Work Yourself Up!

Time Spent Learning versus Time Spent Doing

If you asked me one of the biggest reasons why many people take so long to achieve their success with Internet marketing I would definitely have to say it comes down to a lack of action. Many people spend so much time learning and learning and yet never get around to actually applying any of the knowledge that they have learned. This is possibly because there are so many products out there that seem to position themselves as a magic pill and that just by buying them many beginners think that they will automatically start raking in the big bucks that they see on the sales page they bought from. Sadly, this is not the case and no one is going to make any money for you but yourself and your own hard work and diligence.

In order to prevent yourself from turning yourself into an information junkie you will want to have some discipline and make sure you get the fundamentals of making money online mastered before looking into any new scheme which claims it is going to turn you into an overnight millionaire. Sorry to break the news but it ain't going to happen. However, if you master the fundamentals that are necessary to be successful online then there is no doubt whatsoever that in the long run you will build successful businesses online.

The skills which you should learn before trying anything else are the following:

1. How To Put Up A Website

If you can't do this you aren't going to get very far no matter what anyone may tell you. There are many good HTML tutorials online which can be accessed for free and there is also some nice free software like NVU which you can use to get some experience with. If you have some money then investing in XSite Pro is a very good decision and can have you churning out quality websites very quickly.

2. Learn How To Write Sales Copy

This is crucial since if you can't write Adverts that convert then you are truly wasting your time driving traffic. There are some good books you can buy cheaply to get you started such as Dan Kennedy's "The Ultimate Sales letter" and you can also get some good advice in the Copwriting section of The Warrior Forum.

3. Learn How To Drive Traffic Using Proven Methods

Start to submit articles, learn the fundamentals of PPC and post informative useful posts on forums related to the topic of your site.

It is best to learn these one by one and build up over time rather than rushing in and getting overwhelmed.

The Power Of Focus In Internet Marketing

In Internet Marketing, as in all things in life, the power of focus can be the difference between having enormous success or miserable failure. One of the main problems that confronts most new Internet marketers, not to mention a few more experienced ones, is that they get bogged down in too many projects or learn too many skills at once. This leaves many marketing efforts half finished and sadly causes a lot of frustration and lost time which can even cause some Marketers to give. Thankfully though, this need not be the case since by choosing one area of Internet Marketing to focus on success can be achieved very quickly. There are several components using focus to achieve success and we will look at these below:

Focus Component No.1 - Make A Decision

Review what knowledge you have already learned, what assets you already have in your business(if any) and then decide how it is that you want to proceed. If you find the idea of building Adsense sites interesting then decide that is what you are going to focus your energies on. Equally if you want to do an article marketing campaign then make that the focus of your attention until the task is completed. Whatever it is that you decide to do make sure that you stick to this decision and waste no more time floundering over what to do next.

Focus Component No.2 - Create A Plan Of Action

Nothing will be achieved without action so it is important to break down what it is that you want to achieve into a step by step plan with all the specifics listed of what it is that you will have to carry out with each stage. Don't make it any more complicated than it needs to be but at the same time do ensure that you don't leave out anything important that is crucial to the successful execution of what you are trying to achieve.

Focus Component No.3 - Get Rid Of All Distractions

It's so easy to get caught up with things that don't do you any good such as aimlessly surfing silly websites or watching too much television. Commit over the next period of time to really concentrate on the task at hand and see it through to completion. If you are in a family environment, then let them know that for the next period of time you are getting on with a project which is important and that you can't be distracted. They will be very happy with you when long-term you are able to provide them with the type of life they desire and also let them know this too.

Finally, all that's left is to get on with whatever it is you want to do and start making the money that you and your family truly desire.

If You Could Do a Video Like This...

You'd probably get a lot of people passing it around...

YouTube, Politics, and Viral Marketing

This isn't a political blog, but I feel this video is a great example of what can happen when you have something that gets passed around.

It's going to be an interesting election...

Over 1,000,000 people have seen this video.  It's currently #1 on the YouTube viral video chart and the #2 story on the Digg Election 2008 page.

To give you an idea of what this means, this video has reached more people than the average cable news show.

And this is just one example.  Check out the YouTube charts for more.

40+ Internet Marketers for Charity...and How You Can Benefit

Dr. Mike Woo-Ming has put together a great package, with products from over 41 marketing professionals, as part of a charity promotion to benefit autism education.

This is a great opportunity to make a donation to kids who could really use it and get back thousands of dollars worth of products to help you business.

See MarketersOnAMission.org or view the video below for more information on the charity...

The Key Factors In Choosing A Good Autoresponder Software

If you are serious about doing Internet marketing and doing it well by taking your profits to the maximum level possible then it is very important that you work on building your list from the very outset of starting your campaigns. By building your list you can take a one time visit and turn them into a multiple time visitor and hopefully continual customer! In order to build a list you have to use a piece of software called an autoresponder and the choice of what autoresponder to use and purchase is a very important one and will affect the growth of your business significantly over the following years.

Free Autoresponders v Paid Autoresponders

The question of whether should use a free autoresponder or go with a free one is one that is frequently asked on many of the most popular Internet marketing forums and there is really only one correct answer : a quality paid Autoresponder is miles better. If you ask any experienced Internet marketer they will tell you that if at all possible you should go with a paid autoresponder from the very beginning of your Internet Marketing campaigns because if you don't then it will present you with a bottleneck when in the future you decide that you want to expand you business and take it to the next level.

Which One Should I Go For?

Okay now we have established without any shadow of doubt that the best solution is to go for a paid autoresponder the next big question is which one should you go for. The first big choice to make is whether to make a one time purchase or pay a monthly subscription to a service. The best decision in this case is to go for a monthly subscription because they constantly stay on top of the problems that crop up with email marketing and do their best to ensure that the deliver-ability rates stay high.

Of these services the main 3 offerings come in the form of Aweber, Get Response, and Email Aces. Of these 3 Aweber and Get Response are definitely the most popular and of those two most marketers seem to prefer the Aweber service for its exceptional delivery rates although Get Response is also a pretty good choice. Both are about the same price so it would be a good idea to check them both out before making the final decision for yourself.

How To Identify Profitable Niche Markets

In Internet marketing, one of the most important keys to success is that of entering into the correct type of market for whatever promotion it is that you wish to carry out. There are several reasons why picking a market is so crucial in determining whether or not the campaign will be successful and also of what magnitude that success will be and in the following paragraphs we shall look at a couple of the main ones.

Do They Have Money To Spend?

One of the biggest mistakes that many marketers make is they go into a market because they like the look of it or think that it is going to be successful without any real prior thought given to how they are going to monetize the site. It is vital to have a plan of action going in rather than just making it up as you go along and hoping that it will all turn out fine in the end. A little bit of planning done before hand can be the difference between creating a great little extra stream of income or wasting a lot of time and effort for very little return. 

A good way to see if the niche has money to spend is to see what competitors are currently in your market and in what ways they have gone about monetizing their sites. Let's face it - you are an Internet marketer and this is not just a fun "hobby" or something you do to pass the time of day but in fact is the way that you put food on the table for your family and pay your mortgage so you want to make sure that there are viable ways to monetize the traffic.

It is possible that some of your competitors are selling eBooks or mp3 programmes and if this is the case then that should represent a good indication that there is money being spent in this market and that it might be worth your time and effort to get involved. Also if some sites are displaying Adsense then it also a good sign, however, it may also be a good idea to use some software like Keyword Elite to see if the clicks are worthwhile going after or if they are just too low a value to be worth the effort.

Are You Interested In The Market?

It is often a very good idea to be interested in the market that you go into if you are going to be creating content and products for it. Time invested in something you enjoy and that makes you money is time well spent. However, it is not essential because you can outsource the content creation or just get on with it even if you don't find the market that enthralling.

How to Network and Get Connected

In business, you can do a lot on your own, but it certainly helps if you know people.  Even if you're not looking to do "joint venture" deals, a good network of people is great for brainstorming and bouncing ideas off of.

But how do you start?

Take a look this report on networking by a guy who calls himself the "Most Connected Internet Marketer."  It had some great tips on how to get people on the phone, get a response to an email, and more.  Plus, this guy give you his personal mobile phone number, so you can call him.

It's only $7, so definitely check it out.

47 Social Bookmarks with One Tool

Social bookmarking is a powerful tool in promoting a website. But going through all of those social bookmarking sites is very time-consuming and downloading all toolbars is madness! That's where SocialMarker.com comes in, the free service designed to reduce the time and effort needed to socially bookmark a website.

Check it out...

Social Media Daily - Free Web 2.0/Social Media Traffic & Promotion Guide

Looking to get a handle on "Web 2.0" and social media stuff?  Need more web traffic?

"Social Media Daily" teaches you how to use Web 2.0 and social media to drive traffic to your website in an easy to implement step-by-step format.  FREE!

The thing I love about this is that you can easily outsource most of it for just a few bucks.  Definitely take a look.

Get the report.