Affiliate marketing is becoming more and more common as a form of internet marketing. It is a very profitable way to make money. Basically, affiliates take the time to optimize their web site in order to ensure that people visit their site. They will promote a particular product or service that is very popular and then turn around and direct them to the company that offers the product or service. Once they direct them, the company will turn around and pay the affiliate for their contribution of the quality leads. This is a great way to make extra money from the comforts of your computer wherever you are.
One of the most important concepts of this type of internet marketing is to make sure that you know what types of products and services are the most profitable. Knowing the biggest problems that people will pay to solve immediately is the best way to ensure that you are able to get the most money for your time and energy. There are undoubtedly always better products to market than others Paying attention to different online trends is one of the best ways to ensure that you are able to be successful when it comes to choosing products and services that you will promote.
While you have many different options when it comes to promoting products and services, you will also see that there are different affiliates out there that are doing the same type of work that you are doing. It is all a matter of having the best web site and being the most competitive. The more traffic you drive to your affiliate site, the better chances you have at making money by directing them to a specific company web site.
This may seem like like a lot of work to you, but it’s really straight-forward once you get the hang of it. The truth is -There is a lot of money to be made in affiliate marketing. Businesses realize that they need the leads quickly, so they pay for it. Taking the time to learn whatever is needed about affiliate marketing will ensure that you are able to do this quickly and efficiently.
You can choose to promote more than one product or service and scale up your profits once you get the hang of it.
Working from home is becoming the new norm for people that are tired of following daily schedules and doing repetitive and tedious tasks just to please their superiors only to get just enough to pay their bills. In the long run, starting a home business can give you the financial freedom once you finally get it up and running as you make direct or affiliate sells depending on your type of home business.
Regardless of the type of business you have set up, you need to have a solid marketing plan to achieve that home business success. A marketing plan can start with the easiest methods of advertising such as the ones that you are most familiar and comfortable with and doing them on a daily or weekly basis. The key to marketing is to be consistent. You can do this by setting a schedule or routine to make sure you complete your marketing. Once you have your schedule or routine, you should expand your efforts by practicing the current methods of marketing:
Social Networking
Many people on the web resort to social networking in keeping in touch with friends and family and that is why so many ambitious home business owners sign up in these networks and widen their list of contacts that may be interested in a home business opportunity being offered. One advantage of social networking is that you have your own profile where you can post updates regarding your business and any other related offers that you want to share with your contacts. What is great is that you do not have to directly message people which some people may not like. In this case, people can go to your profile because they are interested and will contact you for more information.
Postcard Marketing
Online marketing methods should not be your only avenue since different people have different online schedules and may not always check their e-mails and other accounts for any exciting offers. But if you send them a direct mail to their address, they will surely receive it and if it looks attractive, they may rush to your website for more details. This is what postcard marketing is and is more flexible since you can fully design the postcard to match your opportunity and it has that personal touch that conveys to your recipient that you spent some effort in bringing this opportunity to their doorstep. Making use of postcard marketing can help increase traffic to your website or inquires about your business.
It is important to have a good balance in practicing both online and offline home business marketing strategies if you want to have a significant competitive advantage in your business over others. It can make all the difference in you achieving success and making a lot of money from home.
You have a chance to go where 98 percent of people go daily. While you’re there, you have the ability to greet each homeowner personally.
If it’s an offer you can’t refuse, catch a ride on the next U.S. mail truck. Bring along some made- to-order direct mail pieces designed for the individuals you’re targeting. Add tailored images, customized information and even a unique web address to let them know you care.
Then keep this little secret: the thousands of personalized messages that just landed in mailboxes everywhere were mass produced.
In a world where technology brings oxymorons to life, “mass produced unique messages” can be a reality. The trick is Variable Data Printing (VDP), a process that organizes information about your targeted buyers and prints individualized information digitally along with sales messages and images that are pertinent to that potential customer. No set up fees. No change orders. No extra runs.
How it works
VDP technology links databases, electronic print files (including text, graphics and photographs) and digital printers. Information in the database determines exactly which text and images will be pulled. Because each unique combination is transferred to paper digitally, rather than on standard presses, sales pieces can be printed quickly and with minimal cost over static pieces.
For a letter related to the amount owed on a current mortgage, for example, VDP software might pull the homeowner name, the address, the remaining loan amount and an image of a similarly sized home in a comparable price range. Those items are then digitally printed on the letter along with standard text and images that go to all recipients. Whether the job is 500 or 500,000, the information and images can vary with each mail piece.
Personal contact sells
In studies by InfoTrend/CAP Ventures, VDP users reported 36 percent increases in response rates, 24.5 percent in average orders, 47.6 percent in repeat orders, 31.6 percent in overall profit, and 33.9 percent in response time.
The difference is in personalized and relevant content. The average US consumer is exposed to 5,980 marketing messages every day. They notice 52 of the messages and read or actually pay attention to only four.
By enticing recipients with content and images that relate directly to them and proposing solutions that are relevant to their situations, you have a better chance of being among the four memorable messages. But it’s important to make sure you have your facts straight. Different list providers have their stronger, more accurate areas of expertise, and you’ll need to the find one that delivers well in the categories you’re pulling. For example, if you are using variable images of houses based on square footage, you need to make absolutely sure your list provider is providing you with the most accurate square footage data possible. The same example applies for age. If you are targeting seniors with a reverse mortgage offer, the last thing you want to do is send a mail piece to a 40 year old with an image of a 70 year old.
PURLs of wisdom
A popular technique used alongside VDP is the creation of PURLs, or personalized urls (web addresses) that take consumers to a website designed for them. VDP technology allows the PURL to be printed on the correspondence along with other data variables just by inserting the recipient’s name as part of a longer web address. For example, a direct mail piece I receive might send me to http://www.influencedirect.com/andyriddlemortgageoffer. Most people say they would prefer to follow up on a direct mail piece over the Internet, so right away your piece has garnered a greater response than an 800 number as your only response channel might achieve.
When the prospective borrower gets to the website, he finds information tailored for his demographic. Whether he chooses to request more information, browses around the site or leaves it immediately, web tracking will measure his activity and alert you to follow up.
While using this type of interactive technology comes naturally to Gen Yers, the youngest of mortgage holders, the skill also is easy for Gen Xers and has been acquired by Baby Boomers. Recent studies have found that even older generations are embracing the Internet more frequently. In a California study, for example, 58% of adults ages 55 and older reported using the Internet in 2008, compared with 42% in 2000. This data shows that direct mailers should not ignore the opportunity to use PURLs when promoting reverse mortgages. As with any other product, PURLs and personalized content can boost the value of the piece by providing more ways to measure response and follow up with even slightly interested recipients.
At what cost?
Jumping into the mailboxes of a targeted group of consumers with relevant products and personalized information probably isn’t as expensive as you think. First of all, we’re talking “targeted.” You’re printing and mailing fewer pieces than if you were simply blanketing a large area. Second, digital printing doesn’t come with the set up charges (or the time constraints) of traditional printing methods. In the end, your total campaign expense may end up only slightly higher per piece when compared to static direct mail.
And when the result is engaged consumers, higher response rates and better tracking mechanisms, you’ll soon be depositing your own personalized messages in the nearest bank.
Andy Riddle is CEO of Nashville, TN based mortgage direct mail agency Influence Direct. Influence Direct produces a variety of mortgage direct mail campaigns utilizing snap packs, window envelope letters and post cards. Influence Direct specializes in FHA, VA, Reverse and Conventional mortgage direct mail programs.
Now as for the marketplace weather and conditions change and the way people buy products and services shifts and adjust right along with it. And given the roller-coaster ride we’ve been on lately, the marketplace and our clients have shown some pretty erratic behaviors.
These principles are the foundation of success in ANY marketplace environment. So in good times or bad these principles will work. Here’s my list of the top 7:
1. Marketing should be your #1 priority. No customers, no business, plain and simple.
2. Take one action EVERY SINGLE DAY to market and promote your business. No matter how big or small, do something. Take action now.
3. Focus on quality prospects not quantity. A handful of quality prospects will do a whole lot more for your business than a bunch of mediocre ones.
4. Become ‘the expert’ in your field. Everyone wants to work with ‘the best’ and the only way to do that is to position yourself as ‘the expert’.
5. Don’t focus on business branding. Concentrate on building name recognition through repetitive direct response marketing. This does not mean putting your name out there in ineffective advertising you see other companies doing. Your budget is not as large as Coke’s!
6. Get online NOW if you aren’t already. Its not too late. Customers are researching their options and you need to be in front of them.
7. Don’t forget about your existing customers. They’re your most valuable asset and it’s 10x’s easier to sell them than it is to sell to a brand new customer. Keep these
7 points in mind as your looking to grow your business and as you position it for future growth.
To find out more about how to market online or offline using direct mail and other marketing go to John Barry’s website: Local Search Marketing