Internet Marketing Blog

Christmas is always a time for enjoying ourselves, relaxing and generally eating too much. And a week later we get to do it all again to celebrate New Year.

The trouble is, if you’re passionate about your online business – and many people are, seeing as they’re finally doing something they love – it can be hard to switch the computer off completely for a few days. After all, the beauty of internet marketing is that it keeps on going, twenty four hours a day, seven days a week, right through Christmas and New Year.

There will always be someone online shopping, right? Even on Christmas Day!

But that doesn’t mean you should be working over the festive season. In fact, however much you might be tempted to switch that computer on briefly – just to check your stats – try and resist it. It can do you the world of good to leave it to run itself for a few days, and it has a big benefit that you may not even have thought about.

It enables you to come back with a fresh head and a fresh brain, ready and able to tackle the challenges of the coming year.

If you’re anything like me, you’ll have a good idea of what you’d like to achieve during 2008. Using some downtime over Christmas and the New Year to think about those goals is a good idea. Think about how you can get every one of them, and do so in the best and quickest way possible.

We all need a break now and then, and even though internet marketing might not seem like hard work compared to having a ‘real job’ it still requires dedication and effort to get to where you want to be.

So give yourself some time out to recharge your batteries. And then come back fresher than ever – ready to try out your new ideas and goals in the New Year.

Sean Rasmussen
Internet Marketing Blog
WealthCreationAffiliate.com © 2007 - 2008

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The alarm clock goes off at a specific time. We go to our regular jobs at a specific time. We come home at a specific time. We go to bed at a specific time – supposedly.

Our lives are filled with structure, and while we might sometimes rile against it, it can actually help us to achieve far more than we would if we let ourselves roam free without any constraints at all.

Internet Marketing Efforts

The same holds true of our internet marketing efforts. Building a structure for completing certain things and achieving our goals gives us something to hold on to. It prevents us drifting aimlessly and running the risk of never reaching our goals at all.

It doesn’t matter if you have ten minutes to give to your internet marketing business each day, an hour, or all evening. What matters is how you structure that time to ensure you achieve the best results possible with it.

It helps to think a week ahead if you can. Buy yourself a diary and figure out what you’d like to accomplish in the week ahead. If it’s a big goal, break it down into steps and allocate a time slot for each one. Structure your week ahead of time so that you only need to glance at your diary to figure out what you need to be doing each day.

Prepare Mentally

This has the added benefit of preparing you mentally for each time slot and what you need to do in it. As you work through the day you’ll start to think about the time you have available, and your subconscious will start to prepare for the task in hand.

You wouldn’t think a diary could be so useful, but believe me it can help to bring order, structure and success to any online business when you make the leap to use it on a regular basis.

Sean Rasmussen
Internet Marketing Blog
WealthCreationAffiliate.com © 2007 - 2008

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We all do it – some more than others. But how much you do it can have a real impact on your internet business.

We’re talking about surfing, and the effect it can have on what you do. Unfortunately it’s always a temptation when your business relies on the power of the internet to succeed. But that doesn’t mean that surfing is always a bad thing. I can recall plenty of occasions when a casual surfing session has turned up some sites, products or information that has really advanced my internet business big time.

Surfing Efficiently

The key to using surfing effectively is to limit the amount of time you do it for, and to pay attention to what kind of sites you are visiting during the time you are supposed to be working towards your online marketing goals.

Concentrate On Your Business Goals

Of course, there are days when your efforts to concentrate on your business goals just aren’t working. On those days it can be worth enjoying an extended surfing session – as long as you stick to the kind of sites that will be of genuine use to you. Finding new avenues of information can reignite the passion in you that helped to create your internet business in the first place.

But only you will know when you are surfing because you are looking for information or advice (or new products to promote), or because you are delaying the moment you will have to sit down and do some real work towards your goals.

So no, surfing isn’t a waste of time. But you can waste time by doing it, if that makes sense. Being honest with yourself about what you are up to will cure any temptation to surf too much. And if someone walks into the room and you jump as though you’ve been caught doing something you shouldn’t, then you have been.

Sean Rasmussen
Internet Marketing Blog
WealthCreationAffiliate.com © 2007 - 2008

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I’m not sure why, but a lot of people who are just starting out in their own online business tend to brave the challenges alone. They’ll try this and that, they’ll struggle to find out all the information they need to succeed, and when they fail at things they’ll hang their heads for a while before gathering up the courage to get back out there.Why?

The web is jam packed with people who are all on their own personal journeys towards making a decent income online. Now I’m not saying you need to reveal every step of what you are trying to do – that would be plain silly. You need to keep some things private as you’d be diluting your market by telling people about that new wholesaler you found that has rock bottom prices and excellent stock.

But it can only do you good to start connecting with some of these people. We all need some encouragement at times, even if that comes in the form of a fellow struggling affiliate on a forum, saying something like ‘Chin up! That happened to me too, and I not only got past it, I ended up getting more successful because of it.’

Earning A Real Income

We can all learn from each other, and share in our own daily struggles as we start to move towards earning a real income from our efforts. And who knows, that person you got chatting with on that forum you found might just become the other person in a joint venture you’ll be creating at some point in the future.

Don’t be afraid to get out there and make connections. You should also try and give back to the internet community whatever help you can. You’ve heard of the saying whatever goes around comes around, and that holds true online as well. Help those who have helped you, and you will forge working relationships that can propel you further towards success.

Sean Rasmussen
Internet Marketing Blog
WealthCreationAffiliate.com © 2007 - 2008

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It’s very tempting to sit back and bask in the glow of your success when you finally start getting some online. But it’s the worst time you could possibly do so.

You see, when you start getting somewhere and the money starts coming in (even if it’s a bit slow at first) you’ll experience a real high that comes with seeing your efforts starting to pay off.

The key to seeing more of those rewards is to ride on the high that you are feeling. Why waste that natural adrenalin rush by sitting back and relaxing? Why celebrate your first affiliate commission of a few dollars by grabbing a drink and putting your feet up?

Why not channel that adrenalin rush back into your business? If you do you can achieve a real leap forward and give yourself something to really shout about!

Developing Your Online Business

As your online business develops, you’ll notice that your successes come in leaps and bounds. They will increase and get closer together as you build your knowledge and experience, but the one thing you must always do is to refocus your efforts after every success you have, whether it’s small or large.

Ask yourself the question – how can I go forward from here? How can I benefit even more from this success I have just experienced? What lessons can be learned here?

It’s great to celebrate when you start getting successful, but it’s even better to limit it to a quick slap on the back and save the real celebrations for when you can finally give up your day job and concentrate on your online career full time.

It’s all about knowing how to use your forward momentum in a positive way and using it to further your business and enjoy even more in the way of rewards.

Sean Rasmussen
Internet Marketing Blog
WealthCreationAffiliate.com © 2007 - 2008

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It might sound like a crazy question, but you can actually achieve a lot in ten minutes when it comes to internet marketing.

You could write an email that promotes one of your products, ready to be sent out to your emailing list. You could generate some ideas for articles to put on your website. You could answer some important emails that have come in regarding your business. You could also take a look at your sales figures and see where you could be improving.

Spare Time Business

Lots of people run an internet business in their spare time, working around a regular full time job, and it might seem in this case that there is never enough time to fit everything in. But even an extra ten minutes here and there can make a real difference if you get past the idea that ten minutes just isn’t long enough to do anything worthwhile.

You can see quite clearly from the examples above (and these are just a few ideas off the top of my head – there are plenty more) that ten minutes spent on your business can make a real improvement overall.

Achieving More With Your Online Business

Even just ten extra minutes a day – something you can squeeze into your lunch hour at work if you really wanted to – adds up to over an hour every week dedicated to achieving more with your online business. If your ultimate goal is to grow your internet income to match and then surpass your current job, then you shouldn’t be afraid of making that little bit of extra effort if it pushes you further in the right direction.

Ten minutes a day helps to create the forward momentum you need to stay in touch with your business efforts and make a difference to both your internet income and your life.

Sean Rasmussen
Internet Marketing Blog
WealthCreationAffiliate.com © 2007 - 2008

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If you haven’t already discovered the power of using article directories to drive traffic towards your site, you should start thinking about using them now.

But to make the most of this form of free advertising and traffic generation, you need to understand what makes an article readable. It’s not enough to get someone to find your article – you want them to read the whole thing and be sufficiently interested to click on the link at the bottom of the article which takes them into your website.

The key to doing this is to think about the layout of your article as well as the content. Make the paragraphs easy on the eye by sticking to bite sized chunks of information in each one. Short sentences, short paragraphs and bullet points really draw the eye in and make your article look pleasing to read.

Use Bullet Points

Bullet points also give the (hopefully correct) impression that your article has specific points of interest that the reader can use and benefit from. Use them wherever you can as they tend to catch more passing readers than you might think.

On the other side of the coin, if you use long rambling paragraphs the appearance of your articles will be much more distracting – I have no patience with pieces where the paragraphs are half a page long, and however good the title is I tend not to even try wading through the piece in the first place.

A good rule of thumb to use is to jot down the focus of the article and then break it into sections so you can figure out how best to structure it. A well written promotional article should guide the reader through it and onto the resource box (containing the link to your website) before they’ve even realised it.

If you can do that, you’ll get even more traffic to your website than you do already.

Sean Rasmussen
Internet Marketing Blog
WealthCreationAffiliate.com © 2007 - 2008

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I have a challenge for you. Take a look at what you are selling or promoting online right now. Make a list of them if you like, and then ask yourself this question.

Do people know it’s you who is promoting them?

That might sound like a silly question – after all, surely it’s the product that matters the most? No one really wants to know about the person who created it, do they? That’s just an excuse to blow your own trumpet.

An Online Disaster

Let me tell you something. Thinking along those lines is a recipe for disaster online. People not only want to know who is trying to sell products and services to them, they need to know. The marketers who recognise this simple fact are the ones who are making the most money right now, even as you are reading this.

I guarantee it.

Part of the reasoning behind this is that you want to know who you can go to in order to get your money back if you want a refund for any reason. If you visit a website with the intention of ordering a product, and there are no contact details there – no address, no phone number, not even an email address – how likely is it that you are going to be happy to enter your credit card details and order the product in question?

Next to no chance, I’m guessing.

Take it from me. If the person with the website isn’t prepared to give you a phone number, I wouldn’t give them the time of day, let alone my credit card details…

Be Accessible

The savvy marketers know the power of being accessible. Telling people who they are and where they can be reached in the event of any questions or queries helps to foster a level of trust which helps to generate more sales.

Do you see the huge value of revealing yourself as the person behind the products you sell? Let people know you can be trusted and the sales will follow.

Sean Rasmussen
Internet Marketing Blog
WealthCreationAffiliate.com © 2007 - 2008

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How big is your trail?

Forgive me for asking such a personal question, but you really need to have a trail to blaze in the huge pool that is the internet. Otherwise how else are you going to stand out and be remembered?

Take a second to think about this. How many emails do you get each and every day from internet marketers recommending this product, that service, this idea and that idea? Chances are it’s more than enough to keep you reading for a week.

But how many of those really catch your attention enough to be read?

New Products – Or Different Ones

Some of the emails I get tend to be promoting the same product – new out and being snapped up by affiliates everywhere. The ones that stand out are the ones that are different. The ones where the marketer has come up with something that is new and intriguing, and gets you thinking in a whole new way.

That’s the kind of example of blazing a trail that we’re talking about. You don’t want to be following everyone else; you want to be blazing that trail yourself.

To this end you need to have a strategy in place that will start generating ideas and products that are different, unusual and which have a place in the overall theme of your business. Everyone develops their own area of interest online, and some additional research into this area will unearth plenty of possibilities for you to use.

The more knowledge you amass in your area of expertise, the more likely it is that you will be able to come up with the kind of ideas that will enable you to blaze a trail of your own. The kind of trail that has everyone else wondering, “Where on earth do they get their ideas from?”

That’s the kind of trail that brings in cash from all directions.

Sean Rasmussen
Internet Marketing Blog
WealthCreationAffiliate.com © 2007 - 2008

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When you think about the internet – in terms of the sites you visit, the people you get emails from, and the products you have bought – there are probably a handful of names that stick in your mind when it comes to individual internet marketers. These are people who have really made a name for themselves by building a good solid business from the ground up.

No doubt you’d like your name to be in that group as well.

But patience is the key when you’re selling goods and services online. Its best feature can also be its worst – you have the whole world to reach… but how on earth do you reach it?

Building A Presence Online

Building a presence online takes time, there’s no doubt about that. The amount of time you have available to devote to your internet marketing efforts is in direct proportion to how long it will take you to build a significant internet presence.

Unfortunately a lot of people just don’t get this. They think it’s easy to make money online (it’s easier than you might think, but it’s not simple and most of those stories of people stumbling onto the internet and making a fortune overnight simply aren’t true).

What you should recognise however is that patience and determination will get you to where you want to be. You just might not get there as soon as you’d like. But this is where you need to refocus. You see, each little nugget of time you can squeeze out of your busy day and put towards growing your business is another step towards your ultimate goal.

You need to focus on each individual step and take encouragement from the benefits each one gives you. That’s the secret to making the most of every minute you spend growing your internet marketing business.

Sean Rasmussen
Internet Marketing Blog
WealthCreationAffiliate.com © 2007 - 2008

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