Mastering Internet Basics

Mastering Internet Basics Blog

• Writing Good Sales Copy

  Learning to write good sales copy isn’t something you can learn by reading a quick tutorial – it takes practice. Although you probably won’t turn into a world-famous copywriter overnight, there are a few tips you can use to increase the response from your sales letters. The first thing you should learn is that the headline is (almost) everything. If your headline is terrible – or worse - boring, most people won’t even read the rest of your sales letter. A headline needs to be exciting, enticing, and intriguing. It needs to grab the attention of your visitor quickly. Your headline might have shock value, ask a compelling question, or be the beginning of an extremely interesting story. “Six months ago, I was living on the streets of L.A., homeless after my Adjustable Rate Mortgage soared so high I couldn’t make the mortgage payments, but now I’m living in a sky-rise apartment twenty stories up that I paid seven figures for…” This makes the reader want to know more – how did this person go from being destitute to being wealthy? Good sales copy usually tells a story that the audience can connect with. Copy ideally shouldn’t tell a fictional story, though. You certainly don’t want to run into any trouble with the FTC or an attorney general with something to prove. Good copy gives people a reason to keep reading. If you tell an interesting, compelling story that’s somehow related to the product and how it will affect them, it will naturally appeal to your visitor. Every single paragraph should lead into the next paragraph, drawing the reader further and further into the pitch. Consumers usually buy based on emotion, and then they justify their purchase with logic. They rarely buy based on logic alone. They don’t buy a product because of the features - they buy because of the benefits it will provide to them, the WIIFM (What’s In It For Me) factor. If you’re selling a car, you can’t tell the buyer that it has Corinthian leather seats, ABS brakes, and a superior sound system. You have to sell them on the fact that their neighbors and coworkers will be envious, girls will flock to them, and they’ll feel like the king of the world whenever they drive it. Then they’ll buy based on the fantasy you’ve just given them, and they’ll use logic to justify their purchase later. Within each online sales letter, you’ll want to have a main headline, numerous sub-headlines sprinkled throughout, and aside form the written storyline, you’ll want to add sections of benefit-driven bullet points that break up the monotonous text. Don’t forget the call to action at the end and a Post Script (PS) or two that sums up the order in case they’re bona fide skimmers who hate to read. Go to some of your favorite sales pitch sites and emulate their style and approach. Bookmark it for your “swipe file,” where you borrow ideas (not content) from the original author and use it on your own target audience. Enjoy Kerrie Sheehan - 3 years ago

• Have You Tried Squidoo Yet?

  If not why not as it's FUN - yes with a capital F. Check out my Mastering Internet Basics lens at http://www.squidoo.com/masteringinternetbasics Do you like it? Why not sign up here and create you own lens? Don't know how? Well I'm giving away a 20 page sneak preview on a great ebook called Social Networking on Squidoo which will get you started plus lots more. Download Social Networking on Squidoo sneak preview here. (right mouse click and "save as") When you create you first Squidoo lens leave me a comment here and I'll check it out for you. Have some Squidoo FUN! Keries - 3 years ago

• How to Profit from Niche Markets in Your Spare Time!

  Smart marketers are earning significant part-time incomes (well over $1k a month in their spare time) simply by selling ebooks or reports every week. And the most interesting part is that most of these people are far from being considered experts in relation to the reports they are selling. In fact some have no involvement in the topics they're targeting. So, how are they doing this? It's simple really - and that's why it works so well... This technique will work for just about any niche market you want to target because you don't need to be an expert or an authority on any topic you select. The strategy is to create short 5-10 page mini-reports and then promote them to your list and/or sell them via Adwords campaigns. Here's what you need to do... Your aim is to create a short report about a specific topic within these niche markets. So you need to go to sites such as Amazon, Clickbank or eBay to see which books in your chosen topic are most popular and selling well. That's it. Anyone can do this! Here's an example... Suppose there's a book on the Amazon bestsellers list that explains what you need to look for when buying a used car. All you need to do is to write a report based on this subject. But here's the most important part of this simple formula... You're going to do it the smart way so that you can have your report created in as little as a few days, without having to know a single thing about your subject. Here's how... Once you've decided on your topic, go to your favorite search engine and search to see if there are any private label articles or reports available on your subject. If you find any products or articles you can purchase them and then use the content in any way you choose to create your own short report. Then it would only be a matter of designing some graphics and creating a simple mini-site to promote the benefits of your report and then begin sending visitors to your site by using Adwords or using Social Media sites. If you're a little short on funds, an inexpensive alternative to creating your report is to search article directories for articles on your topic. You can then modify these articles into your words and compile them into a report. But a word of warning... If you choose to do this, DO NOT under any circumstance copy the articles for your own purposes. This is a violation of copyright and it is unlawful. The only purpose of searching for articles is to get some idea's that you can put into your own words. This is just a very quick example of using the power of niche marketing to generate a part-time income, but if you're deadly serious you could repeat this same process over and over again to begin creating a substantial online income. Enjoy Kerrie Sheehan - 3 years ago