Saturday, June 03, 2006
The Missing Elements in Most Failing Businesses
If you're like most people, you started your online business because of the promise of easy money, short work hours and unlimited potential for being able to do what you want, when you want, how you want and still make more than you did as an employee. So how come that promise doesn't hold true for the vast majority of new business owners online?
A look through Napoleon Hill's classic, "Think and Grow Rich," shines the spotlight on the key elements missing in most online business attempts. Hill lays out six steps for turning your desire for the kind of life you want into reality. These steps have been confirmed by countless millionaires as essential steps to success. I'll list them along with my comments on how these turn up lacking in most new business owners' efforts.
1. Write down the exact amount of money you would like to earn
Here are two things right off the bat that most new business owners, flush with excitement over becoming their own boss, fail to do;
Would you go to the airport without a destination in mind and then hop on whatever plane was nearest. Would you figure that wherever that plane takes you will be where you really wanted to go in the first place? That would be a ridiculous way to get anywhere with air travel and it's equally ridiculous for planning a business.
The second thing that most business owners fail to do with this first step is to fail to put goals in writing. There's something about physically writing things out on paper and having it in front of you that makes it feel more real.
Again with the travel analogies, if you were going to drive to a distant place you've never been before, would you try to keep directions in your head? Or would you want to have them on paper to refer to so you can keep your memory fresh on where you were going and how to get there?
2. Write down what you are prepared to give in order to obtain your goal
This, too, is missing from most failing businesses' efforts. Too often, new business owners online are lured by the myth that they can simply slap a little affiliate code on their website or pick out a few products from some dropship company and then sit back and watch the money roll in. Nope.
You can't start a profitable business without investing a lot of yourself in it. What will you give of your time? What will you give of your background? What will you give of what makes you unique? You'll have to give your visitors something more than just a few affiliate banners or product descriptions to make it worth it for them to pull out their credit card on your site and not on someone else's.
3. Write down a specific date by which you plan to have obtained the specific amount of money you determined in step 1
Setting a date helps you avoid procrastination. If you don't have a timeline in mind for achieving your goal, you can keep putting off the work needed to get there. You can simply keep telling yourself that you'll get there someday. But "someday" just stays out there in the future.
4. Write down your specific plan you have for obtaining that specific amount of money by that specific date
Whoa! Now here's a big void in most new businesses' efforts. Most new business owners on the Web jump in with a "plan" that goes something like this: "Well, I'll put a few products out there and see what happens."
That's not a plan for a business! It's like saying, "I think I'll throw a rock into a tree and see if it knocks a solid gold apple out of it."
I won't go into the other two steps that Hill lays out. They're more about what to do with these first four steps. But the fact remains: starting a business online requires you to do more than just buy a dream from one of the many scammers who sell "wishful thinking" businesses.
It takes goals and planning to create a profitable business.
Jeff
If you're like most people, you started your online business because of the promise of easy money, short work hours and unlimited potential for being able to do what you want, when you want, how you want and still make more than you did as an employee. So how come that promise doesn't hold true for the vast majority of new business owners online?
A look through Napoleon Hill's classic, "Think and Grow Rich," shines the spotlight on the key elements missing in most online business attempts. Hill lays out six steps for turning your desire for the kind of life you want into reality. These steps have been confirmed by countless millionaires as essential steps to success. I'll list them along with my comments on how these turn up lacking in most new business owners' efforts.
1. Write down the exact amount of money you would like to earn
Here are two things right off the bat that most new business owners, flush with excitement over becoming their own boss, fail to do;
- Set a specific income goal
- Put goals in writing
Would you go to the airport without a destination in mind and then hop on whatever plane was nearest. Would you figure that wherever that plane takes you will be where you really wanted to go in the first place? That would be a ridiculous way to get anywhere with air travel and it's equally ridiculous for planning a business.
The second thing that most business owners fail to do with this first step is to fail to put goals in writing. There's something about physically writing things out on paper and having it in front of you that makes it feel more real.
Again with the travel analogies, if you were going to drive to a distant place you've never been before, would you try to keep directions in your head? Or would you want to have them on paper to refer to so you can keep your memory fresh on where you were going and how to get there?
2. Write down what you are prepared to give in order to obtain your goal
This, too, is missing from most failing businesses' efforts. Too often, new business owners online are lured by the myth that they can simply slap a little affiliate code on their website or pick out a few products from some dropship company and then sit back and watch the money roll in. Nope.
You can't start a profitable business without investing a lot of yourself in it. What will you give of your time? What will you give of your background? What will you give of what makes you unique? You'll have to give your visitors something more than just a few affiliate banners or product descriptions to make it worth it for them to pull out their credit card on your site and not on someone else's.
3. Write down a specific date by which you plan to have obtained the specific amount of money you determined in step 1
Setting a date helps you avoid procrastination. If you don't have a timeline in mind for achieving your goal, you can keep putting off the work needed to get there. You can simply keep telling yourself that you'll get there someday. But "someday" just stays out there in the future.
4. Write down your specific plan you have for obtaining that specific amount of money by that specific date
Whoa! Now here's a big void in most new businesses' efforts. Most new business owners on the Web jump in with a "plan" that goes something like this: "Well, I'll put a few products out there and see what happens."
That's not a plan for a business! It's like saying, "I think I'll throw a rock into a tree and see if it knocks a solid gold apple out of it."
I won't go into the other two steps that Hill lays out. They're more about what to do with these first four steps. But the fact remains: starting a business online requires you to do more than just buy a dream from one of the many scammers who sell "wishful thinking" businesses.
It takes goals and planning to create a profitable business.
Jeff
Friday, June 02, 2006
One Last Thought on Tag and Ping
Sean Wu's Tag and Ping package launched today and it seems to be red hot. I've already seen one limited-quantity bonus drop off the offer page.
I also heard a highly respected marketer complain about this technique becoming known to a wider audience. Apparently he doesn't like the idea of not being able to keep its benefits all to himself. Well, tough!
He makes a valid point that the more people who are using it, the greater the chance that it will be abused and that the search engines will diminish the value of the incoming links gained by this.
He's right, of course. But what if you got absolutely no credit from the search engines for all those links? Consider what hundreds of links from popular and trusted sites that millions of people go to just to find out what's new and hot could do for your traffic.
That's right. Even if you got no ranking boost at all from this technique, the traffic you can get from it is a real treasure in itself.
Check it out and see for yourself if this kind of traffic can boost your site, regardless of what the search engines do.
Jeff
Sean Wu's Tag and Ping package launched today and it seems to be red hot. I've already seen one limited-quantity bonus drop off the offer page.
I also heard a highly respected marketer complain about this technique becoming known to a wider audience. Apparently he doesn't like the idea of not being able to keep its benefits all to himself. Well, tough!
He makes a valid point that the more people who are using it, the greater the chance that it will be abused and that the search engines will diminish the value of the incoming links gained by this.
He's right, of course. But what if you got absolutely no credit from the search engines for all those links? Consider what hundreds of links from popular and trusted sites that millions of people go to just to find out what's new and hot could do for your traffic.
That's right. Even if you got no ranking boost at all from this technique, the traffic you can get from it is a real treasure in itself.
Check it out and see for yourself if this kind of traffic can boost your site, regardless of what the search engines do.
Jeff
Thursday, June 01, 2006
More Thoughts on Tag and Ping
Yesterday, I wrote about a new traffic-generating technique that is just now becoming more widely known. I spoke of marketer Sean Wu. Sean is about to offer the first comprehensive tool for using this technique that potentially can build massive traffic to your site.
Sean asked me and other marketers to give our thoughts on what a tool like this, that offers almost unlimited one-way links from high-Page-Rank Authority Sites could do. Here is what I told him:
Yesterday, I wrote about a new traffic-generating technique that is just now becoming more widely known. I spoke of marketer Sean Wu. Sean is about to offer the first comprehensive tool for using this technique that potentially can build massive traffic to your site.
Sean asked me and other marketers to give our thoughts on what a tool like this, that offers almost unlimited one-way links from high-Page-Rank Authority Sites could do. Here is what I told him:
High PR links? That’s a bonus that can help boost rankings and make my site more visible in the search engines.
Links from Authority Sites? Now you’re talking!
Sure, a 1st page ranking from Google or Yahoo or MSN will provide traffic, but it provides skeptical traffic. Face it, searchers have found enough clunkers in their search engine results to take a neutral, or even skeptical, view of the search results they visit.
But traffic coming from a recommendation of sorts from a well-trafficked Authority Site can mean your traffic comes in already seeing your site in a positive light.
Those visitors respect Authority Sites as reputable, unbiased observers of the communities those sites serve. And it’s inevitable that those visitors apply a certain amount of instant credibility to sites that are recommended on the sites they already trust.
In essence, when visitors enter through links from Authority Sites, those links themselves become the first step in persuading them that you have a solution for their needs. And in the struggle to win your visitors’ trust, this can’t be underestimated.
Sean's Tag and Ping package launches noon, Eastern time on Friday, June 2. His Priority Announcement List is still up and you can get more advance information on this revolution in traffic generation.
Go ahead and sign up. There's no commitment involved. And if you decide Tag and Ping is for you, you'll likely find it fun to be on the leading end of traffic generation technique instead of at the end when everybody is using it.
Jeff
Wednesday, May 31, 2006
Traffic-Generating Secrets to Be Revealed!
Have you made use of the fasting-growing method for getting links from very popular authority sites? It's a method that is quickly going from "best-kept traffic-generating secret" to "hottest new thing" in Internet marketing.
Early this year, my son shared with me this technique, which he had used with great success in promoting his sites. My jaw dropped. "Do you know what you've got here?" I exclaimed.
"What do you mean?" he replied.
"This is a dynamite technique," I said. "And none of the marketing experts are writing about it. If you sit down right now and right an ebook on how to do what you've been doing, you could make a fortune!"
My son's tastes, however, are simple. And his entrepreneurial interests focus more on what he was promoting than on the art of promoting in itself. So he never took me up on my suggestion.
Since then, I've spotted occasional mentions of this technique, but they were always fairly basic and always buried deep in private forums and expensive, paid-subscription newsletters. It has remained a pretty closely guarded secret among top marketers.
But that's about to change.
One of the pioneers in this technique did what I encouraged my son to do—to put everything he knows about it into a comprehensive course to make this knowledge available more widely.
The technique involves social networks like Del.icio.us. Members of these social networks "tag" their favorite pages on whatever subjects they're interested so they can find them easily. These tags make those pages available also to other people who are interested in the same subjects. The more people who tag a page, the more that page's visibility grows on the network and the more people visit it.
This is an absolutely explosive traffic technique that can drive so much traffic to a site that some ultra-popular sites have actually been hit with more traffic than their servers can handle. They've had to upgrade their hosting to handle all their massive traffic. Nice problem to have, huh?
Well, as I said, this technique has been a closely guarded secret among top marketers for a number of months now, but the new Tag and Ping package, that launches on June 2 will change all that.
This is more than just an ebook on how to build traffic with social networking sites. Sean Wu's Tag and Ping package includes both training and software to help find the best social networking sites and automate the process of building traffic through them. And an additional ebook gives further tips on how to be an early identifier of future hot trends so you can be one of those who gets in on the absolute beginning of them when the profits from them are the greatest.
There's more, too, but I'll let you find out the rest for yourself. Sean would be glad to fill you in on the rest of what is included if you get on his Advance Notification list. The technique is a great one that's worth your attention. And now, when it's first becoming known to the general public, is a great time to add this to your marketing arsenal. Get on the Tag and Ping notification list and you can get your business in on leading edge of the next great traffic-generating technique.
Jeff
Have you made use of the fasting-growing method for getting links from very popular authority sites? It's a method that is quickly going from "best-kept traffic-generating secret" to "hottest new thing" in Internet marketing.
Early this year, my son shared with me this technique, which he had used with great success in promoting his sites. My jaw dropped. "Do you know what you've got here?" I exclaimed.
"What do you mean?" he replied.
"This is a dynamite technique," I said. "And none of the marketing experts are writing about it. If you sit down right now and right an ebook on how to do what you've been doing, you could make a fortune!"
My son's tastes, however, are simple. And his entrepreneurial interests focus more on what he was promoting than on the art of promoting in itself. So he never took me up on my suggestion.
Since then, I've spotted occasional mentions of this technique, but they were always fairly basic and always buried deep in private forums and expensive, paid-subscription newsletters. It has remained a pretty closely guarded secret among top marketers.
But that's about to change.
One of the pioneers in this technique did what I encouraged my son to do—to put everything he knows about it into a comprehensive course to make this knowledge available more widely.
The technique involves social networks like Del.icio.us. Members of these social networks "tag" their favorite pages on whatever subjects they're interested so they can find them easily. These tags make those pages available also to other people who are interested in the same subjects. The more people who tag a page, the more that page's visibility grows on the network and the more people visit it.
This is an absolutely explosive traffic technique that can drive so much traffic to a site that some ultra-popular sites have actually been hit with more traffic than their servers can handle. They've had to upgrade their hosting to handle all their massive traffic. Nice problem to have, huh?
Well, as I said, this technique has been a closely guarded secret among top marketers for a number of months now, but the new Tag and Ping package, that launches on June 2 will change all that.
This is more than just an ebook on how to build traffic with social networking sites. Sean Wu's Tag and Ping package includes both training and software to help find the best social networking sites and automate the process of building traffic through them. And an additional ebook gives further tips on how to be an early identifier of future hot trends so you can be one of those who gets in on the absolute beginning of them when the profits from them are the greatest.
There's more, too, but I'll let you find out the rest for yourself. Sean would be glad to fill you in on the rest of what is included if you get on his Advance Notification list. The technique is a great one that's worth your attention. And now, when it's first becoming known to the general public, is a great time to add this to your marketing arsenal. Get on the Tag and Ping notification list and you can get your business in on leading edge of the next great traffic-generating technique.
Jeff
Tuesday, May 30, 2006
Great Resource for Bloggers
I came across this resource the other day that any of you who blog might find helpful in assessing how linkable your blogs entries are. Just select the statements that apply to your blog and find out how well it fits the characteristics that make people want to link to your blog.
Jeff
I came across this resource the other day that any of you who blog might find helpful in assessing how linkable your blogs entries are. Just select the statements that apply to your blog and find out how well it fits the characteristics that make people want to link to your blog.
Jeff
Monday, May 29, 2006
Remembering
As one wag said today, "Memorial Day is the one day of the year the media show the honor and respect that those who serve this country deserve every day." Sad, but true.
I add my tribute to those who have risked, or even given, all to preserve the way of life we now enjoy. My thanks go out to all who have done or are doing so and my prayers go out to those who risk their lives presently.
Jeff
As one wag said today, "Memorial Day is the one day of the year the media show the honor and respect that those who serve this country deserve every day." Sad, but true.
I add my tribute to those who have risked, or even given, all to preserve the way of life we now enjoy. My thanks go out to all who have done or are doing so and my prayers go out to those who risk their lives presently.
Jeff
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