Archive for April, 2009

The difference between the customer who buy from you one time and those who buy from you multiple times is often due to the amount of communication they receive after their initial transaction.

Even if your customer had a great experience with you, you are likely to fall to the back of their mind if they don’t hear from you for a while. If they receive follow-up emails from you, it’s an entirely different matter. You’ll be on their mind and you will likely create a lifetime customer after you consistently deliver.

I highly recommend that you implement a system of ongoing follow-up notices to your customers. If you don’t, you’ll be out of sight and out of mind. There are many other businesses out there that are vying for your customer’s attention and they’ll get the customer that you once had. These follow-ups can be in the form of a monthly newsletter or even a card in the mail.

You don’t have to sell with each contact, but keep in touch, share a little about yourself, give quality information that relates to your product or service. Sell scrapbook supplies? Share a tip on getting the most out of a scrapbooking tool. Custom scrapbooker? Share the importance of archival products.

Monday Motivator

You have a choice in life to accept your position or change it. If you choose to plug along in life hoping that something will change for the better, you will not get very far. Always remember that when it comes to changing your circumstances, you can – you have that power. If your circumstances lower the chances of success, you need to change them.

“What has once happened, will invariably happen again, when the same circumstances which combined to produce it, shall again combine in the same way” ~Abraham Lincoln

Whenever you speak with another Internet Marketer you’re probably likely to hear the following questions come up at some point:

Do you have a list?

or

How big is your list?

If your answer to these questions was “no” and “zero,” then this article series is definitely a place to start. On the other hand, if you do have an established list, there’s always room for improvement. I recommend that you make it a priority to continue to learn strategies for increasing your list size and also increasing the amount of income generated from it.

Having a list can literally be your ticket to earning the kind of income you dream of earning. Many marketers focus on getting to the top of the search engines to build their businesses, but having a list can literally “Google-proof” your income. If, heaven-forbid, you get dropped from the search engines tomorrow, there’s no need to close up shop – if you have a list.

It doesn’t matter whether your business is online or off; having your own list of customers or prospective customers means that you can get them to visit your website, blog, or store on command. This ability to summon traffic on command can keep your income steady through good times with Google and the not-so-good times.

Success Tip:
Even if it is flimsy to begin with, you should construct a plan to include goals, milestones, deliverables such as contracts, business plans, etc. and accomplishments. This will provide you with a visual as to what you are working for, what milestones you have successfully met, and where you need to do better.

“The victory of success is half won when one gains the habit of setting goals and achieving them. Even the most tedious chore will become endurable as you parade through each day convinced that every task, no matter how menial or boring, brings you closer to fulfilling your dreams.” ~Og Mandino

Monday Motivator

Everyone has failures or mistakes from the past. To have success, you need to learn from your past and value those difficult lessons but do not ever dwell on the past. Simply move forward and make better, more educated decisions from the lessons learned.

Whenever you make a mistake or get knocked down by life, don’t look back at it too long. Mistakes are life’s way of teaching you. Your capacity for occasional blunders is inseparable from your capacity to reach your goals. No one wins them all, and your failures, when they happen, are just part of your growth. Shake off your blunders. How will you know your limits without an occasional failure? Never quit. Your turn will come.
~Og Mandino

Monday Motivator
In order to succeed at anything, you need to see that you have the potential to reach your goals. For example, if you love the art of scrapbooking and creating albums for others and have a real talent for design, technique and preserving memories, and to you, success would mean being a custom scrapbook artist, then you have potential to learn and achieve that success.

“Continuous effort - not strength or intelligence - is the key to unlocking our potential”
~Winston Churchill

If you still need a website presence for your scrapbook business then today is your day! You can currently get any .COM domain registration for just $1.99 at GoDaddy.

I don’t know how long this will last, but it’s working at the time of this post.

When you check-out, use this coupon code: 199DOMAIN

***Note: if you need help getting your website up and running, shoot me an email and I’ll help you get started! Only order the domain name, I’ll help with hosting and website design.

There are two functions to any successful business – innovation and marketing.  Innovation means you have a product/service designed to solve the needs of your target audience.  However, just because you have an amazing and innovative product/service doesn’t mean it will sell.

Here’s how to find out if your product will sell online:

1. Good old fashioned keyword research.  Keyword research is the old stand by because it works.  Keyword research is excellent at showing whether there is demand for your product or service because it provides accurate information about how many people are searching for what you have to offer.  It is a great first step however it is only a first step.
2. Explore consumer demand.  Check out online sites to see how well similar items are selling and for how much.  eBay for example is a good place to begin.  Both eBay and Amazon offer best seller’s lists.  This can help you tap into your target audience and potential demand.