Archive for May, 2008

Every day I get requests from people who want quotes on different projects, and I end up going through the same process over and over…

First I get an email asking about rates. I reply with a request for details so that I can provide a quote. They reply with their requirements, and I respond with a quote, time frame for completion and payment information. If they decide to go ahead, there’s usually a few details to clear up, too.

This process of information gathering sometimes takes several days… so I decided to streamline the process!

I just finished putting the final touches on my new site, Graphics With Impact – Graphics Designed Especially For Internet Marketers. I decided to make it as easy as possible to get the information you need, without wading through sales copy, and with the prices right up front.

Of course, the packages available are not all that I can do… I simply put the most asked-for packages together to make it easy to decide. If there’s something special you need, I’ve included a form to fill out your requirements for a custom project.

Go take a look for yourself! I’d love to get your feedback!

Graphics With Impact – Graphics Designed Especially For Internet Marketers

I just read a great post on Donna Fox’s blog, Why She Buys Reporter about women in Internet Marketing… specifically the lack of recognition from (some of) our male counterparts!

It’s amazing that people in this day and age can make general comments such as, “There aren’t any women speakers in Internet Marketing.”… and say it to one of the foremost female speakers around!

I myself have suffered through the pats on the head and “babe” comments, and have (on several occasions) been patronized as if I couldn’t possibly have an intelligent thought in my head unless a man put it there.

If you’re a woman in Internet Marketer, speaker or not, visit Donna’s blog and comment on her post. Let’s get more visible!

This one of the most significant events in human history. NASA broadcast the landing of the Phoenix on the north pole of Mars today at 6:00 PM EST.

What’s equally significant is the fact that it was broadcast Live On The Internet.

I just finished watching the Phoenix Landing on Mars on the NASA broadcast, and although I’ve never been overly fascinated with space travel I was utterly riveted by the human history unfolding in front of my eyes in real time.

The landing went flawlessly, a testament to all the hard work done by a massive amount of brilliant people from all over the globe. As I type this post, they await the first visual images from the Phoenix to be transmitted, and then tomorrow a team begins the scientific exploration into the depths to find ice – and water… the building blocks of possible life forms that lived on Mars in the past.

I was going to tie all this planning and hard work into a business lesson, but forget it. This event is something I’ll remember for a lifetime, and I’m so lucky to be alive during this time in history – and to have been a witness to this amazing event.

After 19 years he’s back and ready to rock-and-roll once again — The new “Indiana Jones” movie opened today and to celebrate the return of this intrepid adventurer we decided to hold a special “members” only event…

In his guise as “Havana Blake” Tony Blake has put together some very special goodies for you plus the chance to win one of 2 nice marketing prizes you can use for your business…

All you need to do to be rewarded is find the “HIDDEN IDOL” that’s been secreted somewhere on the AblakeForum… it’s in a hidden (but easily found) sub-forum somewhere on the board – once inside all you need to do is click on the idol and you’ll be taken to the secret treasure waiting for you collect… plus the opportunity to enter into the special drawing for one of two fantastic prizes sponsored by GetResponse/Implix…

He’s giving away a 1-year GetResponse Pro autoresponder account ($200 value) and also a 1-year TalkStream video & audio hosting account ($240 value) – 1 each to two lucky winners…

But how do you enter to win?

Simple!…

Become a member – it’s free! Then go look around the board for a hidden forum (it’s easy to find)… inside that hidden forum you’ll find a secret “IDOL” – click on the idol and you’ll be transported to the “Treasure Room” where you can download 2 very cool “Havana Blake ” info products FREE plus enter in the drawing for the big prizes…

This special event runs until Monday May 26, 2008 at 11:59pm – and we’ll announce the winners of the drawing on Tuesday, May 27…

In the secret “Treasure Room” are two special ebooks Tony has put together for you:

“HAVANA BLAKE AND THE SECRETS OF AFFILIATE MARKETING” plus “HAVANA BLAKE AND THE TREASURE OF OPT-IN LISTS” – and they’re yours FR.E.E just for participating – everyone gets these ebooks as his gift!

I hope you enjoy and have fun with Tony’s special “Havana Blake” event – it’s for members only and just another fun way for him to say Thank You for being a member… he’ll be doing more fun events throughout the year… keep an eye out for them!

I just love new, unique ways to drive traffic & increase opt-ins!

The Raffle Site Script was designed to help anyone kick their list building efforts into high gear instantly!

With this script, you can run a raffle offering as many different prizes as you want (digital, home delivery & pickup prizes are accepted), and the script will run fully automated down to running the raffle on it’s own and doing the delivery of digital prizes instantly to winners!

Run Free/for Profit Raffles

You can use the Raffle Site Script to run Free Raffles (raffles in which people get in for free in exchange of becoming a part of your mailing list) anywhere in the world!

Run an Unlimited Amount of Raffles!

After each raffle drawing is done, the script will AUTOMATICALLY archive all the tickets from each raffle for you.

This way you can setup a new raffle every time, choose to run the same raffle every so often, etc. etc. Giving you the flexibility to do whatever you want!

Having More Options = Having More Control!

This script has the highest range of customization possible, which ends up making your websites running the Raffle Site Script act the exact way you want them to, look the exact way you want them to, etc.

Offer ANYTHING You Want as a Prize!

You can offer anything you want as a prize! The Raffle Site Script was made to handle prizes that are either available through a download URL (digital prizes), prizes that are going to be mailed out to the winners, and prizes that are going to be picked up by the winners. You get FULL control!

There’s even more to tell you, so go check out the site : Raffle Site Script – Have some fun with it!

Another Toronto Mastermind is in the works… gathering with a group of marketers out here to talk shop – but this time not at noon!

Here are the details:

WHEN: Saturday May 17th @ 5:00pm — Till WHENEVER

WHERE: The Crooked Cue, Mississauga. ON

The Crooked Cue is a cool place Mike Hill picked out. It has a bar, chill area, lots of pool, tv, food and all sorts of other jazz.

DIRECTIONS: http://www.crookedcue.ca/infoandmapmississauga.html
75 Lakeshore Road East
Closest Major Intersection: Hurontario Street & Lakeshore Road

PICTURES AND STUFF OF THE PLACE:

http://www.crookedcue.ca/contactmississauga.html

Can’t tell you when it will end – the last one was awesome, and lasted about 6 hours!

Among those currently planning to attend are Steve Iser, Lisa Preston, Mike Hill, Jay Deiboldt, Doug Champigny, Teri Champigny, Rick Macaulay, Cathy Sanderson, Mary Green, Dave Allen and more… around 25 have said they’d be there!

Basically anyone is free to attend – the more the merrier! If you’re planning to be in the Greater Toronto Area, or can jump in a car for a road trip, by all means – get your fanny over here! – even if you’re in Buffalo – not that far of a drive.

I highly advise you to bring as many marketers as you know who happen to live in the area – hell, even carpool together. It should be a good networking time.

Look forward to seeing you all there!!

A few weeks ago I was contacted by a very lovely lady named Hilary Stewardson to participate as an expert for Seminars With The Experts – a series of teleseminars she is providing for free!

Hilary has corralled 12 experts in all areas of internet marketing to answer questions for an entire hour, every Tuesday night beginning May 20th. 2008.

Her first teleseminar is with none other than Liz Tomey!

Go ahead – check out the site (yep! I designed it!) and sign up for the series… I’d love to answer any questions you might have, and this is the perfect opportunity!

Here’s the link: Seminars With The Experts – I look forward to seeing you there!

As most of you know, I am an enthusiastic Twitter fan. Well, I recently engaged in conversation with another marketer, John Reese (you may have heard of him) on Twitter, when he posted the following:

“Instant Lesson: Negative-Attitude Marketing (i.e. bashing others) builds more of a following of other miserable people not good customers.”

I read the post twice, then was compelled to post a reply.

“Instant Lesson: Brutally Honest Marketing (i.e. exposing liars & thieves) builds a following of extraordinarily grateful people/customers.”

I figured that I had made my point, but then John replied.

“Anytime spent “exposing liars” or worry about what others are doing is time taken away from PROVIDING VALUE to customers.”

Needless to say, I was stunned. Here is the rest of our short conversation:

Lisa: “When others are ripping off my customers, I AM providing value. What’s a waste is having to undo their damage… and so damn often, its sick.”

(cont.)… “Solidify in their mind that you are looking out for them, showing the potholes to avoid and they become extremely loyal = massive returns.”

John: “but greater returns come from spending ALL your energy in providing the proper value instead of critiquing competitors”

Lisa: “Well, John, I’ve been doing this for a lot of years. Give incredible value AND direction/advice. Probably why I have ZERO unsubscribe rate.”

John: “well then that’s great. Keep up the good work. My primary point is that negativity is ultimately a zero sum gain.”

Lisa: “I spend no time seeking out degenerates, but when I learn about them or experience them, I am morally obligated to my clients…”

(cont.)… “to steer them in the RIGHT direction. And that is not necessarily MY direction. That is what my clients appreciate.”

(cont.)… “Negativity does NOT equal Brutal Honesty. I was simply making the distinction with my original post.”

So what do YOU think?

My personal view is this…

When I was a “newbie”, I earned the money I made by selling products and services, period. I was a consumer in this industry, still learning all the ins and outs of internet marketing, much like most of my clients. I looked out for my bottom line – no more, no less.

When I took on the responsibility of being a mentor/coach/teacher to others, I took on the responsibility of looking out for their bottom line as well. This includes recommendations for products, services and sites that I’ve personally created, tested and/or used, and giving them the benefit of my experiences and expertise.

So when someone comes along who blatantly lies about his products, services and/or income claims, steals, cheats, lies… whatever – I feel that I have an ethical and moral obligation to let my clients know.

These people, especially those who are new to internet marketing, need a guide who isn’t focused on their wallet. They need to be able to trust me, and because I provide information that truly helps them through the minefield of internet marketing, they do.

Agree or disagree?

I’ve been doing a lot of reading lately about Private Label Rights (PLR) content. I used to think that it was only for lazy people who didn’t want to do their own writing. But as I learn more, I’ve come up with lots of great ways I can use PLR in my own business.

If you don’t know what I’m talking about, PLR is content that you get from the original author along with their permission to use it as your own. So you can get a great report, put your name on it and have your own product to sell or give away!

The first couple of products I created using PLR only took me about an hour. There have been a few sales so far from them so that was definitely time well spent.

When searching for PLR content to use, I found there were a lot of different types of sites available. Some offered monthly memberships and others offered just one time purchases. So be sure to look around before you decide where to buy.

The site I found that was by far the best was PLRWholesaler. Not only do they have an unbelievable amount of content, but it’s completely FREE. Most sites charge an arm and a leg for the amount of content that this guy is giving away.

And although I haven’t been through everything yet, what I have read is very good quality. It’s stuff you would actually want to use as your own.

Since it’s free, I highly recommend that you check out PLRWholesaler and see if they have anything that you can use in your business. There just may be an ebook or audio recording that you could quickly brand with your information and start selling to your list.

Check it out and let me know what you think…

http://plrwholesaler.com/download/clk.php?pid=2&a=22057

Sounds like hype, doesn’t it?
How to Write An Article In 7 Minutes sounded to me like a pretty bold claim… the author said he could teach you how to:

– Write an article in 7 minutes
– Write for 3-6 hours straight – and enjoy it!
– Cure writer’s block in three seconds
– Double, triple or even quadruple your traffic very quickly

“Yeah, right!!” – That’s what I thought to myself. Then I checked out the site. Frankly, with my graphics background, I was unimpressed with the sales page… Then I read the success stories that one person after another had written about his product – it was literally changing their lives and their business.

As you know, I NEVER promote a product I haven’t personally tested. And after the glowing reviews and talking to a few people who had used the product, I went through it myself.

To my surprise, I found out… it was the real deal.

How to Write An Article In 7 Minutes

You’ll be glad you did.

PS - In the spirit of full disclosure, I completed my article in 13 minutes – not 7 minutes. Still, not bad at all for something that generally takes me over an hour!! Money well spent.

A lot of my subscribers ask how to make a recurring income online, and one of the easiest ways to do that is through Affiliate Marketing.

There are plenty of ways to do it, but to do it responsibly and ethically should always be a top priority!

The reason I’m writing this post is because I just finished watching a “tutorial” video on how to set up a blog for affiliate marketing, and it was so off-base, I was compelled to write this in case any of my subscribers stumbled across that video and took it as gospel.

First of all, do NOT create any business-related blog using Blogger. If you wish to create a blog for affiliate sales, create one on a self-hosted WordPress blog, so that you maintain total control. Blogger has been known to wipe out blogs without a thought, and it’s a horrible decision to use them if you plan to create an authority site.

Not only do you lose all of your hard work and back links, but you waste hours of time re-creating those sites – time much better spent on marketing your products.

Do Your Research!

One way to lose credibility is to promote random affiliate links. While some marketers may set up RSS feeds for the top Clickbank products, these are people who are simply looking to make money from you – not in providing real value.

How can anyone ethically endorse or promote a product they know nothing about?!

Don’t get me wrong! There are dozens of awesome products on Clickbank, but just because they are currently rated well does NOT mean that those products are truly valuable to your subscribers – only that their commission rate is appealing to those affiliates who are looking to make a quick buck.

Instead, dig a little. Look for products on Clickbank or other affiliate networks that suit the needs of your clients and subscribers. Buy the product – or better yet, contact the owner and have a discussion about their product, find out if it’s a good fit and provides real value. Google the product, find out if there is any negative feedback online.

Once you’ve found a product that meets the needs of your readers, write a review on your blog! Include your affiliate link and product graphic. Your honest opinion about the pros and cons of any product you decide to promote will do wonders for your reputation and credibility as an ethical marketer.

Add Additional Income Streams!

Supply your visitors with the information they came for, but don’t limit your income possibilities by removing alternative streams of income! Add things like Google Adsense, and other forms of advertising that may bring additional income.

Some people may tell you not to add these items because it gives your visitor something else to click off your page… but these people WILL eventually leave – and if not through your affiliate link, then give them several other interesting, related options that may bring in revenue!

If they clicked your affiliate link, chances are they’ll be “cookied” with your tag, so a future sale may still occur. But they may return to your blog looking for additional information, and one of these other related links may appeal to them.

A sales page selling a single item should not give a visitor any other options but to click the “Buy” button. An affiliate blog will provide an informed opinion and endorsement about more than one product generally – targeted to a specific market.