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"Starting
Smart!"an
online e-zine for newbies and semi-seasoned Internet marketers
alike.
Issue: January 24, 2004
"How
to Stop Internet Thieves and Make Money from Them at the
Same Time."
"Starting Smart!"
The Ezine for the Online Marketing
Newbie
and Junior level Internet marketer
January 24, 2004
Karl Augustine - Publisher
Subscribe Link:
http://startingsmart.9mistakes-online.com
*Greetings, I hope all is well with you...
Hello,
Welcome new subscribers, thanks
for being here! Without you, none of this would be worth
a hoot.
Lots going on as usual, enough
that I can't catch up. I'll be brief in this issue and I
apologize for being a little late with it...sorry!
A couple of quick topics and
I'll be done with it.
The first item up for discussion
deals with Alexa rankings and targeted traffic. Last week,
a very well known publisher and Internet marketer said in
his newsletter that sites that aren't in the 40K mark on
Alexa don't make any money. Hmmm, as much as I admire him
(not telling who, he's a great guy), I have to respectfully
disagree.
Of course, he may have been
talking about sites that are making lots
of money, that's another story. But, since our focus in
this e-zine is about saving time and money and reaching
profitability fast, we can talk about sites that make money,
no matter how much money, as long as their growth is ever-increasing.
Truth is, you don't need heavy
Alexa rankings to make money with your website. You need
a good product, good sales copy, and good conversion rates
and VPV, but being in the top 40K is not
a necessity to make money online.
How do I know? Both my sites
make money and neither is anywhere near in the 40K range.
Sure, I'd love the ranks to increase...I'm working on it.

If you get 1 sale of a $30
product from 30 unique visitors per day, you'll make money.
How much is web hosting anyway? Cheap cheap cheap. I have
3 sites and have the full package
with H4P
and I pay $38 per month. Also, I can add additional domains
for $5 per month. Other than web hosting, what other real
fixed costs do you have in an online business that are absolutes?
Not many.
Now, I'm sure a site owner
that gets 30 unique visitors per day is going to want lots
more traffic, I know I do! Who doesn't? And, 30 uniques
per day isn't by any stretch of the imagination going to
get you into the top 40K of Alexa rankings.
But, with targeted traffic
and good closure rates, a site with 30 uniques can make
money.
So how do you get targeted
traffic?
Well, you've heard JV's, PPC,
and SEO are the way to go...I agree. But, for the newbie,
the best and most targeted traffic is from
search engines in my opinion.
I'll take all my traffic
from search engines, 8 days a week!
Why? Because the people who
go to a SE and find what I have to offer, really
want what I have to offer if my keywords and optimization
match my product.
No doubt about it...the trick
is to be able to get good rankings for your
keywords.
Ok, how do you do that? Find
a niche, narrow it, then make your domain name appropriate
to that niche. Then, optimize your pages and let the SE's
find you by getting linked to your site from a well traveled
or high ranking site. (You can get linked to linkopedia
for $10 in about 2 days...this site is in the 40K range
at the time of this edition). If you don't want to spend
the ten bucks, post a message on a well known forum with
your SIG that includes a link to your site. (Of course,
do not do this is the forum rules don't allow it.)
Getting targeted traffic isn't
that hard. Getting LOTS of targeted traffic
is much tougher. To accomplish this, you'll need to get
some strong affiliates who will promote your product directly
from their site for a cut of the profits of any referred
sales.
Ok, 2nd topic:
Security! "Ugh" right? No, not
that tough really...and you do want to
protect your web site from I-net thieves. You'd be amazed
how easy it can be for skilled hackers to 'look inside'
your site.
Rather than
run on about security, I'll leave it to Bogdan Ravaru to
give you a looksee. His article is featured below.
I hope that
you start your online business if you haven't already. It
certainly is fun, rewarding, and not that tough really if
you just decide to keep going!
The password to the Members
page for "Community
Chest" is in the email sent to you
announcing the online version of this newsletter.
And last and most
importantly...
Thanks for being a subscriber
to "Starting Smart!"...
if you have any questions, suggestions,
ideas, JV opportunities you'd like to discuss, etc., email
me directly.
MAILTO:karl@9mistakes-online.com
Thanks for being here and
enjoy the rest of the issue!
Karl Augustine
"The Regular
Guy"
Also in this edition...
*Viral
Marketing
*Products every Internet marketer should have
*Featured Article #1:
"How
to Stop Internet Thieves and Make Money from Them at the
Same Time.",
by Bogdan Ravaru
*In the news...
*Featured Article #2:
"Your E-Business Strategy: Is It Love ... Or Fear?"
- by Steve Shaw
*
Subscriber Spotlight-
New Feature!
*Welcome New Subscribers! Help us grow...
*F*reebie(s) of this issue in the
"Starting Smart Community Chest!"
*Copyright and Publisher Info
*Viral marketing
LOOK:
All Publishers and List Owners
Since this Viral eBooks are
the subject of this issue, seems fitting to piggyback eh?!
Remember to increase traffic
to your site and promote your affiliate links by using 1
of the 2 versions of the min brand-able version of "9
Deadly Mistakes...". One version is for people who
have been members of certain affiliate programs for a while
and are in programs that have been so successful, that they
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The other version is a trimmed
down version that anyone can profit from.
The pdf branding software
is fantastic and extremely easy to use, branding the book
only takes 1-2 minutes. Send an email now to MAILTO:brand9@9mistakes-online.com
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to your site and promoting links. In my reply email, you'll
receive full instructions and the link to use to brand either
book.
Give the pdf branded Mini
version of "9 Deadly Mistakes..."
away to your list.
MAILTO:brand9@9mistakes-online.com
*Special Gift from
Paul Myers
This is a
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No cost report about consistency
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to download.
Viral
Study
Once you have downloaded the
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I strongly encourage you to subscribe to Paul's newsletter
"TalkBiz News". Paul's
been doing this for years, and is one of the web's most
prominent copywriters and marketers and he only puts out
top quality stuff. He's got a good sense of humor too!
Paul isn't aware I am doing
this and I have no stake in it whatsoever. But, as someone
dedicated to helping newbies and junior level marketers,
this is an automatic thing...you'll learn a lot from Paul.
Subscribe by sending a blank
mail to TalkBiz
*Products every
Internet marketer should have.
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*Attention:
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*Featured
Article:
"How to Stop Internet
Thieves and Make Money from Them at the Same Time.",
by Bogdan Ravaru
Let me tell you a true story...
More than 14 years ago, when
I was still a kid, my family and I visited my grandparents
in Obarseni... It's a small village in Romania, you wouldn't
know it... :)
My grandma had a roost with
about 20 chickens in there. And there was this thing that
caught my attention...
When the night would fall,
my grandfather would go there and set up several small animal
traps around the roost.
I was very curious, so I
asked my grandfather: "Grandpa, what are those things
for?" and my grandpa replied: "They are there
to catch foxes my dear. When the night falls, they come
for our chicken."
"And what do you do
when you catch them grandpa? Do you release them the next
morning?"
For as long as I live, I
will never forget what my grandfather replied:
"Heck no, son! First
I skin them, then I feed them to the dogs and then I sell
their fur!"
And he went on:
"You won't believe how
much money I have made this way. Fox furs are very expensive.
Plus, I save a bunch on dog food!"
Only decades later did I
understand how much business sense my grandpa's words made.
You see, your website is
no different than that roost. It has many "chicken".
Digital products, sales-letters under construction, experimental
software, unpublished articles and so on...
And the foxes? The foxes
are present as well. People who try to gain access to these
pages and files for fr!ee, without paying you for the blood
sweat you've put in.
Unfortunately, most online
business owners will never take advantage of this fact in
order to profit like crazy!
They either stand still and
wait for the foxes to eat their chicken time and time again,
or, at the very most, they just try to protect the chicken
without making any profit from the foxes themselves.
Too bad!
"That's interesting
Bogdan, but how can I do this? How can I actually make money
from online thieves?"
Beats me! Ok, ok I'm kidding.
Actually, it's *very* easy
once you know how. You don't believe me? Here's one of the
simplest techniques that almost nobody is using!
When thieves try to 'attack'
your site, several "error messages" are created
by the web server software.
Let's say for example that
you have a digital product named: "Secrets Of Chess".
Do you know what many people will try to do?
They will try to
type in the address bar:
http://www.yoursite.com/download
or maybe
http://www.nameofyoursite.com/sos.pdf
(sos="Secrets Of Chess") ..and 100+ different
combinations.
Every time the address they
type does not lead to a real file, a "404 Error"
message is produced. I'm sure you have seen one. I'm talking
about those ugly "Page Not Found" pages.
So, what can you do? Simple!
You configure your site so that each time an "Error
404" is generated, the fox, errr... sory, I mean "the
visitor" will see a page of YOUR choice.
This can be done ultra easily
since most hosts have an online panel that does that in
a couple of minutes. But even if such a panel does not exist,
you can email your webmaster and he can show you how to
do this easily.
Or just do a search on google.com
for "create custom 404 pages" or "how to
create 404 pages".
Now, the question is what
to put there...
My suggestion?
NOT the same page that the
visitor has just seen. If s/he decides that the only way
s/he would have access to the product is for free, then
maybe it's time to take "another route".
What is that route you ask?
Simply, put a page for an *affiliate* product there. That
way s/he will see a completely different offer and you stand
a good chance of making some commissions.
Of course, there are many
ways that you can easily make *100 times* the profit from
online pickpockets. As I said: It's *easy* once you know
how...
I will only say this much:
You are ignoring a goldmine in your site if you are not
incorporating similar techniques...
I guess my grandfather never
knew how much money I would end up making because of that
little chat we had so long ago.
God bless his soul...
Thanks for reading,
Bogdan
=====
Bogdan Ravaru is the co author of the shocking report:
"Project Mousetrap from Eastern Europe: How
to Build the Perfect Mousetrap for Online Rodents."
"Discover the Amazing
Secrets of Two Webmasters from
Eastern Europe that Allows Them to Stop Internet Thieves
Cold... and Skyrocket Their Profits at the Same Time"
Click Here Now ==> http://www.projectmousetrap.com
=====
"In
the news"
Google's
Latest Dance Looks Like Slam Dancing!
*Featured
Article:
"Your E-Business Strategy: Is It Love ... Or
Fear?" - by Steve Shaw
I read recently that every
human thought originates from either love or fear. The more
I thought about it, the more true it became. I began to
apply it to business - after all, every business success
or failure originates ultimately from human thought. This
article examines the effects that love or fear can have
on your e-business - is it love, or is it fear, that dominates
the way you do business online?
If it's fear, you fear you're
missing the 'one big thing', and so you attempt to try absolutely
everything in case that's the thing you're missing. You
read every email that comes in promising business success,
and attempt to follow what they suggest.
The only problem is you are
attempting to follow several strategies at once, but there's
only one of you and not enough hours in the day. You end
up barely touching the surface of each strategy, and you
become disillusioned and despondent. You tell everyone who
will listen that everything you have tried simply doesn't
work, and that the Internet is a money-making myth.
You are constantly fearful
of your competition. You worry they are doing more business
than you, that their offer is better than yours, that they
will drive you out of business. You try to copy them, and
emulate their style, but somehow it just doesn't work and
your heart isn't in it. You feel like you're always following
some way behind, rather than out in front, leading the pack.
You have no idea where your
sales are coming from, and when you have a couple of 'dry
days' with no sales at all, you're panic stricken, and all
you can think about is business failure. You've been running
your business blind, you have no idea what's been working
well and what hasn't, so you have no foundation on which
to base your decision making, and no faith that what you
are doing is working.
You begin to feel unfulfilled,
over-worked, over-stressed, and you can feel yourself burning
out. The motivation for your business begins to disappear,
and you soon end up with no business.
Instead, if it's love, you
concentrate on Strategy A fully, before even considering
B or C. You do your homework first - you read all the literature,
you know it's been very successful for many people, and
you believe you can do it too. You studiously, deliberately
and methodically follow the strategy. Rather than diluting
your energy by pouring it into many different moulds, you
pour all of it into this one, persistently and with considerable
dedication.
You don't see much happening
at first, but you still have faith, and you re-examine the
strategy to ensure you are maximizing the possible outcome.
Over time, you begin to see the positive results. This reinforces
your energy and motivation, and increases the beneficial
effects you experience.
You tell everyone who will
listen how well it works for you - others try it too, and
begin to see positive results for their own businesses.
You look for ways in which
you can work with your competition for mutual benefit. You
think about a JV, and approach your competition with it,
even ensuring that the benefits for them outweigh your own.
Your competition can see how much benefit your proposal
could be for both parties and agree to it. The end result
is a highly positive outcome for both sides, and you agree
to work more closely together in future.
You concentrate on your own
USP, and inject your business with a sense of your own style,
confidence, and overall business strategy. You see others
beginning to emulate you, which you take as a token of admiration,
boosting your self-esteem, and thereby further improving
the way you do business. You find yourself leading the marketplace.
You have a couple of dry days,
but you know that occasionally this happens for whatever
reason, that your targeted traffic comes from multiple sources,
which show excellent conversion rates. Instead of fearing
business failure, you quickly check everything is okay with
your merchant account or payment processor and check your
site is functioning normally, and you know sales will pick
up normally again very soon. You concentrate your energies
instead into new avenues of promotion.
Instead of running your business
on fear, and consequently witnessing it shrivelling up and
dying, you run it on love - you have a passion for what
you do, you always take positive action, and the more successful
you become, the more it fires that passion.
Your business expands and
becomes more successful. And the positive energy from your
own business begins to rub off on others.
Can you see how a simple change
in approach could transform your business?
About the Author:
Steve Shaw develops software
and systems for effective e-marketing. For example, his
PopUpMaster Pro software allows you to add popups to your
web site that beat the popup blockers, and vastly improve
your response rates.
For more information please
go to http://popupmaster.com.
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"9 Deadly Mistakes To Avoid When Starting An Online Business".
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Your time is valuable and
I'll do my level best to make this "read" time
well spent. I am just a regular guy, just like many of you
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what I love to do. Keep a positive attitude and you can
do just about anything....seems like old news, but it works
and we all can use a little reminding now and then.
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Karl Augustine
"The
Regular Guy"
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