What Ive Learned From My Subscribers – Writing
What Ive Learned From My Subscribers
FRANCINE SILVERMAN
As editor/publisher of Book Promotion Newsletter, I am fortunate in having an eclectic group of subscribers who number in the thousands. The ezine is interactive and subscribers are encouraged to share their innovative marketing techniques.
Since starting the ezine in March 2003, I have learned a great deal about the do
Everything I Needed to Know About Article Writing I Learned from My English Teacher – Writing
Everything I Needed to Know About Article Writing I Learned from My English Teacher
Glenn Beach
By now you probably understand how important writing for trade publications is to establishing credibility in the home business world.
On to the first hurdle: how do you get past that HUGE writers block How do you know what to write about, and how do you make it unique, informative and interesting
Remember how you resisted writing those reports in school, insisting that you would never need to know how to do that in "real life" Welcome to the real world of business writing.
Your English teacher gave you the bare bones: pick a topic, research, take notes, make lists and an outline, write a rough draft in your own words, rewrite, rewrite, rewrite. Dont forget introductory paragraphs, summaries, footnotes and bibliographies.
Thanks to the internet, you can use a search engine, copy and paste, cut and paste, type, cut and paste edit into infinity, include hyperlinks and add your resource box at the end.
But...youre still stuck on picking a topic. You feel as imaginative as a two by four. Start with your own home business, internet marketing, or entrepreneurial problems. Better yet, start with your journal. You dont keep one Here, you can borrow some of my own entries: better yet, each of these items is looking for a foster home
Didnt want to get out of bed this morning.
Turned on the computer and would rather play a computer game than work.
The quiet is driving me crazy...music would help...now I want to dance...now that Im up, I could vacuum....wonder whats on tv...
The noise is driving me crazy, I cant concentrate.
Ok, I finally got started. Ten hours later, I just cant stop. I wonder why my wife is glaring at me.
I cant finish anything--the next new project always looks more interesting.
Friends call and want to chat, the cats want fed, that window needs fixing.
How do I know when to be persistent and when to try something else
My website has lots of visitors, many dont stay for more than 30 seconds, few sign up.
Id rather be __________ fill in the blank: sleeping, golfing, fishing, watching tv, eating, reading, swimming.
Now lets turn that list into a list of how-tos. I need to learn how to: get enough sleep; stay focused; identify goals, strategies and action plans; develop credibility among friends and family; identify success measurable results; make my website more sticky; encourage prospects to become active affiliates; balance work and pleasure; plan my day; stay motivated... and so on.
First I brainstorm: when have I been able to accomplish any of these things take notes Then its off to the search engines. take notes; bookmarking and copy and paste makes this easy Now organize your notes: whatever floats your boat, whether it be lists, outlines, mind mapping or freeform writing.
Just keep searching, taking notes and bookmarking until something hits you over the head. "This really might work, especially if you did this first and then tried this..." Be patient, it may take a little time.
Dont copy word for word what another writer has already written; but on the other hand, dont worry about inventing the lightbulb either. If youve done much surfing at all, you realize that the internet is HUGE, a veritable wasteland.
The chances of two people reading exactly the same articles or websites and coming to exactly the same conclusions are slim. Any bleary-eyed surfer will THANK you for your arduous research.
And dont rule out your own experiences and thoughts. I once was dealing with a problem and was becoming more frustrated and angry by the minute. I finally just dropped it and went for a walk. You can substitute any of those things, such as fishing, that you used to fill in the blank above.
While walking I was thinking about another situation in my life, was looking at the part of the natural world I was walking through, and came to a brilliant conclusion. As soon as it occurred to me, I saw that the solution also applied to the problem I was trying to solve earlier. So you see, sometimes its good to just follow your instinct and GO FISHING.
Ill write that all up into an article some day soon. Its on my list. Meanwhile, Ive got a few more ideas Im writing up first. Now I cant wait to get them all written into articles. So...theres my topics, my motivation, and my action plan.
If youve followed these steps, thanks to your English teacher, the internet, your own experiences, and your stumbling attempts at writing, youre now an author. But more than that, youve learned:
how to set yourself a goal: new affiliate signups;
a strategy: making your name familiar or establishing yourself as an expert;
and an action plan: write an article, submit it to dozens of websites, post it on your own website, maybe even add a few guest articles and start up a newsletter.
Then start over at the beginning...and dont forget how important it is to take time out for fishing.
About The Author
Glenn Beach is a poet, writer and home business entrepreneur in Nova Scotia, Canada. Free newsletter, more articles, and business start-up info at: http://www.work-at-home-business-opportunity-canada.com
8 Things I have Learned As An Internet Marketer – Affiliate Programs
8 Things I have Learned As An Internet Marketer
Dirk Wagner
I started as an internet marketer, like I am sure a few of you have with various mlm programs. After little success with these types of programs I finally decided it was time I make my own website and get serious about marketing on the internet. Although I have not been doing this as long as some, there have been a few things that I have learned along the way that have helped me achieve much more success than my previous ventures in mlm. I would like to share with you 8 things I have learned since becoming an internet marketer.
1. Choosing The Right Program
Choosing the right program to affiliate with is still a relevant way of making money on the internet. I learned not believe all the hype surrounding every affiliate program on the net. Instead I look for affiliate programs that pay at least 30% commissions and are run by reputable internet marketers.
2. Choosing The Right Tools
I learned quickly that you need much more than just a website to become successful. Choosing the right tools to optimize your internet business is crucial if you hope to succeed. Tools like auto responders, professional emailboxes, and software that help with linking and submitting your site to search engines is very important information to have. However, some of these tools can be expensive, but the return on investment is priceless.
3. Targeted Traffic
Getting the right people to your website is something all internet marketers are constantly working to achieve. In this business you find a lot of tire kickers, these are the people that may download a free product or tour your site but they have no intentions of ever buying any of your products or services. Finding targeted traffic is what you need, people that our looking for a home-based business or a product or service you are selling.
4. Quality Leads
Quality leads are very important when talking about targeted traffic. there are plenty of companies that offer leads and subscription services, and I suggest trying a few different companies out, because you just do not know what type of leads you will get. One of the first companies I used to buy leads from provided me with leads from people all over the world, most of whom did not speak English, or they wanted me to either give them money or go out on a date! So I learned to ask around and investigate a few companies out before I invest in leads.
5. Publishing A Newsletter
Publishing my own newsletter is very important, probably more important than I first realized. With your own newsletter filled with relevant content that can help your prospects, you gain trust and credibility. Your prospects are more willing to buy your product or service if they feel as if they know you.
6. Reciprocal Linking
This was a powerful lesson to be learned. Search engines love reciprocal links when deciding your page rank and position in their search engine. This was an eye opener. With the right software I was able to make reciprocal linking work to my advantage, without having to manually do it myself. Reciprocal linking has helped me with my alexa ranking as well as in the search engines.
7. Finding JV Partners
Finding Joint Venture JV partners is also very important is building a successful online venture, in a sense reciprocal linking is a JV partnership in that you are hoping your link on someone else site will bring you visitors and vice-a-versa. However, there are also other JV partnerships available and are quite easy to find, if you know where to look see below. I have a few JV partners that I work with to mutually make our businesses profitable. It is the old adage of