One Step at a Time

Many people, when they try to go into business, have at best a loosely defined set of goals. A goal is the purpose towards which any endeavor is directed or in other words, an objective. While the ultimate goal is to make an income, that by itself is not a realistic goal on which to base a business.

A simple analogy might be a stream with stepping stones. While the ultimate goal here is to reach the other side without getting wet, each stepping stone represents an intermediate goal that must be reached. If you miss one, you won't be dry when you reach the other side, and will not have attained your goal.

Business in general, whether it be "brick and mortar" or an Internet endeavor, has intermediate goals. If you don't recognize these necessary steps, you will not reach your ultimate goal, which is financial reward.

In any particular business, of course, the ultimate goal is to produce revenue, but there are numerous "stepping stones" that must be in place to do so. At the risk of stating the obvious, you must have a saleable product or service. While you might scam a few people with an inferior one, you will not be around for the long haul. I personally get a real "kick" out of those who send out what are recognized by most people as obvious scams such as chain letters, hoping to lure in the unsuspecting.

So if you do have a legitimate product or service, how are you going to sell it? First, you need a place from which to sell your wares. A website to an online entrepreneur is akin to a storefront. This is where you will make your sales. It has to be attractive and the merchandise should be displayed in a proper manner.

Next, you have to make people aware of its existence. This is your advertising goal. You must first identify a target market, and aim your advertising towards that market. But where do you advertise? Statistics have shown that the best possible vehicle is one that actually reaches your prospects.

Let's talk about ezine advertising, which is one of the strongest ways possible. Do you advertise in a publication that reaches 100,000 people or one that only reaches 5,000? Don't be too quick to answer. The one that reaches 100,000 may not be aimed at your target market, while the one that reaches 5,000 might. While a humor ezine may reach many thousands (who doesn't like a good joke), if you are trying to market an affiliate program, an ezine geared to that market might just be your best bet.

Next on the agenda is an easy way for your prospects to purchase your product. If you don't accept credit cards, you are missing impulse sales. If someone is ready to buy, and you make them jump through hoops to purchase, the odds are they won't. If you give them time to "cool off," they will most likely look elsewhere.

It is not that difficult to obtain a merchant account. Anyone who is selling a product or a service that doesn't have one is simply wasting their time. If someone has to send you a check or money order, by the time they get around to doing it, their impulse to purchase may very well be gone.

Do you have a personal presence on the web? If not, you are losing business. You don't have to give them your life history, but your picture and way to contact you goes a long way.

Do you need a toll free number? I always felt this was important, but have lately changed my thinking. A toll free number will generate a lot "tire kickers" but not too many sales. If someone won't "drop a dime" to find out about your offer, they are most likely not serious. We took out our toll free number and two things happened. The number of calls we received went down. But, the number of sales we made went up. Go figure.

These are just a few of the stepping stones needed to reach your goal. While there are many others, if you provide these steps for your prospects, you will most likely meet your goals. If you don't, you will quickly lose heart and wonder why you are not getting any business.

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Did you know that subscribers to Bob Osgoodby's Free Ezine the "Tip of the Day" get a Free Ad for their Business at his Web Site? Great Business and Computer Tips - Monday. Wednesday. And Friday. Instructions on how to place an ad are in the Newsletter. Subscribe at: http://adv-marketing.com/business/subscribe2.htm

Finding Quality Link Partners

Every webmaster knows the importance of incoming links to a site to boost traffic and search engine rankings. But how do you find good quality sites that will link to you?

I recently came across an article that explains how to search for quality link partners on Google.

Simply use one of the following search techniques replacing the "keyword Phrase" with the keyword you want to associate your site with.

1. intitle:add+url "keyword phrase"
2. intitle:submit+site "keyword phrase
3. intitle:submit+url "keyword phrase"
4. intitle:add+site "keyword phrase"
5. intitle:add+your+site "keyword phrase"
6. intitle:directory "keyword phrase"
7. intitle:list "keyword phrase"
8. intitle:sites "keyword phrase"

The eBay Blunder

eBay is now the 8th most visited site on the internet and it has just one purpose - sales. With 40 million visitors per month most eBay sellers are missing a golden opportunity. They are missing the opportunity to cultivate long term clients.

It is a proven fact in marketing that you will continue to buy over and over again from people and companies that you know, like and trust. Yet 95% of all internet marketers fail when it comes to eBay. Most are looking for the fast buck. They have completely miss the opportunity to use eBay as a lead generation tool. They miss the opportunity to create a list of people that will be willing to consume your products over and over again.

Lead generation on eBay can be accomplished in several ways. The most popular way is by using the self liquidating ad. A self liquidating ad is one that pays for itself. In other words your customer directly pays your advertising costs. What they are purchase from you is really some form of advertising.

Let me give you an example of a self liquidating advertisement. Recently I saw in a magazine an ad for a pair of sunglasses. The ad claimed that the sunglasses were free. You just have to pay the shipping and handling costs.

My guess is that the advertiser probably isn't making much if any money on the sunglasses. But they also aren't losing any money. The shipping and handling most likely cover their actual costs. What they really want is something far more valuable - your contact information and your "permission" to market to you. In other words they are looking for qualified prospects - prospects that are interested in the products and services they are selling.

Once this company has your contact information and "permission" to market to you, they will begin to establish a relationship. They will do this in a variety of ways including sending you ads for other product and services you may be interested in. Over time most customers will be worth many times more than their initial purchase.

About the Author: Todd Reese is the owner of Auto Digital Delivery. He has developed a system to automatically deliver digital content at the end of an auction. You can find out more about Auto Digital Delivery by visiting his website at
http://www.AutoDigitalDelivery.com