Alex Tew Story
www.milliondollarhomepage.com
www.pixelotto.com
It took this 21-year-old student just 20 minutes to come up with an idea which made him a million dollars in four months. So what did he do next?
Alex Tew completed just one term of his three-year business degree before deciding he'd do just fine without it. If the $1m in his bank account is anything to go by, he's right.
The 21-year-old student started the Million Dollar Homepage to help pay his university fees, but it ended up making him a dollar millionaire in just four months.
The site sold pixels, the dots which make up a computer screen, as advertising space, costing a dollar a dot. The minimum purchase was $100 for a 10x10 pixel square to hold the buyer's logo or design. Clicking on that space takes readers to the buyer's website.
Alex invested £50 setting up the site. Friends and family bought the first $1,000 worth of pixels. The proceeds of the first sale of ad space went on putting out a press release, which brought the site to the media's attention.
From there it snowballed. As he made money, more people talked about it and the more people talked about it, the more money he made. At its most popular, the Million Dollar Homepage got 863,000 unique users in one day, it still gets about 7,000 a day even though every pixel has been sold.
Ideas machine
But what has happened to Alex since the last pixel was sold in January?
He'd completed just one term at Nottingham University before deferring his degree when the site took off. He thought of going back and completing it but decided to work on his business ideas.
"I'm not good at studying in the traditional sense anyway," he says. "I have a short attention span. I'm always thinking about something new, I have lots of ideas."
He's bought a car with his earnings, but that's about the extent of his big purchases. He's moved to London from his family home in Cricklade, Wiltshire, but is renting a flat instead of buying one.
"Obviously the money has changed my life in some ways but it hasn't in others," he says. "I don't get recognised in the street or anything like that. I pretty much see the same people I used to and do the same things."
After the success of the site, job offers and investment opportunities from around the world flooded in. Some were very attractive, but in the end he turned them all down in favour of doing his own thing.
His mother is still his PA, but he has employed two other people, one to look after his sites and one to look after customers.
"I like to think of it as a internet time capsule," he says. "I want it to sit there for as long as possible, for decades."
Could be you
Most of his time has gone into coming up with a new business idea. The Million Dollar Homepage was a one-off but Alex knew the concept still had legs and could be developed. He came up with Pixelotto, which goes live on Tuesday.
His new venture will turn one lucky web surfer into a millionaire. Again he will sell a million pixels as advertising space, but this time for $2 each.
He will get $1m and the other million will be given to one random visitor. One month after the final pixel is sold, a draw will select one of the site's adverts at random.
Someone who clicked on that particular advert will be picked via a second random draw. The next round of Pixelotto will then begin, giving someone else the chance to become a millionaire. The winner can also nominate a charity to receive a $100,000 donation.
"This idea has longevity," he says. "I don't know anyone who doesn't want to win $1m dollars, so I can keep doing it again and again."
But what about in the long-term future? Even if his latest venture is a success, he says he will still move on to something new.
"I don't think I will be running this company for 25 years. I always want to do new things, I have a very short attention span."
Soucre - BBC News Magazine
Tuesday, December 12, 2006
Friday, December 08, 2006
Google Makes Checkout Payments Free for Another Year
By Ina Steiner
AuctionBytes.com
Google announced it is extending its promotion for Google Checkout for another year. The checkout service, used by online merchants to process payments from customers, launched in June with lower fees than PayPal's payment service, as well as an incentive for those merchants using Google AdWords. In early November, Google announced that from November 8 through December 31, 2006, Google would process all Checkout transactions for free, and today, it extended the promotion through December 31, 2007.
ChannelAdvisor CEO Scot Wingo, whose company provides online merchants and eBay sellers with ecommerce and auction-management services, said of Google's promotion, "This is huge from a merchant's perspective as this essentially drops 2% into their pockets they can either, well, pocket or pump back into Google Adwords" (http://ebaystrategies.blogs.com/). However, eBay does not allow its sellers to request payment through Google Checkout. eBay owns PayPal, a competing online payment service.
There have been reports of some buyers and sellers experiencing problems with Google Checkout, however, as reported by Elise Ackerman of the Mercury News on November 28 (http://www.siliconvalley.com/).
A Google spokesperson said today in an email, "The Checkout team spends a lot of time evaluating merchant feedback and working to make Checkout as effective as possible, and in recent weeks we've announced several new features and initiatives that should make life even easier for online merchants, including the ability to create coupons for and send email invoices to customers, a simplified HTML-based option for integrating Checkout into their sites, and an extension of our free transaction processing promotion through December 31, 2007."
Both Google and PayPal offered promotions for holiday shoppers as another incentive for merchants.
Scott Devitt, an analyst with Stifel Nicolaus, said today in a research note of Google's extended promotion, "We think, if it works, it is potentially very disruptive to competition and materially beneficial to Google's core Adwords business."
https://checkout.google.com/
AuctionBytes.com
Google announced it is extending its promotion for Google Checkout for another year. The checkout service, used by online merchants to process payments from customers, launched in June with lower fees than PayPal's payment service, as well as an incentive for those merchants using Google AdWords. In early November, Google announced that from November 8 through December 31, 2006, Google would process all Checkout transactions for free, and today, it extended the promotion through December 31, 2007.
ChannelAdvisor CEO Scot Wingo, whose company provides online merchants and eBay sellers with ecommerce and auction-management services, said of Google's promotion, "This is huge from a merchant's perspective as this essentially drops 2% into their pockets they can either, well, pocket or pump back into Google Adwords" (http://ebaystrategies.blogs.com/). However, eBay does not allow its sellers to request payment through Google Checkout. eBay owns PayPal, a competing online payment service.
There have been reports of some buyers and sellers experiencing problems with Google Checkout, however, as reported by Elise Ackerman of the Mercury News on November 28 (http://www.siliconvalley.com/).
A Google spokesperson said today in an email, "The Checkout team spends a lot of time evaluating merchant feedback and working to make Checkout as effective as possible, and in recent weeks we've announced several new features and initiatives that should make life even easier for online merchants, including the ability to create coupons for and send email invoices to customers, a simplified HTML-based option for integrating Checkout into their sites, and an extension of our free transaction processing promotion through December 31, 2007."
Both Google and PayPal offered promotions for holiday shoppers as another incentive for merchants.
Scott Devitt, an analyst with Stifel Nicolaus, said today in a research note of Google's extended promotion, "We think, if it works, it is potentially very disruptive to competition and materially beneficial to Google's core Adwords business."
https://checkout.google.com/
Tuesday, December 05, 2006
The Google Adsense-Adwords Automatic Money Machine
By Jan Sepstrup
www.jasmedia.com
Have you ever tried to make money through affiliate programs using Google Adwords?
Then you know it's not easy. Some say that only 2-3 out of 10 affiliate Adwords campaigns will actually make a profit.
But what if you could get your Adwords campaigns for free, or even make a little profit from using Adwords for promoting affiliate programs.
Actually you can get your Adwords campaigns for free if you combine your Adwords campaigns with Google Adsense.
With Google Adsense you place small ads on your own web-page, hoping that people will click on these ads. When someone clicks on a Google ad on your web-site, you make money.
The normal approach to making money with Google Adsense is to have thousands of pages with Google ads, but you can successfully make money with Google Adsense with just one page.
That's right - one page!
1. Step
All you have to do is find niches, where people pay several dollars to get the top position in the Google ads. You can use Overture's bidtool to find high priced niche keywords.
2. Step
Next step is to build your one-page Google Adsense money machine. Find a free article in one of the article directories and set up a page with your keyword targeted article and three Adsense ad blocks. Use small Adsense blocks, that only shows the top three high priced ads.
3. Step
Last step is to set up a Google Adwords campaign with that niche keyword (and related keywords) - but you only bid 5 cents!
Now sit back and watch the magic. People click on your 5-cent ad and come to your one-page-Adsense website. They read your article - and some of them will click on the high priced ads on your page. Bingo! - you've made a small profit.
Nothing much, maybe a one dollar profit a day. My first Google Adsense 'Money Machine' is generating a profit of 2-3 dollars a day - that's at least $730 a year for just one page.
Want to make more money with your one-page-money-machine?
Find an affiliate program in that niche, and put your affiliate link on the page. Some of your visitors will click the Google ads and some will click on your affiliate link. What ever they do, you win!
Now you've got your Google Adwords campaign for free or you're even making a small profit with your Google Adwords-Adsense money machine. At the same time you're marketing your niche affiliate program.
Final advice
Don't use this technique in the 'Internet Marketing' market place - it's much to crowded. Use your imagination and find niches like laser hair removal, wheel chairs, cell phone, homeowners loan etc.
Take action - and go find some money making niche keywords.
www.jasmedia.com
Have you ever tried to make money through affiliate programs using Google Adwords?
Then you know it's not easy. Some say that only 2-3 out of 10 affiliate Adwords campaigns will actually make a profit.
But what if you could get your Adwords campaigns for free, or even make a little profit from using Adwords for promoting affiliate programs.
Actually you can get your Adwords campaigns for free if you combine your Adwords campaigns with Google Adsense.
With Google Adsense you place small ads on your own web-page, hoping that people will click on these ads. When someone clicks on a Google ad on your web-site, you make money.
The normal approach to making money with Google Adsense is to have thousands of pages with Google ads, but you can successfully make money with Google Adsense with just one page.
That's right - one page!
1. Step
All you have to do is find niches, where people pay several dollars to get the top position in the Google ads. You can use Overture's bidtool to find high priced niche keywords.
2. Step
Next step is to build your one-page Google Adsense money machine. Find a free article in one of the article directories and set up a page with your keyword targeted article and three Adsense ad blocks. Use small Adsense blocks, that only shows the top three high priced ads.
3. Step
Last step is to set up a Google Adwords campaign with that niche keyword (and related keywords) - but you only bid 5 cents!
Now sit back and watch the magic. People click on your 5-cent ad and come to your one-page-Adsense website. They read your article - and some of them will click on the high priced ads on your page. Bingo! - you've made a small profit.
Nothing much, maybe a one dollar profit a day. My first Google Adsense 'Money Machine' is generating a profit of 2-3 dollars a day - that's at least $730 a year for just one page.
Want to make more money with your one-page-money-machine?
Find an affiliate program in that niche, and put your affiliate link on the page. Some of your visitors will click the Google ads and some will click on your affiliate link. What ever they do, you win!
Now you've got your Google Adwords campaign for free or you're even making a small profit with your Google Adwords-Adsense money machine. At the same time you're marketing your niche affiliate program.
Final advice
Don't use this technique in the 'Internet Marketing' market place - it's much to crowded. Use your imagination and find niches like laser hair removal, wheel chairs, cell phone, homeowners loan etc.
Take action - and go find some money making niche keywords.
Friday, December 01, 2006
7 Simple Steps To Uncovering Great Niche Market Web Site Ideas...
By Brian Terry
www.theresanidea.com
Discover how easy it can be to come up with potentially profitable web site ideas by following these simple 7 steps.
1. What are your personal passions?
All niche marketing experts agree that when you're working on creating your first niche product it's important to "tap into" any passions you might already have.
Imagine how much easier it's going to be when you're working on something you have a real "passion" for!
Here's a great place you can start start to get things moving...
Spend 5 minutes "brainstorming" all that interest you, go ahead and just write down anything that comes to mind.
If you can't think of anything right now then I've got the perfect solution for you. Recently I created an amazing web site that actually generates niche website ideas at the "touch" of a button.
You can access this great web site idea generator right here for free: http://www.TheresAnIdea.com/new/web-site-marketing-idea.html
2. Who else shares your passion?
It's all very well having an interest or a passion, but what if there are few others who love what you love? What you need to look for is a large group of people (or a niche market) online who share your same passion.
This is easy to do, just go to Google.com type in the subject of your passion then add the word "forums" to the end, then press the "Google Search" button.
So for example if you have a passion for Fly Fishing just do a search in Google for "Fly Fishing Forums".
In less than a second you'll see at a glance how many forums there are about your chosen subject. Go ahead and check a few of them out so see how active they are.
It's these forums where you'll find all the people who will ultimately become your customers or visitors to your niche market website idea.
If there are none or very few of these forums, just go back to step 1. and brainstorm some more. On the other hand if there are plenty of these online forums around move onto step 3.
3. Show me the money!
Once you've found a market of people who share your interest there are a few more things you need to know before taking another step...
a) Do they have a credit card? b) Are they used to making online purchases.
The reason why you need to ask this is because not everyone has a credit card and is prepared to use it online.
So how do you find out if your niche market has what it takes to buy whatever you plan on selling?
Simply go back to the original search you did on Google. This time look at the advertisements on the right hand side of the page. If you can see plenty of advertisement that's great! it means that other people are paying money to advertise to your niche market (or the people who share your passion).
If there are few advertisements on your Google search results page, just go back to step 1 and start over.
4. Give 'em what they want!
Here's where the fun begins...
You've found your niche market, you know they have money to spend, now you need to find out what they want.
What you must do now is get into the "meat" of the matter and find out from the horses mouth exactly what people need, create a product to fill that need, then sell it to them.
How do you do this?
Step 1: Set up what's called an "Ask Campaign" website.
Step 2: Advertise your "Ask Campaign" website in Google to target your niche market.
5. Words are the true currency
It's time to get back to "brainstorming" again as this time we need to know what the people in your niche market are searching for, more specifically what words and phrases they're using.
There's a great free tool I recommend called "Good Keywords" which you can get here: http://www.goodkeywords.com.
This is the "brilliant" tool that's going to get you ever more "closer" to discovering your next great niche market web site idea. It's through this essential tool that you'll discover how many people are searching for things within your niche market.
What you need to do next is collect the top 10 keywords and phrases people are using within your niche market. Once armed with this list it's time to get your Ask Campaign set up and in place.
6. Ask it!
Everything you need to know about setting up an Ask Campaign can be found here: http://www.askdatabase.com
Once you've got your Ask Campaign website set up it's time to get it in front of as many people in your niche market as possible. What you're going to do is get them to ask you a question. The questions they ask you will reveal the problems they are facing. Once you know what problems they face you're in a great position to deliver the solution.
Here's my own Ask Campaign web site... go ahead an ask me a question :-) http://www.theresanidea.com/AskBrian.php
7. Google it!
Build it and they will come... only when you have your Google Ads in place!
To open up your Google AdWords account just go here: https://adwords.google.com/select/
What you're going to do now is write small ads that drive people to your "Ask Campaign" website where you just ask them to ask you a question, for example... "As someone interested in "X" what is the biggest problem you're facing right now?"
So there you have it... the "7 Simple Steps To Uncovering A Great Niche Market Web Site Idea".
Recently one of my subscribers asked me "If there was one single skill to master that makes the biggest difference as an online niche marketer, what would it be?"... I simply said, learn as much as you can about how to Advertise in Google.
To help you on your way, here's a great no cost Google Adwords course: http://www.theresanidea.com/adwords.html
www.theresanidea.com
Discover how easy it can be to come up with potentially profitable web site ideas by following these simple 7 steps.
1. What are your personal passions?
All niche marketing experts agree that when you're working on creating your first niche product it's important to "tap into" any passions you might already have.
Imagine how much easier it's going to be when you're working on something you have a real "passion" for!
Here's a great place you can start start to get things moving...
Spend 5 minutes "brainstorming" all that interest you, go ahead and just write down anything that comes to mind.
If you can't think of anything right now then I've got the perfect solution for you. Recently I created an amazing web site that actually generates niche website ideas at the "touch" of a button.
You can access this great web site idea generator right here for free: http://www.TheresAnIdea.com/new/web-site-marketing-idea.html
2. Who else shares your passion?
It's all very well having an interest or a passion, but what if there are few others who love what you love? What you need to look for is a large group of people (or a niche market) online who share your same passion.
This is easy to do, just go to Google.com type in the subject of your passion then add the word "forums" to the end, then press the "Google Search" button.
So for example if you have a passion for Fly Fishing just do a search in Google for "Fly Fishing Forums".
In less than a second you'll see at a glance how many forums there are about your chosen subject. Go ahead and check a few of them out so see how active they are.
It's these forums where you'll find all the people who will ultimately become your customers or visitors to your niche market website idea.
If there are none or very few of these forums, just go back to step 1. and brainstorm some more. On the other hand if there are plenty of these online forums around move onto step 3.
3. Show me the money!
Once you've found a market of people who share your interest there are a few more things you need to know before taking another step...
a) Do they have a credit card? b) Are they used to making online purchases.
The reason why you need to ask this is because not everyone has a credit card and is prepared to use it online.
So how do you find out if your niche market has what it takes to buy whatever you plan on selling?
Simply go back to the original search you did on Google. This time look at the advertisements on the right hand side of the page. If you can see plenty of advertisement that's great! it means that other people are paying money to advertise to your niche market (or the people who share your passion).
If there are few advertisements on your Google search results page, just go back to step 1 and start over.
4. Give 'em what they want!
Here's where the fun begins...
You've found your niche market, you know they have money to spend, now you need to find out what they want.
What you must do now is get into the "meat" of the matter and find out from the horses mouth exactly what people need, create a product to fill that need, then sell it to them.
How do you do this?
Step 1: Set up what's called an "Ask Campaign" website.
Step 2: Advertise your "Ask Campaign" website in Google to target your niche market.
5. Words are the true currency
It's time to get back to "brainstorming" again as this time we need to know what the people in your niche market are searching for, more specifically what words and phrases they're using.
There's a great free tool I recommend called "Good Keywords" which you can get here: http://www.goodkeywords.com.
This is the "brilliant" tool that's going to get you ever more "closer" to discovering your next great niche market web site idea. It's through this essential tool that you'll discover how many people are searching for things within your niche market.
What you need to do next is collect the top 10 keywords and phrases people are using within your niche market. Once armed with this list it's time to get your Ask Campaign set up and in place.
6. Ask it!
Everything you need to know about setting up an Ask Campaign can be found here: http://www.askdatabase.com
Once you've got your Ask Campaign website set up it's time to get it in front of as many people in your niche market as possible. What you're going to do is get them to ask you a question. The questions they ask you will reveal the problems they are facing. Once you know what problems they face you're in a great position to deliver the solution.
Here's my own Ask Campaign web site... go ahead an ask me a question :-) http://www.theresanidea.com/AskBrian.php
7. Google it!
Build it and they will come... only when you have your Google Ads in place!
To open up your Google AdWords account just go here: https://adwords.google.com/select/
What you're going to do now is write small ads that drive people to your "Ask Campaign" website where you just ask them to ask you a question, for example... "As someone interested in "X" what is the biggest problem you're facing right now?"
So there you have it... the "7 Simple Steps To Uncovering A Great Niche Market Web Site Idea".
Recently one of my subscribers asked me "If there was one single skill to master that makes the biggest difference as an online niche marketer, what would it be?"... I simply said, learn as much as you can about how to Advertise in Google.
To help you on your way, here's a great no cost Google Adwords course: http://www.theresanidea.com/adwords.html
A New Scam Hits The Web
By Jim Edwards
www.turnwordsintotraffic.com
New Twist On An Old Scam
Virtually anyone with an email account eventually receives a message running one of the oldest scams in the book.
Often referred to as the "Nigerian Letter," this scam involves getting a message from someone in a foreign country claiming to need a way to get 21.5 million dollars out of the country (the first country used in this scam was Nigeria, hence the scam's name).
He knows that you "are a trustworthy individual" and if you'll just send him your bank account information he will deposit the money in your account and give you 15% of the deposit.
Of course, after you give up your banking information the scammer empties YOUR account.
Well a new scam has spawned to take advantage of one of the web's most successful and widespread activities - online auctions.
The scammer sends you an email offering to purchase an item you're selling through an online auction or in the classified section of your local paper.
They tell you a relative living in the area will pick up the goods, however, when the check arrives, it's made out for more than the agreed price (often thousands more).
The bidder asks you to refund the difference and keep a percentage for your "trouble."
Of course the check is forged and, if you refund the difference, you can kiss your money goodbye.
Moral of the story: free money is only free for the person who steals it from you!
~ The Coming Storm Over DVDs ~
If you thought Napster caused a stir over trading music and the illegal CD-ROMs people made on their computers, wait until everybody gets a DVD burner!
The average price for an excellent DVD burner has dropped well below $400 and medium to low priced computers now include DVD burners as standard equipment.
The only thing holding back the avalanche of DVD copying seems to be the rather hefty cost of buying blank DVDs.
With an average price of $1.50-2.00 each, blank DVDs cost far more than blank CDs, which run around 20 cents each.
But, if you look back about 6 years, blank CDs used to cost a dollar apiece, so it won't take long for the price of blank DVDs to drop.
When that price drop does come and every home with a computer can also duplicate full-length movies on DVD, watch for one of the biggest upheavals in the history of Hollywood.
It will make the music industry's crackdown on illegal music sharing look as mild as a 5 minute "time out" in the local pre-school class.
~ Yahoo! - Still King! ~
In a bid to capture even more of the world's search engine traffic, search giant Yahoo! recently purchased the web's largest pay-per-click search engine, Overture.com.
In the process (and more importantly), since the commissions from pay-per-click advertising with Overture represent a major source of revenue for most of the other major search engines, Yahoo! definitely holds the upper hand.
www.turnwordsintotraffic.com
New Twist On An Old Scam
Virtually anyone with an email account eventually receives a message running one of the oldest scams in the book.
Often referred to as the "Nigerian Letter," this scam involves getting a message from someone in a foreign country claiming to need a way to get 21.5 million dollars out of the country (the first country used in this scam was Nigeria, hence the scam's name).
He knows that you "are a trustworthy individual" and if you'll just send him your bank account information he will deposit the money in your account and give you 15% of the deposit.
Of course, after you give up your banking information the scammer empties YOUR account.
Well a new scam has spawned to take advantage of one of the web's most successful and widespread activities - online auctions.
The scammer sends you an email offering to purchase an item you're selling through an online auction or in the classified section of your local paper.
They tell you a relative living in the area will pick up the goods, however, when the check arrives, it's made out for more than the agreed price (often thousands more).
The bidder asks you to refund the difference and keep a percentage for your "trouble."
Of course the check is forged and, if you refund the difference, you can kiss your money goodbye.
Moral of the story: free money is only free for the person who steals it from you!
~ The Coming Storm Over DVDs ~
If you thought Napster caused a stir over trading music and the illegal CD-ROMs people made on their computers, wait until everybody gets a DVD burner!
The average price for an excellent DVD burner has dropped well below $400 and medium to low priced computers now include DVD burners as standard equipment.
The only thing holding back the avalanche of DVD copying seems to be the rather hefty cost of buying blank DVDs.
With an average price of $1.50-2.00 each, blank DVDs cost far more than blank CDs, which run around 20 cents each.
But, if you look back about 6 years, blank CDs used to cost a dollar apiece, so it won't take long for the price of blank DVDs to drop.
When that price drop does come and every home with a computer can also duplicate full-length movies on DVD, watch for one of the biggest upheavals in the history of Hollywood.
It will make the music industry's crackdown on illegal music sharing look as mild as a 5 minute "time out" in the local pre-school class.
~ Yahoo! - Still King! ~
In a bid to capture even more of the world's search engine traffic, search giant Yahoo! recently purchased the web's largest pay-per-click search engine, Overture.com.
In the process (and more importantly), since the commissions from pay-per-click advertising with Overture represent a major source of revenue for most of the other major search engines, Yahoo! definitely holds the upper hand.
Friday, November 24, 2006
Funny Money
www.knockknock.biz
Company: Gift and stationery company in Venice, California
Projected 2006 Sales: $3.5 million
Latecomer: Former book editor Bilik was a chronic procrastinator. The idea for her business actually came while putting off the creation of her illustrated memoir. After designing and sending belated holiday cards in January, her friends encouraged her to sell the cards. “Humor is a great way to acknowledge and excuse your own shortcomings,” Bilik says. “January” is now her bestselling holiday card.
Homegrown: With the profits from a real estate sale, Bilik launched Knock Knock in 2002 with 13 products. Buyers were hesitant until they saw prototypes, so a sales company came onboard to help her gain entry into specialty gift stores. Despite difficulties keeping up with orders, sales shot to $650,000 the first year. “The key is resiliency,” says Bilik, who learned quickly from her mistakes.
Culture Clash: Knock Knock acknowledges the oft-unspoken hilarity of life, whether it’s in office politics or relationships. One card, for example, tells the newly single: “Time wounds all heels,” and “You’re better off.” “It’s observational humor,” Bilik says. “Most greeting card companies are so idealized. They’re not funny about the actual occasion.” Knock Knock products, including a dating kit and humorous flashcards, are sold on www.knockknock.biz, in more than 3,000 stores nationwide, and in Canada and the UK. Bilik plans to create additional brands, such as a line of contemporary office products called No. 2, and rework the company’s signature products for mass merchants. Says Bilik, “I’ve inadvertently tapped into a psychology zeitgeist.”
Company: Gift and stationery company in Venice, California
Projected 2006 Sales: $3.5 million
Latecomer: Former book editor Bilik was a chronic procrastinator. The idea for her business actually came while putting off the creation of her illustrated memoir. After designing and sending belated holiday cards in January, her friends encouraged her to sell the cards. “Humor is a great way to acknowledge and excuse your own shortcomings,” Bilik says. “January” is now her bestselling holiday card.
Homegrown: With the profits from a real estate sale, Bilik launched Knock Knock in 2002 with 13 products. Buyers were hesitant until they saw prototypes, so a sales company came onboard to help her gain entry into specialty gift stores. Despite difficulties keeping up with orders, sales shot to $650,000 the first year. “The key is resiliency,” says Bilik, who learned quickly from her mistakes.
Culture Clash: Knock Knock acknowledges the oft-unspoken hilarity of life, whether it’s in office politics or relationships. One card, for example, tells the newly single: “Time wounds all heels,” and “You’re better off.” “It’s observational humor,” Bilik says. “Most greeting card companies are so idealized. They’re not funny about the actual occasion.” Knock Knock products, including a dating kit and humorous flashcards, are sold on www.knockknock.biz, in more than 3,000 stores nationwide, and in Canada and the UK. Bilik plans to create additional brands, such as a line of contemporary office products called No. 2, and rework the company’s signature products for mass merchants. Says Bilik, “I’ve inadvertently tapped into a psychology zeitgeist.”
How You Can Ethically Profit From Your Fiercest Competitors
Jay Abraham
www.abraham.com
I taught one client, who was generating leads for office equipment, how to make more money off his office equipment competitors than he made off his own business. Every time my client mailed 1,000 pieces of direct mail, it cost him $1,000 and brought a 5 percent response - 50 inquiries for $1,000.
Of those 50 inquiries, he would sell 10 percent of five people - meaning he did not sell 45 of them. Until he met me, he just kept sending out 1,000 letters for $1,000, selling five more people and discarding the non-converted prospects. I told him “Your goal is to ethically exploit every profit opportunity in all these prospects and customers.”
First, I had him figure out why the other 45 people didn’t buy from him. He identified some as “tire-kickers”, but most of them didn’t buy for one of four reasons. Either (a) his product of service was too expensive, too complex, too intimidating; or (b) it was not sophisticated enough for them; or (c) his sales personnel irritated the customers; or (d) the price or financial terms weren’t affordable.
That didn’t mean they didn’t want to buy office products. It just meant that client was unable to sell to them. If he could convey these prospects to his competitors – those dealers whose products, services, sales people or pricing were what these people wanted - they could probably sell to many of them.
The client reluctantly allowed me to prove the point. I made a deal on behalf of his office products client for his competitor to work the unsold leads. His client got half of the profit from the sales his competitor made and ended up making more money off the people he didn’t sell than on the ones he did sell. Non-traditional? Yes. Unorthodox thinking? Absolutely. But it quadrupled the profit from the clients business with absolutely no extra effort or expense on the client’s part.
www.abraham.com
I taught one client, who was generating leads for office equipment, how to make more money off his office equipment competitors than he made off his own business. Every time my client mailed 1,000 pieces of direct mail, it cost him $1,000 and brought a 5 percent response - 50 inquiries for $1,000.
Of those 50 inquiries, he would sell 10 percent of five people - meaning he did not sell 45 of them. Until he met me, he just kept sending out 1,000 letters for $1,000, selling five more people and discarding the non-converted prospects. I told him “Your goal is to ethically exploit every profit opportunity in all these prospects and customers.”First, I had him figure out why the other 45 people didn’t buy from him. He identified some as “tire-kickers”, but most of them didn’t buy for one of four reasons. Either (a) his product of service was too expensive, too complex, too intimidating; or (b) it was not sophisticated enough for them; or (c) his sales personnel irritated the customers; or (d) the price or financial terms weren’t affordable.
That didn’t mean they didn’t want to buy office products. It just meant that client was unable to sell to them. If he could convey these prospects to his competitors – those dealers whose products, services, sales people or pricing were what these people wanted - they could probably sell to many of them.
The client reluctantly allowed me to prove the point. I made a deal on behalf of his office products client for his competitor to work the unsold leads. His client got half of the profit from the sales his competitor made and ended up making more money off the people he didn’t sell than on the ones he did sell. Non-traditional? Yes. Unorthodox thinking? Absolutely. But it quadrupled the profit from the clients business with absolutely no extra effort or expense on the client’s part.
Thursday, November 23, 2006
How You Can LEGALLY Buy Stolen Items Online
www.propertyroom.com
(CNNMoney.com) Last year PropertyRoom.com, an auction Web site that sells lost, stolen or forfeited goods from police departments, opened its doors to third-party vendors.
Revenues jumped 33 percent, to $8 million, and are projected to hit $10 million to $12 million in 2006.
PropertyRoom.com has signed up more than 750 departments since it was launched in 1999, and its 70 employees ensure each product's authenticity and condition.
By extending that vigilance to third-party vendors - conducting background checks on all merchants, including jewelers and electronics sellers - the company hopes to allay the concerns of e-shoppers. "We're after a fraud-free environment on the Internet," Lane says.
Today about 50 percent of the site's gross sales come from its third-party vendor program. And the firm is developing new partnerships: selling surplus goods from government bureaus and unwanted props from movie sets.
(CNNMoney.com) Last year PropertyRoom.com, an auction Web site that sells lost, stolen or forfeited goods from police departments, opened its doors to third-party vendors.
Revenues jumped 33 percent, to $8 million, and are projected to hit $10 million to $12 million in 2006.
PropertyRoom.com has signed up more than 750 departments since it was launched in 1999, and its 70 employees ensure each product's authenticity and condition.
By extending that vigilance to third-party vendors - conducting background checks on all merchants, including jewelers and electronics sellers - the company hopes to allay the concerns of e-shoppers. "We're after a fraud-free environment on the Internet," Lane says.
Today about 50 percent of the site's gross sales come from its third-party vendor program. And the firm is developing new partnerships: selling surplus goods from government bureaus and unwanted props from movie sets.
Friday, November 17, 2006
Online Niche Marketing And Your Bottom Line
By Titus Hoskins
www.bizwaremagic.com
Let niche marketing increase your bottom line and show you where the real money is made online. Savvy marketers and webmasters are taking full advantage of this effective marketing strategy, are you?
The Internet is tailor made for niche marketing. As more and more people turn to the web to find the information and products they need, opportunities for online marketers to cash in has never been greater. Buyers now look to the web to find countless products and services not available in their own local areas.
Niche marketing is a simple marketing technique you should be using with your online marketing. Targeting small sections of the vast online consumer marketplace is one of the fastest and surest ways to produce an online revenue stream. Are you taking full advantage of this marketing strategy with your own site or sites?The web and niche marketing has opened up this whole new area in the worldwide marketplace; delicately balancing supply with demand, no matter how obscure or unique the product or service may be.
Niche marketing is catering to these small segments of the marketplace, from mountain climbing footwear to fly tying equipment to home entertainment systems. Narrowing down and targeting a specific market niche or group has proven to be a very effective online marketing strategy.
Internet marketers and webmasters who have searched out and optimized for these small niche markets are reaping the rewards. Those marketers who find the niche markets where there is high demand but very little competition are benefiting the most.
Finding these profitable niche markets is easier than most people believe, mainly because most of the activity on the web is keyword driven or powered. All a marketer has to do is find the keywords or phrases potential customers are using to search for the products they want to acquire.
Savvy online marketers use different keyword research software and online sites to find these profitable keywords. They use software like Nichebot or Keyword Elite and sites like WordTracker and Overture (Yahoo Marketing) to find profitable keywords in their respective niches.
Before any content is created, before any sites are made, before any products are born - these marketers do extensive keyword research to find out exactly what people are looking for on the web. How many searches are made each month and the keyword ratio or competition for their niche keywords.
The objective is to find little known niches where there is great demand but very little competition. Many marketers also use the 'Long Tail' - a whole long list of keywords or keywords phrases that relate to their niche. Creating webpages or content for this Long Tail has proven to be more profitable then targeting general popular keywords.
For example, someone searching for the keyword 'vacation' may just be shopping around or dreaming - whereas someone looking for 'honeymoon vacation Jamaica' may have their minds already made up and are ready to buy... finding a whole (Long Tail) list of keyword phrases where the customer is ready to buy will obviously prove more lucrative than a general list of keywords.
Many niche marketers also use this Long Tail keyword list in combination with targeted articles which they submit and syndicate around the web through such sites as Ezinearticles, GoArticles or IdeaMarketers. Thus, creating high search rankings for the profitable keywords in their particular niche.
Many smart marketers also tie in an informative 'How To' 'Further Information' or 'Special Deals' autoresponder series to keep in touch with their visitors. Knowing that many interested parties may not buy on their first visit, it has been shown that it takes around six or seven follow-ups before many consumers will buy.
For those webmasters who are not extensively into web marketing, joining a free affiliate program like the Amazon Associates program and creating an aStore is an effective way of promoting niche products on the topic of your site. Products can be hand-picked to perfectly fit the content of your site or niche.
Niche marketing is not a complicated process. Anyone can take advantage of these small marketing niches and exploit the demand for countless products and services that have no or little competition. There is no reason why you shouldn't turn the information highway into your own private source of income.
Your bottom line will be the first to thank you!
www.bizwaremagic.com
Let niche marketing increase your bottom line and show you where the real money is made online. Savvy marketers and webmasters are taking full advantage of this effective marketing strategy, are you?
The Internet is tailor made for niche marketing. As more and more people turn to the web to find the information and products they need, opportunities for online marketers to cash in has never been greater. Buyers now look to the web to find countless products and services not available in their own local areas.
Niche marketing is a simple marketing technique you should be using with your online marketing. Targeting small sections of the vast online consumer marketplace is one of the fastest and surest ways to produce an online revenue stream. Are you taking full advantage of this marketing strategy with your own site or sites?The web and niche marketing has opened up this whole new area in the worldwide marketplace; delicately balancing supply with demand, no matter how obscure or unique the product or service may be.
Niche marketing is catering to these small segments of the marketplace, from mountain climbing footwear to fly tying equipment to home entertainment systems. Narrowing down and targeting a specific market niche or group has proven to be a very effective online marketing strategy.
Internet marketers and webmasters who have searched out and optimized for these small niche markets are reaping the rewards. Those marketers who find the niche markets where there is high demand but very little competition are benefiting the most.
Finding these profitable niche markets is easier than most people believe, mainly because most of the activity on the web is keyword driven or powered. All a marketer has to do is find the keywords or phrases potential customers are using to search for the products they want to acquire.
Savvy online marketers use different keyword research software and online sites to find these profitable keywords. They use software like Nichebot or Keyword Elite and sites like WordTracker and Overture (Yahoo Marketing) to find profitable keywords in their respective niches.
Before any content is created, before any sites are made, before any products are born - these marketers do extensive keyword research to find out exactly what people are looking for on the web. How many searches are made each month and the keyword ratio or competition for their niche keywords.
The objective is to find little known niches where there is great demand but very little competition. Many marketers also use the 'Long Tail' - a whole long list of keywords or keywords phrases that relate to their niche. Creating webpages or content for this Long Tail has proven to be more profitable then targeting general popular keywords.
For example, someone searching for the keyword 'vacation' may just be shopping around or dreaming - whereas someone looking for 'honeymoon vacation Jamaica' may have their minds already made up and are ready to buy... finding a whole (Long Tail) list of keyword phrases where the customer is ready to buy will obviously prove more lucrative than a general list of keywords.
Many niche marketers also use this Long Tail keyword list in combination with targeted articles which they submit and syndicate around the web through such sites as Ezinearticles, GoArticles or IdeaMarketers. Thus, creating high search rankings for the profitable keywords in their particular niche.
Many smart marketers also tie in an informative 'How To' 'Further Information' or 'Special Deals' autoresponder series to keep in touch with their visitors. Knowing that many interested parties may not buy on their first visit, it has been shown that it takes around six or seven follow-ups before many consumers will buy.
For those webmasters who are not extensively into web marketing, joining a free affiliate program like the Amazon Associates program and creating an aStore is an effective way of promoting niche products on the topic of your site. Products can be hand-picked to perfectly fit the content of your site or niche.
Niche marketing is not a complicated process. Anyone can take advantage of these small marketing niches and exploit the demand for countless products and services that have no or little competition. There is no reason why you shouldn't turn the information highway into your own private source of income.
Your bottom line will be the first to thank you!
Wednesday, November 15, 2006
10 Marketing Trends to Watch in 2007
By Kim T. Gordon
Entrepreneur.com
An inside look at the latest marketing trends that’ll help you boost your business in the coming year
Throughout 2006, I've been watching and interpreting the marketing stats and studies that impact small businesses to give you tips on staying one step ahead. Now, with 2007 fast approaching, let's look at a roundup of the hottest trends, from changes taking place among consumer audiences through what to watch for in traditional and online marketing. Here's the info you need on the most important trends and how to make the most of them to increase sales and grow your business in the New Year.
Consumer Trends
1. College Grads
If you're searching for the most effective way to reach this desirable prospect group, move your marketing dollars into online media. The internet is now the primary source of media and entertainment among college grads, whose top planned purchases upon graduation are professional clothing, travel/airline tickets, health insurance and furniture according to the “Y2M: eGrad College Graduate Survey”. Nearly 80 percent of respondents are online purchasers, making them ideal candidates for your online campaign.
2. Affluent Working Women
The big news is that this group is increasing in size, and the best way to reach them may be online. According to The Media Audit, affluent working women with family incomes of $75,000 or more are growing in number, and 94.3 percent access the internet during an average month. About half are now considered heavy users of the internet, while heavy use of radio, television, newspapers and direct mail has all declined within this group. To increase sales from this expanding audience, alter your media spending to place greater emphasis online.
3. Asian Population Growth
The southern region of the U.S. boasts the fastest Asian population growth rate (31 percent), followed by the Midwest (24 percent), the Northeast (23 percent) and the West (19 percent), according to an analysis of Census Bureau data in the “American Community Survey” by Kang & Lee Advertising. Asians represent a prospect group with higher than average household incomes and education levels. Can you offer a product or service that will appeal to this growing market?
4. Word-Of-Mouth
Want to build buzz? Lucid Marketing's study, "U.S. Adults: Word of Mouth Communications," found that women were more likely than men to share a positive experience with a business or recommend an enjoyable product; full-time employees made substantially more daily contacts than those not in the workforce; and people with household earnings of more than $100,000 were more likely to make recommendations than those earning less. So buzz marketers should direct efforts to these three "chatty" groups.
Trends in Traditional Media
5. Yellow Pages
According to a study from the Kelsey group, marketers targeting younger demographics should transition away from print. Only 28 percent of teens said they would turn to print Yellow Pages first to find a local business, product, or service, while 47 percent said their first choice would be search engines. And just 44 percent of respondents between the ages and 18 and 34 favored print Yellow Pages.
6. Simultaneous Media Usage
There's no longer such a thing as a captive media audience--consumers are frequently participating in more than one form of media at any one time. Seventy percent of web users, for instance, watch TV occasionally to regularly while online, according to BIGresearch’s “Simultaneous Media Survey.” It also found that nearly 65 percent watch TV while they read, and 51 percent of radio listeners read the newspaper while listening. The rise in multitasking among consumers mandates an integrated media approach and an increased emphasis on advertising within the most relevant and engaging content.
7. Newspapers
This past year, many of the websites of major newspapers have become the number-one portals in their geographic markets and are drawing a larger, younger and more affluent readership. The audience that reads a newspaper’s website but not its print version accounts for 2 to 15 percent of the Integrated Newspaper Audience, according to Scarborough Research, and that represents hundreds of thousands of readers for many newspapers in larger markets. They’re successfully attracting 18-to-34-year-olds to their sites, and the online readers are more upscale, which can make them a more desirable audience. If you're an advertiser in the "print" newspaper, you can negotiate for a combo rate to run online as well to reach these additional readers. And if advertising in the print newspaper is too expensive for your business, you may find more affordable rates online by drilling down past the main pages to place ads on content-rich, but less frequently visited web pages.
Hot Online Trends
8. Web Conferencing
As business travel becomes increasingly challenging due to increased security, advance check-in times and transportation delays, online workshops and meetings that require no travel are coming to the forefront. It’s more desirable than ever to demo your new product to a group or make a sales presentation without anyone ever leaving home. Participants can watch your presentation on their computer monitors and hear you live on their computer speakers or by phone. In fact, I'm now transitioning to this technology to deliver webinars, and you can, too.
9. Online Research
Whether you sell exclusively online or primarily through a brick-and-mortar site, online search will have a profound impact on your sales in 2007. When asked how often they researched products online before buying them in person or in a store, 87 percent of nearly 7,500 respondents to a BIGresearch “Consumer Intentions and Actions Survey” said they did so occasionally to regularly. And a comScore research study showed that 63 percent of searchers completed a purchase in offline retail stores following their search activity. So no matter whether you sell online, off-line or both, you need a great website with deep, persuasive content that keeps your prospects and customers shopping on your site or sends them to your store.
10. Local Search
Want to know where to invest your online marketing dollars in 2007? Aim for higher rankings in the top search engines. Sixty-two percent of searchers click on a link within the first page of results, according to a report from iProspect and Jupiter Research. To win higher rankings in natural search results, you can optimize your site by sprinkling the keyword phrases your best prospects will be searching for throughout all the pages of your site, in your page descriptions and in metatags. You should also secure links to your site from other high-ranking websites. But to guarantee you'll turn up in the top search results, invest in a paid search campaign. Local search campaigns are often the most affordable and will bring traffic from your immediate market area in the New Year.
Kim T. Gordon is the "Marketing" coach at Entrepreneur.com and a multifaceted marketing expert, speaker, author and media spokesperson. Over the past 26 years, she's helped millions of small-business owners increase their success through her company,National Marketing Federation Inc.Her latest book,Maximum Marketing, Minimum Dollars, is now available.
Entrepreneur.com
An inside look at the latest marketing trends that’ll help you boost your business in the coming year
Throughout 2006, I've been watching and interpreting the marketing stats and studies that impact small businesses to give you tips on staying one step ahead. Now, with 2007 fast approaching, let's look at a roundup of the hottest trends, from changes taking place among consumer audiences through what to watch for in traditional and online marketing. Here's the info you need on the most important trends and how to make the most of them to increase sales and grow your business in the New Year.
Consumer Trends
1. College Grads
If you're searching for the most effective way to reach this desirable prospect group, move your marketing dollars into online media. The internet is now the primary source of media and entertainment among college grads, whose top planned purchases upon graduation are professional clothing, travel/airline tickets, health insurance and furniture according to the “Y2M: eGrad College Graduate Survey”. Nearly 80 percent of respondents are online purchasers, making them ideal candidates for your online campaign.
2. Affluent Working Women
The big news is that this group is increasing in size, and the best way to reach them may be online. According to The Media Audit, affluent working women with family incomes of $75,000 or more are growing in number, and 94.3 percent access the internet during an average month. About half are now considered heavy users of the internet, while heavy use of radio, television, newspapers and direct mail has all declined within this group. To increase sales from this expanding audience, alter your media spending to place greater emphasis online.
3. Asian Population Growth
The southern region of the U.S. boasts the fastest Asian population growth rate (31 percent), followed by the Midwest (24 percent), the Northeast (23 percent) and the West (19 percent), according to an analysis of Census Bureau data in the “American Community Survey” by Kang & Lee Advertising. Asians represent a prospect group with higher than average household incomes and education levels. Can you offer a product or service that will appeal to this growing market?
4. Word-Of-Mouth
Want to build buzz? Lucid Marketing's study, "U.S. Adults: Word of Mouth Communications," found that women were more likely than men to share a positive experience with a business or recommend an enjoyable product; full-time employees made substantially more daily contacts than those not in the workforce; and people with household earnings of more than $100,000 were more likely to make recommendations than those earning less. So buzz marketers should direct efforts to these three "chatty" groups.
Trends in Traditional Media
5. Yellow Pages
According to a study from the Kelsey group, marketers targeting younger demographics should transition away from print. Only 28 percent of teens said they would turn to print Yellow Pages first to find a local business, product, or service, while 47 percent said their first choice would be search engines. And just 44 percent of respondents between the ages and 18 and 34 favored print Yellow Pages.
6. Simultaneous Media Usage
There's no longer such a thing as a captive media audience--consumers are frequently participating in more than one form of media at any one time. Seventy percent of web users, for instance, watch TV occasionally to regularly while online, according to BIGresearch’s “Simultaneous Media Survey.” It also found that nearly 65 percent watch TV while they read, and 51 percent of radio listeners read the newspaper while listening. The rise in multitasking among consumers mandates an integrated media approach and an increased emphasis on advertising within the most relevant and engaging content.
7. Newspapers
This past year, many of the websites of major newspapers have become the number-one portals in their geographic markets and are drawing a larger, younger and more affluent readership. The audience that reads a newspaper’s website but not its print version accounts for 2 to 15 percent of the Integrated Newspaper Audience, according to Scarborough Research, and that represents hundreds of thousands of readers for many newspapers in larger markets. They’re successfully attracting 18-to-34-year-olds to their sites, and the online readers are more upscale, which can make them a more desirable audience. If you're an advertiser in the "print" newspaper, you can negotiate for a combo rate to run online as well to reach these additional readers. And if advertising in the print newspaper is too expensive for your business, you may find more affordable rates online by drilling down past the main pages to place ads on content-rich, but less frequently visited web pages.
Hot Online Trends
8. Web Conferencing
As business travel becomes increasingly challenging due to increased security, advance check-in times and transportation delays, online workshops and meetings that require no travel are coming to the forefront. It’s more desirable than ever to demo your new product to a group or make a sales presentation without anyone ever leaving home. Participants can watch your presentation on their computer monitors and hear you live on their computer speakers or by phone. In fact, I'm now transitioning to this technology to deliver webinars, and you can, too.
9. Online Research
Whether you sell exclusively online or primarily through a brick-and-mortar site, online search will have a profound impact on your sales in 2007. When asked how often they researched products online before buying them in person or in a store, 87 percent of nearly 7,500 respondents to a BIGresearch “Consumer Intentions and Actions Survey” said they did so occasionally to regularly. And a comScore research study showed that 63 percent of searchers completed a purchase in offline retail stores following their search activity. So no matter whether you sell online, off-line or both, you need a great website with deep, persuasive content that keeps your prospects and customers shopping on your site or sends them to your store.
10. Local Search
Want to know where to invest your online marketing dollars in 2007? Aim for higher rankings in the top search engines. Sixty-two percent of searchers click on a link within the first page of results, according to a report from iProspect and Jupiter Research. To win higher rankings in natural search results, you can optimize your site by sprinkling the keyword phrases your best prospects will be searching for throughout all the pages of your site, in your page descriptions and in metatags. You should also secure links to your site from other high-ranking websites. But to guarantee you'll turn up in the top search results, invest in a paid search campaign. Local search campaigns are often the most affordable and will bring traffic from your immediate market area in the New Year.
Kim T. Gordon is the "Marketing" coach at Entrepreneur.com and a multifaceted marketing expert, speaker, author and media spokesperson. Over the past 26 years, she's helped millions of small-business owners increase their success through her company,National Marketing Federation Inc.Her latest book,Maximum Marketing, Minimum Dollars, is now available.
Monday, November 13, 2006
1-800-Gone
Kevin Maney at USA Today:
The 800-number — for 40 years a part of daily American life — is doomed. Like what happened to pay phones. And milkmen.
This would be very bad news for phone companies, which rake in $12 billion a year from toll-free numbers.
The 800-number’s destiny first occurred to me a couple of months ago as I stood outside a neighborhood hardware store looking at Weber gas grills. On each grill was a sticker that said if you have any questions, call this 800-number.
Clever, right? Just about anyone who is out looking at Weber grills is probably carrying a cellphone. And a Weber call center person no doubt can explain the grill better than a part-time hardware store clerk.
Except there’s something odd about this equation. Just about everyone who has a cellphone has a flat rate package for local and long-distance calls. In other words, as I stood there with my phone, there really would’ve been no difference whether I called a toll-free 800-number or a “toll” 847 area code number at Weber’s headquarters in Palatine, Ill. Both calls would’ve cost me essentially nothing.
But if I call Weber’s 800-number, the call costs Weber at least a few cents a minute. Those calls add up to millions of dollars a year for a company like Weber.
Huh, I thought. Why would a company spend all that money it didn’t have to spend?
At some point, this will reach a tipping point. Companies will decide they no longer need an 800-number to allow the vast majority of consumers to reach them. When you add it all up, the toll-free-number industry is just going to collapse.
The 800-number — for 40 years a part of daily American life — is doomed. Like what happened to pay phones. And milkmen.
This would be very bad news for phone companies, which rake in $12 billion a year from toll-free numbers.
The 800-number’s destiny first occurred to me a couple of months ago as I stood outside a neighborhood hardware store looking at Weber gas grills. On each grill was a sticker that said if you have any questions, call this 800-number.
Clever, right? Just about anyone who is out looking at Weber grills is probably carrying a cellphone. And a Weber call center person no doubt can explain the grill better than a part-time hardware store clerk.
Except there’s something odd about this equation. Just about everyone who has a cellphone has a flat rate package for local and long-distance calls. In other words, as I stood there with my phone, there really would’ve been no difference whether I called a toll-free 800-number or a “toll” 847 area code number at Weber’s headquarters in Palatine, Ill. Both calls would’ve cost me essentially nothing.
But if I call Weber’s 800-number, the call costs Weber at least a few cents a minute. Those calls add up to millions of dollars a year for a company like Weber.
Huh, I thought. Why would a company spend all that money it didn’t have to spend?
At some point, this will reach a tipping point. Companies will decide they no longer need an 800-number to allow the vast majority of consumers to reach them. When you add it all up, the toll-free-number industry is just going to collapse.
Wednesday, November 08, 2006
Five Ways to Screw-Up a Good Idea
Don The Idea Guy:
Check out the “Five Ways to Screw-Up a Good Idea” below. I’m sure we’ve all been guilty of one or more of them at some point in our life. I know I am!
1. Flies The Coop: You don’t write down the details of the idea, and it slips from your memory.
2. Failure to Launch: You’ve captured the idea, but do absolutely nothing with it.
3. Fear of Loss: You’re not doing anything with the idea, but you’ll be damned if you’re gonna share the concept with anyone else for fear THEY will actually DO something with it.
4. Faulty Follow-Through: You actually make a concerted effort at putting the idea into action — but then you abandon it, half-finished.
5. Fades Away: The idea has been back-burnered for so long that its ‘born-on date’ has expired. The once fresh concept has gone bad — it’s spoiled. Your opportunity to profit from your creative idea has been spoiled by your lack of initiative. Others who may have had the same (or similar) thought put it into action and are reaping the rewards of their hard work while you’re just a little older and (hopefully!) a little wiser.
Check out the “Five Ways to Screw-Up a Good Idea” below. I’m sure we’ve all been guilty of one or more of them at some point in our life. I know I am!
1. Flies The Coop: You don’t write down the details of the idea, and it slips from your memory.
2. Failure to Launch: You’ve captured the idea, but do absolutely nothing with it.
3. Fear of Loss: You’re not doing anything with the idea, but you’ll be damned if you’re gonna share the concept with anyone else for fear THEY will actually DO something with it.
4. Faulty Follow-Through: You actually make a concerted effort at putting the idea into action — but then you abandon it, half-finished.
5. Fades Away: The idea has been back-burnered for so long that its ‘born-on date’ has expired. The once fresh concept has gone bad — it’s spoiled. Your opportunity to profit from your creative idea has been spoiled by your lack of initiative. Others who may have had the same (or similar) thought put it into action and are reaping the rewards of their hard work while you’re just a little older and (hopefully!) a little wiser.
Tuesday, November 07, 2006
How To Make Profits From Niche Markets?
How To Make Profits From Niche Markets?
By Azam Yazid
Do you understand niche marketing? Do you practice niche marketing? Those are among the regular questions I received about niche marketing. And this is the most frequent one:
How To Make Profits From Niche Markets?
To tell you the truth, there is a really simple formula for that (I mean not complex at all)! It is so simple that most people are ignoring it, thus losing money!
The formula lies on the two ways to approach and make profit from niche markets. You would probably hear them before. But, most people didn't know/hear about its 'finer points' - the real secrets to making money which will work - for YOU. That is what you'll learn today!
Now, I'm revealing - the two ways to approach and make profits from niche markets:
The 1st way: Follow Your Passion
The 2nd way: Follow The Money
Many people, mostly beginners, but experts also do choose the 1st way (Follow The Passion). Why this way? Because it's easy! Since you love what you're doing, you'd be good at it. Most probably, you are already an expert - or can quickly become one.
By following your passion, you could head on to build your niche web sites which will be chockfull of contents in various forms, such as:
- articles
- special reports
- ecourses
- information products
- video tutorials
- audio courses
And then you'll turn this wealth of online content into cash - by implementing some revenue models, such as:
- advertising
- direct selling
- selling content
- licensing content
But there are some downsides from this way. They are:
1) You'll need to invest a lot of time and effort - or money - creating the high value resource. Building a content sites need hard work, and furthermore, to keep it fresh and up-to-date need more hard work.
2) This one is more important - the possibility of working in a niche that's just not profitable! I've gone through this mistake - staying stuck creating awesome content resources that drew tons of targeted visitors.... but remained stubbornly unprofitable.
And with that, we'd better go to the next way, whish is to ......Follow The Money (The 2nd Way).
Since our field of interest/passion may not be lucrative, we'd better use this way - another proven model for online success in niche marketing - that is to go to where the money is - even if it doesn't excite you, the financial rewards are greater.
One reminder: if you're thinking to use this way, please remember: The Approach Is Different.
Firstly, you'll need to search for hot niches and find ones that are highly in demand.
Secondly, you'll have to identify keywords people are using to search for information on those niche areas.
Thirdly, you'll have to design web sites optimized for each of the keywords, so they'll rank well on search engines.
Finally, you'll have to to put up as many pages as possible on related keywords, so you'll reach as large audience as possible within your niche.
With this way, your revenue model will be:
- pay-per-click advertising
- brokering the traffic
- list building
- direct selling
The downsides of this way:
- the need for expert niche research
- the need for expert search engine optimization
- the ability to craete multiple web pages quickly
So, think and choose the way wisely and hopefully this article did help you a little in making the decision.
That's the end for this article. How was it? Did you find this article helpful? Hopefully you've gained some ideas about the two potential ways/aprroaches/models to make profits from niche markets. Whichever route you choose to follow, one thing is abundantly clear:
There's money in niches. BIG money.
By Azam Yazid
Do you understand niche marketing? Do you practice niche marketing? Those are among the regular questions I received about niche marketing. And this is the most frequent one:
How To Make Profits From Niche Markets?
To tell you the truth, there is a really simple formula for that (I mean not complex at all)! It is so simple that most people are ignoring it, thus losing money!
The formula lies on the two ways to approach and make profit from niche markets. You would probably hear them before. But, most people didn't know/hear about its 'finer points' - the real secrets to making money which will work - for YOU. That is what you'll learn today!
Now, I'm revealing - the two ways to approach and make profits from niche markets:
The 1st way: Follow Your Passion
The 2nd way: Follow The Money
Many people, mostly beginners, but experts also do choose the 1st way (Follow The Passion). Why this way? Because it's easy! Since you love what you're doing, you'd be good at it. Most probably, you are already an expert - or can quickly become one.
By following your passion, you could head on to build your niche web sites which will be chockfull of contents in various forms, such as:
- articles
- special reports
- ecourses
- information products
- video tutorials
- audio courses
And then you'll turn this wealth of online content into cash - by implementing some revenue models, such as:
- advertising
- direct selling
- selling content
- licensing content
But there are some downsides from this way. They are:
1) You'll need to invest a lot of time and effort - or money - creating the high value resource. Building a content sites need hard work, and furthermore, to keep it fresh and up-to-date need more hard work.
2) This one is more important - the possibility of working in a niche that's just not profitable! I've gone through this mistake - staying stuck creating awesome content resources that drew tons of targeted visitors.... but remained stubbornly unprofitable.
And with that, we'd better go to the next way, whish is to ......Follow The Money (The 2nd Way).
Since our field of interest/passion may not be lucrative, we'd better use this way - another proven model for online success in niche marketing - that is to go to where the money is - even if it doesn't excite you, the financial rewards are greater.
One reminder: if you're thinking to use this way, please remember: The Approach Is Different.
Firstly, you'll need to search for hot niches and find ones that are highly in demand.
Secondly, you'll have to identify keywords people are using to search for information on those niche areas.
Thirdly, you'll have to design web sites optimized for each of the keywords, so they'll rank well on search engines.
Finally, you'll have to to put up as many pages as possible on related keywords, so you'll reach as large audience as possible within your niche.
With this way, your revenue model will be:
- pay-per-click advertising
- brokering the traffic
- list building
- direct selling
The downsides of this way:
- the need for expert niche research
- the need for expert search engine optimization
- the ability to craete multiple web pages quickly
So, think and choose the way wisely and hopefully this article did help you a little in making the decision.
That's the end for this article. How was it? Did you find this article helpful? Hopefully you've gained some ideas about the two potential ways/aprroaches/models to make profits from niche markets. Whichever route you choose to follow, one thing is abundantly clear:
There's money in niches. BIG money.
Niche Your Internet Business
Copyright 2006 Antonio Jimenez
Where ever you go online, you hear the same thing - You must find a niche for your business. If you are new to Internet Marketing, this is advice you will do well to pay attention to.
Every day thousands more people build online businesses in search of wealth. Many jump right into the markets that are already completely saturated and then wonder why they are not making any money.
If they had unlimited time, money and patience, they might succeed. For those that do not have unlimited supplies of these resources, aiming for a smaller niche market is a much smarter way to start your online business.
So just what is a niche?
If you want the long answer, you can buy any one of the thousands of e-books being sold online about niche markets. You can go to a dictionary and see what the definition of niche is. But the short answer of niche simply means distinct or individual.
Everyone wants to start a business based on Internet Marketing. This is how the big guys are making all of their money, so it must be the way to go. There is a problem with that statement. The market is so saturated with people who have years of experience in this area. A new person trying to compete in such a broad market will watch their business die a quick death.
On About.com, Susan Ward defines Internet Marketing as "the strategies that are used to market a product or service online, marketing strategies that include search engine optimization and search engine submission, copywriting that encourages site visitors to take action, web site design strategies, online promotions, reciprocal linking, and email marketing". A new person coming online to start a business has little chance of knowing enough about all the these areas to be able to compete.
So how is a new person to have any chance at success?
Thing Smaller - Think Niche!
Just from the above definition you can come up with the following niches:
Marketing
Search Engine Optimization
Copywriting
Web Site Design
Promotion
Linking
Email Marketing
Even if you are extremely experienced already in one of the above niches, you will still have a lot of competition in such broad niches. This may be what you decide to do in the end, but at least be willing to explore niches within the broader areas. You may find a niche you are much better suited to.
When it comes to finding a niche market, the best resource available online is Wordtracker. You can find pieces of this program on different sites and software programs but Wordtracker brings everything together in one place for those trying to find a good niche to go into.
Using Wordtracker is a breeze. If you want to break Internet Marketing down to many more niche markets, just type in Internet Marketing and look at all the ideas that pop up. Each of these can become keywords that you decide you want to focus your niche on. Or you can pop in those keywords and keep defining your niche.
Using Wordtracker, what you will end with is a list of niche keywords that you can focus your Internet business on. Having a smaller niche will give you a much better shot at being successful then trying to build a site around a broad topic like Internet Marketing.
Remember, success in any business always comes back to supplying a product that the public has a demand for and that the market has room for. Find the right niche and you are on the right path.
Where ever you go online, you hear the same thing - You must find a niche for your business. If you are new to Internet Marketing, this is advice you will do well to pay attention to.
Every day thousands more people build online businesses in search of wealth. Many jump right into the markets that are already completely saturated and then wonder why they are not making any money.
If they had unlimited time, money and patience, they might succeed. For those that do not have unlimited supplies of these resources, aiming for a smaller niche market is a much smarter way to start your online business.
So just what is a niche?
If you want the long answer, you can buy any one of the thousands of e-books being sold online about niche markets. You can go to a dictionary and see what the definition of niche is. But the short answer of niche simply means distinct or individual.
Everyone wants to start a business based on Internet Marketing. This is how the big guys are making all of their money, so it must be the way to go. There is a problem with that statement. The market is so saturated with people who have years of experience in this area. A new person trying to compete in such a broad market will watch their business die a quick death.
On About.com, Susan Ward defines Internet Marketing as "the strategies that are used to market a product or service online, marketing strategies that include search engine optimization and search engine submission, copywriting that encourages site visitors to take action, web site design strategies, online promotions, reciprocal linking, and email marketing". A new person coming online to start a business has little chance of knowing enough about all the these areas to be able to compete.
So how is a new person to have any chance at success?
Thing Smaller - Think Niche!
Just from the above definition you can come up with the following niches:
Marketing
Search Engine Optimization
Copywriting
Web Site Design
Promotion
Linking
Email Marketing
Even if you are extremely experienced already in one of the above niches, you will still have a lot of competition in such broad niches. This may be what you decide to do in the end, but at least be willing to explore niches within the broader areas. You may find a niche you are much better suited to.
When it comes to finding a niche market, the best resource available online is Wordtracker. You can find pieces of this program on different sites and software programs but Wordtracker brings everything together in one place for those trying to find a good niche to go into.
Using Wordtracker is a breeze. If you want to break Internet Marketing down to many more niche markets, just type in Internet Marketing and look at all the ideas that pop up. Each of these can become keywords that you decide you want to focus your niche on. Or you can pop in those keywords and keep defining your niche.
Using Wordtracker, what you will end with is a list of niche keywords that you can focus your Internet business on. Having a smaller niche will give you a much better shot at being successful then trying to build a site around a broad topic like Internet Marketing.
Remember, success in any business always comes back to supplying a product that the public has a demand for and that the market has room for. Find the right niche and you are on the right path.
10 Killer Ways To Multiply Your Sales
articlealley:
By Michel Korn
1. When you make your first sale, follow-up with the customer.You could follow-up with a "thank you" email and include an advertisement for other products you sell.You could follow-up every few months.
2. You could upsell to your customers.When they're at your order page, tell them about a few extra related products you have for sale.They could just add it to their original order.
3. Tell your customers if they refer four customers to your web site, they will receive a full rebate of their purchase price.This will turn one sale into three sales.
4. When you sell a product, give your customers the option of joining an affiliate program so they can make commissions selling your product.This will multiply the sale you just made.
5. Sell the reprint/reproduction rights to your products.You could include an ad on or with the product for other products you sell.You could make sales for the reproduction rights and sales on the back end product.
6. You could cross promote your product with other businesses' products in a package deal.You can include an ad or flyer for other products you sell and have other businesses selling for you.
7. When you ship out or deliver your product, include a coupon for other related products you sell in the package.This will attract them to buy more products from you.
8. Send your customers a catalog of add-on products for the original product they purchased.This could be upgrades, special services, attachments, etc.If they enjoy your product they will buy the extra add-ons.
9. Sell gift certificates for your products.You'll make sales from the purchase of the gift certificate, when the recipient cashes it in.They could also buy other items from your web site.
10. Send your customers free products with their product package.The freebies should have your ad printed on them.It could be bumper stickers, ball caps, t-shirts etc.This will allow other people to see your ad and order.
By Michel Korn
1. When you make your first sale, follow-up with the customer.You could follow-up with a "thank you" email and include an advertisement for other products you sell.You could follow-up every few months.
2. You could upsell to your customers.When they're at your order page, tell them about a few extra related products you have for sale.They could just add it to their original order.
3. Tell your customers if they refer four customers to your web site, they will receive a full rebate of their purchase price.This will turn one sale into three sales.
4. When you sell a product, give your customers the option of joining an affiliate program so they can make commissions selling your product.This will multiply the sale you just made.
5. Sell the reprint/reproduction rights to your products.You could include an ad on or with the product for other products you sell.You could make sales for the reproduction rights and sales on the back end product.
6. You could cross promote your product with other businesses' products in a package deal.You can include an ad or flyer for other products you sell and have other businesses selling for you.
7. When you ship out or deliver your product, include a coupon for other related products you sell in the package.This will attract them to buy more products from you.
8. Send your customers a catalog of add-on products for the original product they purchased.This could be upgrades, special services, attachments, etc.If they enjoy your product they will buy the extra add-ons.
9. Sell gift certificates for your products.You'll make sales from the purchase of the gift certificate, when the recipient cashes it in.They could also buy other items from your web site.
10. Send your customers free products with their product package.The freebies should have your ad printed on them.It could be bumper stickers, ball caps, t-shirts etc.This will allow other people to see your ad and order.
Sunday, November 05, 2006
Top Web Entrepreneurs Paradox
webpronews:
"Trend following" is a strategy normally associated with trading. You won't see it associated with Top Web Entrepreneurs. This is surprising.
The strategy serves both types of activities quite well. I intend to set the record straight with this article!
First, A Bit Of Background
If you lookup "trend following" on Google, it will report that some 286,000 pages mention the expression. I am willing to bet that most, if not all, are related to speculative trading.
However, I am also willing to bet that Top Web Entrepreneurs, whether knowingly or not, use a strategy based on "trend following" to guide them in their choice of Web endeavors.
Let me explain.
I used to invest my money. That has brought me a certain significant return. But, it took decades of compounding the meager crumbs that the banks and other financial institutions were (reluctantly) giving me in interest.
One day, in 1998, I switched strategy. I became a trader. I am what is known as a "system trader". I have developed a system to protect myself while trading. My trading is based on a "trend following strategy".
I'm proud to say that it works remarkably well. For me, that is. There's a catch, you see. It requires strict adherence to the a plan: my plan.
My plan, discipline, tight control over emotions, and patience make up "the name of the game".
What Does "Trend Following Trading" Have To Do With Top Web Entrepreneurship?
The skills required to become a Top Web entrepreneur are not much different than the ones a consistently successful trader uses. Note the use of the word "consistently". Anyone can be a lucky trader. Many think that Top Web Entrepreneurs were lucky to find their "niche". Not so. They all worked hard at identifying it, and at planning how to best exploit it … sometimes months, or years, before the event makes the news.
Top traders also work hard. Most of their energy goes into preserving their capital, so that they will always have enough to trade the next day, and never go broke. They never take risks! They manage risk. There's a major difference.
So much so, that managing risks is the most important factor between success and failure, both in trading, and in business.
When the trend becomes newsworthy, it rapidly ceases to be worthy of exploiting! It is cresting, in it's adult phase, then. It will soon begin to decline.
Top Web Entrepreneurs, just like Top Traders, plan to get in as close to the (confirmed) beginning of the trend as possible. They avoid entry when the trend has already given most people a good run for their money! The probabilities of cresting are getting bigger, at that point. They do not want to enter a trend, just as it is about to decline.
How does one become a successful Web entrepreneur without taking risks?
By testing your ideas "offline" first!
Successful traders, do their testing outside of the markets. That use sophisticated computerized systems, either bought commercially, or home brewed. The very Top traders use home brewed systems. They feed their system years of historical data about the stock, or foreign currency they are interested in trading. The tests are computerized, so they take a few moments only. In a flash, they know what potential their idea may have about that given stock or currency. They also know what the risks are. They can prepare to counter them.
Successful Web entrepreneurs also make use of computers, of course. But not in the same way. They do not have years of historical data to test their ideas on. Only uncharted grounds are potentially ripe to give new types of crops. It's in the very nature of innovative ideas to not have a history.
Top Web entrepreneurs use sophisticated systems to mine the Web for the data they need. They develop their own system (around a strategy), but use the computerized applications that are available on the Web. Remember, the data they need does not exist … at least, not as a coherent, filtered set yet. They have to look for "signs" of it. Then they analyze the signs. This analysis leads them to retain some pieces of data, and reject others as irrelevant. Not an easy task at best.
Top Web entrepreneurs will use their brain, and their experience in a given field of interest, to analyze what they find.
Their imagination gave them a business idea. They will carefully validate it, plan for it, and time their move into implementation.
They are like top competition surfers. They know what signs to look for, and they have the acquired a sense of timing to take advantage of a "building" wave. They are in there even as the wave is beginning to form (below the surface and most everyone's radar). Sometimes, like Top traders, they reach the "zone", totally concentrated. They are already stalking - and preparing for - the next profitable wave (trend), in the right spot, at the right time, before the coveted event even begins to form!
To get there, Top Web entrepreneurs use sophisticated, flexible Web searching tools to mine the Web for information. These tools exist, and are mostly free to use. However, they are scattered, uncoordinated, about the Web. Sometimes, they only exist as "beta" applications that only a few enthusiasts know about.
To give you an idea of what "trend stalking" might mean on the Web, have a look at the "Google Alerts"™, and "Google Trends"™. Many Web entrepreneurs use them, as general purpose tools, in an attempt to identify the "trend" they are looking for.
There are dozens of much more specialized and powerful tools for Web research and analysis available. You just have to try them until you find the ones that best fit your requirements, and personality.
When The Signs Are There
When it begins to look like their idea is being confirmed by enough verifiable signs (note the word verifiable), Top Web Entrepreneurs will immediately start planning it's implementation carefully. They will give it a structure that will later house what they will be offering their targeted clientele. They will also have identified the latter through thorough research.
Their Web business is taking shape offline, at that stage. No risks involved. I hope you get my drift! They make sure their idea will work, before they commit themselves! That's what planning is all about.
The First Small Step
If the idea looks viable, they start small. Very small! Just to give you an idea, I never bet more than one percent - yes, you have read correctly, never more than 1% of my total equity on any given trade idea. That's how small a step I am willing to take at any given time. That should give you a measure of how careful, patient and disciplined successful trading is. After a while, if my trade idea works, I will add to my position progressively. If all the conditions of my trading system continue to be met, I continue to execute my trading plan … in a very disciplined way.
When Top Web Entrepreneurs have thoroughly researched and tested their business idea - offline - they will create the home page of their Web site, and publish it online.
They will slowly add to their position, from there. Meanwhile, they keep up their research effort. They watch for signs of their idea drifting away from the trend they have identified, and chosen to follow.
In fact, they go wherever their traffic leads them. They will patiently, and dutifully follow that trend to destination … and success.
They will publish one - well researched, keyword focused - Web page at a time. They will slowly furnish the structure they planned in the first stages of preparation … and thus progressively increase their "tailor made" offer to their arget clientele.
A New Web Business Is Born!
As you can see, it did not happen suddenly. Nor, was it due to a stroke of luck.
Top Web Entrepreneurs innovate … and follow trends.
That's the "apparent" paradox.
"Trend following" is a strategy normally associated with trading. You won't see it associated with Top Web Entrepreneurs. This is surprising.
The strategy serves both types of activities quite well. I intend to set the record straight with this article!
First, A Bit Of Background
If you lookup "trend following" on Google, it will report that some 286,000 pages mention the expression. I am willing to bet that most, if not all, are related to speculative trading.
However, I am also willing to bet that Top Web Entrepreneurs, whether knowingly or not, use a strategy based on "trend following" to guide them in their choice of Web endeavors.
Let me explain.
I used to invest my money. That has brought me a certain significant return. But, it took decades of compounding the meager crumbs that the banks and other financial institutions were (reluctantly) giving me in interest.
One day, in 1998, I switched strategy. I became a trader. I am what is known as a "system trader". I have developed a system to protect myself while trading. My trading is based on a "trend following strategy".
I'm proud to say that it works remarkably well. For me, that is. There's a catch, you see. It requires strict adherence to the a plan: my plan.
My plan, discipline, tight control over emotions, and patience make up "the name of the game".
What Does "Trend Following Trading" Have To Do With Top Web Entrepreneurship?
The skills required to become a Top Web entrepreneur are not much different than the ones a consistently successful trader uses. Note the use of the word "consistently". Anyone can be a lucky trader. Many think that Top Web Entrepreneurs were lucky to find their "niche". Not so. They all worked hard at identifying it, and at planning how to best exploit it … sometimes months, or years, before the event makes the news.
Top traders also work hard. Most of their energy goes into preserving their capital, so that they will always have enough to trade the next day, and never go broke. They never take risks! They manage risk. There's a major difference.
So much so, that managing risks is the most important factor between success and failure, both in trading, and in business.
When the trend becomes newsworthy, it rapidly ceases to be worthy of exploiting! It is cresting, in it's adult phase, then. It will soon begin to decline.
Top Web Entrepreneurs, just like Top Traders, plan to get in as close to the (confirmed) beginning of the trend as possible. They avoid entry when the trend has already given most people a good run for their money! The probabilities of cresting are getting bigger, at that point. They do not want to enter a trend, just as it is about to decline.
How does one become a successful Web entrepreneur without taking risks?
By testing your ideas "offline" first!
Successful traders, do their testing outside of the markets. That use sophisticated computerized systems, either bought commercially, or home brewed. The very Top traders use home brewed systems. They feed their system years of historical data about the stock, or foreign currency they are interested in trading. The tests are computerized, so they take a few moments only. In a flash, they know what potential their idea may have about that given stock or currency. They also know what the risks are. They can prepare to counter them.
Successful Web entrepreneurs also make use of computers, of course. But not in the same way. They do not have years of historical data to test their ideas on. Only uncharted grounds are potentially ripe to give new types of crops. It's in the very nature of innovative ideas to not have a history.
Top Web entrepreneurs use sophisticated systems to mine the Web for the data they need. They develop their own system (around a strategy), but use the computerized applications that are available on the Web. Remember, the data they need does not exist … at least, not as a coherent, filtered set yet. They have to look for "signs" of it. Then they analyze the signs. This analysis leads them to retain some pieces of data, and reject others as irrelevant. Not an easy task at best.
Top Web entrepreneurs will use their brain, and their experience in a given field of interest, to analyze what they find.
Their imagination gave them a business idea. They will carefully validate it, plan for it, and time their move into implementation.
They are like top competition surfers. They know what signs to look for, and they have the acquired a sense of timing to take advantage of a "building" wave. They are in there even as the wave is beginning to form (below the surface and most everyone's radar). Sometimes, like Top traders, they reach the "zone", totally concentrated. They are already stalking - and preparing for - the next profitable wave (trend), in the right spot, at the right time, before the coveted event even begins to form!
To get there, Top Web entrepreneurs use sophisticated, flexible Web searching tools to mine the Web for information. These tools exist, and are mostly free to use. However, they are scattered, uncoordinated, about the Web. Sometimes, they only exist as "beta" applications that only a few enthusiasts know about.
To give you an idea of what "trend stalking" might mean on the Web, have a look at the "Google Alerts"™, and "Google Trends"™. Many Web entrepreneurs use them, as general purpose tools, in an attempt to identify the "trend" they are looking for.
There are dozens of much more specialized and powerful tools for Web research and analysis available. You just have to try them until you find the ones that best fit your requirements, and personality.
When The Signs Are There
When it begins to look like their idea is being confirmed by enough verifiable signs (note the word verifiable), Top Web Entrepreneurs will immediately start planning it's implementation carefully. They will give it a structure that will later house what they will be offering their targeted clientele. They will also have identified the latter through thorough research.
Their Web business is taking shape offline, at that stage. No risks involved. I hope you get my drift! They make sure their idea will work, before they commit themselves! That's what planning is all about.
The First Small Step
If the idea looks viable, they start small. Very small! Just to give you an idea, I never bet more than one percent - yes, you have read correctly, never more than 1% of my total equity on any given trade idea. That's how small a step I am willing to take at any given time. That should give you a measure of how careful, patient and disciplined successful trading is. After a while, if my trade idea works, I will add to my position progressively. If all the conditions of my trading system continue to be met, I continue to execute my trading plan … in a very disciplined way.
When Top Web Entrepreneurs have thoroughly researched and tested their business idea - offline - they will create the home page of their Web site, and publish it online.
They will slowly add to their position, from there. Meanwhile, they keep up their research effort. They watch for signs of their idea drifting away from the trend they have identified, and chosen to follow.
In fact, they go wherever their traffic leads them. They will patiently, and dutifully follow that trend to destination … and success.
They will publish one - well researched, keyword focused - Web page at a time. They will slowly furnish the structure they planned in the first stages of preparation … and thus progressively increase their "tailor made" offer to their arget clientele.
A New Web Business Is Born!
As you can see, it did not happen suddenly. Nor, was it due to a stroke of luck.
Top Web Entrepreneurs innovate … and follow trends.
That's the "apparent" paradox.
Thursday, November 02, 2006
Breakfast Business Finds a Niche
Business is booming for these entrepreneurs, and they’re not worried about the competition.
When we profiled entrepreneurs David Roth, 44, and Rick Bacher, 38, in our March 2005 issue, their innovative cereal restaurant concept, Cereality, was as fresh as the milk they served. Fast-forward to the pres-ent, and several businesses are dishing out cereal in a similar cafe fashion, including Bowls: A Cereal Joint, The Cereal Bowl and Cerealicious.
Like Cereality, all three competitors sprouted up on or near college campuses. Bowls opened near the University of Florida in Gainesville in 2005 before relocating to North Carolina State in Raleigh. Bowls founder Rocco Monteleone, who says he has never been to a Cereality location, offers croissants, salads and sandwiches in addition to cereal and has created more of a “hangout” feel to his space, which he shares with a hamburger restaurant. Monteleone, 39, projects 2007 sales of $50,000 and is focusing on making the first location a success before planning any expansion.
In 2006, Michael Glassman and Kenneth and Joshua Rader, all 25, opened the doors to Miami-based The Cereal Bowl across from the University of Miami. Projecting first-year sales to reach between $350,000 and $400,000, they’re scouting additional locations and will start franchising next month. The partners serve a variety of cereals, but unique items such as “Oaties” (oatmeal smoothies) and custom cereal-flavored frozen yogurt set them apart. The company has partner-ships with Taylor’s Equipment, Seattle’s Best Coffee and Grandy Oats Granola.
Meanwhile, with four locations open in three states since its launch in 2003, Chicago-based Cereality is pursuing area development franchising and multichannel deals, but that’s just the start of their brand-building effort. Catering large events, Cereality also gets personal with customizable cereal boxes. It partnered with Dodge, turning a Dodge Sprinter into a mobile cereal cafe that toured the country, and is working on a multiyear global deal with a major food manufacturer to license Cereality for snack foods. The company already makes cereal bars as giveaways for companies like Old Navy and is in talks with various hotel chains to create room-service offerings. Says Roth, “We’ve taken a simple idea of giving people cereal in a restaurant-like setting and turned it into an enterprise.”
Roth isn’t sweating the competition, either, saying, “It’s like, ‘Oh, you serve coffee, too?’”
When we profiled entrepreneurs David Roth, 44, and Rick Bacher, 38, in our March 2005 issue, their innovative cereal restaurant concept, Cereality, was as fresh as the milk they served. Fast-forward to the pres-ent, and several businesses are dishing out cereal in a similar cafe fashion, including Bowls: A Cereal Joint, The Cereal Bowl and Cerealicious.
Like Cereality, all three competitors sprouted up on or near college campuses. Bowls opened near the University of Florida in Gainesville in 2005 before relocating to North Carolina State in Raleigh. Bowls founder Rocco Monteleone, who says he has never been to a Cereality location, offers croissants, salads and sandwiches in addition to cereal and has created more of a “hangout” feel to his space, which he shares with a hamburger restaurant. Monteleone, 39, projects 2007 sales of $50,000 and is focusing on making the first location a success before planning any expansion.
In 2006, Michael Glassman and Kenneth and Joshua Rader, all 25, opened the doors to Miami-based The Cereal Bowl across from the University of Miami. Projecting first-year sales to reach between $350,000 and $400,000, they’re scouting additional locations and will start franchising next month. The partners serve a variety of cereals, but unique items such as “Oaties” (oatmeal smoothies) and custom cereal-flavored frozen yogurt set them apart. The company has partner-ships with Taylor’s Equipment, Seattle’s Best Coffee and Grandy Oats Granola.
Meanwhile, with four locations open in three states since its launch in 2003, Chicago-based Cereality is pursuing area development franchising and multichannel deals, but that’s just the start of their brand-building effort. Catering large events, Cereality also gets personal with customizable cereal boxes. It partnered with Dodge, turning a Dodge Sprinter into a mobile cereal cafe that toured the country, and is working on a multiyear global deal with a major food manufacturer to license Cereality for snack foods. The company already makes cereal bars as giveaways for companies like Old Navy and is in talks with various hotel chains to create room-service offerings. Says Roth, “We’ve taken a simple idea of giving people cereal in a restaurant-like setting and turned it into an enterprise.”
Roth isn’t sweating the competition, either, saying, “It’s like, ‘Oh, you serve coffee, too?’”
How To Make $4 Million A Year From An Ugly Website
http://www.bigbadtoystore.com/
Joel Boblit parlayed nostalgia for his childhood toys into big-time business when he discovered how much Transformers - robot action figures whose popularity has continued since the 1980s - were being sold for online. He launched BigBadToyStore.com in 1999 shortly after graduating college, while he was reliving fond memories of trading his favorite childhood toys - GI Joe, Masters of the Universe and Transformers. The biggest challenge in those early days? Boblit admits: "Being teased by my friends."
While in college, Boblit sold action figures as a hobby for extra money, but when he decided to turn his hobby into a business, his parents supported him on all levels. They went heavily into debt to finance the business, and worked 100-plus-hour weeks alongside him for BigBadToyStore. Housing his inventory at one point, his parents had to create aisles in their home to navigate around the ceiling-high boxes. Says Boblit, "They have been instrumental throughout all this and worked just as hard as I did to keep it all together during the tough early years."
BigBadToyStore caters to specialty toy buyers with vintage favorites like Star Wars figurines and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. Boblit also branched out to comic- and movie-related items, earning loyal customers around the world. Serious collectors prize mint-condition toy packaging, so Boblit guarantees his toys by using a grading system to distinguish "standard grade" (mint or near-mint condition) from "substandard grade" packages.
He also offers a premium packing service that ensures an item is in tiptop condition and handled with extra care when it's shipped. Another big draw is the "Pile of Loot" function, which allows customers to stockpile items they've already paid for in a virtual storage bin. Upon the customer's choosing, the company will ship out all the items at once, reducing shipping costs. Future plans include distribution to approved retailers, who can view volume pricing online. Boblit says, "We've got the competitive edge for convenience."
Joel made $4 million dollars in sales in 2005, so the strategy seems to be working.
http://www.entrepreneur.com
Joel Boblit parlayed nostalgia for his childhood toys into big-time business when he discovered how much Transformers - robot action figures whose popularity has continued since the 1980s - were being sold for online. He launched BigBadToyStore.com in 1999 shortly after graduating college, while he was reliving fond memories of trading his favorite childhood toys - GI Joe, Masters of the Universe and Transformers. The biggest challenge in those early days? Boblit admits: "Being teased by my friends."
While in college, Boblit sold action figures as a hobby for extra money, but when he decided to turn his hobby into a business, his parents supported him on all levels. They went heavily into debt to finance the business, and worked 100-plus-hour weeks alongside him for BigBadToyStore. Housing his inventory at one point, his parents had to create aisles in their home to navigate around the ceiling-high boxes. Says Boblit, "They have been instrumental throughout all this and worked just as hard as I did to keep it all together during the tough early years."
BigBadToyStore caters to specialty toy buyers with vintage favorites like Star Wars figurines and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. Boblit also branched out to comic- and movie-related items, earning loyal customers around the world. Serious collectors prize mint-condition toy packaging, so Boblit guarantees his toys by using a grading system to distinguish "standard grade" (mint or near-mint condition) from "substandard grade" packages.
He also offers a premium packing service that ensures an item is in tiptop condition and handled with extra care when it's shipped. Another big draw is the "Pile of Loot" function, which allows customers to stockpile items they've already paid for in a virtual storage bin. Upon the customer's choosing, the company will ship out all the items at once, reducing shipping costs. Future plans include distribution to approved retailers, who can view volume pricing online. Boblit says, "We've got the competitive edge for convenience."
Joel made $4 million dollars in sales in 2005, so the strategy seems to be working.
http://www.entrepreneur.com
Wednesday, November 01, 2006
3 ways to make money with your software
by Jason
37signals:
There are three primary ways to generate revenue from web-based software. Let’s take a look…
Advertising-supported
Give your product away for free and sell advertising around it. You can do this with desktop software (as IM clients usually do) or web-based software.
It’s definitely the easy option for web-based software: Just paste in the Google Adwords include and bam, you’ve got ads. But pasting in ads doesn’t mean you’re pasting in revenue. Unless you have massive traffic, revenue can be very hard to come by using this strategy.
This option also doesn’t work for password-protected, log-in-required products since Google can’t get behind your authentication. If you want ads on a password-protected app, you’ll need to sell them yourself — and that’s a full-time job.
Grade: B-. Personally I don’t like this model because it throws your priorities off — you’re beholden to your advertisers and their screen real-estate demands instead of your customers. It’s tough to serve these two groups at once since their priorities are likely to be different; The advertisers want to win your customers’ attention but customers want to focus on the task at hand. A true win-win is tough in this scenario. Possible, but tough.
Subscription-supported (or single price)
This option asks the customer to pay for the service. This model is really saying, “We think our product is worth paying for and if you agree we’d love to have you as our customer.” It can be a monthly/yearly subscription or a single one-time price like traditional software. From a revenue standpoint, the subscription model really fits. If you look at in reverse, your company is subscribing to each customer’s bank account (not in an evil way, of course).
The downside is that it’s tough to make a product that people will pay for. Some customers are willing to pay but are there enough of them to keep you afloat? That’s part of the territory when you sell anything though. However, if enough of the right customers find you, healthy revenues await. Plus the people who pay you and the people who use the site are the same. That helps bring priorities in line. When there’s a clear connection between customers and revenue, it’s a lot easier to focus.
Grade: A. I recommend this model. If you go into your project thinking you have to build something worth paying for, then you’ll likely build something worth paying for. You’ll try harder because you know it has to be really worth something to people. Of course, even good ideas sometimes fail. But building-to-charge puts you in the right mindset to succeed.
One more thing I’ll say about this: When people pay for your product they have a vested interest in seeing it succeed. They want their investment to be a good one. They want to believe in it and care for it. And they want you to stick around. All that helps ignite passion and interest around what you’re doing and that’s a very good thing.
Support-supported
This is the strategy of the open-source software movement. SugarCRM is a good example of this. Their software is free — but if you want vendor-backed support help you’ll have to pay for it.
Grade: C+. On the surface it seems like a good deal, but for who? If the revenue model depends on helping people, then there’s an implicit motivation to make things difficult instead of simplifying and make things easier. This model punishes tools for being intuitive and easy to use. In essence, you wind up selling complexity and a secret language that only insiders can speak. That’s good for the company but bad for the customer.
A combo meal?
There are other ways to make money off software too. You could create a model that mashes up the ones mentioned above, Or you could license your software to other companies to sell or give away. Or something completely different.
The bottom line
In the end, we think building a real product that people are willing to pay for is the best way to go. It’s a dive with a high degree of difficulty, but if you can pull it off you’ll be swimming in profitable, sustainable waters.
37signals:
There are three primary ways to generate revenue from web-based software. Let’s take a look…
Advertising-supported
Give your product away for free and sell advertising around it. You can do this with desktop software (as IM clients usually do) or web-based software.
It’s definitely the easy option for web-based software: Just paste in the Google Adwords include and bam, you’ve got ads. But pasting in ads doesn’t mean you’re pasting in revenue. Unless you have massive traffic, revenue can be very hard to come by using this strategy.
This option also doesn’t work for password-protected, log-in-required products since Google can’t get behind your authentication. If you want ads on a password-protected app, you’ll need to sell them yourself — and that’s a full-time job.
Grade: B-. Personally I don’t like this model because it throws your priorities off — you’re beholden to your advertisers and their screen real-estate demands instead of your customers. It’s tough to serve these two groups at once since their priorities are likely to be different; The advertisers want to win your customers’ attention but customers want to focus on the task at hand. A true win-win is tough in this scenario. Possible, but tough.
Subscription-supported (or single price)
This option asks the customer to pay for the service. This model is really saying, “We think our product is worth paying for and if you agree we’d love to have you as our customer.” It can be a monthly/yearly subscription or a single one-time price like traditional software. From a revenue standpoint, the subscription model really fits. If you look at in reverse, your company is subscribing to each customer’s bank account (not in an evil way, of course).
The downside is that it’s tough to make a product that people will pay for. Some customers are willing to pay but are there enough of them to keep you afloat? That’s part of the territory when you sell anything though. However, if enough of the right customers find you, healthy revenues await. Plus the people who pay you and the people who use the site are the same. That helps bring priorities in line. When there’s a clear connection between customers and revenue, it’s a lot easier to focus.
Grade: A. I recommend this model. If you go into your project thinking you have to build something worth paying for, then you’ll likely build something worth paying for. You’ll try harder because you know it has to be really worth something to people. Of course, even good ideas sometimes fail. But building-to-charge puts you in the right mindset to succeed.
One more thing I’ll say about this: When people pay for your product they have a vested interest in seeing it succeed. They want their investment to be a good one. They want to believe in it and care for it. And they want you to stick around. All that helps ignite passion and interest around what you’re doing and that’s a very good thing.
Support-supported
This is the strategy of the open-source software movement. SugarCRM is a good example of this. Their software is free — but if you want vendor-backed support help you’ll have to pay for it.
Grade: C+. On the surface it seems like a good deal, but for who? If the revenue model depends on helping people, then there’s an implicit motivation to make things difficult instead of simplifying and make things easier. This model punishes tools for being intuitive and easy to use. In essence, you wind up selling complexity and a secret language that only insiders can speak. That’s good for the company but bad for the customer.
A combo meal?
There are other ways to make money off software too. You could create a model that mashes up the ones mentioned above, Or you could license your software to other companies to sell or give away. Or something completely different.
The bottom line
In the end, we think building a real product that people are willing to pay for is the best way to go. It’s a dive with a high degree of difficulty, but if you can pull it off you’ll be swimming in profitable, sustainable waters.
Tuesday, October 31, 2006
I Have No Product - How Can I Have A Business?
By Kelly Lowe
Having a business does not necessarily mean having your own product. Whether you realize it or not, most brick and mortar businesses do not have their own product. Grocery stores sell products that are produced by other companies. Real Estate offices sell real estate that belongs to other people, car dealerships sell vehicles that are made by automobile makers, and even banks sell products based on other people's money!
There is no reason why you can't sell other people's products to get your business started as well. This doesn't mean that you will always want to solely sell other people's products – everybody knows that the real money is in your own products. But selling other people's products is a way to start a business – and a way to add additional income to an existing business, even if you do have your own product.
Often, people make starting a home business a lot more complicated than it actually is. Sure, you want a plan – but don't plan it to death! Some people plan so much for so long that they never actually 'start' their business. If you are selling someone else's products, all that planning isn't really necessary. In fact, you can literally start your business in one day.
1. Choose a product or a category of products to sell based on your own interests and the popularity of the niche. You can use the keyword research tool at http://www.overture.com to determine how popular a niche is by seeing how many searches have been performed recently for keywords related to that niche. Choose your niche and then find some products. Look for products at http://www.clickbank.com , http://www.paydotcom.com , or http://www.cj.com .
2. Once you've chosen your niche and your products, get your own domain name and webhosting. Go to http://www.godaddy.com for the domain name, and then go to http://www.hostgator.com for your webhosting. Choose the Swampy account at HostGator for the best value. You can add an unlimited number of domain names to your account at no additional cost as your business grows. You should also consider http://www.xaviernelson.com/lifetimewebhosting/ where you can get lifetime hosting for a one time fee.
3. If you know how to design a website, get your website up, and start filling it up with content. Write articles for your site that relate to the products that you are selling, and put your affiliate links in those articles. Post those articles on your site, and also sign up for a Google AdSense account at http://www.adsense.google.com for additional income.
4. Start promoting your website – you are officially in business! A good way to promote your website and start building an opt-in list, which is essential for anyone doing business on the Internet, is to join in Joint Venture Giveaways. One such giveaway is launching soon at http://tinyurl.com/ttkms . Look for other joint venture giveaways as well. You will need a product to give away. Look for private label rights products, or create your own ebook for this.
That's all there is to it. Of course, there are other ways to promote your website that you will learn about as you go along – but this is a starting point. The biggest mistake that most people make is taking no action at all. If you follow the four steps above, you have taken action, and this will motivate you to take additional action.
Stop thinking about it and stop planning. Jump in with both feet! Getting started will cost you less than $25 bucks, and there is no time like the present! This initial investment of your time and effort will lead to bigger and better things!
About the Author
Kelly Lowe is a real work at home professional, and Editor-In-Chief of Real Work At Home Info at http://www.realworkathomeinfo.com/. She strives to show people how they can really earn a fulltime income from home.
By Kelly Lowe
Having a business does not necessarily mean having your own product. Whether you realize it or not, most brick and mortar businesses do not have their own product. Grocery stores sell products that are produced by other companies. Real Estate offices sell real estate that belongs to other people, car dealerships sell vehicles that are made by automobile makers, and even banks sell products based on other people's money!
There is no reason why you can't sell other people's products to get your business started as well. This doesn't mean that you will always want to solely sell other people's products – everybody knows that the real money is in your own products. But selling other people's products is a way to start a business – and a way to add additional income to an existing business, even if you do have your own product.
Often, people make starting a home business a lot more complicated than it actually is. Sure, you want a plan – but don't plan it to death! Some people plan so much for so long that they never actually 'start' their business. If you are selling someone else's products, all that planning isn't really necessary. In fact, you can literally start your business in one day.
1. Choose a product or a category of products to sell based on your own interests and the popularity of the niche. You can use the keyword research tool at http://www.overture.com to determine how popular a niche is by seeing how many searches have been performed recently for keywords related to that niche. Choose your niche and then find some products. Look for products at http://www.clickbank.com , http://www.paydotcom.com , or http://www.cj.com .
2. Once you've chosen your niche and your products, get your own domain name and webhosting. Go to http://www.godaddy.com for the domain name, and then go to http://www.hostgator.com for your webhosting. Choose the Swampy account at HostGator for the best value. You can add an unlimited number of domain names to your account at no additional cost as your business grows. You should also consider http://www.xaviernelson.com/lifetimewebhosting/ where you can get lifetime hosting for a one time fee.
3. If you know how to design a website, get your website up, and start filling it up with content. Write articles for your site that relate to the products that you are selling, and put your affiliate links in those articles. Post those articles on your site, and also sign up for a Google AdSense account at http://www.adsense.google.com for additional income.
4. Start promoting your website – you are officially in business! A good way to promote your website and start building an opt-in list, which is essential for anyone doing business on the Internet, is to join in Joint Venture Giveaways. One such giveaway is launching soon at http://tinyurl.com/ttkms . Look for other joint venture giveaways as well. You will need a product to give away. Look for private label rights products, or create your own ebook for this.
That's all there is to it. Of course, there are other ways to promote your website that you will learn about as you go along – but this is a starting point. The biggest mistake that most people make is taking no action at all. If you follow the four steps above, you have taken action, and this will motivate you to take additional action.
Stop thinking about it and stop planning. Jump in with both feet! Getting started will cost you less than $25 bucks, and there is no time like the present! This initial investment of your time and effort will lead to bigger and better things!
About the Author
Kelly Lowe is a real work at home professional, and Editor-In-Chief of Real Work At Home Info at http://www.realworkathomeinfo.com/. She strives to show people how they can really earn a fulltime income from home.
Monday, October 30, 2006
Top Ten Brainstorming Techniques for Business Success
We experience creativity every time a fresh idea pops into our minds. We recognize creative imagination in everything from a pastel painting to a business plan. By trying these ten tips, you will discover some amazing creative abilities that may surprise you.
1. Substitute someone else's perspective for yours. How would a teacher, lawyer, actor, artist, explorer, journalist, psychologist, engineer, homemaker, child, or accountant approach your idea or subject? Don't know? Ask them!
2. Look at your idea through the eyes of a critic. For each idea, make a list of all criticisms that may arise. Try to develop as many solutions as possible for overcoming obstacles or repairing weaknesses in your idea.
3. Connect your idea to other worlds or fields. Look at the worlds of Politics, Art, Science & Medicine, Hollywood, The Ice Age, Astronomy, Astrology, Ballet, Animation, The Army, Asia, Teaching, Music, Europe, and the like. Can you make an analogy, and what ideas can you draw upon from these fields and worlds?
4. Magnify your idea. What can you do to enlarge, expedite, extend, strengthen, exaggerate, dramatize, or improve your idea?
5. Simplify your idea. Can you condense, trim down, compact, minimize, or narrow your idea?
6. Change your idea. Modify the name, color, sound, shape, form, function, smell, taste, and properties of your idea.
7. Make your idea meet the needs and wants of the masses. Does your idea meet the basic needs and wants of more comfort, money, food, shelter, time, space, convenience, attractiveness, health, and beauty? If not, alter your idea to meet one if not all of these needs and wants.
8. Add more value. What will add more value? Add extra features, durability, safety, thickness, accuracy, guarantees, uses, and freebies.
9. Examine what others have done. Emulate professionals and experts who have had great success with a similar idea or product. Are you facing a problem that has already been solved? Use the past as a tool for experimentation and learning.
10. Flip a coin. When you cannot make a decision, flip a coin. Once the coin falls, use your intuition and gut to make a decision. If you feel comfortable with the result, go with it. If you feel uncomfortable with the coin toss, make the opposite decision.
About The Author
Bea Fields, Southern Pines, NC, USA; bea@fivestarleader.com
http://www.fivestarleader.com/
Bea Fields is an Executive Coach and a Certified Guerrilla Marketing Coach. She is also a Consultant, Trainer, Public Speaker and author of the Five Star Leader e-course. Her area of expertise is that of Leadership Development and Marketing for Executives, Managers, Small Business Owners, and Political Leaders.
1. Substitute someone else's perspective for yours. How would a teacher, lawyer, actor, artist, explorer, journalist, psychologist, engineer, homemaker, child, or accountant approach your idea or subject? Don't know? Ask them!
2. Look at your idea through the eyes of a critic. For each idea, make a list of all criticisms that may arise. Try to develop as many solutions as possible for overcoming obstacles or repairing weaknesses in your idea.
3. Connect your idea to other worlds or fields. Look at the worlds of Politics, Art, Science & Medicine, Hollywood, The Ice Age, Astronomy, Astrology, Ballet, Animation, The Army, Asia, Teaching, Music, Europe, and the like. Can you make an analogy, and what ideas can you draw upon from these fields and worlds?
4. Magnify your idea. What can you do to enlarge, expedite, extend, strengthen, exaggerate, dramatize, or improve your idea?
5. Simplify your idea. Can you condense, trim down, compact, minimize, or narrow your idea?
6. Change your idea. Modify the name, color, sound, shape, form, function, smell, taste, and properties of your idea.
7. Make your idea meet the needs and wants of the masses. Does your idea meet the basic needs and wants of more comfort, money, food, shelter, time, space, convenience, attractiveness, health, and beauty? If not, alter your idea to meet one if not all of these needs and wants.
8. Add more value. What will add more value? Add extra features, durability, safety, thickness, accuracy, guarantees, uses, and freebies.
9. Examine what others have done. Emulate professionals and experts who have had great success with a similar idea or product. Are you facing a problem that has already been solved? Use the past as a tool for experimentation and learning.
10. Flip a coin. When you cannot make a decision, flip a coin. Once the coin falls, use your intuition and gut to make a decision. If you feel comfortable with the result, go with it. If you feel uncomfortable with the coin toss, make the opposite decision.
About The Author
Bea Fields, Southern Pines, NC, USA; bea@fivestarleader.com
http://www.fivestarleader.com/
Bea Fields is an Executive Coach and a Certified Guerrilla Marketing Coach. She is also a Consultant, Trainer, Public Speaker and author of the Five Star Leader e-course. Her area of expertise is that of Leadership Development and Marketing for Executives, Managers, Small Business Owners, and Political Leaders.
5 Things You Must Understand About Marketing to Any Niche
5 Things You Must Understand About Marketing to Any Niche
By Joseph Then
easynicheproduct:
Looking at the title of this article, you might wonder whether or not it could possibly provide you with any valid information. Aren't all niches different? Don't all niches require a different marketing strategy? The answer is both yes and no. While the strategy will remain the same for each niche, you will need to tweak it to fit whatever your specific niche happens to be. Below, I have listed five general prinicples that you will need to understand, regardless of which niche you are marketing to.
1.Effective niche marketing requires a defined niche market. In the initial stages of your planning, you will want to clearly define who your target marketing audience is. If you can't clearly determine who that group is, then you will more than likely have a hard time finding them. After you have marketed to this group, you will then want to move on and market to a broader base; but to begin with, you will want to target this group.
2.Effective niche marketing requires that you, the marketer, determine the interests of your target audience. What is it that your audience wants most? Is it some other product that is already on the market, but with an added feature that is not available anywhere yet? If that is the case, you will want to target that base and offer that feature.
3.Marketing effectively to a niche also requires that you gain at least some credibility with regular buyers with in that given niche. If they already have their experts and their favorite products, they will have little incentive to strike up an interest in you and your products, unless you give them a good reason for why you are a viable alternative or an excellent complement, as the case may be. You can do this in a number of ways, but perhaps the best is to partner with other sites in your niche that are not directly competing.
4.Marketing effectively to a niche also requires fine-tuning. If you plan to release a new product to people who purchase in that niche, actually setup a beta testing session with those specific buyers. Allow them to use your product for free, so they can critique it, which will provide you with a means to upgrade your product, fix features, and add things on that could significantly improve the value of your product for buyers in that niche.
5. Marketing effectively to a niche also requires social proof. Again, this goes back to establishing credibility: in order to market to that select group, which already has its experts and heroes, you will want to generate some type of proof for the quality of your product. You can do this by creating a blog, giving out a demo of your product, and then asking demo users to comment on it on the blog.
And there you have it: five things you must understand about marketing to any niche. If you employ each of these tactics carefully - and fit it to your specific niche - you are certain to reap rewards far beyond your efforts.
By Joseph Then
easynicheproduct:
Looking at the title of this article, you might wonder whether or not it could possibly provide you with any valid information. Aren't all niches different? Don't all niches require a different marketing strategy? The answer is both yes and no. While the strategy will remain the same for each niche, you will need to tweak it to fit whatever your specific niche happens to be. Below, I have listed five general prinicples that you will need to understand, regardless of which niche you are marketing to.
1.Effective niche marketing requires a defined niche market. In the initial stages of your planning, you will want to clearly define who your target marketing audience is. If you can't clearly determine who that group is, then you will more than likely have a hard time finding them. After you have marketed to this group, you will then want to move on and market to a broader base; but to begin with, you will want to target this group.
2.Effective niche marketing requires that you, the marketer, determine the interests of your target audience. What is it that your audience wants most? Is it some other product that is already on the market, but with an added feature that is not available anywhere yet? If that is the case, you will want to target that base and offer that feature.
3.Marketing effectively to a niche also requires that you gain at least some credibility with regular buyers with in that given niche. If they already have their experts and their favorite products, they will have little incentive to strike up an interest in you and your products, unless you give them a good reason for why you are a viable alternative or an excellent complement, as the case may be. You can do this in a number of ways, but perhaps the best is to partner with other sites in your niche that are not directly competing.
4.Marketing effectively to a niche also requires fine-tuning. If you plan to release a new product to people who purchase in that niche, actually setup a beta testing session with those specific buyers. Allow them to use your product for free, so they can critique it, which will provide you with a means to upgrade your product, fix features, and add things on that could significantly improve the value of your product for buyers in that niche.
5. Marketing effectively to a niche also requires social proof. Again, this goes back to establishing credibility: in order to market to that select group, which already has its experts and heroes, you will want to generate some type of proof for the quality of your product. You can do this by creating a blog, giving out a demo of your product, and then asking demo users to comment on it on the blog.
And there you have it: five things you must understand about marketing to any niche. If you employ each of these tactics carefully - and fit it to your specific niche - you are certain to reap rewards far beyond your efforts.
4 Steps For Niche Blogging Success
4 Steps For Niche Blogging Success
By Khemal Dole
paychecksdirect:
Niche blogging has become an extremely popular method of earning revenue with webmasters and internet marketers over the years. The reasons for this are because blogs tend to be easy to get indexed by the search engines, they are very easy to maintain and update and they provide interaction with the visitors and the owner.
There are four simple steps that you should take in order to be successful with niche blogging and they are:
1) Find a niche. This is extremely important as it is very hard to compete with marketers and companies that dominate the much larger niches and they also tend to dominate the search engines for their keywords therefore making it much harder for you to gain good rankings and drive free traffic from the search engines, there is also the fact that the larger niches tend to have millions of competing websites all trying to get higher up the rankings.
You must choose a niche that you can compete in. You can find niches everywhere such as around your home, in the middle of your town, in shops, on article sites, in newsgroups, in magazines, in newspapers and many more places. Nearly anything that people will seach for on the internet can be classed as a niche market for you to earn revenue with.
Always be on the look out for good niches and never stop looking.
2) The content. People will only enjoy and come back to your niche blog if there is great content on it, I mean, why would anyone want to read a blog that was full of bad information? They wouldn't. You need to research and gain knowledge in the niche that you will be working in and you must be able to provide valuable and interesting information to your blog readers.
You can gain knowledge all over the internet and learn about nearly anything you wish with just a little searching. Look through the search engines, websites, articles and even other blogs.
The more you know about your niche, the more chance you have of providing an excellent blog for your market and gaining loyal readers.
3) The traffic. If you want to earn revenue via your blog then you will need to get traffic to it, there is nearly no other way at all to do it. The good news is that there is traffic everywhere on the internet and it is not particularly hard to get it.
You can get traffic to your blog through link exchanging, banner ads, submitting articles, doing press released, using forums, pay per click, email marketing, social networking and many more methods, all you need to do is find out where your market prospects are and drive them to your blog.
Find websites related to your niche that receive a lot of traffic and find a way for you to gain some of that traffic either using paid methods or free.
4) The monetization. You have to monetize your blog in order to earn money, obviously. You can monetize a blog through a number of methods such as adding pay per click ads to it, affiliate links, links to your own products or resell rights products, accepting paid ads, capturing email addresses and marketing to them and more.
The best way to find out the most profitable monetization method is to simply test them. Test which method brings you the most money and stick with it, all you need to do is switch each method around after a certain time period to find out.
By Khemal Dole
paychecksdirect:
Niche blogging has become an extremely popular method of earning revenue with webmasters and internet marketers over the years. The reasons for this are because blogs tend to be easy to get indexed by the search engines, they are very easy to maintain and update and they provide interaction with the visitors and the owner.
There are four simple steps that you should take in order to be successful with niche blogging and they are:
1) Find a niche. This is extremely important as it is very hard to compete with marketers and companies that dominate the much larger niches and they also tend to dominate the search engines for their keywords therefore making it much harder for you to gain good rankings and drive free traffic from the search engines, there is also the fact that the larger niches tend to have millions of competing websites all trying to get higher up the rankings.
You must choose a niche that you can compete in. You can find niches everywhere such as around your home, in the middle of your town, in shops, on article sites, in newsgroups, in magazines, in newspapers and many more places. Nearly anything that people will seach for on the internet can be classed as a niche market for you to earn revenue with.
Always be on the look out for good niches and never stop looking.
2) The content. People will only enjoy and come back to your niche blog if there is great content on it, I mean, why would anyone want to read a blog that was full of bad information? They wouldn't. You need to research and gain knowledge in the niche that you will be working in and you must be able to provide valuable and interesting information to your blog readers.
You can gain knowledge all over the internet and learn about nearly anything you wish with just a little searching. Look through the search engines, websites, articles and even other blogs.
The more you know about your niche, the more chance you have of providing an excellent blog for your market and gaining loyal readers.
3) The traffic. If you want to earn revenue via your blog then you will need to get traffic to it, there is nearly no other way at all to do it. The good news is that there is traffic everywhere on the internet and it is not particularly hard to get it.
You can get traffic to your blog through link exchanging, banner ads, submitting articles, doing press released, using forums, pay per click, email marketing, social networking and many more methods, all you need to do is find out where your market prospects are and drive them to your blog.
Find websites related to your niche that receive a lot of traffic and find a way for you to gain some of that traffic either using paid methods or free.
4) The monetization. You have to monetize your blog in order to earn money, obviously. You can monetize a blog through a number of methods such as adding pay per click ads to it, affiliate links, links to your own products or resell rights products, accepting paid ads, capturing email addresses and marketing to them and more.
The best way to find out the most profitable monetization method is to simply test them. Test which method brings you the most money and stick with it, all you need to do is switch each method around after a certain time period to find out.
How to Launch a Career With Your Blog
Your blog can get you the career of your dreams.
fastcompany:
Silicon Valley start-ups and media behemoths aren't the only ones realizing the rewards of the rebounding Web economy. Already, many A-list bloggers have generated significant income from running advertisements on their blogs. Though with an estimated 53.4 million blogs expected to launch by year-end, according to Perseus Development Corporation, it's safe to assume that not everyone is going to get rich from blogging. So what's in it for the up-and-coming blogger, beyond creative self-expression?
Blogging can be transformative –- placing you on a new career path, earning you a book deal, or catapulting you into the field of your dreams. Just ask some of the folks we spoke with.
"My blog has led me to change my life," says Jeff Jarvis, author of the media and news blog, Buzz Machine. "I left my corporate job to take the consulting gigs, speaking gigs, and writing gigs that have come my way as a result of the reputation I built up through my blog."
Jarvis, a former critic for People and TV Guide and a founding editor of Entertainment Weekly, gained blog popularity while criticizing mainstream media and lauding citizen media. He eventually said good-bye to his full time gig to consult for The New York Times Company and the Guardian, among other media companies. He's also associate professor and director of the interactive journalism program the City University of New York’s new Graduate School of Journalism. "All of that came about from the blog," says Jarvis.
Hugh McLeod, artist and creator of the blog, GapingVoid, which was rated as the most influential UK blog in a recent survey conducted by Edelman and Technorati, has also parlayed his blog into a consulting gig from his former career on Madison Avenue executive. McLeod's blog began in 2003 as a forum for sharing his thoughts and his cartoons about blogging, marketing, and life. He later turned Blog Cards and limited editions of t-shirts, both bearing images from his cartoons, into successful ventures. Later it led to other professional opportunities as a marketing and blogging consultant for the South African vineyard, Stormhoek. He also does marketing for a bespoke Savile Row tailoring firm, and recently acted as blog consultant for the feature film, Hallam Foe.
"My focus has shifted away from the blogosphere a lot in the last year, towards the more capitalist world of selling wine," wrote McLeod on his blog this week.
Blogs can also lead to full-time conventional employment, particularly for people who work in media. Blogs can provide a talent pool, from which mainstream media outlets recruit staff. In the past month, two bloggers were hired for high-profile positions in mainstream media because they earned reputations for their unique approaches to writing celebrity gossip. Corynne Steindler, editor of the media gossip blog, Jossip, was hired to write for the New York Post's Page Six and Gawker's Jessica Coen was hired to be deputy online editor for Vanity Fair.
"It makes sense for people to discover talent this way," says Jarvis. "I've had people tell me they wouldn't hire [a writer] without reading their blog. I've encouraged all my students to start one."
Gone are the days of sending in clips or walking a portfolio into an office. Employers, like everyone else, are checking out potential hires on the Internet with a few clicks of a mouse. Writing a blog, could improve your chances as a candidate because an updated sites boosts your ranking in search engines and offers potential employers a full sense of who you are. "I have gotten a couple of freelance clients from my blog, simply because they liked my writing style," says Laina Dawes, a freelance writer and the creator of the blog, Writing is Fighting.
"I also think that by linking to articles you have written, online or otherwise, tells your readers that you are active and serious about writing or whatever profession that matches your personal blog to your chosen profession," Dawes says.
According to Jarvis, a personal blog can function as a promotional platform for people in any profession.
"When people go looking for thoughtful people to work with, like anything else, they're going to Google it. If they come across you, and find that you have good things to say, you're steps ahead of the next guy, who the person doesn't know," says Jarvis.
Sarah Brown, who writes the blog, Que Sera Sera, used her blog to promote Cringe, her reading series in which people read excerpts from their teenage diaries.
"I've really lucked out in that my blog-reading audience has helped promote my non-blog endeavors," says Brown.
Sarah now has a deal with Crown to write a book based on Cringe and she is co-producing a Cringe television show.
"I'm glad that my recent success was buoyed by my blog and its readers, but is not actually blog-related," says Brown. "I'm much happier being known to the world as the person behind Cringe who also writes, rather than the person behind Que Sera Sera who also Cringes."
Brown joins a long list of bloggers whose blogs have led to book deals with major publishing houses.
Stephanie Klein, writer of the blog, Greek Tragedy, caused a stir in 2005 with her six-figure, two book deal. Ana Marie Cox of Wonkette and Jessica Cutler of Washingtonienne, also signed big blog-to-book deals.
While books based on blogs have met with mixed success, the fiercely loyal community a writer can establish through a blog keeps agents and publishers searching the blogosphere for their next author.
It is the community that a blog engenders that can lead directly or indirectly to career opportunities.
"Blogs enable you to have a relationship with your public, whatever that public is," says Jarvis. "Having a conversation with people -- that will yield dividends."
fastcompany:
Silicon Valley start-ups and media behemoths aren't the only ones realizing the rewards of the rebounding Web economy. Already, many A-list bloggers have generated significant income from running advertisements on their blogs. Though with an estimated 53.4 million blogs expected to launch by year-end, according to Perseus Development Corporation, it's safe to assume that not everyone is going to get rich from blogging. So what's in it for the up-and-coming blogger, beyond creative self-expression?
Blogging can be transformative –- placing you on a new career path, earning you a book deal, or catapulting you into the field of your dreams. Just ask some of the folks we spoke with.
"My blog has led me to change my life," says Jeff Jarvis, author of the media and news blog, Buzz Machine. "I left my corporate job to take the consulting gigs, speaking gigs, and writing gigs that have come my way as a result of the reputation I built up through my blog."
Jarvis, a former critic for People and TV Guide and a founding editor of Entertainment Weekly, gained blog popularity while criticizing mainstream media and lauding citizen media. He eventually said good-bye to his full time gig to consult for The New York Times Company and the Guardian, among other media companies. He's also associate professor and director of the interactive journalism program the City University of New York’s new Graduate School of Journalism. "All of that came about from the blog," says Jarvis.
Hugh McLeod, artist and creator of the blog, GapingVoid, which was rated as the most influential UK blog in a recent survey conducted by Edelman and Technorati, has also parlayed his blog into a consulting gig from his former career on Madison Avenue executive. McLeod's blog began in 2003 as a forum for sharing his thoughts and his cartoons about blogging, marketing, and life. He later turned Blog Cards and limited editions of t-shirts, both bearing images from his cartoons, into successful ventures. Later it led to other professional opportunities as a marketing and blogging consultant for the South African vineyard, Stormhoek. He also does marketing for a bespoke Savile Row tailoring firm, and recently acted as blog consultant for the feature film, Hallam Foe.
"My focus has shifted away from the blogosphere a lot in the last year, towards the more capitalist world of selling wine," wrote McLeod on his blog this week.
Blogs can also lead to full-time conventional employment, particularly for people who work in media. Blogs can provide a talent pool, from which mainstream media outlets recruit staff. In the past month, two bloggers were hired for high-profile positions in mainstream media because they earned reputations for their unique approaches to writing celebrity gossip. Corynne Steindler, editor of the media gossip blog, Jossip, was hired to write for the New York Post's Page Six and Gawker's Jessica Coen was hired to be deputy online editor for Vanity Fair.
"It makes sense for people to discover talent this way," says Jarvis. "I've had people tell me they wouldn't hire [a writer] without reading their blog. I've encouraged all my students to start one."
Gone are the days of sending in clips or walking a portfolio into an office. Employers, like everyone else, are checking out potential hires on the Internet with a few clicks of a mouse. Writing a blog, could improve your chances as a candidate because an updated sites boosts your ranking in search engines and offers potential employers a full sense of who you are. "I have gotten a couple of freelance clients from my blog, simply because they liked my writing style," says Laina Dawes, a freelance writer and the creator of the blog, Writing is Fighting.
"I also think that by linking to articles you have written, online or otherwise, tells your readers that you are active and serious about writing or whatever profession that matches your personal blog to your chosen profession," Dawes says.
According to Jarvis, a personal blog can function as a promotional platform for people in any profession.
"When people go looking for thoughtful people to work with, like anything else, they're going to Google it. If they come across you, and find that you have good things to say, you're steps ahead of the next guy, who the person doesn't know," says Jarvis.
Sarah Brown, who writes the blog, Que Sera Sera, used her blog to promote Cringe, her reading series in which people read excerpts from their teenage diaries.
"I've really lucked out in that my blog-reading audience has helped promote my non-blog endeavors," says Brown.
Sarah now has a deal with Crown to write a book based on Cringe and she is co-producing a Cringe television show.
"I'm glad that my recent success was buoyed by my blog and its readers, but is not actually blog-related," says Brown. "I'm much happier being known to the world as the person behind Cringe who also writes, rather than the person behind Que Sera Sera who also Cringes."
Brown joins a long list of bloggers whose blogs have led to book deals with major publishing houses.
Stephanie Klein, writer of the blog, Greek Tragedy, caused a stir in 2005 with her six-figure, two book deal. Ana Marie Cox of Wonkette and Jessica Cutler of Washingtonienne, also signed big blog-to-book deals.
While books based on blogs have met with mixed success, the fiercely loyal community a writer can establish through a blog keeps agents and publishers searching the blogosphere for their next author.
It is the community that a blog engenders that can lead directly or indirectly to career opportunities.
"Blogs enable you to have a relationship with your public, whatever that public is," says Jarvis. "Having a conversation with people -- that will yield dividends."
Top 10 Dumbest Online Business Ideas That Made It Big Time.
WeirdTechNewsHub:
1. Million Dollar Homepage
1000000 pixels, charge a dollar per pixel – that’s perhaps the dumbest idea for online business anyone could have possible come up with. Still, Alex Tew, a 21-year-old who came up with the idea, is now a millionaire.
2. SantaMail
Ok, how’s that for a brilliant idea. Get a postal address at North Pole, Alaska, pretend you are Santa Claus and charge parents 10 bucks for every letter you send to their kids? Well, Byron Reese sent over 200000 letters since the start of the business in 2001, which makes him a couple million dollars richer.
3. Doggles
Create goggles for dogs and sell them online? Boy, this IS the dumbest idea for a business. How in the world did they manage to become millionaires and have shops all over the world with that one? Beyond me.
4. LaserMonks
LaserMonks.com is a for-profit subsidiary of the Cistercian Abbey of Our Lady of Spring Bank, an eight-monk monastery in the hills of Monroe County, 90 miles northwest of Madison. Yeah, real monks refilling your cartridges. Hallelujah! Their 2005 sales were $2.5 million! Praise the Lord.
5. AntennaBalls
You can’t sell antenna ball online. There is no way. And surely it wouldn’t make you rich. But this is exactly what Jason Wall did, and now he is now a millionaire.
6. FitDeck
Create a deck of cards featuring exercise routines, and sell it online for $18.95. Sounds like a disaster idea to me. But former Navy SEAL and fitness instructor Phil Black reported last year sales of $4.7 million. Surely beats what military pays.
7. PositivesDating.Com
How would you like to go on a date with an HIV positive person? Paul Graves and Brandon Koechlin thought that someone would, so they created a dating site for HIV positive folks last year. Projected 2006 sales are $110,000, and the two hope to have 50,000 members by their two-year mark.
8. Designer Diaper Bags
Christie Rein was tired of carrying diapers around in a freezer bag. The 34-year-old mother of three found herself constantly stuffing diapers for her infant son into freezer bags to keep them from getting scrunched up in her purse. Rein wanted something that was compact, sleek and stylish, so in November 2004, she sat down with her husband, Marcus, who helped her design a custom diaper bag that's big enough to hold a travel pack of wipes and two to four diapers. With more than $180,000 in sales for 2005, Christie's company, Diapees & Wipees, has bags in 22 different styles, available online and in 120 boutiques across the globe for $14.99.
9. TruGamerz
Faux-suede padded covers for game controllers and gel thumb pads for analog joysticks? No one will buy that. Forget it. The product proved to be so popular, it got picked up by Target.com and Walmart.com and annual sales new exceed half a million dollars.
10. Lucky Wishbone Co.
Fake wishbones. Now, this stupid idea is just destined to flop. Who in the world needs FAKE PLASTIC wishbones? A lot of people, it turns out. Now producing 30,000 wishbones daily (they retail for 3 bucks a pop) Ken Ahroni, the company founder, expects 2006 sales to reach $1 million.
1. Million Dollar Homepage
1000000 pixels, charge a dollar per pixel – that’s perhaps the dumbest idea for online business anyone could have possible come up with. Still, Alex Tew, a 21-year-old who came up with the idea, is now a millionaire.
2. SantaMail
Ok, how’s that for a brilliant idea. Get a postal address at North Pole, Alaska, pretend you are Santa Claus and charge parents 10 bucks for every letter you send to their kids? Well, Byron Reese sent over 200000 letters since the start of the business in 2001, which makes him a couple million dollars richer.
3. Doggles
Create goggles for dogs and sell them online? Boy, this IS the dumbest idea for a business. How in the world did they manage to become millionaires and have shops all over the world with that one? Beyond me.
4. LaserMonks
LaserMonks.com is a for-profit subsidiary of the Cistercian Abbey of Our Lady of Spring Bank, an eight-monk monastery in the hills of Monroe County, 90 miles northwest of Madison. Yeah, real monks refilling your cartridges. Hallelujah! Their 2005 sales were $2.5 million! Praise the Lord.
5. AntennaBalls
You can’t sell antenna ball online. There is no way. And surely it wouldn’t make you rich. But this is exactly what Jason Wall did, and now he is now a millionaire.
6. FitDeck
Create a deck of cards featuring exercise routines, and sell it online for $18.95. Sounds like a disaster idea to me. But former Navy SEAL and fitness instructor Phil Black reported last year sales of $4.7 million. Surely beats what military pays.
7. PositivesDating.Com
How would you like to go on a date with an HIV positive person? Paul Graves and Brandon Koechlin thought that someone would, so they created a dating site for HIV positive folks last year. Projected 2006 sales are $110,000, and the two hope to have 50,000 members by their two-year mark.
8. Designer Diaper Bags
Christie Rein was tired of carrying diapers around in a freezer bag. The 34-year-old mother of three found herself constantly stuffing diapers for her infant son into freezer bags to keep them from getting scrunched up in her purse. Rein wanted something that was compact, sleek and stylish, so in November 2004, she sat down with her husband, Marcus, who helped her design a custom diaper bag that's big enough to hold a travel pack of wipes and two to four diapers. With more than $180,000 in sales for 2005, Christie's company, Diapees & Wipees, has bags in 22 different styles, available online and in 120 boutiques across the globe for $14.99.
9. TruGamerz
Faux-suede padded covers for game controllers and gel thumb pads for analog joysticks? No one will buy that. Forget it. The product proved to be so popular, it got picked up by Target.com and Walmart.com and annual sales new exceed half a million dollars.
10. Lucky Wishbone Co.
Fake wishbones. Now, this stupid idea is just destined to flop. Who in the world needs FAKE PLASTIC wishbones? A lot of people, it turns out. Now producing 30,000 wishbones daily (they retail for 3 bucks a pop) Ken Ahroni, the company founder, expects 2006 sales to reach $1 million.
Sunday, October 29, 2006
How To Make Money Flipping Websites
THE ANGLE: Improving and Reselling Web Properties
Jermaine Jones Story
http://411hype.com/
The 20-year-old aspiring producer is a hip-hop fanatic. Yet even though his locale is far more about Tennessee twang than beats and bling, Jones has found a way to pursue his rap passion and earn some easy cash without having to leave home--thanks to his clever exploitation of yet another method of making money on the Web.
Last August, Jones paid $1,000 to buy 411Hype.com, a website about all things hip-hop. He beefed it up--added some forums about fitness and health, for example--and managed to boost traffic by a couple thousand unique visitors, to 7,000 a month. Then, in late March, Jones put the site up for sale on a marketplace called SitePoint. He was bombarded with offers, quickly closing a deal for about $13,500. "I spent less than an hour a day on the site," Jones says.
For obvious reasons, the big acquisitions by News Corp.'s Rupert Murdoch, the Yahoo brain trust, and the boys at Google get most of the media attention. But every day, scores of small-scale Internet entrepreneurs are buying and selling simple-to-make, simple-to-run sites for thousands, even tens of thousands, of dollars. These aren't just domain-name plays. The strategy involves spotting the potential of an existing website and then rehabbing it for your own portfolio or flipping it to someone else--and it's taking off, thanks to the froth created by high-priced deals like News Corp.'s $580 million acquisition of MySpace. "The feeling is there's massive growth to come," says SitePoint CEO Mark Harbottle, "that it's all just starting to explode."
While several places exist online to buy and sell already-built websites--eBay has a section, for example--SitePoint, a tech-focused publishing company, is the favorite of Web-savvy entrepreneurs. A year ago SitePoint added a market-place where, for a minimum of $10, people can list their sites for sale or auction them off. Demand has soared: In April, SitePoint added about 400 new listings, a figure that's growing by about 25 percent per month.
All sorts of sites are available--blogs, game sites, dating sites, entertainment sites--requiring varying degrees of expertise to run. You can build a site from scratch and flip it, or take Jones's route: Buy an existing site you think you can improve and resell. The key is to understand what you're buying. Start with the basics: See where the site pops up on a Google search. Amazon's Alexa.com ranks traffic. The seller will provide revenue stats, and you can scan message boards at SitePoint to assess a seller's credibility. And, of course, you need a plan.
411Hype.com, for instance, was a basic message board with various topics related to hip-hop when Jones bought it from a college kid who had never bothered to seek advertisers. At the time, the site was getting about 1,000 unique hits a day. To broaden its scope, Jones added topics he thought would appeal to his demographic, mainly guys in their teens and 20s. He spent time on the forums at SitePoint and DNForum, another popular site for small Web entrepreneurs, and posted threads saying he was looking for advertisers. That generated inquiries, and Jones sold some ad spots for $100 a month, quickly recouping his investment. He also used Adbrite.com, which sells space for many websites, to place ads.
Traffic steadily improved. Jones further boosted his ad revenue by signing up with Yahoo's Publisher Network and CasaleMedia.com, an ad network that works with publishers whose sites have no more than 10,000 monthly unique visitors. When he sold the site, it was earning $900 to $1,000 a month. Best of all, for Jones, nurturing the site was a blast. "The key is to be into the topic," advises Jones, who is now at work on an e-commerce site and will start college in the fall. "Then it's easy to figure out what your audience might want."
Jermaine Jones Story
http://411hype.com/
The 20-year-old aspiring producer is a hip-hop fanatic. Yet even though his locale is far more about Tennessee twang than beats and bling, Jones has found a way to pursue his rap passion and earn some easy cash without having to leave home--thanks to his clever exploitation of yet another method of making money on the Web.
Last August, Jones paid $1,000 to buy 411Hype.com, a website about all things hip-hop. He beefed it up--added some forums about fitness and health, for example--and managed to boost traffic by a couple thousand unique visitors, to 7,000 a month. Then, in late March, Jones put the site up for sale on a marketplace called SitePoint. He was bombarded with offers, quickly closing a deal for about $13,500. "I spent less than an hour a day on the site," Jones says.
For obvious reasons, the big acquisitions by News Corp.'s Rupert Murdoch, the Yahoo brain trust, and the boys at Google get most of the media attention. But every day, scores of small-scale Internet entrepreneurs are buying and selling simple-to-make, simple-to-run sites for thousands, even tens of thousands, of dollars. These aren't just domain-name plays. The strategy involves spotting the potential of an existing website and then rehabbing it for your own portfolio or flipping it to someone else--and it's taking off, thanks to the froth created by high-priced deals like News Corp.'s $580 million acquisition of MySpace. "The feeling is there's massive growth to come," says SitePoint CEO Mark Harbottle, "that it's all just starting to explode."
While several places exist online to buy and sell already-built websites--eBay has a section, for example--SitePoint, a tech-focused publishing company, is the favorite of Web-savvy entrepreneurs. A year ago SitePoint added a market-place where, for a minimum of $10, people can list their sites for sale or auction them off. Demand has soared: In April, SitePoint added about 400 new listings, a figure that's growing by about 25 percent per month.
All sorts of sites are available--blogs, game sites, dating sites, entertainment sites--requiring varying degrees of expertise to run. You can build a site from scratch and flip it, or take Jones's route: Buy an existing site you think you can improve and resell. The key is to understand what you're buying. Start with the basics: See where the site pops up on a Google search. Amazon's Alexa.com ranks traffic. The seller will provide revenue stats, and you can scan message boards at SitePoint to assess a seller's credibility. And, of course, you need a plan.
411Hype.com, for instance, was a basic message board with various topics related to hip-hop when Jones bought it from a college kid who had never bothered to seek advertisers. At the time, the site was getting about 1,000 unique hits a day. To broaden its scope, Jones added topics he thought would appeal to his demographic, mainly guys in their teens and 20s. He spent time on the forums at SitePoint and DNForum, another popular site for small Web entrepreneurs, and posted threads saying he was looking for advertisers. That generated inquiries, and Jones sold some ad spots for $100 a month, quickly recouping his investment. He also used Adbrite.com, which sells space for many websites, to place ads.
Traffic steadily improved. Jones further boosted his ad revenue by signing up with Yahoo's Publisher Network and CasaleMedia.com, an ad network that works with publishers whose sites have no more than 10,000 monthly unique visitors. When he sold the site, it was earning $900 to $1,000 a month. Best of all, for Jones, nurturing the site was a blast. "The key is to be into the topic," advises Jones, who is now at work on an e-commerce site and will start college in the fall. "Then it's easy to figure out what your audience might want."
Friday, October 27, 2006
Niches in E-Commerce
The heavyweights of the online business community have served as building blocks of this bustling community. We have here the likes of Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Good Guys, Best Buy. However, they are not the only ones who can play the e-commerce game. It is just as much everyone’s playing field. Even without the clout of a Fortune 500 corporation, relatively smaller businesses can still make their mark – and their profits – in this world. You just need to find your niche among these giants and adapt yourself to thrive there.
niche: 1) a recess in the wall; 2) a place, employment, status, or activity for which a person is best fitted; 3) a specialized market.
“Niche” comes from a French word that means “to nest” – which is exactly what small companies should do: fill the small voids left by the big birds. Instead of going head on head with them, turn instead to the niches.
So what exactly are these niches? We have the Unfilled niches, Poorly filled niches, Partly filled niches, and the Niches that have yet to be created.
Unfilled Niches
Statistically speaking, the chances of finding a niche that nobody is filling are low – however it still is possible. This is best statement to sum this up would be: Find a need and fill it. Know your customers, and pick out a particular group that you know best. The following questions could help gain some key insights in your chosen field:
Who are your customers?
What are they asking for?
What would they like?
What keeps them from filling this need on their own and gaining success?
Your interest along with any background or training should give you the vision and the muscle to see and realize these opportunities. You could go ahead and develop a new or improved product, service or even business process. This, with the Internet’s power harnessed can certainly help you make your mark.
Poorly Filled/Realized/Utilized Niches
In contrast to unfilled niches, poorly filled niches are exceedingly common. With so much that you can expect from the Internet, it is extremely frustrating to actually find something not available online – when you know that people out there are aware that the need exists. There may be sites out there that attempt to address this need – but the customer enters the website with a lot of questions, and leaves with still a lot, if not more unanswered questions. Or it could be populated by sites that make it easy to avail of peripheral products, or that do not provide expert opinion or customer feedback, etc. In short, poorly filled niches are those that don’t have a single ‘best’ or ‘greatest’ place online to provide for the customers’ needs. The solution? Build one yourself.
Partly Filled Niches
There may be many eggs in the basket – but don’t count your chicks till they’re all hatched. In the same way, a particular area for a particular need may already have several hundreds or even thousands of websites attempting to answer to it – but not all of them would be able to do so. Thus, there is still the tremendous need for sites and solutions that could fill the demand more completely.
Niches to be Created
Create a need, and thus a niche, where there wasn’t one before. That does not only put you as a pioneer in your field - that would also make you the foremost provider of the demand. Besides, who else would know about filling that need than the one who created it?
Brick and Mortar vs. Internet Niches
It need not be a choice of staying in a physical store or migrating towards the Web. If you already have an existing brick and mortar store putting your business online is an option you could consider. You gain an advantage in the stability of your traditional business as this leaves you with enough time and energy to feel your way around the online business world. However, in your excitement to make that jump, do not put your entire business offerings online. Concentrate instead on those that are unique and especially adaptable to the Internet. Find out which aspects of your business is best suited for online marketing and put that online. Do not diffuse the focus by filling your website with generic products and services.
The heavyweights of the online business community have served as building blocks of this bustling community. We have here the likes of Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Good Guys, Best Buy. However, they are not the only ones who can play the e-commerce game. It is just as much everyone’s playing field. Even without the clout of a Fortune 500 corporation, relatively smaller businesses can still make their mark – and their profits – in this world. You just need to find your niche among these giants and adapt yourself to thrive there.
niche: 1) a recess in the wall; 2) a place, employment, status, or activity for which a person is best fitted; 3) a specialized market.
“Niche” comes from a French word that means “to nest” – which is exactly what small companies should do: fill the small voids left by the big birds. Instead of going head on head with them, turn instead to the niches.
So what exactly are these niches? We have the Unfilled niches, Poorly filled niches, Partly filled niches, and the Niches that have yet to be created.
Unfilled Niches
Statistically speaking, the chances of finding a niche that nobody is filling are low – however it still is possible. This is best statement to sum this up would be: Find a need and fill it. Know your customers, and pick out a particular group that you know best. The following questions could help gain some key insights in your chosen field:
Who are your customers?
What are they asking for?
What would they like?
What keeps them from filling this need on their own and gaining success?
Your interest along with any background or training should give you the vision and the muscle to see and realize these opportunities. You could go ahead and develop a new or improved product, service or even business process. This, with the Internet’s power harnessed can certainly help you make your mark.
Poorly Filled/Realized/Utilized Niches
In contrast to unfilled niches, poorly filled niches are exceedingly common. With so much that you can expect from the Internet, it is extremely frustrating to actually find something not available online – when you know that people out there are aware that the need exists. There may be sites out there that attempt to address this need – but the customer enters the website with a lot of questions, and leaves with still a lot, if not more unanswered questions. Or it could be populated by sites that make it easy to avail of peripheral products, or that do not provide expert opinion or customer feedback, etc. In short, poorly filled niches are those that don’t have a single ‘best’ or ‘greatest’ place online to provide for the customers’ needs. The solution? Build one yourself.
Partly Filled Niches
There may be many eggs in the basket – but don’t count your chicks till they’re all hatched. In the same way, a particular area for a particular need may already have several hundreds or even thousands of websites attempting to answer to it – but not all of them would be able to do so. Thus, there is still the tremendous need for sites and solutions that could fill the demand more completely.
Niches to be Created
Create a need, and thus a niche, where there wasn’t one before. That does not only put you as a pioneer in your field - that would also make you the foremost provider of the demand. Besides, who else would know about filling that need than the one who created it?
Brick and Mortar vs. Internet Niches
It need not be a choice of staying in a physical store or migrating towards the Web. If you already have an existing brick and mortar store putting your business online is an option you could consider. You gain an advantage in the stability of your traditional business as this leaves you with enough time and energy to feel your way around the online business world. However, in your excitement to make that jump, do not put your entire business offerings online. Concentrate instead on those that are unique and especially adaptable to the Internet. Find out which aspects of your business is best suited for online marketing and put that online. Do not diffuse the focus by filling your website with generic products and services.
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