Blog - Elayne Whitfield: Trainer, Mentor, Author, Coach

How to Decide What to Outsource First When Money is Tight

Posted on January 29, 2015 // Leave a Comment

For the independent entrepreneur, the demands on your time are often overwhelming from day 1. There are so many moving parts and things to do that there are never enough hours in the day. Even for the seasoned businessperson, it’s difficult to relinquish control of any part of their business. Still, every successful internet marketer has come to the point where they have had to outsource some of their business in order to take it to the next level.

How do you decide which things to outsource when you’re ready, especially if cash is tight?

Before you even start to look for outsourcers, go through the following process:

Step 1. Make a list of all the tasks you hate to do

It doesn’t matter whether you’re good at it or not, if the task is something you truly dislike doing, then it’s a good candidate for outsourcing.

Step 2. Look at where you add value in your business

Make a list of tasks where you don’t actually add much value. Examples could be formatting documents so they look nice for publishing or loading posts onto your blog from guest authors. If you’re not very good at writing, that’s a great opportunity to outsource also.

Step 3: Identify one-time activities

Are there any jobs in your business that just need to be done once, and then they’re complete? Those are great for outsourcing, too. For example, setting up a new blog and configuring it with plugins and themes is a one-time task that can be completed quickly by one person.

Step 4. Look at tasks that are easy to outsource first

The one-off tasks are usually the easiest to outsource first and help you avoid making a commitment to a longer term investment. However, if there are mundane activities you are doing that are taking time away from the true value-added parts of your business, then outsourcing these can help you grow your business by leaps and bounds. If you already know that your business is profitable and could expand if you only had the time, then it may be worth outsourcing basic ongoing tasks.

Step 5. Make some decisions and start your search

Organize your list of tasks to outsource into immediate, short term and longer term. What will you outsource right away vs. in a few months or a year? Once you’ve made a list of what you’d like to outsource, you’ll be able to tell just what you need in terms of a real person. This often means hiring different people for different tasks since not everyone is good at everything. Get recommendations, search for people with good reputations on freelance sites, and make sure you always get samples of work. Finally, be sure to test someone before you commit a lot of money.

One of the most common statements by successful marketers is that they wish they’d outsourced sooner. However, it’s always easy to say something in hindsight. Take care to outsource wisely by making the most of your budget and testing your business model on a small scale first. Then, unless you want to drive yourself insane or only want a small income from your efforts, you will probably choose to outsource more tasks.

Filed Under: Online Business Management //

Picking a Great Niche For Site Flipping

Posted on January 27, 2015 // Leave a Comment

Website flipping is one way an Internet marketer can make money. They build a site, usually making it a WordPress blog, fill it with content and graphics, and monetize it several ways. Next they list it for sale on a site such as Flippa and while they are waiting for bids, they start creating their next niche site to flip. This can be quite lucrative if done right.

If you want to start flipping, one of the biggest things to consider is your niche subject. It makes no sense to put all your hard work into building a site that no one wants to buy, right? So it’s important to pick a niche that SELLS, not one YOU find interesting to work in. Save the topics you’re passionate about for sites you want to create and keep, unless of course, you’re lucky enough to really like a topic that does sell. But generally, throw the passion idea out the window when it comes to building sites to flip.

Some people pick a specific niche based on the fact that they have lots of PLR on that subject to use for content. While PLR can be a huge time saver, you’re still going to use your valuable time setting up the blog, putting the content on it, and getting it ready to sell. That time is wasted if the niche isn’t the right one and no one wants to buy your site.

The best way to pick a niche for your purposes is to do some research on sites such as Flippa. It’s easy enough to find the sites that have sold – just look it up on Flippa. Then start a spreadsheet where you can list the subject of the sites that have sold and how much they sold for. You might also want to include how old the site was, how many posts (content) were on it, and the different ways it was monetized (such as AdSense, ad space, ClickBank, own digital product, etc.)

As you compile your information, you will begin to notice certain topics that sell better than others. You don’t really have to know WHY; you just have to know which topics. And it can change over time, so do your research quarterly or so.

Currently, here are the topics that sell well, in no particular order:

weight loss
Twitter
Facebook
acne
dog training
site flipping
making money online

But don’t take my word for it, do your research and see what you come up with. Website flipping can be fun and profitable for those who like to create new blogs but don’t want to continuously keep them up. If this sounds like you, pick a niche with the help of the above information and get busy.

Filed Under: Online Marketing Management //

Are These Kinds Of Proof On Your Sales Page?

Posted on January 22, 2015 // Leave a Comment

We all know what goes into selling a new product online – an awesome product, lots of traffic, an excellent sales page, and good conversion rates. Having the awesome product is probably the easiest part, while getting good conversion rates may be the hardest. So what will help you convert visitors into buyers?

Proof.

People want to see proof that your product is and does what you promise it will be and do. They want to know other people have used it successfully without complications. They’d also like to see, touch, and try, if possible. If they’re convinced it will solve their problem(s), they’ll head right over to the buy button and purchase the product.

Here, then, are some types of proof that will help prove your product is the one for them:

Testimonials
While the US government has now put some restrictions on what testimonials can say, and the need to include a disclaimer noting atypical results, they are still an effective form of proof. Testimonials can be in writing with a photo, video, or audio. What types of testimonials do you like to see? I like the ones that say how the customer put the product to work for them and increased their income by xx dollars, lost xx amount of weight, or cleared up acne in xx days. These are customers who have used the product and found success so it’s likely, or at least possible, other buyers will get good results too.

Case studies
These are a form of a testimonial, but more involved. A case study shows where the person was at before the purchase, how he used the product, how long the results took, and what the results were. People like the specifics, so it might also include a negative or two.

Video tour
Not only tell them about your product, take them inside. A video look around with maybe a demonstration of how to use the product will show potential customers exactly what they will be getting. If your product is an ebook, show them the table of contents and a page here and there; similar to what Amazon does with their Look Inside! feature. Show off and talk about any bonuses as well.

Flash your credentials
Are you a published author, been an expert in the field for over 10 years, been quoted in the newspaper, been interviewed by other experts in the field? Without being a show-off, weave in this kind of proof as to why you’re capable of talking and teaching on this subject.

Free trial period
This is more like advanced proof and goes a long way in comforting a potential buyer’s fear. Sometimes you can get the tire-kickers to buy if you get them behind the wheel for a test drive. Offer a 14 or 30 day trial and encourage them to try it out. Offer assistance during the trial period and remind them at the end of the trial to buy.

To convert readers to buyers, you definitely need to have some proof on your sales page. Consider using video, audio, or written testimonials, case studies, a free trial period, showing your credentials, and doing a video tour of your product. And remember to test to see which type of proof converts the best with your audience.

Filed Under: Online Marketing Management //

What Color Is Your Hat – Black, Blue, Gray Or White?

Posted on January 20, 2015 // Leave a Comment

Many people wear hats of different shapes and colors in their lives. While most parents and business owners might just consider those hats to be a necessary part of a work outfit or a fashion statement, on the Internet, specifically with Internet marketing, they have a very different meaning.

Knowing the differences between the “hat” colors and the risks you take when you choose one over the other will help keep you out of Google death as you attempt to manipulate search engines. Google has a very short tolerance for unethical practices that attempt to work around their rules.

It is commonly agreed that the safest techniques to follow in your marketing campaigns are the White Hat strategies. If you remember the old cowboy movies where the hero always wore the white hat and triumphed over the bad guys who wore black hats, you will see the implied differences in hat colors.

White Hat
A marketer using white hat techniques is not malicious in intent or actual practice. They follow business practices that are considered ethical and acceptable by the industry and do nothing that could be considered spamming others. They are not trying to find and exploit loopholes in the systems.

Grey Hat
Practices start veering off the benign white hat techniques when marketers start pushing the edges of legality and use somewhat shady methods to get what they want on other sites or to get around Google’s rules. Some of the techniques used might be reverse engineering of copyrighted or trademarked software, or copying small sections of articles and passing them off as their own. They may have found a loophole that will be closed once Google figures out what they are doing.

Blue Hat
This term is used by firms involved in computer security and refers to hackers hired to unearth bugs in a system before it is launched. When the blue hat hackers find unprotected areas of a client’s security, they quickly close the hole in the company’s software or report it to the security team.

Black Hat
A black hat can be a person who breaks computer security without permission to vandalize a site, steal credit card information, steal identities or pirate another marketer’s proprietary information or processes. A black hat marketer is someone who participates in illegal ways of getting better search engine rankings including keyword stuffing, spamdexing, spam linking, scraped content and article spinning of copyrighted material, hidden website links, or excessive cross-linking, etc., that is for rank gain rather than for a better user experience.

Again, it is usually better to keep your White Hat on or you’ll always be looking over your shoulder for the Google police. If you’re wearing a Black Hat, you may find yourself with a spike in results, but it won’t last and is not a steady income you can count on.

Filed Under: Online Marketing Management //

Why a Business Coach/Mentor is Important

Posted on January 16, 2015 // Leave a Comment

As someone who has been operating a small business for nearly 15 years now, it feels like I have made every mistake imaginable; not least of which is not hiring a coach sooner. Learning on your own may seem like both the most cost effective and thorough method of gaining the knowledge you need for your business to succeed, but in fact it is neither. There is no substitute for a professional coach.

The first objection most people have to hiring a coach is the cost. And although quality coaching does come at a price, this objection can be overcome by the simple fact that coaching almost always pays for itself within a few months. When put to work, the information that you gather and the skills that you learn from your coach will change your business immediately for the better. A more efficiently operating business with a better focus on its goals will bring you more income and make you question why you didn’t hire someone earlier. This new income would not have come about without your coach and that alone makes your investment more than worthwhile.

Realizing the value a coach can bring to you isn’t just about getting over the financial burden of hiring them. For myself and many other people who operate small businesses, admitting first that you need to hire someone to help you was the most difficult part. Often times it is easier on your ego to continue on plugging away at a comfortable level of mediocrity while telling yourself that you are perfectly capable of solving any individual obstacle that crosses your path. And for the most part this is true. Getting off the ground with any business is a success in and of itself and anyone who accomplishes that will generally be able to learn whatever they need to get passed the problems that arise for them. But being a reactionary in the business world will not get you very far past a level of average. You may be able to survive by learning only what you need to, but in order to thrive, at some point you will need a mentor to tell you the things you don’t know and what you will face in the future.

Keeping yourself in a bubble of self reassurance only keeps you isolated from the valuable problems and solutions out there that you may never be exposed to on your own. With more experience comes greater knowledge and that is exactly what a business coach will bring to the table for you. Your own experience may have taught you that doing something a certain way is sufficient, but once you bring in the experience of a quality mentor, you may learn that your ways of doing things could actually be antithetical to progress and efficiency. Bringing in a new set of professional eyes for your career can be like putting on the perfect pair glasses when you didn’t even realize your vision was blurry without them.

For me it took over ten years to realize the value of hiring a coach and ever since I made that decision I have been kicking myself for not doing it sooner. For ten years I made silly mistakes and did little things wrong that dragged on my business in ways I was completely blind to. Within three months of bringing in a coach the investment had already paid for itself and I felt like a new person. Now after 15 years of experience in my field and with some professional coaching under my belt I am able to position myself as a mentor to others who are just starting out. And do you know what the first thing is that I tell people who are willing to listen? Getting a coach sooner rather than later is the best decision you can make for your business.

Filed Under: Coaching //

Professional Branding Tips for the Job Hunter

Posted on January 15, 2015 // Leave a Comment

Having a professional brand is not a new concept for job hunters. It’s the image you present to potential employers wherever you are. In a competitive job market, it’s essential to build your own professional brand so that you will stand out from the rest of the pack and build a consistent reputation. Your brand will also help people remember who you are so that when they are asked if they know someone good for a job, you’ll be more likely to come to mind.

What Determines Your Professional Brand?

There are four key elements that make up the image and brand you present to the public:

1. What you look like. This includes the clothes you wear, your features, your haircut, your cleanliness, and your makeup (if you wear any). No matter what anyone tells you, people do judge a book by its cover.

2. How you behave. Your behavior is demonstrated through things like your personality, the way you speak, any mannerisms you exhibit (such as twirling your hair), the way you smile (or not), the way you shake someone’s hand, and other actions and statements that demonstrate your values.

3. What you know. Your education gives some indication of what you know. But people will be primarily looking at the skills, knowledge and talent that you possess when assessing your professional brand.

4. How you are different. Your professional brand must include anything that demonstrates how you are different from others. Potential employers are always looking at how you would add value to their company.

Where Will People See Your Professional Brand?

You exhibit your professional brand everywhere, both online and offline, in everything you do. Online, you find your brand reflected in search engine results, social media, any blogs you write for, photos of yourself, or any articles you’ve written. Whether good or bad, your brand is also reflected wherever someone mentions your name.

Offline, you demonstrate your personal brand in any face to face encounters with people. For example, in networking lunches, business meetings, interviews or casual introductions people give you. Anywhere you are mentioned or shown in print, or any offline publications you’ve done will also help build your brand.

Tips for Building the Professional Brand You Want

Here are a few tips that will help you build and maintain the type of professional image and brand that you want potential employers to see:

• Plug your name into the major search engines and see what results come up. You’ll need to make an effort to move good stuff up the rankings and the not-so-good down the list where people are less likely to find them. You can do this by adding more content to the sites you want to appear. If possible, you can even delete some things, though it might take time to disappear.

• Keep your personal life private. Check the privacy filters on anything you wouldn’t want a prospective employer to see. Wherever possible, keep personal information offline, unless it is relevant or helps build the image you want.

• Practice your elevator speech. Think about what your main skills and knowledge are and how you add value for an employer. Put that into a short 1 minute blurb and practice saying it out loud. You often only get a minute to make an impression when networking, so you need to spark an interest as fast as possible without giving a sales pitch.

• Use the same professional photo. Wherever you need to upload or supply a photo of yourself, try to make it the same one. If necessary, get a professional one taken. Whatever you do, take down that photo on your Facebook profile of you and the gang partying on the beach.

• Be active on social media, or stay away. Social media and blogs are all about the interaction and social element. If you’re not going to be active on these sites, don’t be there at all and don’t have a profile there. While it’s important to show up online, it’s better to not be there than to seem apathetic by posting once or twice and then disappearing for weeks at a time.

• Educate yourself consistently. Stay up to date on what is going on in your industry and the world in general. Read the top blogs and publications in your industry, watch the news, read the latest hot business book, etc.

• Do your research. Whenever you are scheduled to have a networking meeting or interview, make sure you have done your research into the company in advance. Demonstrate your knowledge and interest.

The internet has made it easier than ever to establish your own professional brand. However, it is just as easy to project a bad image of yourself as a good one. Work on building a consistent professional brand that is visible to potential employers both online and offline. It can help you stand out from the crowd and land that ideal job much faster.

Filed Under: Coaching, Social Media //

The Top 7 Time Management Tactics of Successful Internet Marketers

Posted on January 13, 2015 // Leave a Comment

The really successful internet marketers seem to get so much done in a small amount of time. To some degree, that’s because they are doing the same thing over and over and they have it down to a science. However, they also follow some tried and true time management tactics to stay focused and make the most of every minute. Here are 7 top time management tips that will help you get more done every day, leading you to the success you deserve.

Tip 1. Schedule Your Work

Whether you are working on your business full time, part time, or sporadically, make sure you set aside specific time each day or week to focus on work. Put your personal life into a separate compartment that you can open at a different time in the day.

Tip 2. Chunk Everything

Break down your work into tasks and priorities for each day. You should identify 3 key things you want to accomplish that day, plus minor tasks that come second.

Tip 3. Time Yourself

It’s amazing how much faster you can work if you know you have a time limit. Allow yourself about 20 to 30 minutes to complete a specific task. Then use a timer to keep yourself honest. You’ll spend less time perfecting every little detail and more time just getting everything done. A kitchen timer works perfectly, or you can use a timer app or alarm on your smart phone or computer.

Tip 4. Go With Your Rhythms

Most people have a specific time of day when they are most productive and focused. Take advantage of your best time of day and schedule the work that requires your highest concentration for then.

Tip 5. Make a List

Creating a list of tasks is akin to developing an action plan. At the beginning of the week, preferably Sunday night, make a list of priority tasks that you need to complete by the end of the week. Put them in a logical order based on how big a difference they will make to the growth of your business. Also consider whether there are other people or tasks that depend on whether you get your part done.

Tip 6. Keep Your Momentum

Some people find it most effective to set aside specific types of tasks for different days of the week to take advantage of the momentum they gain focusing on one item. For example, do your keyword research on Mondays, email list building on Tuesdays, product development on Wednesdays, etc.

Tip 7. Put on Blinders

Block out everything except the task you need to get done. Shut down or close any other windows or applications except the one you’re working on. The elimination of distractions alone will help you get more done in a short space of time.

While not every one of these tactics will work for everyone, they are the top proven ones used by successful marketers. You’ll hear them being recommended over and over again. That’s because they work.

Filed Under: Online Business Management, Online Marketing Management, Social Media //

Key Tips For Getting Lots of Article Click Thrus

Posted on January 8, 2015 // Leave a Comment

It’s a no-brainer that in order to get people to your site, they need to click on your link at the bottom of your article first. But before that, they need to read your article. So let’s back up here and look at the 3 most important things your article needs to have in order to get lots of click thrus.

A great headline
An interesting opening paragraph
A compelling call to action

To put it another way, you want a great headline that will interest a person enough to want to read your article. Then you need a good first paragraph that entices the reader to really read the article. Lastly, you need to flow into a compelling bio call to action that makes the reader want to click your link.

A great headline
Certainly you should include your keywords in the title to help search engine traffic find your article, but your headline, or your title, should be more than that. The title’s other important job is to get people interested in reading the article.

Think about making the title eye-catching, humorous, emotionally appealing, curiosity-arousing, attention-getting, a bit outrageous, and certainly NOT boring. And use trigger words in your headline: how to, question, tips, numbers, story, the benefit, secret, the truth, the cure for, or mistakes.

An interesting opening paragraph
You’ve only got a couple of sentences, at most, to really get the reader’s attention before he’s lost interest and has moved on. So when writing the article you’ll probably want to spend most of your time on this.

If you want good examples of opening paragraphs, just read the newspaper. You’ll notice each newspaper story uses a technique to entice the reader. They might make an outrageous claim, stir up some controversy, hit our hot buttons, use a scare tactic, predict the future, or use some similar technique that draws us in. That’s what you want to do with your article.

A compelling call to action
When you write your bio, you should always include a call to action. Don’t just give them details about you and include your website. Ask them to come to your site by offering something they value for free. What do they value? What would motivate them to click thru to your site? Perhaps you can give information away for free that other marketers are selling. Make it clear, easy, and irresistible.

Take a look at other successful article marketers’ bios to get some examples of what works. If you visit EzineArticles, check out some of the articles that interest you and examine which bios make you want to click thru.

Last but not least, test your bio. Sometimes you need more creative wording, or sometimes a better offer, but you won’t know until you test.

The more articles you write with purpose, the better you’ll get at it. Concentrating on these three areas – the title, opening paragraph and bio – whenever you write an article should help your article click thru rates increase.

Filed Under: Online Marketing Management, Writing //

Tips On Using Facebook For Marketing

Posted on January 6, 2015 // Leave a Comment

Facebook’s popularity with Internet users has run into the millions since its acceptance of anyone with a valid email address in 2006. Most members play games, update their profiles and upload photos or videos for their friends to view. While planting crops on Farmville, drinking virtual coffee in the cafe or beating off snakes in FrontierVille is addicting, Facebook can also be a powerful marketing tool for Internet marketers.

Marketers, including those using the Internet to market their products, know that in order to attract potential customers, they need to announce the benefits of their products to a large audience and give their readers a reason to visit their site. Simply put, No Visitors = No Sales.

Facebook members make connections with each other, called Friends, and you are only allowed to contact or message those friends. Member profiles are only available to other Facebook members, which creates a loose pool to specifically market to. Some of Facebook’s most popular applications, those you probably use every day are specifically for Internet marketers.

In fact, marketers who know how to market on Facebook start that huge marketing process with their Profile, adding games, puzzles or videos that are interesting to other users. Facebook’s underlying purpose is to make the site a fun place to be. An RSS feature allows users to syndicate their blogs, increasing their exposure dramatically.

Users can use Facebook to promote products from Clickbank and Amazon as an affiliate, whether they have their own website or not.

Here are some tips to get you started and to keep you out of trouble with this very powerful social networking site.

Each user has a profile page and part of that page is used for The Wall; effectively a place to post messages for each user to see. If your “friends” have access to your full profile, friend marketers can post messages on your Wall. Perhaps a more effective application might be posting attachments to your Wall promoting products.

Use The Marketplace. Free classified ads are allowed in a few categories. Marketers are jumping all over this free application in the four allowable categories, For Sale, Housing, Jobs and Other. Any Facebook user can take advantage of this treasure trove of opportunities.

Application developers have found a home with Facebook and are happy to design applications that rapidly become standard Facebook apps, taking advantage of the Web 2.0 graphic and audio options available to users.

One feature that’s used by those who scan posts instead of reading them is the Status feature. This feature is a quick update on what you are doing and, used carefully, can be a powerful marketing tool. For instance, using Facebook’s format, “John Thomas just finished his new software.” A convenient link to that sales page for that software would get a lot of traffic just from curious members.

A Facebook Event is used for keeping friends aware of upcoming events. Here is where a marketer can advertise seminars, podcasts and ecourses, to name a few. Facebook’s rules about announcing an event should be carefully read in order to avoid being branded a spammer.

Videos are everywhere and have rapidly become the most popular method to use to market many Internet products. Videos can be added to Facebook with a Facebook Mobile application, which has a webcam feature. The videos cannot be shared outside of Facebook, but with the huge membership ranging in the 60 to 70 million users and growing daily, that shouldn’t be too much of a setback to a smart marketer.

Facebook is the perfect versatile application for creative marketers to increase their traffic and, therefore, their customer base. Simple processes can be powerful marketing tools and Facebook is no exception.

Filed Under: Online Marketing Management, Social Media //

Driving Traffic To Your Site With YouTube

Posted on December 30, 2014 // Leave a Comment

YouTube has had a dramatic effect on the Internet marketing landscape, making huge changes in how marketers promote their products and services. For years, Internet marketing was confined to text-based websites with a photo or graphic and beautiful headers.

The new software that makes creating videos easy has generated millions of video sales pages and other graphic presentations that can go viral quickly. It seems like the browsing public, regardless of their choice of subjects cannot get enough of videos.

Successful marketers always know they have to stay current with the latest and greatest marketing processes if they want to continue to attract buyers. The hottest marketing tool right now is YouTube.

To take advantage of marketing with YouTube, you first need to register for a YouTube account. If your video grabs attention and is well-done, it has a chance of going viral, which means that it will move around the Internet as people upload it and send it to their lists or it gets mentioned in forums, membership sites, newsletters and blogs.

When posting your videos on YouTube, do not upload long videos. Three to four minutes is a good length for marketing videos. Your intention is to create enough curiosity to make your viewers click on your site link at the bottom of your video. Traffic generated from your link can mean steady income for you.

Keywords are still valuable and should be included in your video title. Do not forget the basic marketing practice of using your keywords in your first paragraph and intermittently in the rest of your presentation. What you want to do is make your videos interesting enough to have others send an email or the link to their friends and subscribers, which makes your video a viral marketing tool. The more people who click the link to your video, the better your ranking, the more Google will love you, and the more chance you have to make sales.

What should you do videos about? Remember you’re a marketer – the only difference is the delivery media, in this case, YouTube videos. Instructional videos, PowerPoint presentations, your personal story about finding the solution to a problem, or your sales copy for your product are good examples.

Check out your YouTube competitors to not only see what they are doing, but to find possible opportunities to add your video as a response to what they are posting. People will find your video and follow your links if they are interested in what you are saying or offering. Targeted traffic is pure gold.

YouTube has a couple of interesting and useful tools for you to use. One is the “Statistics and Data” section, which lists the numbers of visitors sent by other websites. You are free to copy the tags popular sites use to keep their videos and websites popular. Use them in your videos to improve your listings.

Keep in mind these facts about YouTube’s popularity and don’t dismiss the site’s power as a marketing tool without giving it a try yourself. YouTube has monthly visitors that number way over several million each month. Almost 100,000 new videos are uploaded each day and your possible customers generate hundreds of million clicks on a daily basis. Those numbers alone should get you to start your video marketing immediately.

Filed Under: Online Marketing Management //

How to Decide What to Outsource First When Money is Tight

Picking a Great Niche For Site Flipping

Are These Kinds Of Proof On Your Sales Page?

What Color Is Your Hat – Black, Blue, Gray Or White?

Why a Business Coach/Mentor is Important

Key Tips For Getting Lots of Article Click Thrus

Driving Traffic To Your Site With YouTube

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