Starting an Online Business

Starting an Online Business: Choosing Your Niche
By Dawn Marchant

If you are considering starting your own business online then one of the first key decisions you will need to make is choosing your niche. The 3 big niches for successful internet-based businesses are health, making money and relationships. However it is really important to find a much narrower niche market for your business. Why? If you are seen as being a generalist rather than a specialist then you won't be regarded as an expert and therefore won't be able to charge higher prices. If you are not focused in terms of who you serve and what particular challenge you solve then it will also be more challenging to get your marketing right. It's really important to maximise sales that your message is really targeted so that potential customers feel that it really fits their needs and that you understand their dilemma because you speak (write) using their language.

When choosing your niche I strongly recommend that you don't just look for what might be profitable but also look for something that you are or could be truly passionate about. You are unlikely to stick with it and push through the inevitable challenges that come with trying to get a business off the ground if you are not really interested in and don't really believe in the product you are promoting. Even if you are determined enough to keep going then your lack of enthusiasm will show through in your sales pages, etc and therefore reduce the number of sales.

I suggest that you first come up with a short list of business niches based on your interests, your passions and your knowledge and experience. Think about who you would most like to work with as clients. Think about what kind of changes and goals would you like to help them achieve. Try imagining a typical day working with your ideal clients and see how that makes you feel. If it doesn't leave you feeling fulfilled, enthused and excited then you need to keep looking.

Once you have your short list of niches then you need to research them to see if they are likely to be profitable. A profitable niche will meet the following three criteria. It will solve a problem or challenge that a lot of people are eager to overcome. The challenge will be painful enough that people are willing to pay for a solution. Finally it must be easy to reach this group of people and get your offers and message in front of them.

By the way do you want more information about choosing your niche and start your own business online?

If so, sign up for my email series and download my brand new free eBook about what it takes to be successful online HERE.

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Why Should I Click An Affiliate Link

Why Should I Click An Affiliate Link?
By Philip Mason

What I am going to talk about is Affiliate Links and why, if you are interested in the product, you should click on them.

You see Anyone running a business, which survives and grows on people clicking the links generated on their websites, through their signatures, Social Media pages and so on rely on you the consumer to click their links.

If you are viewing this article, you too are probably interested in getting into this business or have already started.

Now, the thing I have noticed is a lot of people when they go to a site, may like the information they are being given, and want to go to the web site/product you are directing them to, but they don't want to click on the links. Instead many go to the sites their own way to ensure that an affiliate link is not clicked.

There is a feeling among some people, that why should the person providing the link, who has advertised the product, and its availability and hopefully ensured it is a decent product then profit from a buyer clicking on the link.

If you like what you read and are interested in the product, why should you feel this way?

There seems to be a belief that an affiliate link is not quite right, that somehow you may be directed to a scam site or hit by a virus among other reasons. Of course this unfortunately could be true, but of any link or site you go to, not just an affiliate. Then there are those who don't want to see anyone profit from them. I know one person who told me that they believed the product he bought was probably cheaper going their own way rather than clicking on a link. That an affiliate link would cost more than finding the site or product on their own. He never bothered to check if this was true.

From my experience so far, this is not true. Products sold are the same price whether you click the affiliate link or not. In fact in many cases following an affiliate site can be a better value course for many people as the good ones provide quality content, the occasional free gift and usually good quality products for the buyer. It's then not just a question of going to the vendors site and listening just to their own product hype. Essentially a good affiliate site will help you make the better choices in what you want to spend your hard-earned cash on.

An affiliate essentially advertises a product or service for a provider. The provider sets the price and this is the same for all their customers. The only difference is, if an affiliate link is clicked the affiliate gets a percentage of the payment made. That is it.

Then there is the question about what if you want your money back, only the vendor is hit right, the affiliate is fine. Wrong, if you ask for your money back within the times given, the Vendor and the affiliate both have to repay their percentage of the takings. There is no unfairness there, the affiliate is not running of with your hard-earned money. Normally the affiliate is only paid once the money back guarantee has expired.

Now some reading this may see it as some form of attack or desire to make people click the links provided on an affiliate site. That is not true. I just want to point out that the links you see are just as valid as any other links on the net and your clicking on them will result in someone earning some money and staying in business so they can continue to find great products to help you and me. I myself was wary of affiliate links when I first started to get into this business and understand it. I now know that these links can be the lifeblood of a marketer and are what keeps him or her in business. Any good marketer will know, providing links to poor quality products will soon see them out of business.

So next time you are on a site and see an interesting advertisement, review or article pointing you to a product that you decide you want, be kind and click on the link. If you then sign up to a mailing list or buy something, you will be helping out the person who ran the site that found you that great product in the first place and will give them the chance to find you more in the future by getting the money they need to stay in business.

For more information about where to get great top quality affiliate training and to follow my journey in Internet Marketing, check out my website at http://www.philmasononline.com

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Top 5 Ways For List Building

Top 5 Ways For List Building
By Milinda Ramnani

List building is a marketing strategy that helps you keep your clients updated on what your website is up to. In a nutshell list building is the process of collecting and adding people to your mailing list. It is important that you build a mailing list so that you can directly contact your clients and inform them of new product, service or promotion that you have.

Contacting them regularly is also a way for you to build a relationship with your clients. You never stop building your list because the bigger your list is the more chances you have of making a sale.

There are several ways of list building and collecting emails to add to your mailing list. There are ways and tactics that you can do build a good mailing list.

Here are five of those ways:

1. Have Unique And Useful Content

People will not give you their email and other personal info just because you offer them free newsletters if you do. To get their attention, you have to make sure that your website has good quality content. You should offer them information that they would normally not see in other websites.

2. Offer Them Freebies

People love freebies, so if you offer them something like a free PDF copy of a book, the probability of you getting their email address for your list building will increase. Aside from PDF copies of books you can also offer to give them free coupons.

3. Make It Easy

People do not like complications. If you want them to leave information on the sign-up form you prepared you have to make sure first that the form is not complicated. You have to keep it very simple so people will not get intimidated by the form and leave it unchecked.

4. Network

You can contact other website owners and have an arrangement with them so they will also share with you the result of their list building efforts. In return you would also share with them your list. You can ask several website owners to network with you so you can all have bigger email listing.

5. Subscription Button At Every Page

Put a subscription button at the end of every page so your visitor will see it every time they open a page. If they see the subscribe button often, there is a possibility that they will sign up and you will get their email address.

These are the top 5 ways for list building so you can have a bigger email list and have bigger possibility of enticing potential clients.

I am a Internet Marketer and I have been at the beginning when nothing made sense. So I wanted to help you with as much information as I can. I hope you will find some use for what you find here, if you would like more resources I invite you to take a look at http://www.milinda-mariefreesite.com or http://www.milinda-marie.com/blog.

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The Power of Vision

The Power of Vision
By Penny Tremblay

Are you familiar with the concept of a "vision board"? A vision board is a visual space upon which you can post pictures of what you want to attract into your life. My friends and I have made vision boards as a social/craft activity and hung them on our walls in sight of our daily routines. We found, miraculously, that the items we placed on the board appeared in our lives.

Here is a recent example:

On February 14th of this year, my family and I had to put our 14-year-old golden retriever to rest. You may remember the article that I wrote and circulated that day titled "Marley and Me", which received hundreds of supportive responses. (Thank you for all the love; I really needed it during that difficult time!) That same day, I placed a photo of Marley on my vision board, along with the word "JOY", cut from a magazine. I wanted to remember the joy that Marley had brought to me every day, and I wanted to invite more joy into my days to come.

Since making that heartfelt addition to my vision board, my kids and I have been actively volunteering at a local pet shelter, taking care of dogs and cats and constantly thinking about getting another dog for the family. Recently, I stumbled upon an ad for a puppy that stole my heart. Looking at the photo of its mother, I was shocked to find that she was almost a mirror reflection of Marley. There was no question that this was the next dog for our family. Her name came to me just as effortlessly -- Joy. It's an exact match for the feeling that she brings to my life.

Needless to say, we adopted the puppy. After we had taken it home, I walked into my bedroom and glanced at my vision board. The photo of Marley caught my eye, along with the cut-out word "JOY" pinned against it, and sent chills running through me. It only dawned on me in that moment that I had attracted not only a new form of Marley's legacy into my life, but the name for our new puppy too.

"Vision fuels the birth of everything in life." ~ Barbara De Angelis

There is such power in vision because it allows us to focus. Living life without vision is like taking a trip into uncharted territory -- without a map! What are the chances that you would end up lost? With vision as our map, we can stay on the path to where we intend to end up, and if we do stray from the path, vision will remind us and guide us back on track.

Like an artist who uses vision to see an image in their mind's eye before they begin creating, or like a musician who finds a hearing or feeling of music in their head before playing it, we too can harness the power of vision for our benefit: to visualize what we want to create for ourselves in our lives. If we are not carefully aware of what we envision, the opposite may come true, and we may find ourselves spending energy thinking and worrying about what we don't want in our lives. That is why the vision board has such potential -- because it keeps us looking at and feeling the emotions of pleasure when we attract what we want most.

Shared vision is even more powerful. When two people in a relationship are clear on where they would like to end up and what their goals are, they can travel very far together. In business, vision statements or shared vision reinforcement provide team members with the patience and perseverance to see them through challenging times and difficult situations.

Vision statements help everyone on the team to "see" where and why the company is going, how it will feel to be successful, and what their individual role in the process is. This is sometimes called a "picture of the future company", but it also holds inspiration and the framework for strategic planning. Vision statement development is an activity worth taking on if you don't have one already, and if you need some help, you can schedule a session with me as your guide.

Blessings for an abundance of JOY in your life, Penny

"The only thing worse that being blind is having sight, but no vision" ~ Helen Keller

Penny Tremblay, ACG, CL
Director of Education
Tremblay Leadership Centre
180 Shirreff Ave. Suite #230
North Bay, ON
P1B 7K9
705-472-2528 ext. 202
705-472-6610 fax
705-498-1818 mobile
info@pennytremblay.com
http://www.PennyTremblay.com
Twitter: ptremblay

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How Long Does It Take to Make or Break a Habit

How Long Does It Take to Make or Break a Habit?
By Norm Bour

Conventional wisdom used to state that it takes 21 days, but I have always taken issue with that. It seems rather arbitrary and trite and 21 is a very nice and cool number, but I have never believed that three weeks can seriously change mindset and attitude. If you're talking about a trivial habit, maybe putting your car keys on the ring at the door or putting down the toilet seat, then maybe a few weeks will rewire you into correcting those trivial behaviors.

But if we're talking about reprogramming your mind, whether it is something serious or life threatening, like alcohol or drug addiction or something that can change the way you act from now on I believe it takes much longer. A new study at the University of London concluded that it takes 66 days to break a pattern and a singularly travesty is not necessarily a deal killer.

Over the past several years workshops have been conducted throughout Southern California in partnership with cities with the goal of changing the way business owners look at their businesses and to truly teach them to "reinvent themselves." That expression is bandied about everywhere, but it really is true. There are few sectors that can continue to operate the way they used to and that includes government (at all levels), businesses, associations, nonprofits and surely entrepreneurs and business owners,

Since 2010 these programs that last for 100 days- 13 weeks- prove that if someone is focused and dedicated they (you) can implement steps to forever change your mindset and attitude. The program consist of four LIVE classes (face to face) interspersed with six calls or webinars, and the most popular program has been the "helping 100 businesses for 100 days" program which was just concluded for the second time in partnership with the City of Newport Beach.

We've all been to workshops for a day or a weekend or even for a several days. We come out pumped up- ready to take on the world! The class may about something specific to your business or something general about goals or attitudes or any other topic on this lengthy list. You exit the weekend class and feverishly write down copious notes and as you get home Sunday you start structuring your Action Plan, just itching for Monday morning.

Monday comes and so do the phone calls. And the e-mails. And the distractions/ complaints and everything else that comes with Life. If you are a business owner or entrepreneur you can exponentially increase those distractions. Traditionally after 72 hours you have forgotten over 50% of everything you learned and were so excited by. So how do you change that?

Just as we all have great intentions and questionable execution, it takes time. No one that undertakes a weight loss or a gym workout program expects results in just a few days, or even a few weeks. As a long time gym rat for 40 years I see people come and most go; it is rare that someone sticks with anything for more than 90 days. If you make it past that, the worst is over. And I have been so guilty, even though my intentions (like yours) are noble.

The lesson to be learned is that adaptation takes time and in our experience 100 days is a great way to start the process.

As a partner with OPIS Network ( http://www.OPISnetwork.com) we offer unique workshops and training. Our "helping 100 businesses for 100 days" allows cities to support their struggling business community and has received accolades from various cities in Orange County, CA. We also work with nonprofits though our nonprofit division called Nonprofit Development Alliance.

If you would like to offer unique solutions in this new paradigm, all of our programs are part of our Affiliate Network offerings.

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