Become a Successful Internet Entrepreneur

Sun, Mar 30, 2008, by Todd Hicks

Marketing

Make more sales online. Learn how to gain entrepreneurial success.

Do you want to make your online business succeed? You will learn how to make sales and earn more revenue online.

If you do not already have a web site, create one at web.com. If you do not have anything to sell, look for a drop-shipping business online that will deliver merchandise you sell.

A great home page is crucial. Create a special headline. If you sell financial advice, your headline could say, “Manage Your Finances Well! Retire at an Early Age!” Your home page should briefly explain what you sell. To create curiosity and get visitors to stay, do not provide specifics on your home page.

Your site must be organized. The background image that is automatically provided on every page should be one related to your business. Proofread your site. Create a site map page that provides a link to every page. Provide a link to the site map page at the bottom of every page. Test all links and graphics often.

Provide a contact form - you can create one by using the “add a table” feature. All forms must look professional. The text must be easy to read and blend well with the color of the form’s background. E-mail the form to yourself to see exactly how your prospects’ information will look to prevent mistakes.

Fully explain all aspects of your business and make sure there is no information that will cause confusion. Tell visitors everything they must do to receive something. If your site says particular information can be found on a particular page, make sure it is there.

Provide quality and consistency throughout your site. Use a twelve-inch font for your text. Use black text. Do not use a page background color that is too dark. Use the same color for your text, title and background on every page.

Build visitors’ trust. Provide a line that reveals your company name, physical address and telephone number at the top of every page. Provide your photo on your profile page. Provide a privacy policy that lets visitors know you keep their information confidential.

Let visitors know if your payment options are secure. Follow all promises you make. Always give a quick response to calls and contact form submissions.

Provide a guaranteed refund that is effective for at least a year. To protect yourself from liability, provide a disclaimer that says, “Your use of this site is at your own risk. There is no guarantee you will see improvement with your purchase.”

Provide a FAQ section that answers all questions you think visitors will have. If you have at least fifteen to twenty questions to answer, divide your FAQ section into separate pages that contain no more than five questions.

Provide different formats. If you sell books or information products, please provide E-books, paperbacks and CDs. If you sell an E-book, please let customers buy an E-book that does not come as a PDF file or file attachment. I recommend you do not provide an E-book or E-book sample through E-mail because it will often look bad to the recipient.

Set prices with care. Set a price that reflects the value and demand of your item or service while meeting the market rate.

Send every customer a purchase confirmation immediately. Thank the customers and remind them of what they are entitled to. Ask them to buy something else you sell - this method is called “upselling”.

Do what it takes to retain customers and get referrals. Always test your product thoroughly before sending it. Try to ship orders within one business day. Ask your customers if they are satisfied and how you can improve.

Use viral marketing. Insert “recommend this site” buttons. It is important to put these buttons on every page because not every visitor will enter your site through the home page, click a link to the site map page or look at every page.

Connect with visitors emotionally. Tell a brief story that explains how it took you a while to gain your expertise before using it to make your product that solves customers’ problems. Put this story on your home page to get maximum exposure.

Pay attention to the keywords visitors use to visit your site. If visitors want a class pertaining to your business, provide one by telephone. Charge at least fifty dollars for the class and let visitors get a free class by buying a book or other item you sell at a price that is much lower.

Provide a directory that lists links to good sites pertaining to your business. If you are registered with Send Earnings, provide your affiliate link so you will get paid as visitors register to take surveys through your referral. If you are good at inserting ads or links that require knowledge of programming codes, register with Google Ad Sense to get revenue for running ads on your site.

Improve your search engine optimization. Provide good content pertaining to your business. When setting keywords, only use keywords that are actually on your site. Only use keywords that are in the first paragraph of a particular page. After you make changes to your site, erase the keywords that are no longer used.

Another great way to boost your search engine rankings, traffic and credibility for free is to write informative articles that include a link to your site. Relax. You do not have to already be established to write articles. You just need to write articles that pertain to your expertise or anything else you know something about. When you run out of ideas, browse titles on article sites you use.

Set keywords you have actually used. Write an exciting summary that will entice people to read your article. Do not write self-promotional articles. Do not mention the names of your products or programs.

Include a bio in “third person” form in the author’s resource box that discusses your business. Your bio must include your URL and a statement asking the reader to visit your site to improve his or her life.

Use a dictionary when necessary. If your writing skills are weak, read articles pertaining to grammar and punctuation. The articles you write should usually stick to one topic. Write a good introduction and a conclusion that reinforces what the reader should do.

To bring a lot of traffic to your site, send your articles to Ezine Articles, Go Articles, Internet Marketers and Self Growth. To get paid, send your articles to Helium, Associated Content and Triond. Your site should include a link to each article that is posted with a paying site.

Use a special title for your articles page. If you sell financial advice, your title could say, “Get Free Financial Advice!” List your articles in numerical order and provide the title for each article. Highlight the articles pertaining to your business and put all of them at the top of your page. Ask visitors to print the highlighted articles and other articles that interest them.

Let your articles provide a good reference for you. Instead of waiting for reviews from customers to post testimonials, let those who have read the articles pertaining to your business speak on your behalf. Provide a form that lets them get a discount or rebate. Provide a drop-down menu that lets them choose various statements regarding how you have helped them. For example, you could let them click, “Your instruction helped me a lot.” Give them the option to choose whether to let you post their E-mail or telephone number for a reference.

After you write several articles, put together a book and sell it along with other books and CDs you have written at lulu.com, a free self-publishing site. Your description should discuss your expertise and how your item will help the reader. Proofread the files and previews you upload. Provide an accurate table of contents. Provide a killer title that reveals the benefit of the item. If you sell a financial book, your title could say, “Master Your Finances! Become a Millionaire Quickly!”

Bad artwork will kill your chances for a sale. Give your cover a quality emotional image you create through Photoshop or one that Lulu provides. If your book is designed to help people earn more money, use an image showing money or rich people. If any letter of the title is too dark or hard to read, improve it. Do not let any letter of the title run over the edges of the cover or cover’s outline. If you cannot create an eye-pleasing title, leave the cover blank. Do not use all caps for the title. Link your site to your Lulu items page.

Put a statement above that link that says, “You will be so thrilled with the artwork and previews that you will not be able to resist ordering an item.” Promote items you sell through Lulu for free with Idea Marketers and Self Growth.

Stand out from the competition. Create a unique benefit for your product or service and sell that benefit.

Never give up. We often do not see results for a while; however, you should prevail if you follow these steps and persevere.

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