ProBizTips Newsletter
** ISSUE #272 **
December 18th, 2003
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Hey!
Good Day to you and I hope your day is going well so far! :)
Welcome to all our new subscribers this week and I hope you grow
to love us as so many have ... we couldn't do this without you!
It's been a daunting week getting ready for Christmas and trying to run a busy online business at the same time! Don't get me wrong, I don't mind the work -- but I feel like I've been running on batteries for the past month and they're about dead ... :P
I've also been working on the newsletter and I'm bringing back the archives. I THOUGHT I had backed up my old issues and I DID recover SOME of them, but I'm missing a few...
I know there are some of you that save every issue (love ya) so if you have issues 258 - 264, I would appreciate if you could send them to me --- I would be so GRATEFUL if you could do so and I'll make it worth your while ... *wink*
Also, I've been thinking a lot about the newsletter and I want to make this newsletter more interactive for you. So I will be putting up a survey pretty soon and will let you know when it's ready so you can give me your ideas and opinions on things. :)
In the meantime ... sit back, relax and enjoy today's issue!
Your Friend,
Diane Hughes
ProBizTips Weekly
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| ProBizTips Feature Article |
Back to the Basics: How to Successfully Start an Online Business
by Diane Hughes
As someone who has been running a full-time Internet business for years, I often have to remind myself that there are thousands of business "newbies" who are just starting out. As I get farther and farther into the realm of online business, I find that the basics for starting your own business still hold true.
If you begin with a solid foundation, you increase your chances of success. With that in mind, I'd like to share some of those truths with you now in an effort to help you get started on the right foot.
Build a Professionally Designed Web Site
One of the biggest mistakes startups make is to save money by creating a Web site themselves. Unless you are graphically talented and have a good deal of experience with Web design, I would not recommend this.
Your Web site is ALL that your site visitors have to base their decisions on. Your site's design simply must give your visitor a sense of professionalism, trust, security, and ease. A "homemade" looking site screams "I'm a startup business who has no money and may go out of business at any minute!" You don't want to portray that type of image.
If you can't afford to hire a pro to design your site, that leaves you with one of two choices. First, wait and save some more money. Or wait and learn to do it yourself properly.
Yes, You DO Need To Know at Least a Little HTML...
Whether you have someone else design your site or you do it yourself, you'll need to have a good knowledge of HTML basics. No... you don't need to be able to write full-blown code in HTML, but you DO need to be able to make changes to your site, load scripts, and handle several other minor administrative details.
HTML basics are very easy to learn. Once you get a handle on this language, you'll be in a much better position to save time and money when it comes to keeping your Web site fresh and up-to-date.
Content Is King
The saying may be out of date, but the principle is definitely still accurate. People come to the Internet for information. Buyers need to be convinced in order to purchase. Search engines rank your site based primarily on the words on the pages. The whole virtual world revolves around content.
Not to sound like a broken record, but if you aren't able to write compelling copy that persuades your visitors to take action, you would be better off waiting to launch your site. Just as with Web design, you have two choices. First, wait and save some money in order to pay a professional copywriter. Or take the time to learn to do it yourself properly.
Never Use a Free Host
Free Web hosting companies trade you space on their servers for pop-up ads on your site. In many cases, the host uses several pop-up ads. How annoyed do YOU get when you visit a site and seven or eight pop-up or pop-under windows launch? Then don't put your customers through that same aggravation.
There are a multitude of hosts now that charge less than $10 per month. No pop-ups, lots of features, and good service, too. Use one of those as opposed to the freebie hosts.
Pursue Free Search Engine Listings
Search engines (such as Google and AOL) can be an exceptional way to drive traffic to your site. By incorporating just a few "rules of the game," you can rank quite highly in most engines. It will be VERY worth your while to learn about search engine optimization basics. This can be an ongoing source of qualified traffic for you for years to come.
Above all, don't rush! The Internet isn't going anywhere. Those who hurry to throw a site up quickly find themselves with all sorts of problems. If you take your time and get a decent "Internet business education" before you launch your site, you'll bypass many of the struggles most startups have. You'll also increase your chances of success and find that profits come much more easily than you thought!
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Diane Hughes is an accomplished Internet entrepreneur and
editor of the popular ProBizTips Newsletter. Subscribe to
her newsletter for more tips, tricks, and secrets of the
trade -- plus get HUNDREDS of eBooks, software and tools
just for subscribing! http://www.marketersdream.com/diane
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BizTips by Dr. Kevin Nunley |
Make Your Email Newsletter a Resounding Success
Ask 50 successful online businesses how they keep the customers coming and about 48 will tell you: "It's our ezine." Email newsletters are quite frankly the Internet's secret weapon. They keep you in front of customers and prospects until they buy.
Here are three ways to make sure your email newsletter is a business-building hit:
1. Try to include information that has a limited life-span. People need to read it NOW and not put it off until later. Include tips on limited opportunities, temporary events, and short-term sales.
2. By the same token, your ezine should include information people want to keep for a long time. One professional was surprised to learn many organizations had saved ALL her newsletter issues going back for years. "Many have them printed and bound for later reference." When she looked into it further, it turned out people were keeping her helpful tips that many readers were using to make their jobs easier.
3. Make your ezine fun. Make it human. Include something about yourself, your life, your business, and why you do what you do. More than a few top newsletters use this strategy often and extremely well (Jim Daniels and Azriela Jaffe come to mind).
4. Finally, don't be stingy with your free information. If you know something your readers would appreciate, share it free of charge.
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Kevin WRITES your professional copy--web site copy, sales
letters, ads, press release and more! See http://DrNunley.com.
Reach Kevin at kevin@drnunley.com or 801-253-4536.
5 Strategies That Will Boost Your Business Productivity Today!
by Glen Smyth
Building a dynamic small business is a constantly evolving, increasingly demanding role.
It is very easy to get so caught up in the day to day running of our business that we neglect to take the time to look from the outside in to see what we could do to improve our profitability.
Well, here are 5 Strategies that could boost your productivity overnight!
They are not rocket science... and you may have even heard some of them before, but they are 5 proven principles that you can review today to help you stay on track regarding the real issues to grow your business from here.
So why don't you take 15 minutes... make yourself a cup of coffee... and recharge your batteries!
1. Define your Unique Selling Proposition (USP) in one sentence
What is at the heart of your business that makes it unique and attractive for your customers? Summarize your key selling points that make your product or service a ‘must have' for your clients.
You probably went through this exercise when you first started your business... but have you need to remind yourself regularly why you are doing what you are doing!
New competitors may have emerged and you don't have that same uniqueness that you once had.
Perhaps it's time to reinvent yourself and get that edge over the market once again!
2. Identify Who Your Target Market Is
When you first started your business, you knew exactly who your target market was. Is this market still the same, or have they grown up... or matured in their buying habits?
Has new technology overtaken your ideas?
Just imagine if Video Rental Stores had stubbornly refused to rent DVDs because they were just a Video Store! Your market may have changed, and you may need to reassess who you are trying to reach.
Your original target market have grown older since you began and if you are still promoting your products or service to this same group - their needs may be different!
3. Would you like Fries with That?
McDonalds have made an additional fortune by training every one of their sales force to ask one simple question with every order: ‘Would you like fries with that?'
I went to buy a tube to fix my daughter's bike puncture the other day, and instead of just selling me a new tube, the smart salesman in the Bike Shop enquired quite genuinely if I had the right tools to fix it.
I didn't - but of course he did... so he cleverly added value to my shopping experience, and added extra profit to his bottom line.
What service or product can you offer to people to make their original purchase with you even more worthwhile?
4. Establish where your clients go before and after they visit?
If you can determine this, then you can add instant profits to your business.
Just imagine if you owned a Real Estate business. Wouldn't it make sense to have a Settlement Agent in house? And what about a Mortgage Broker? Or even a Removalist Company?
Perhaps you could rent out a large Furniture Trailer with your company name emblazoned all over it!
Ask yourself the same question and you can start incorporating other services that complement your existing business and watch the profits grow!
5. Ask your existing customers for referrals
If you are providing an excellent product or service, then your biggest fans will be your existing customers.
Why not offer them an incentive to put you in touch with people just like them who would also benefit from your services?
It doesn't have to be anything really expensive... maybe even just a 10% discount off their next purchase from you.
I referred some friends to a Mortgage Broker a few months ago... and had forgotten all about it until last week I received 2 movie tickets in the mail thanking me for the gesture.
A $20 investment leaves a nice impression in my mind that will probably make me think of him again when my next friend asks me if I know of a good Mortgage Broker!
---------------------------------
Glen Smyth is the author of the popular new eBook, ‘The Small
Business Success Guide'. Discover how you can build your own
profit-pulling small business, starting today:
http://www.smallbusinesssuccessguide.com
ProBizTips Tip of the Week |
3 Fast Ways To Increase Your Ezine Subscribers!
by Larry Dotson
1) Showoff Well Known People
You could publish a list of well known, famous, or respected people who have subscribed to your free e-zine. For example, you could say, "Just look at who else is subscribed!" Another example, "Look at all the experts who have subscribed to our e-zine!"
2) Increase Perceived Value
You could tell your visitors what a subscription to your free e-zine is worth in dollars. For example, you could say, "Subscribe to our free e-zine. We used to charge $120 a year for a subscription." Another example, "Subscribe to our free e-zine! (Valued at $99!)
3) Publish Viral Content
You could tell your visitors that they have the right to republish your e-zine's content on their own web site if they subscribe to your free e-zine. For example, you could say, "Subscribe to our free e-zine and we will give you the right to republish our content on your website or in your e-zine!"
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The cowboy lay sprawled across three entire seats in the posh Amarillo theatre. When the usher came by and noticed this he whispered to the cowboy, 'Sorry, sir, but you're only allowed one seat.' The cowboy groaned but didn't budge. The usher became more impatient. 'Sir, if you don't get up from there, I'm going to have to call the manager. The cowboy just groaned.
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