Welcome to Michael's Article Collection

What Does Success Look Like?

While we are well into the 21st century too many are still thinking about their business as they did in the 1990's. The face of business has changed and the Internet is a BIG part of that change. Today, anyone with a connection to the Internet and the ability to choose an opportunity wisely can succeed online. Can you see the vision? The common thinking about doing business online says "if you . . .

Don't Forget B.O.B.!

So you’ve got everything in place, busily working away for you. You’ve got your banners out, you’ve exchanged links, you’ve optimized your site for the search engines, you’ve got ad and P.P.C. campaigns bringing site visitors, your sales copy is converting them to customers or getting them on your list. But did you forget B.O.B.?B.O.B. - the Best Of Both worlds. . . .

Got Some L.A.F.S.?

Could you use some laughs? I’ll bet you could, especially if they increased your online sales. And, no, I’m not talking about jokes, cartoons, and riddles.L.A.F.S. stands for Little Ads For Success - specifically, business cards. Most people’s idea of a business card is more of a calling card. It has their name, their company’s name, their phone number, and maybe the. . .

Email Microtargeting

Email marketing is undergoing rapid changes. Now, more than ever, both the creative and demographic selection and targeting of a message must be highly relevant and qualified.Microtargeting has become a valued strategy. At VIBEdirect, we have seen the industry withstand incredible changes based on bandwidth, creative, message perception and the fickle marketing factors that affect both open and. . .

"How To Create Your Own *24/7 Little Sales Machines* In 5...

Here's an astonishing fact guaranteed to excite you... Many successful internet gurus like Terry Dean and Yanik Silver became that way by branding and advertising themselves aggressively through ezine advertising. Ezine advertising is very effective, but it can cost a bomb, putting you out of business just as quickly if you're not careful! Now suppose you could receive completely fr^e advertisi. . .

Discover How To Make The Success Generating Imagination W...

The secret power of positive thinkers is their faith. And this faith is the power of God working through their imagination. A sparked imagination is a sacred channel through which God performs his great projects. How can you make your imagination work for you ? 1. Pick a goal. Positive thinkers are people who believe in setting goals for personal achievement. Almost, at first inception, these . . .

Why 2% Of The Affiliates Make 98% Of The Sales

Have you ever wondered why most affiliates who promote products don't make a living at what their doing? If you think about it, the answer is quite simple. No real training from someone who has done it before them.Most new affiliates join a program, download the sales page and put up a few ads and think the traffic is going to flock to their site and that they are going to end up with lots of s. . .

What Is Drop Shipping? The Perfect Solution

Drop shipping one of the greatest business innovations since products. Seriously, don't laugh! I'm not joking! With what other service can you use another company's products, their warehouse, their shipping department, and have them provide you with all the information you need? Do you see what I mean now?Every entrepreneur who is looking for the most efficient way to sell products over the. . .

What Are 7 Psychological Triggers That Make People Buy?

Did you know that there are seven psychological techniques that literary persuade people to buy? When I first used them in my sales letter I increased the response rate by 257% overnight! You can use them not only in your sales letter but also in your ads, headlines, and even newsletter. Trigger #1: Reason Why Tell people WHY you're doing something. Don't be a mystery for your customers. People. . .

6 Tips To Create Effective Solo Ad That Pulls Results

How many times have you... heard that running solo ads in ezines is the most effective way to advertise? Every single marketer swears that solo ads can bring you big profits. Well, I've been placing solo ads in various marketing ezines for 5 months now. And I have to agree: solo ads work... ...if you know HOW to use them. How to write effective solo ad I've learned the hard way. I've lost $527.. . .

Pay Per Click Search Engines - A Fundamental Overview

Forbes magazine reported that pay per click ads accounted for $1.4 billion in 2002 and are expected to increase to $8 billion by 2008. The fundamental core elements of a successful pay per click program are constant monitoring, analysis, and refinement.Pay per click search engines offer a way to buy your way to the top of search results for any term you wish. With proper management, and a cle. . .

Discover How To Attract The Help You Need To Build Your N...

Positive thinkers dare to believe that the biggest and best men or woman in the world can be attracted to their cause or project. Try for the best man or woman in the world and you can secure his help.How do you attract the help of the best man or woman you need ?1. Be prepared to pay for the help you need.Watch out for that negative money trap : “You probably can’t afford not to spend the mone. . .

The Minefield to Online Success

Becoming successful online has become a reality for many marketers.However the majority of us end up empty handed in the game.This leads many to ask themselves, is success online possible ?The success rate for online marketers is remarkable.Only 5-10 % of us will make it at the end of the day.What is the reason for this happening ? I personally believe it is a lack of positive thinking and atti. . .

Tracking Your Ads...A Free Alternative

You don’t have to spend money to track your ads effectively. There is a free alternative that I have found to be very successful. If you are working on the Internet, but don't have a lot of extra funds available, you can save some money by using a free adtracker instead of paying to download one or even paying a monthly fee like some services require.One free ad tracking option is BusinessWorld. . .

Simple Steps to Project a Professional Home-Business Image

One of the more difficult tasks to deal with when starting a home-based business is to decide how to establish your pathways of communication in such a way that you appear organized and professional, yet don’t have to break the bank to get started.I have found three methods of communication that I use on a regular basis: e-mail, telephone, and fax. These could probably be considered ‘the basics. . .

Paul Penafiel Tells It Like It Is

Name : Paul Penafiel Age : 37 Residence: Vancouver, B.C. Canada Q) When did you first start out online? A) It all started in 2000. Q) What's the main focus, program-wise of your promotional activities? A) Right now, I'm focussing on building my list through the Life Style Networker leads generating program. Q) How did you find out about this program and why have you chosen to promote it? A) I f. . .

The Clickbank Crash of 2003: Lessons Learned

I had a rude awakening recently. I checked the days worth of sales from one of my sites and there were none. This had never happened before and of course I was anxious to find out what was wrong. I quickly found out that the credit card processor Clickbank was under a hacker attack. Their service was effectively paralyzed by computers around the world flooding Clickbanks computers with bogus re. . .

Your Secret Weapon: The Web Design Directory

”How can I get more hits?”, “I need leads!” These thoughts run through web designers heads all the time. How can a web designer get their services in front of people who are actually looking for web design services? The answer is the web design directory. What is a Web Design Directory?These directories are specifically designed to bring together web designers and showcase their work on one. . .

Working At Home...Should It Be A Job Or A Business?

You have decided to work at home (either by choice or necessity) and now you are faced with the decision as to whether to pursue a work at home job or to start a home based business. That may sound like a minor distinction, but the differences can be significant.A general psychological characterization of the entrepreneurial spirit, says they are typically people who have a high energy level, . . .

How to Get Your Web Site Ranked High in Search Engines wi...

Free link exchanges got my web site to the first page of Google and free link exchanges can do the same for your web site.A couple of weeks ago one of my web sites, http://www.BarrysBeanies, was ranked number 33 on Google for one of my most important keyword phrases "Beanie Babies."I was determined to get my web site on the first page on Google searches for the keyword phrase "Beanie Babies." T. . .

How To Help Your Kids Learn Important Life Skills Through...

Would you like to find a willing, enthusiastic source of free or very inexpensive labor for your Internet Home Business? Would you like to find a fantastic way to help your children learn things like self discipline, goal setting, integrity, financial management and communication skills? Then read on, dear reader!What I'm getting at is, of course, the idea of involving your kids in your Interne. . .

Get Real … The Necessary First Step Before Starting A Hom...

I have helped a large number of people start up their own home based businesses using the Internet. Over time, I have come to recognize two of the most important factors for identifying people that should NOT start a home based business. If a prospective entrepreneur says something like…“I’m broke and need to make some money…fast!”or,“I want to start a home business, but I don’t want to spend. . .

How I Shot Myself In the Foot.. No, Wallet!

I need to let you in on some very important information. Not only will this information save you lots money, or possibly the life of your entire business, but it will allow you to increase your profits through multiple businesses. First off, operating an online store is a fabulous and lucrative pastime, so kudos on making that decision. But before getting into the thick of it, heed my warning,. . .

The Mountain Highs & The Valley Lows When Starting A Home...

The emotional aspects of starting a home business can have you experiencing high highs and low lows. In addition to the immediate luxuries of being your own boss, setting your own working hours, and avoiding a stressful commute, there are also significant things on the other side of the ledger…starting and building a home business is not just an automatic trip to the promised land. The need . . .

I’ll Take Quality Over Quantity Every Time

In the early days of developing my home business, I went for the numbers instead of focusing on targeting prospects. It took me a while to appreciate the importance of targeting (quality) instead of just going for the big numbers (quantity).For online marketing, it helps greatly to get your website in front of people who are actually looking for the product, service, or opportunity that you ar. . .

Not Sure If Your Online Advertisement is Working?

Without tracking, your online advertising is just a shot in the dark. Many new and seasoned marketing individuals spend significant dollars on banner advertisements, ezline ads, and other online media but do not know which ads have brought them the greatest success.The following is a list of online advertising methods that you may or may not be using. It is important to track all of your onlin. . .

Interactivity Is Key

How to use the latest in Interactivity tools to increase sales and provide exceptional customer serviceMany companies are trying to differentiate themselves from their competitors. Imagine the power of your site or marketing message if you include ways for your customers or potential customers to interact with you on a personal level, immediately.Studies have shown that if you can address custo. . .

How Big a List Do You Want?

How big a list do you want?Well, what can I say about the size of an Internet marketer's list? From my point of view, the size of your list is somewhat relevant... nobody can say, "You need X amount of subscribers to be successful." It doesn't work like that. What you need, is a list of RESPONSIVE subscribers. You may have a list of 10,000 people with a conversion rate of 0.2% (20 people will b. . .

“Improve Your Email’s Deliverability“

With SPAM accounting for over 50% of the email that is delivered to our inboxes many corporations and ISPs have implemented solutions to deal with this growing problem. SPAM filters, IP blocking, domain blocking, and legislation are in place, but often messages that are, in fact, wanted by the recipients, are filtered and not delivered. What do legitimate marketers need to do to ensure that the. . .

Imitation, The Smartest Form Of Flattery

Unless you are an inventor, most likely you are selling a product or service that is being offered by someone else, somewhere, at some time. The first person to start your type of business would have gone through a lot of trial and error. Thank that person, as now you can not only profit by not repeating the same mistakes, but by learning what they do to get business.The best way to do this is . . .

Reciprocal Linking

Reciprocal linking is considered by many people the most effective way to increase traffic to your website. You often get hits from the web sites that you have exchanged your links with, and reciprocal linking also helps boost your search engine rankings. What is a reciprocal link? A reciprocal link is a link to a website that carries a similar link back to your own website. A reciprocal link i. . .

Plain Jane Email Equals Flat Results

Years ago, when email was just emerging as the incredible marketing tool it is today, everything was done in plain text. Since not everyone uses the same email program, and not all of them are compatible with the others, messages often ended up looking like nothing but jumbled pieces of nonsense. Besides that, they were boring. Thus, Internet marketers were forced to find a way to spiff up the. . .

24 Key Factors to Investigate When Analyzing ANY Business

It doesn't matter what business or investment you are looking at...it all comes down to analyzing a few key factors. The higher each of these factors rate with you, plus the combination of them all, the better your potential for return. Industry - Is the business's industry expanding or contracting? Trends - Will you be ahead or behind the trends? Timing - Are you early or late in the produc. . .

Creating Your Internet Marketing Plan

For large corporations, a marketing plan is a huge document detailing strategies for the fiscal year. It may include competitor analysis or a sales forecast. While these elements are important to a large business, do you as a small business owner (without a well paid marketing staff) have the time or energy to devote to putting together a huge document? Unless you are trying to get a financi. . .

Is Your Website’s Copy Up to the Mark?

The Internet is a relatively new medium. What works for you in your printed offline brochures and advertising materials may or may not work on your web page. If you have already invested either time or money or both in your website you should carefully scrutinize the written words on your pages to see if they can really deliver a return on your investment. Here are five important questions to a. . .

Why Does Your Business Need An Autoresponder?

Suppose you have a website with 500 visitors a day, and one in fifty of them requests information. That's ten e-mails you're going to have to send manually for the next few days or weeks. And tomorrow you get another ten, and the next day another ten... can you imagine how complicated managing this process could be? Each visitor to your site who requests more information is a hot lead for your . . .

Fear Factor

Is it possible for an individual to pass a course of instruction with high marks and remain ineffective? Is it possible that this person never actually learned anything, but merely gathered enough information and remember it well enough to repeat the process? Learning should make you a more effective individual, learning should improve the quality of your life. Do you ever wonder why some stuff. . .

9 Poiters for Evaluating a Business Proposal

Finding a business opportunity on the net is easy. But evaluating the right one for you, takes a little knowledge. With so many scams, takers and failed ventures you need a little more than the, "highest dollar for the least amount of work" approach. So what should you look for when evaluating an opportunity? Here are 9 pointers.1. Is it legal? Do they have a product? Many programs on the net a. . .

5 Free Ways to Increase Traffic to your Online Store

So you’ve finally created a website for your small online store! Now you think, “How do I get people to visit my site?” If you’re like most new website owners, you wonder how to bring potential customers to your site without spending lots of money on expensive advertising. In order to help you, I’ve compiled a small list of five methods that I have used to drastically increase traffic to my own. . .

10 Principles of Success

How do we define success? Webster’s dictionary defines success as “ the attainment of wealth, favor , or eminence.” I think we would agree that Webster’s definition is quite accurate in terms of how we look at people that we perceive to be “successful”.I would like to expand on this thinking with the following 10 Principles of Success1) Have a Dream- Create a vision for your future, no matter . . .

How Do You Define Your Success?

How does an online marketer define success ? There are many ways to describe success, but does it always have to do with a hefty bank balance ? I can consider myself to be an online success. Heck, I am not making a ton of money every month or consider myself to be a guru. So how could someone say they are a success with little to show for it ? Again, it all fits with your definition of success.. . .

Posturing Yourself As The Expert By Utilizing Google Search

First, go to google and type "dan kennedy" into the search box. At the present time I get about 49,200 results! Now, type in "jason blackston" into the search box. Well, it's quite a drop from the 49,200 results Dan Kennedy received. At only 123 results, I've got a ways to go to catch old Dan! Nevertheless, the more articles that I submit to various ezines and the more websites that I have on t. . .

Considerations For A Pay-Per-Click Ad Campaign

Submitting your website to the Search Engines today may seem like a futile task or at very least, a complete waste of time. When you consider that there are millions of websites that could be listed just for the word FREE, it hardly seems worth the effort. Most websites today compete heavily for a top ten listing on the major search engines for words or phrases that are relevant to their webs. . .

Is AOL Spam Reporting Banning Your Site?

As I read the awful truth of the nature of aol's new spam reporting from their 9.0 version, I left with a knot within my stomach. Have they gone too far?Last week I received a message from my hosting company notifying me that AOL has just banned them completely from ever sending aol members any e-mail messages. Sadly my hosting company told me that it was because of my newsletter.Not only were . . .

Review of New Business Service

CreatorsWeb writes articles, interviews and reviews about entrepreneurial business owners as part of a promotional package offered to subscribers to their service. CreatorsWeb Promotion Service subscribers receive prompt and special promotional treatment designed to drive traffic to their websites, broaden and intensify Internet visibility, help build customer base, and increase sales. § First. . .

Starting A Home-Based Business

There are numerous reasons why people choose to start a home-based business. Some of those reasons include: 1. Dissatisfied with their present employment situation. 2. Out of work due to being laid off or downsizing by their employer.3. A need to be home more with young children, an infirm family member, or aging parents.4. A yearning to be their own boss. Whatever your particular reason for ex. . .

You've Got The Power, Why Aren't You Promoting It?

Like all things, theft is theft, misery loves company, negative people are everywhere, business is sometimes bad, things go up and others go down.If those are all true then knowledge is power right? Wrong, knowledge is only power if applied. So why is it that most of us only apply "commercialized" marketing tactics and fail to utilize the little stuff that counts?For instance, Google allows us . . .

Choose The Right Business For You In Less Than 15 Minutes

3 Characteristics Of "The Right Business" Model The business must service a large market. Niche markets are also very profitable but require specialist products and customer service. Target niche markets when you are more confident in your business abilities. The business must adapt and change with the market. Be aware faddish businesses can be very difficult to operate because of the rapid rat. . .

You Really Can Make Money With Your Words

Sometimes when I am communicating with other webmasters and I bring up the subject of writing articles, I often get a response like "I'd rather have a root canal, I just can't write", or "my spelling is horrible and my grammar is not much better". In my view, the first excuse is just a matter of attitude. The latter excuse falls on deaf ears because the major word processing programs have goo. . .

Are You Selling Hotdogs Or Pretzels?

I live across the river from New York City and on the days I make my way over there, the one thing you immediately notice are the smells of the street. No... not that smell. I'm talking about food. You'll find all sorts of vendors selling food on the streets. But you won't see 20 different hotdog vendors crowded onto one street corner. Common sense tells you that you won't make much money when . . .