Internet,Marketing,amp,#58,Avo marketing Internet Marketing: Avoid "Blind Sheep&#

Automation technologies represent a fundamental aspect of any modern industry. The major types of industrial automation solutions, such as DCS, PLC, SCADA, and MES, are used on a large-scale in process and discrete industries.DCS technologie Awhile ago, I got an email from one of the "gurus" I follow and it shocked me. The gist of it was this person wanted to trade services for a household item.To say it floored me would be an understatement.What was worse was a few days later t

Internet Marketing: Avoid "Blind Sheep" MentalityIf you want your online business to succeed, you have to give ityour own twist, not follow someone else like a blind sheep.Despite what the Internet marketing gurus tell you, you will notlikely be lying on the beach any time soon just by followingtheir methods.As with anything, there are those few (very few) who will leapinto the forefront with a new idea or a new angle on an old idea.Then along come the rest of us, and like blind sheep, we followthese gurus, expecting to reap exactly the same rewards. Itdoesn't work that way.First, we are no longer unique in the marketplace. The particularguru we're following got there first.Second, we aren't selling the same product or service as ourguru. Even if we're selling Internet marketing ideas, and so isour guru, we still have our own unique perspective on it. I hopewe do, anyway. Otherwise, we're not going to have anythingworthwhile to offer. If we're just carbon copies, people might just aswell buy from our guru.Third, we are never going to follow our guru's advice word-for-word or step-by-step. You and I will do it differently even ifwe've bought the same "Business in a Box." If you apply yourselfmore than I do, you'll do better. If you buy advertising all overthe 'Net and I try to get along on a shoestring, you'll dobetter. You'll claim the method works; I'll say it's bunk.Or maybe I put my own twist on our "Business in a Box" and I makea killing while you're left with modest results. Now I claim itworks, but you claim it's over-rated.Are you getting the picture?Making money on the Internet is not an exact science. It's moreof an art. There are some basic principles that you must apply,but following every Internet guru around like a blind sheep willlikely bankrupt you before you figure out your own secrets toInternet marketing. (Then you'll be the next guru!)Here are seven basic principles to follow. If you accomplish these,your success is guaranteed.1. Find your niche market. We have lots of resources for finding yourniche market on our web site:http://www.ablewebs.com/internet_marketing.htm#niche.2. Make sure your niche market spends money on products or serviceslike yours. This is a very important piece of research. If your targetmarket doesn't have money to spend or doesn't spend money on that kindof product, pick a different product to market!3. Build a mailing list. How? Capture email addresses on your website, write an ezine, purchase opt-in subscribers.4. Advertise. Where? Online classifieds, ezines, list services, printmedia. Put your URL on everything you send out whether it's in paperor digital format. Here are some ideas:http://www.ablewebs.com/newsletter1.htm#tips5. Track ad results carefully so you know what's working. Use aspreadsheet, or purchase software designed for this purpose.6. Follow-up, follow-up, follow-up. There are many theories around asto how many contacts it takes before someone will buy from you, butI've heard it's between five and nine.Here's a true story to help you understand what I mean. Several monthsago I downloaded a trial copy of a software package called "PostmasterExpress" by Online Automation. Online Automation started emailing meto see how I liked it. After the trial was over, they kept emailingme...and emailing me. When I was finally in the market to make abuying decision on an auto responder solution for my business andguess who came to mind? Did I buy from them? Yes. They had been in myface for months. They didn't give up...and they got the sale. This isan important lesson.Postmaster Express: http://www.post-master.net/rs/Andrea_Wilson7. Have more than one product or service to offer so if one driesup, you don't starve.If you have only one product or service, think of other ways toattract new customers: re-write stale sales copy, revamp your website, get creative with your advertising.For instance, if you're a chiropractor, be creative in youradvertising. Target different segments of your market: today baby-boomers, tomorrow seniors. Or start a new fashion: "New Moms: How toStay on Your Feet Longer and Enjoy it More."How you accomplish each of these seven principles depends on who youare, what you already know, what information you read, what youhave time and money to invest in, what appeals to you, and whatyour skills are.I'm a writer. I write a newsletter, Press Releases, articles, etc.,but I'm not an expert at writing sales letters. That's a differentskill. While I'm learning, I can use the skills I already have tomarket my services. Maybe it'll turn out that my particular servicessell better using my methods in the end and I never have to worryabout sales letters.Besides, if every web site is turned into a one-page sales letterbecause "that's what works," pretty soon everyone will be jadedand stop reading them. If you do something different with yourweb site, maybe you'll get the traffic. People come to theInternet to find information. That's the reason sales letters onweb sites are often cleverly disguised as information. The price-- even if it's free -- has to be buried way at the bottom sothe benefits of the product or service have really hooked thevisitor before they realize they're being sold. (There's alittle sales letter advice for you.)Don't forget to look at your own interests and skills. Maybe youlove participating in forums frequented by people who'd benefitfrom your product. It's easy for you to chat with them and theygrow to trust you. The next thing you know, they're buying fromyou. Do you have to learn to write Press Releases? I don't think so.If you or I do exactly what everyone else is doing, we'll beblind sheep, using stale methods to sell stale ideas. Follow thebasic principles, get advice on ways to accomplish each one. Thenput your own twist on them and stand out from the flock. Article Tags: Internet Marketing, Blind Sheep