It seems that everyone wants to make money online. And why not - working online *can* be one of the most rewarding things a person can do, filled with lots of time off, good income and the satisfaction of a job well done.
OR ... it can be a nightmare. Filled with information overload, confusion, spending too much on products that deliver too little and more. Getting started online for most people is tough to say the least.
So, how you can you from hype to hope? How you can go from where you are now (no matter how good or bad that is) to the place you want to be?
You get S.M.A.R.T.
If you have spent much time in self-help literature or sales training, you've
probably heard of setting SMART goals.
Here's the way I learned it.
To be effective, a goal must be ...
Specific Measurable Attainable Realistic Timely
And SMART goals really do work best.
So ... how can we apply this to marketing online? Let's take a look together.
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NOTE: This is not only for full-time marketers. If you want to sell things online, either your own product, an opportunity, or earn as an affiliate, you ARE an online marketer, and this does apply to you.
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>>> SPECIFIC
Is your marketing specific? By specific I mean this -does the thing you are
promoting solve a *specific* problem.
In today's competitive Internet climate, selling general benefits won't make the grade. To get people to take action today you've got to be specific. The more specific the better.
For example, if your product helps people save time, tell them *how* it will do that. If it helps them make money, tell them *how*.
The more specific, the better.
After all, the job of your website is to convert already interested people into customers, and not to take people who are wholly uninterested and get them to buy.
>>> MEASURABLE
Ah, testing and tracking. It's been the mantra of top marketers for a long time. Ever wonder why?
Because without *measuring* the results of what you do you simply can not KNOW what works and what doesn't.
Some people harbor a fantasy that everything top marketers does works. Nothing could be further from the truth.
But effective marketers can quickly shut down a failing promotion, and quickly ramp up a successful one, because they are *measuring* results along the way.
Want to begin making real use of tracking tools without becoming a 'tracking nut'? Start by using an ad tracker.
Whether you use a service like AdMinder or a script running on your web server like ProAnalyzer, or (like me) the tracker that comes with your shopping cart, start using tracking links to measure response.
Oh, and they're not just for ads. You can measure which buy link gets more sales on your sales page. You can measure which email message in your follow up series sells the most.
The possibilities are almost endless.
>>> ATTAINABLE
Forgive the rant, but this is my pet peeve. If you find a site that says you are going to get rich overnight or that they are going to do all the work for you or
that people routinely go from rags to riches with their
system please listen carefully.
THEY ARE TELLING YOU A LIE!
Just ask the thousands of people who bought into the latest pyramid schemes only to see their 'investment' disappear before their eyes.
The fact is, the Internet is the *best* place to have a business. No offline
business can offer the level of income combined with time freedom (and no
employees!) that the Internet offers.
But success online takes time. It takes *understanding* the process. It takes learning the language. It takes trial and (sorry to say it) error.
Are there ways to shorten the learning curve and get successful faster? You bet.
Is there a way to (and I know you've heard this one before) SKIP the learning curve, follow a series of steps, and make all the money you want.
Nope.
Is your marketing attainable? By that I mean, are your marketing goals attainable?
Almost any level of income you can imagine can happen online IF you take the time and effort to master an area and let that area of expertise carry you to heights you only previously imagined.
>>> REALISTIC
This sounds like the last point, but it's not. By 'realistic' I mean this - are you expecting too much or too little from your marketing?
Is your marketing mindset realistic?
Here's where I see this happen. People buy a membership to the Directory of Ezines, and then buy an ad, and then don't make much money, and then think the ad failed.
Just yesterday a guy wrote to say that he ran an ad (cost him $40) and he got 300 visitors and was disappointed.
Is his marketing mindset realistic?
Heck no. I could retire with that kind of return on investment.
At 300 visitors he *should* have made three sales or more. Unless he's selling packs of gum, he should have been wildly profitable.
Let's look deeper. At 300 visitors, if his marketing was good, he would have had at least three sales and about 100 people join his mailing list.
If his product sold for $50, that's a $150 return on $40 PLUS 100 opt-in prospects, many of whom would eventually buy.
Not bad.
But he thought he should have made $1000 on the $40 and was upset.
Not realistic. Not very realistic at all.
The key to having a realistic marketing mindset is to know the numbers. How well should a website convert? Start with 1% and build from there.
It's all a matter of testing and tracking. Only then can your mindset be truly
realistic.
>>> TIMELY
They say timing is everything, and so it is with marketing online.
Now timing can mean many things, so let me focus here on two areas.
1. How Often You Communicate With Your Mailing List.
If you have a mailing list (and you really must) you should let them hear from you no less than twice a week. I know that some people say that's too much, and some say it's too little, but I think it's just right.
Anything less and they forget you. Anything more and you risk running them off.
Now, if you have told your list up front that they will get emails every day or five times a week, then do that.
Remember, this is just my opinion folks. But it's based on about seven years of testing and tracking.
Bottom line? Find what works for you. Better to do too much and back off than become the forgotten man or woman.
2. The Time Of The Month That Your Marketing Happens.
Ah, one of my favorite 'tricks of the trade', yours free.
I like to plan my major marketing to hit between the 15th and 19th of the month.
Why?
Because that's when people have the most *disposable* income. And everything we sell online - whether we think so or not - is bought with disposable income.
No on in their right mind is not paying the mortgage in order to buy your book. They are skipping dinner out (a discretionary purchase) in order to buy from you.
So, is your marketing S.M.A.R.T.? It can be if you take what you read here today and do something about it.
I hope that's the choice you make. ;)