Archive for May, 2008

The internet is the first place to turn when you need information on virtually anything.  There is more information on more subjects on the internet than in every other source combined. You can find answers online faster than at the library and faster than at the book store.

With all that free information, why do people pay for information?

If you are searching for some quick fact, search the internet and you will probably find what you are looking for.  If you want comprehensive information presented in a structured format, you will do better with a book or some other form of training.

Information marketing has become a very significant part of internet business.  More people are willing to spend money online than ever.  Because people see the internet as a research tool, information marketing is a logical business for the internet.

What information products work on the internet?

Virtually any topic is a good fit for an internet information product.  Best results come with more exciting products, but that is true regardless of where and how you market.  Write a book on human cloning and it will outsell a book on cloning frogs.  The real objective is to choose a format that is great for your topic.  Choose multiple formats and you will do even better.

Do interviews and record them in video.  Include the video on DVD, the audio on CD, the printed book, and maybe throw in a workbook as a free bonus.  Sell the bundle for more money than you could get for the book.

What if I don’t have a book, CD, or anything else to sell?

You can create and market your own products or you can market someone else’s products.  There are also public domain books that you can use as your own.  Search for electronic downloads of “Think and Grow Rich” or “The Science of Getting Rich”.  These are free to use.  Update them and publish them as a revised edition.  Create add-on information to supplement the book and sell it as a bundle.  You can also purchase books that you are allowed to put your name on it and modify it as you wish.  These are called “Private Label Rights” (PLR) products.

Marketing Techniques

There are dozens of sales techniques.  Step 1 is to create a sales page that really encourages someone to purchase your book right now.  Offer free bonuses, time limited discounts, or other incentives.  Create scarcity and urgency in your sales page.

Promote your sales page everywhere.  Promote it in newsletters, web pages, craigslist, or with joint ventures.  Get your ad in front of as many people as possible and have your ad send them to your sales page.

I have just completed a book on this topic called “Become an Overnight Infopreneur”.  If you are interested in knowing more about this topic, visit www.anythinginternet.com and request a copy through the contact us form.   I am giving away copies for a limited time.

Have you ever searched the internet for a specific product or service?  Of course, you have.  But have you noticed how many results come back on your search?  There are usually hundreds of thousands, or even millions, or results.   That is a lot of competition.  Focusing your internet marketing strategy on a tight niche market will reduce the number of competitors.  Your campaign will reach less people, however you should have a higher success rate.  Finding a good niche could be a goldmine.

What is your Niche?

You may have more than one niche.  We are discussing a single niche campaign in this article.  Just repeat the process for each of your niche markets.  Do not mix them together.  Combining niche markets means you do not have a niche anymore.

If your company sells computer hardware, for example, you will have a lot of competition.  Focusing your campaign on one brand will help you rise above the competition.   If you want to focus on HP, for example, you can target HP Color Laser Printers as one niche, and create more niche campaigns for other products.   Alternatively, you could focus on a particular client, such as doctors’ offices, etc.

Setup Niche Pages

After you identify your niche(s), create special pages on your website that target that niche.  You might even create special websites that target that niche if the niche is lucrative.   Have one or more pages focused on “HP Color Laser Printers” and run ads and link building campaigns to drive traffic to those pages.  These specialized pages will help you gain credibility in that niche market.  You will be able to establish yourself as an expert in those areas.

Grow Your Niche

Visitors who came to your site from one of your niche ads or niche links will end up on your special niche landing page.   As soon as they hit your landing page, set a cookie.  Use that cookie later to flag their customer record.   You will be able to use that information to send targeted ads to them via email.

Have you ever been to craigslist.org?  You probably have.  But have you really considered the powerful possibilities of promoting your business on craigslist.org?  I have been digging into this lately and it feels like I just struck gold.

The background story is this.  I recently sold a car.  I took it to CarMax because everyone says CarMax pays the best.  However, CarMax did not offer me nearly what I wanted for the car.  I decided to try CraigsList.org.  CraigsList.org is free and very popular.   I took wrote a compelling ad and added a few photos.  I crossed my fingers.  I know that the price I was asking was slightly higher than I expected to get, so I was not sure if I would get any calls or not.  I ended up selling that car within four hours and the buyer paid in cash.  That was a great success.

A few weeks later, I decided to look into Craigslist.org and see how other businesses are using this service.  I learned a lot.  Would you like to drive more prospects to your website?  Craigslist.org can be more effective than the Yellow Pages.

Why Use Craigslist.org?

Craigslist.org is extremely popular and it is free.  Further, the user community expects you to place ads there.  Place ads in your own city, or in other cities, and people will click on the ads and visit your web page.   Driving free traffic to your website is always a good thing, right?

Getting Started with Craigslist.org?

Register your free account on Craigslist.org and explore the site for a bit.  Look at how people write other ads and what types of ads are in what categories.  Check other states as well.  Once you are comfortable with how things are organized, go ahead and place your own ad.  Your ad should include a link to your website.  You will have to form the link using proper HTML codes.   You should also include a picture if you can.  Get some help putting together your first ad.  Save the ad and you can place it again in a week or so.

Powerful Tips for Craigslist.org

Use Landing Pages – Create a special page on your website that is linked to only by your Craigslist.org ad.  This way you have precise statistics and it helps you build targeted offers, etc.

Special Offers – Create special time or quantity limited offers.  People really respond to limited time or other restricted offers.  When someone fears they might miss out, they are more likely to take action.  Don’t forget to offer free offers.  Get your free e-book on how to make a zillion dollars!  Then get them to sign-up for your newsletter and send that e-book to whomever signs up for your newsletter.

Use Posting Software – Once you determine that Craigslist.org is working for you, consider buying specialized software to help you post ads.  Most can be scheduled to post your ad on a regular basis and will help you with other time-saving features.

Different Ads, Different Categories, Different Cities – You can run various ads across the country.  The rules for Craigslist.org don’t allow for posting the same ads in different cities.  You can run different ads in different places.  Know the rules, then create several different ads for different products or services and post the various ads in various places.  Just stay within the guidelines.

Don’t Spam – Craigslist.org has rules about how many ads you can post and other restrictions.  You want to do as much as you can, but if you violate the rules, you could have some problems.  Read the rules and abide by them.

Write Good Ads – Remember your marketing rules.  Write ads that compel people to visit your site and buy your products or services.  Try different strategies and study your success rates.

Use these techniques and before you know it you will know what role Craigslist.org plays in marketing your products and services.   Who knows, maybe Craigslist.org will be your best marketing value.