StumbleUpon operates like a social networking and bookmarking website allowing users to rate and rank pages and share them with fellow users. It also helps users find relevant and useful websites based on the pages they like and share.

As a business owner, StumbleUpon’s unique user driven approach can drive tons of traffic to your website. It’s ranked as one of the thirty largest social bookmarking sites with almost 10 million members and more than 500 topics to search through.

This report breaks down how you can use StumbleUpon to grow your business, step-by-step. And it includes a handy checklist to help keep you on track.

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Social Bookmarking Workbook

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Here are three important steps to help you do just that:

1 – Engage your audience. Once you know who your ideal customer is the next step is to really engage them. Have you noticed how some people can have many, many friends yet each friend feels as though they are the most important friend to that person? It takes a real knack to accomplish this on and offline, but if you can then you are well on your way to building a strong relationship with your audience.

One way to accomplish this online is by writing in a way that implies you are speaking to only them. Write in a friendly, clear tone appropriate for your chosen market. Share some information about yourself if necessary to let your customers know that you understand their needs and situation. A good tip is to write as though you were chatting to a good friend over coffee.

2 – Know their motivation. People are motivated by different things. When you do your market research an important point to focus on is what motivates your target prospect to act – in other words to buy something. Some people are motivated by social status, others want to feel good about themselves while others simply want to feel part of something.

By knowing the motivation trigger of your target market, you’ll know how to communicate in a way that gets better results. You can also cater your products and services to help your ideal prospect resolve their problems. A win/win situation for all involved.

3 – Take a “real” approach. Online people do business with people they like and feel a connection with. You can accomplish this by taking a personal and “real” stand with everything you do. If you’re a small business say so. Let people know a little about you, your business, why you started it and so on. If you have a family then it’s fine to say so too. In other words, be “real.”

People will appreciate that you are a real person and not just some entity flowing in cyberspace. Connect with your customers in a similar way you would with a neighbour or friend. This is one of the best ways to build a strong connection with your audience. Of course, you’ll want to make sure you do this in a professional manner but with a little practice getting the balance right isn’t difficult.

Connecting with your target audience means better profits, long-term customers and the satisfaction of running a business which helps people. It’s really worth taking the time to do this right from the beginning and you’ll reap the benefits for years to come.

And if you’re looking for a great tool to help make building a website that helps you connect with your market effortlessly, try the Internet Based Family Easy Website Builder. It includes online support and full training to help you build a profitable website from the ground up – no technical or previous experience required!

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How to Really Connect with your Target Market

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Newsletters are an excellent communication and marketing tool for your direct sales business. They help you connect with customers and prospects, provide value to readers, and keep customers up-to-date on promotions and product offerings. Some direct sales companies provide newsletters either by sending them directly to customers or making them available for consultants to send. If you are using a company provided newsletter, I recommend personalizing it as much as possible to make it more of a reflection of you.
 

If your company doesn’t provide a newsletter, create your own. Here are the steps to take to create one.

Step 1. Frequency: How often do you want to publish your newsletter? Remember each issue involves a few hours of preparation including creating the content. Establish a schedule you know you can keep up with. It is always easier to add supplemental issues or increase the frequency however decreasing the frequency can give a poor impression. Monthly or quarterly is probably a good place to start.

Step 2. Content: What is your newsletter going to be about? What are you going to include in your newsletter? Some newsletters have a single article and a promotion. Others have 3-5 articles and an equal amount of promotional content. What are your articles going to be about? Will you write them or will you hire a writer? Take a look at newsletters you like and consider why you like them. Consider what types of content will add value to your readers. What questions or problems do they have?

Step 3. Email or print: How are you going to distribute your newsletter? There are benefits to both. Email is very cost effective and instantaneous. Print is nice because it gives something tangible for customers to hold onto.

Step 4. Email Service: If you’re going to email your newsletter, consider paying for an email distribution and list management service. There are many available online. They offer newsletter templates, automatically manage the list subscriptions and unsubscribes, and enable you to create newsletters in advance and schedule them for future delivery. The price for services vary however many base their prices on the number of subscribers.

Recommended Resource
AWeber Autoresponder and Newsletter Service

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Step 5. Subscribe Form: If offering an email newsletter, add a signup form on your website. This not only increases traffic and visitor value, it helps build a list of contacts and customers.

Step 6. Marketing: Let people know about your newsletter. Include a link to your subscription form in all email communications, signatures, and even consider adding it to your business card, brochure, and other marketing materials.

Step 7. Graphics: Graphics are a great way to make a newsletter visually interesting. Options include adding a logo or a header to each newsletter as well as including graphics, photos, and even charts within the newsletter. Stock photo sites are a good place to get started, however it is a good idea to make sure the reprint rights are available.

Newsletters are an excellent tool for connecting with and marketing to your customers and prospects on a regular basis. To make sure your newsletter is well-received, focus on providing quality content that will keep your readers interested and subscribed.

What do you think? You are invited to comment (just click the title link):
Create a Direct Sales Newsletter in 7 Steps

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Direct sellers, along with many others who are marketing their businesses online, have embraced social media to connect with customers and prospects. And many continue to market on the message boards and forums that they’ve participated in for years. These are venues I enjoy and have also used successfully to build my businesses.

While many people post using their real names, I still see quite a few people posting anonymously. It just doesn’t seem right to me. How can you be social anonymously?

I understand the reasons for posting with a company name or using a keyword for your username, but when you do that be sure to put your real name in your profile or sign your post with at least your first name. I find it awkward to say, “Hi CandleBiz” or “Nice to meet you, SilverBaubles.” I much prefer “Thanks for the information Susan.” On occasion I’ve decided not to respond to a Tweet or post when I don’t know someone’s name; I’ll move on to offer an answer or introduce myself to someone who uses their real name.

In person, offline, you wouldn’t introduce yourself as “Jewelry Inc.” It’s no different online. Your prospects want to get to know you. Business will follow.

What do you think?

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Anonymous Isn’t Social

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This question has been on my mind quite a bit lately. How much online success is possible if you aren’t one of the movers and shakers? Can someone who isn’t usually among the first marketers to promote a new product or service or who isn’t using the latest tool make it in the fast paced online world?

Admittedly, I don’t have the answer, but I do have some thoughts. Please comment and let me know what you think.

Like everything else, I think the answer depends in part on your market. If you sell technology you better be up-to-date with the latest gadgets and gizmos every day. You probably aren’t going to be highly successful if you don’t know what an iPad is or if “Droid” brings to mind a movie robot. When most customers are in the market for a computer, T.V. or cell phone, they want the latest technology. If you can’t keep up with that demand, your customers will likely shop elsewhere.

But I know of a text-based website that sells fountain pens where you email the owner to reserve a pen, and then you send a check by snail mail. The company is well-known and highly recommended by pen aficionados. While I’m not an expert, I’d venture a guess that fountain pen technology doesn’t change very rapidly and there’s probably a viable market for older versions. So someone who sells pens can afford to take a little time to stock and market the latest pen.

In party plan companies, even through your company may update products regularly, the primary sales method really hasn’t changed that much. A home sales party today is based on many of the same techniques of the original Tupperware parties of the 1950s. Sure, companies have added online ordering, social networking, and other new marketing techniques and tools, but you can still be successful yourself, and train a profitable team, using the sales party as your primary marketing technique.

Another “old-fashioned” technique I think party plan consultants can use to a huge advantage is great customer service. With big box stores, self-checkout at the supermarket, online shopping, ATMs and telephone customer service, many people crave the personalized, individual attention they can get from a direct sales consultant. A great deal of success can be built from knowing your customer’s name and needs.

Are you a mover and shaker or are you succeeding at a slower pace? How important is it to be up-to-date on the latest tools and marketing methods? What other factors contribute to your point of view? Please leave your comments and questions.

I’m probably not a mover and shaker, but rather I tend to use and teach more of the “tried and true” methods of marketing and sales. But I also try to provide my audience with trusted resources for new tools or methods that I may not be up to speed on yet.

What do you think? You are invited to comment (just click the title link):
Can Slow and Steady Succeed Online?

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Like many people, you may already be using these sites to find friends and stay updated with them in real time. In much the same way, you can use these sites to connect with business partners and customers you already have, and to expand your business. However, successfully using social networking for business does require a different strategy.

The Social Networking Workbook walks you through the steps to take to get the most out of social networking for business. It’s written for the beginner, but if you’ve already tried social networking and feel like it’s a waste of time, the workbook can help you refocus and make the most of the time you spend social networking.

Claim your copy of the Social Networking Workbook for just $2. Also included is a handy checklist to help you stay organized and focused while you develop your successful social networking strategy.
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Downloads are processed through our carefully selected 3rd party shopping cart service, e-Junkie.com.
Payments are processed through PayPal even if you don’t have a PayPal Account.
To view and print these files you will need a PDF reader. If you don’t have one, you can get Adobe Reader for free here.
Note: Every effort has been made to accurately represent our product and its potential. Each individual’s success depends on his or her background, dedication, desire and motivation. As with any business endeavor, there is an inherent risk of loss of capital and there is no guarantee that you will earn any money. Click here for complete terms of use and disclaimer.

What do you think? You are invited to comment (just click the title link):
Social Networking Workbook

If you like this post, please support us and our sponsors by visiting the source:
Linda Stacy's Business Opportunity Connection.

I recently posed a question on a popular message board and the responses I got confirmed that “rich” isn’t always the goal. Moms want to “pay bills and have some in savings,” “pay my bills and take care of kids, and “pay the bills, have some fun and still have enough to set aside in savings/retirement.” Others mentioned “financial security” and the “peace of mind” that comes from not worrying about money.

Often after meeting some immediate needs with our first business endeavor, we start looking more towards the future and wanting a little more. I think about how I’d like to enjoy retirement without worrying about money. And how I’d like my son to be able to choose his career or business path without being so concerned about whether his chosen path will net enough income. I even think about how much fun it would be to help other moms get started in business by providing some start-up cash or funding a business expansion.

I’m not saying you shouldn’t go for millions if that’s what you want. In fact there were a few responders who said they want to be rich and be able to afford luxuries. What I am suggesting is that if you are marketing your business to moms, don’t assume we’re all looking for big bucks. Promising fancy cars and six figure incomes doesn’t attract as many moms as you think it might.

The key is to listen to what each individual prospect is looking for and help her meet her goals.

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Marketing to Moms – Don’t Bother Promising Millions

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1. Not having a marketing plan.
   A marketing plan is simply a blueprint for how you will go about promoting your products or services. In the same way that a business plan provides focus, goals, and tasks for your overall business, a marketing plan provides a road map for your promotions and advertising. It’s best not to approach marketing without one.
2. Putting all your eggs in one basket.
   This old saying seems to work in a lot of situations and marketing is no exception. Diversification is the key to success and growth. You may find one or two strategies that work particularly well for your business, but don’t base your entire marketing plan on just those methods. Explore other options to avoid being stalled at a certain point.
3. Ignoring the power of networking
   Business networking is invaluable. When entrepreneurs get together to brainstorm and exchange ideas, all sorts of beneficial relationships are formed. In your business networks you will form joint venture partnerships, referral networks, and find mentors and friends.
4. Working alone to “run the whole show.”
   Most small businesses start out with one person working alone. But as your business grows there will come a time when you’ll need help to keep things running smoothly. Your time can best be spent marketing the product in new and creative ways. Someone else can take care of designing your web site, answering emails, and handling the bookkeeping. Use your expertise where it will increase profit the most and hire others to take care of the everyday details.
5. Cutting the budget.
   When business is slow is natural to want to cut expenses. But it’s especially important to keep marketing and advertising during a downturn. A better choice is to beef up marketing to reach a new or wider customer base.

If you’ve already made some of these mistakes, don’t panic. Take a good look at what you’ve been doing, keep doing what works and drop what doesn’t, and begin again with more knowledge and a marketing plan for success.

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Marketing Mistakes

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1 – Business card marketing. While business cards are an essential business tool, leaving a trail of them wherever you go cheapens them and minimizes their effectiveness. To use them to their best advantage, treat your business cards as if they are valuable. Only hand them out in person, to people with whom you are starting a business relationship, and always try your best to get their contact information as well.

Read more in “Is it Marketing or Littering.”

(Flyers and brochures should be handled similarly.)

2 – Catalogs. Consultants are often advised to generously give out catalogs and to leave them in doctor’s offices and hair salons, on the train, or anywhere else someone might pick one up. While a single catalog may be inexpensive, this practice can become a significant expense for consultants over the course of a year or two. And in most cases, catalogs left anywhere are more likely to end up in the trash than result in a sale.

Save your new catalogs for existing customers, guests at sales parties, and people who you meet face-to-face and who express a real interest in ordering from you.

Your old catalogs can be left around town with a big sticker on the back indicating that it’s an outdated catalog and inviting people to contact you for a new one.

3 – Car bumper stickers or magnets. Unless you have an extremely catchy domain name, it’s not likely that you’ll reach many potential customers with this method. When cars are moving it’s difficult to read what’s on the bumper sticker and when they’re stopped or parked it still requires someone to get out a pencil and paper to write down information. And before you add your business information to your car, check with your insurance agent to see if that changes your classification to business use.

4 – Free online classifieds. The only thing I’d recommend advertising in free online classified is an offer of interest to others who place free classifieds. They are the only people that are likely to read the ads.

5 – Safelists. The only reason someone signs up for a safelist is to promote their own offers. Almost no one actually reads the ads. Treat them the same way as free classifieds.

One of the biggest drawbacks to these free and inexpensive marketing methods is that they put control in the hands of potential customers. You drop off cards or catalogs and wait for customers to contact you. If you collect contact information from potential customers you’re in control and can contact them with additional information and reminders.

Additionally, most of these methods have to long term benefit. Cards and catalogs have to be replenished and free online classifieds generally move very quickly and your ad ends up buried under hundreds of other ads.

I won’t say you should never use these methods, but I am advising against relying heavily on them. If you do use them, be sure to track your results so you know which are worth repeating and which aren’t worth the time and effort. Use them as a small part of your marketing plan and spend more time on free marketing methods that also have benefits and are longer lasting. Methods like article marketing, press releases, social media marketing, link directories, and online networking not only connect you with prospective customers and team members, but they promote your expertise, provide search engine benefit (backlinks), and help you develop a referral network.

What do you think? You are invited to comment (just click the title link):
Do Free or Inexpensive Advertising Methods Actually Work?

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Search engine optimization is a strategy to increase visitors to a website by placing high up in search results when someone uses a search engine to search for keywords related to your topic

Think about how you go about researching a topic online. You enter certain words into a search engine such as Google or Yahoo and are presented with results – usually pages and pages of results. As you review them to see what fits your needs, it’s likely that you’ll visit the first few sites, and if you find what you need there, you won’t return to the search results to view more sites.

The order in which sites are listed in those search results has a lot to do with search engine optimization. The words you enter into a search engine are called keywords. If you ever look at the top of your search results you will see the number of results returned plus the words that the search engine used to bring you those results. Now look at the results. The keywords you typed in are bolded either in the titles or in a line of content on that webpage.

By optimizing your web pages and content to match the most common phrases or keywords used for your subject, your content can be found. Ideally, content found on the first two pages of search results are the ones that people will click on. No one wants to sift through five million results. The top content or websites are the ones ranked first.

What makes them top-ranked? One factor is how often the keywords appear in the content For keyword-optimized content, keywords that show up three to seven percent of the time are ranked higher than content with less frequent keywords.

Search engines crawl your content and webpages for ranking. Keyword-dense content has a good chance of rising to the top of the rankings. But, search engine optimization is not just about single keywords, but also two and three word phrases. Longer phrases have become a great way to rank high, since most content tries to match single keywords.

Search engine optimization extends to your domain name as well. If your website has a specific niche, using keywords relative to that niche in your domain name drives traffic to your website. Don’t neglect your webpages either. Individual pages that use search engine optimized headers are also ranked.

For the website owner, using a keyword optimizer makes short work of calculating your keyword density. There are also programs that rank the popularity of certain keyword phrases when searching for information using search engines. Remember, if you can’t be found, it will be hard to sell your product or service to others.

As important as keywords are for SEO, they are not the only factor in determining where your site will be listed in the search engines. Learn more about SEO:

• Grab your free copy of SEO Fast Start by Dan Thies
• Claim your free WordTracker trial today.
• Free guide How to Get Backlinks (the basics)

If you’re looking for more traffic to your site, consider search engine optimization.

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Internet FAQ: What Is Search Engine Optimization (SEO)?

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