Tuesday, August 31, 2010

My Laziness Is Building My List...!

If you're like me, you have a lot on your plate. Between work, family and everything else, I just don't have a lot of spare time. And sometimes I just don't feel like doing the things I KNOW NEED TO GET DONE!
Like driving traffic to my web sites.

I know I need to do it. I know that just a few traffic tactics would swell my online income like the winner in a hot dog eating contest. But I honestly I didn't know where to begin.

So, I did what every hard-working entrepreneur would do...I gave the job to someone else!

I have a virtual assistant named Shannon who knew next to nothing about traffic, search engines and all that kind of stuff. I said, "Here, watch this video and do what it says."
http://www.TheTrafficBootcamp.com

And that's it. No training. No follow up. No nothing.

And quite frankly, I didn't expect much. But then she gave me a report after a few weeks:
#1 in Google for webinar training (2,070,000 competing web pages)
#1 in Google for webinar strategy (1,190,000 competing web pages)
-- I actually have 5 of the top 8 spots for this keyword

#2 in Google for webinar tool (1,190,000 competing web pages)
#1 in Google for webinar presentation (323,000 competing pages)
#3 in Google for business webinar (9.5 million competing pages!)
#2 in Google for business webinar training (1,220,000 competing
pages)

I have many other top 10 rankings in Google, but I wanted to show you the ones that HAD HUGE COMPETITION! The pages that BEAT OUT MILLIONS OF COMPETING WEB PAGES to get those high rankings in the search engines. Which generates LOTS of traffic to my web sites!

Did I fall into a chocolate pie or what!

And then she did the same thing for my
Online Business Basics course...

I guess my laziness paid off in a big way! Shannon took that simple video and went to town!

Would you like to watch the same video Shannon did? It's called the 24-Hour Traffic Plan Video. It gives you 13 things to do in the next 24 hours to start driving massive amounts of traffic to your site ...sometimes within days!

And massive amounts of traffic equals MASSIVE AMOUNTS OF ONLINE INCOME ...and calls from important joint venture partners looking to do business with you!

So, check out the video that started this whole ball rolling. And see if my laziness can be your good fortune!
http://www.TheTrafficBootcamp.com

Warmly,
Stephen Beck

PS...This video will only be available until the end of this week on Friday, September 3. After that, I will pull it down indefinitely. Don't sit on the fence for this one!

http://www.TheTrafficBootcamp.com

Tuesday, August 10, 2010

Online Business Ideas: Lessons From Real Life

Are you looking for some online business ideas? Sometimes the ideas on the internet can be hypothetical, but if you are like me, you want to hear a real-life person's story. You want to hear how he or she build a business from scratch and not because they are internet marketing experts. I know exactly what you mean.

Let me start by telling you a little bit about myself. My wife Kerry and I call ourselves "The Couple Next Door" because we are just like you when it comes to internet marketing. Neither one of us has a degree in computers or in business. Instead, we have built up a large base of knowledge and experience when it comes to starting an internet business. It happened almost by accident when I was in my 40s. I started going to seminary and needed an income to support my family. So I began creating information products.

Online Business Idea #1 - Start With What You Know

The truth is that if we can do it, you can, too. Like I said, I have not always had an online business. For 20 years, I did home remodeling. Then my wife started up a little company called Curriculum Connection. She wanted to help other homeschoolers find curriculum to use. As it grew, she began asking me, "Steve, do you know how to build web pages? How can we get online with our products?" So I started working on it, and even though I was clueless at first, I quickly figured it out. At the same time, I was in seminary.

So I was 2000 miles from home. No friends, no family, and no job. And I had to replace that remodeler income it took me 20 years to build. I had to replace it fast. And I had to do all of this in my part-time because seminary required me to read 15,000 pages a year!

So I started looking for the perfect business. And the reason I tell you this story is to say, "I know you are busy. I know you probably have a full-time job. I know that you are experiencing the same things I was experiencing. But you can start an online business on the side in your part time, and pretty soon, if you work it right, it will eclipse your day job."

Online Business Idea #2 - Define Your Criteria

So I sat down and wrote out my expectations for my perfect business. I wanted to create a product one time and then get paid for it repeatedly. I only had a small amount of time to work each week, so I needed to be paid well in that time. I needed a product that was easy for me, my wife, and my partners if I ever had any. I really wanted a business that would run automatically with very little input from me. I was looking for a weekly, even monthly, paycheck. I also wanted very few start-up costs. Sounds realistic, right?

Well, a lot of people would say I was asking for the moon. But think about this. The only thing I know of that will meet all of those criteria is selling information products on the internet. Because with an info product, you can create something one time and get paid over and over and over.

You start off by spending a little time packaging quality content, market it on the internet, and then sell it quickly and painlessly. You really could almost put the whole thing on auto pilot.

Online Business Idea #3 - Think Realistically

You may have multiple dollar signs flashing through your mind, but I challenge you to think realistically. You can start an online business with only a small investment. You can own a domain name for $15 a year. You can pay $50 a year to host your site and another $20 to employ an autoresponder. It is a good idea to start small and grow into your business. Think of it as a snowball rolling downhill.

If you have an idea, why not start today? These online business ideas are practical and easy to do and can get you going on a path to greater financial freedom.

____________________

Copyright Stephen Beck, 2010
You have permission to reprint this article as long as you don't make any changes and include the bio below.

Would you like to learn internet marketing? Stephen Beck can help, and he can show you how to earn your first $1000 on the internet. Get a FREE link to his webinar replay, where Stephen shows you exactly what you should do: http://www.YourOnlineBasics.com.

Friday, July 30, 2010

Do You Need Proven Business Start-Up Advice?

I meet a lot of people who have an idea for a business. Like you, they currently have a job but wish they knew enough to take a risk. All they are looking for is a little business start-up advice. And the first thing I tell them to do is to create their information products.

So what is an information product? It is anything you can create using the knowledge in your head. It can even be any experience that others can benefit from.

Business Start-up Advice #1 - Utilize Lots
of Mediums

Your knowledge can be packaged in lots of different ways. You can start with a video recording of your material then make a DVD and a CD. You could take the transcript and turn it into an ebook or even a multi-media product. There are a number of possibilities.

Business Start-up Advice #2 - Develop Your Own Name

The key to starting your own business is to have one product that is exclusively your own. Otherwise, you are building someone else's name and not your own. I am not refering to network marketing. I think that is great. If you are selling Mary Kay or Amway or whatever, then go for it. But in order to really start up your own business, you will absolutely need your own product.

You should be the one to control your business and your time. It is crazy to work for a small percentage of money or to let someone else tell you how to do things in your business. You should be in control and of your time and your products. When it is your own, you could keep anywhere from 90 to 95% of the profits.

All of the big players have their own product. We are talking names like Armon Moore and Ray Edwards, Alex Mendoza, Dan Kennedy. All the guys in the information marketing business have their own product. Why? Because they know that it works and it builds their own brand instead of someone else's.

Business Start-up Advice #3 - Get Out of the Time for Money Trap

And you get out of the trading time for money trap. A lot of you are in that trap right now, whether you are working a 9 to 5 job, or even if you are doing consulting. You are still trading time for money. When you can create something one time and sell it over and over and over, you get out of that trading time for money trap.

Business Start up Advice #4 - Establish Your Authority

Imagine being able to give people information, an e-book that you have written, or CDs that you have made. Anything that sets you head and shoulders above the next guy. That is massive credibility for your offline business.

Think of how many leads you can generate for your business by giving them something concrete. An information product makes your business memorable and can also build your list.

So start today by brainstorming what you know and write down the information you have in your brain. Make your products from this knowledge and begin building a business. In a short while, you will be in charge of a growing business and responsible for giving others business start-up advice.

_____________________

Copyright Stephen Beck, 2010
You have permission to reprint this article as long as you don't make any changes and include the bio below.

Stephen Beck specializes in business start-up advice, and he can show you how to earn your first $1000 on the internet. Go get a FREE link to his webinar replay, where Stephen shows you exactly what you should do: http://www.YourOnlineBasics.com.

Sunday, July 25, 2010

Proven Tips For Internet Marketing 101: Your Mind Is The Key!

Are you experiencing success in your online or offline business? If not, it could be due to your mindset. I have noticed that some businessmen are going through the motions of doing business, but they are not firmly convinced they can succeed. They even walk around doubting what they are doing and why they are doing it. But it does not have to be this way. Any class in internet marketing 101 will show you thought patterns you can adopt that will lead you to greater success.

Internet Marketing 101 - Be Thankful

The first principle is to be thankful and develop an ability to be grateful. When you think about the details of your life and business, find things you can be thankful for.

Once you are aware of all your many blessings, become a person who gives back to others. Do this not so you can get something in return, but just to be generous. You have a lot of skills and talents that others can benefit from, so why not help others? At this point, you may be wondering what all of this has to do with your business. The fact is that what you think about impacts what you do and how you work.

So are you generous? Are you helping those around you? In my homeschool niche, I like to help people choose the right curriculum and help them make it work for them. Hopefully, you are generous with the information you have, too.

Internet Marketing 101 - Be Thoughtful

The second principle is to be thoughtful. The words you repeat in your mind can become the realities in your life. What I mean is the stories you hear in your mind can creep in and influence the way you live. Let me illustrate. After each of our webinars, I like to talk to some of the people who attended. When I do this, if I hear any negative comments, it is usually people saying, "I am just not sure I can make any money doing this." what I find is that this kind of thinking becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy.

If you do not think you will make money, then you will not really put your whole heart into what you are doing. If you have some doubts about what you are doing and then try to promote your products, you will not come across as believable.

Similarly, you will want to think about what you are doing: are you building a business or having fun with a hobby? Are you serious about building it up or enjoying playing at it? Too often people who want to really build their business are merely playing at it. This mindset can change if you will being to be thoughtful about what you are doing.

Spend time thinking about your "why." Why are you doing what you are doing? I actually wrote mine down, and I got a picture of my family to go with it because part of the reason that I help with our family business is so we can have some passive income. We use it to spend more time with our family and to minister to others with mission trips.

So what is your why? I would really encourage you to take some time this week and list the reasons you are doing your business. Be specific. Do not just say, "It's for my family." Instead, say something specific like, " I want to visit my kids and be able to help with my grandkids." Or, "I want to be able to take my kids on trips around the world." Or, "I want to be able to reach out to missionaries and to go on mission trips." Once you have your why written down, make it public.

_____________________

Copyright Stephen Beck, 2010
You have permission to reprint this article as long as you don't make any changes and include the bio below.

Stephen Beck teaches business start up courses, and he can show you how to make your first $1000 on the internet. Go get his FREE webinar replay: http://www.YourOnlineBasics.com.

Tuesday, July 20, 2010

Use One Simple Recording To Set Up Your Online Business

If you are interested, you can set up an online business and make money doing it. All it takes is a little bit of guidance and some hard work. But once it is set up, you can really do well. One of my favorite ways is to sell "one off products." I use the information in my head about a topic. I'm very familiar with, host a webinar, or a teleseminar, record it, and then sell it over and over again.

When promoting a one off product, you will want to follow these six easy steps.

1.) Pick a familiar subject. It should be something you can talk about for at least one hour, and I am convinced that everyone has a topic like that, whether it is pie making, photography, or automobile repair. No matter the topic, keep it simple because your goal is to quickly put out some good, helpful content that will generate cash flow.

2.) Create an outline. Let me give you a simple way to do this. Get out a sheet of paper, and write your topic in the middle of it. Then brainstorm some subtopics for your main topic. Write these down and see if you can come up with two good details about each one of these subtopics. You need maybe eight to ten subtopics with two details for each one. Once you have those, you have an outline for sixty-minute presentation. How easy is that?

3.) Connect with a free teleseminar service. You can find on to use for free and will allow you to host up to 250 people at one time. When I first started my online business, I could only host 100, so this is a great improvement. Remember to record your seminar an download it at the end.

4.) Tell people about your teleseminar. But who exactly do you invite? Your website, blogs, and email lists are a great place to start. I would just go nuts with this stuff and tell everybody I know that I am having this wonderful teleseminar.

5.) Sell tickets to your teleseminar. I gotta credit Jim Bob Howard for sharing this with me. There is a great sight called Event Bright, and it is free to use. Your customers pay Event Bright, and then Event Bright pays you. But the beauty is you do not pay any money until you start making money by selling tickets. They save you a lot of hassle.

6.) Record your teleseminar. Do it one time, and then use it over and over and over. You can sell the recording as an audio CD. You can have the recording transcribed and sell it as an Ebook. You can sell it together, the audio and transcription, for more money. You can combine one off products into a home-study course. There are really an endless steam of options you can come up with to make more money off of your one recording.

So what are you waiting for? Why not set up an online business today?

___________________

Copyright Stephen Beck, 2010

You have permission to reprint this article as long as you don't make any changes and include the bio below.

Stephen Beck can show you how to start an internet business and how to make your first $1000 on the internet. Go get a FREE link to his webinar replay, where Stephen shows you everything you should do: http://www.YourOnlineBasics.com.

Thursday, May 27, 2010

Article Marketing Makes Starting An Internet Business EASY!!

Do you have an idea rolling around in your head? Would you like to know how to start an internet business? It is actually very easy, and something you can work on today.

In the past few years, I have begun a number of businesses. I have even been able to help others get their businesses off the ground, and each time I get started, I always use article marketing. I do this because well-written articles will bring in high search engine rankings and in turn more traffic to my site. Let me show you why it works.



1.) Articles can be submitted to an authority site such as Ezine Articles.

Because this site requires original content, Google ranks these submissions higher than others. Often within a few weeks after I submit an article, I see it ranked high. My articles are usually 300 to 700 words with a resource box pointing directly to my website. The authority of these sites build my reputation as an expert on webinars.

2.) Articles can also generate direct traffic to your website.

Lots of people with blogs and websites pick up articles from these directories and post them. For example, pretend you have a website about dogs. Other people with related sites like puppies.com, dogs and more dogs.com, or a dog blog will come and get your article. They post it on their site with your resource box, and then when people read their blog, you get free advertising. Their readers click on the link to your site, and voila! You just got free and easy traffic.

3.) Articles can build up backward links.

A backward link is like a vote. Many times my pages and my interior pages show up in Google because lots of other people have posted my articles to their sites. For each one of these, I get a backward link, and as I start to amass backward links, I rank higher and higher in Google.

Getting on the first page of the search results for your keyword and staying there are two different things. There are lots of other people competing to be on the first two pages, and the competition is fierce. Article marketing can be the best tool to keep you on top.

___________________

Copyright Stephen Beck, 2010
You have permission to reprint this article as long as you don't make any changes and include the bio below.

Stephen Beck can teach you what it takes to start an internet business and how to make your first $1000 on the internet. Go get a FREE link to his webinar replay, where he shows exactly what you can do: http://www.YourOnlineBasics.com/go.html.

Friday, May 21, 2010

You Can Learn Internet Marketing And Make Quick Cash!

I have been an entrepreneur for many years, but my greatest success has come since learning internet marketing. In the time I have been working my internet business, I have found the quickest way to make money is through affiliate sales.

Before you discount this as a good option, let me outline a simple way to approach this idea. From my experience, you can begin generating cash flow this week so that you can afford domain names and outsourcing some of the details of your business. For example, you could outsource email, article marketing, and webinar setup just to name a few.

The first key is to find something to recommend. It should be something inexpensive that you can comfortably recommend to others. You don't want to recommend a big ticket item right away, but instead start out small and build up to it. You want your list to trust you and rely on your recommendations. Look at the sales page for that product, and you will be able to tell whether or not it is appealing.

The second key is to know what issues your list is looking to be solved. What I am trying to say is to figure out the problems your readers are dealing with and how you can help them. For the answers, I usually go to niche-related sites, forums, or even social networking sites to see if I can find the answer. When I am willing to do this extra bit of research, I end up with more sales because I understand where my readers are coming from.

The third key to affiliate sales is to write a recommendation. Let me give you a sample outline. When you write a recommendation for an affiliate product, be sure to include the following: what does it do, how does it benefit the reader, how does it compare with similar products, what did you like about it, what did you not like about it, and what is your overall ranking? You can then post your review on your blog or other website, but the whole point is to make sure it is on your site with your affiliate link and then drive traffic to your review.

The fourth key is to tell people about your recommendation. For this you will use your own website or blog. Wordpress and blogger are two great places to get a blog if you do not already have one. Also, you can use your email contacts as your "list," and send out your recommendation to them.

The fifth key to affiliate sales is to supercharge the whole process with search engine optimization (SEO). You want to rank in Google for keywords people would use if they were about to buy. These are different than general keywords. When you use "buyer" keywords, you can optimize your recommendation post or web pages by using them in the post.

Without a doubt, affiliate sales can be a quick way to begin earning money. If you work diligently on these steps, you will see cash flow this week.

____________________

Copyright Stephen Beck, 2010
You have permission to reprint this article as long as you don't make any changes and include the bio below.

Would you like to learn internet marketing 101? Stephen Beck is an expert, and he can show you how to make your first $1000 online. Go get a FREE link to his webinar replay, where he explains everything you should do: http://www.YourOnlineBasics.com.