By DeAnna Spencer
As an entrepreneur involved in selling and/or promotion of something by Direct Mail, you should already know that most important aspect of your mailing have to do with the sales letter or circular you send out, and the mailing list you use. With these thoughts in mind, and assuming you've got what should be an order-pulling sales letter or circular, let's focus our attention specifically on the problem of finding mailing lists that produce profitable orders.
Common sense should tell you that without a good mailing lists, the time and money you spend for market research, advertising layout and knowledge relating to the "rules of direct mail," will just be wasted effort. In other words, unless you get you offer to the buyers, you might as well save your time and money.
In order to reach your most-likely buyer, you must first determine who your most-likely buyers are. This is not so hard as it might appear. Actually, it's just a matter of recognizing that automotive items will appeal to car-owners, while household gadgets will sell best to the homemakers. Regardless of how easy its is, this is the most-often over-looked part of the beginning entrepreneur's planning. Suffice it to say that if you don't know who you're going to sell a product or service to, your product or service is going to be pretty hard for you to sell.
The next thing to really look into is the competition your product or service faces. If it has a limited market--not too many people would stand in line to buy--and you are competing with virtually the same product as supplied by other companies--then you're going to have to either come up with a strong "hidden angle" or else face defeat before you even begin...
These are the "keys" to success in selling anything via direct mail--pin-pointing exactly who your buyers are, presenting your offer to them with an angle not being used by your competition, and concentrating all your sales efforts only on the most-likely prospects. Assuming you "know" who your most-likely buyers are; that you've got a "winning" sales letter or circular--and, a product or service these people "will stand in line to buy," then your problem is to get the message to these people.
Do not think you'll "save some money" by renting or buying inexpensive mailing lists from advertisers in all those ad sheets and "mail order" type publications that seem to flood your mailbox. You'll waste a lot of time, and spend money chasing the wind with these lists. These lists offered by "mail order" dealers are compiled from ad sheets, mail order publications, and/or incoming offers received by the list-seller...These people also compile lists they use...A lot of them compile their rental lists directly from the telephone/city directories...
And even a few of them work the "envelope stuffing" scheme to compile their rental lists—They offer commissions to people who pay to join their envelope stuffing programs, and then sell or rent the names of the people who join their program...The people who join the program are advised to compile lists from any number of sources, send out a commission circular, and receive a commission for each incoming order. The names of the buyers are then compiled onto another list, and sold by promoters of this scheme to some of the larger list-brokers as bonafide mail order buyers...Any time you rent a list of 5,000 or more names from mail order type operator, you can almost certainly count on the lists that's 1) Five or more years old...2) Filled with names of people who have moved... 3) Going to be dominated with names of other mail order sellers...
Before renting or buying a mailing list from someone, use the same kind of common sense you use in deciding upon a doctor, lawyer or auto mechanic. Something else to keep in mind—whenever you rent or buy mailing lists from someone who has or is advertising for dealers or mailing list brokers, you are going to end up with a list of names used by many mail order dealers, generally with the majority of them offering the same products or services.
The best thing to do is to take a note pad and pencil to your public library.. Ask the librarian to let you look at the Standard Rate & Data Service Directory pertaining to mailing lists. Within this voluminous directory, you'll find the names, addresses and telephone numbers of virtually all the reputable mailing list brokers in the country. These brokers explain within the directory the different lists that are available for rent, what kind of buyers the lists are made up of, and the date the list was last cleaned--that is, the last time all the names on the list were verified relative to the correctness of addresses. Select a half dozen or so of the list brokers handling the kinds of lists that are made up of buyers of products or services similar to yours...Jot those names and addresses down on your note pad… then go home and call them on the phone...
Tell the list broker about yourself, what you're trying to sell, how much you're asking for it, and your-long range plans. Almost all of them will want to see a sample of your mailing piece, and more often than not, a sample of your product as well. Don't be afraid to talk to these people--they're in business to help you, and if they "steer you onto" a list that doesn't make money for you, they figure you'll not buy from them again, so it's to their benefit to see that you get the "right" list for your mailing piece and offer. Most of them are will critique your mailing piece and offer, making suggestions for improvements when appropriate, and in general, act as a consultant to see that you realize a profit thru their services.
Once you and the list broker have decided upon the mailing list best suited to your offer, he'll generally require you to rent a minimum of 5,000 names. The going price will range from $35 to $95 per thousand names. Expensive, maybe...But if you pay $475 for 5,000 prospective buyers, and end up with 1,500 buyers of a$20 "how-to" manual that you've written and printed at a cost of50 cents per manual--that would mean a gross of $30,000 minus $750 for 1,5000 manuals, plus another 60 cents each to send each of these manuals out via 4th class mail witch would amount to$1,035. Add these figures together for a total of $1,785 and subtract this total from $30,000 and you stand a very good chance of netting $28,000 or more... So, you see, the important thing is to get your offer to your most-likely buyers. The only way to do this--the fastest, and least expensive way--is to work with a reputable mailing list broker and forget about all that "wheel-spinning" within the circle of mail-order-type people. Really, so long as you deal with " mail-order-type" people, small-time dealers and advertisers--you'll never achieve anything beyond a busy-busy, hand-to-mouth existence in this business.
The bottom-line reason for most of the entrepreneurial failures in the mail order business is simply that the beginner tries to cut corners by using less that the most productive mailing lists available. Indeed, the years are littered with people from all walks of life who have had a good product and/or service ideas, but failed to "get their ideas off the ground." Generally, these people were trying to "save money" by compiling their own mailing lists, advertising in "all-seller" type mail order publications, and/or sending their offers out to "mail-order-type" people found in the ad sheets or to lists purchased from advertisers in these publications. In almost every case, the entrepreneur's efforts along these lines, and based upon a "saving money" philosophy, has always ended in heartbreak and great financial loss for the entrepreneur...
YOU CAN SUCCEED, STARTING FROM SCRATCH! But, before you attempt it--before you "jump in and reach your own mail order fortune," be sure you arrange all the odds in your favor. Anything less than the "rules" stated within this report will surely be a waste of time, and result in failure...
Remember: Your product has to be something you can buy or produce in finished form for pennies, and sell for dollars. There has to be an "eager" market for your product or service. You must project the most professional of all images of yourself as the "company" or supplier in all your sales letters, circulars, advertising and/or dealings with your prospective buyers. And you must "know" who your buyers are, and then concentrate your efforts to reach only those people with your offer. Take your pencil and go to your public library. Ask the librarian to let you look at the Standard Rate & Data Services. Start your research there and have fun with your new business.
DeAnna Spencer is a virtual assistant that helps entrepreneurs run a successful business by providing affordable administrative help. She also publishes a blog for small business owners. Visit this small business resource today.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=DeAnna_Spencer
Sunday, December 10, 2006
Wednesday, December 6, 2006
4 Quick Tips for Coming up with Blogging Topics
By Tim Priebe
Do you blog on a regular or somewhat regular basis, but sometimes have trouble coming up with topics for your blog? Here's a few helpful hints to get you going when writer's block strikes.
1. Google is your friend
Search Google to see what questions people have about the field you're in. Try combining one of the following phrases with a keyword related to your field of expertise.
How do I
I'm having problems
Is it possible to
I need help
Quick question
For example, if a cartoonist who gave advice to other cartoonists were using this method, he might search for the following:
"How do I" cartoonist
or maybe...
"I'm having problems" cartoon
or even...
"Quick question" "comic strip"
Hopefully you get the idea.
2. Sign up for a forum
Sign up for a forum or even an email discussion group that's about the same topic your blog is about. That way you will always have a source of questions. People often drop into such forums with a question or two.
And don't worry if others have answered it on the forum. Your blog will likely have different readers. While you shouldn't plagiarize, you can certainly use their post as a jumping off point.
3. Read other blogs
Read the blogs others have on topics similar to your own. And again, while you shouldn't just copy their post, you can use it to spur yourself on. You might even mention that you were inspired by their post and put a link to it. Then say where you agree and disagree with them.
An added bonus to this is that you can email that blogger and let them know you linked to their post. They may even be willing to link back to your blog, giving you another source of readers.
4. Ask your readers!
This one is a no-brainer. Seek out input from those who know your readers best. Your readers! Occasionally (or frequently) ask them for topic suggestions. At the very least, make it easy for them to contact you with any questions if they already want to do so.
These tips are simple, but can be effective if you ever hit a brick wall when trying to start your blog post of the day.
While we're on the topic, feel free to let me know of any web-related topics you'd like me to cover.
Tim is the owner and senior web designer at T&S Web Design. His company has developed and maintained website for dozens of small businesses and organizations. Tim also maintains a blog with free website advice for small business owners, GetASiteOnline.com.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Tim_Priebe
Do you blog on a regular or somewhat regular basis, but sometimes have trouble coming up with topics for your blog? Here's a few helpful hints to get you going when writer's block strikes.
1. Google is your friend
Search Google to see what questions people have about the field you're in. Try combining one of the following phrases with a keyword related to your field of expertise.
How do I
I'm having problems
Is it possible to
I need help
Quick question
For example, if a cartoonist who gave advice to other cartoonists were using this method, he might search for the following:
"How do I" cartoonist
or maybe...
"I'm having problems" cartoon
or even...
"Quick question" "comic strip"
Hopefully you get the idea.
2. Sign up for a forum
Sign up for a forum or even an email discussion group that's about the same topic your blog is about. That way you will always have a source of questions. People often drop into such forums with a question or two.
And don't worry if others have answered it on the forum. Your blog will likely have different readers. While you shouldn't plagiarize, you can certainly use their post as a jumping off point.
3. Read other blogs
Read the blogs others have on topics similar to your own. And again, while you shouldn't just copy their post, you can use it to spur yourself on. You might even mention that you were inspired by their post and put a link to it. Then say where you agree and disagree with them.
An added bonus to this is that you can email that blogger and let them know you linked to their post. They may even be willing to link back to your blog, giving you another source of readers.
4. Ask your readers!
This one is a no-brainer. Seek out input from those who know your readers best. Your readers! Occasionally (or frequently) ask them for topic suggestions. At the very least, make it easy for them to contact you with any questions if they already want to do so.
These tips are simple, but can be effective if you ever hit a brick wall when trying to start your blog post of the day.
While we're on the topic, feel free to let me know of any web-related topics you'd like me to cover.
Tim is the owner and senior web designer at T&S Web Design. His company has developed and maintained website for dozens of small businesses and organizations. Tim also maintains a blog with free website advice for small business owners, GetASiteOnline.com.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Tim_Priebe
Tuesday, December 5, 2006
The Idiot’s Step-By-Step Guide To Blogging for Profit
by Daegan Smith
Online Promotion Articles | April 12, 2005
Blogging is easy, blogging is fun. And what’s more…it can help your business in a lot of ways. A blog is a frequent, chronological publication of personal thoughts and web links in the cyberspace. You could call it an e-diary where you can register your thoughts, opinion and comments on anything and everything under the sun that interests you. Though people had been ‘at it’ long before the term blog was coined; it has gained currency as an effective medium of communicating over the Internet only recently. The introduction of automated published software like “Blogger” at www.blogger.com has been instrumental in blogging success. A blog or a weblog’ is conceptually similar to a website and is accessible to anyone on the Internet.
There are millions of bloggers in the world today blogging away to glory. But blogging can be more than just chatter in the cyberspace. It can be a great tool for boosting your online business’s profitability once you’ve understood how it works and what are its limitations. Take a look at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Weblog#Corporate for some more information.
How to become a Blogger?
The key to learning how to become a blogger is to start blogging! Easier said than done? Not really. There are several websites that can give you information on how to be a blogger. Blogger.com is one of them. You have three options here to choose from:
- Have a hosted service like Blogger allows you to set up an account and fire away in a matter of minutes.
- A remotely installed blog like movabletype allows you to install on a server for a small fee.
- Desktop blog programs like Radio Userland are installed on your desktop and then uploaded to a host. These are usually desktop programmes that include hosting and upgradation for a certain period of time and charge you a small fee.
- You can get more information on blogging resources from http://www.blogroots.com/resources.blog.
Also see: http://www.blogger.com/start
Once you have decided what option you want for setting up your weblog/ blog you are ready to start blogging. It is that easy. It could take a while before anyone will notice your little blog in the corner and take you seriously. But you can cut down this time with some great ideas at: http://help.blogger.com offers some great ideas on increasing your blog’s readership. There is a Chinese saying, “ It’s a wise man who learns from others’ mistakes”. Read others blogs to see what works and what doesn’t, what are their writing styles etc. It’s a great way to teach yourself and fun too…. you are learning on some one else’s expense.
Guidelines for the greenhorn blogger
Here are some simple guidelines for a newbie blogger. Take a chance with these to increase your chances of success.
Get Blogging: Like I said earlier, the best way to learn blogging is to start blogging.
Recognize your motivation: Why are you blogging? What do you hope to achieve?
Link to other blogs: the best way to popularise your blog is to link to other blogs. So link you must!
Develop a unique style of writing: Developing a writing style is an evolutionary process. Try different approaches and formats until you find one that fits your message, audience, and personal motivations.
Express your personality... let your humour, your perspective on life, and your values shine in your writing.
Be regular with your posting: readers will quickly wander away from blogs that are not updated regularly. So this is very important.
More blogging resources are available at: (www.lights.com/weblogs)
How to profit from Blogging?
Now that you have understood what a blog is and how to get blogging, its time to make it pay. Blogging is a great way to enhance your online company’s bottomline. It is a popular and an easy medium and has potential of reaching millions.
Here are some tips for you to turn blogging into a serious profitable strategy.
1.Customer Interaction: A blog is a good means to keep in touch with your customers regularly. You can keep them updated on new events, happening in your company, new products and services and other developments. the best part is that you can do it more cost effectively and in much less time than other methods like newsletters, customer updates and customer meetings. The elements of interactivity, community and collaboration are key here. Your blog can also serve as a platform for advertising, promotion and even internal communications. One well-known business example is software company Macromedia's use of blogging to keep customers updated on what's happening with its products.
2.Query management: With a blog you can receive and answer to customer queries more quickly than an email. For potential customers it is very important to have a sharp turnaround and you can do that easily with a blog.
3.Link to other sites: Linking your blog to other similar, but not competing, sites is a great way to get some free publicity and traffic for your online business. It is also one big reason why Search Engines will grab your site in their result pages. Ask any online entrepreneur what getting quality traffic to a website means and you’ll know what I am talking about.
4.Get Feedback: Getting feedback from your customers on your products and services, on your company practices and other things is one of the most valuable resources you can build. With a blog, it is not just easier but also time saving for customers to leave feedback for you without filling complicated and mile long forms.
5.Get Google to work for you: Selling ad space is one of the most popular revenue streams for online businesses. With Google’s free AdSense service it just got easier www.google.com/adsense. AdSense allows bloggers to display up to three content-specific "ad units" (boxes that can hold up to four ads each) per page. Each time a visitor clicks these ads, you get paid. Need more convincing?
6.Become an affiliate: Your blog can become a cash cow by using the simple idea of becoming an affiliate for other websites. An affiliate basically carries a link to the other site and each time some one clicks on that link, you get a small commission for it.
7.Donations: If you are running a blog that people love to read and keep coming back in hordes, why not ask them for some monetary appreciation?
Put on your thinking cap and let your imagination run unbridled. You will surprise yourself with the number of ideas that will make your blog less of a personal e-diary and more of a digital cash cow. Blogging is a relatively new marketing arena for webpreneurs, but has immense possibility and potential. Be sure to get on to the bandwagon early in the game and reap your benefits later.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Perfect Home Based Business Opportunities - The Net’s Top Growing Source for Home Business Information. Attention: Free Web Site Content
Online Promotion Articles | April 12, 2005
Blogging is easy, blogging is fun. And what’s more…it can help your business in a lot of ways. A blog is a frequent, chronological publication of personal thoughts and web links in the cyberspace. You could call it an e-diary where you can register your thoughts, opinion and comments on anything and everything under the sun that interests you. Though people had been ‘at it’ long before the term blog was coined; it has gained currency as an effective medium of communicating over the Internet only recently. The introduction of automated published software like “Blogger” at www.blogger.com has been instrumental in blogging success. A blog or a weblog’ is conceptually similar to a website and is accessible to anyone on the Internet.
There are millions of bloggers in the world today blogging away to glory. But blogging can be more than just chatter in the cyberspace. It can be a great tool for boosting your online business’s profitability once you’ve understood how it works and what are its limitations. Take a look at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Weblog#Corporate for some more information.
How to become a Blogger?
The key to learning how to become a blogger is to start blogging! Easier said than done? Not really. There are several websites that can give you information on how to be a blogger. Blogger.com is one of them. You have three options here to choose from:
- Have a hosted service like Blogger allows you to set up an account and fire away in a matter of minutes.
- A remotely installed blog like movabletype allows you to install on a server for a small fee.
- Desktop blog programs like Radio Userland are installed on your desktop and then uploaded to a host. These are usually desktop programmes that include hosting and upgradation for a certain period of time and charge you a small fee.
- You can get more information on blogging resources from http://www.blogroots.com/resources.blog.
Also see: http://www.blogger.com/start
Once you have decided what option you want for setting up your weblog/ blog you are ready to start blogging. It is that easy. It could take a while before anyone will notice your little blog in the corner and take you seriously. But you can cut down this time with some great ideas at: http://help.blogger.com offers some great ideas on increasing your blog’s readership. There is a Chinese saying, “ It’s a wise man who learns from others’ mistakes”. Read others blogs to see what works and what doesn’t, what are their writing styles etc. It’s a great way to teach yourself and fun too…. you are learning on some one else’s expense.
Guidelines for the greenhorn blogger
Here are some simple guidelines for a newbie blogger. Take a chance with these to increase your chances of success.
Get Blogging: Like I said earlier, the best way to learn blogging is to start blogging.
Recognize your motivation: Why are you blogging? What do you hope to achieve?
Link to other blogs: the best way to popularise your blog is to link to other blogs. So link you must!
Develop a unique style of writing: Developing a writing style is an evolutionary process. Try different approaches and formats until you find one that fits your message, audience, and personal motivations.
Express your personality... let your humour, your perspective on life, and your values shine in your writing.
Be regular with your posting: readers will quickly wander away from blogs that are not updated regularly. So this is very important.
More blogging resources are available at: (www.lights.com/weblogs)
How to profit from Blogging?
Now that you have understood what a blog is and how to get blogging, its time to make it pay. Blogging is a great way to enhance your online company’s bottomline. It is a popular and an easy medium and has potential of reaching millions.
Here are some tips for you to turn blogging into a serious profitable strategy.
1.Customer Interaction: A blog is a good means to keep in touch with your customers regularly. You can keep them updated on new events, happening in your company, new products and services and other developments. the best part is that you can do it more cost effectively and in much less time than other methods like newsletters, customer updates and customer meetings. The elements of interactivity, community and collaboration are key here. Your blog can also serve as a platform for advertising, promotion and even internal communications. One well-known business example is software company Macromedia's use of blogging to keep customers updated on what's happening with its products.
2.Query management: With a blog you can receive and answer to customer queries more quickly than an email. For potential customers it is very important to have a sharp turnaround and you can do that easily with a blog.
3.Link to other sites: Linking your blog to other similar, but not competing, sites is a great way to get some free publicity and traffic for your online business. It is also one big reason why Search Engines will grab your site in their result pages. Ask any online entrepreneur what getting quality traffic to a website means and you’ll know what I am talking about.
4.Get Feedback: Getting feedback from your customers on your products and services, on your company practices and other things is one of the most valuable resources you can build. With a blog, it is not just easier but also time saving for customers to leave feedback for you without filling complicated and mile long forms.
5.Get Google to work for you: Selling ad space is one of the most popular revenue streams for online businesses. With Google’s free AdSense service it just got easier www.google.com/adsense. AdSense allows bloggers to display up to three content-specific "ad units" (boxes that can hold up to four ads each) per page. Each time a visitor clicks these ads, you get paid. Need more convincing?
6.Become an affiliate: Your blog can become a cash cow by using the simple idea of becoming an affiliate for other websites. An affiliate basically carries a link to the other site and each time some one clicks on that link, you get a small commission for it.
7.Donations: If you are running a blog that people love to read and keep coming back in hordes, why not ask them for some monetary appreciation?
Put on your thinking cap and let your imagination run unbridled. You will surprise yourself with the number of ideas that will make your blog less of a personal e-diary and more of a digital cash cow. Blogging is a relatively new marketing arena for webpreneurs, but has immense possibility and potential. Be sure to get on to the bandwagon early in the game and reap your benefits later.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Perfect Home Based Business Opportunities - The Net’s Top Growing Source for Home Business Information. Attention: Free Web Site Content
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)