A Publisher

Assuming you’ve read my rants on articles, you may want a checklist of items to consider for future articles. I am at your service.

Checklist

This checklist is going to be short and to the point. Remember, I’m lazy. Go back and read the original article if you need more information.

1. Headlines &ndash Keyword phrases should ALWAYS be the first words. No exceptions.

2. First Paragraph &ndash No more than 38 words. Two to three short sentences with the keywords from your headline included near the beginning.

3. No one sentence paragraphs.

4. Cut up long sentences into shorter ones. If a sentence is over two lines, it can be cut down.

5. Linking In Article &ndash Don’t. Just do it in the byline.

6. Body Headlines &ndash Break up the article with headlines in the body. Just keep them short and capitalize the first letter of each word.

7. Last Paragraph &ndash Sum up the point of your article. Don’t include links or a plea to go to your site. Use the byline for your begging. I do.

8. Bylines &ndash Keep them under four lines. Try to include the keyword phrases you are using on your site. If you are linking to an internal page of the site, use the keywords on that page, not your home page.

Eight stinking guidelines. Is that too much to ask? I think not! Besides, I’ve already had laser surgery and can’t afford a second session of smelling my eyeballs smoke. Please follow them. If you do, I will publish your articles and so will others.

Despite the tone of these articles, I am trying to help you get more bang for your buck with your articles. Okay, I am also trying to make my life easier, but there isn’t any reason why we can’t both benefit. If you want to get published more often, follow these guidelines. Publishers, webmasters and editors will love you.

The again, I could be wrong.

Okay. Occasionally you can use one-sentence paragraphs.

Just not very often.

20 Ways To Use Articles To Get Killer PR For Your Business

Writing articles is a powerful, free way to promote your business. Because articles are a news source they are much more credible than a paid advertisement. This is a fantastic way to get your message in front of thousands of eyes. It can establish your credibility in your Industry; it can promote name recognition, and help you to introduce a new product to the world! Once you write an article don’t just let it sit! Put it to work!

Here are 20 ways to MAXIMIZE the use of your articles!

1. Offer article as a FREE REPORT to customers.

2. Place articles on autoresponders

3. Offer article as a free gift when people refer others to you

4. Offer article as a free gift for subscribing to your opt in list

5. Use articles as weekly tips for newspaper columns, magazines, or ezines

6. Ask colleges, seminar or workshop presenters, and other training organizations if your article would make a nice addition to their training materials packet

7. Submit your article general knowledge directories such as ehow.com

8. Submit your site to specialized vertical portals specifically on your topic. Ex: marketing or business related resource sites like .makingprofit.com

9. Submit your site to webmasters with sites where your article would complement their content

10.Use copies of your articles in your media kit or new client introduction pieces

11. Post articles in frames around the office. Visitors will see them when they come in.

12.Send out copies of articles with sales letters, meeting follow up letters, product release letters, It shows prospects that you are an industry leader by being “in the news”.

13.Archive articles on your web site

14.Have piles of articles on display in your office for visitors to grab

15.Give permission on your web site for others to republish your articles if they include full bio.

16.Contact editors of ezines to see if they would be willing to publish your article in their ezine

17.Post your article to “content providing” directories

18.Swap articles with other ezine publishers

19.Group related articles together and publish as an ebook

20. Use articles as an add on bonus when people purchase your product

13 Steps to a “Slippery Slope” Online Sales Letter

But here’s the problem: I see many of them trying to sell their e-book, tutorial, etc. on a regular Web page. They list a paragraph about the info-product and give the price, and they expect a slew of sales.

Wrong.

You need a special sales page that has a “slippery slope” sales letter.

Remember that game Chutes & Ladders? If you landed on a space that had a chute on it, you just went down, Baby. No turning back. That’s how your sales letter should be - a “slippery slope” that pulls in the reader because it’s so compelling and interesting.

Here’s a basic outline of the 13 elements you want to include. To see an example of them all in action, visit MY own sales page at .BoostBizEzine.com.

1. Limit your navigation.

The visitor should not be distracted by links that take her to your bio, other products, etc. The idea is to keep her on this page, reading your copy and leading her to order. So on this page, only have navigation that relates to the product (e.g. FAQs, Order now).

2. Give a powerful headline.

Your headline can make or break your sales. If it’s not compelling, your visitor will click away. Here’s an easy headline formula: “How to _________ So You Can ____________.” Make sure the 2nd part gives a big benefit, for example, “double your business” or “gain peace of mind.”

3. Discuss the problem the prospect has, or incorporate your own story.

Marketers call this “pushing the ‘ouch’ button.” First discuss the problem or pain that the reader has, and then lead in to how your product will solve it. Or share your own failure-to-success story that the reader can empathize with.

4. Tell us who you are.

If I’m going to buy your stuff, I’d like to know why you’re qualified to write about this topic. Give me the feeling that you’ve learned a lot about this topic and want to share it with me.

Even add a picture of yourself and an audio greeting, like I did. These help the reader instantly feel like she knows you better, increasing the “trust factor.” And people buy from those they feel they know, like, and trust!

5. Use bullets like mini headlines.

Lay out everything I’ll get from your product. Don’t just list your table of contents verbatim! Turn each point into an exciting secret. For example, suppose your e-book features 5 tips on how to save money on groceries. That bullet could read, “Revealed: 5 ways you can save hundreds of dollars on your monthly grocery bill.”

6. List plenty of testimonials.

Show your prospects they won’t be the first to buy. It’s more effective to weave-in testimonials throughout your sales letter than to have a separate section for them. Give each person’s full name and Web address, and for extra power, post their photo and an audio testimonial as well.

7. Tell us why your product is such a great value.

How does the price of your product compare if I hired you one-on-one? For example, your manual is a great value at $49 if an hour consultation with you would run me $250.

8. Throw in a few great bonuses.

Offer special bonuses (preferably created by you) that are so good you could sell them alone if you wanted to. It could be a list of resources, a collection of articles, extra tips on a certain subject, or a free consu1tation.

9. Give an unconditional guarantee.

This puts your prospect at ease, giving her no reason to NOT buy. A few turkeys will take advantage of your generosity, but the amount of sales you GAIN from this strategy dramatically outweighs the risk.

10. Request immediate action by having a limited time offer just click online newsletter service.

Some sales pages use trick scripts to make it seem like the offer always ends on that day at midnight, but I find these insulting. If you really will be raising your price soon (and you always should be), list the exact date and stick to it. Otherwise just say it’s an introductory, limited-time offer.

11. Make it ABSURDLY CLEAR what to do next.

Nothing bothers me more than when I’m at a Web site, I have my credit card ready, and I can’t find the $%#& order link! Make your order process idiot-proof. Example: “Cl1ck below to 0rder n0w on our secure server.” Also sprinkle in order links throughout your page — some people will be ready to buy before they get to the bottom.

12. Make one last plea.

In your P.S., right after your signature, emphasize that I should act now. For example, “Don’t miss out on this great 0pportunity. Remember, you can buy n0w and change your mind at anytime.”

13. Don’t forget your contact information!

Readers WILL have questions, so provide an e-mail address on your site that you or someone else will check at least daily. Also, don’t you feel better buying from a Web site that lists a real address and phone number?

Want More Detailed Step-by-Step Help, With Examples You Can Model?

See my quick-start audio program, “The Secret, Simple Formula to Writing Web Copy That SELLS”.

A new Collection of African Tribal Art

Each tribal art embeds the religion and culture of the African tribes people. The very essence of African civilization is seen in their craftsmanship as shown in genuine tribal masks and statues. African masks are depicted as one of the most important part of African tribal rituals. You can see a number of African masks displayed all over the globe in cultural museums and art galleries.

African masks are not made for commercial purposes. They are used in tribal rituals and ceremonies. Over the years, the African mask has been the icon of Africa’s culture. They are used in religious ceremonies and everyday living. Not all African masks are old because most of them are used once or twice during rituals.

Creating your own collection of African tribal art can be very challenging. These are not pieces that you can easily purchase. Genuine African masks, statues and other original tribal art are very rare to find. Plus, you need a good eye to distinguish genuine artworks from those that are mass-produced.

There are a lot of antiques stores that mixes tourist-art with genuine African tribal art pieces. What you can do is to know more about your art dealer. You should be confident about your dealer’s credibility before making an expensive purchase.

Before you purchase and African art, look at it closely. African masks are well carved. The worn out look is just normal. Always have an image of an original tribal art in your mind and you can compare it with the ones that you would about to buy.

The origin or the location where African art are found usually dictates the price of the artwork. The older an art piece is, the more value it has. Most collectors sell their pieces to dealers. Remember that African masks that are obviously restored decrease their value. If one artwork is very unique in design, prepare to cash out a small fortune. In buying African tribal art, size and appearance rarely matters. Uniqueness and quality are the two things that are sought after.

If you are tempted to purchase an “original” African tribal art from auction sites, be on the look out. Most auction art pieces skyrocket their price, not because of their rarity, but basically because there may be bogus bidders whose goal is to increase the bid value of the product.

The best place to look for genuine African art is in credible art dealerships. You can also find a number of online shops offering original art pieces from Africa. Be wary of fakes and imitation. Since you would not have a chance to take a look at the artwork itself, make sure that they have a guarantee that you can return the goods if you are not satisfied with the “originality” an quality of the art piece. Request for as much pictures as you can and if possible, request for a certificate of authentication.

10 Article Writing Keys For Newbies

This article on the 10 (no, 11… yes, 11) tips for newbies is not written from the catbird seat point of view of the article host or database manager. Rather it is by and from the perspective of an author who remembers the early misgivings. It is written especially for the beginning article writer. The Tennessee Mountain Man has written and submitted hundreds of articles for publication to thousands of article hosts and database managers and still finds article writing his nemesis.

1. Necessity vs Desire:

Articles and Blogs are necessary in today’s scheme of search engine indexing. Not what the newbie wants to hear. Just remember what the Bible says, “there has nothing over taken you that is not common to man”. That’s right! All of us hate article and Blog writing at times, and some of us dread the journey to pen and paper (or keyboard as the case may be) all the time. Many a webmaster would call them “a necessary evil” as they are not generally anyone’s best liked house keeping chores.

2. Just Start, It Gets Easier:

First it is sometimes difficult to get a subject or theme and to get the first couple of lines scribbled down. The Tennessee Mountain Man knows authors who literally get sick thinking about the process. Lighten up. Once an author has a starting point and gets passed the initial thoughts, article and Blog writing usually goes fairly smoothly.

The main thing is that you get started. Pick a subject you know something about and just start. You will be pleasantly surprised at just how easily ideasflow. Don’t assume everyone knows what you know. They don’t. Will Rogers once said, “all men are ignorant, just on different subjects”. And, so it is!

3. Good vs Perfection:

Your old English comp professor is not looking over your shoulder. This paper does not have to be perfect. That is not to say it does not have to be on point or to say that it does not have to be correct. It does or at least it should be. But, perfection is not the goal and is, in fact, seldom possible. Too much detail and you run the risk of losing your reader on several levels. Too long and

most readers simply don’t have the time or interest to wade through the material regardless of how important it is.

4. Blog Length vs Article Length:

Most publishers want a minimum of six hundred (600) words per article - some will let you slide with four hundred (400) words. Blogs can be much smaller. Blogs can and maybe should support appropriate pictures and embedded links.

Just don’t over do it. Too gaudy or too slow to load and you have wasted your time, ticked off a potential reader, and probably upset a host who can ban you from their publications. Articles, on the other hand, typically cannot carry these extra touches according to the requirements of most publishers.

5. Format:

Prepare your article in American Standard Code for Information Interchange (ASCII) format. There are many tools from which to choose to get the job done. A search for ‘free ASCII editor’ or for ‘free plain text editors’ will provide one with a multitude of free options. Word Press is a popular choice. If all else fails simply use notepad to turn out your masterpiece.

6. Spelling and Grammar:

Once you have your article or Blog run it through a good spell checker and a good grammar checker. Microsoft Word works well for these purposes. Just don’t use the MS Word copy for publication of your article. Rather use it’s suggestions to make any necessary corrections to your plain text copy. The MS Word copy will work for Blogs although the Computerman prefers other editors.

Just like the days when you were pushed by Profs, you will find Article and Blog writing skills become easier with time and practice.

7. Publish and Announce:

Once your Blog is ready you may want to use some automatic tools to publish and announce it. First do a search for Blog hosts and select those which best suit your needs. Join one or more and publish your Blog there. Then search for Blog announcers and rss announcers and use them to get your Blog noticed.

Now that you have that out of the way find an article wizard that will post your Articles to free publishers. You can post them one at a time by hand if you are really bored and have absolutely nothing else in life to do. Using an automatic poster you can publish to hundreds of hosts in an hour or so. The only way to go.

8. Patience:

Now, have some patience. Here is where you lose control. Many of the men and women who host articles are timely and your articles will be reviewed within twenty-four (24) to forty-eight (48) hours. But, many others will be days and weeks down the road therefore never date an article - a sure way to get rejected.

9. Rejection - “sorry your article has been declined”:

Be prepared for most hosts to reject your articles. Do not take it personally. It usually has little to do with you or your article.

Some databases routinely reject articles for spelling errors when there are none or where there is more than way to spell a word. And, just as in any other endeavor some hosts are simply too lazy and get so far behind, the easiest and fastest thing to do (and perhaps the only alternative) is to reject everything. You will learn who these are over time.

Then there are those who run your articles through the sausage grinder and if they find certain words, irrespective of how they are used, your article gets no farther. These are the people who can’t publish the Holy Bible because it contains words that offend them or their readers. Don’t worry about these folks who are so heavenly minded they are of no earthly use.

Remember, just as in everything else in life, for every rule there is an exception

10. Keep the faith, and keep cranking out articles:

Since most authors, especially newbies, prepare only one copy of an article against the advice of most seasoned authors it is important that the newbie keep his chin up - keep the faith. That will be easier as more and more of your articles are accepted and published driving visitors to your website while creating those all important back links.

It is not necessary that every host to accept everything submitted to them. After one or two hosts publish your article on any given subject, the search engines tend to penalize you anyway by ignoring additional postings. This is close to spamming and while it could help someone find you, it probably won’t. It is not necessarily, the more the merrier. The additional listings will not increase your page rankings or links reported by the search engines. It is more important to get published by hosts with the highest Google page rank possible.

Now, one BONUS TIP for you: Along with “the rejection slip” will usually come a suggestion on how to “fix” your article and a request that you resubmit it. Don’t waste your time. While trying comply with one database manager’s request you could have written a new article from which you get much more punch. Enough publishers will pick your article up so move on and save yourself some time and heartburn.

Everybody has a thought or idea at least once a day usually at the most inopportune time. How many good ideas have you lost because of waiting? Don’t procrastinate! Go! Capture that thought before it is gone forever.

11 Quick (and Good) Content Ideas for Your Ezine or Website

Publishing articles, especially via an e-zine, is the ideal opportunity to showcase your business. By sharing your knowledge and expertise, you build credibility as an expert, while spreading the word about your services and products.

While I’m sure that sometimes you have dozens of content ideas, I bet other times you find yourself staring at a blank computer screen, grumbling that it’s publishing time again. Well, have no fear! Here are 11 quick (and good) content ideas for when you’re in a pinch.

1. Give real-life success stories.

Describe a problem you’ve solved for a client/customer, and use that as a springboard to offer more general advice. Show your readers how you’ve helped customers address challenges — “case studies” if you will. This positions you as the expert in your readers’ minds more than your coming out and saying so.

2. Think of three areas in which you’d like your clients to think of you as a resource.

Now develop content in those areas. For example, in my past life as a professional copywriter, I really enjoyed writing for Web sites. To help encourage my clients and prospects to hire me for these projects, I published several articles on how to write Web copy that sells.

3. Read industry publications for ideas.

Are there any hot issues in your field right now? The more controversial, the better. Don’t be afraid to offer your own opinion — your readers want to know it. After all, YOU are the expert in their eyes.

4. Jot down 8 questions your clients have asked you in the past.

You know, the ones they ask you over and over. Answer each in a short article. If you publish weekly, that’s two months’ worth of content, right off the bat! And if you can’t think of any questions, send all your current clients/customers a quick e-mail, asking them what topics they’re most interested in learning more about.

5. Learn anything neat lately from an industry conference, workshop, seminar, or insightful article?

No one says you have to reinvent the wheel of information! Pass on any gems of advice you’ve learned elsewhere — just give them full attribution. Or give your opinion of the event or article itself. Your readers will appreciate your frankness.

6. Offer a list of your top 5 or 10 tips on a certain subject.

It’s much easier to bang out a list of tips than to put together a real article. Of course, the tips can evolve into an article if you wish! Be sure to list your best tip first, or at least close to the top. (If you “fire your biggest gun” last, you risk losing your audience before they get to the good stuff.)

7. Interview associates whose expertise would interest your readers

(while not competing with yours). E-mail interviews are incredibly easy to do. Just send your interviewee 3 to 5 questions via e-mail, edit their answers, and have them approve the final version. Be sure to give them a short plug in your e-zine as a thank you. (A one- or two-sentence description of their business and their Web address should be fine.)

8. Recommend books and resources that you use, and offer full reviews on them.In one issue of my old

ezine newsletters, “AKB MarCom Tips,” I featured reviews of my favorite four copywriting resource books. I’m glad I also gave my Amazon.com associate links, because I ended up making some nice commission, to boot!

9. Invite clients or readers to write you with their own questions, and answer one in each issue.

Right after their question, publish the person’s name, business, and Web address, with their permission. They’ll enjoy the attention and free publicity!

10. Invite readers to send in profiles.

Ask them to tell you about themselves — their names, businesses, locations, and how they use the information gained in your e-zine. Feature one profile in each issue or one every few issues.

11. When all else fails, borrow an article!

There are dozens of Web sites offering hundreds of articles that you can use in your e-zine. The articles are free and available for you to use immediately. The only catch is you’re required to leave the entire article intact, including the author’s promotional information. One of my favorite places to search for articles is .ezinearticles.com.

One last note: Keep in mind that if your e-zine’s main objective is to get you more clients and customers, you should NOT feature other writers’ articles more than once in a blue moon. Remember our main goal is to continually showcase YOU.

9 Steps to Unique Articles

1 Remove your limits

Reduce your subject to a single core word and then brainstorm around it. For example, if you’re trying to write about “Study Skills”, expand your thinking to “School”. Now jot down everything that comes to mind when you think about School, and when you run out of ideas start asking yourself open questions around the subject and noting your answers.

Examples:

What did I enjoy about school?

What scared me?

What did I wish I’d known from Day 1?

This will help you get back into the mindset of someone struggling with school issues of all kinds and you’ll start to get a feel for their concerns and worries.

2 Restore your focus

Once you’ve started to understand the general feelings of your readers, allow your mind to focus back on your original topic of Study Skills. From your new perspective, what questions would you ask? What would you want to know? Is this really a “Studying” issue or is it more about Time Management or being able to work without distractions or being paralyzed by the fear of not doing well?

3 Be your audience

Write each question on a separate sheet of paper; don’t stop until you have at least ten and preferably more. Stay in the mindset of your readers until you feel you’ve asked every major question that concerns them.

4 Take a step back

Put your pile of question aside for a few hours, overnight if possible. Don’t consciously think about them; just go about your day as usual. Give your subconscious time to process them without any further prompting from you. If new questions come to mind jot them down somewhere safe and then forget about them.

5 Get out your pen and write

When you’re ready, sit down with your pages of questions and simply start to answer them. Writing your answers by hand can give you access to ideas that might be missed if you type them. Don’t edit yourself at this stage. Using Speech to Text software or a digital recorder can also be helpful in bypassing the internal editor.

Imagine someone sitting in front of you asking for advice and just talk to them. Keep your tone natural and conversational and stay with the question-and-answer format.

6 Edit lightly

Trust your first instincts. Proof-read and correct any obvious errors, but don’t do any major editing until your piece has had time to “sit” for a while. Again, leaving it overnight will give you a fresh perspective the next time you look at it, but even if your deadline doesn’t allow for that it’s important to give yourself a break from it.

When you’re pushed for time, writing several articles at one sitting can create enough change of focus to make you “forget” the one you’ve just written.

7 Polish it up

Short articles are unlikely to need major editing if you’ve written them as described here. They will flow easily and naturally already and having each Q & A on a separate sheet makes it easier to select only the ones you want. Your job now is to put them in a reasonably logical sequence and make sure they’re understandable and that the reader is led smoothly from one question and answer to the next.

8 Top and tail it

Write a brief introductory paragraph as a “teaser” for the main article. Many article directories now put the first paragraph of each piece into RSS feeds which are picked up by other websites, so you’ll want to make sure that your two or three major keywords appear at least once in that first paragraph.

Write another short paragraph to summarize the major points of the article and provide some ideas for the reader to explore the subject further. Don’t of course forget your own resource box: use the format SubmitYourNewArticle.com for your link, so when your article is converted to html your link will automatically be live.

9 Submit it!

8 Mistakes You Should Avoid Before Sending Article To Ezine Publishers.

#Make your article published; avoid some mistakes that many article authors did.

Sending successful article to ezine publishers could exposed your website to thousands of subscribers even millions of readers online.

However, to do this successful, you must compete with others internet marketers. They also send articles to the same ezine publishers like yours.

The question is…How to make your article stand out of the crowd?

Alternatively…

Your article goes to the trash bin.

Here are common mistakes many article authors did.

Mistake #1- Wrong-targeted niche market

Many article authors sent their article to the wrong-targeted niche market. Send your article to the targeted audience. Do not try to blast your article to all ezine publishers. For instance, as an ezine editor I received many articles do not related to internet marketing. Therefore, I’m not published it.

Mistake #2- No Subject

You do not write your article headline on your subject email. Many article authors send their article without subject line. Instead of writing “New Article submission” “article for your publication,” consider “New article &ndash 6 Mistakes You Should Avoid Before Sending Article To Ezine Publishers.”

Mistake #3- Not unique

Your article content is a blatant idea. Topic you write it like the others publishers and not much different. Make your article fresh and unique. Learn something new in your market. Convert what you learnt into a unique article. You could write article on topic “how to,” “Tips” or anything that come to your mind. Even on article, title “how to avoid SPAM,” “how to hack hackers back.”

Mistake #4- Advertising article

Your article more on promoting your product or affiliate program you join. Writing advertising article only will kill your business online. Give your website info only on your resource box. Give something free like free e-books, free report, or free download. Make your readers visit your website to receive their free bonus.

Mistake #5- Lack of valuable information

Your article does not educate your targeted audience. People subscribe to ezine to receive valuable information. If they receive information on topic they do not want, not educate them at all, they will unsubscribe. Therefore, ezine publishers will not publish your article. Many ezine publishers provide information as best as they can to their subscribers.

Mistake #6- Spelling problem

There are too many spelling errors on your article. Sending article with too many spelling errors only waste your time. Check, your article twice before publishes it. You could use spell-checking software.

Go to the major search engine and type “free spell-checking.”Most word processor today built in with spelling check. For instance, MS Office can check the misspell words for you with underline red color.

Mistake #7- Without format

Make sure your article format 65 characters per line. Length of your article must between 500-750 words. Formatting your article will make for ezine publisher easy to copy and paste it. You could send your article through MS Outlook Express.

Go to “tools” menu and click “Options.” Click “Send” tab and choose mail-sending format to “plain text.” Then click “plain text setting” tab, select 65 characters for automatically wrap text when sending email.

Mistakes #8- No Personalize message

Personalize your email message with a short cover letter. Personalization your emails are very important because many ezine publishers receive hundreds of article submission every day. Also, include your article information in your personalize message.

Avoiding those mistakes above will make your article successful published by many ezine publishers on the net. Good luck.

7 Marketing Lessons We Can Learn From TV Infomercials

I hate to share this, but I love watching infomercials. And I’ve ordered more than once from them! Everything from cosmetics to a cell phone accessory.

When pressed, my friends admit the same. If you sniff around most people’s homes, you’ll find SOMETHING ordered from an infomercial, whether it’s the Ronco Rotisserie or Victoria Principal’s skincare.

You may think of these often annoying programs as “trash TV”, but think again. Did you realize that they use many of the exact same strategies that we should?

Now, I don’t mean you need to scream at your customers or flash “$19.95″ in blinking digits on your website! Those are gimmicks. But what most people don’t realize is that many of the STRATEGIES that sell the kitchen doohickey gadget are the same ones that can also sell your products and programs.)

Here are 7 of my favorites:

1. They grab your attention.

Infomercials air on the most challenging medium there is out there: television. You’re just a second away from your prospect clicking their remote to the next channel. So they do their best to get your attention right away and KEEP it for as long as possible.

That’s why infomercials give bold statements and emphasize how this doohickey will change your life. You should do this too — stop beating around the bush and make it clear to your prospects how your products and services will change *their* lives!

2. They give tons of real-life testimonials.

You’ll see that TV infomercials have evolved greatly since years ago. It used to be one or two people talking to a camera for the entire time. These days most typical 30 minute spots are over 80% customer testimonials! And that’s for good reason… they are the hands-down BEST way to gain instant credibility.

A great example is for one of those home exercise machines. I noticed years ago they just showed the super-ripped guy using it on the infomercial. Now they show that guy, PLUS dozens of before and after testimonials from real-life guys with beer bellies and real jobs who used the product with success. That was a great move on their part, because c’mon, I just can’t believe that super-ripped guy got that hot looking using it just 30 minutes, 3 times a week!

3. They use personalities.

The most successful infomercials now use celebrity guest hosts. They know this gets people’s attention more than practically anything out there. Pro Activ uses Jessica Simpson. Youthful Essence (a skincare product I love) uses Susan Lucci. Even NutriSystem is now using Dan Marino in their commercials to target men.

You can do the same in your marketing. You can either hire a star, or even better, make YOURSELF the celebrity… by sharing stories, being personal, and having fun with your market.

4. They give an irresistible offer.

It’s rare these days to see an infomercial asking for you to pay for something in full. You’ll mostly see things like “3 payments of $19.95″ or “4 payments of $39.95″. Why? Cash-crunched Americans are always more concerned about cash flow than the total price. They’ll even happily pay much MORE in the end in order to gain a lower monthly payment!

You can do the same. Offer a payment plan for your products, courses, workshops, and coaching. You’ll be AMAZED at the increased response, and it’s easy to do with marketing-savvy shopping cart systems.

5. They give a strong call-to-action NOW.

These folks know that as soon as you change the channel, you’re going to forget about their product. So they make it very urgent that you pick up the phone and call them now or visit their website and order. They usually say something like “If you call in the next 10 minutes you also get…” and they list a few great bonuses.

This isn’t just specific to TV. Everyone would rather put off ANY decision these days, we’re all so busy and overwhelmed! So you need to give people a good REASON to act now, whether it’s a discount that expires, a payment plan that expires, a limited number of products or seats, a special bonus… you get the idea.

6. They sell on continuity.

What’s “continuity”? online newsletter it’s when you make ONE sale that results in multiple charges over and over. For example, because my friends have been raving about I.D. Bare Minerals natural makeup, I recently ordered a kit from their infomercial. Now, every 2 months, I receive a fresh supply in the mail, and my card is charged again. I love it because I don’t have to remember to reorder. They love it because they only had to make ONE sale, and how they’ve got me as a customer forever until I cancel!

Hear me now… continuity will change your life! Consider how you can use this principle in your business. Could you convert some of your current offerings into a monthly membership? Or instead of doing one-shot teleseminars, create an ongoing monthly program? (I did this with my Marketing & Motivation Mastermind.)

7. They repeat themselves. And repeat themselves.

And repeat themselves again! Smart marketers know it takes an average of 9 TIMES for someone to see/hear your message BEFORE they will even consider purchasing! That goes for you too. So many of my clients complain that advertising doesn’t work when they only ran one ad ONCE. Or published ONE newsletter and it didn’t get them results.

Remember it’s the ongoing exposure and repetition that breeds familiarity and trust with your prospects! And that leads to more sales than you’ve ever imagined.

6 Steps to Catch More Opt-ins Than Ever Before

Remember that when you have new visitors at your website, your #1 goal is to get them on your ezine list! That way you have permission to contact them again and again, educating them about your helpful services and products that they came to learn more about.

But you can’t just put up a link that says “free newsletter”. No one cares! You need to carefully craft an opt-in box that works like a big net, catching the exact type of “fish” you want as your ideal clients and customers.

Also remember, don’t hide your box at the bottom of your web pages. Right now, most testing shows that the best place for your opt-in box is the upper right corner… loud and proud!

Here are six simple things you should have in your opt-in box that will help you get more signups than ever before.

1) An Attention-Getting HEADLINE

Remember that online readers SKIM copy - they don’t read it word for word. So the headline in your opt-in box may be the ONLY thing they read, which determines whether they sign up or not. So don’t waste this space saying something like “Free Newsletter” or even worse… “Sign up for our mailing list.” Ugh! Instead, tell me the MOST exciting thing your ezine will give me!

Examples:

“Are You Ready to Blast Off Your SALES This Year?”

“FINALLY: Learn How to Keep That Weight Off For Good”

“Insider Secrets to Writing Novels for Big Bucks”

2) A Raving Description of Your Ezine

Work hard at putting together a description of your ezine that gets prospects excited to sign up! Remember they’re tuned into station WIIFM (”What’s In It For ME?”). Tell them what your information is going to DO for them as well as everything they GET. Examples: How-to articles, quick and easy tips, free resources, insider secrets. Aim for your description to be between 15 and 30 words.

3) A Field to Enter Their FIRST NAME.

Getting people’s names along with their e-mails allows you to personalize your ezine for them. For example, if I was on your list, your e-mail would come to me saying, “Dear Ali…” The subject line could even say, “Ali, here’s your free tip”. Why do you want to do this? Studies prove that having the recipient’s name in the subject line of your e-mails can increase your open rates by 60%!

The problem is, many people value their privacy and are hesitant to give you their full name. For this reason, just ask for their FIRST name. It’s been proven that you’ll get MORE names from people if you only ask for the first name. (And their first name is generally all you’ll need anyway.)

4) A Field to Enter Their Primary EMAIL ADDRESS.

Many people have a backup or personal e-mail address that they use just for receiving online newsletters and promotions. The problem is they are often from free e-mail services like Yahoo or Hotmail. These services filter e-mail like crazy, and their mailboxes fill up quickly, so there’s a good chance your e-mails won’t even reach these recipients.

The solution is, simply ask for their primary e-mail. It’s amazing, but simply ASKING them to enter their primary e-mail will get you more quality e-mails on your list! (You’ll also get less bounce-backs from undeliverable e-mails. If you get too many of those, it raises a red flag to some spam filter programs.)

5) A BUTTON That Says “Subscribe” or “Sign Me Up Now”

Make it very clear what they should click on to activate their subscription once they type in their name and email. Don’t use something confusing like a link that says “submit form”.

6) Your PRIVACY POLICY, right then and there.

Everyone’s scared to receive more spam these days, so put your prospects at ease. Don’t make them wonder what you’re going to do with their e-mail addresses. State right next to or below your opt-in form what your policy is. Mine is, “We will never sell, rent, trade, or share your e-mail with any other organization.” (Feel free to use that yourself.) DON’T make people click on a link to read your privacy policy - it looks like you have something to hide. In fact, in some U.S. states, it’s now required that you state your privacy policy right at the point of opt-in, so it’s a good idea no matter where you do business.

Want to See a Sample of This in Action?

If you’d like to see many of these components in action, see my pop-under box at .ezinequeen.com/popup.htm.

And if you’d like MORE step-by-step instructions on how to get more signups at your website (and beyond) and build your list bigger than ever before, see my SPECIAL REPORT: “101 Simple, FREE and Low-Cost Ways to Quickly Build a Massive EMAIL LIST”, which you can learn more about here.