Archive for July 2009

Why And How Viral Marketing Works

July 31. 2009 by admin.

Why And How Viral Marketing Works You may wonder what a virus has to do with marketing? Well, viral marketing describes any strategy that encourages individuals to pass on a marketing messagto others, creating the potential for exponential growth in the message’s exposureand influence. Like viruses, such strategies take advantage of rapid multiplication to explode themessage to thousands and then to millions. Viral Marketing sounds like somethingbad but it is actually something very good. It is a powerful way to generate lots of traffic to your website or sales page.Think about how a virus spreads from on person to another. One person gets sickand just by sneezing they can give the virus to many more people…… those peopleget sick and share their germs with everyone they know and the next thing anybodyknows is that there is an epidemic. That is the very concept of viral marketing. The idea is to get everyone to spreadyour marketing message around because they want to. Public health nurses offersage advice at flu season: stay away from people who cough, wash your handsoften, and don’t touch your eyes, nose, or mouth. Viruses only spread when they’reeasy to transmit. Viral e-mail marketing works great on the Internet because instant communicationhas become so easy and inexpensive. Digital format make copying simple. From amarketing standpoint, you must simplify your marketing message so it can betransmitted easily and without degradation. 

Short is better.Remember the K.I.S.S. standard….Keep it Simple Stupid. The shorter and easier to remember is always better than long and complicated.Clever viral marketing plans take advantage of common human motivations. Thedesire to be cool and greed drives people. So does the hunger to be popular, loved,and understood. 

The resulting urge to communicate produces millions of websites and billions of email messages. Most people are social. Nerdy, basement-dwelling computer sciencegrad students are the exception. Social scientists tell us that each person has a network of 8 to 12 people in theirclose network of friends, family, and associates. People on the Internet developnetworks of relationships, too. 

They collect e-mail addresses and favorite website URLs. Affiliate programs exploitsuch networks, as do permission e-mail lists. Learn to place your message intoexisting communications between people, and you rapidly multiply its dispersion.If you can design a marketing strategy that builds on common motivations andbehaviors for its transmission, you have a winner. What Works & What Doesn’t 

Stop with the enforced e-mail forwards already! Trying to force or bribe people toforward your info to a friends or family in order to be rewarded or win looks skankyin today’s ultra-permission-based world. Especially when you tell visitors nothingabout their friend’s or family’s privacy in the space directly next to the e-mail form.A true viral campaign gets forwarded because consumers are compelled to do so by the glory of the content, not because you bribed them with points or something else. What absolutely will not work: 

Suggesting that e-mail recipients forward your message to their friends and familywill not work. Adding a line at the bottom of your e-mail that reads “Please feel freeto forward this message to a friend” is more likely to get it deleted than forwarded. What absolutely will work: 

Offering something worthy of sharing like a valuable discount, vital information oroffering an incentive for sharing like additional entries into a sweepstakes or anadded discount or premium service will work. Relevant or timely information,research, or studies that are included in your e-mail might encourage the recipientsto share with their family and friends. Interactive content like a quiz or test,especially if it’s fun, will inspire forwarding. Jokes and cartoons are almost alwaysforwarded to everybody the recipient knows. Why? 

Because they are entertaining and entertainment is meant to be shared. A really coolmultimedia experience is always going to achieve a lot of pass-along. Rich media isnew and the novelty and tech factors alone are often enough to make the e-mailrecipient eager to share it. Oops! Almost forgot one really important thing….You can craft a brilliant e-mail following all the rules, but if a consumer visits yoursite and has an experience less that what was promised, you are going to achieveviral marketing, alright…the bad kind. So be certain that your product or service is ready and is as advertised. The ManyFacets of Viral Marketing In the beginning, e-mail was the one way thatviral marketing was started. Since that long ago day, viral marketing has gone from a marketing strategy to an art form and there are many ways to accomplish the objective of creating a successful viral marketing campaign. Seven of those waysare: 

1. E-mail: It was first but it is still around and still used. It is, however, getting alittle harder to use as more and more government restrictions are placed on it. Still…it does work.2. Newsletters: This is an extension of e-mail but it a very effective tool. If youinclude enough timely and valuable information, a good newsletter can drive up thenumber of visits to your website.3. Blogging: Providing the tools on your website to enable bloggers to interact withone another is a terrific way to get the message about your product of service outthere and being talked about. Bloggers have their ears to the ground for newproducts and services.4. Chat Rooms: A chat room on your website can and does encourage interactionamong your customers and that can’t be a bad thing. Also, you can use the chatroom to schedule special events like having an expert available to answer questionson a given day at a given time.5. Tell-a-friend Script: If you add this with a statement saying that e-mail addressessupplied will never be shared with third parties, you can increase your potentialcustomer list greatly.6. Video Clips: Including cool video clips on your website will keep the interest upand increase traffic.7. Flash Games: Although they are a little costly to start, they are an extremelyeffective tool to get your viral marketing campaign going. Once they are launched,they require nothing more from you. Your Ebook is your Viral Salesman 

Ebooks are the future and the future is now. The printed word on paper and boundinto books used to be the only way information was given and received. They weregreat, you could take them with you and put them on shelves and they do still existand will continue to for the foreseeable future but the time of the Ebook has arrived.  A marketing Ebook is a slightly different animal from just an Ebook.Marketing Ebooks contain text, images, links to web pages and navigation controls. The marketing Ebook has become a very important part of marketing on the Internet. With a marketing Ebook you can present your story in an effective way and includelinks to your web sales pages. Your Ebook can become your best salesman.First, your Ebook needs to be interesting and informative. It always has links back toyour web site and to your sales page. Next, be sure that you have a prominentsection telling readers that they are free to give your Ebook away. Let them knowthat they can post it on their site as a free download, that they can use it as a bonus,and that they can bundle it with other products.To learn more about viral marketing and read this entire 30 page report on Viral Marketing become a memeber of Home Biz Success University at www.HomeBizSuccessUniversity.com

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Direct Response Sales Copy and Design Tricks Exposed!

July 29. 2009 by admin.

Every word on your websites sales page should communicate a clear message. Before sitting down to write the sales copy, make sure you are clear about the product or service you are offering, the price, bonuses, time limits, features and benefits. However, this is only half the battle! You need to spend as much time, if not more time on the design. In this article, I will give you the basic ingredients you need in your sales copy and some of the secret design tricks that will make you website sell.

First off, you need to grab your reader’s attention by sharing with them the basic “How To” or “Secret” in the headline. For example: “How to Get Out of Debt in 30 Days!”, “The Inside Secrets of Professional Copywriters”, “Finally! A Better Way to Capture Leads”, “Unlock the Secrets of How to Make a Fortune Online”. All these headlines explain how to get a benefit faster or reach out to the reader’s curiosity. Take a look at newspaper headlines and magazines for inspiration. Put the heading in (h1) or a very large bold font. Arial or Verdana works best in a red color and centered at the top of the page.

Next, you will want a sub heading that will give the reader additional benefits. For example: “How I use these techniques to rake in millions every year!” Follow this with an introductory paragraph or testimonial. The heading should be (h2) or a slightly smaller large bold font in black. Now insert this entire section inside a table using a black border and a yellow background. The table should be 400 pixels wide or 75% the width of the page and centered.

Next, you will begin the main body of your sales copy with a shocking paragraph or two. Use standard size font and left align. For example: “Start building your eye-ball grabbing sales letter the easy way. Etc�” Avoid long sentences and just write what you think is the main important message.

Of course, even the most compelling text will usually just get skimmed at this point. So how do you stop them in their tracks and get them to read your sales copy? Easy! Just start the first letter of this paragraph (and every paragraph) with a “drop cap”. This is simply a large graphical letter instead of the usual boring text. The letter should be about 3 times the size of a normal letter and it should be in a different font. Something fancy like a cursive “T” will do nicely here. Then bold the rest of that first word.

After the first paragraph or two, you want to reveal the name of the product or service. Use (h3) and center it below the introductory paragraphs. For example: “101 Compelling Ideas”. Now follow up with another paragraph or testimonial in a color box. Use graphical bullet points or graphical checkmark boxes detailing the benefits of your product. You’ll also want to highlight the key points throughout the sales copy just like you were using a highlighter pen. This can be easily done with a .css style sheet. Any number of html editors will have a help section on how to do this. If nothing else, at least use a bold tag (b).

At this point you should offer a free bonus and/or newsletter to capture the readers email. Use the colored box technique, present your offer and insert your lead capture form. Most Autoresponder services will provide you with the code to insert here. Always add a privacy disclaimer “Your name and email address will not be sold, shared or disclosed to anyone. We promise to respect your privacy.” On the next line, center a hyperlink to order your product in bold text. “Click Here To Order Now”.

If you have any additional free bonuses that will go with readers order, add them here. Be brief, but use the same techniques to sell them on the bonuses. Include a dollar value with each bonus. For example: “If you act now, I will include “30 Days to Better Sales Copy” a $27 value - FREE!” Then summarize everything the reader will get with their order, along with the total value of the free bonuses. Be sure to emphasize that these bonuses are only available if the order “today” or by “Jan 5″. This will give them a reason why they need to buy now and create a sense of urgency.

Now begin your closing paragraph. Summarize everything you’ve told them, what they get, and why they need to buy now. Then add a variation of the following sentences

–
Look at it this way — $ is really a painless drop in the bucket to be able to get your hands on and start using it right away to improve your lifestyle!
You Really Can’t Afford Not To Invest In
“Your Product or Service”
It’s easy to get started right away. Just click the order link below.
–

Then put your order box in a yellow colored box with a check box in front of the text:
“Yes, I Just Have To Have This Incredible Package! Count Me In Right Now!
It’s Easy To Order…
Click PayPal Button Below To Order!”
Center the above text and put it in (h1) or large bold text.
Use a graphical order button showing the payment methods accepted like credit card logos.

Finally, scan your real handwritten signature and insert that graphic below

Sincerely,
“graphic signature”

Always include a P.S. and P.P.S. such as:

P.S. Imagine how your subscriber list will explode in the next 30 days using these techniques!

P.P.S Remember, this is a 100% risk free offer. Test drive it for 30 days, and if your not completely satisfied, return it for a full refund - no questions asked!

The graphical signature, your real name, and the P.P.S will add a nice personal touch and is proven to be very effective. The P.S. should emphasize the main headline and the P.P.S the guarantee.

Once you feel your sales copy is complete, put it aside for a while before reading it again. You may spot mistakes or areas of confusion. Then give it to someone else to read. Ask them to skim through it to see if they get the main points of the message. If they do, they can then read each sentence and give you their impression of the letter.

Robert Rogers is a writer in the Washington DC area. Visit http://101compellingtext.com for more tips and techniques that will make your site sell.


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