Archive for the ‘Content Marketing’ Category

When I first started writing for the web, I was so terrified.

I was a horrible writer when I was in high school…barely passing my English classes.

One of my mentors told me I could write a great article in 30 minutes…ya right!. But when I tried it for the first time I wrote almost 1,100 words in 25 minutes..I was shocked.

And it wasn’t that bad actually…

So here’s what he taught me…

First… say what the article is about.

Second…tell them who it’s for.

Third…give them the benefit. Why they should read it. What it will do for them. Etc.

Then for the body of the article, give them the best THREE (3) pieces of value you’ve got. And include personal experiences.

In conclusion, summarize the entire article and and the very end pique their curiosity with something else.

For example:

“That explains the top three ways to get targeted traffic to your website. For 7 more ways, please visit ….”

And I just learned this the other day: Your bio shouldn’t be about you…it should be about “What’s next”…for your potential reader….this encourages them to continue on and click your link.

So here’s where the timing comes into play:

Set your timer for 25 minutes, don’t look at your screen, just type what comes to mind. After 25 minutes, spend 5 minutes reviewing, do a spell check and a very quick check for grammar.

Writing for the web doesn’t have to be perfect, but it does have to be valuable.

A few other tips he taught me were:

- Always write about what you know and what works.

- Post it on your site first, wait till it’s cached with Google, then post it on article directories.

- Clear your mind of any negative thoughts like “I can’t write”, instead say aloud to yourself “I am in the process of becoming a great writer.”

- Focus on three things you can explain in great detail.

- Write as if you are speaking to someone you know who would be interested in the information.

- Use conversational English.

- As you write do not edit your thoughts…let go of the need to be perfect….LET YOUR FINGERS FLY!

- Use common phrases and colloquialisms (had to look this one up) or slang.

- Always write with a purpose (to make money)…so include some CTA (call to action) or link that you can profit from.

- Once you’ve written an article, turn it into a video and blast it out on the net with a tool like Traffic Geyser.

And so I leave you with this:

“Don’t measure your success based on where you want to get, instead measure based on where you’ve come from.”

So what are you waiting for…get writing… but FIRST: Comment On This Blog Post and tell me your article writing tips. What gets you in the mood? How do you find ideas? How have you progressed from when you first started? What challenges are you still facing?

Tracy Matthewman
Visit Tracy at NetworkMarketingSweetie.com for more cool stuff like this!

Totally Free Tuesday is the unofficial “Orientation Day” for new Work at Home Moms.  The event is organized and hosted by Work at Home Moms Talk Radio host, Kelly McCausey.

I’ll be joining Kelly as her guest at 2 pm EST to talk about using PLR content in your business. If there’s one thing I have plenty of experience with, it’s creating and using PLR.

To register for this call, and all the free goodies go to: TotallyFreeTuesday.com.

Please join me, I would love to have you there :)

In case you’re not on my mailing list, (though you really should be ) I thought I would post the email that I sent out to my subscribers earlier today for you here:

====================================================

Is it just me, or do you feel like you’re moving at a snail’s
pace too?

Yeah, I guess summer does have the annoying habit of provoking
laziness in even the most dedicated of us business owners

And as nice as it would be to keep up our idle ways, you and I
both know that it’s time to shake off the fog and start planning
for the fall if we want to meet our year-end goals.

So with that in mind, I woke up Monday morning, sat down with
my coffee and indulged in a crazy brainstorming session.

A session that I want to share with you, but more on that in
just a minute.

Using a combination of pen and paper, MS Word, and mindmapping
software, I created an ACTION plan for one of my sites that
will greatly increase the current monthly over the next few
months.

And predictably, the glue holding it all together is content.

I know content. I write it, I use it to market my business,
I have memberships sites based on it. It works.

Of course everyone says it works, but what they don’t tell you
is:

-> How to come up with content ideas
-> How to create content for search engine traffic
-> How to use content to convert prospects into customers
-> How to reuse and repurpose your existing content
-> How to grow your mailing list and readership with content

You know, all the really important stuff.

So when I realized how big a part content was going to play in
my business plans this fall, I figured maybe it was time to
learn how to create a long-term content marketing plan.

Naturally, I went to Alice Seba first, to take a closer look
at her interactive content course. Mainly because I want to
be focused and I want to take action. I don’t want useless
fluff, and I don’t want to learn stuff I already know.

To be honest, I was pretty confident her course wouldn’t be
for me, but her satisfaction guarantee meant that I wouldn’t
be out anything if that turned out to be the case.

So I got in touch with Alice and asked if she could extend
the lifetime course option to me so I could check it out.

Well, she did better than that…not only did she re-activate
the lifetime access option, she also gave me a coupon for $20
off the cost – so I dug in.

And now I have to admit that I was wrong. Her course turned
out to be nothing like I expected.

For someone who knows content the way I do, I’m doing some
serious learning over here, and more importantly, applying
what she teaches to my business.

The course even includes some cool videos (loved the video on
how Alice uses her iPhone to create content and get ideas) and
tons of supplemental learning materials, like planning sheets,
swipe files, templates, etc.

Anyway, now you’re probably wondering what the heck happened
to the brainstorming session I was talking about, so here it
is…

Remember how I said that content was the glue that held my
brainstorm together?

Well, the way I see it, handing over my personal brainstorm
isn’t going to do you much good if you struggle with content.
So here’s what I want to do…

I want you to join me as a content marketing student and we’ll
work side-by-side.

Sign up for just $1.00 TODAY, and I’ll send you a copy of my
business brainstorm mindmap next week.

Go here to get signed up (clear your cookies first):

http://internetmarketingsweetie.com/content-marketing.html

Then send a copy of your receipt to melissa @ sweetiemarketing.com
and I’ll get that to you.

*** SAVINGS & EXTRA BONUS ***

If you want to give it your all like I did, grab your lifetime
membership which gives you access to all the lessons, materials,
videos, audios, etc. for just $77.

Coupon code: sweetsweet
Expires: July 30, 2010
Discount: $20 off lifetime access

AND not only will you get a copy of my business brainstorm
mindmap, you’ll also get INSIDER ACCESS to my call with Alice
Seba this September where we’ll be talking about:

“Cashing in with Free Reports: How to Get Traffic, Build
Your List, and Make Money With Free Reports.”

Just forward a copy of your receipt to me personally at
melissa @ sweetiemarketing.com and I’ll be in touch with all
the details

Here’s that link again:
http://internetmarketingsweetie.com/content-marketing.html

Here’s to a successful and profitable fall season!

Warmly,
Melissa Ingold
The Internet Marketing Sweetie

P.S. If you already signed up, don’t worry, you’ll get access
to the call too.

1. Save Time – Writing all your own products takes time. Buying resell rights products allows you to skip right over that. Instead of spending all that time in production mode you’re free to do the money-making activities. Now you have time to be marketing those products you’ve got ready to sell.

2. Save Money – If you don’t have time to create products yourself, another option is to hire this process out to a team. If you do you’ll need to pay a writer, a graphic designer, a copywriter and a website designer. That can be a very pricy proposition! By using resell rights you are saving yourself a large chunk of change and getting a high quality product at the same time.

3. Keep All The Profits – As an affiliate you might get 30-50% in commissions from the sale of any products you promote. When you purchase resell rights products 100% of the profits are yours. The only thing it costs you is your initial investment in the rights and the rest is pure profit.

4. Skip The Research – Market research can be difficult, especially if you are new at it. Buying resell rights products means you get to avoid the initial research part.

5. Professionally Written Content – Maybe you don’t feel you’re writing is up to the professional quality you’d like in a product. With resell rights products you will be getting the advantage of having a professional write you a product without paying the high cost of hiring one yourself. All the editing, revising and formatting is already done for you.

6. Earn Credibility By Association – It takes time and effort to establish a respected and trusted brand, online or offline. When you buy resell rights products from a brand that has worked hard to build that reputation you can earn credibility simply by being associated with them. That’s why celebrity endorsements work so well (and are so costly for companies to get!).

7. Profit From Experience – When you serve a specific target market for a certain amount of time, you start to get an intuitive idea of what they need and want. That kind of experience takes time to build. Reselling products created by an experienced business allows you to benefit from the time they’ve spent ‘in the trenches’ learning the needs and wants of YOUR target market. That’s very valuable stuff.

8. Gain New Customers – Again if we talk about affiliate marketing you are sending customers to the company you are an affiliate for. By selling resell rights under your own company you are keeping those customers with you. You can build a loyal and profitable relationship with those customers in a way you couldn’t possibly do if they bought through someone else and became their customer.

9. No Worries About Making It Unique – One of the advantages of using private label rights products is that you can edit it. Did you know that’s also one of the disadvantages? You see, according to many marketers the majority of people who buy PLR never use it because they never get past the customizing and rewriting stage. With resell rights products there is no worry of that. You can’t edit these products so you can’t get held up by this step and never sell a thing. Resell rights are ready to go. That means you get to make money faster.

10. Expand Your Expertise – Maybe your customers are asking you for a product on a topic you’re just not comfortable writing on yet. This is where resell products would be very useful. While you may not be an expert in everything you can still offer a quality product that fits their needs.

The other day I talked about resell rights products being “old school” in most people’s minds, and how I thought differently.

So I’ve put together a 4 part video tutorial that takes you step-by-step through one of the many ways you can use resell rights products in your business, to plug those profit leaks. I’ve also included a 16-page blueprint that provides you with additional tips, strategies, and ideas.

First, watch me on video talking about resell rights products, and then if you’d like to learn more, you can pick up a copy of my video tutorial and blueprint. Go here: http://www.resellrightsproductshowto.com

Before private label rights content (PLR) became such a hot commodity, resell rights products were the “it” way to sell products online without creating them yourself. And now, you really don’t hear a whole lot about resell rights products, at least I don’t anyway, so does that mean using them is an “old school” method?

I’d have to say no. I believe there is still a place for resell rights products in your business, and if used right, they can prove to be as valuable as PLR is to you now.

But before we get into that, let’s touch on exactly what resell rights products are…

Basically, they’re products that someone has created and branded, and they allow others to resell the products and keep 100% of the profits. The product typically comes with an ebook or report, a sales letter, and a thank-you/download page. You’re not allowed to change any of the content or graphics, but you can add your name to the sales letter, thank-you/download page, and add in your order link.

There are also those who sell master resell rights to their products, which means you can turn around and give your customers the rights to resell the product too. This can quickly saturate the market if licenses aren’t capped, and unfortunately, most people don’t limit the number of people who can buy a master license.

So if you can’t change any of the content or graphics, why would you want to sell them?

Like I mentioned, resell rights products can be just as valuable to you as PLR, but there are a few guidelines you should follow to ensure maximum profit.

1) Don’t buy products from just any old Joe Blow: Willie Crawford recently talked about “celebrity status” in his teleconference for Sell Big Ticket Items. He said that he encourages people to get their picture taken with high profile marketers at events, because being connected with those brands can raise your own status in the eyes of your market.

The same thing can be applied to the products you sell. If you’re selling a resell rights product with Joe Blow’s name on the cover, who cares? But if you have a widely recognized brand stamped on that product, it’s going to be easier to sell because people will know the product is going to be good, and they’ll think more highly of you because you’re associated with that brand. This may actually give you more of an edge than a PLR product with your own name on it.

2) Choose products that sell minimum licenses: You don’t want to be selling the same product as thousands and thousands of other people, so choose products that cap their licenses at just a few hundred.

3) Do something unique: Just because it’s a resell rights product doesn’t mean you’re limited on what you can do with it. Here are a few ideas:

-> Add it to a paid membership site
-> Add it as a bonus to your own product
-> Create a learning center on your paid site
-> Sell a print version
-> Take key points from the content and create a video
-> Take a bunch of resell rights products and create a coaching program from them
-> Create an audio version of the ebook or report that includes tips and thoughts from you to add value to the product
-> Add to the product by creating checklists, idea sheets, worksheets, software, interviews, and other downloadable goodies.

Overall, I think resell rights products are still a very viable option for getting the products you need without the work and expense of creating them yourself.

Before you go, can you please take a minute to answer this one question about resell rights products for me? Click here to share your answer (thanks in advance, I really appreciate it).

There’s no doubt about it, using PLR (private label rights) content is one of the easiest ways to add content to your website, blog, newsletter, and even your information products. The not so easy part, is making the content unique.

It’s a common myth that rewriting PLR takes a lot of time, and is more of hassle than it’s worth. And I only have one thing to say about that…WRONG!

Customizing your PLR should only take you a few minutes, if you spend more than that, well, you might as well just write the content yourself

Nicole Dean of EasyPLR.com put together a quick video that shows you how you can effectively and quickly rewrite your PLR content. Check it out:

If you’re in need of articles or reports, Nicole has some awesome topics available right now at EasyPLR.com, and her PLR is always top-notch. I’m not just saying that either, because I’m regular customer myself!

I know, I know, another video… but a girl’s gotta get with the times right?

Now this particular video was actually created based on a question that one reader asked. Kamrul Hassan wanted to know how he could monetize an article that was giving him the #1 position on Google.

The thing is, when it comes to articles, well, you’re pretty limited on what you can do. And the truth is, a lot of article directories, Ezine Articles included, are really going to start cracking down on the way things are done this year in order to keep Google happy. That includes clamping down on affiliate links, spammy topics, and editing your article after it’s published. It all comes down to the good ’ole Google slap if the owners of these sites continue to allow marketers to create a “bad neighborhood” online.

So in this video I mainly talk about your resource box and how you can get people to click through, and how to easily track your article’s performance. I also touch on the use of keywords. Check it out:

 

Related Resources:

-> Unique Article Wizard: I’ve used this one in the past, and it’s really an awesome program. In fact, I personally saw my some of sites climb to the top of Google for my keywords in a matter of days, so it works like it’s suppoed to (though, of course, I can’t guarantee you would get the same results from using it).

It basically submits unique versions of your article to all the article directories, so you get more mileage out of one article. But a word of warning, it does take a little more effort to publish your articles because of how it provides unique versions, but it’s so worth the effort.

-> ISnare: This is one I use frequently because it submits all your articles to all the article directories for you. So much easier than doing it manually, and it’s something you can have your VA do by allowing her access to your account.

The site itself isn’t pretty to look at, but it does the job like it says it will, and it’s pretty inexpensive too. It’s $10 to submit 5 articles, which then go out to all the directories in their database. You can add credits to your account via PayPal as often as you need it, so I really like the set up because it’s not a monthly thing.

All my best,

P.S. If you have a question you would like me to answer, I would love to hear it! Submit Your Question.