Answering your questions

With my last post, I seem to have struck a chord with a lot of people.  I do believe this is because a lot of the people reading this blog are new(er) to Internet Marketing and are looking for direction on where to go.

If you got anything out of the last article — it needs to be that you should be and have to be building your own list!  (My recommended method is using AWeber for list management and autoresponder messages, then using SplashPageMaker or InstantSqueezePageGenerator to make your marketing materials - and YES, those are my affiliate links ;))  Then you need to be networking.  Then you need to be consistent.  Well, there really is no order.  You need all three at the same time to be successful (and successful is NOT filthy rich (though it may eventually lead to be), successful would be turning a profit from your efforts).

So I’m writing this blog post to answer some of the great comments you guys left.

Question:

Than One can use aweber (or similar) service to send emails to list. And then there is a problem. One cannot send a lot of emails without substance (something that make list happy).If one try that (sending no substance emails, or affiliate link emails), very fast one will receive a lot of unsubscribe messages. So, doing a business is not so easy. In marketing books, everything start with product. SO new enterpreneur MUST ,first, develop his business structure (what are You doing?

I found this to be a great question.  How does a list builder continually send emails with substance to keep in contact with his or her list and make money?

I realize I don’t have all of the greatest answers so I asked some other marketers as well.

My Answer

If you can provide emails that your subscribers will enjoy reading and be able to help them while you are helping yourself, then they will not unsubscribe.  No matter what niche you’re in, your subscribers will be able to see through you if you are just out to help yourself.  So instead of just posting affiliate links, explain to them how they can benefit from what you’re offering.  (Think about it - my affiliate links are everywhere in this blog.  Do you mind looking at them and using them if they can help your business?)  Offer bonuses as well.

Paul Kinder (my buddy, mentor, and owner of Traffic-Splash.com)

“Through education and research. It’s easy to promote everything that moves but, as a list owner, your prime responsibility is to act as a filter so that you only recommend quality products targeted to the style of list you are managing.

So, a new list owner needs to invest in their own education first so that they can identify good products and bad and justify their role as “filter”.”

Tony Tezak (A non-program-owner list builder.  One of the (if not THE) most successful surfers of all time)

“I find material for my emails by reading others’ blogs, emails, forum posting and while attending online seminars conferences. Everyone ought to attend the weekly SWAT and Affiliate Funnel conferences. You can get valuable information from experts in the internet marketing world.

Also many programs have suggested emails in the members area. Put them in your own words and use them. They work.

In every email to your list you have opportunities to expand your business. For example if you want to give away an ebook or report, why not give away those where you can rebrand them and your affiliate links appear in the ebook/report. Instead of just giving them the ebook, send them to a download page. On the download page give them the link to the ebook and add an advertisement for something else. Here is an example of this that I learned from Soren Jordansen of DragonSurf:
http://tonytezak.com/dailyniche/download.html

Do not forget to use the signature file and the ‘PS’ feature in emails. Two more chances to get them into something else. Here are a couple of examples I am currently using:

P.S. Earn GREAT Residual Income - On AutoPilot!
Discover the ideas, tools and tips to help you on
the road to SUCCESS!

P.S. It’s good to stand out in the crowd,
as long as you look good doing it. Get your own
attention grabbing graphics for free at

Do not wait until the list is bigger, start using the info above from day one.

Cheers!

Tony Tezak
http://www.tonytezak.com “

With those answers there is no solid absolute answers (though Tony does provide a few examples).  My general consensus is that you will have to come into your own to develop your style.  Then tweak it.  Learn through trial and error.

And here’s another great question that came about:

Question

“I would like to get my hands on some great info to help with what to do with a list after it is built or while being built as it scares so many newbies wondering what to send and how to create great letters for an autoresponder.”

Basically, what do you do after you have a decent sized list?

My Answer

Keep building.  There’s no limit to the number of subscribers you can have.  I would say AFTER you have a decent sized list, make a free membership site that has upgrades and offers available.  Promote this to your list so you can earn from your list and from the free membership site.  Start to create multiple streams of income.  Now you can concentrate on building your list and offer your free membership site to everyone that subscribes (perhaps in an autoresponder message).  Now you have created yourself more validity and more substance (and a great “filter”, as Paul says!).

Paul Kinder

“Well, same answer, educate yourself. Learn more so that you can identify the best products that will benefit your subscribers. The key to success in IM is self-education just the same as any other business or occupation, it’s not difficult to “fake it” for a little while but it doesn’t take long to get found out. The really successful marketers actually have a good grounding, and really understand what they are doing.”

So again, it seems that there is no concrete answer.  I love how Paul mentions educating yourself.  That really is absolutely necessary.  If you don’t know what you’re talking about.. how can others believe what you’re saying?

In conclusion, be a sponge and soak up all the information you can, implement it, and find out what works!  And that’s not all, here’s what Soren Jordansen had to say about the two questions above, which leaves a few pondering points!

The question itself is flawed because it assumes
that content is good and pitching is bad.

It does not work that way - the only sane reason
for providing content is to increase the conversion
on you pitches.

Go read the “Follow up email series” chapter in my
IMSF ebook and pay special attention to the 3C’s
of marketing blog post it links to.

… and if you have a medium list the obvious next
step would be to build a large list

How Am I Succeeding?

I was just sitting down and having a conversation with a guy, Jeremiah,  that has been trying internet marketing for 3 years and has only made a few bucks.  We’re talking $5 here and a few bucks here.. maybe winning some surfing contests or something like that.

Basically very little success.

I thought to myself, “Hmm, 9 months ago I was a complete newbie.  I’m having more success than this guy in far less time.”

I continued to think to myself.. what am I doing that Jeremiah isn’t doing?  So we talked a little bit more.  We were basically doing the exact same thing!  We both surfed traffic exchanges, we both bought credits from time to time, we were both promoting affiliate products, we were both using safelists, we were both getting the word out about ourselves and what we bring to the table.

Why am I enjoying the fruits of my labor and continuing to build while Jeremiah is going basically no where — a few steps short of wasting his time?

I took it upon myself to investigate and here’s what I found:

• I am networking
• I am list building
• I am consistent

That’s the only three differences I could see between myself and Jeremiah.  And boy what a difference it makes!

Networking with your peers, as i wrote about a while back, is vitally important.  You gather friendship with like minded individuals and you push each other to become better at what each of you do.

For me, I was approached by Paul Kinder and that’s how  my networking begun.  I got lucky because I had something he sought and he was networking, so I got drug into it by him.  Luckily I stayed networking and began meeting people that gave me ideas, helped me further myself, and gave me knowledge and insight.  The learning curve was high.. but I was addicted and this is still what I do.  You can find me in NetMarketingForum or Affiliate Funnel networking a lot of the time.

Secondly, I was building my (ever-so-hyped-and-talked-about “magical”) ‘list’.  I also did this unknowingly.  I was trying to build blue-surf (a free membership program).. but what I was building was far more valuable.  Each member has what everyone wants — an email address.  And now my list is getting strong.  I have thousands of email addresses that I can email to whenever I want to inform them of a new product or idea.. and they don’t mind because they can make a few bucks from it, too.

Jeremiah had no list.  He had, however, made a couple ‘cold sales’ .  Great!  But, the problem is, once the sale was over with - that was the end.  He could not contact them again.  He could not follow up and ensure they were happy with what they bought.

So that brings me to list building.  Build your list.  Follow up with automated messages.  Make people happy and they’ll trust you and continue buying from you again.  (Actually, think about how you got to this blog post — you’re probably on my email list.  And, although I am not selling you anything.. I am conveying to you a message, which is equally as important.)

You do not need a free membership program to build your list.  You can in fact use AWeber as your mailing solution and promote splash pages or squeeze pages and build a nice list.

The money is in the list. Do not ignore this overused almost cliche-like saying.  Your list is the most valuable asset you will ever have in this business.

And, finally, I am consistent.  Jeremiah, like a lot of people, struggled to stay on top of his internet marketing when things just weren’t happening.  He’d take a few months off and then try at it again.  Perhaps the next time he tried it would be.. magical.  It wasn’t, and this cycle repeated.

On the contrary, I can think of very few days (days when I was extremely ill) that I wasn’t on the computer for hours on end building me and my business.

As I like to say I was (and continue to be) persistently consistent.  There are good days and there are bad days.  There are good weeks and months and there are bad weeks and months.  But you never know… that next subscriber, that next squeeze page, that next whatever might build a relationship between you and a customer that lasts a lifetime.  You might get your next sale.  And before you know it.. you might have a few extra dollars in the bank.

SWAT Traffic Seminars Worth Their Weight In Gold

Pardon the title, this post has nothing to do with TrafficGoldRush.  Though, that allows me to tell you, that right now TrafficGoldRush is THE place to be.  Over 3000 members in one week?  WOW.  I know this is where I’m having my sites, banners, and text links seen right now.

–> Traffic Gold Rush

But on to the subject matter at hand.  Recently, I’ve been attending SWAT Traffic Seminars (except last week when I was ill).

I don’t really know why I’ve neglected going in the past.  I thought perhaps I was too busy to re-iterate over what I thought I already knew.

The seminars were a very humbling experience.

I’ll tell you that the information I learned is not going to save me money (personally - though some others DO save money there).  BUT, what I learned has enabled me to grab the mindset I need.  It has taught me things that will enable me to handle my time better.  To get more things done.  To not spread myself too thin.  And, with the time this training has taught me, I’ll be able to make thousands more dollars in the future.

I don’t know about you — but I do what I can to help myself today to help myself in the future.  I work on what needs done right now to prosper in the future.  I’m always building building building (and hopefully, you are as well).

SWAT TRAFFIC SEMINARS ARE WORTH THEIR WEIGHT IN GOLD!

“But, you’re a programmer, what are you doing there?”

I get this kind of question all of the time, believe it or not.  I cannot shed the programmer label it seems.  But, I’ll tell you I don’t go to SWAT seminars to learn programming.  In fact, if I did, 99% of the room would glaze over and fall asleep.

I go there to learn internet marketing.  And learn I do, indeed.

Learning is the key word there.  I’ll go against the grain and tell you NOT to go to the SWAT seminars if you’re not passionate about your business, if you’re not willing to learn, and if you’re not willing to implement what you learn.

I may act a bit cocky from time to time but when Jon Olson, Robert Puddy, Jerry Reeder, Soren Jordansen and others speak - I LISTEN.

They personally answer my questions that I have (even though a 7,000+ member traffic exchange to some of you may make it sound like I know everything - I do not).

There are no egos there.  There are real genuine caring people who know what they’re talking about and offer advice to help even the newest of newbies all the way up to the guru internet marketers.

If you’re a surfer, list builder, exchange owner, program owner, email marketer, ezine editor.. WHATEVER.. go there.

You won’t be dissappointed.

Sign up for SWAT Traffic Exchange, upgrade, and attend the weekly seminars every Wednesday at 8PM US EST.  You’ll be glad you did.  It’s one of the highlights of my working week.

–> SWAT Traffic