Life as an Island Marketer – Affiliate Programs
Life as an Island Marketer
Nicholas Dixon
For some time now I have been an island marketer and the journey as been worth every moment. When I first discovered the Net, all I used to do was read my emails and surf.
Then I realized that the net had more than that to offer to me. There are opportunities being thrown all around at you from all angles as soon as you log on.
Schemers, scammers and legitimate marketers are all clamoring for your attention and money. Make $10,000 in 30 days claims, emails from relatives of dead African leaders, various affiliate programs and many more are all common anywhere you go.
I used to believe all the hype surrounding becoming wealthy off the Net, but time and experience all changed that. It is possible to make money on the internet, but you better be prepared for the long haul. It takes time to become an overnight success, well that is what I heard and it is so true.
I think some of the hype online is true indeed. I have heard of marketers making thousands of dollars in a few days without much effort. This is where so many people go astray. They believe that they can do the same starting today and have money lining their pockets by next week.
But the truth is the hype is only half true. What they fail to Tell you is that yes it can be accomplished, it just takes a lot of work and discipline to reach that level. Most marketers work for years before they achieve what the hypers are preaching.
But don
5 Things About Offshore Asset Protection Every Internet Marketer Should Know – Merchant Account
5 Things About Offshore Asset Protection Every Internet Marketer Should Know
James Allen
Offshore instruments of asset protection no longer belong in the realm of the wealthiest individuals with high paid financial advisors. Thanks to the internet and globalization of financial markets, there are plenty of firms that can help just about anyone "go offshore". What follows is a brief introduction to some of the most popular tools of offshore asset protection and how they can be used by online business people and internet marketers like yourself to protect and grow your business.
1. Offshore Trusts
An offshore trust is a very simple agreement that helps put some distance between you and your hard earned assets. A trust is simply a legally binding agreement between two parties - the grantor and the trustee. The grantor "grants" control over specified assest and property to the trustee, who is then responsible for them. Beneficiaries are listed in the trust, who will "benefit" from the assests being entrusted. Often this is in the form of receiving the assets upon the death of the grantor, or by receiving the profits generated by the assets listed.
The main point is that this agreement helps separate the grantor - you - from these assets in a legal sense, making it more difficult for someone to take them from you. By moving the trust offshore, there is an added layer of protection. If youve ever worried about a frivolous lawsuit destroying all youve worked for in your internet business, this is certainly a form of asset protection youll want to look into.
2. Offshore Incorporation
There are many benefits for the internet marketer who chooses to incorporate offshore. Protecting your privacy from the prying eyes of an ever more invasive government - especially in the area of online information, legally limiting the amount of taxes you pay on your online income, and protecting your business against lawsuits are just a few of the ways an offshore corporation or IBC can benefit the internet marketer.
Properly planned and executed, forming an offshore corporation need not be any more expensive or time consuming than forming a corporation within your own borders. Be sure to deal with a legitimate and established firm when establishing your IBC, make sure your asset protection needs are being met and that all of your questions are answered.
3. Offshore Bank Accounts
Again, keeping with the theme of protecting the internet marketers wealth from both lawsuits and privacy invasion, the offshore bank account will also help address these issues.
Most companies that offer offshore incorporation will also help you set up an offshore bank account. Choose a country where information privacy laws are respected and enforced, and preferably keep the account in non-US funds. The acccounts are usually offered with an international debit card, so you can access your funds from ATMs around the globe.
4. Offshore Merchant Accounts
Of particular interest to those who create their income online is the option of establishing an offshore merchant account for handling all of your credit card transactions.
Besides addressing privacy issues, an offshore merchant account may be more suitable for those offering items, information, or subscriptions for sale online that are more difficult to procure a domestic merchant account for. These include higher risk services such as you might find in the adult website or online gambling arenas.
5. Offshore Webhosting
Although often considered home to the worst internet has to offer, such as spammers and hackers, offshore webhosting certainly has its place for legitimate online marketers and should not be dismissed outright.
Few would disagree that new internet laws, especially those related to spam are having an adverse affect on those it should least be harming. On top of that, the privacy invasion allowed by legislation such as the Patriot Act further increase the need for protecting your online information outside the borders of the USA.
Yes there are plenty of scam artists in the offshore webhosting arena. Do your research though, and you will find secure, well-staffed offshore webhosting operations with high-uptime, fast connections, good support and reasonable prices to suit your needs.
With all the new laws that allow for invasion of your privacy, including your financial information, combined with the fact that the USA is one of the most lawsuit prone countries in the world, every internet marketer and individual doing business online owes it to themselves to at least consider how going offshore can benefit you and your business.
About The Author
James Allen is the creator of GatesToWealth.com, a website which introduces tools of offshore asset protection and wealth generation. To learn more about going offshore and to subscribe to "Mind the Beach" the newsletter of offshore living and lifestyles, swing on by:
http://www.gatestowealth.com
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This article is shareware. Give this article away for free on your site, or include it as part of any paid package as long as the entire article is left intact including this notice.
Copyright © 2004 James Allen.
How to Become A Top Internet Marketer – Web Hosting
How to Become A Top Internet Marketer
Willie Crawford
A recent thread at The Internet Marketing Warriors member-only discussion forum examined what it is that separates the big Internet marketing successes from the "also rans." There was no argument that one key to being an online success is learning to write great copy. Great copy is what gets your sites visitors stirred up enough to actually take action... often a monumental challenge.
The discussion also asked why big online successes would bother with learning to write copy when they could hire someone else. The answer was that its fun trying to see if you can create, or improve upon, a winning sales letter.
Many of the top copywriters are also so busy writing copy for their own projects that if you could afford the ten to fifteen thousand dollars theyd charge you, youd also have to get on their waiting lists. So clearly, learning to improve your own web copy is a worthwhile investment.
The fact is, anyone can get a web hosting account, throw together a hastily written web page, and say that they are in business on the Internet. In-fact, thats what far too many people do. Thats one of the reasons why most netrepreneurs never earn a respectable income. They never bother to learn what it is about good copywriting that makes it work. They never learn enough about human behavior to understand what makes us behave the way that we do.
Human behavior and motivation hasnt changed in thousand of years. As Jay Abraham is fond on saying, "Human nature, is human nature, is human nature." How and why we react to environmental stimuli LITERALLY hasnt changed since the beginning of recorded history. Understanding the causes and effects of human behavior is the secret to great copywriting.
As complex as we like to believe we are, were all really creatures of habit. Humans are not really that complex. Were lots of emotions and chemical reactions sprinkled with a little reason :-
Copywriters understand that were lots of "hot buttons" that can be ethically exploited.
Great copywriters have discovered what these hot buttons are and the correct way to push them. Theyve discovered through trial and error how to whip the prospect into a "white-hot buying frenzy." Theyve discovered how to get a prospect to reach an emotionally charged decision and then logically justify it.
All of the discoveries made by great copywriters, which are often well-documented, makes it incredibly easy for you to become a world-class copywriter which is your key to becoming a top Internet marketer. All you have to do is study what they have written. All you have to do is model their successful sales pieces. You dont even have to fully understand WHY they worked - you just need to know which ones worked. Thats the one big danger I see in modeling others sales pieces. You dont always KNOW which ones worked.
Great copywriters test everything, and as a result, always know which elements made the difference in their advertising pieces. Its not guesswork - its science. Some share their scientific findings with you in their courses and books. Aspiring copywriters should have a library of these courses and books.
Heres an astonishing fact... many of the top Internet marketers today did not struggle for years before becoming successful. They understood... perhaps even stumbled upon the real key which is effective copywriting. This enabled them to reach six and even seven-figure incomes in months rather than years!
Let me give you an example. My friend Yanik Silver only came on the Internet scene in 2000. I started in 1996! Within a year of coming on the scene Yanik was already a household name. Within 2 years, he was one of the "gurus." What is Yaniks secret Hes an incredible copywriter.
Like many world-class copywriters, Yanik actually spent a lot of time studying copywriting. He was introduced to the works of Jay Abraham and Dan Kennedy as a kid. He discovered the power of good copywriting early. As a teenager, he was already writing direct response copy so good that it sold medical equipment, for his dad, to hard-noised, very discriminating doctors. He wrote ads that caused doctors to mail or fax in orders for expensive medical machinery... site unseen, while he was still a teenager.
Yanik, and every great copywriter that Ive ever talked to, became that way through study and practice. They studied everything that they could that was written on the topic by famous, proven copywriters. They built huge "swipe file" of documented-successful sales pieces. Then they spent a lot of time practicing writing similar sales pieces. They practiced until they were able to model their teachers.
Being one of the Internet marketing top-earners is really very simple. You study "million-dollars salespieces." You sit down and write them out, over and over again. You study each element of those successful salespieces. Through practice and repetition you develop a feel for the flow. Your nervous system becomes "trained." You develop an arsenal of thoughts, of headlines, guarantees, closes, proof, sub-headings, power word... and eventually you reach a point where the powerful, effective copy just flows from you effortlessly.
I used Yanik as an example above for two reasons. One is that he has produced a "home-study" copywriter