane he’s practically giving away the furniture in his store.
Better are claims that are striking and stand out from the competition, but don’t Over-promise. Consider "Have it your way" (Burger King) or "It takes a licking and keeps on ticking" (Timex). In establishing your own unique proposition, the dropped jaw test is quick and reliable. Customers, whether they know it or not, are very good at distinguishing between businesses they trust and those they don’t. Let them tell you how you’re doing.
Building Customer Confidence discovered the Dropped Jaw Syndrome years ago. It started with my claim that I can assess the health of a business by looking only at its business card. And when I would point out the subtle messages on their cards, most of them unintended, people? Jaws would drop. The value of the dropped jaw test is the perspective it imparts.
By listening to the customer or putting yourself in her shoes, you’re more likely to notice the "small potatoes" signals you’re sending. Such telltale signs aren’t based on the business size or age. But once you recognize them they can be easily repaired. As you play doctor, it’s your job to notice what hurts the customer and cure it. When you find ways to make your customers jaws drop, you’ll take their pain away. And that will make your business a healthy one.
Reference: Dr. Lynella Grant article, expert on the signals that make up the body language of a business.
Author of The Business Card Book and Stop Looking Like Small Potatoes.
www. giantpotatoes. com
An Internet Marketing Strategy that Works
You can't put up a beautiful (or any) web site and hope that people will just arrive. You have to let them know, IN EVERY POSSIBLE WAY, that your web site is there. This HAS to be part of any Internet marketing strategy you develop. This is actually a basic marketing principle. Customers are not going to look for you, you have to look for them. Promoting your web site on-line and building traffic is the subject of thousands of web sites, e-zines, books, courses and seminars.
Using the web to promote your site, however, assumes that your customers are surfers. But there is a large percentage of our population that is not as savvy with the internet as we would like them to be. So, what about the large percentages of the population who are not? They will only find out about you through traditional marketing and public relations media
This is particularly true if you serve a fairly local market. Fortunately these are the easiest and cheapest prospects for you to reach off-line.
Key Off-Line Internet Marketing Strategies
Here are some of the ways to make your web site known (this list was taken directly from the Traffic Building Volume of Ken Evoy's brilliant book, Make Your Site Sell! 2002:
TV, print and other advertising? Stationary and business cards? Catalogs,fliers,billboards, blimps, etc. Direct mail (prominently on every document), telemarketing (make it part of the script)? News releases to targeted media.
The main principle, to which you can add all your imagination, is
INTERNET MARKETING STRATEGY INCLUDES ANY AND ALL MEANS OF GETTING YOUR WEB SITE KNOWN AND VISITED BY TARGETED PROSPECTS.
Unless you have a high budget, the TV, radio, classified ad route is not recommended but if you do run ads, be sure to mention your web site everywhere. Make it part of your Internet Marketing Strategy. Another guiding principle is that your off-line internet marketing activities should make it easy for your prospect to go straight to your web site. One of the best ways to market your website off-line is direct mail postcards.
If your prospect sees your website on a billboard as she's driving home, she probably won't look you up when she gets to the office the next day. This is not the only medium that has problems like this. Newspapers are bulky, radio has to spell it out and like before most people are driving at the time. On the other hand, if your prospect is sitting at her computer and a post card comes in the mail announcing your web site, she can just turn around and type in your URL and she's at your web site.
Now if someone is in the office reading a trade journal and comes across an article about you in the magazine, it's not difficult for him to copy your URL into his browser and pay your site a visit. I don’t mean to say that those other avenues won’t drive traffic to your site, but it will take numerous impressions and repetition to get them to remember your address.
On the other hand, direct mail postcards are generally received at the home or office where a computer is present, and if received somewhere else they are small enough to keep with you until you can get to a computer. This way, your prospective customer will be able to take the take right over to their desk top computer, type in your address and go right to your site.
Brilliant! I have seen the greatest success in off-line web site promotion with direct mail, and specifically direct mail postcards. Joy Gendusa founded Postcard Mania in 1998, her only assets a computer and a phone. By 2004 the company did close to $9 million in sales and employed over 60 people. She attributes her explosive growth to her ability to choose incredible staff and her innate marketing savvy.
Reference: Joy Gendusa article (www.postcardmania.com)
Using the web to promote your site, however, assumes that your customers are surfers. But there is a large percentage of our population that is not as savvy with the internet as we would like them to be. So, what about the large percentages of the population who are not? They will only find out about you through traditional marketing and public relations media
This is particularly true if you serve a fairly local market. Fortunately these are the easiest and cheapest prospects for you to reach off-line.
Key Off-Line Internet Marketing Strategies
Here are some of the ways to make your web site known (this list was taken directly from the Traffic Building Volume of Ken Evoy's brilliant book, Make Your Site Sell! 2002:
TV, print and other advertising? Stationary and business cards? Catalogs,fliers,billboards, blimps, etc. Direct mail (prominently on every document), telemarketing (make it part of the script)? News releases to targeted media.
The main principle, to which you can add all your imagination, is
INTERNET MARKETING STRATEGY INCLUDES ANY AND ALL MEANS OF GETTING YOUR WEB SITE KNOWN AND VISITED BY TARGETED PROSPECTS.
Unless you have a high budget, the TV, radio, classified ad route is not recommended but if you do run ads, be sure to mention your web site everywhere. Make it part of your Internet Marketing Strategy. Another guiding principle is that your off-line internet marketing activities should make it easy for your prospect to go straight to your web site. One of the best ways to market your website off-line is direct mail postcards.
If your prospect sees your website on a billboard as she's driving home, she probably won't look you up when she gets to the office the next day. This is not the only medium that has problems like this. Newspapers are bulky, radio has to spell it out and like before most people are driving at the time. On the other hand, if your prospect is sitting at her computer and a post card comes in the mail announcing your web site, she can just turn around and type in your URL and she's at your web site.
Now if someone is in the office reading a trade journal and comes across an article about you in the magazine, it's not difficult for him to copy your URL into his browser and pay your site a visit. I don’t mean to say that those other avenues won’t drive traffic to your site, but it will take numerous impressions and repetition to get them to remember your address.
On the other hand, direct mail postcards are generally received at the home or office where a computer is present, and if received somewhere else they are small enough to keep with you until you can get to a computer. This way, your prospective customer will be able to take the take right over to their desk top computer, type in your address and go right to your site.
Brilliant! I have seen the greatest success in off-line web site promotion with direct mail, and specifically direct mail postcards. Joy Gendusa founded Postcard Mania in 1998, her only assets a computer and a phone. By 2004 the company did close to $9 million in sales and employed over 60 people. She attributes her explosive growth to her ability to choose incredible staff and her innate marketing savvy.
Reference: Joy Gendusa article (www.postcardmania.com)
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