3 Steps To Online Marketing Competence

Writen by Daniel Levis

Whoever said knowledge is power, was wrong.

Way too many people read a few online marketing books, and then figure they know everything there is to know in those books just because they read them. And then at a certain point they stop buying any more books, because they know EVERYTHING. But guess what? They don't practice any of it. And then they wonder why they're not making any money marketing online.

I'm going to let you in on a big secret. Until you actually do something with what you learn, you haven't really learnt ANYTHING. If that's you, you would do well to go out of your way to buy as many books, courses, tapes etc. as you possibly can until you feel so stupid for learning the same things over and over again…or you go so broke… you're finally forced to get off your duff and do something with all that "knowledge". Good grief!

You would be amazed and stunned at the amount of money spent each year on marketing books, tapes, CDs, etc, that never get read, much less acted upon. The number is mind blowing. Everyone is looking for the silver bullet. Well I've got news for you, it's probably sitting right under your nose, on your book shelf, or on your hard drive somewhere right now, and you just don't know it. You're blind to it until one day; you see the same old tired idea presented in a slightly different light and aha!

Finally you get it.

Finally your mind puts those pieces together in a way that inspires ACTION. Was it due to some brilliant wordsmith who reached deep into your cranium, pulled some levers and switches until you suddenly became an online marketing genius actually capable of doing something? Probably not. It was the repeated exposure to a very simple but subtle idea, viewed from a variety of different angles until you finally got it. You finally understood what you needed to do to twist it just so…so it would work, FOR YOU!

Here's the crux of the biscuit.

Until you commit any of the material you think you're actually learning to "long term" memory… to the point that you can prattle it off instantly when your spouse wakes you up in the middle of the night… you don't have it. What you think you know doesn't mean squat. Why? You're just too slow. You're not commercially adept, because you have to "think" about what you're doing.

How do you become an unconscious competent, and therefore, "commercially adept"?

3 Steps To Online Marketing Competence!

1 - You have to get off you butt and try more things, with the understanding that you could very well fail. In marketing, there is no such thing as failure, only feedback. Put some skin in the game. Spend some time, put some money on the line, and chock it up to education. There is nothing like taking a little risk to supercharge your synapses, and burn those marketing lessons into your brain. Nothing.

But it's all worthless unless you…

2 – Ruthlessly track your results. There is absolutely no point in taking the aforementioned step without first putting a mechanism in place to measure results, and I'm not just talking about sales. For the first little while, you may well be focusing almost exclusively on clicks, or opt-ins, or time on page. As long as you do something with what you learn, that's OK. Don't be discouraged if at first you are disappointed with the results. Just take the feedback, and tweak your little experiments until they start moving in the right direction.

3 – Develop some tricks that allow you to internalize what you learn more effectively and quickly. For example, if you buy an ebook, instead of just reading it, you can create a mind map out of each chapter. Instead of just reading great sales letters and marketing pieces, you can copy them out in your own handwriting, & read them aloud. And before you study anything, take a few deep breaths and remember "WHY" you are learning it by visualizing that brand new house or car that you're after. The more of your senses you can involve, and the more you expose yourself to proven concepts and ideas (presented in a variety of different ways), the sooner you will have committed the lessons contained to long term memory.

It's a virtuous cycle. The more you do, the more you commit to long term memory, and the more you commit to long term memory, the more you do, until one day you're marketing in your sleep… and snoozing all the way to the bank!

Copyright 2005 Daniel Levis

Daniel Levis is a top marketing consultant & direct response copywriter based in Toronto Canada. Recently, Daniel & world-renowned publicist & copywriter Joe Vitale teamed up to co author "Million Dollar Online Advertising Strategies – From The Greatest Letter Writer Of The 20th Century!", a tribute to the late, great Robert Collier. Let the legendary Robert Collier show you how to write words that sell...Visit the below site & get 3 FREE Chapters! http://www.Advertising-Online-Strategies.com/ad-strategies.html

The Dwindling Magic Of Banner Ads

Writen by James Monahan

Banner ads are logos or headlines seen in webpages that directs consumers to products or services. Simply clicking a banner magically brings you to the company's storefront and shopping for products and services becomes a breeze.

Many companies are able to make good money by using this form of advertisement for their products and services.

Even small businesses benefit from this modern advertising method with less expense than that of conventional advertisement in print and media. It is also easier design this advertisement than producing conventional advertisements.

You will notice that the internet is swamp with so many advertisements in form of banner ads, some are small and some are big.

Thus, you can attribute the popularity of online shopping to this modern method of advertising. Selling products and offering services to internet browsers appear on a 24/7 basis. Your product and services appear in front of possible customers' day in and day out.

Banner ads are available in different shapes and sizes. Different formats such as static and animated formats add more power to the advertisement.

The traditional format or the static format is less popular than the entertaining animated format. Animated format advertisement arouse the curiosity of internet browsers and shoppers, thus it receives more clicks than its static counterpart does.

Your advertisement can be successful if you can post them in websites related to your product or service.

You may also be successful if your banner ad will be posted on top of the page than below where not much browsers or shoppers continue to read far down below.

It is also an effective way to post your advertisement that conveys simple messages than complicated one, which causes consumer confusion. Although, I may need to stress that in order to induce more clicks, a good doze of creativity needs to show in your advertisement.

Professional banner ad designers may be helpful if you want to be effective in advertising through this medium.

Although, there are computer softwares that can help you create and design your own advertisement, professional ones can be more useful and less time consuming, price maybe an issue but if you can shop around before engaging professional designers, you may be able to find a reasonably priced and experienced ad designer.

The sad story is that recent studies show that the effectivity of banner ads to bring in the bacon is now dwindling in lieu of pop-up ads, smaller browser window and advertisements that appear on their own.

Thus, you need to apply much creativity and arouse curiosity for the consumer to checkout your webpage. Make your advertisement stand out and avoid the shrinking attention banner ads are getting in the cyberspace.

However, contrary to this experts believe that advertisements evolve in various different forms, banner ads may still be around for a long time. Creativity may be a key and a lot of patience, no overnight success in advertising your products and services, so you need a lot of this in combination - patience and creativity.

Additionally, because you are competing in a marketplace where the benefit of touch is not extended to your prospective customer, you need to be able to convey the message to the customers through your advertisement, this is what your banner ad needs to convey.

Research on the best way to market your product or service and post them in sites where they will receive enough attention, this is the only way to ensure you will benefit from this modern advertising method.

In addition, once you capture the attention of a prospective consumer, your website needs to keep them glued by creative showcase of products and information necessary to bring in the sales.

Banner ads can only do so much, you need to keep consumers interested.

James Monahan is the owner and Senior Editor of AboutBanner.com and writes expert articles about banners.

You Need A Business Plan For Internet Success

Writen by Jim Bruce

Get rich quick on the internet. How many times do you see that phrase or something like it as you surf the web? There are so many schemes out there to accomplish that goal. But how many people actually get to that dream?

Very few. And why is that? The biggest mistake that most beginning internet marketers make is not going into their project with a "business mindset". They're looking at an internet business as a "get rich" scheme. They doom their success from the get go.

To start an internet business you first need a plan. With a brick and mortar business this business plan is usually made to attract investors or secure a bank loan for start up money. But the internet is different territory. An internet business still needs a plan to focus its efforts.

The business plan in this sense is to subject your ideas of selling online to a vigorous scrutiny and see if your plans meet the test of what you will need to actually make it online. Your business plan is your game plan.

Without a true business plan or a true plan of attack, all the software, product development and marketing strategies are just hit and miss exercises. That's why you need a good business plan from the start. Without a business plan your chances of failure are greatly increased. Your business plan should include what you are going to do to succeed as well as what you will do if things fail miserably. All angles should be covered.

Business plans force you to do the research that most internet businesses fail to do before they start. This is vital to the success of your business. If you already have a product, then you're one step ahead of the game. Most of us don't though. Here's where making a business plan will allow you to think about your interests and passions that might make good niches to market products in.

You can begin to research keywords revolving around your interests to see if there are opportunities for developing products that will meet the needs of the people surfing those keywords. Search for those keywords that have high traffic and then search for related keywords that are also in demand. This type of research will become the basis of your internet business plan.

Out of your keyword research you should come up with a product or service idea you wish to market on the internet. You must precisely describe what it is. What is needed to develop this product? What makes it unique? This marks the first phase of your business plan research and leads into the next.

Researching markets goes hand in hand with product research. And it isn't looking for those pre-made websites that don't cost you a dime and that make someone else rich. It's looking for relevant keywords around which your business theme and business web site will be built upon.

This has to be a solid foundation so that your online business will succeed. It's the old cliche: "Those who fail to plan, plan to fail". It's a known fact that 95% of those that start an online business will fail. Why not plan to succeed? And when you're planning, don't plan to become rich overnight. That's what so many online gurus keep telling you what's going to happen.

Have you noticed? All those gurus have these large lists they mail to every day, every week, or whenever. They keep telling you about the latest business opportunity that will make you rich overnight or in just a few days. But the next day, they email you again with the newest way to make money online and it's a whole new program you have to join. Soon, you're spending all this money on programs that are going to do it for you online but no money is coming in.

The only people that get rich on those schemes are the people starting them and the large list owners that are promoting them. Yet there are thousands taking these gurus up on these types of "businesses" every day. Believe it or not, an internet business doesn't materialize overnight and make you rich. An online business is like any other business, building slowly over time. You just have to stick with it.

You want your online business to endure time. Remember, most of those gurus promote business programs that are fly-by-night. They'll be here today, gone tomorrow. That's why they're always dangling a new business scheme in your face, hoping you'll bite on it an make them some money today. Tomorrow they'll have to promote a new one because they've made their money and have left you out on the line to dry.

Your web site is your store front. It must be carefully designed to attract visitors. Without people viewing it, you will have not sales. The web site's objective's and design must be taken into account in your online business plan. Make sure your plan is specific in your objectives and the web site meets these. Here again, the web site should grow to meet the needs of your business and be enduring. A site that people come back to time and time again because it's loaded with new and pertinent information.

Your web site should reflect where you want to make your income. If you want to make your income from Asense ads, then you need lots of informational content. If you're making income from affiliate programs, then you want a site that sells the affiliate program. If you are selling your own product, then your site should center around the benefits of that product and ultimately send your visitor to a sales page that clinches the deal.

All of this should be considered when making your online business plan. The plan is the pivital document which your business is centered. A business plan makes you think about all of this and centers your business. It is all inclusive and done before you jump into the internet side of things. Don't just jump in. Have a true plan for your online business. Think it all out before you make your leap.

With a well thought out plan, your online business will succeed. Without forethought and planning, you're bound to fail. Go into the internet as you would with a brick and mortar business and you are marching into success.

Jim Bruce has been marketing online since 2000 and has accumulated information which will ensure you success. He has a new website which gives you all the information you will need. Go to http://www.4makingyourownwebsite.com for the info you need.