Sunday, January 23, 2011

Business Website

Owners of home based businesses that are trying to make a living working from home know the problems encountered trying to get your website noticed in order to increase traffic and ultimately revenues. After all, if people don't know about your site, how will they find it among the millions of other sites.

Blindly paying a lot of money for advertising, or if you don’t have an advertising budget, not advertising at all, can both be detrimental to your business success. Getting your site noticed online doesn't have to be as difficult as many making it.

For instance, there are many ways to market your products and services inexpensively if not completely free, so spending a lot of money on it could be wasteful. If you have no money to spend, you should be diligent about searching out all the options for free advertising. If you don't, you're asking your business to fail.

When it comes to advertising, there are many options online and offline that will help you spread the word about your Website and help you drive traffic to it and in turn increasing and revenues.

First, check out offline venues for free advertisement like local newspapers, television stations, radio stations and the like. Often times these mediums are looking for new local businesses to highlight in their business sections and/or discussions. This is free advertisement and something you should take advantage of immediately.

Also, make sure your URL is on every piece of printed material you use in regard to your business whether it is stationary or free gifts. Having your URL out there will help brand your website and people will be more likely to check out what you have to offer.

Additionally, while you are making your URL well known, make sure your website appears professional and is easy for your visitors to use. If you accept payment online, make sure that the checkout process is easy and convenient as well as secure. Using payment systems like PayPal might be a good idea for you as well because it allows a variety of payment methods in many different currencies.

Advertising online also doesn't have to be expensive. Some free options are trading links with other relevant websites, submitting articles to online article directories and ezines with a resource box with your information, and joining relevant forums and posting helpful information with a link to your website in your signature.

Certainly, you can do banners and other advertising, but if you don’t have much of a budget try all of the free options before you start paying money you don't have. As your business grows, your advertising budget will grow as well and you can invest in paid advertising options.

Expired Domain Name

After the dot com crash, expired domain names and expired domain name traffic have been a source of potential income. It is important to inexpensively obtain the automated tools required to track the thousands of domain name registration and abandoned websites that are removed from the domain registry and become available for purchase.

Expired domain registration and the expired domain name traffic associated with them have been only available to those who had an automated system and tools.

Now, automated tools and resources are available for identifying, appraising and even buying these domain names on autopilot.

Expired domain names are those that had previously been registered to another owner. These domain name registration are available to the open market because of non-payment of the domain name renewal fees. Such domain names are returned to the open market about forty-five days after the expiration date.

Many domain names even point to fully functioning websites while many are registered for speculation. These names are registered by speculators in the hope of obtaining a profit on the resale of the domain name.

Numerous other domain names are registered for website development, but do not appear online. In a number of these cases, the domain name owners do not follow through with respect to the website development and allow the domain registration to expire.

However, there are a number of expired domain names with fully functioning websites, receiving daily traffic from the search engines, links and banner ads. The expired domain names that get this daily traffic can earn revenues if these are redirected to another website or marketed with affiliate programs.

Earning Profit from Expired Domain Names & Expired Domain Name Traffic:

1. Buying for speculation - There is now a large and highly profitable market for reselling domain registration at present, and speculators are looking out for developing technologies and trends. Evolution is constantly taking place in technology and trends. There are markets, being watched closely right now, that are expected to grow exponentially within a short span of time. It should be a good idea to locate and register expiring domain registration that are related to new trends, technology and markets in order to earn substantial profits.

2. Buying expiring domain names and redirecting the targeted traffic - Targeted keyword domain names can help to get traffic from those simply typing in keyword rich domain names into the address bar and hitting the enter key.

3. Buying expired domain name registration and putting up generic websites - Using tools like easy website building software, third party payment processors, auto responders and other applications, even a novice could put generic websites online with keyword rich domain names that should appear in the search engine rankings. These websites can be built using expired domain names to drive traffic to them and the domain registration and the developed website could then be sold together with the domain name, as a value added commodity.

4. Buying expiring domain names of websites that are already online – A number of expiring domain names are, actually, already functioning websites. The owners of these websites either did not renew their domain registration for some reason or simply stopped operating the website. In fact, quite often, these websites already have traffic from links to other websites, search engine rankings and even directory listings.

5. Buying expired domain names and using them for marketing affiliate programs - Affiliate programs are a good way to acquire an online business without even having a product. Affiliate marketers redirect traffic from the affiliate website to the website of the actual product or service and charge a commission or a fee when any of the redirected traffic results in sales. Affiliate programs have become an automated turnkey solution for a number of entrepreneurs, especially novices.

One can locate and register expired domain names that closely target the market of the affiliate programs and then draw that targeted traffic into the website with expired keyword rich domain names with content that satisfies the informational needs. Then the users can be led onto the sales page of the product.

Marketer Almost

Copyright 2005 Richard Meredith
So... you're a new marketer, and you want to make extra money or even perhaps a great living! One of the first things you do is join an affiliate program or downline club of some sort. Or maybe even you are trying your hand at Ebay or another auction service by marketing some nicely profitable product. Now, once you have some sort of online business vehicle, your mind must gravitate to exactly what kind of advertising to generate sales or memberships.

Online business is an awful lot like regular advertising. What draws you to a business in your home town? Coupons? Specials? Give-aways? A personal recommendation from a friend or trusted associate?

Oh yes- and here is a little secret that is often not known or ignored:

When it comes to building any kind of business online you do the same thing! Give away a free report, an informative ebook, a trial software, an online course, or maybe a subscription to a free newsletter or ezine. This is just simply the way it is done with online business, period. But here is the most critical part... you MUST capture the name and email address FIRST before you give access to it!

It is widely known by all of the top marketers online that your PRIMARY task to be successful is to compile a list of people (prospective customers) that are interested in the type of thing you are giving away! This is so easy to do with an autoresponder. They just fill a form, and they are automatically added to your list, and then are redirected to your download page or membership site.

Then the next task is to automatically send a series of messages with that autoresponder that tell more about the reasons why your product or products (or membership program) are BENEFICIAL to them! WHY? Because it is infinitely better to contact a prospect several times rather than only once. It is a proven fact that most people will NOT buy from you or join your program until they have been approached at least 5 to 7 times. This is done as I said, automatically, on a timed basis slowly tapering off until it is a slow drip of messages until they buy or join- or unsubscribe from your list. And when you run special promotions of any kind, a feature of the best autoresponders allows you to broadcast to your entire list any time you want. This is how many marketers can make huge amounts of money and sales ON DEMAND- whenever and as often as they like!

Details about which autoresponders are best, and the techniques of developing a list and how often to mail to that list are subjects that deserve more time and attention than can be given here... but suffice it to say that if YOU are not FIRST developing a list, and then marketing to your list AFTERWARDS- you're just missing the boat!

Pure and simple!

So if you are advertising an affiliate link, or your products' sale page... or anything other than your free subscription, report, ebook, or course- it can indeed be the most tragic mistake you can make in your online business strategy!

If this is you, pull back and regroup, and completely re-think your marketing strategy now before you lose too much time, money, energy, or motivation.

And remember... BUILD your LIST!

Thursday, November 18, 2010

Things To Consider

Creating a plan for your business is the first step in the process.

Deciding what business model you would like to adopt.

You have many options in which to choose from we will discuss a few of these briefly in a moment, but first another thing we need to touch on no matter what type of business you choose to pursue. Create an account with social networking sites in case you have not previously done so. Social networking has really become an invaluable asset to all businesses today. This type of media allows you to not only advertise but to build a relationship with your clients. Now we will touch on a few of your different business options online.

Blogs:

Blog advertising is a major source of traffic to any home based business website that sells products or services. Even affiliate marketing techniques benefit from Blog advertising. Blogging is a fairly new usage of technology, but blogs have exploded within the decade. A blog is essentially an online journal.

Affiliate Marketing:

Internet affiliate marketing is actually among the hottest methods for internet users to generate some extra cash. Scores of merchandise are sold as a result of online advertising every single day. Internet business models continue to evolve. New and interesting variations can be expected in the future. Internet goes into a new shape during this festival season. I am speaking about Gifts and online purchases.

Affiliates are the new working class. In fact, making money with affiliate programs or making your living on the Internet is WAY MORE than possible. There are many affiliate programs which give you this tools and make sure that you do not fail.

Education and Training:

Online business degree programs are sometimes less expensive than their campus-based counterparts. Tuition is often lower, and travel costs are virtually non-existent. Some schools have great programs too on internet marketing and other online business programs.

There are also private coaching programs available online for those who prefer to work one on one with a teacher or coach.

Online business is taking the center stage in today's very competitive workplace. There are many relevant online business articles that will guide you on how to make money fast online, and teach you how to get the most of your investment and maximize your online sales potential. Online business ideas are usually a dime a dozen but there are real opportunities available too. You are able to sell a great deal of products on the web and the earning potential is limitless.

Business Builder

Blogging is more than just a fad, it is key to your Internet Marketing success; it's one of the most fantastic tools you can use to literally drive tons of traffic to your web site, thus increasing sales.

What the Heck is a Blog? Simply put, a blog can be described as an online newspaper or journal.

Wikipedia Definition: "Blogs are usually maintained by an individual with regular entries of commentary, descriptions of events, or other material such as graphics or video. Entries are commonly displayed in reverse-chronological order. Most blogs are interactive, allowing visitors to leave comments and even message each other via widgets on the blogs and it is this interactivity that distinguishes them from other static websites."

The style of a blog depends on the individual; it is very personal, as if you were having a conversation with a friend.

The Plus Side of Having a Blog

Your blog is your reputation builder and a way to establish an online presence. By having a blog or two or three (how many you have is up to you) you will actively participate in the online conversation, instantly connecting with other bloggers in your niche.

Overtime, as you ask questions and provide substantive responses, you will establish yourself as an expert in your niche market.

Establishing an online presence through blogging builds trust. Guess what happens when people trust you? They are more willing to do business with people they feel they can trust, and this trust is built by interacting with them on your blog.

Your postings can become an information source that is relevant to them personally, you can provide timely, substantive information and they will look to you as a subject matter expert based on the quality of your responses.

Don't forget to add the all important link post to your web site on your blog. This will direct your visitors to another place where they can become more informed or see products you have to offer.

Now that you have built your reputation and trust, let your blog visitors know when you have new products for sale, chances are they will buy from you because you have proven that your are trustworthy and have something worthwhile to offer.

Now your credibility is firmly established!

Starting a Blog is Easy

Start with a FREE blog platform, just check out "The Blogging Profits Start up Guide," there are many listed in this FREE download. Set up your account, choose a theme, which is the background color image for your blog, take time to carefully review the choices, and choose one that is eye-catching. Don't be afraid to periodically change your blog, keep it fresh by adding content, once you get the hang of it you will find it is very simple to use.

Update Regularly with Fresh Content

Fresh content will get you a steady stream of readers, keeping your blog updated on a regular basis could time-consuming but the end results will be worth the extra effort. The rule of thumb is to add new content on a weekly basis or more if you have the time.

Here's another tip, if your schedule does not permit you to keep your blog current, consider hiring a freelance writer or ghostwriter to do the blog for you.

Home Opportunity

I've been doing business on the Internet for 13 years now. I talk to many business owners, like myself, as well as many people looking to start businesses online. I am very frequently asked "what is the best online business home opportunity that I should look into." I've done some research on this topic and have not been very happy with what I've found. Researching this online is extremely frustrating, and not due to shortage of information. The frustration comes from the many claims for instant income through this or that online business home opportunity, just send us $500. You'll be making $10,000 a month with no work. Yeah, right.

So, what kind of straight-talk can I offer you? What is my recommendation for the best online business home opportunity? I take a different approach. I feel very strongly that you need to form your own strategies. You need to do research, invest time, and learn. You need to experiment. Ultimately, nobody is going to tell you exactly how to do this. You will have to figure that out by yourself. If you are really serious about finding an opportunity to start an online business from home, expect to put in the hours required.

So where do you start? Start with trusted names. Join Google AdSense. Then register for Amazon Associates, Commission Junction and ebay. These are big programs that are extremely well established. They are extremely trust-worthy and therefore, are a great place to start your home business experimentation. It's very important that you learn how to fail as inexpensively as possible. One of the best articles I ever read was all about how successful businesses understand two things:

1) Failure is unavoidable. No business has it right at first.

2) If you accept #1, you need to learn to fail has cheaply as possible so you're money won't run out!

And you will see this in action. Just spend some money on a program that makes wild claims, and then check back in on that decision a month later. A few of these will teach you the lesson very quickly. What I've done to avoid this is to really look for the opportunity where I can pull in a little money to fund the experimentation I want to do. At least try to break-even. This has not been to hard for me because I have the technical skills to try things and see what works very inexpensively because I'm only spend my own time. If you don't have these technical skills you have a couple of choices.

1) You can outsource your technical tasks to a developer at a cost.

2) You can look for tools that allow you to do Internet marketing experimentation through admin panels.

I can highly recommend IncomeStores.com as one such tool that will allow you to build a complete site without programming. I work very closely on this project and have daily contact with people who earn income through it from the big programs I mentioned above, but don't have any programming skills. There are others out there. As you do your research on the right online business home opportunity for you, I'm sure you'll find some you can recommend.

Friday, May 7, 2010

Home Based Work

Data entry home based work is a job that involves adding data, updating data, sorting out, writing reports, letters, abstracts and much more right from your home. Depending on your skills and capabilities, choose the type of work that suits you best.

There are numerous websites that offers data entry works online. When going for these jobs, there are few things that you need to consider in order to successfully find a job that suits you the best.

Equipment

You need a reliable computer, an internet connection and typing skills in order to perform this job. You should also be able to work on office applications such as an excel sheet. If you are unaware of how to use them, then you should get training initially before you can start working on the job.

Search

You need to find a number of websites that offers data entry jobs. By using various search engines, you can easily get a list of websites offering various types of jobs.

Scam

Once you search for different websites, you will also come across websites that are scams. Ensure that you don't sign up with these websites. For this, you should read reviews and customer's feedback of the website. Also, there are few signs that will help you identify whether a website is a scam or not, such as offering to earn huge amounts of money.

Signup and start working

Once you find a legitimate website for data entry home based work, sign up with the website and start searching for the jobs. Analyze various types of jobs and the requirements of the buyers as well. Then decide whether you can do the job or not considering the skills you have. After this, contact the buyer and wait for a response to start on the job.