"I am new to online marketing and I do not know what to do to get started."
I got a confession to make, Neither did I when I first started marketing online.
And I am willing to bet most if not all successful marketers on line today did not have a clue either when they first started.
But you know what, The only thing that separates a person new to marketing from a expert is time. It does take a little time to read, study, make a plan and then put your plan into action.
Most marketers who are new bounce from one business opportunity to the next Because they are looking for that business that requires no work to get free checks. (Good Luck!) But did you know you can save a lot of time by researching the business you are interested in and then putting your plan into action on how you are going to make it work.
You can make it work by taking the time to read the FAQ about your new business venture, taking time to get in on the conference calls, taking the time to go to the discussion board of your new business and ask questions.
It also takes time to advertise your new business, but it is not as hard as you think. Go to any search engine and type in "free advertising for online business" and you will be amazed at the results. Pay per click advertising is not expensive as you think if you take the time to create a lot of key words and set for pennies a click.
Take a little time to signup for a good autoresponder service and then take a little time to write some good letters to put in it or contact your someone in your business to get some pre-written letters and take the time to edit them with your information.
The point I am trying to make is that it might take a little time to become successful on the internet, but if you have the patience and put in the work it will happen.
Just ask your self which line you want to be in, the line of people who are working a 9-5 for 25 years or more, or the line who spent time of a 5 years or less learning what it takes to become successful working at home.
What you do with your time is up to you, but I know which line I am standing in.
Take A Little Time To Market Your Work At Home Business
What Home-Based Business Is Right For You?
If you are looking for a home based business or any other way to make money working at home, then you have probably been overwhelmed with the information available online. You can’t search for “work at home” on the internet without being bombarded by a million and one ads – all of which claim to be the BEST work at home opportunity.
So how do you know which one really is the best? Well, there are a lot of factors, but I’ve tried my best to highlight some of the items to consider before jumping into a new business venture.
My first recommendation is to answer the following questions as honestly as you can:
*How much time are you willing to invest in a job/business?
*Do you want to work 100% from home or would you be able to work outside the home a set number of hours per week?
*How much money are you comfortable with spending to start a business?
*How much money do you expect to make from your business?
*Do you enjoy working with people (in person, over the phone, online)?
*Do you enjoy sales?
*Do you prefer to work alone or with a group of people?
Once you have the answers to these questions, you are better equipped to tackle the mounds of advertisements for work at home opportunities. The next step is to see how well your needs/wants/likes fit into the businesses available to you. Before agreeing to any type of business, find someone who is already doing the business and ask them the following questions:
*How much time do you work each week?
*What does your average daily business activities consist of? (This will give you a better idea of what type of work is involved and whether or not it is for you.
*What costs are involved in start-op? Ongoing operational expenses?
*Do I need employees?
*What is the product or service you sell?
*How much money can I REALISTICALLY expect to make working “x” number of hours per week? (x being the number of hours you are willing to work)
Now that you have your answers, go ahead and write down the top 3 business opportunities that appeal to you. Then think it over for a while. Starting a new business should never be a spontaneous decision – especially if there is a large financial investment. Take some time – at least a couple weeks! – and sincerely think about and compare each opportunity until you feel confident with the one you’ve chosen.
In closing, I do have a couple warnings for you when searching for that “golden” opportunity.
*If it sounds too good to be true, it most likely is.
*You should NEVER...I repeat NEVER have to pay someone just to receive information about a job or business opportunity
*If an advertisement seems incredibly vague, it is most definitely intentional. A good number of “too good to be true” offers don’t give you all the details up front because they know if they do, no one would be interested.
Most importantly, be well informed. Do not give ANYONE your hard-earned money until you have the answers to your questions and the confidence in making the right financial decision.
Zig Ziglar Sales Training Business Opportunity
Zig Ziglar has opened his sales training into Australia. To grow the busienss and share the success of the Zig Ziglar business, Ziglar Australia are looking for people and companies that would like to resell the Ziglar sales training services.
To further drive the success of the Ziglar franchise in Australia, Ziglar is looking for resellers across Australia to market the sales training classes in Brisbane, Melbourne, Sydney and Perth.
As a reseller you have access to marketing materials and content, access to the sales training and Zig Ziglar products. Expected income is $1000 to $10,000 per month, with no reseller fees.
For further information on our sales training in Australia visit www.ziglar.com.au or for specific details see
Secrets of Closing the Sale http://www.ziglar.com.au/salesclosingtraining.htm and the Ziglar Sales System http://www.ziglar.com.au/salestraining.htm.
Contact Ray Schroder for further information at http://www.ziglar.com.au/Contact.htm
Yoga for Business People: Workplace Implications
Mind-body fitness, which derives from Eastern philosophies and religions, improves physical and emotional well-being, and has implications for workplace performance.
The overall benefits of mind-body exercise are documented in an increasing number of scientific studies. They include everything from reducing cardiac risk factors to enhancing mood.
'You're under stress, but you have to be in control all day, and after so many years, what happens is that leads to eating misbehaviors, stress hormone production and cardiac risk factors,. The good news is you can reverse these risk factors non-pharmacologically and develop some habits for a lifetime' that complement conventional diet and exercise.
The kinder, gentler movements typical of yoga improve flexibility, strength and muscle tone and can be more youth-promoting than the wear-and-tear of daily aerobics, weights and running alone.
Especially with the baby boomer generation getting older, they're realizing the need for flexibility, the need for good posture, and the desire for the things that are going to help them look and feel young.
Using Hardware And Software (IT) For Your Business
There's almost no-one nowadays who doesn't have a computer -- it's more-or-less a given that you've got a computer in your home office, and that you use it almost every day. But are you getting as much out of it as you could be? Here are some things your computer can do that you might not have thought of.
Keep Track of Customers in a Database.
Once you start to get some customers, you'll need to keep track of their contact details, as well as making sure you know who they are in case you forget. You have a choice: you can keep a file for each customer in your filing cabinet, or you could enter their details into a computerised database.
The good news is that if you have some office software, then you should already have a database package. Starting a database of your customers isn't too difficult to figure out, and lets you do all sorts of things -- you can sort them by the area where they live, or list everyone who's bought one of your products but not another, for example.
Graph Your Sales.
Once you've got your database telling you what you've sold to who and when, you can use it to produce all sorts of graphs and other reports that could help you to spot trends and see what works and what doesn't.
Do Your Accounting and Tax.
With inexpensive accounting software, it's not hard to use your computer to keep track of all your incomings and outgoings -- it can even be integrated with your customer database. Since you'll have all your sales data electronically already, it'll be a snap to do your taxes at the end of the year, where for people who have it all on paper it can be a complete nightmare.
Design Your Own Marketing Materials.
Modern desktop publishing software makes it dead easy to design your own logo, leaflets, brochures, and anything else you might want. With a little practise, you can produce things as good as any graphic designer a home business could afford, and save the money for distribution. Make sure you run your design by a few people first, though, to check that it's readable and there aren't any mistakes or flaws that you've been staring at it for too long to see.
Follow Market Trends.
With Internet access, you can read articles from the specialist press of the whole world, and keep up to date with all the latest technologies and trends in your industry. It's worth picking out the top five or so most important sites to your business and spending a few minutes each day checking them. After all, you don't want to get left behind.
Accept Credit Cards.
Many people don't realise, but Internet merchant accounts aren't just for accepting card payments over the web. You can also open one to use as part of your home business over the phone or by post, with you simply entering the card numbers and amounts into a website to process the payments. This is a powerful way of giving your customers more alternatives when it comes to paying you.
Promote Your Business.
Don't underestimate the effectiveness of the web as a tool for promotion. You should definitely take the time to list your business on every directory listing people in your industry -- make sure that someone searching for your profession and the town where you live would be able to find you listed easily.
Pay Your Staff.
When your business gets big enough to employ staff, you'll find your computer is a useful tool for keeping track of how many hours each person has worked, how much they should be paid, and how much of that amount needs to be kept behind as tax. Trying to do payroll manually is a big headache.
Keep Backups!
There's one thing, though, that it's important to always remember: when you use your computer to store any data that you can't afford to lose, make regular backups and keep them in a safe place. It's really not that much trouble, and if you don't do i then a simple computer failure can devastate your business.
Who Are Business Angels?
Business Angels are people who like to invest in struggling businesses which they think have a good chance of making it in the business with some financial backing as well as businesses that are just starting up. These businesses will need help financially to start-up with the purchase of stock and equipment.
Business Angels usually come from an entrepreneurial background and therefore know the troubles you may go through and that finance is one of the most important factors in any start-up business and especially in a business that is struggling financially. A Business Angel will usually only offer financial backing if they think your business stands a good chance of succeeding.
The amount of finance they offer you depends on the business plan you put forward. They will need to see every little detail of your business from who your suppliers are and how much they charge to how much you offer a product or service at. They will want to see all your ingoing’s and outgoings for the last year if your business is struggling. If it’s a new business venture you’re trying to gain finance for, you will need a good plan showing the revenue of the business over the next few years as you see it.
A Business Angel can offer from £10,000 to £75,000 to help regenerate your business or get your business off the ground. Some Business Angels may be willing to work as an Angel Syndicate and can then offer from £100,000 to £250,000. The average amount a Business Angels invests in a company is around £75,000. All Business Angels want a good return on their investment and this is often done by their high percentage share of your business which they get back at a much higher price in a few years.
There is a difference between Business Angels and Venture Capitalists this is that Business Angels take less control of your business they don’t usually want the bother of a director’s or management job and would rather invest in your business and give you some advice if you need it. Due to this, their investment decisions are usually a lot quicker than Venture Capitalists.
Whoever you get investment from whether it be a bank, a loan company or a business angel you will need a well planned and thorough business plan. Your business plan will show what your intended goals are and any ideas you have for the future as well as the planned income of the business for the first few years. Every business plan should be regularly updated to keep up to date any changes with the business internally or externally and also any new pointers you’ve put in place.
Not only will you use your business plan to help secure business finance from a Business Angels but also it will help you run your business more effectively and efficiently. So why wait if you’re looking to raise finance for your start-up or struggling business contact a Business Angel today for financial help and advice.
Writing Business Articles? Follow These 5 Steps To Business Writing Success
Business articles are a great way to let readers searching the Internet know everything about your new or existing company, and what you can offer them in your unique products and services.
You may be a company that only does business on the Internet, or a Brick & Mortar retail store that would like to increase their online presence via your web site to create additional exposure internationally or worldwide, and increase your customer base.
No matter what type of business approach you take, you will realize that finding a variety of marketing avenues to reach new potential customers is one of the most important components for the growth of your new or well-established business.
When you finally decided to test the waters in article writing because you wanted to add it to your overall marketing plan, I’m sure you will quickly realize that this is a very powerful, yet cost effective way to reach enormous amounts of targeted traffic!
However, in order to reach your desired traffic online, you must not only create value added, informative and creative articles, but you must place them on the Internet for people to find and read. If you’re not sure where to start, you can use my 5 simple article-writing steps as a guideline, and create your own writing style and article distribution plan that will work best for you:
Tip #1: Have a complete understanding of the business you’re in, the product and services you offer, and don’t over sell and underachieve your readers!
I’m surprised how many times I read an article where some company is telling me they will offer you the world, and when you visit their web site, it looks like they actually do offer you the world, a lot of dirt, and the some of that smelly stuff.
Example: Company XYZ expresses that they’re #1 in customer service online, and when you provide a link to your site for your readers to view your claim that you wrote in your article, the reader navigates your site, and quickly they notice you have no access to a live customer service chat service, any toll-free numbers to reach a customers service specialist, and all you’re providing them is an email address saying that you may get back to them sometime after the summer beach season is over. If you don’t offer the best customer service on the Internet or planet, don’t even think for a minute to convey that message to your readers.
Tip #2: Don’t get business article writing mixed up with a press release!
Writing press releases are a good way to get the message out that your company offers a unique and exclusive product in the market, and you want to introduce it with a bang, or that your business just hired a top executive that will drive your company shares straight up in the stock market. Writing your business article is slightly different, you want to use your article to express your company’s best features and benefits offered.
Write about how you can save time and money, or give them a better lifestyle, how about your products/services offer customers that give them complete “Peace-of-Mind”. Believe it or not, people do searches to find your products and services to either solve a problem, or possibly to fill a desired need they have. You have to tell them how you’re going to solve their problems, and fill their needs, and put it in writing.
Tip #3: Find out who your readers are, and write your article in their language!
Nothing is worse than when I come across an interesting article, and I find out halfway through, there is a completely different language that I don’t understand. There are many business writers that have a technical writing background, and when they communicate their message in the article, readers may stumble on your article that is saturated in technical mumbo jumbo that only tech savvy individuals understand.
When you start preparing to write you article, think about your people you want to reach, and who will be interested in reading your information, because if you’re writing for the non-technical person, and you put a ton of information that the average individual won’t understand, your message will definitely be lost and your readers you’re trying to attract will move on and find another article that is easier to read.
Tip #4 Once you have written the perfect article, now you want to know how to reach your targeted readers!
You wrote the perfect article, and it is jam packed with your features and benefits. You’re telling your potential readers how to reach you, but they won’t be able to reach you if you don’t take the steps to get your article out there on the web.
The best way to get your company article distributed is through ezine and article distribution directories. You may decide to only submit your articles to a select few of the top article directories that offer a high volume of traffic, but I would suggest that you consider also submitting to a variety of smaller ones, because you never know where they will be picked up from and prominently placed for inbound traffic.
One of the biggest changes happening with article directories is that you will find more niche targeted business content distribution sites that focus on your related themes. Highly consider these sites, because they not only offer you more category options, these sites will eventually be classified as an authority site on your specific business topics.
Tip #5Your Author Bio can make or break the goal of your article!
Believe it or not, but your Author Bio is probably the most important piece to your article puzzle! You worked very hard on your article, and you took the time to make sure your message was clear and to the point, but what I find with many well-written pieces is that they end with a very weak author bio. It’s like winning your customer over with a knockout presentation, and then not asking for the sale.
The same goes with your Bio, you should not over sell, but you definitely should let your readers know you’re the expert, and that everything you talked about in your article will be explained in more detail once they click through your hyperlinks. If you’re talking about a specific product or service and you have several pages with more information, normally most directories will allow you to place up to a maximum of three links including your main index page. Take advantage of this, and always maximize your links that will give you many optimizing opportunities.
These tips are pretty straightforward, and most of you would consider them to be common sense, but even the best article writers sometimes get off track, and may forget some of the fundamentals of writing. It’s always good to get some outside tips to get you right back on track. Take my advice and use it as a tool to help you design your own writing style, and before you know it, your article will be flooding the Internet with business flair!
Photography Business
The very first thing to do if you want to make money from your photographs is learn how to create great images. In the world of fashion photography - sharpness sells. The subject of how to take a great image is too complex for this article, however the following points are important:
• Have a good camera with manual controls.
• Know how to use it and use it well.
• Have a good eye for detail, composition and color.
• Always be ready to grab an opportunity when it presents itself.
If you happen to be driving through amazing Canadian roads and come across a deer (or a bunch of them), get your camera! Watch for sunsets, moonrise, cloud formations and tree shapes. Keep a sharp eye on your pets for weird and funny poses. Visit flower shops and exhibitions. Flower pictures are many photographers’ bread and butter and they can be easily photographed. Greeting card markets love photos of flowers, gardens, sunsets, sky scrapers and cute photos of animals. Wildlife and nature are great for calendars and geographic magazines as well as educational fields.
Diversity and quality are the biggest aspects in photography. The wider the range of topics you cover, the more likely you will get a sale. Anyone can make a good living from stock photos. Freelance photographer Dmitri Markine sells just as many photos taken from his own backyard as from exotic and far away locations. If you love travelling, put your holidays to work for you. Travel guides, brochures and websites could be possible markets for your photos. Take photographs everywhere you go!
So what to do with that fantastic shot? The edges are sharp as razor, while the clarity would bring joy to many publishers; the main thing to aim for with any image is to sell it to multiple markets. This is taken care of if you submit to a stock agency. They sell to large corporations as well as small business. It’s a perfect way to gain some exposure and see what’s out there. You don’t have to be responsible for selling your own stuff, but to have more sales, it’s always good to try to sell the photos yourself (websites,galleries,etc).
It is important for any photographer to keep a portfolio of his work to show. You never know when you’ll meet a prospective buyer who wants to look at your work. No one will not be impressed if you have to dig through a dusty desk to scrape them together or use email to send them to clients. Have a printed portfolio as well as a web based portfolio. When you do get a sale, don’t charge a large amount just because the picture only took a few minutes of your time. You’ve spent years learning your craft. You spend a considerable amount on equipment, advertising and education and your photos are worth a decent figure.
If you really know what you are talking about and can take a fantastic shot, think of submitting it to a publication or a magazine, along with all the details of the precise equipment you used and a step-by step guide of your procedure. A bit of a challenge perhaps, but worth the effort. There are many other markets to consider too; all kind of magazines, newspapers, travel guides and books. So grab your camera and don’t stop shooting! Photography is an art and the more you practice the better you will become. No famous photographers became like that overnight. We all spent sleepless nights perfecting our craft
Using Google Alerts To Help Your Business
At times it seems that Google releases more new products and services than we can keep track of. From Google Calendar and Google Video, to Google Base, Google Finance, and Google Trends, it can be overwhelming just to remember what each one does. One of the oft overlooked hidden gems in Google's enormous offering is Google Alerts. Within minutes, one can be signed up for email alerts that can give them and their business a leg up on the competition. Alerts can be used to spy on competitors, keep track of what people are saying about your business, or follow an important news story.
How Does It Work
Google Alerts sends you an email each time a new page for your chosen term makes it in the top twenty results on Google's web search. You can also have the alert check Google News and/or Google Groups. To sign up for a Google Alert, all that you need to do is visit the Google Alerts homepage (http://www.google.com/alerts), enter the search term, type of alert (search Google News, Google Groups, or the web), frequency of emails (daily, as it happens, or weekly), and your email address. You can set up alerts for as many terms as you like using a Google Account. So why would you want an unlimited amount of alerts? Because as a business owner, you have a lot to keep track of and very limited time to do it.
Spy on Your Competitors
Every business has a competitor. More likely, you have several direct competitors and several more indirect competitors. While regularly checking out their websites is an important part of the process, it doesn't paint the whole picture. A competitor’s website is very much crafted to the image that they want to portray to their customers. This is great if you want to know what their latest sale is or how much their new product costs, but it isn't likely to feature a negative review in last Sunday's newspaper.
That's where Google Alerts comes in. By simply setting up a News, Groups, and search alert for each of your competitors, you will know what other people are saying about your competition – both the media and consumers, both good and bad.
Keep Up To Date on Your Industry
Equally as important as what people are saying about your competition is what people are saying about your industry in general. If there's a negative PR swing against violent video games, and you just happen to run a video game store, you will probably be affected. By receiving alerts on important key words related to your industry, you can be on top of any sudden changes and react accordingly. By the time your competition realizes what's happening they will be scrambling to catch up to you.
Track Yourself and Your Business
It goes without saying, if it's important to know what people are saying about your competitors and about your industry, it would stand to reason that it's important to know what people are saying about you. I have Google Alerts on both my name and my businesses name. I know that they go hand in hand – if one is getting slandered you better bet it will hurt the other. By receiving alerts, you can be on top of anything negative relating to you or your business, and hopefully nip any problem in the bud before it grows too large. On the flip side, there's nothing better than receiving an alert where someone praises your business. Those are the types of things that you want to make sure are on the PR page of your businesses website.
Get News Stories for Your Site or Blog
I own a site where I do weekly news updates about what's going on in the industry. Some weeks, there are tons of news items to choose from, other weeks it's hard to find anything. In addition to the regular industry news sites that I check to get information, I have Google Alerts set up for each of the key terms. You'd be surprised how frequently a unique story from a local newspaper pops up in Google News. Many times these stories haven't been seen by my competitors and I am able to “break” the news to the online community. This works well for blogs too – if you have a daily blog about being an entrepreneur, having an alert for the word “entrepreneur” can fetch you several quality stories each day to help inspire fresh posts.
In this increasingly competitive business world, you need each and every leg up on your competition that you can get. Used properly, Google Alerts can be an extremely efficient way to track what's going on across the web. The alternative would be to search each term every day for new updates. Who has time for that? Spending less time researching enables you to spend more time on the things important to your business.
Earn Good Money With A Computer Home Based Business
Personal computers and the internet have revolutionized how people see a home based business. There are many options today in computer home based business that allow for almost anyone to begin making money from the comfort of their own home.
To begin with, a person needs a home computer and internet access. It is important to choose a computer that is running a new operating system and that is not too old. The internet service should, ideally, be a high speed service. If a person wants to start out with a dial up connection it is a good idea to take advantage of those free trial offers as each service’s speed varies. By trying free trials a person can find the fastest dial up connection possible.
After getting connected to the internet, a person should start searching for information on computer home based business. It is very important to understand, though, that there are scams out there that can be costly and very time consuming. That is why, before signing up for any opportunity, a person should carefully check it out. Doing a search with a business name and the word ‘scam’ will usually do the trick.
There are plenty of legitimate computer home based business choices though. It is important not to get discouraged by scams, which is easy to do when starting out. Through some careful research a person should be able to easily find a good computer home based business.
Some of the perks of a computer home based business are that they allow a person to work completely online. In many cases this means that they will not have any inventory or any other responsibilities such as shipping to handle. Additionally, a computer home based business means a person can sell even when they are not at their computer or even at home.
A computer home based business is something that can allow a person to start making a living right from their home. They can begin to build up a business that could possibly allow them to leave behind their full time job outside the home and reap the rewards of working at home forever.