As a local businesses, you need to make sure that your Google Places listing is up to date.  This is what controls the information that Google displays in the map at the top of the results page when you do a search for a company, product or service in Google.  If your listing is incomplete, it is likely costing you money.

You need to make sure that your website is up to date and relevant.  Is there information on there that people are looking for?  What questions are people always asking your business?  Put the answers on your website.

Some basic work on your search engine optimization and current, complete information in some online databases can do wonders for your bottom line.

Tags: article marketing, website optimization, internet marketing tips, internet marketing, niche marketing

Now, I found Facebook is a bit tricky to get started on.  You have to hit a certain threshold of monetary value in your ads before they start pushing them out.  You can adjust the amount you want to spend as you go along and the more clicks your ads get, the less you will pay for them.

Here is a free tip… Put your phone number or contact info right in your ad.  There is lots of room there and you will get people responding to your ad without even clicking on it (and costing you money).

At The Marketer’s Mind, we can create an entire Facebook ad campaign for you.  Let us help you grow your business today.

Tags: niche marketing, article marketing, affiliate marketing, internet marketing tips, internet marketing

But don’t let online video take you over. There is a place for it – and there is a place it shouldn’t be.

For example, a sales letter.

If you do your entire sales letter in only video, you can have a problem. First, for whatever reason, there will be people who can’t watch your video. The connection is bad, they don’ have the right version of some plugin, or whatever. One, though is that they might not have the time. Another thing is that they may be at work or in another environment where video (specifically audio) is not a practical option. Not everyone does all their online work from their home office.

I know when I go to a site and see a video, the first thing I do is look to see how long the video is. I am only prepared to sit there and watch a sales video for a couple of minutes. If it is, say 10 minutes or longer, I won’t even start it. Why should I? I have not yet been sold on anything that this person is offering – that is why I am at the site. So, why should I give them my time?

If you want to use video on your sales page, keep it short. Use it as an intro to a longer video and get people to opt-in. Then send them the link by email. That way, if they don’t have time to watch it right now, they can come back to it. It also allows you to follow up with them and make sure that they watch it. Offer it in smaller chunks if it is long.

and don’t forget to also include a written text version of your sales letter on the same page. Some people will watch the video – but not all. Others will just want to read, or skim the sales letter. Let them. The point of video is to add an element to your site – not take away from it. Don’t exclude the people who want to read the sales letter.

Tags: niche marketing, affiliate marketing, internet marketing, internet marketing tips, Jonathan Hook

There can be more to consider. Are you also putting out content via podcasts? Are you also putting out content via video? Many people are not. Why?

Well, some people haven’t thought of it, others don’t know how and haven’t learned yet, others see it as a barrier to publishing content at all. Whatever your reason, I encourage you to look into it – for a couple of reasons.

1. The more content you can put out in different mediums, the more people you will reach. Why? Quite simply, different people learn in different ways. Some people like to read (web, email), others like to watch video and others prefer to listen. By only using one medium, you are assuming that all your people prefer to get their information in that format.

2. There are many more people in the world with wireless devices than with internet access, so by publishing in more formats, you are able to get into say podcast directories or video directories and so on. You open up your information to people who can’t otherwise get it.

It has been predicted by some people in the know that in the not to distant future, we will start to see a separation of the computer from the internet. This means that people will use the infrastructure of the internet but not from their computers. You can already access certain things from mobile phone or ipod, there are tv-like units that have access to certain parts of the internet and so on. More is coming our way on this.

I would encourage you to think for a minute on how you would run your business if your clients didn’t have a computer. Could they get your information via podcast or RSS? Can they call you to place an order? Do you mail them something in the mail for follow up? This will expand your opportunities many times over.

Tags: article marketing, website optimization, affiliate marketing, Jonathan Hook, niche marketing

There are a few built-in downsides to the idea of free traffic. One is that it normally takes some time to build up. SEO or Search Engine Optimization can take months to produce results. First you have to put up your site, make changes, wait for results and repeat. Sounds easy enough but the search engines take time to produce the results and this whole process could take 3-6 months. Now depending on the purpose of your website, this might be acceptable, but if you are running a real business, you are sitting there loosing potential revenue as you wait around for your “free” traffic.

Let’s compare that to paid traffic. Now understand that there are a number of sources of paid traffic available. You could buy advertising through Google Adwords on a Pay Per Click (PPC) basis, you can buy advertising on blogs or a lot of sites that get a good volume of traffic. Often these are based on the number of visitors such a site receives. You can buy advertising in online newsletters or ezines and so on. But, there are some distinct advantages to paid advertising.

First, you are in control of it. You can turn it on and off at will. Flip the switch (start paying for ads) and traffic comes in. Turn off the switch (pull the ads) and traffic stops. When you are ready to handle more sales, you turn up the volume of ads going out. No problem. When you are relying on free traffic, it can be unpredictable and not the best business model.

Secondly, with paid advertising, you can track your ads very easily. You know which ad or publication someone come to you from, you can get a good idea of what they searched for and what is going to interest them. This knowledge can help you build a better product or service because you can learn to target your customer better. When you are running a proper business, this information is very valuable to you because the better you can tailor your product or service to your customer, the more effectively you can market it.

I guess the biggest problem that people have is that they don’t have a good plan or do proper testing before they get started. See, if you have a product or service that sells for X dollars, you need to know how much money you can spend to acquire a sale for it. Then you need to look over your conversion rates and how to improve them. See, a lot of people think that more traffic can solve their problem and boost sales. Well it can. But a more compelling offer and a better converting site can do it faster and cheaper. If you start at the beginning of the sales process and increase the conversions from surfers to clickers, from ad views to sales letter reads, from sales letter reads to sales, if each of these steps is slightly improved, then you start to see an exponential growth in sales for the same amount of traffic or the same number of visitors.

Once your site or sales letter converts traffic to dollars like a well-oiled machine, then turn up the traffic. Now you can go and pay for ads to get the word out. And when people find you online through an organic search, that is a bonus. But don’t waste your time sitting there waiting for it.

Knowing the value of your customers is crucial in the marketing process.

If you don’t know what your customers are worth, how can you know what you need to spend to gain a new customer?

The truth is that it costs money to gain a new customer.  It is important to know what you are paying to gain a new customer and what the lifetime value of your customer is worth.

So what you need to do is start small, start with maybe a gift that is about five dollars or maybe even ten dollars, and start doing give away’s. This is a great way to drive traffic to your website or blog, because people will keep checking to see if they won or not. Then at the same time, while they are checking back at your website or blog, they are becoming more and more informed of the products or services that you are offering.

The great thing about give aways, is that the person that received the gift will not forget you. Gas is a huge subject at this time our lives, so let’s talk about gas as an example. Let’s say that I owned a gas station and there was a gas station across the street. We both cost the same, but we want more customers. Let’s say that we give away free gas to five lucky customers. Do you think the next time they need gas they will go to you, or to the gas station across the street? Chances are they are going to come back to you because they cared about your services a lot.

So when you are offering your free services and products, you are attracting future customers. Really, that is what you are doing. You will be surprised at how many people will want your services or products, only because you gave away some free gifts. They know that you care about your customers, and that you are not doing it just for the money. You really are, but this will show that you also care about your clients or customers.

There you have it, now you know what the power of free gifts and free services can do for you. Here is a little homework assignment for you, when you see that somebody is doing a give away, I want you to follow up on them. Follow up how their services and see how they are doing now. I would say that about most of the time they have increased their sales, and they have new clients. Word of mouth goes around, and chances are that the people that won the products or services are telling their friends and family about it. This is resulting in more people using your services and products. The gift or service that was given away will be covered really quickly by the new clients.

Tags: Jonathan Hook, affiliate marketing, article marketing, internet marketing tips, niche marketing

But not everyone can easily write articles with good content. Even professional writers have difficulty sometimes in writing informative and quality articles. If you have the interest, here are some steps that you can follow in order to construct a good article that will surely attract readers.

1. Come up with an interesting title. An interesting title is something that will tell your readers what they will get from reading your article. State it in a direct manner. “How To” articles are one of the popular searches in the internet. It is a good way to start your titles with that.

2. It has also been observed that readers are drawn to read articles with titles that involve odd numbers. It will be interesting to consider this in your titles as well. You can probably state 7 ways to… or 5 tips on…

3. Address your article to one person. Most people are interested to read something which they feel is written for them. The pronoun “you” makes more impact than the use of them or everyone. If you address your article to a particular reader, it becomes more personal and the reader will feel that you are directly talking to him.

4. Make sure that you get your readers attention in the introductory sentence of your paragraph. If a reader thinks that your first few lines are boring, he will look for other interesting articles to read. To avoid this, develop a striking opening statement that will make readers want to read more.

5. Define your ideas and present them in an organize way. A well written article does not mean that it has all the topics a person can think of. Better identify about three to five ideas and present each idea in a paragraph. It will allow you to have more focus on what you are writing and the reader will not find your article too overwhelming with information.

6. Complete your article with an invitation for your reader to take action. Here is where your resource box comes in. Put a link that your reader can click on to access your site. Provide valuable information about you and your line of business. And take advantage of the few lines you can include in the box to lure readers to check out your website.

Tags: niche marketing, internet marketing tips, internet marketing, affiliate marketing, gregg hall

These can be articles that contain information about related topics on the site’s line of business. One good article example may be about the “Top ten camping sites” to endorse an online business that deals with outdoor gears.

In order for an article to successfully connect to your site, it has to catch the attention of the readers. Here are some tips on how to come up with an effective article suited for article marketing. If you are not confident of your writing skills, you can hire freelance writers to do it for you.

1. Start with a good title. A good title will entice the readers to read the article. Most of the titles that grab attention are those that start with “How to…” and Tips on…” People want to read about something informative. Titles which start with these words are captivating. It suggests that they will gain something from it.

Be specific with your title as well. Tell your readers the benefits of reading your article. Long titles are OK right as long as it conveys a direct thought. It is not recommended to come up with very long titles though as it may mislead the message of the entire article.

2. Write good content that is interesting to read. Although it is a plus to have a good title, content is still the most significant part of the article. Make sure that the idea you want to present are organized and are presented in an orderly manner. Information is only interesting if the readers understand what the writer is trying to say.

3. Check your grammar, spelling and the rest of your articles at least twice. It is better if you have someone that can check it for you. If you check your own work, there is a huge possibility that you will overlook some of your mistakes. If someone else will do it for you, he will surely be more meticulous.

The success of an article depends on the number of readers it generates. So grab their attention with your titles and make sure that they continue reading with your impressive content.

Tags: affiliate marketing, niche marketing, article marketing, gregg hall, internet marketing tips

It is important to develop a way to stay on top of the search engines to let your target market know of your existence on line. New online businesses are created every single day. If you don’t take a competitive strategy, your site will be forgotten in a snap. Promoting your site through article marketing is a practical and effective way of ensuring that this does not happen.

Article marketing is a proven strategy that has been working for different sites today. It uses informative articles that talks about related topics regarding the company’s line of business. If your company is into car distribution, you can provide informative articles about “summer maintaining tips for automobiles”. You can also cite different safety precautions in driving on unfamiliar terrains. People usually search for interesting and informative articles to read.

Here are some simple tips on how to promote your site through articles:

• All you have to do is write an article related to your line of business.

• Make sure that it has a good content, one that is interesting to read in order to invite more readers.

• Include a link in the article that directs the readers back to your site. This way, the potential customer will have a glimpse of your site and may look around to do make a purchase.

The article is not the only thing that you should pay attention to. If you want to maximize article marketing, you also have to pay attention to the details included in the resource box. Make sure that you include the following information in the about you or your company:

• A link that leads directly to your site. Indicate your company’s URL or complete website.

• It should include your full name and your position.

• Add striking description about your line of business. This has to be reflected in three sentences at most.

• And finally, it should contain an invitation for the reader to take some action, whether to visit the site or contacting a business representative.

Good article marketing will help you establish a reputable online business. Try out with a few articles and master the basics, it’s the best way to stay competitive.

Tags: article marketing, website optimization, internet marketing, gregg hall, niche marketing