Those of us who work at home face some unique challenges
when it comes to the issue of time management. Often, well
intended friends and family assume that since we don’t
actually leave the house and go to an office, we don’t have
a ‘real’ job that our time is theirs and we are free to be
at their beck and call for errands, favors, or just a
friendly ear.

We somehow manage to become everyone’s fallback baby
sitter, errand runner, and general gopher. It can be very
distracting, time consuming, and absolutely destructive to
the flow of our workday. We also tend to be hungry for
human interaction, which makes us justify our desire to be
available to them.

In other words, it is very important that we keep business
separate from our personal lives. We need to establish
boundaries with family and friends and kindly and honestly
inform them when we can and cannot be available to them.

Sometimes our friends and family can be the most
insensitive to how demanding our work can actually be. If
you’re like me you get paid for what you accomplish not the
number of hours you work (though some weeks I really wish I
could get paid by the hour) so every minute of quality work
time counts and it seems to take two minutes of work time
to get back in the flow of our work for every minute of our
interruption.

If the phone rings, don’t answer it while you are in the
process of working. If you feel you must return the call
during work hours, wait until you reach a stopping point
rather than interrupting the flow of your work.
It sometimes helps if you can set time limits for your
tasks. This provides you with a deadline and a sense of
urgency.

A sense of urgency with completing tasks greatly improves
the chances that the task will be completed on time or
early. It also prevents avoidable procrastination by
telephone call or visiting neighbor by providing you with
the mental prod that you have work to do.

It is necessary that you treat your business like a
business if you wish for others to do the same. One way you
can do that is to set specific office hours. Only answer
the phone, email, and instant messengers for work related
or emergency issues and make it clear to friends and family
that local gossip and idle chitchat do not qualify as
emergencies.

Be kind but be firm when you tell people that your office
hours are sacred and cannot be broken lightly. If it
happens once, it will be expected again.

Cutting out on the non-business related phone calls,
messages, emails, and visits will provide you with
explosive growth as far as time manageability. Also,
setting office hours provides boundaries of sorts. It keeps
you (a little bit) from getting so burned out (by spending
countless hours in the office) that you can’t concentrate
on what is at hand and provides you with some family time
so you don’t forget the people you are supposed to be doing
this for.

Having a work schedule, believe it or not, also adds
legitimacy to what you are doing in the eyes of friends and
family. They will see that you are taking your business
seriously and they will begin to take it seriously as well.
Combine these two things with some minor organizational
hints and tips and you will be amazed at how much more work
you get done in a shorter span of hours.

Time management issues aren’t simply an issue for those of
us who work from home, it’s an issue all over. People lose
time, waste time, spend time, and treat it as a
second-class citizen. Time is the one commodity that can
never be regained. When it’s gone it’s gone.

I would rather much rather have my time go to pursuits that
bring me joy than used improperly while working and as a
result having work invade my ‘fun’ time.

Gilles Rais

Categories: Articles
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Many people have asked what’s the secret to writing a
compelling sales letter that sells. Every communication you
send to customers or prospects should have a clear purpose
- and your sales letter is no different.

Now there’s simply not enough space to go into detail about
every aspect of your sales letter, but below is a brief
summary of some of the major points you need to address.

Before sitting down to write a sales letter make sure you
are clear about the product or service you are offering,
the price, any bonus offers, whether there is a time limit,
etc.

Think from the point of view of the customer. What will
make them interested in your product or service?

Do not make the letter about you or your company. You will
not make sales by telling customers about the latest events
in your office or the history of your company’s expansion.
The letter should be about the customer, their problems,
and how you can solve them.

Headlines are the most important part of a sales letter. So
it’s important that you try to come up with at least twenty
different headlines and then select the best.

Generally headlines should be longer than 3 or 4 words, but
less than 17 words. Take a look at newspaper headlines and
other sales headlines for inspiration. Be specific. If you
have a figure of 37% then use it, do not say ‘over 30%’. Do
not exaggerate in your headline to get attention. If it
cannot be believed readers will not bother to look further.

When you first begin writing the main body of the letter do
not edit it as you write. Just write what you think is the
main, important message and do not stop to correct spelling
mistakes or grammatical errors. If necessary stare
determinedly at the keyboard as you write, or better still
turn the monitor off on your PC.

The reason for this is that if you continually stop to make
corrections the words will not flow and the message may
become confused. Don’t get me wrong, it’s vitally important
to make sure that your final copy contains no spelling
mistakes. But this should be done once your first draft is
completed.

Avoid long sentences and paragraphs in your sales letter.
You want to make the letter as easy to read as possible and
the most effective way to do this to “trick the eye” by
creating whitespace.

You can do this by breaking the letter up into subheadings
that refer to the contents of the next section. Your
subheadings should give enough information for someone
skimming down the page to understand your offer.

Once you feel your letter is complete put it aside for a
while before reading through it again. You may spot
mistakes or areas of confusion that you didn’t initially
notice.

If you cannot leave it for a period of time give it to
someone else to read. Ask them to skim through it to see if
they get the main points of the message. If they do they
can then read each sentence and give you their impression
of the letter.

Now as I mentioned at the start, this is only a very brief
summary on the steps you need to follow to create a sales
letter. While it’s by no means a full-blown explanation, it
gives you a place to start.

Have a great week

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Discover how one guy has made over $3.5 million in online
sales in the last 365 days using these exact e-mail
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Plus, read case studies of real people who increased their
incomes by 242%… $80,000… even $200,000 using these
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To read this exclusive report, click here.

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The 60 Second Weekly Tip…

If you use Adwords as part of your PPC campaign you’ll know
that at times Google can be pretty tough when it comes to
approving minimum bids for certain keywords.

At times your keyword bid prices will be refused by Google
on the basis that they are too low. When this happens
Google will place the affected keywords on hold until you
increase the prices. Hey you can’t blame them for trying as
they are running a business

This happens more often than you think, but before you
accept their request and increase the price of your bids,
here’s a little tip that can save you big dollars over a
period of time…

When you’re asked to increase your bids, do nothing.

Yep you heard me correctly. It may take a couple of weeks,
but after a while Google will get the message and you’ll be
surprise how often they take the view that anything is
better than nothing, so they will just approve your bid
prices.

Now this may not work for all keywords, but it does work
for most.

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For your enjoyment (and information), here is this week’s
quick trivia question…

What is deoxyribonucleic acid?

As usual the answer can be found later in the newsletter.

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Featured Article
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

Using “Position Marketing” to Gain an Edge!

Positioning is putting yourself in the right place in the
eyes of your market. You need to convince your market that
you are an expert that can be trusted in your selected
niche. In other words, your seen as a respected and
reliable resource for information.

Positioning is easy created by simply providing quality
information of interest to your market that targets the
problems your niche market may be facing. Your market is
the people who would be likely to buy the services or
products you offer.

Let’s say your niche market is people who like to fish.
What they buy are reels, poles, lure, etc… things they
need to fish with. You could create a free report that
these people would be interested in to help them, such as

- 25 Year Veteran Uncovers His Never Fail Tips to Landing
Monster Salmon…

- Discover The Fine Art of Fly-Tying that Even a Complete
Novice Could Master…

- Learn the Hidden Secrets of the Best Fishing Spots Your
Grandad Never Told You…

- The One Tip That Will Allow You to Cleaning a Bass in
Less Than 60 seconds…

Now these are just an example, but if you create reports
that focuses on aspects of your niche you will attract the
interest from your target market - the people most likely
to buy from you.

Chances are if those readers found something useful in your
report, then they would be interested in reading more…
and they will also want to give it to their friends. So
give it to them by getting them to sign up to your list!

That is how positioning works, and the rewards in utilizing
this technique can be very profitable. Creating a list of
targeted, loyal and responsive prospects is without
question the most effective method of creating a
sustainable and profitable business.

Not only can you show them how to catch more fish with the
least possible effort, you can also explain the benefits of
how your products can best help them to achieve their
goals. Since you will be perceived as an expert, they will
look forward to contact from you to get the latest tips.

One you’ve built trust and a relationship with your list,
you can then begin to offer your list exclusive deals, deep
discounts, holiday specials, even the chance to sign-up for
a paid subscription service where they get the meanest down
and dirty underground secrets of fishing success where the
fish don’t stand a chance in Neptune.

The secret to positioning is to communicate with your
market and giving them what they desire. But above all,
look for answers and innovations. Then find a way to use
them in your marketing and advertising. People will always
be interested in new and better things and are drawn to
those who have them.

This will not only help in positioning yourself as an
expert, but also in finding ways to position your products
or service as having unique benefits. You do this by
finding unsolved needs and thinking up solutions. Being the
first at something also affirms you as an expert par
excellence.

If you do these things, you and your business will be
positioned. You will have the marketing edge.

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
This Week’s Trivia Answer
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

Here’s the answer to the trivia question I asked earlier…

What is deoxyribonucleic acid?

Answer: DNA

CSI fans would have got this one right easy

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Off-Line Marketing Strategies
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

Using Classified Advertising for Maximum Benefit!

If you haven’t done it yet, prepare a press release for all
the local newspapers in your area. When it comes to
actually placing your classified ads avoid your larger
metropolitan newspapers. Classified advertising in large
newspapers is fruitless for a small business owner unless
you happen to rent or sell real estate.

The smaller weekly, bi-weekly or monthly papers are usually
easier to work with and cheaper to advertise in. If your
business specializes in a particular niche, look for
specialty newspapers.

For instance, some cities have newspapers that targets
senior citizens. Another example might be one that
specifically appeals to women. So your first step would be
to prepare a list of all the newspapers that you feel would
be a good resource for your business.

Your next first step should be to call or visit each of
them and request a “media kit.” What you receive as part of
this kit can vary from a single page “rate sheet” to an
elaborate portfolio.

Try and avoid speaking to the sales person and whatever
happens, do not place any advertising at this point. You
are on a fact finding mission only.

Your next step is to review the material in the media kit.
At the very least you should receive a copy of the
publication, a rate sheet and a list of upcoming seasonal
specials. You may very well receive two separate rate
sheets. One will be for “classified ads” and the other will
be for “display” ads.

Once you have reviewed all the material you’ve gathered,
create a list of those publications that meet your
criteria. One thing to note is the difference in rates
between classified and display advertising, as display
advertising rates are normally substantially higher.

Once you have your list ready, now is the time to call and
ask to speak to the sales rep that covers your area. A
sales rep wants your advertising, so they will try to sell
ads, but a good rep will take the time to help you put
together an ad campaign that will meet your budget and
expectations.

Negotiate with the sales rep to have your press release run
concurrent with a paid display ad. It needn’t be a huge ad,
just make sure that they are both on the same page and it’s
large enough to be noticed.

If you can afford it, make a deal for a multiple week run
of a smaller display ad. This will give you “leverage” and
they will see you as a potentially serious advertiser that
could generate substantial ad revenue in the future.

Pick up any print media and you will see that text is
usually above the fold, so if you are given a choice of
below the fold outside or above the fold inside, take below
the fold. If they know what they are doing, they won’t put
ads above the fold anyway.

Ads run from left to right and right to left depending on
the page. If you begin at the outside edge of the page to
the center (whether it’s the left page or the right), the
ads will generally be tiered like a pyramid from outside to
center sloping downward.

We read from left to right. So if you are on the left side
of the paper, you want your ad to be seen first, BEFORE the
eyes read the text to follow.

If you are on the right side of the paper, you want to be
the last thing they see at the end of a line. So outside is
always best. Outside ad placement is reserved for larger
sales and are almost always read.

Another thing to remember is to always ask about “seasonal”
specials. Most publications have one or several special
inserts or, in some cases, entire issues that are published
during specific seasons.

Keep these tips in mind and you should be on your way to a
successful newspaper advertising strategy.

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
Have You Got Any Comments?
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

This is your chance to speak out.

Comment on articles I’ve run in the newsletter, give me
your thoughts on changes or your ad testing results or
questions relating to your business, etc.

In other words, just talk to me about what you think I
need to do to improve the newsletter.

Be sure to include your website address too, because if
I use your comments in a future issue of the newsletter,
I’ll thank you by posting your address so that you can get
additional free traffic to your site!

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
That’s a Wrap for this Week
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

That wraps up another week’s newsletter and I hope you
enjoyed this issue.

Don’t forget to send me any comments or questions you
may have to the Feedback Loop. I would be only too happy to
help you in any way that I can.

From time to time I’ll send you important updates
that will provide information that has the potential to
greatly improve your online business… and of course
your profits!

However, you can rest assured that I will only ever
recommend products that are considered to be of HIGH value
and will provide indisputably benefits to help you grow
your business… that’s my guarantee!

Your friend,

Gilles Rais

Categories: Newsletter Issues
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We all know that ezines are not just about sending
thousands of email every week to keep and attract new
customers. It is also about offering insightful and
practical content. If you only talk about how great your
services and products are, surely your readers won’t stick
around for long.

But the main concept of an ezine in the first place is to
assist you in your advertising needs. You have the right to
toot your own horn in your ezine as long as you don’t drown
out the useful content in your ezine.

So here are some notes that you should remember so that you
won’t be making fatal mistakes in your ezine.

It is true that sometimes in life there is a thin line
between failure and success. The same thing also applies
with this industry. Some details that we feel are
unimportant are the ones that are keys to our success or
failure.

First thing to look at is the FROM field of the ezines.
Although many of us would think that this is just merely a
detail, it is the first thing the user will see - who is
sending the email and if they can be trusted.

Use either your online name or the name of your business.
Avoid any kind of phrase or sentences in that field because
it will cost you a lot. And avoid putting ads in your FROM
field.

The subject line is the second most important thing in the
email. Avoid putting hyphens or other marks that will
highlight your subject.

For example don’t put something like this: “Earn a Million
in a Week”. People are smarter that you think. These kinds
of things are never believable.

Emphasize more on the purpose of your newsletter. And do
not use more than 7 words in your subject line.

Never ask for a purchase in the first mailing. A study
shows that most subscribers give their trust to you after 8
to 10 mailings. This is a common mistake that most ezines
publishers make; they have sales pitches in the first
mailing.

Don’t ever use Death Words; these are words that are banned
by spam filters. Don’t use words such as “free,” “make
money,” “hello,” “your family,” and other such words. Your
ezines will probably go directly to the junk mail folder
and be deleted immediately.

Avoid too much personalization. Even though personalization
is a must to be able to form a familiarity between you and
your customers, over doing this may cause havoc in your
ezine business.

Use more verbs than adjectives. You may come to think, what
the heck do my readers care about if I am using more verbs
that adjectives. You may think that they are not there to
count your verbs and adjectives but to read your content.

The most successful and best Internet marketers have proven
that verbs are much more influential than adjectives. This
can be seen by the use of “call to action” verbs which are
so strong that they can increase the response rate up to
700%.

For example, use the verbs “boost” and “explode” rather
than the word increase. See the difference?

I know that until now you are still thinking what a good
ezine is or how can you have the best ezine. Even I myself
did not know the answer to this question. Nowadays, many of
us are into the ezine business to make profits and not to
disseminate factual and good information to help other
people.

With hundreds and thousands of ezines available on the
market today, making your mark in the industry is a very
hard thing to do. When creating your ezines, make sure to
do it in a unique and different way; do not go through some
of the “being good” rules. Instead, make your own.

In this way you can be unique and new; make them know that
you are here to make a difference. Mark your ezine with
confidence and knowledge not with profitability and
unreliable content.

Make your ezine a resource, not spam; make it knowledgeable
so that other people can learn from it.

Always remember this: A good ezine is something that brings
in profit, but does not put at risk the wants of the
readers. Your ezine is something that you create so that it
can be read by millions of people around the globe, so
before clicking that send button, think about this first:
Does this ezine makes a difference and can this ezine help
me and other people as well?

Gilles Rais

Learn how to publish your own Ezine with my brand
new Ezine Publishers Manual.

Categories: Articles
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Many of you, especially beginners at online-based
businesses, might think, “How can a simple newsletter sent
by e-mail generate profit?” Well, over the years, this
industry has been proven to be both profitable not just in
sales but also in advertisement.

So how do you advertise in your ezines to boost your sales?
First thing to do is to get the buyers’ attention. Ask
relevant questions and empathize with your readers. Also
make sure to be direct and to the point as glittery words
are not needed nor required.

Second, put up a need and demonstrate how your product will
fill that need. When discussing this, always make sure that
you have proof to back up your statements. Also, address
your buyers’ most common complaints.

Show how they will be able to benefit from your product or
chosen service. Prove how your product differs from your
competition. A user testimonial is a good way to show this
and if you can offer a guarantee, then show it to them.

Use the psychology of “fear of loss,” showing that if the
prospect won’t act now, he/she will miss out. Having a time
limit or a limit on the availability of the product itself
can make your prospects scamper for your products.

Make them an offer they can not refuse. Even the most
intelligent buyer who has looked over your products needs a
little bit of convincing, even though they know that your
products or services are great.

Don’t overlook how powerful this tactic can be. This kind
of special promotion can make a great profit from your
ezines, so don’t forget to state them in your ezine.

Also make it easy for readers to respond to your ads. Have
multiple ways for your prospects to respond to your offer
like toll-free phones, websites, emails, postal mail, etc.,
and make the process simple and quick. Always keep in mind
that this is not a survey question but an inquiry page so
make it direct and user-friendly.

Lower your price, but still make it profitable. This kind
of strategy is a must and a profit gainer for professional
services such as coaches or trainers. This is a must if you
are just starting out, as a low price means more
subscribers and more chances of getting your ads exposed to
the buying public.

Don’t be afraid to talk about yourself or your own
services. If your main purpose in your ezines is to make
your readers’ lives enriching and well-relaxed, then thank
their lucky stars, there are still people like you.

But now, enough of the good deeds. First, try to focus on
yourself, so make at least 20% of your ezine space for your
own ads.

Give out promos and discounts for your services, ebooks,
workshops, etc. Also present your raving testimonials and
documentaries in your ezine ads. Entwine some business
success stories in your articles or tips.

Share something different and personal that will radiate
warmth with your readers and make them feel closer to you.

Submit your ezines to ezine directories. Surely, you might
subscribe a thousand ezine subscribers, but a thousand is
only a miniscule proportion of the total Internet
population. Submitting to directories is a good way of
gaining more exposure.

Swapping is also a very effective way to gain exposure for
your ezine. This works just like reciprocal linking, but in
this way, you are not just getting free exposure, you are
also providing your readers with good and reliable
resources.

You can also subscribe to other ezines and website
announcement lists. This can bring you a steady flow of new
subscribers that can lead to higher profit raises.

Joining discussion groups is also a good way to establish
your business as trustworthy and reliable. As more people
know you, they will more often than not, subscribe to your
ezine.

You can also join PopUnder groups; these are groups of
fellow publishers listed in one pop under window together
with some lists of articles. This is a very good way of
gaining more subscribers because when other people visit
the site, they will see you listed with other publishers,
reinforcing your reputation as a legit business
establishment.

Always keep in mind that ezines will not always make money
for you, but even though you aren’t making a profit, there
are still some other sides of marketing that ezines can
help a lot. Ezines may be delivering more benefits that are
not as obvious to you.

Your ezine is helping you establish a credible identity on
the Internet. It gives you massive online exposure and you
are gaining further credibility with your current clients
and customers.

Ezines also force you to package your knowledge into
articles and tips which can you later use for other
marketing reasons.

Gilles Rais

In a hurry? Learn how to publish your own Ezine with my
brand new Ezine Publishers Manual.

Categories: Articles
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