I am such a total dweeb today…

If I could bury my head in the sand and hide, I would.

Oh, well, I can only say that I will learn from the mistake.

I sent an email out last night to my list(s)…I wrote it, proofread it, tested it, and everything looked good. So I queued it up to be sent…in fact I got a response from one of my readers, my accountability partner in this wacky business, Peggy Baron, about the ‘tag line’ or USP that I used in that email.

Well, it wasn’t until this morning when I started checking stats, opens, clicks, so on and so forth, that I realized what a dork I am.

When I wrote that email, I did as I normally do and wrote most of it in the HTML section of Aweber…no problems, everything was kewl…got that all formatted the way that I wanted it and then copied it into the plain text area.

Again, as I normally do.

Now the reason I do both is because I like to insert links into the emails and it looks better (at least I think so) when the link is embedded (like this)…

In the plain text version, to do the same thing, you have to do a bit of code writing to get that done (hint, hint…that is one of the lessons in the Knowledge-Application-Results newsletter – sign up in the upper right hand corner and get some cool bonuses).

As I mentioned, I am such a dweeb…

When I was looking at the email that I sent out (I am subscribed to my own list so I can make sure everything went out the way it was supposed to) in plain text…..all I could say was ‘OH CRAP!!!!!’

The plain text version of the email was almost entirely duplicated!

It was like I had the main email, then totally repeated myself again…except the link that I was trying to format was all hosed.

The only thing I can think of is that when I copied from the html portion, I ctrl-v’d twice accidentally!

You’re asking – did you not test the email before sending?

Um, yes, I did…but I only tested to my email address that is set up to receive html emails (that message went out perfectly) and not to my address that gets the plain text version.

Lesson — when testing your emails before sending them out, make sure you test BOTH versions.

I won’t let that happen again.

Again, if you would like more ‘inside information’ similar to this, but more indepth, sign up for the Knowledge-Application-Results newsletter and receive some great bonuses.

You can sign up in the upper right hand corner of this page…

Until next time..Learn from your mistakes &

Here’s to YOUR Successes…

Ron

Has the economy got you down?

Are you one of the thousands who have lost their job in the past months?

Don’t fret…I am going to provide you with 3 compelling reasons why you should have the attitude that there is a light at the end of the tunnel and why you should get into Internet Marketing right now.

To begin with, the Internet has revolutionized the way businesses, both large and small, can advertise their products and services and attract new customers. One small one page website or set of articles submitted to article directories can start a torrent of traffic to any website that provides what people are looking for.

The same marketing revolution can work for the unfortunate who have been hit by the hard economic times of the near past. If that is you, it’s possible that you can get into Internet Marketing by selling (or giving away) ebooks, software or services to anyone looking for that type of information or help.

It’s not difficult to do or start, and can make you a lot of money.

Here’s three reasons marketing on the Internet should be part of your game plan:

1. Starting an online business is easy.

Compared to a brick and mortar business, online businesses do not require large amounts of money, time or equipment. If done right, your online ventures can be making money and profit for you in days, instead of months or years.

2. It doesn’t cost much to start.

With Internet Marketing, you do not have to build, buy or lease a building or storefront for your business. There’s no costs for new office furniture, employees, equipment, insurance, or salaries.

What’s not to like about that?

What you will have to spend minimal money on is:

Your internet connection. Although you can get by with a dialup connection, I highly recommend a high speed connection. In the long run, it will serve you so much better.

Hosting fees for your new website, which start at “Free” and can run anywhere from $5 a month to much more…many good hosting services can be had for $5 or $10 a month. Research it.

I recommend Dreamhost

Autoresponder fees to send your customers automatic “Thank You” emails and updates on your products.

Use any good search engine to find the service that fits your needs. My recommendation: Aweber

Design costs can be pricey, but can be avoided if you know how to create your own headers, attention-grabbing bullets and “Buy Now” buttons.

There’s graphic collections all over the Internet for website graphics that you can purchase for a reasonable price and use on your own website.

Copywriting can make or break your Internet Marketing business. Your sales page has to be compelling enough to make your visitors take action and buy your products or services (or opt in to your mailing list). If you cannot do it yourself, consider hiring a professional copywriter or ghostwriter to do it for you. Whatever it costs, it will be money well spent in the increased sales it will bring.

Lastly, but definitely the most appealing:

Running your own business from your home gives you complete freedom.

You get to set your own hours, forget about getting dressed up and driving to an office or store in traffic and enjoy your family everyday…

not just on weekends.

A successful Internet Marketing business can change your whole life and dramatically increase the quality of that life.

If you would like more ‘inside information’ on how to set up and get your internet marketing business off the ground, be sure to sign up for the ‘Knowledge-Application-Results’ newsletter in the upper right hand corner of the page. I provide that information on a regular basis.

It’s your dream…start living it!

Til next time…here’s to YOUR Successes

Ron

Here we go with Part 2….

The newbie may have a killer info product. He or she may have it listed on Clickbank or PayDotCom and it is selling well. It may have a sales page that converts fairly well. Newbie is making some money.

So he goes about sending emails to the big guys that he ‘knows’. This email with the joint venture proposal may highlight a higher than normal commission and great incentive package.

Guess what? It’s still possible that it may be deleted without a second look by the guru that it has been sent to.

Why? Simply because the newbie has no credibility.

The newbie Info Marketer most often fails because he or she doesn’t realize the importance of establishing their own credibility before they even begin to approach the top guns with joint venture proposals.

They haven’t done their homework and they haven’t paid their dues.

Newbie hasn’t had any articles published. Hasn’t posted to blogs or forums. He may have a list, but it’s not very large and probably isn’t too responsive.

They haven’t taken any of the steps required to even begin establishing their own online credibility…and then they wonder why the guru’s aren’t interested in a joint venture.

The Powerful Benefits of Having Credibility

Think about credibility like this: Would you personally hire someone to babysit for you who had several references and lots of experience or a kid down the block who will be babysitting for the first time and has no track record that you can check?

Wait…don’t decide yet!

Let’s say that the babysitter with the references and the experience charges twice as much as the one with no experience. Hmmm…you’d probably still opt for the experienced one, right?

OK, let’s say that the kid with no experience as a paid babysitter has been reading everything he could find about babysitting and has taken a babysitting course. This kid doesn’t have references as such but he does have letters from prominent people stating that he is a responsible and mature person.

He has written articles for the school paper about the responsibilities of baby sitting. Remember, the inexperienced one charges a lot less. Now the choices are getting a lot more even.

At this point, you might remember how hard it was for you to get your first job and, because this kid has taken the steps to gain credibility by reading, taking courses, and writing articles you decide to give him a shot.

The above example is very much how the world of Information marketing works. The websites are full of experienced marketers who have a ton of references. One of the few ways that newbies have at breaking into the market and getting a joint venture with an established marketer is if he/she is willing to put in the effort to establish some credibility.

Yes, it’s true that a joint venture with an established marketer can and does provide a new marketer with some credibility, but more than likely it isn’t going to happen if the new marketer hasn’t already established some credibility for himself.

How’s your ‘Cred’ rating? Get my Knowledge-Application-Results newsletter (with some cool bonuses for subscribing) and I will give you some ‘inside’ info on how you can raise your rating more quickly. Sign up in the upper right hand corner of the page….

OH, and before I forget….the Thanksgiving Giveaway launches on Monday and Santa’s Giveaway launches November 20, so there is still time to get in as a contributor and start to build YOUR list! I highly recommend upgrading in both if you can because that will allow you to download all of the gifts you need to continue to build your ‘cred’ ……

Until next time…

Here’s to YOUR Successes.

Ron