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Times are tough, and I “really” want to help you …

Friday, October 31, 2008

That seemed to be the theme of the many emails I receive daily in my inbox.

Bah, what humbug!

Firstly, I subscribe to many newsletters for research purposes. And I don’t mind the sales pitches thrown at me. I keep the good pitches (for future references) and delete the awful ones.

However, when marketers use lines like the above, i.e. pretending that they cared and then try to sell me rehashed PLR stuff with an emotionally stoked copy for over $197, that’s when I draw the line. I won’t mention names here, but I can purchase the same stuff for under $67 thank you!

Please, have the decency to treat me with respect. Pitch me all you want, tell me what your products and/or services can do for me - BUT DO NOT pretend that you care and want to help me unless you really mean it!

………………………………………………………….

On another note, one of the marketers that I highly respect is Michael Campbell. Earlier this month, he launched a series of Podcasts which cost $97 if memory serves me right. At that price, it is still worth every penny.

Michael has now reduced it to $15.95. His reasoning?

“I concluded that… just because it’s internet marketing information, I don’t think it should cost more that your average audiobook. So I took a look at a few titles in my collection:

4-Hour Work Week by Tim Ferriss 13.95
The Long Tail by Chris Anderson 15.95
All Marketers are Liars by Seth Godin 15.95
Predictably Irrational by Dan Ariely 20.95

And for everyone who purchased at the old rate, they get a full rebate out of my pocket.”

………………………………………………………….

How’s that for fair, honest and sincere?

If you want to follow the footsteps of an honest, sincere legendary affiliate marketer, you won’t go wrong by following Michael.

Affiliate Marketing Secrets

There is NO monthly membership fees. No one time offer, upselling, no downselling, no long winded salesletter, pop ups or other tricks.

What you’ll get is 3.5 hours of little known, previously undisclosed affiliate marketing secrets from a panel of well respected 6 figure income earning super affiliates.

You’ll also get instant access to all his previous publications, ebooks and whitepapers including best sellers like, Clickin’ it Rich, Revenge of the Mininet, the Keyword Marketing Report, the Action Plan, the 200 Page Challenge, Quick and Easy eBook Publishing and a whole lot more.

*note: The Keyword Marketing Report and the “Action Plan” are worth their weight in gold. I still refer to them every now and then.

Sincere,

 

Filed in Marketing Sense | Comments (4)


ClickBank’s Automatic Currency Conversion

Friday, October 31, 2008

A couple of days ago, ClickBank implemented automatic currency conversion on the checkout page.

For example, if your product costs USD$47 and someone in New Zealand clicked on the purchase button, the price he sees on the checkout page is NZD $90.38 dollars.

Although USD$47 and NZD$90.38 are the “same” - it may “look” more expensive to the potential customer, i.e. or some marketers put it, it defeats the tried and tested “psychological pricing point” where numbers such as $27, $47, $67 converts best.

This was raised at the ClickBank Success Forum.

Thankfully, ClickBank has responded and you have a choice. If you’d like to disable this automatic conversion, you can contact them via:

ClickBank Publisher Contact Form

and request that this automatic conversion feature be disabled in your account.

If you choose to disable the currency conversion, you can still offer products in different currencies by manually setting them in your ClickBank account.

In this case, you simply set up a unique product for each currency you wish to accept. For example, if you want to offer the same e-book in USD and GBP, you can set up two separate products in the “My Products” section of your account.

Product #1 - default currency = USD,
Product #2 - default currency = GBP

Then provide 2 payment links on your sales page. If customers click on payment link #1, they will see the price specified in USD. If they click a payment link for product 2, they will see the GBP price. In both cases, the consumer will not have the ability to choose a different currency for payment.

Best wishes,

Filed in Clickbank, Marketing Sense | Comments (7)


Opportunities in Recession …

Friday, October 3, 2008

Wow … how time flies - nearly 2 months since my last post!

I know I haven’t been in touch or updating the blog as much as I would like,
and I apologize for that.

I’ve been busy working with customers, working on my new software, testing
waters in niche markets (non internet marketing related), etc, etc.

Ok, I won’t bore you with details, but today, I want to share something very important.

Amidst all the doom and gloom around us at this moment, there are OPPORTUNITIES -
you just need to look for them - actually, you need to actively seek them out!

There are generally 3 types of people:

1) Those whose pockets are so deep that they are not affected at all by the
economic downturn.

2) Those who have sufficient reserves and cash and are looking for ways to
build/expand their businesses during this tough time.

3) Those who have problems making ends meet.

Regardless of which ‘type’, there are opportunities to make some
serious cash. No joke.

For those in “Type 2″ - they would be actively looking for ways to build their
online business. If they find a product or service which will potentially expand
their business, you can bet their bottom dollar that they will spend the money.

I happen to be in this category. In my country, the bank fixed deposit rate
is 3.5% (max) whereas the inflation rate is 8.5% (as of September 08).

Anyone in their right mind would invest in their online business where the
potential returns are anywhere from 20% - 100% instead of putting their
money in the bank.

If you happen to be in the ‘type 2′ category, now is a good time to seek
bargains - products and services that can help you expand your business.
You only have 24hrs a day and there is only so much you can do. Put the
extra cash to good use!

If you happen to be in the ‘type 3′ category, there are many opportunities
to provide services to those who are in the ‘type 1′ or ‘type 2′ category.

 

Online Opportunities

* Content. Every online business needs content, fresh content.
If you’re a writer, you will find buyers. But instead of engaging in a price
war (eg. $1 per article) - be different. Select a niche and be an expert writer
in that niche. Offer to write a free sample article for that niche site and
if they like your style of writing, you can charge a slight premium for your writing.

If you’re not a writer, perhaps now is a good time to learn how to write?

* Graphics/e-covers. Every online business needs it. Same principle applies as above.

* Programmer - participate in the various marketing forums -
find out what is the ‘biggest’ and most ‘recurring problems the online businesses
have. Create a solution and sell it. (by the way, this is how I got started online
back in 2002)

* Script Installer - what are the top 5 most popular scripts that online
businesses use? Are they difficult to install and configure? You can be
the ’specialist installer for Script XYZ’.

note: it’s important to choose scripts that are popular because you’ll be
leveraging on the ‘fame’ of these scripts. One very popular script came to mind - AutoresponsePlus. Another is the Amember script. Also, these scripts will
be searched in google as well.

 

Offline Opportunities

Money and Time - majority of the people will have one and not the other.
Many of the rich folks do not have enough time on their hands - they are so
busy working on the next deal, lunching with clients, attending meetings
after meetings, etc.

If you can help them “solve” their time problem, they will gladly pay you.
Check the neighbourhood convenience stores, check the bulletin/notice
board for ’services wanted’.

For example:
1. Baby sitting - do they have youngsters or toddlers? Can you provide this service?

2. Food/Catering - could you provide delicious, healthy home-cooked meals to
busy executives who would otherwise eat out at fastfood restaurants? This is
a growing trend in my country.

3. Home Tuition - I’m not sure if this is applicable where you live, but over
here in Malaysia, nearly every parent in the middle/upper-middle class are
looking for home tutors for their kids. I can never understand this, but I digress …

4. Birthday Services - could you provide catering/party services in your neighbourhood?

5. Pet Sitting services - last week, I drove past a building with bright neon
lights that says “Pets Hotel” - that was new to me!

Anyway, you get the idea - if you can provide some kind of services that will
make the lives of the rich easier, you can generate some cash for yourself!

Don’t forget to advertise your ’services’ on those bulletin/notice boards as well.

 

Summary

Hope the above tips will get your creative juices going. If you want to share or
bounce ideas, feel free to post your thoughts below.

How you and your family fare during the recession is 100% up to you.

Decide what you want to do and take action.

Remember, the foundation for some of the greatest fortunes in history were
laid by ordinary people during the Great Depression.

My Best Wishes to You!

Filed in Marketing Sense, Misc Stuff | Comments (18)