It’s a Great Time to Start Your Internet Business!

Starting an Internet business is something you should consider, no matter what the economy looks like. Here’s why…

First, online sales have never been stronger. 

Second, remember that, unlike local brick-and-mortar businesses that are typically at the mercy of the local economy, you have access to an entire global market. So even if U.S. shoppers are feeling pinched, you’ll still have plenty of other customers to turn to.

Next, consider the start-up costs of an Internet business. Unlike traditional businesses, you can get your website running for less than the cost of a couple of nights out on the town. So you don’t need to tie up your “emergency” cash – or go into debt – to get started.

And speaking of debt, with such low initial costs, you won’t have to worry about trying to qualify for a start-up loan, something that’s likely to get much tougher during the current credit crunch.

Finally, remember that you can start your Internet business even while you’re working your “day” job, so you can continue to enjoy a regular source of income while you work on making your site successful. Try that with a brick-and-mortar business.

At the end of the day, starting your own Internet business during a "slow economy" (or whatever they’re calling it) is an excellent form of job security.

But before you jump in and start your website… remember that there’s one big (and I do mean BIG) newbie mistake you must avoid if you hope to build a successful online business in this turbulent economy.

To start a truly successful online business, you must first identify a “niche market.”

No matter how often I talk about it, I still see many well-intentioned people getting this wrong. (Lots of established site owners are getting it wrong, too.) When I get questions or when I look at comments on my blog, I hear and see the same things all the time:

“My niche market is young business professionals.”

“My niche market is women over 40 who are interested in their health.”

“My niche market is people who like to garden.”

These are NOT niche markets!!

These are huge and undefined groups of people who all have different goals, interests, and experiences. And trying to sell effectively to a diverse group like that is going to be an exercise in failure.

You’ll likely find yourself competing directly with the likes of Walmart, eBay, or Amazon (or all three)… and something tells me their marketing budgets are just a tiny bit bigger than yours, right?

But that’s the beauty of marketing to a true niche. It’s a much smaller, more defined target, so you can figure out exactly what everyone who visits your site wants… know where they hang out online… understand precisely how to speak to them… and offer the specific products that will make a difference in their lives.

At the same time, you can really concentrate on becoming a recognized expert in your chosen market, so you’ll be able to build really strong relationships of trust with your visitors.

Best of all, these smaller markets are often virtually ignored by the big guys, so you end up with much less competition. Then, even though you’re selling to far fewer people, you’ll actually end up making more sales.

Make sense so far?

So, if “parents over 35″ or “balding men” aren’t niche markets, what is? Well, let’s look at some examples. These are actual niches that real people are getting wealthy in right now:

• Spanish-speaking architects looking for software, training, and resources
• People who want to make crafts with dried poppies
• Heavy-metal bands looking for sponsorship and branded clothing and accessories

See the difference? A niche market is super-specific and caters to a group of people who are all looking for the solution to a common problem.

If you’re worried that narrowing your market this much will limit your sales, consider this:

In a typical town, a business selling nothing but organic parrot food would likely struggle. Even the local pet store couldn’t sell enough of it to make it worthwhile. There just wouldn’t be enough demand.

But with over 3.2 billion people worldwide on the Internet, even if only one or two people in every town want that specific, hard-to-find product, that’s more than enough to make a market for a profitable business.

So start that website now, even though it may seem like the timing is bad. Just make sure you do your homework first.

By identifying a solid, tightly defined niche market, and then building your site and products around the problem your market is trying to solve, you’ll be taking the first giant step toward profits… and avoiding the kinds of disasters that small business start-ups can experience during uncertain economic times.

And that’s what I call job security!$

[Do you know how Facebook and Google became the most powerful companies in the world?

It’s NOT helping you share pics of last night’s dinner...
It’s NOT searching for drunken cat videos…

And it’s DEFINITELY NOT about free Gmail accounts.
 

The simple truth is Facebook and Google SELL TRAFFIC.

They SELL TRAFFIC to business owners, and that advertising revenue alone has turned them into billion dollar companies.
 

Traffic is the most valuable commodity on the internet, and that will never change.
 

This is why using the Traffic Authority business system is the ultimate way to make extra income in your business…
 

Click here to watch the video and start your own premium traffic business today!]

4 Steps to Get Rich

A reader wrote recently to say that although he’s “learned a lot from Seven Years to Seven Figures,” he feels that most of the advice is perfect for him. Why? Because he is 47 and has a net worth of only $25,000.

He is not interested in long-term saving strategies. “I don’t want a million dollars when I’m 70,” he says. “I want it now.”

He believes that many of the wealth-building strategies I recommend are for people like him.

“What’s the average person to do?” he asks. “He makes $27 per hour with no chance for overtime. He has debts. He needs a new car. He can’t invest in real estate. And he doesn’t write a newsletter with 100,000 subscribers that earns millions every year.”

Since I started writing this blog, I’ve gotten a number of emails like this. This tells me two things: I'm hitting a nerve by telling the truth, and there are lots of SYTSF readers who have few financial resources and are worried about the future.

If you have had some of the same thoughts or feelings, this message is for you.

You are middle-aged. Your net worth is meager. Your income is barely sufficient to meet expenses, and those expenses are going up. Instead of getting stronger, the economy seems to be teetering on the edge of collapse.

So should you give up your dream of retiring comfortably one day? Should you accept the prospect of living in a shabby apartment and subsisting on ramen noodles? Should you grow bitter? Should you curse big government and big banking and big business for putting you in this situation?

Or should you take responsibility for your future well-being?

That last question was, of course, rhetorical. Yet when I hear comments such as “What’s the average person to do?” I wonder if people understand that they have options.

You certainly don’t have any choice about how our government is going to spend your tax money. And you may not have a choice about whether the company you work for is going to be in business next year. But you can choose how you respond to your current financial worries.

I believe—no, I am sure—that anyone who has modest intelligence and a positive attitude can become financially independent in seven years or less if he or she is willing to work smart and hard.

But I also understand that when you are halfway through your life and barely making ends meet, it seems like the only chance to become financially secure is to win the lottery (either an actual lottery or the stock market equivalent).

If you feel that way, you are wrong. You are not wealthy now, not by a long shot. But you do not have to give up on is your dream of becoming wealthy.

It will take time and patience. You may have to change some of the thoughts and feelings you have about wealth. And you will certainly have to make changes in what you are doing, for what you have been doing has brought you to where you are.

Your path to financial independence begins with four simple steps.

1. First, accept the fact that you are solely and completely responsible for your current financial situation.

Before you react defensively, read that sentence again. I didn’t say you are the cause of your situation. I said you are responsible for it.

By taking responsibility for your current situation—even if it was “not your fault”—you assume responsibility for your financial future. That is a good thing. Hoping for someone, something, or some event to fix your problems is futile and foolish. Time, precious time, ticks on as you sit and wait.

The sooner you accept the reality that you are going to be your own salvation, the sooner your fortune will start to change.

The first and most important benefit is that you will shed the anger and frustration you have been carrying around for so many years. And then gradually, as you apply your new thinking to taking action, you will begin to feel the opposite of anger and frustration. You will begin to feel financially powerful.

The feeling that you have the capacity to create wealth is the single most important tool in your wealth-building kit.

2. Second, set realistic expectations.

I can’t tell you how many times I’ve heard people scoff at the idea of making 8% or 12% returns. They tell me returns like those are “boring.” They want stocks that double and triple, they say, because that’s “the only way to acquire wealth.” 

10-to-1 returns do happen. But they rarely happen in the stock market. Your chances of building a fortune by seeking out 10-baggers (as we call them) is about the same as playing the lottery.

Know this: 8-12% is a high rate of return. If you get an 8% return, you’ll double your money every nine years. If you get a 12% return, you’ll do it in six years. You can get very rich by doubling your money every six years.

Think of it this way: Warren Buffett—the most successful investor of all time and the third-richest person on the planet—has averaged 19.8% on his investments over his entire career. Expecting to make returns that are five times what the greatest investor has made is just plain foolish.

3. The third thing you must do is to understand how wealth builders really create wealth.

The public today has been deceived on this important point by reading stories about individuals who invested every cent they had in a business idea that exploded into a billion-dollar bonanza. These are great, inspiring stories. But they are not normal. For every person who got rich this way, there are 999 who went broke doing the same thing.

I’m not diminishing these men and women. They were brilliant and shrewd. But they were also rare exceptions. Using them as models is like a kid deciding he’s going to get rich by becoming the next Tiger Woods or Michael Jordan.

4. Your fourth step to financial independence is to recognize that your net investible income (the amount of cash you have after spending and saving) is the single most important factor in determining how quickly you will become wealthy.

I will venture to say that you have never heard any other investment advisor say this. But it needs to be said. You simply cannot get wealthy by investing unless you invest enough money.

This leads us to being open to real estate and entrepreneurship. It also leads us to strategies for spending less of the income you earn on the things you are paying for now. I write about programs for each of these strategies. One of them—which I call the Golden Buckets—will give you a clear breakdown of how to spend less, save more, and invest wisely.

One more point I want to make here: The journey to millions of dollars is earned $100 at a time.

Many people I speak to, when I talk about extra income opportunities, tell me that they are interested only in opportunities with the potential to bring them tens of thousands or hundreds of thousands of extra dollars per month. This is the same kind of foolishness I hear from people who are interested only in stocks that could maybe/possibly/perhaps give them a 100% return on their money.

To find an extra $10,000 to invest this year, you don’t need to come up with a $10,000 idea. It’s easier and smarter to come up with several $100 ideas and then repeat them over and over again.

If you are not yet wealthy and are worried that you will never be able to achieve financial independence, take heart. I’ll give you dozens of ways to develop real wealth—even if you are 47 years old and making $27 per hour.

The world of wealth is governed by universal dynamics—supply, demand, wealth, greed, etc. These dynamics are as old as civilization. Winning the wealth-building game is about recognizing and exploiting those dynamics, not denying them.

My job here is to highlight those dynamics on a weekly and monthly basis and then help you make smart, enriching decisions—the sort of decisions that have made men and women wealthy for thousands of years.

It’s not fun to realize, in the middle years of your life, that you haven’t acquired the wealth you want. But the good news is that you can begin to change your fortunes today by taking the four steps I just told you to take. And you can take all four of those steps in the next hour—if you simply open your mind to them.

Let me be a bit more specific:

• Accept responsibility for your future. Refuse to complain, criticize, or condemn. If you want us to help you achieve your goals, trust in and follow our advice. Stop doubting it. Stop denying it. Have faith.

• Give up the foolish notion that you must get rich “now.” Be happy to earn 8-12% on your stock market investments. Realize that if you make 8% to 12%, you will be ahead of 99% of your fellow investors. Embrace the huge impact this will have on your wealth over time.

• Begin to allocate your income according to the Golden Buckets system. With every paycheck you get, first cover your necessary expenses (bills, mortgage, etc.). Then put some money toward saving and some money toward investing. Then and only then—after you have “paid yourself”—do you add to your “spending” account.

• Stop complaining about making “only $27” per hour. That’s more than a lot of people make. Be grateful you earn that much. Commit to add to that with a second income. Make an honest count of the number of hours each month you devote to television and other non-productive activities. Devote those hours to wealth building instead. Cast aside the comfortable shoes of victimization. Put on the working boots of a financial hero.

If you are willing to do that, I can help you succeed. I am fully committed to giving my readers more valuable and realistic wealth-building advice than any other investment blog. I have the experience and the know-how to do it. I will deliver if you do.

Before I end this essay, I want to address two more things my 47-year-old correspondent said. And I am going to speak directly to him:

You are only 47, not 87. You have plenty more years to increase your income and grow your net worth. Don’t assume that all is lost when you have a wonderful life ahead of you, a life that can be rich in so many ways.

Everybody in your situation has the same choice: You can complain about it or you can dedicate yourself to changing it. I can show you how.

You have what you need to get your gravy train moving. But you are the engineer. Nobody can do it but you.$

[Do you know how Facebook and Google became the most powerful companies in the world?
It’s NOT helping you share pics of last night’s dinner...
It’s NOT searching for drunken cat videos…

And it’s DEFINITELY NOT about free Gmail accounts.
 

The simple truth is Facebook and Google SELL TRAFFIC.

They SELL TRAFFIC to business owners, and that advertising revenue alone has turned them into billion dollar companies.
 

Traffic is the most valuable commodity on the internet, and that will never change.
 

This is why using the Traffic Authority business system is the ultimate way to make extra income in your business…
 

Click here to watch the video and start your own premium traffic business today!]

The Easiest Way to Start an Online Business

If you’ve caught the Internet entrepreneur bug, you probably can’t wait to get started making money with your own website. Of course, you’re going to need a few things first – namely, products and effective sales copy to sell them.

But while you’re working on your products and sales copy, there is a way to start bringing money in the door almost immediately. I’m talking about becoming an affiliate marketer.

As an affiliate marketer, you make a commission by selling other people’s products via your website. And they make it easy for you by providing both the products and proven marketing copy (such as banner ads and sales letters).

Your affiliate business can be up and running in a flash – and it requires very little in the way of start-up costs. All you really need to pay for at the beginning is your website domain and a website hosting service.

While working as an affiliate, you’ll hone marketing skills that you can use to make your “real” Internet business even better… if you decide to go ahead and launch it. Like many affiliates, you might make so much selling other people’s products that you never get around to creating and selling your own.$

[Ed. Note: David Wood – founder of Empower Network – and a handful of other Internet marketing experts have just revealed a powerful “blueprint” that’s responsible for generating over $70 million a year in Internet revenues. David's goal is to create 100 new millionaires per year! Right now, you can not only get your hands on this blueprint to creating lasting wealth… you can get expert, step-by-step instruction in how to make it work for YOU. Learn more here. WARNING – this offer ends soon. So make sure you snap up your copy of this incredible wealth blueprint – right now.]

Building Business Momentum

It is amazing how everything can change from one phone call, one deal or the addition of one new contact. Business momentumcan differentiate the successful from the unsuccessful. When things are going great in your business, there always seems to be new deals coming in faster than you know what to do with. On the flip-side, when you are in a rut, it may take weeks or months to generate new leads. Ebbs and flows are part of any business, but fortunately there are things you can do to reduce the ups and downs. In most cases, it has to do with your vision and how you go about attacking it.

Coming up with a long term vision and having long term goals is an important part of your growth, but you need to know how to take the steps to get there. If you watch the many investing shows or infomercials on TV, you may get into the business thinking anyone can do it. You will quickly find out that getting leads and closing deals takes time and a lot of hard work. Finding a good deal is much harder than simply calling your local realtor and asking them to show you some houses. You need to do the grunt work that most people are not aware of. This effort will shape how successful you are in your business. Ultimately, business momentum is generated through your initial hard work. Accordingly, a pace will be set that helps you succeed.

Having a clear vision is a good start, but it is not enough. You need to write down the action plan you intend to use to make your vision a reality. There will be many bumps in the road and days when you want to give up, but if you really love the business you will stick with it. Make little goals every day that you could accomplish. Instead of trying to close five deals in a month, start with trying to set up five meetings for next week. Each meeting you set will give you a sense of accomplishment and leave you wanting to do more.

Many new investors start out like a ball of fire, but eventually slow down and let frustration set it. Investing is a marathon, not a sprint. You can’t expect immediate results from one email campaign. These things take time and need to be done on a consistent basis. Most new contacts aren’t made until the seventh attempt. For many, they would have given up long before that attempt is ever made.

You should view your business similar to a flow chart. You need a steady mix of new leads coming in and deals closing. To get those deals, you have to reach numerous people or send out many letters or emails. Ideally, you will get referrals from the people you meet but, again, that takes time. It is not enough to grab a business card and ask them to be friends on Facebook. You need to constantly stay in contact and ask for business when the time is right. If you are out of sight, you are probably out of mind. The more newsletters and links to your latest blog post they get, the more they will think of you the next time they have a deal.

You never know if the next person you do a deal with is the one that will change your business momentum. Do something positive for your business every day and you will see things start to turn for you. To steal an old baseball term, momentum is only as good as the next days starting pitcher. Subsequently, business momentum is only as good as what you have done today.$

[Ed. Note: David Wood – founder of Empower Network – and a handful of other Internet marketing experts have just revealed a powerful “blueprint” that’s responsible for generating over $70 million a year in Internet revenues. David's goal is to create 100 new millionaires per year! Right now, you can not only get your hands on this blueprint to creating lasting wealth… you can get expert, step-by-step instruction in how to make it work for YOU. Learn more here. WARNING – this offer ends soon. So make sure you snap up your copy of this incredible wealth blueprint – right now.]

Seven Years to Seven Figures: The One Thing That Changes Everything

One indispensable quality affects every relationship in your life.

It holds together all your associations. It determines whether you realize your dreams, both personal and professional.

And it virtually defines you to others. Without it, true success is impossible.

Stephen M.R. Covey is even more emphatic. He writes:

“There is one thing that is common to every individual, relationship, team, family, organization, nation, economy, and civilization throughout the world — one thing which, if removed, will destroy the most powerful government, the most thriving economy, the most influential leadership, the greatest friendship, the strongest character, the deepest love.

“On the other hand, if developed and leveraged, that one thing has the potential to create unparalleled success and prosperity in every dimension of life. Yet, it is the least understood, most neglected, and most underestimated possibility of our time.

“That one thing is trust.”

Simply put, trust is confidence. It is other people feeling good about relying on you.

And its value can hardly be overstated. Trustworthiness is the universally accepted test of good character.

When you trust someone, you have confidence in his honesty and abilities. You can delegate things easily and effectively. You can relax. You have peace of mind.

But when you doubt someone’s integrity, question his accomplishments, or worry about his agenda, confidence is replaced by suspicion and anxiety.

Take a moment and picture someone you trust implicitly. It could be a spouse, a parent, a sibling, a friend, or a business associate. How does this relationship make you feel? How easily do you communicate? How quickly do things get done?

Now imagine someone you distrust. How does this relationship feel? How easily do you communicate? Do you enjoy this relationship? Or is it complicated, cumbersome, and draining?

The difference between a high-trust and low-trust relationship is night and day. In a high-trust relationship, you can say the wrong thing and your listener still understands you. In a low-trust relationship, you can choose your words carefully, be very precise, and you may still be misunderstood.

Sadly, trust is at an ebb in our society. A Harris poll reveals that only 27 percent of Americans trust the government. Only 22 percent trust the media. Only 12 percent trust big companies. And only 8 percent trust political parties.

Personal trust is waning, too. Many people look back on contracts or commitments as something to negotiate. Half of all marriages end in divorce. Many (perhaps most) founder on a lack of trust.

We naturally gravitate away from individuals we can’t believe or rely on and towards those we can. Low trust is the very definition of a bad relationship. And once you forfeit someone’s confidence, it’s awfully hard to win it back.

This is particularly true in business.

We all survive by selling a product, service, or skill. Yet every sale has five basic obstacles: no need, no money, no hurry, no desire, no trust.

If trust is lacking, forget the other four. You’re done. The moment someone suspects your motives, everything you do becomes tainted.$

[Ed. Note: Ray's personal team will create 10 six-figure earners before the year is over. Our system walks you through the process of growing your profitable online business using a proven online business model. Ray shows you exactly what he did to grow his six-figure business. To find out more about Empower Network, go here.]

The Power of Passion

Question: Are you passionate about what you do? Or just passionate about the money you make?

I’m going to let you in on a little secret: It’s a lot easier to make money when you’re passionate about what you’re doing.

How many people are locked into a job they can’t stand, only because they get a steady paycheck and benefits? I’m willing to bet there are quite a few.

You don’t have to be one of them.

The career you chose obviously once sparked an interest in you … even if it was only because you deemed it a profitable venture. The profit potential of any career is, of course, important. But how you arrive at those profits is up to you.

For example, I love Internet marketing. I love everything about it — the strategies, the tactics, the implementation. Everything.

On top of that, I’m constantly searching for new and better ways to grow a business.

So when I made the decision to pursue a business that would give me the autonomy to spend more time with my family and friends, I went with the one thing I knew I could “hang my hat on” and pursue with a passion — helping others do the same.

Needless to say, it was the right choice.

I urge you to find those same strengths and passions in yourself. Then seek out ways to build a business around them.

Remember, success is not just about the numbers. It’s not all about how much you can cut from your company’s expenses or how fat your bank account grows over time.

Think about the people behind non-profit organizations.

They usually work for less money than their corporate peers, so you know they have to love what they’re doing. They might have a trait you don’t yet possess … the ability to define their success by how much they get to follow their passions and realize their dreams.

How fulfilled are you?

Do you dread going to work every day?

Do you find yourself wanting to call in sick because you can’t stand thinking about the work you have to do?

If so, you have to make passion part of your routine.

That means taking command of your future by starting your own business.

I’m not saying you’ll be able to meet every task associated with being an entrepreneur with enthusiasm. You may not like packaging and shipping or printing out invoices, for example. It may be a pain to source service providers.

But you can come into work every day and be excited about what you’re about to accomplish.

And because you’re the one in charge, you’ll be able to delegate most of the tasks that weigh you down and focus your attention and time on those that give you satisfaction.

By transmitting your enthusiasm to your employees, you will make that the driving force behind your company’s success. You’ll also be able to create an ideal work environment — not only for your employees but for yourself. That might mean working on a “nonstandard” work schedule. Maybe from 5:00 p.m. to 1:00 in the morning so you can spend time with your young children during the day. Or working from 5:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. so you can pursue other interests in the afternoon and evening.

Which brings me to another question …

Is there something you’ve been wanting to do that’s been impossible because of your current job and work schedule?

Let’s say there’s a cause you care deeply about — and you’d like to actively support it. As the owner of your own business, you could use some of the time you’ve freed up with your “nonstandard” work schedule to do some volunteering. Or you could have your business sponsor a charitable event. That way, you’d not only be earning your living by doing something you love … you’d be giving to others at the same time.

When you find ways to love what you do, success — yours and that of the people around you — will come naturally.

When you love the work you do, you’ll have a positive attitude. That will help you accomplish more in every aspect of your life.

And don’t be afraid to show off your passion. Because your energy and enthusiasm will inspire everyone around you to fuel their own success.

So let me ask you this again: Are you passionate about what you do? Or just passionate about the money you make?

What you work hard for should be something you believe in — something that will create a better life for you and your family. Maybe even the world.

It that doesn’t describe what you’re doing now … it’s time to make a change.$

[P.S. Ready to match your passion with a profitable business? Ray's personal team will create 10 six-figure earners before the year is over. Our system walks you through the process of growing your profitable online business using a proven online business model. Ray shows you exactly what he did to grow his six-figure business. To find out more about Empower Network, go here.]

Why Testimonials Work So Well

What do you do if your prospect knows nothing about you, as is often the case? How can you sway or “nudge” their thinking about your business, products, or services?

You do it by including plenty of testimonials in your marketing materials.

Testimonials overcome a prospect’s skepticism (“Who the heck are you? And why should I listen to you anyway?”) by helping them connect emotionally to other people who’ve used and liked your products. Reading those true-life stories makes prospects more receptive to what you have to say. And sell.

Testimonials are a cornerstone of direct-marketing success because they are real comments from real people. Not, as David Ogilvy said, “the puffery of an anonymous copywriter.”

Today, I’m going to show you not just how to get testimonials… but how to get really good ones.

Based on What I’ve Learned Over the Years, Here Are Some Tips…

1. If you know the customer on a somewhat personal level, just call them. Say that you’d like a testimonial about your product, service, or a particular experience they had. (“I was lost in the woods with bears all around, and your plane-in-a-suitcase saved my life.”) If they seem open to it, ask if they can give you the testimonial right there on the phone. You can write it down or use a handheld recorder. When you hear a particularly good snippet, say, “That’s good. May we use it?”

2. If you’re on less familiar terms with the customer, write a short letter or e-mail first. Explain that you’d love to share their good experiences with your product with others, and ask them to e-mail their testimonial to you. If you don’t hear back in four or five days, phone them.

3. Say thank you. Even if you’ve already thanked the customer over the phone, write a thank you note. Include a copy of the testimonial. Tell them when and how you expect to use it. I’ve always included a small gift, too.

4. Before you call or e-mail a customer to ask for a testimonial, prepare some questions to help them get into it. Questions that will evoke more than a yes/no response. For example: “What’s your favorite dish on our menu?” “Could you share a little more about the day you got trapped in the snowstorm? How did our emergency beacon help the rescuers find you?” “How does the yield of our seeds compare with other brands you’ve used?”

5. It’s okay to edit the testimonials. A customer may give you a page-long story with rambling non sequiturs — but that’s not going to help your business. Cut it down to get to the point. Keep the meat and trim the fat.

6. Try to use all the testimonials you get. If you get something that’s not appropriate for the promotion you’re currently working on, use it in the future.

7. Keep a “testimonial file.” And remember that collecting testimonials is a process, not a destination. Always be on the lookout for good ones. Ask your customer service folks to do the same. (They will often receive calls and e-mails that can be turned into great testimonials.)

More Tips — From Some of My Own Marketing Mentors

From Bob Bly:

“What I look for in a testimonial — more than anything else — is SPECIFIC RESULTS. (‘I made a 100% gain in my portfolio in 12 months with the Trade Triangle.’) I’m less interested in superlatives. (‘Thanks to the Trade Triangle, I can trade with confidence and have shortened my learning curve.’)”

From John Forde:

“I like ‘real,’ so I try not to touch grammar mistakes or awkward writing. (Though I will do some editing if it speeds up the testimonial a bit.)”

From Michael Masterson:

“I much prefer testimonials with full names. And I don’t like testimonials that seem made up. The grittier they are the better. Testimonials that express doubts are terrific. In fact, I wish I had one for every doubt the prospect might entertain. A testimonial that states and then refutes the doubt … what could be better than that?”

Your Testimonial Action Plan

Every experienced marketer I know swears by the power of customer testimonials.

So start building your testimonial file today. And use those testimonials everywhere. Your website, direct-mail promotions, and pay-per-click campaigns. Your press releases, postcard mailings, and e-mail signatures.

Remember, all you have to do is ask.

P.S. Securing glowing testimonials for your products and services is one of the keys to growing a profitable business. They help set you apart from the competition. And they make your prospects feel like they are taking less of a risk by making the decision to buy from you. For more tips on marketing your Internet business, check out our Kalatu Blogging System. We are the ONLY Blog service online ANYWHERE that creates blogs for marketers specifically designed to increase sales and boost your bottom line regardless of the business or industry you're in.

How to Increase Response by 15 Percent

Years ago, I had a client who sold utility software for IBM mainframes.

He would send out a letter with a technical description of the software and its function. He would offer to send the software on magnetic tape for a “free 30-day trial.” That was (and still is) an industry standard.

One day, he made a minor change to his offer. Instead of “a free 30-day trial,” he said, “Use this software free for 30 days.”

Much to his amazement, response to all his mailings increased by 15 percent.

When he asked his buyers why this made such a difference to them, they explained that the word “trial” was a turnoff. It made them think of all the extra work they would have to do in order to try out the software for 30 days. They would have to come to the office late at night, take systems offline, interrupt service, and possibly lose files.

But being able to “use” the software at no cost was immensely appealing to them.

What can we learn from this?

1. The wording of your offer is important — not a trivial afterthought.

2. You never know which offer will pull best unless you test several different ones.

3. If you can’t understand the appeal of the winning offer, talk to some of your customers and find out what it is. You might learn something that will help you make your offer even stronger.$

[Ed. Note: Ray Buckner’s personal team will create 10 six-figure earners before the year is over. The Traffic Authority system walks you through the process of growing your profitable online business using a proven online business model. Ray shows you exactly what he did to grow his six-figure business. To find out more about Traffic Authority, go here.]

Do You Have What It Takes to Succeed at Internet Marketing?

When you hear about all the folks who are making thousands of dollars a week in passive income by selling information products on the Internet… and “working” only a few hours a day…

… it’s tempting to want to jump on the bandwagon.

But before you take the leap, it pays to think about whether it is right for you.

On the surface, Internet information marketing sounds like everybody should be doing it. Of course, if that happened, who would fix your car… or trim your hedges… or prepare your tax returns?

But not everybody is going to go into Internet marketing — as tempting and attractive as it sounds.

Should you?

Let me start by saying that, as an Internet information marketer, what you will be selling is useful knowledge on a specialized topic. Therefore, if you already possess this specialized knowledge, you are in an advantageous position.

According to info marketer Gary North, most people do, in fact, have some specialized knowledge they can turn into a business.

“You possess a lot more knowledge than you think,” says Gary. “In many cases, that knowledge is valuable to those who don’t possess it.”

If it’s not immediately obvious to you what specialized knowledge you possess that other people would pay for, stop and take a personal inventory.

On a sheet of paper, list your formal education… degrees… job history… skills… hobbies… and interests. One or more of the items on that list most likely can be the basis of a blog that leas to a profitable Internet information marketing business.

Are you articulate? If you can express yourself well, that, too, positions you for success in the Internet information marketing business. You do not have to be a great writer. You just need the ability to express yourself clearly and concisely in a pleasing manner that people enjoy reading.

Another thing that gives you an advantage in this business is a strong desire to make more money than you are now making. That’s important, because there are a lot of people who publish online (blogs, articles, books, fiction) without caring if they make money by doing it.

These amateurs (and I am using the word in its literal meaning, not as a pejorative) post their stuff on the Web and give it away for free. Their reward is knowing that people are reading or looking at their work.

But putting up a website and posting content to it is easy. Getting people to pay you for it is a bit more of a challenge.

An interest in making money from your intellectual property will give you the impetus and motivation to do the extra work it takes to create and sell information products online. (We teach the entire process in our Empower Network Group business-building program.)

Have you studied copywriting? You do not need to be a good copywriter to have a successful Internet marketing business. But you do need the ability to know whether a promotion written for you by a freelance copywriter is any good, so you can tell the writer how you want it fixed.

If you are a good copywriter, that’s a bonus, because hiring top copywriters is expensive — and by writing your own sales copy, you can avoid their fees.

The key to success in Internet marketing is the marketing, not the content creation.

Quality content is important. But the people who make serious money online do so because they are good marketers, not because they are good writers.

Many people who love to write are enamored with the “creative” part of it, but aren’t good at the business side of things. If you go into Internet marketing, you will have to pay more attention to the business side. In particular, you need to know what you can realistically expect in terms of results from your promotions.

You do not need to have an aptitude for math. With Internet marketing, figuring out your return on investment (ROI) is very simple and can be done with a pocket calculator. But you do need to be conscious of revenue coming in and money going out. Starting and running an Internet marketing business does not cost a lot of money, but the cost is not zero.

The one thing you absolutely do not need is experience with computers or technical ability of any kind.

The most important skills for an Internet marketer are (1) marketing, (2) copywriting, and (3) communicating (the ability to create content in writing).

I advise Internet marketers to outsource all the technical tasks. That includes setting up their computer, installing their e-commerce software, broadcasting e-mail marketing messages, maintaining their subscriber list, and designing their information products and websites.

You can get people to handle all these tasks at dirt-cheap prices. On websites such as getresponse.com and buildingabrandonline.com, for example, you can find all the help you need at prices so low they will astonish you.

Even if you can do the technical stuff, I advise you not to.

Why?

Because with the limited number of hours you have available each day, you need to spend your time on tasks that give you a maximum return on time invested (ROTI).

The tasks with the highest ROTI revolve around thinking about your business and testing new products and marketing campaigns.

The technical stuff has the lowest ROTI. To be frank, it’s a waste of your valuable time. And the less efficient you are in running your Internet business, the more difficult it will be for you to achieve the “Internet marketing lifestyle” — making a six-figure passive income while working only a few hours a day.

So ask yourself:

• Do I have useful knowledge of a specialized topic that people will pay for?
• Can I express myself clearly in writing?
• Do I have a desire to earn more money from what I know?
• Can I develop some skill in copywriting?
• Do I understand the fundamentals of Internet marketing?

The more “yes” answers you gave, the better equipped you are to turn your knowledge into dollars.$

Join me and our successful mentors in Empower Network and I will show you how to do everything you need to do to make money online efficiently and effectively — as well as how to outsource the rest at bargain-basement prices.$

[Ed. Note: Ray's personal team will create 10 six-figure earners before the year is over. Our system walks you through the process of growing your profitable online business using a proven online business model. Ray shows you exactly what he did to grow his six-figure business. To find out more about Empower Network, go here.]

A Quick-Start Guide for Creating a Money-Making Blog

Everybody knows what a great opportunity the Internet offers. It is the only medium where someone without a lot of money can start a multimillion-dollar company or piggyback onto an existing one. Creating a blog and tying it to a product or service that solves a problemThere are lots of good programs available that teach the ins and outs of Internet marketing. But choosing the right product or service to market… there’s the rub!

Which product or idea to choose is a big question. Not the kind that can be answered simply and quickly. It depends so much on you — who you are, who you want to be, what you know, what you don’t know, and so on.

That said, a few general suggestions apply.

First, and most important, it is always best to start a business or blog in or around an industry/area that you understand. So many of the most expensive mistakes first-time entrepreneurs make are “outsider” mistakes — errors that someone with experience in the field would not have made.

Lots of first-time health publishers, for example, spend too much time explaining the disease or health problem they hope to cure. They do so both in the publications they create and the promotions they use to sell those publications. What these neophytes don’t understand is that the most active health buyers don’t need to know more about their problems. They can find out all they want to know on the Internet — for free. What they need are solutions.

So the first thing you must do is make a list of all the things you know about. Start with the business you are in (or employed by). But don’t stop there. Include all your hobbies and interests too. You don’t have to have any professional experience to know enough about a subject to start a business or blog based on it.

I have a friend who started a successful business providing advice about astrology. She’d never taken a course in it or received certification. But she’d read about it for 30 years, and her knowledge was deep and wide. Because of that, she began her enterprise with a good idea of what kind of astrology she would practice and what kind of products and pricing would work.

Another friend started a successful Internet business selling martial arts information. He was a world-class black belt who had been competing for 20 years. He knew the industry inside and out. So he had some good ideas about new and exciting instructional videos he could produce that really caught fire.

This brings us to my second-most-important suggestion: If you are not an expert at direct marketing, you should become one before you spend a nickel on your new business.

I cannot overstate the importance of understanding the techniques of direct-response marketing. Direct marketing is the primary method for generating profits on the Internet. Other forms of advertising — from public relations to event marketing to social media and branding — are usually not nearly as effective.

Luckily, there are plenty of good information products and educational programs available that teach direct marketing for the Internet. My third and final suggestion is this: In addition to focusing on an industry you are already familiar with and becoming an expert at direct marketing, you must learn the fundamentals of entrepreneurship. Starting a business can be a daunting task for the beginner. Most of those who try fail. And with good reason: They make some very basic mistakes.

The biggest mistake first-time entrepreneurs make is spending too much of their time and money on all sorts of secondary business concerns (getting business cards, setting up a website, finding a business location). But when you’re starting any new business, your priority has to be on making sales. In fact, at this stage of the game, at least 80 percent of your time should be devoted to selling.

As for product creation, I suggest you do some quick research, then TEST your idea. One of the biggest problems I see is that people spend months analyzing which market to get into. But in my opinion, market research for a new online business should take no more than a week.

To figure out which market to enter, you need to answer two questions:

1. Are people looking for this information?

2. Are people buying this information?

You can get the answers to these questions very quickly with a few keystrokes.

One of the best ways to find out who is looking for what is with a free tool like WordTracker, which shows you what words and terms people are searching for. You can also determine if people are buying what you want to sell by entering a few search phrases related to your product in Google. Then check the Web pages of the advertisers that come up. The fact that they’re paying for advertising is a good indicator that the market they’re selling to (your market) is buying.

Sign up for e-mail lists of potential competitors, study their marketing materials, and even purchase some of their products. After that, immediately begin working on your own offer so you can start testing it. That’s what students of our Internet marketing programs who become most successful do.

Will all the ideas you come up with work? No. But the only way you’ll find out which ones will work is by trying to sell to the market. If an idea does not work, simply try to re-work the offer or explore a new idea.

In an  e-mail that I received, "Jim" talked about wanting to generate some return “fairly quickly,” despite the fact that he does not “have the luxury of being able to sit in front of [his] computer day in and day out.” You need to have realistic expectations when you begin a new business. And one thing you must be prepared for is that — like any worthwhile venture — it takes time and effort.

One last piece of advice: Get started. Now. By no means is this all you need to know about starting an Internet business. But the best way to get it going is to begin. You can fine-tune your product or marketing later. What’s most important is taking that initial leap.$

[Do you know how Facebook and Google became the most powerful companies in the world?

It’s NOT helping you share pics of last night’s dinner...
It’s NOT searching for drunken cat videos…

And it’s DEFINITELY NOT about free Gmail accounts.
 

The simple truth is Facebook and Google SELL TRAFFIC.

They SELL TRAFFIC to business owners, and that advertising revenue alone has turned them into billion dollar companies.
 

Traffic is the most valuable commodity on the internet, and that will never change.
 

This is why using the Traffic Authority business system is the ultimate way to make extra income in your business…
 

Click here to watch the video and start your own premium traffic business today!]