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Digg it UP - 8 Ezine Advertising Mistakes To Avoid
Many times who you work with is just as important as what you are marketing. At first we may have to join forces with people whom we may not otherwise choose in order to get the job done. You have to focus on the goal of completion. Therefore it is necessary to work with reliable people that will do what they say they will. Deadlines and schedules are important and you will be stuck waiting on an unreliable or incompetent team member.Sometimes when we are new to business and trying to save money we work with an uncompensated person who is doing us a favor. But how long do you wait for him or her? Usually the worst case scenario is that we have to put our work on hold while waiting long periods of time for him or her to fulfill the favor. You get to a point where the project stalls waiting for the updates. It could take a full year or longer and still you wait.Once that happens and you are so far along in the project your only recourse may be to patiently wait and press on and gently apply some pressure t
Mistake No. 3 -- Letting the clock run out
Another common mistake is not giving your ad campaign enough time to work.
Studies show it takes prospects an average of seven exposures to your promotion before they take the bait. Even after they have clicked through
Seventy percent of US households use the web when shopping locally, and about 25 percent of all searches are looking for local information. As more and more households make the switch to broadband connections, this trend will continue to escalate.Search engines have eclipsed print and TV ads as the primary way consumers find local products and services. But until now large national and international brands had a stranglehold on Internet search marketing. Only they had the manpower or outside resources to plan and implement a multiple site, online search marketing program.Why should your business get into the online search pay-per-click (PPC) arena? Let’s do the math. A recent US Bancorp Piper Jaffray study indicates that the average lead from a search engine costs $0.29. Yellow pages and direct mail leads cost $1.18 and $9.94 respectively. So, a search engine delivers four leads for the price of one Yellow Page lead and 34 for the cost of a single direct mail lead.But that is not all. PPC advertising:
Mistake No. 1 -- Not focusing
A common mistake many advertisers make is to attempt to do too much, or rather sell too much, in one ad. Sure you have lots of great products but you can't sell them all in a few lines-at least not individually. Instead focus on the benefit your customer can achieve from all your products and promote that! People are much more likely to click on a link that BENEFITS them than a link that promises to sell them something.
More importantly, tell the customer "what your product or service is going to do for him."
It is important that you identify your Unique Selling Proposition before you begin your advertising program. This will determine which Ezines (or markets) you target as well as what you should include in your ad copy. Who will be interested in your product and why? What benefits does your product offer them?
Mistake No. 2 -- Going for the hard sale
Don't go for the sale in your ad! You are at a disadvantage because you can't list all your products' wonderful benefits in the space allowed. Also, there is only a small percentage of any Ezine audience that is ready to buy your product at the exact moment they view your ad. Yes, maybe they should be, but most people today live in the moment and if this isn't the time they want to buy then they aren't going to buy, end of story.
But it doesn't have to be the end of the story. If you go for the soft sell approach your target consumer is much more likely to click on your link and then you've got the chance to go for the hard sell-again and again!
Here's an example. I'm selling a product called the Preschool Prep Power Pack. It's an educational CD for preschoolers. Now I could go for the hard sell in my promotion and I would make some sales but a lot of people who really might be interested won't even look at my site and product. However, I've chose to go the soft sell approach. Instead of selling my product in my ads, my ads offer two FREE items. I offer a free newsletter (Preschoolers Learn More) offering tips about preparing preschoolers for kindergarten. This is my target market for my product. The folks who subscribe also receive a free ABC-123 coloring book. Why wouldn't the parent of a preschooler subscribe, right?
But what's in it for me as a business person? A lot! Think about it. I now have the freely offered contact information for my target market. Now I can regularly email them information about my product. I'm confident they will buy eventually because my product provides a solution to something that concerns them-or they wouldn't have subscribed in the first place!
Mistake No. 3 -- Letting the clock run out
Another common mistake is not giving your ad campaign enough time to work.
Studies show it takes prospects an average of seven exposures to your promotion before they take the bait. Even after they have clicked through
You’ve undoubtedly witnessed (or participated in) conversations such as the following:Perry Noid: “Why aren’t those estimates ready for the budget report yet? I told you yesterday that I needed them by 2:00. Thanks to you, I’ll be here half the night getting this ready.”Vic Tom: “This place doesn’t revolve around you, you know. I had customers to tend to. Without them, you wouldn’t have a budget to worry about.”Perry: “That may be, but you could have at least had the decency to let me know you were going to be late.”Vic: “If you were ever available, I would have told you what was happening.”Hardly constructive, these exchanges resemble debates or ping-pong games and serve only to inflame emotions and entrench the participants. How do normally intelligent and articulate people fall into such unproductive patterns? And what can be done about it? The answers to both questions lie in the roles we instinctively and sometimes unconsciously adopt when confronted by conflict
It is important that you identify your Unique Selling Proposition before you begin your advertising program. This will determine which Ezines (or markets) you target as well as what you should include in your ad copy. Who will be interested in your product and why? What benefits does your product offer them?
Mistake No. 2 -- Going for the hard sale
Don't go for the sale in your ad! You are at a disadvantage because you can't list all your products' wonderful benefits in the space allowed. Also, there is only a small percentage of any Ezine audience that is ready to buy your product at the exact moment they view your ad. Yes, maybe they should be, but most people today live in the moment and if this isn't the time they want to buy then they aren't going to buy, end of story.
But it doesn't have to be the end of the story. If you go for the soft sell approach your target consumer is much more likely to click on your link and then you've got the chance to go for the hard sell-again and again!
Here's an example. I'm selling a product called the Preschool Prep Power Pack. It's an educational CD for preschoolers. Now I could go for the hard sell in my promotion and I would make some sales but a lot of people who really might be interested won't even look at my site and product. However, I've chose to go the soft sell approach. Instead of selling my product in my ads, my ads offer two FREE items. I offer a free newsletter (Preschoolers Learn More) offering tips about preparing preschoolers for kindergarten. This is my target market for my product. The folks who subscribe also receive a free ABC-123 coloring book. Why wouldn't the parent of a preschooler subscribe, right?
But what's in it for me as a business person? A lot! Think about it. I now have the freely offered contact information for my target market. Now I can regularly email them information about my product. I'm confident they will buy eventually because my product provides a solution to something that concerns them-or they wouldn't have subscribed in the first place!
Mistake No. 3 -- Letting the clock run out
Another common mistake is not giving your ad campaign enough time to work.
Studies show it takes prospects an average of seven exposures to your promotion before they take the bait. Even after they have clicked through
One of my students was looking for his room on the second floor of his hotel in London, United Kingdom.The corridor was being renovated and all the wall signs had been taken down. The guest saw a member of the hotel staff and asked, ‘Where can I find room 264?’The staff thought for a moment and replied, ‘Between room 263 and 265,’ and then walked off.It took the customer a moment to realize the absurdity of what he had just heard. By the time he turned for better guidance, the staff member was gone.?Key Learning Point -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Your customers may require more than technical data to fulfill their wants and needs. Data only becomes useful information when it connects with human concerns.Action Steps -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Give your customers support, coaching, application guidelines, hand-holding, respect, encouragement and practical, useful adv
But it doesn't have to be the end of the story. If you go for the soft sell approach your target consumer is much more likely to click on your link and then you've got the chance to go for the hard sell-again and again!
Here's an example. I'm selling a product called the Preschool Prep Power Pack. It's an educational CD for preschoolers. Now I could go for the hard sell in my promotion and I would make some sales but a lot of people who really might be interested won't even look at my site and product. However, I've chose to go the soft sell approach. Instead of selling my product in my ads, my ads offer two FREE items. I offer a free newsletter (Preschoolers Learn More) offering tips about preparing preschoolers for kindergarten. This is my target market for my product. The folks who subscribe also receive a free ABC-123 coloring book. Why wouldn't the parent of a preschooler subscribe, right?
But what's in it for me as a business person? A lot! Think about it. I now have the freely offered contact information for my target market. Now I can regularly email them information about my product. I'm confident they will buy eventually because my product provides a solution to something that concerns them-or they wouldn't have subscribed in the first place!
Mistake No. 3 -- Letting the clock run out
Another common mistake is not giving your ad campaign enough time to work.
Studies show it takes prospects an average of seven exposures to your promotion before they take the bait. Even after they have clicked through
The Internet has provided humans with another medium for entertainment, communication and business. This has paved the way for the establishment of numerous ways of making money online. These include affiliate programs, e-commerce opportunities, freelance work, and search engine optimization, among others. Making money online has never been more easy and accessible for everyone.Making money online has resulted in numerous advantages for both the customer and the business owner.More ConvenienceWorking online provides you with more control over your business and your working schedule. Online businesses also allows you to work from anywhere in the world, as long as you have an Internet connection. You are making money while you are doing your household chores or while you are on vacation. Online businesses also do not limit you to a certain job, and allows you to dabble in multiple endeavors.Bigger MarketOnline businesses are also able to reach a wider range of consumers, both in the local and
But what's in it for me as a business person? A lot! Think about it. I now have the freely offered contact information for my target market. Now I can regularly email them information about my product. I'm confident they will buy eventually because my product provides a solution to something that concerns them-or they wouldn't have subscribed in the first place!
Mistake No. 3 -- Letting the clock run out
Another common mistake is not giving your ad campaign enough time to work.
Studies show it takes prospects an average of seven exposures to your promotion before they take the bait. Even after they have clicked through
It is no secret that the past decade has seen an enormous number of changes – in the way we live, the way we travel, the way we work, the way we play, the way we shop and of course in the way we access information. While gathering information used to be a cumbersome and time consuming process, the advent of the internet and the ready availability of affordable home computers has put a wealth of information at the fingertips of web savvy consumers.This ready availability of information has led to a number of excellent and highly profitable business opportunities for smart businesspeople as well, and fortunes have been made, and continue to be made, on the internet. In order to take advantage of the enormous profit potential of the internet, however, it is necessary to find out what customers are looking for, and to provide it in a cost effective and user friendly manner.When it comes to the internet, content is king, and that means that those business owners who are able to provide a steady diet of high quality
Mistake No. 3 -- Letting the clock run out
Another common mistake is not giving your ad campaign enough time to work.
Studies show it takes prospects an average of seven exposures to your promotion before they take the bait. Even after they have clicked through to your site visitors may need to visit your site as many as three times before they buy from you. So make sure you keep that offer in front of them. That means it may well pay to take the long-term package versus a one-shot ad.
People run through their emails rapidly and delete things they wish they hadn't. Make their wish come true! Give them a second, third, fourth chance. The formula is--when you're sick and tired of it, the public is just beginning to hear it.
Mistake No. 4 -- Cramming the ad space
Just because you've bought ad space doesn't mean you have to utilize every pixel or character-space. Short, punchy lines that do not use up every available space are more effective. Think about the reader scanning down the page or screen. What will catch their eye and make them stop scanning and actually read? White space is your friend so don't squander it. Use it to set off your important message.
Make sure you apply the same principal to your urls and e-mail addresses as well. Nothing can make an ad look more cluttered than giant web addresses with a complicated string of numbers and letters. If you have to use an address like that (perhaps for your affiliate code, for example) then it might be wise to use a redirect.
Mistake No. 5 -- Not using your head
Your headline is the most important part of your ad. This is usually the line that determines whether the skimming reader will stop or skip ahead.
Some of the proven headline formulas include:
1. Ask the reader a question: "Are you worried about filing your tax return this year?"
2. Tell the reader how to do something: "How to buy a car without getting a lemon."
3. Provide a testimonial: "Big Al saved me $200 last month. Thanks, Cindy Lou from Paducah, Kentucky."
4. Make a command. Turn your most important benefit into a commanding headline. "Stop rushing through life." "Make more money this month." "Feel better about yourself."
5. Important news makes a good headline. "Max Electronics just went international!"
6. Start the clock: "Buyers who act before midnight Tuesday will save an extra $50!"
7. Give the reader something free: "Free whatsit for the first 100 visitors!"
Mistake No. 6 -- Not telling them what to do
It sounds almost ridiculous, but simply giving clear, specific directions about what you want the reader to do can increase the response to your ads.
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