Choose the Subject of Your Business Website Carefully
Below you'll find a complete list of business website starter ideas. Choose the one (or two) that best fits your area of interest or expertise. You'll find many of these on the list of 101 personal Website ideas also, as many personal sites turn into business sites.
1. Scenic Photography -- Buying and distributing photographs to calendar companies, postcard companies, magazines, etc...
2. Baby Tips -- Have a resource site for new and/or expectant mothers and sell related products.
3. Wedding Ideas -- Make deals with local catering services, photographers, and bridal shops to receive a commission for sales generated from your Website.
4. Parenting Tips -- Write an informational e-book about parenting.
5. Pet Training -- Pet store online with free tips on training and grooming.
6. Camping -- Camping tips and resources.
7. Fishing
8. Travel (Tell others about the places your family has travelled - provide photos, maps, great eating places, etc. You can distribute a monthly "paid" newsletter about travel.)
9. College Resources (School supplies distributor, online college bookstore, etc.)
10. Crafts
11. Wood Products (Ideas for creative wood furniture along with instructions and material resources.)
12. Sewing (Share your special sewing techniques with others around the world.)
13. Office Organization (You'll find that people who run a busy office are always looking for ways to improve the office atmosphere. You can show how to organize, prepare paperwork, manage and distribute work load, etc.)
14. Music (Music lovers will adore you for building a resource site for music lyrics, musical instruments and where to get them, music reading tips, etc...)
15. Movies
16. Advertising
17. Gardening
18. Sports
19. Computer Training
20. Ceramics
21. Electronics
22. Business Services -- Bookeeping, transcription, accounting, computer programming, etc.
23. Special Interest (Perhaps you're a huge fan of a certain collectible item and would like to become a distributor or reseller.)
24. Horseback Riding Resources and Supplies
25. Bike Riding Resources and Supplies
26. Mountain Climbing Resources and Supplies
27. Racing
28. Fishing
29. Writing -- Provide writing secrets in a paid monthly newsletter.
30. Reading -- Provide services or materials that help children learn to read.
31. Surfing (in the ocean, of course)
32. Singing Lessons
33. Teaching Skill Course
34. Composing Music -- Resources
35. Instrumental (piano, guitar, drums, trumpet, etc...)
36. Cooking Tips -- Offer a cooking tips newsletter.
37. Cooking Recipes (Perhaps you've discovered the secret to cooking brocolli casserole just right, or... know someone who has?)
38. Jokes (Build a site of jokes to keep your visitors laughing and laughing and laughing...ha...ha... Send a joke a day via email for a small fee.)
39. Comedy (Not limited to jokes, but just fun stuff you find on the Web.)
40. Art -- Open an online art gallery.
41. Astronomy
42. Chemistry (Maybe you've found a simple solution to help students improve their understanding of chemistry and could sell a report about it.)
43. Engineering
44. Electronics
45. Vitamins
46. Medicine
47. Herbs
48. Mountains -- Books about, reports, travel guides
49. Oceans
50. Mysterious Discoveries -- Newsletter, books about, reports
51. Animals
52. Cultures -- Newsletter, reports, books
53. Religion
54. Geography -- Maps, guides, pictures, etc.
55. Holidays (Have a Holiday theme for your site - change your site to suit each season.)
56. Languages (Include a listing of each language you can find and provide links to Websites that teach different languages.)
57. Enviroment
58. Boating
59. Government
60. Psychology
61. Games (Provide links to places where people can play free games online -- not necessarily gambling -- but, Monopoly, Scrabble, Wheel of Fortune and Jeopardy found at Sony.com, etc.....)
62. Interior Decorating
63. Catering
64. Fashion
65. Farming
66. Garage/Yard Sales
67. Weather
68. Women
69. Men
70. Health
71. Excercise
72. Retirement (Information about successful retirement, best retirement locations in the world, money management, etc....)
73. Stock Market/Investing
74. Special Interest Books
75. Vacationing
76. Weight Loss (Tell how you lost weight to help others.)
77. Aging
78. Teenage Years
79. Home Care and Aid (Give tips about how to care for elderly or disabled loved ones, resources for medical assistance, etc...)
80. Grandparenting
81. Handy Work (Maybe you can offer great tips for fixing things around the house.)
82. Tools
83. Flying (airplanes, helicopters, etc....)
84. House Keeping
85. Flowers
86. Pottery
87. Children (Develop a site for children or about children.)
88. Gold/Silver (coin collections, value, going prices)
89. Unique Jewely
90. Cosmetics/Beauty
91. Hunting
92. National Parks
93. Archeology (An up-to-date factual site about ancient artifacts or a study of the history of archeology will be sufficient.)
94. Poetry
95. Shopping (Tell about your shopping experiences with local stores or National chains.)
96. Real Estate (Provide a free real estate site for your area.)
97. Safety (First aid tips and maneuver demonstrations for life-saving.)
98. Science Fiction
99. Marriage Secrets (Website tips for men and women to make their marriage work.)
100. News (Provide daily or weekly updated news for your local region.)
101. Entertainment (Your local area may benefit from an informative entertainment site -- new movie arrivals at the theater, special events in your town or surrounding areas, etc....)
5/15/09
few Search Engine Optimization tips for dummies
Higher Search engine placement: Having a website for your business is a great way to advertise and attract customers. However, simply having an online presence is not enough. A website requires visitors interested in the product or the service that is being provided. Interested visitors lead to better conversions and a more productive online presence with increased online traffic. To sample what the site offers, potential visitors should be able to "find" your site when searching for a similar service or product.
Through a search engine placement service you can ensure that your site is displayed to the right audience in terms of the product or service available on the website. Your website should rank at least within the top 30 search engine matches for a particular search word if you want your site to be found. You can improve search engine placement by optimizing the site for the right set of search terms.
A better search engine rank can be achieved by optimization as it ensures that the site shows up when a user searches for a keyword closely related to what is provided on the website. The site is optimized for a set of keywords that fall within the broad theme of the product and services offered online. The more pertinent the information (available on a webpage) is to the search query the better are the chances of the site ranking for the keyword and for showing up in the Search engine results, when a search for the keyword is made.
There are a number of things that you need to do in order to achieve a better search engine rank. You need to be sure that you optimize each aspect of your web page, and not just the home page. Individual pages can serve as a landing page for a specific service or product. In order to rank a website, Search engines identify various aspects on an existing page. These aspects are referred to as algorithms. Certain aspects may vary but most search engines follow some common guidelines in establishing the relevancy of a webpage to the searched query. Optimization takes care that most of these common guidelines are adhered to.
Search engines take into account the entire text available on the site. Each page is analyzed with regard to the content including all the tags, sub divisions, location of each word etc. In order to improve search engine placement for a specific topic, all of the pages of your website need to be optimized for that topic. Different pages of the website can be optimized for a different set of keywords. It is important that all the keywords optimized on a single page are related to the topic provided on the page.
Ensure that you cover a good range of relevant keywords that users are likely to search for when searching for a product offered on your site. A comprehensive keyword research analysis is critical at this point. A search engine optimization services program should include a detailed list of keywords and key phrases. Using the selected keywords within the pages in a natural manner without distorting the meaning of the content gives the page a chance of a better search engine ranking. In addition other factors like page size, keyword placement, density etc. also contribute in the assessment of a page for displaying in the SERPs.
Additionally internal links within the site pages help as Search engines follow links within a site. External links are extremely important in optimization. A link from a related website to your site is considered a recommendation from the original site. To get the desired ranking a website requires a combination of optimized web page content and quality external one way links.
An initial list should identify as many keywords as possible that are related to your website and target audience. There a number of online Keyword Research tools that can be used to find the number of searches being made on a particular term and also seek other alternate related terms. Each page on your website could be dealing with a different topic (product or service). The keywords for each page should be relevant to the topic discussed on the page.
This should also include analyzing the competition for the search terms listed. This will give an idea of how many pages are competing for the top spot. Your site's Page Rank is also an important parameter in keyword research analysis. If your site has a high Page rank then it has a better chance of ranking for a highly competitive keyword else it is better to focus on more specific keywords. Once the right set of keywords are identified then incorporating these within the content of the website takes you one step closer to better search engine placement. Focusing on the wrong keywords can result in higher investments and lower returns. Hiring an seo services provider can help identify the right revenue generating keywords for improved search engine rankings so that you move one step closer to your business goals.
Through a search engine placement service you can ensure that your site is displayed to the right audience in terms of the product or service available on the website. Your website should rank at least within the top 30 search engine matches for a particular search word if you want your site to be found. You can improve search engine placement by optimizing the site for the right set of search terms.
A better search engine rank can be achieved by optimization as it ensures that the site shows up when a user searches for a keyword closely related to what is provided on the website. The site is optimized for a set of keywords that fall within the broad theme of the product and services offered online. The more pertinent the information (available on a webpage) is to the search query the better are the chances of the site ranking for the keyword and for showing up in the Search engine results, when a search for the keyword is made.
There are a number of things that you need to do in order to achieve a better search engine rank. You need to be sure that you optimize each aspect of your web page, and not just the home page. Individual pages can serve as a landing page for a specific service or product. In order to rank a website, Search engines identify various aspects on an existing page. These aspects are referred to as algorithms. Certain aspects may vary but most search engines follow some common guidelines in establishing the relevancy of a webpage to the searched query. Optimization takes care that most of these common guidelines are adhered to.
Search engines take into account the entire text available on the site. Each page is analyzed with regard to the content including all the tags, sub divisions, location of each word etc. In order to improve search engine placement for a specific topic, all of the pages of your website need to be optimized for that topic. Different pages of the website can be optimized for a different set of keywords. It is important that all the keywords optimized on a single page are related to the topic provided on the page.
Ensure that you cover a good range of relevant keywords that users are likely to search for when searching for a product offered on your site. A comprehensive keyword research analysis is critical at this point. A search engine optimization services program should include a detailed list of keywords and key phrases. Using the selected keywords within the pages in a natural manner without distorting the meaning of the content gives the page a chance of a better search engine ranking. In addition other factors like page size, keyword placement, density etc. also contribute in the assessment of a page for displaying in the SERPs.
Additionally internal links within the site pages help as Search engines follow links within a site. External links are extremely important in optimization. A link from a related website to your site is considered a recommendation from the original site. To get the desired ranking a website requires a combination of optimized web page content and quality external one way links.
An initial list should identify as many keywords as possible that are related to your website and target audience. There a number of online Keyword Research tools that can be used to find the number of searches being made on a particular term and also seek other alternate related terms. Each page on your website could be dealing with a different topic (product or service). The keywords for each page should be relevant to the topic discussed on the page.
This should also include analyzing the competition for the search terms listed. This will give an idea of how many pages are competing for the top spot. Your site's Page Rank is also an important parameter in keyword research analysis. If your site has a high Page rank then it has a better chance of ranking for a highly competitive keyword else it is better to focus on more specific keywords. Once the right set of keywords are identified then incorporating these within the content of the website takes you one step closer to better search engine placement. Focusing on the wrong keywords can result in higher investments and lower returns. Hiring an seo services provider can help identify the right revenue generating keywords for improved search engine rankings so that you move one step closer to your business goals.
5/9/09
Guest Post for Links & Exposure in Search Engine Optimization
In years past general article submissions to sites like EzineArticles was a great strategy, but in early 2008 Google stripped the ability of many of the article banks from being able to pass PageRank, so the upside of writing articles for generic general article banks is fairly limited unless the strategy is used in conjunction with other link building strategies.
More recently some hub based websites (like Squidoo, HubPages, and Work.com) have launched accepting how to guides from topical experts. It is easy to get published on these sites. Some of them use rel=nofollow on outbound links for new publishers, but as you gain experience and trust in their algorithms those limitations typically get lifted.
Some bloggers have thousands of readers, and through buying a lot of ads on blogs you could hope to tap some of that traffic flow. But what if there was a cheaper and more effective way of borrowing their traffic? There is. Guest posts!
The essense of guest posts is you find related popular blogs and follow them for a while. Then after you understand their editorial style and direction, and have participated in the community for a while you can ask if you could write a guest article for their site. The beauty of this strategy is that you not only get a quality low risk link, but you also get to appear in front of hundreds or thousands of subscribers who read that site.
More recently some hub based websites (like Squidoo, HubPages, and Work.com) have launched accepting how to guides from topical experts. It is easy to get published on these sites. Some of them use rel=nofollow on outbound links for new publishers, but as you gain experience and trust in their algorithms those limitations typically get lifted.
Some bloggers have thousands of readers, and through buying a lot of ads on blogs you could hope to tap some of that traffic flow. But what if there was a cheaper and more effective way of borrowing their traffic? There is. Guest posts!
The essense of guest posts is you find related popular blogs and follow them for a while. Then after you understand their editorial style and direction, and have participated in the community for a while you can ask if you could write a guest article for their site. The beauty of this strategy is that you not only get a quality low risk link, but you also get to appear in front of hundreds or thousands of subscribers who read that site.
Linking in Search Engine Optimization
Reciprocal Linking
A lot of people today are still using programs like Zeus to build large quantities of reciprocal links to their website. In most cases these programs really do not help in the process of building a great reciprocal link campaign. The use of these programs usually result in link farming, which refers to a massive reciprocal linking of websites that really do not pertain to any industry and/or related to each other. A good reciprocal link would be described as two sites that are linking to each other which are of related topics. As times change, quality search engines like Google are adding filters to their Algorithms to combat spammers that are clogging search results with irrelevant information and link farms.
Finding good link partners
With billions of websites making up the World Wide Web, your first question is probably going to be "Where do I start?" Good Question. If you already asked yourself this question before you read it, then you most likely already understand the fact that there are sites you should link to and sites you shouldn't. Your search for good link partners should start with educating yourself on the who's who of your industry on the web. Use a few search engines to find websites related to your industry. Run some searches using your researched keywords and click through some of the sites that appear in the results. Next, critique the sites you view. Are they well written? Is there an abundance of good content? Is this a site that you would want to suggest to someone in a conversation? Are they a reputable business? Lastly, scan around their site for a links page. Do they offer reciprocal links? Sometimes you will find forms to fill out to submit your site. These forms get submitted to the webmasters and a review of your site will take place. Upon review, the Webmaster will either accept or decline your link to their page. If there is no form for links, look for an email address to contact the Webmaster directly.
Receiving Reciprocal Links
Now that you know how to find good links, where do you put the reciprocal links on of your site for your link partners? As you would assume, create a links page. This page should consist of the outbound links to your linking partners. You can chose to create a form for other people to offer their site for review as you might of done, or simply add an email address them to contact you. The amount of links that you have on your links page should not be excessive. In fact, in the eyes of search engines, like Google, it is not about how many links you have but how many quality links do you have. Do not bother linking to sites that are not reciprocating back to you on your links page. If you have relevant information that you wish your visitor to view, then add a link to the page of your site that the information pertains to. Your links page should be respected, as you do not want to just link to every website out there nor do you want to be considered a link farm. Remember: 5 good links are better than 15 ones.
A lot of people today are still using programs like Zeus to build large quantities of reciprocal links to their website. In most cases these programs really do not help in the process of building a great reciprocal link campaign. The use of these programs usually result in link farming, which refers to a massive reciprocal linking of websites that really do not pertain to any industry and/or related to each other. A good reciprocal link would be described as two sites that are linking to each other which are of related topics. As times change, quality search engines like Google are adding filters to their Algorithms to combat spammers that are clogging search results with irrelevant information and link farms.
Finding good link partners
With billions of websites making up the World Wide Web, your first question is probably going to be "Where do I start?" Good Question. If you already asked yourself this question before you read it, then you most likely already understand the fact that there are sites you should link to and sites you shouldn't. Your search for good link partners should start with educating yourself on the who's who of your industry on the web. Use a few search engines to find websites related to your industry. Run some searches using your researched keywords and click through some of the sites that appear in the results. Next, critique the sites you view. Are they well written? Is there an abundance of good content? Is this a site that you would want to suggest to someone in a conversation? Are they a reputable business? Lastly, scan around their site for a links page. Do they offer reciprocal links? Sometimes you will find forms to fill out to submit your site. These forms get submitted to the webmasters and a review of your site will take place. Upon review, the Webmaster will either accept or decline your link to their page. If there is no form for links, look for an email address to contact the Webmaster directly.
Receiving Reciprocal Links
Now that you know how to find good links, where do you put the reciprocal links on of your site for your link partners? As you would assume, create a links page. This page should consist of the outbound links to your linking partners. You can chose to create a form for other people to offer their site for review as you might of done, or simply add an email address them to contact you. The amount of links that you have on your links page should not be excessive. In fact, in the eyes of search engines, like Google, it is not about how many links you have but how many quality links do you have. Do not bother linking to sites that are not reciprocating back to you on your links page. If you have relevant information that you wish your visitor to view, then add a link to the page of your site that the information pertains to. Your links page should be respected, as you do not want to just link to every website out there nor do you want to be considered a link farm. Remember: 5 good links are better than 15 ones.
Submit To Directories and Search Engines
5 Directories Search Engines Love
For websites to rank in the algorithmic search results they typically require inbound links…especially to rank for competitive keywords where lots of competing businesses want to rank. In some cases ranking can take hundreds or thousands of inbound links. No matter how high the odds it is good to start with some foundational link building. Here are 5 general directories search engines love
BOTW.org - general directory offering a yearly $100 recurring option and one time fee listings for $250.
Business.com - Business focused directory that charges $299 per year to list your websites.
DMOZ.org - called the Open Directory Project, this directory is anything but open! Submissions are free, but it can take years to get listed in DMOZ because unpaid volunteers edit the categories and are quite picky with what sites they are willing to list.
LII.org - Librarian’s Internet Index is similar to DMOZ, but more actively maintained. They try to focus on listing leading non-commercial and informational websites.
The Yahoo! Directory - one of the older web directories, started in 1994. The Yahoo! Directory charges an annually recurring $299 fee for listing websites.
Will these directories get you to the top of the search results? Probably not, but every journey must start with a first step!
Search Engine Optimization FAQ for dummies
Q: What is a Search Engine?
A: Search engine is usually a Web site where you can go to search for Web sites that have the information you are looking for.
Search engines have a huge searchable database of WebPages collected by an automated program usually called spider (other names are crawler, robot, SearchEngineBot) that visits each site and collects data form the site.
Q: What are Search Directories?
A: Directories are Web sites that have search databases usually edited manually then assessed by an editor. They accept submissions on a hierarchy of categories. For example: Regional: North America: United States: Maryland: Localities: R: Rockville: Business and Economy: Restaurants and Bars. Search engines use directories to return results. Users can search directories using keywords or phrases or browse the categories or subjects. A good example of a directory is http://dmoz.org/.
Q: What are Organic Search Results?
A: Organic Search results are the results that appear on the search engine results page when you search for a particular word on a search engine.
Search Engine Submission
Q: What is Search Engine Submission?
A: Most visitors go to a search engine to look for information on the internet. In order to be found on search engines you will need to register your Web site with that search engine. The process of registering/adding your Web site to search engines is Search Engine Submission.
Q: What is Manual Submission?
A: Manual Submission is the process of submitting new Web sites to Search Engines and Directories individually using a non-automated process. Some Search Engines and Directories have restrictions on automatic submission.
The latest version of SubmitWizard® includes Manual Submission to important search engines and directories.
Q: What is Local Submission?
A: Search engines like Google, Yahoo!, and Ask.com and others have special pages where you can search for a local business using bits of information like the name of the city, State, Zip etc. This helps searchers find a business located in the town they are searching for.
Search engines gather business information from numerous Web sites, yellow page directories and other databases to provide results on local businesses. Submitting businesses for listing in the local search is Local Submission.
The latest version of SubmitWizard® includes submission to local search engines and directories.
Search Engine Marketing
Q: What is Search Engine Marketing?
A: Search Engine Marketing is a broad term that encompasses all marketing activities related to the use of search engines which promote traffic to your Web site. It includes Search Engine Optimization (SEO), Search Engine Submission (SES), Directory Submission, Pay Per Click (PPC) Campaigns, Paid Placement, Search Engine Optimization, sponsored listings and many promotional activities (Forums, PR news etc)
Search Engine Optimization
Q: What is Search Engine Optimization (SEO)?
A: Search Engine Optimization is the analysis and modification of a Web site to improve its ranking in Search engines. It may involve changes in content, changes to HTML tags in the code, design and layout changes, new text for META tags, headlines, etc.
Q: Why is Search Engine Optimization Important?
A: It is a well known fact that 85% of all traffic to Web sites comes from search engines. It is important especially for small businesses to create a search engine friendly site without losing focus on their customer and business needs of the Web site. SEO (Search Engine Optimization) provides a balanced approach to improve search engine rankings and content. If done correctly, SEO will help improve qualified leads and increased traffic (visitors) to your Web site.
Q: How is Search Engine Optimization Different from Search Engine Submission?
A: Search Engine Submission (SES) is the act of submitting your Web site/URL to search engines to make them aware of the Web site’s presence. SES is a part of SEO. Some advanced search engines have the capability to find Web sites without submission. However, submitting your site to search engines and directories will help improve your ranking.
Q: What are the Basics of Making my Site Search Engine Friendly?
A: Search engines would like to ensure that the results they present to the searchers are relevant and represent good quality and value. To ensure this, search engines continuously update search results to include only those pages that are well written and relevant to the searches the users are performing.
•Write content that will sell your products to your end user/customer.
•Link all your pages correctly and make sure the links work.
•Make use of keywords that people can use to search for your site, by adding them to image names, page names, etc.
•Check the HTML created for your site to ensure it has the relevant keywords in the title, description and body text.
You can use the SubmitWizard® Search Engine Optimization Tool to check how search engine friendly your site is and for tips on how to make modifications.
Q: What Are Inbound Links?
A: Inbound links are links on other sites that send visitors to your site. Having quality links from highly ranked sites is good for search engine ranking. At the same time search engines frown on link exchanges whose sole purpose is to improve rankings. Inbound links are valued for relevancy of content and purpose.
The SubmitWizard® Link Popularity report gives you a detailed report on your URLs link popularity.
Q: What are Keywords and Why Are They Important?
A: Keywords are search terms or phrases entered into search engines by customers to find your site. A critical part of the search engine optimization for any Web site is determining the appropriate words and phrases to use in your site’s content. With the SubmitWizard® tool you don’t have to spend hours figuring out what keywords to use when promoting your site.
You can also purchase keywords, so that the search engines will display your ad /banner when that specific word is searched. (Example: Pay per Click Advertising)
Q: How Can I Find The Right Keywords To Use On My Site?
A: SubmitWizard® has a keyword tool as part of the package. This tool will allow you to find the most valuable keywords to help your business be found online. You can find the best keywords to use by starting with your customers in mind and what you think they will be searching for to find your business.
Q: What is Link Popularity?
A: The number of quality Web sites that have links to your own site is a factor that could help you get better position in search engines. Link Popularity is an important factor for Search Engines consider to determine page rank.
SubmitWizard® has a Link Popularity Report which allows you to check your position and the trend of your site’s popularity, you may then determine to follow-up with other sites to add your site links.
Q: What are META Tags and Why are they Important?
A: META Tags are pieces of HTML code that are included in the HTML of your page and are "read" by search engines. The tags provide information such as keywords and a description of your page. Search engines use this information to classify your Web pages in their databases, so when a user enters search words matching those in your META tags, your page should be among the results. META tags are invisible to users of your Web page and don't appear when your page is viewed by a Web browser.
Q: How Do I Add META Tags to my Site?
A: Open your webpage using an HTML editor. Most editors have a "Design" view and a "Code" view. The code view gives you a look at the source code of your page. Using the source code, locate the head section of the code.
A: Search engine is usually a Web site where you can go to search for Web sites that have the information you are looking for.
Search engines have a huge searchable database of WebPages collected by an automated program usually called spider (other names are crawler, robot, SearchEngineBot) that visits each site and collects data form the site.
Q: What are Search Directories?
A: Directories are Web sites that have search databases usually edited manually then assessed by an editor. They accept submissions on a hierarchy of categories. For example: Regional: North America: United States: Maryland: Localities: R: Rockville: Business and Economy: Restaurants and Bars. Search engines use directories to return results. Users can search directories using keywords or phrases or browse the categories or subjects. A good example of a directory is http://dmoz.org/.
Q: What are Organic Search Results?
A: Organic Search results are the results that appear on the search engine results page when you search for a particular word on a search engine.
Search Engine Submission
Q: What is Search Engine Submission?
A: Most visitors go to a search engine to look for information on the internet. In order to be found on search engines you will need to register your Web site with that search engine. The process of registering/adding your Web site to search engines is Search Engine Submission.
Q: What is Manual Submission?
A: Manual Submission is the process of submitting new Web sites to Search Engines and Directories individually using a non-automated process. Some Search Engines and Directories have restrictions on automatic submission.
The latest version of SubmitWizard® includes Manual Submission to important search engines and directories.
Q: What is Local Submission?
A: Search engines like Google, Yahoo!, and Ask.com and others have special pages where you can search for a local business using bits of information like the name of the city, State, Zip etc. This helps searchers find a business located in the town they are searching for.
Search engines gather business information from numerous Web sites, yellow page directories and other databases to provide results on local businesses. Submitting businesses for listing in the local search is Local Submission.
The latest version of SubmitWizard® includes submission to local search engines and directories.
Search Engine Marketing
Q: What is Search Engine Marketing?
A: Search Engine Marketing is a broad term that encompasses all marketing activities related to the use of search engines which promote traffic to your Web site. It includes Search Engine Optimization (SEO), Search Engine Submission (SES), Directory Submission, Pay Per Click (PPC) Campaigns, Paid Placement, Search Engine Optimization, sponsored listings and many promotional activities (Forums, PR news etc)
Search Engine Optimization
Q: What is Search Engine Optimization (SEO)?
A: Search Engine Optimization is the analysis and modification of a Web site to improve its ranking in Search engines. It may involve changes in content, changes to HTML tags in the code, design and layout changes, new text for META tags, headlines, etc.
Q: Why is Search Engine Optimization Important?
A: It is a well known fact that 85% of all traffic to Web sites comes from search engines. It is important especially for small businesses to create a search engine friendly site without losing focus on their customer and business needs of the Web site. SEO (Search Engine Optimization) provides a balanced approach to improve search engine rankings and content. If done correctly, SEO will help improve qualified leads and increased traffic (visitors) to your Web site.
Q: How is Search Engine Optimization Different from Search Engine Submission?
A: Search Engine Submission (SES) is the act of submitting your Web site/URL to search engines to make them aware of the Web site’s presence. SES is a part of SEO. Some advanced search engines have the capability to find Web sites without submission. However, submitting your site to search engines and directories will help improve your ranking.
Q: What are the Basics of Making my Site Search Engine Friendly?
A: Search engines would like to ensure that the results they present to the searchers are relevant and represent good quality and value. To ensure this, search engines continuously update search results to include only those pages that are well written and relevant to the searches the users are performing.
•Write content that will sell your products to your end user/customer.
•Link all your pages correctly and make sure the links work.
•Make use of keywords that people can use to search for your site, by adding them to image names, page names, etc.
•Check the HTML created for your site to ensure it has the relevant keywords in the title, description and body text.
You can use the SubmitWizard® Search Engine Optimization Tool to check how search engine friendly your site is and for tips on how to make modifications.
Q: What Are Inbound Links?
A: Inbound links are links on other sites that send visitors to your site. Having quality links from highly ranked sites is good for search engine ranking. At the same time search engines frown on link exchanges whose sole purpose is to improve rankings. Inbound links are valued for relevancy of content and purpose.
The SubmitWizard® Link Popularity report gives you a detailed report on your URLs link popularity.
Q: What are Keywords and Why Are They Important?
A: Keywords are search terms or phrases entered into search engines by customers to find your site. A critical part of the search engine optimization for any Web site is determining the appropriate words and phrases to use in your site’s content. With the SubmitWizard® tool you don’t have to spend hours figuring out what keywords to use when promoting your site.
You can also purchase keywords, so that the search engines will display your ad /banner when that specific word is searched. (Example: Pay per Click Advertising)
Q: How Can I Find The Right Keywords To Use On My Site?
A: SubmitWizard® has a keyword tool as part of the package. This tool will allow you to find the most valuable keywords to help your business be found online. You can find the best keywords to use by starting with your customers in mind and what you think they will be searching for to find your business.
Q: What is Link Popularity?
A: The number of quality Web sites that have links to your own site is a factor that could help you get better position in search engines. Link Popularity is an important factor for Search Engines consider to determine page rank.
SubmitWizard® has a Link Popularity Report which allows you to check your position and the trend of your site’s popularity, you may then determine to follow-up with other sites to add your site links.
Q: What are META Tags and Why are they Important?
A: META Tags are pieces of HTML code that are included in the HTML of your page and are "read" by search engines. The tags provide information such as keywords and a description of your page. Search engines use this information to classify your Web pages in their databases, so when a user enters search words matching those in your META tags, your page should be among the results. META tags are invisible to users of your Web page and don't appear when your page is viewed by a Web browser.
Q: How Do I Add META Tags to my Site?
A: Open your webpage using an HTML editor. Most editors have a "Design" view and a "Code" view. The code view gives you a look at the source code of your page. Using the source code, locate the head section of the code.
5/4/09
Starting an online business
Outsourcing the design work for the site leaves you with more free time to look at the bigger picture and also gets the work done more professionally. Choose a company that offers affordable website design and creative website design as your site is the front face of your business and the point of contact between the products and the potential customer. Make sure that the website is designed to retain and convert.
Starting an online business can be a really simple uncomplicated process provided that certain thumb rules are kept in mind.
Business Plan
Before actually proceeding with a new website development it is important to lay down a business plan. Identify the market – whether you will be targeting a niche segment or a mass market.
Short listing areas that set you apart from your competitors helps in identifying areas of the site that will be focused upon. This would mean that a short review of competitor websites – their services, products and offerings would be required.
Once the target audience is finalized, it is a good idea to try and get to know a little about more about your potential customers. Use this information to build a site catered to your selected audience.
Knowing what sells online (you can check some competitor websites for this) gives more clarity in the deals and any other add ons that you would offer online.
An online business optimization strategy should also be worked into the overall business plan. This helps streamline the online promotional activities that would be carried out at the time of launching the site.
Domain Name
Hunting for a good domain name can be quite a daunting task as most related names are mostly taken. Keep in mind that a domain name should be short and memorable and easily typed.
Reliable web host
Before selecting a hosting provider some ground work to check - the support, uptime provided, availability of a backup system, provision of other web hosting features such as email features, scripting features etc., needs to be done. Other areas that should be addressed are storage space to store the files that make up your web site, the bandwidth allowed, Compatibility with any server-side software you use.
Website Design
Outsourcing the design work for the site leaves you with more free time to look at the bigger picture and also gets the work done more professionally. Your site is the front face of your business and the point of contact between the products and the potential customer. Make sure that the website is designed to retain and convert.
Ensuring that the site adheres to search engine friendly guidelines brings in the possibility of increased online traffic.
Merchant account
With a multi fold increase in online purchasing signing up for a secure merchant account makes it easier for the user to make a purchase. The aim of the site should be to make it as easy as possible for the potential buyer to make a purchase. Signing up and providing access to an easy payment option adds to the ease of use. Areas where merchant accounts can be compared are the fees associated, discounts, additional costs like transaction fee, monthly statement fees, gateway fees, annual membership fees, cancellation fees etc.
Site Security
When collecting sensitive information form customers, you need to make sure that the transaction is secure. This is achieved with SSL (Secure Socket Layer) technology. SSL encrypts the connection so that a hacker cannot penetrate and steal the sensitive information. For sites dealing with sensitive data purchase an SSL certificate and make sure that the site is secure.
Manage and track statistics
Monitor real trends in traffic. Web analytics will help you understand user behavior and improve the performance of your site. Identifying pages that perform better helps focus on the necessary in order increase profits. Over a longer run - tracking traffic, results in increasing targeted web site traffic and improved search engine rankings.
Keeping some of these factors in mind helps in developing a well organized, easily navigable site geared for higher profits and better visibility.
Starting an online business can be a really simple uncomplicated process provided that certain thumb rules are kept in mind.
Business Plan
Before actually proceeding with a new website development it is important to lay down a business plan. Identify the market – whether you will be targeting a niche segment or a mass market.
Short listing areas that set you apart from your competitors helps in identifying areas of the site that will be focused upon. This would mean that a short review of competitor websites – their services, products and offerings would be required.
Once the target audience is finalized, it is a good idea to try and get to know a little about more about your potential customers. Use this information to build a site catered to your selected audience.
Knowing what sells online (you can check some competitor websites for this) gives more clarity in the deals and any other add ons that you would offer online.
An online business optimization strategy should also be worked into the overall business plan. This helps streamline the online promotional activities that would be carried out at the time of launching the site.
Domain Name
Hunting for a good domain name can be quite a daunting task as most related names are mostly taken. Keep in mind that a domain name should be short and memorable and easily typed.
Reliable web host
Before selecting a hosting provider some ground work to check - the support, uptime provided, availability of a backup system, provision of other web hosting features such as email features, scripting features etc., needs to be done. Other areas that should be addressed are storage space to store the files that make up your web site, the bandwidth allowed, Compatibility with any server-side software you use.
Website Design
Outsourcing the design work for the site leaves you with more free time to look at the bigger picture and also gets the work done more professionally. Your site is the front face of your business and the point of contact between the products and the potential customer. Make sure that the website is designed to retain and convert.
Ensuring that the site adheres to search engine friendly guidelines brings in the possibility of increased online traffic.
Merchant account
With a multi fold increase in online purchasing signing up for a secure merchant account makes it easier for the user to make a purchase. The aim of the site should be to make it as easy as possible for the potential buyer to make a purchase. Signing up and providing access to an easy payment option adds to the ease of use. Areas where merchant accounts can be compared are the fees associated, discounts, additional costs like transaction fee, monthly statement fees, gateway fees, annual membership fees, cancellation fees etc.
Site Security
When collecting sensitive information form customers, you need to make sure that the transaction is secure. This is achieved with SSL (Secure Socket Layer) technology. SSL encrypts the connection so that a hacker cannot penetrate and steal the sensitive information. For sites dealing with sensitive data purchase an SSL certificate and make sure that the site is secure.
Manage and track statistics
Monitor real trends in traffic. Web analytics will help you understand user behavior and improve the performance of your site. Identifying pages that perform better helps focus on the necessary in order increase profits. Over a longer run - tracking traffic, results in increasing targeted web site traffic and improved search engine rankings.
Keeping some of these factors in mind helps in developing a well organized, easily navigable site geared for higher profits and better visibility.
Importance of Choosing the right Keyword
Getting the right traffic depends a lot on the keywords that a site ranks for. The most searched keywords need not necessarily be the right keywords for your site. Traffic related to the website service is extremely important as wrong traffic may result in lesser conversions on the site. It is better to get fewer visitors that actually want to buy what you are providing rather that a large number of visitors who leave as soon as they reach the main page because the search term that brought them to your site did not exactly match with the information available online.
A good keyword research should be a part of the professional seo service being availed. There should be a good percentage of high paying keywords as well as the least competitive keywords - provided these are related to the product offered.
If your site is only selling “Baby food” then getting traffic from related researched keywords like “healthy baby food”, “baby food online” etc. will get more focused traffic to the site than getting traffic from a more generic keyword like “babies”.
A visitor landing on a page that is very relevant to the queried search term will show a better possibility of conversion as compared to a visitor reaching from a broad search term. Since the visitor is already searching for the product or service provided on your website the chances of the visitor to stay on long enough to make a buying decision also increases.
However, getting traffic from one specific keyword is not enough. By adding variations to the root keyword (provided the variations remain a part of the main service or product) you can target a wider range of keywords. Targeting high paying keywords gets the site to rank for a number of focused keywords as the competition for these researched keywords becomes lesser and results are seen faster. Covering a wider range of keywords will get a good target audience than just ranking on one competitive keyword. Make sure that the search engine optimization services provider has enough variations for the root keyword being targeted.
A keyword research that takes into account different keyword combinations and variations covers a wider range of possible entry points to the landing page. A good keyword analysis can also contain keywords that are location specific, region specific or country specific. For instance, a lawyer practicing in a particular town would most likely target people living in the same region instead of targeting the entire country. Hence, targeted keywords can be more region specific like “attorney Florida” etc. A focus on region would help get targeted visitors, not just diluted traffic.
For any given topic there are a number of ways that searchers can select a keyword. Keeping this in mind there are a number of variations of key phrases that a webpage can be optimized for. The detailed Keyword research report should take into account a number of factors such as relevancy, misspelling, singular and plurals, using qualifiers to make the keyword more focused etc.
An initial list should identify as many keywords as possible that are related to your website and target audience. There a number of online Keyword Research tools that can be used to find the number of searches being made on a particular term and also seek other alternate related terms.
Each page on your website could be dealing with a different topic (product or service). The keywords for each page should be relevant to the topic discussed on the page.
This should also include analyzing the competition for the search terms listed. This will give an idea of how many pages are competing for the top spot. Your site's Page Rank is also an important parameter in keyword research analysis. If your site has a high Page rank then it has a better chance of ranking for a highly competitive keyword else it is better to focus on more specific keywords.
Once the right set of keywords are identified then incorporating these within the content of the website takes you one step closer to better search engine placement.
Focusing on the wrong keywords can result in higher investments and lower returns.
Hiring an seo services provider can help identify the right revenue generating keywords for improved search engine rankings so that you move one step closer to your business goals.
A good keyword research should be a part of the professional seo service being availed. There should be a good percentage of high paying keywords as well as the least competitive keywords - provided these are related to the product offered.
If your site is only selling “Baby food” then getting traffic from related researched keywords like “healthy baby food”, “baby food online” etc. will get more focused traffic to the site than getting traffic from a more generic keyword like “babies”.
A visitor landing on a page that is very relevant to the queried search term will show a better possibility of conversion as compared to a visitor reaching from a broad search term. Since the visitor is already searching for the product or service provided on your website the chances of the visitor to stay on long enough to make a buying decision also increases.
However, getting traffic from one specific keyword is not enough. By adding variations to the root keyword (provided the variations remain a part of the main service or product) you can target a wider range of keywords. Targeting high paying keywords gets the site to rank for a number of focused keywords as the competition for these researched keywords becomes lesser and results are seen faster. Covering a wider range of keywords will get a good target audience than just ranking on one competitive keyword. Make sure that the search engine optimization services provider has enough variations for the root keyword being targeted.
A keyword research that takes into account different keyword combinations and variations covers a wider range of possible entry points to the landing page. A good keyword analysis can also contain keywords that are location specific, region specific or country specific. For instance, a lawyer practicing in a particular town would most likely target people living in the same region instead of targeting the entire country. Hence, targeted keywords can be more region specific like “attorney Florida” etc. A focus on region would help get targeted visitors, not just diluted traffic.
For any given topic there are a number of ways that searchers can select a keyword. Keeping this in mind there are a number of variations of key phrases that a webpage can be optimized for. The detailed Keyword research report should take into account a number of factors such as relevancy, misspelling, singular and plurals, using qualifiers to make the keyword more focused etc.
An initial list should identify as many keywords as possible that are related to your website and target audience. There a number of online Keyword Research tools that can be used to find the number of searches being made on a particular term and also seek other alternate related terms.
Each page on your website could be dealing with a different topic (product or service). The keywords for each page should be relevant to the topic discussed on the page.
This should also include analyzing the competition for the search terms listed. This will give an idea of how many pages are competing for the top spot. Your site's Page Rank is also an important parameter in keyword research analysis. If your site has a high Page rank then it has a better chance of ranking for a highly competitive keyword else it is better to focus on more specific keywords.
Once the right set of keywords are identified then incorporating these within the content of the website takes you one step closer to better search engine placement.
Focusing on the wrong keywords can result in higher investments and lower returns.
Hiring an seo services provider can help identify the right revenue generating keywords for improved search engine rankings so that you move one step closer to your business goals.
5/2/09
How To Find Ideas For Things To Sell Online
Stuck for ideas? I thought it would be cool to do a little experiment. I grabbed todays paper and went through it with my 'marketing mind'. Watch over my shoulder as I show you how to find the ideas you could later test with research to develop products or promote affiliate opportunities.
For more inspiration check through this popular list if goals people make for themselves:
lose weight
stop procrastinating
fall in love
write a book
be happy
get a tattoo
drink more water
go on a road trip
get married
travel the world
take more pictures
learn Spanish
save money
learn to play the guitar
make new friends
buy a house
read more books
exercise regularly
get out of debt
learn Japanese
be more confident
get a job
eat healthier
start a business
quit smoking
learn to cook
learn sign language
stop biting my nails
learn to play the piano
learn to surf
learn to dance
graduate from college
get organized
practice yoga
worry less
get wealthy
create a web site
meditate daily
write a song
get a dog
And if you are still stuck try looking at thes popular categories:
Aging
Beauty
Arts Crafts
Auto
Internet Marketing
Business
Career
Coaching
Consulting
Computers
Cooking
Dating
Finance
Fitness
Gardening
Health
Hobbies
Investing
Motivation
Parenting
Pets
Speaking
Property
Relationships
Religion
Retirement
Sales
Self Improvement
Shopping
Sport
Stock Trading
Time Management
Weddings
Weight
Wellness
Work at home
Writing
You can also look at these resources to get ideas:
Magazines.com
Google Book Search
Dummies.com
ebay pulse
http://www.clickbank.com/marketplace.htm
And try this lateral search tool:
Search Lateral Markets
The next step is to run all those opportunities through a detailed filter of questions and do keyword and volume research online to see what is there and how big the opportunity is.
For more inspiration check through this popular list if goals people make for themselves:
lose weight
stop procrastinating
fall in love
write a book
be happy
get a tattoo
drink more water
go on a road trip
get married
travel the world
take more pictures
learn Spanish
save money
learn to play the guitar
make new friends
buy a house
read more books
exercise regularly
get out of debt
learn Japanese
be more confident
get a job
eat healthier
start a business
quit smoking
learn to cook
learn sign language
stop biting my nails
learn to play the piano
learn to surf
learn to dance
graduate from college
get organized
practice yoga
worry less
get wealthy
create a web site
meditate daily
write a song
get a dog
And if you are still stuck try looking at thes popular categories:
Aging
Beauty
Arts Crafts
Auto
Internet Marketing
Business
Career
Coaching
Consulting
Computers
Cooking
Dating
Finance
Fitness
Gardening
Health
Hobbies
Investing
Motivation
Parenting
Pets
Speaking
Property
Relationships
Religion
Retirement
Sales
Self Improvement
Shopping
Sport
Stock Trading
Time Management
Weddings
Weight
Wellness
Work at home
Writing
You can also look at these resources to get ideas:
Magazines.com
Google Book Search
Dummies.com
ebay pulse
http://www.clickbank.com/marketplace.htm
And try this lateral search tool:
Search Lateral Markets
The next step is to run all those opportunities through a detailed filter of questions and do keyword and volume research online to see what is there and how big the opportunity is.
How To Make Money by Selling Information
There are things to consider when selling information. There are many people already selling information out there and the competition is fierce... unless you are already known as a pro in that field. You are really going to have to work on creating the best information piece you can develop and promote yourself as more qualified than anyone else in that field to give you the edge in selling your information.
How will you know if you have a winning report? Take an example from a well known losing category. Recipes rarely sell via mail order. If you look in the tabloid magazines and see people selling recipes, you will notice they have purchased multiple insertions for a few weeks then drop away. They often spend more money on the ads than they ever get back selling a recipe. Why? Because everyone likes to think they know a thing or two about cooking. These ads never point out to why they are the best in their field or what really makes them unique. Often what happens to those who sell these reports is they end up on mailing lists of others who will try to sell them get rich quick schemes.
Does your report say something new, unique and helpful to the consumer? Is it well written? Is it easy to follow and understand? Do you have testimonial that can back up any claims you make about your report?
Now is the time to get into the specifics of selling information.
Finding Your Format
Will you sell reports for mail order or for downloading online or both?
If you are selling for mail order, you need to know what size book or booklet the finished product will be. If it is under 50 pages [front and back], you can get away with a booklet format. Anything more than that you may need to create a book.
If it is a small booklet, you can run copies from your computer or go to a local print shop and have them do it for you. Invest in a long arm stapler if you plan to do it yourself so you can hook the pages together in the middle.
To create a book does not have to be such a great expense anymore. With Print On Demand technology, you can have a publisher keep a copy of your book in a digital file in order to retrieve it when there is an order.
Lulu Press is a great place to consider. The basic service is absolutely free. Just create your book and they charge a nominal fee for each book you order to be run off their press. They even have a store where they can sell your book for you for a percent of the profit. For the deluxe service, you can get an ISBN number which will get your book listed with the big online book retail services which will give you more exposure.
Lulu also has e-book formats which will create your book in a pdf document which can easily and instantly be downloaded to any computer.
With Lulu, you can set your price for the book and determine, in the end, how much money you will get for each book that is sold. I highly recommend this option for those who want to sell information whether by mail or online.
Writing Your Report
The two step formula boils down to "what do you know" and "what sells".
What do people want? This is the question you must answer to find out what will sell. Sure, there are all kinds of niche markets out there for special experts, but I will address that later. This is for general audiences which have the higher impact for sales.
People want anything that will make them rich, feel safe, feel sexy and/or loved, have an advantage over others, or to know information that is secret.
[According to traditional marketing strategies, people do like to have their appetites teased, but in the case of selling reports a recipe book rarely sells unless you are a proven pro in that field and this goes under specialty reports. This only works if selling food directly to people.]
What do you know that others do not know? Do you know ways that will make people rich? Or safe? Or sexy? Or loved? Do you have any secret insider information that could give anyone an advantage in the fields of money, safety or love? These are the information reports that sell. If you do not know enough about these topics, research it until you can become an expert in the field. Once you have collected all your notes to create your book, you can start writing it.
Niche books are a little bit harder to sell to a general audience. These are the ones that are very specific and very topical. For instance, a book or report on all the characters of Star Trek is likely to only appeal to those who are Star Trek fans. In order to be taken seriously as an expert to write a report for Star Trek fans, you must generally be known in these circles to have a lot of expertise knowledge that people will be willing to pay for your edge. You might have a web site dedicated to Star Trek with a lot of credible information that will give you an edge in selling anything related to the topic. You might be a regular at the conventions and have a booth where you display products and dispense information which will give your credibility boost.
Recipes are hard to sell and would require a niche market where you can promote yourself as an expert in this field. Top name celebrity chefs and well known restaurants will always pull the lion's share of profits from selling recipes. As an average person, you hold little power in comparison to the top dogs. Why do you think you are more qualified than anyone else to do recipes? Everyone thinks they are a good cook to some degree. You need to define why in order to convey this to your audience.
Perhaps you have grown up in Louisiana all your life as a daughter of a cook in a fancy Cajun restaurant and you have witnessed many famous people who always come back for more. Maybe you know a few recipes used there and have tried them yourself. This would give you an edge over someone selling a Cajun recipe they found and tried. Perhaps your grandmother sold cookies during the Great Depression and you have an incredible story to sell with the recipe [everyone has a grandmother's recipe, why is your's unique?] Maybe you know a way to make things on your grocer's shelf, but cheaper such as Taco Bell's seasoning mix or Open Pit Barbeque Sauce. Maybe you have a new technique of cooking something using equipment you invented. If you are doing something this common, you need a hook to make it uniquely yours.
Start with an outline. Your book or report needs a beginning, middle and an end. Your beginning should outline the purpose of your book. Your middle should go into full detail about your purpose. Your end should sum it up.
Here is an first outline example:
Book Title - How To Attract The Opposite Sex
I. Beginning - This book will show the reader how to attract the opposite sex by using eye appeal, flirtation, conversation, and a proper dating etiquette.
II. The Middle
A. Why Does It Work - As long as the human race has been around, these techniques go to the heart of your targeted goal to secure the attention of a potential mate. These specific techniques have been proven to work in conjunction with each other to guarantee success. Anyone who applies these techniques will see it works for them as well as any Casanova.
B. Eye Appeal - The first and most important step is being noticed. Cite examples of people who do this. List ways the reader can do this.
C. Flirtation - Once you get the person to see you, make sure they know you are interested in them. Cite examples of people who do this. List ways the reader can do this.
D. Conversation - This is where you determine what type of relationship this will be. If it is a one night stand, the conversation may be short and to the point. If this is to be a long term relationship, your conversational skills must be in direct appeal to the opposite sex on the lines of topics and intellect. By determining if they like a true equal or someone smarter or not as smart before engaging in too much talk can help steer you in the right direction. Cite examples of people who do this. List ways the reader can do this.
E. Dating - Going too fast or too slow can have its advantages and disadvantages. Which track do you want to take? What rules should you follow when dating? Cite examples of people who do this. List ways the reader can do this.
III. In Conclusion - As you can see through the previous examples and step by step methods for you to accomplish each goal, anyone can attract the opposite sex.
In the above example [feel free to use it if you want, but please give credit where it is due] you see a definite direction of the report. This skeleton is the structure that keeps you on topic and prevents you from rambling on endlessly. It will help you focus on making a book that will keep the reader wanting to read more.
With a structure in place, you can write your report directly from it. At first by expanding the outline into more sub-categories and even in sub-categories of your sub-categories. Then expand on each point you want to make by creating short and easy to understand sentences. Keep up with creating sentences off of your outline until you have a book in place where you can remove the outline tags. Then go over it several times to make sure it feels like a good and comfortable read with much information.
Use a spell and grammar check. Lotus Pro or Word and most word processing software will include both spell and grammar checks. Do not let the software make all the corrections automatically. Be sure you have it point out each error to be sure it is truly is an error.
The basic rule for writing to a general audience is it must be at a third to fourth grade reading level which is the comfort level of most adults. I really hate to tell you, but from a marketing point of view this is true. It's not so much that people are stupid, but when people want to kick back and read they do not really like that much of a challenge. [I learned this lesson the hard way by creating a book that tested out at a near 9th grade level which went over most people's head.] There are many forms of software out there that can help you determine if your work is at the appropriate reading grade level called the "Flesch-Kincaid Index." If you have Lotus Pro or Word, you may already have that tool attached to your program and can have it check your document. Many word processing software has it included, but if not, you may want to go to the web to find it.
If the grammar and spelling are correct. If your book tests out at a 3rd-4th grade reading level. If your book is fun to read and full of information. You are ready for the next step.
If going to Lulu, follow the step by step process to submit your work online. If you have your own Adobe software to create a pdf document or if you are going to use a printer service, make sure your document is "print-ready" where it will look exactly like you intend the finished product to look. If using some forms of e-book creating software, you will often have to convert it to an html format for the software to produce the book.
When you have a finished product - a book, booklet, or an e-book - then you are ready to promote it.
Promoting Your Book
Tabloids are one way to promote your material. Place a short, but powerful ad in the classified ads of papers such as Weekly World News, The Star, Thrifty Nickel, and other similar papers. Use hot, powerful words and direct them to a web site and/or phone number [with a voice mail recording] which will do all of your selling for you.
Create a phone script for a voice mail sales campaign designed to further explain your product and detail instructions on how to purchase your information. You may even want them to go to your web site for further information.
On your web site, create a sales pitch to help your potential customer focus on what's in it for them. Appeal to their senses on why they will benefit from your information. Explain why they cannot do without it and how bad it would be if they passed up this limited opportunity. Carefully spell out what you want them to do so they do not miss this report - "Buy Now before midnight to get the best price on this report! It will change your life forever!" Have several links for them to click to purchase so they do not miss an opportunity to buy it. Explain in the link you want them to click it to buy it. Tell them the methods you accept for payment and how the product will be delivered. Most importantly, tell them, upfront, the price...people do get angry when the price is hidden near the end of the transaction and will often not buy because they feel it is deceit on your end.
With a web site and a phone selling your plan, all you need to do is to assure people will see both the web site or listen to the message. Use the search engines to your full advantage. Join an affiliate program and have people sell for you. Give buyers an incentive to sell on your behalf. Place a recommend a friend link on your site and a bookmark this page link so those who have not bought can come back later. Place ads in online classified ad sites and in ezines related to your topic.
By doing all these things, you will get the exposure you need. You may have to tweak your ad from time to time, but if you are getting the traffic your direction, you will eventually get the sales.
How will you know if you have a winning report? Take an example from a well known losing category. Recipes rarely sell via mail order. If you look in the tabloid magazines and see people selling recipes, you will notice they have purchased multiple insertions for a few weeks then drop away. They often spend more money on the ads than they ever get back selling a recipe. Why? Because everyone likes to think they know a thing or two about cooking. These ads never point out to why they are the best in their field or what really makes them unique. Often what happens to those who sell these reports is they end up on mailing lists of others who will try to sell them get rich quick schemes.
Does your report say something new, unique and helpful to the consumer? Is it well written? Is it easy to follow and understand? Do you have testimonial that can back up any claims you make about your report?
Now is the time to get into the specifics of selling information.
Finding Your Format
Will you sell reports for mail order or for downloading online or both?
If you are selling for mail order, you need to know what size book or booklet the finished product will be. If it is under 50 pages [front and back], you can get away with a booklet format. Anything more than that you may need to create a book.
If it is a small booklet, you can run copies from your computer or go to a local print shop and have them do it for you. Invest in a long arm stapler if you plan to do it yourself so you can hook the pages together in the middle.
To create a book does not have to be such a great expense anymore. With Print On Demand technology, you can have a publisher keep a copy of your book in a digital file in order to retrieve it when there is an order.
Lulu Press is a great place to consider. The basic service is absolutely free. Just create your book and they charge a nominal fee for each book you order to be run off their press. They even have a store where they can sell your book for you for a percent of the profit. For the deluxe service, you can get an ISBN number which will get your book listed with the big online book retail services which will give you more exposure.
Lulu also has e-book formats which will create your book in a pdf document which can easily and instantly be downloaded to any computer.
With Lulu, you can set your price for the book and determine, in the end, how much money you will get for each book that is sold. I highly recommend this option for those who want to sell information whether by mail or online.
Writing Your Report
The two step formula boils down to "what do you know" and "what sells".
What do people want? This is the question you must answer to find out what will sell. Sure, there are all kinds of niche markets out there for special experts, but I will address that later. This is for general audiences which have the higher impact for sales.
People want anything that will make them rich, feel safe, feel sexy and/or loved, have an advantage over others, or to know information that is secret.
[According to traditional marketing strategies, people do like to have their appetites teased, but in the case of selling reports a recipe book rarely sells unless you are a proven pro in that field and this goes under specialty reports. This only works if selling food directly to people.]
What do you know that others do not know? Do you know ways that will make people rich? Or safe? Or sexy? Or loved? Do you have any secret insider information that could give anyone an advantage in the fields of money, safety or love? These are the information reports that sell. If you do not know enough about these topics, research it until you can become an expert in the field. Once you have collected all your notes to create your book, you can start writing it.
Niche books are a little bit harder to sell to a general audience. These are the ones that are very specific and very topical. For instance, a book or report on all the characters of Star Trek is likely to only appeal to those who are Star Trek fans. In order to be taken seriously as an expert to write a report for Star Trek fans, you must generally be known in these circles to have a lot of expertise knowledge that people will be willing to pay for your edge. You might have a web site dedicated to Star Trek with a lot of credible information that will give you an edge in selling anything related to the topic. You might be a regular at the conventions and have a booth where you display products and dispense information which will give your credibility boost.
Recipes are hard to sell and would require a niche market where you can promote yourself as an expert in this field. Top name celebrity chefs and well known restaurants will always pull the lion's share of profits from selling recipes. As an average person, you hold little power in comparison to the top dogs. Why do you think you are more qualified than anyone else to do recipes? Everyone thinks they are a good cook to some degree. You need to define why in order to convey this to your audience.
Perhaps you have grown up in Louisiana all your life as a daughter of a cook in a fancy Cajun restaurant and you have witnessed many famous people who always come back for more. Maybe you know a few recipes used there and have tried them yourself. This would give you an edge over someone selling a Cajun recipe they found and tried. Perhaps your grandmother sold cookies during the Great Depression and you have an incredible story to sell with the recipe [everyone has a grandmother's recipe, why is your's unique?] Maybe you know a way to make things on your grocer's shelf, but cheaper such as Taco Bell's seasoning mix or Open Pit Barbeque Sauce. Maybe you have a new technique of cooking something using equipment you invented. If you are doing something this common, you need a hook to make it uniquely yours.
Start with an outline. Your book or report needs a beginning, middle and an end. Your beginning should outline the purpose of your book. Your middle should go into full detail about your purpose. Your end should sum it up.
Here is an first outline example:
Book Title - How To Attract The Opposite Sex
I. Beginning - This book will show the reader how to attract the opposite sex by using eye appeal, flirtation, conversation, and a proper dating etiquette.
II. The Middle
A. Why Does It Work - As long as the human race has been around, these techniques go to the heart of your targeted goal to secure the attention of a potential mate. These specific techniques have been proven to work in conjunction with each other to guarantee success. Anyone who applies these techniques will see it works for them as well as any Casanova.
B. Eye Appeal - The first and most important step is being noticed. Cite examples of people who do this. List ways the reader can do this.
C. Flirtation - Once you get the person to see you, make sure they know you are interested in them. Cite examples of people who do this. List ways the reader can do this.
D. Conversation - This is where you determine what type of relationship this will be. If it is a one night stand, the conversation may be short and to the point. If this is to be a long term relationship, your conversational skills must be in direct appeal to the opposite sex on the lines of topics and intellect. By determining if they like a true equal or someone smarter or not as smart before engaging in too much talk can help steer you in the right direction. Cite examples of people who do this. List ways the reader can do this.
E. Dating - Going too fast or too slow can have its advantages and disadvantages. Which track do you want to take? What rules should you follow when dating? Cite examples of people who do this. List ways the reader can do this.
III. In Conclusion - As you can see through the previous examples and step by step methods for you to accomplish each goal, anyone can attract the opposite sex.
In the above example [feel free to use it if you want, but please give credit where it is due] you see a definite direction of the report. This skeleton is the structure that keeps you on topic and prevents you from rambling on endlessly. It will help you focus on making a book that will keep the reader wanting to read more.
With a structure in place, you can write your report directly from it. At first by expanding the outline into more sub-categories and even in sub-categories of your sub-categories. Then expand on each point you want to make by creating short and easy to understand sentences. Keep up with creating sentences off of your outline until you have a book in place where you can remove the outline tags. Then go over it several times to make sure it feels like a good and comfortable read with much information.
Use a spell and grammar check. Lotus Pro or Word and most word processing software will include both spell and grammar checks. Do not let the software make all the corrections automatically. Be sure you have it point out each error to be sure it is truly is an error.
The basic rule for writing to a general audience is it must be at a third to fourth grade reading level which is the comfort level of most adults. I really hate to tell you, but from a marketing point of view this is true. It's not so much that people are stupid, but when people want to kick back and read they do not really like that much of a challenge. [I learned this lesson the hard way by creating a book that tested out at a near 9th grade level which went over most people's head.] There are many forms of software out there that can help you determine if your work is at the appropriate reading grade level called the "Flesch-Kincaid Index." If you have Lotus Pro or Word, you may already have that tool attached to your program and can have it check your document. Many word processing software has it included, but if not, you may want to go to the web to find it.
If the grammar and spelling are correct. If your book tests out at a 3rd-4th grade reading level. If your book is fun to read and full of information. You are ready for the next step.
If going to Lulu, follow the step by step process to submit your work online. If you have your own Adobe software to create a pdf document or if you are going to use a printer service, make sure your document is "print-ready" where it will look exactly like you intend the finished product to look. If using some forms of e-book creating software, you will often have to convert it to an html format for the software to produce the book.
When you have a finished product - a book, booklet, or an e-book - then you are ready to promote it.
Promoting Your Book
Tabloids are one way to promote your material. Place a short, but powerful ad in the classified ads of papers such as Weekly World News, The Star, Thrifty Nickel, and other similar papers. Use hot, powerful words and direct them to a web site and/or phone number [with a voice mail recording] which will do all of your selling for you.
Create a phone script for a voice mail sales campaign designed to further explain your product and detail instructions on how to purchase your information. You may even want them to go to your web site for further information.
On your web site, create a sales pitch to help your potential customer focus on what's in it for them. Appeal to their senses on why they will benefit from your information. Explain why they cannot do without it and how bad it would be if they passed up this limited opportunity. Carefully spell out what you want them to do so they do not miss this report - "Buy Now before midnight to get the best price on this report! It will change your life forever!" Have several links for them to click to purchase so they do not miss an opportunity to buy it. Explain in the link you want them to click it to buy it. Tell them the methods you accept for payment and how the product will be delivered. Most importantly, tell them, upfront, the price...people do get angry when the price is hidden near the end of the transaction and will often not buy because they feel it is deceit on your end.
With a web site and a phone selling your plan, all you need to do is to assure people will see both the web site or listen to the message. Use the search engines to your full advantage. Join an affiliate program and have people sell for you. Give buyers an incentive to sell on your behalf. Place a recommend a friend link on your site and a bookmark this page link so those who have not bought can come back later. Place ads in online classified ad sites and in ezines related to your topic.
By doing all these things, you will get the exposure you need. You may have to tweak your ad from time to time, but if you are getting the traffic your direction, you will eventually get the sales.
Getting Stuff To Sell Online
Billions of dollars worth of products are sold on eBay and other online merchants every year.Where are people getting all these items to sell? Surely, they’ve emptied their closets and garages by now.Even if they have, finding stuff to sell online is still relatively easy. Several sources are available for those who want to make a little or a lot of cash selling online.
Home Stuff:
Not all garages have been cleared of junk.Weekend garage sales are still popular places to find items to sell. Sales in higher income areas tend to net more quality items like designer clothes, high end furniture, and antiques.However, don’t neglect an average Joe garage sale; one never knows what unique items will be unearthed regardless of the neighborhood.Go to these sales toward the end of the day.Homeowners will be more inclined to sell you merchandise at rock bottom prices rather than having to pack up unsold items.
Look through your own garage and closets to find items to sell online.You may be harboring old clothes, books, Cds, and toys that will bring in a few bucks online. Offer to rid your friends and family of their unwanted junk by selling on consignment.You sell their stuff and keep %25 of the profits.Local retailers may also agree to let you sell their overstocks and returned merchandise on consignment as well.
Buy Online, Sell Online:
Finding stuff to sell online is as easy as buying it from the same online source. eBay is an excellent place to find everything from antiques to huge lots of merchandise that you can buy and resell at a profit.
Locate other online sources by using search terms such as wholesale liquidators, closeout dealers, and drop-ship services.These same sources can also be found in print media including the Yellow Pages and classified ads in newspapers, trade magazines, and free weeklies.
Auction Action:
Unclaimed, slightly damaged, and repossessed merchandise can be purchased at freight claims and government auctions.Check the Yellow Pages for contact information and newspaper classified section for upcoming sales.
There’s a storage unit operation on every corner these days.The storage company auctions off the contents of unpaid rental units.Although the contents are sold sight unseen, there’s probably enough sale worthy items inside to let you break even.
Estate auctions are another great source for finding stuff to sell online.Like garage sales, high income estates yield the greatest finds, but gems can be found regardless of the estate’s net worth.These sales are advertised in the newspaper.
Drop Shipping:
Drop shipping is an easy, hands off way to sell online.You send the order to the manufacturer or distributor and they ship the product to the customer.No inventory or shipping hassles to worry about.
Local Events:
Bazaars, flea markets, and festivals are good sources for everything from unique handmade crafts to valuable collectibles.Like garage sales, stop by near closing time for deep discounted deals.
Check with the local convention and visitors’ bureau to find out about upcoming trade shows that are open to the public.You’ll be able to buy from manufacturers and sale reps selling the latest products on the market.
Offshore Action:
Asia is a good source for finding stuff to sell online. However, the red tape and cost of contacting sources there can be a hassle.Your best bet is to hook up with a manufacturer’s rep who has overseas connections. There’s enough available home grown sources for locating products to sell to make this option unnecessary.
Home Stuff:
Not all garages have been cleared of junk.Weekend garage sales are still popular places to find items to sell. Sales in higher income areas tend to net more quality items like designer clothes, high end furniture, and antiques.However, don’t neglect an average Joe garage sale; one never knows what unique items will be unearthed regardless of the neighborhood.Go to these sales toward the end of the day.Homeowners will be more inclined to sell you merchandise at rock bottom prices rather than having to pack up unsold items.
Look through your own garage and closets to find items to sell online.You may be harboring old clothes, books, Cds, and toys that will bring in a few bucks online. Offer to rid your friends and family of their unwanted junk by selling on consignment.You sell their stuff and keep %25 of the profits.Local retailers may also agree to let you sell their overstocks and returned merchandise on consignment as well.
Buy Online, Sell Online:
Finding stuff to sell online is as easy as buying it from the same online source. eBay is an excellent place to find everything from antiques to huge lots of merchandise that you can buy and resell at a profit.
Locate other online sources by using search terms such as wholesale liquidators, closeout dealers, and drop-ship services.These same sources can also be found in print media including the Yellow Pages and classified ads in newspapers, trade magazines, and free weeklies.
Auction Action:
Unclaimed, slightly damaged, and repossessed merchandise can be purchased at freight claims and government auctions.Check the Yellow Pages for contact information and newspaper classified section for upcoming sales.
There’s a storage unit operation on every corner these days.The storage company auctions off the contents of unpaid rental units.Although the contents are sold sight unseen, there’s probably enough sale worthy items inside to let you break even.
Estate auctions are another great source for finding stuff to sell online.Like garage sales, high income estates yield the greatest finds, but gems can be found regardless of the estate’s net worth.These sales are advertised in the newspaper.
Drop Shipping:
Drop shipping is an easy, hands off way to sell online.You send the order to the manufacturer or distributor and they ship the product to the customer.No inventory or shipping hassles to worry about.
Local Events:
Bazaars, flea markets, and festivals are good sources for everything from unique handmade crafts to valuable collectibles.Like garage sales, stop by near closing time for deep discounted deals.
Check with the local convention and visitors’ bureau to find out about upcoming trade shows that are open to the public.You’ll be able to buy from manufacturers and sale reps selling the latest products on the market.
Offshore Action:
Asia is a good source for finding stuff to sell online. However, the red tape and cost of contacting sources there can be a hassle.Your best bet is to hook up with a manufacturer’s rep who has overseas connections. There’s enough available home grown sources for locating products to sell to make this option unnecessary.
What Should I Sell Online?
Everyone who starts an ebiz faces the question: What do I sell? And most everyone seems to make two classic mistakes in the beginning:
They try to sell what everyone else is selling: DVDs, electronics and designer clothing. The problem they encounter is that the market is already saturated with these products and the suppliers typically do not work in small quantity. To make any profit at all, they'd have to buy huge quantities.
They try to sell what they know and love. Unfortunately, unless there is a significant demand for what they know and love, they are going to be stuck with a lot of product they can appreciate but can't move.
What's an IDEA HOTSPOT?
Lisa Suttora of Whatdoisell.com coined the term "idea hotspot" to refer to anything, any place or person that "provide[s] you with an unending source of new product ideas, of market trends, of developing niches and product line education?It is a fertile ground for product ideas." These hotspots keep you in touch with what people are buying, what things are up-and-coming, and what things are on their way out. If your ideas all come from one or two places, you are limiting yourself. Expand your thinking? You might consider looking at one of these "hotspots" for inspiration:
Newspapers. You can get an idea of what is on the minds of consumers by simply reading the lifestyle section, the business section, or looking at the advertisements the big stores are putting out.
Consumer Publications. There are hundreds of magazines designed around niche products, niche hobbies and niche markets. They are a terrific resource for building niche product lines.
Malls/brick-and-mortar stores. Talk to the salespeople, find out what is selling. You can even source your suppliers off the boxes. Get the manufacturer's name, call them up, and ask who their local distributor is in your area.
Trend-spotting websites, such as Trendwatching.com, Influxinsights.com and Trendhunter.com.
The entertainment industry, movies and TV drive product trends. If you know what is coming out in the movie industry, you can start sourcing related products before the trend begins. Imdb.com maintains a list of movies that are going to be released in the coming year. So if you know now that a particular movie is going to be coming out, you can start stocking up on relevant products before they become pricey, such as Batman, Superman, Curious George and Star Wars.
Write It Down
Suttora strongly suggests carrying a product sourcing notebook, be it a PDA or hand-held notebook, to keep track of your ideas as they come. She warns, "Ninety percent of ideas that you don't write down will get lost. When you're at these idea hotspots, if you see a hundred ideas for products to sell, you won't be able to remember those. You've got to write them down in your product sourcing notebook and then go back and start researching them."
They try to sell what everyone else is selling: DVDs, electronics and designer clothing. The problem they encounter is that the market is already saturated with these products and the suppliers typically do not work in small quantity. To make any profit at all, they'd have to buy huge quantities.
They try to sell what they know and love. Unfortunately, unless there is a significant demand for what they know and love, they are going to be stuck with a lot of product they can appreciate but can't move.
What's an IDEA HOTSPOT?
Lisa Suttora of Whatdoisell.com coined the term "idea hotspot" to refer to anything, any place or person that "provide[s] you with an unending source of new product ideas, of market trends, of developing niches and product line education?It is a fertile ground for product ideas." These hotspots keep you in touch with what people are buying, what things are up-and-coming, and what things are on their way out. If your ideas all come from one or two places, you are limiting yourself. Expand your thinking? You might consider looking at one of these "hotspots" for inspiration:
Newspapers. You can get an idea of what is on the minds of consumers by simply reading the lifestyle section, the business section, or looking at the advertisements the big stores are putting out.
Consumer Publications. There are hundreds of magazines designed around niche products, niche hobbies and niche markets. They are a terrific resource for building niche product lines.
Malls/brick-and-mortar stores. Talk to the salespeople, find out what is selling. You can even source your suppliers off the boxes. Get the manufacturer's name, call them up, and ask who their local distributor is in your area.
Trend-spotting websites, such as Trendwatching.com, Influxinsights.com and Trendhunter.com.
The entertainment industry, movies and TV drive product trends. If you know what is coming out in the movie industry, you can start sourcing related products before the trend begins. Imdb.com maintains a list of movies that are going to be released in the coming year. So if you know now that a particular movie is going to be coming out, you can start stocking up on relevant products before they become pricey, such as Batman, Superman, Curious George and Star Wars.
Write It Down
Suttora strongly suggests carrying a product sourcing notebook, be it a PDA or hand-held notebook, to keep track of your ideas as they come. She warns, "Ninety percent of ideas that you don't write down will get lost. When you're at these idea hotspots, if you see a hundred ideas for products to sell, you won't be able to remember those. You've got to write them down in your product sourcing notebook and then go back and start researching them."
How To Sell Things Online And Make Money
With your idea in mind, you decided to make money online. You have your domain name and a web hosting company to host your site. You have mapped out on paper what your site will look like. Now you want an angle to make money.
Some people jump into doing business on the web with a business they run offline hoping an international connection will make things better. These people can do quite well if they were already successful in the real world.
Others figure they would just wing their way into the Internet gold mine. Again, without a business plan you probably won't get too far.
If you don't have something to sell, you can't make money on the web. By simply being on the web does not guarantee the money will fall in your lap. You need a product and to give the buyers a reason to get it from you.
One easy way to come up with a product is to create your own. Information is the most inexpensive form of a product you can sell. In print form, you can sell a booklet, but have to figure in the cost of printing and mailing. In electronic form, it costs you nothing! However, some people would rather have something in writing to justify the fact that they spent something.
If you are not creative enough to come up with an informational book, you could make other products, but you will have to confirm what your local, state and federal laws would be concerning the product you have in mind.
If you want an easier route, consider a dropship dealer. In many cases they can print up catalogs in your name for you to distribute. You collect the orders, take out your share of the money and direct the rest of the money with the order to the dropship company. They process the orders you send them and ship to the customer. It is easy enough, but you also want to be sure about any policy they have about returned merchandise. You may have to hold on to the money you made until a clearing period passes.
Look through this list of companies and take your pick of what you wish to sell. Write these companies and ask them about their dropshipping program. It helps speed things up if you send a large SASE when you write them. Some of these businesses may no longer be around, so pick a few just in case. Dropship Companies.
After you figure out what you want to sell, you need to find a way to take payment. What are your options?
Of course the best option is to accept any and all forms of payments, but that is not practical in every situation, is the traditional merchant account. If you have only one item that is less than $10 and sell a few a month, it would be VERY risky to get a merchant account to accept credit cards.
Merchant accounts will let you take major credit cards and checks. Depending on what type of account you deal with, some will only allow Visa and Master Card, some just checks only, and others will take everything. They charge you according to your credit worthiness to make sure you will not rip off the customer or the company to pay your debts or that someone will put a lien on your assests. Unless you have perfect credit, expect to pay more. You can get these accounts starting at $50 a month and up to over $250 per month. Then there is the transaction charge ranging from 10¢ - 75¢. And they also take a percentage of your sale ranging from 1-10%.
So as you can see, they do take a fair amount out of what you would have considered your profit just for a transaction. If you make no sales, you still have to pay the monthly fee. So unless you can prove you will have a steady flow of ready buyers, having a merchant account is not always the best thing.
Don't be fooled by the ads that claim your business will increase by having the ability to accept cards with a merchant account. Unless you have a good sales pitch and a product people want and people coming to see your offer, a merchant account won't do you a bit of good. They are also not the only way to take card payments, but they do charge less for the service.
A merchant account will only suit you if you can supply the buying traffic. Before you shell out the big bucks for a traditional merchant's account, check to see if you have the buying traffic to support it.
Get a good statistics counter to see how many people are actually viewing your ad, where they came from, and how long they stayed. Most good web hosting companies will have an excellent traffic statistic counter to tell you the details of where your traffic originated and even search terms used to get to your site. If your web hosting company does not have a good statistic program, try Web Stat which is one of the best traffic counters around and only $9 a month, but you can try it free for 30 days to check your traffic levels.
If you offer payment by check, cash, or money order and you have at least 1% of your traffic buying what you sell, then it might work out when you accept credit cards. If people want something, they will stick money in the mail. Granted there are many impulsive people, there are also many who would rather mail a check or money order than to give credit card informtion online.
Of course, if you do not qualify for the traditional accounts, you have other options. Sign up for the PayPal merchant account program, ClickBank, or eBay. They allow you to sell whatever it is you are selling without having to go through the same hoops as a traditional merchant account.
Once you have a product and a means to collect payment, create a sales page. Use the basic rules of advertising. Keep your copy simple to read and easy to understand. Keep it short and to the point. Use words that are powerful. Create "white space" (don't crowd the screen with words or bog it down with pictures and keep a good margin space.) Use headlines, subheadlines, and bullet points to highlight the great points of your offer for those who are just skimming readers. Be sure to ask for the order. Be specific on how they are to get your product. Create a sense of urgency to buy your product now. Give them what they wanted and pile on goodies to make it impossible to refuse. Make sure your page will load fast. Unless you are selling music, DO NOT PUT MUSIC ON!
Try to advertise your site as much as possible through forums, newsgroups, and other places where you find people in the form of a signature tag which is a 1-2 line signature that can link to a site you own and is used at the end of your comments. Another way to advertise online is through classified ads such as Adland Classified Ads. Also consider offline forms of advertising such as newspapers, flyers, business cards and word of mouth.
When you create and launch your site, just be prepared to fill orders and handle your business. It is not easy, but it is not difficult either. You will not get rich overnight and this will take a lot of time to set up. Don't let the Don Lapre's of the world fool you. If you haven't noticed, this site has a lot more information on making money on the web than buying one of the infomercial products. And this advice is FREE.
Some people jump into doing business on the web with a business they run offline hoping an international connection will make things better. These people can do quite well if they were already successful in the real world.
Others figure they would just wing their way into the Internet gold mine. Again, without a business plan you probably won't get too far.
If you don't have something to sell, you can't make money on the web. By simply being on the web does not guarantee the money will fall in your lap. You need a product and to give the buyers a reason to get it from you.
One easy way to come up with a product is to create your own. Information is the most inexpensive form of a product you can sell. In print form, you can sell a booklet, but have to figure in the cost of printing and mailing. In electronic form, it costs you nothing! However, some people would rather have something in writing to justify the fact that they spent something.
If you are not creative enough to come up with an informational book, you could make other products, but you will have to confirm what your local, state and federal laws would be concerning the product you have in mind.
If you want an easier route, consider a dropship dealer. In many cases they can print up catalogs in your name for you to distribute. You collect the orders, take out your share of the money and direct the rest of the money with the order to the dropship company. They process the orders you send them and ship to the customer. It is easy enough, but you also want to be sure about any policy they have about returned merchandise. You may have to hold on to the money you made until a clearing period passes.
Look through this list of companies and take your pick of what you wish to sell. Write these companies and ask them about their dropshipping program. It helps speed things up if you send a large SASE when you write them. Some of these businesses may no longer be around, so pick a few just in case. Dropship Companies.
After you figure out what you want to sell, you need to find a way to take payment. What are your options?
Of course the best option is to accept any and all forms of payments, but that is not practical in every situation, is the traditional merchant account. If you have only one item that is less than $10 and sell a few a month, it would be VERY risky to get a merchant account to accept credit cards.
Merchant accounts will let you take major credit cards and checks. Depending on what type of account you deal with, some will only allow Visa and Master Card, some just checks only, and others will take everything. They charge you according to your credit worthiness to make sure you will not rip off the customer or the company to pay your debts or that someone will put a lien on your assests. Unless you have perfect credit, expect to pay more. You can get these accounts starting at $50 a month and up to over $250 per month. Then there is the transaction charge ranging from 10¢ - 75¢. And they also take a percentage of your sale ranging from 1-10%.
So as you can see, they do take a fair amount out of what you would have considered your profit just for a transaction. If you make no sales, you still have to pay the monthly fee. So unless you can prove you will have a steady flow of ready buyers, having a merchant account is not always the best thing.
Don't be fooled by the ads that claim your business will increase by having the ability to accept cards with a merchant account. Unless you have a good sales pitch and a product people want and people coming to see your offer, a merchant account won't do you a bit of good. They are also not the only way to take card payments, but they do charge less for the service.
A merchant account will only suit you if you can supply the buying traffic. Before you shell out the big bucks for a traditional merchant's account, check to see if you have the buying traffic to support it.
Get a good statistics counter to see how many people are actually viewing your ad, where they came from, and how long they stayed. Most good web hosting companies will have an excellent traffic statistic counter to tell you the details of where your traffic originated and even search terms used to get to your site. If your web hosting company does not have a good statistic program, try Web Stat which is one of the best traffic counters around and only $9 a month, but you can try it free for 30 days to check your traffic levels.
If you offer payment by check, cash, or money order and you have at least 1% of your traffic buying what you sell, then it might work out when you accept credit cards. If people want something, they will stick money in the mail. Granted there are many impulsive people, there are also many who would rather mail a check or money order than to give credit card informtion online.
Of course, if you do not qualify for the traditional accounts, you have other options. Sign up for the PayPal merchant account program, ClickBank, or eBay. They allow you to sell whatever it is you are selling without having to go through the same hoops as a traditional merchant account.
Once you have a product and a means to collect payment, create a sales page. Use the basic rules of advertising. Keep your copy simple to read and easy to understand. Keep it short and to the point. Use words that are powerful. Create "white space" (don't crowd the screen with words or bog it down with pictures and keep a good margin space.) Use headlines, subheadlines, and bullet points to highlight the great points of your offer for those who are just skimming readers. Be sure to ask for the order. Be specific on how they are to get your product. Create a sense of urgency to buy your product now. Give them what they wanted and pile on goodies to make it impossible to refuse. Make sure your page will load fast. Unless you are selling music, DO NOT PUT MUSIC ON!
Try to advertise your site as much as possible through forums, newsgroups, and other places where you find people in the form of a signature tag which is a 1-2 line signature that can link to a site you own and is used at the end of your comments. Another way to advertise online is through classified ads such as Adland Classified Ads. Also consider offline forms of advertising such as newspapers, flyers, business cards and word of mouth.
When you create and launch your site, just be prepared to fill orders and handle your business. It is not easy, but it is not difficult either. You will not get rich overnight and this will take a lot of time to set up. Don't let the Don Lapre's of the world fool you. If you haven't noticed, this site has a lot more information on making money on the web than buying one of the infomercial products. And this advice is FREE.
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