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Five Ways You
Can Turn Your Visitors Into Buyers
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IN THIS ISSUE
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1. Tips To Make Your Site Profitable!
2. Quick News Bytes
3. Biz-Tool Essentials
4. Feature Article: Design Your Resume For the Web
5. Feedback Forum
6. Guest Column: Get Marketing Ideas Anytime
7. How to Be Featured as our Guest Columnist
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Hello All!
My what a hectic time of year! The Holidays always seem to
take me by surprise... the food, the errands, the school
activities, and oh yes, the in-laws. Gotta love 'em. Right?
Ahh, but it really is a great time of year to get
in touch with what's real!
I have been quite busy with the Home Biz Tools
website. Adding new resources for all you home workers and
soon-to-be home workers. I'm especially excited about our
upcoming Home Biz Board. I invite everyone to drop by and
hear what the work-at-home community is talking about. Get
involved in the discussion, ask some questions, or just
hang out for a while!
In this issue I'd like to address
two topics that are areas of frequent questions. The first
topic deals with making your website more profitable,
and the second topic will help you in submitting your
electronic resume for posting on the Web. Read, enjoy,
and use them to profit!
Thanks for your support and it's great to have you along!
Brett
brett@homebiztools.com
http://www.homebiztools.com
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SPOTLIGHT
Tips To Make Your Site Profitable!
Five ways you can turn your visitors into buyers!
by Brett Krkosska
I do a lot of surfing. I don't do a lot of bookmarking.
For a site to earn a position on my favorites list,
it has to meet a few of my "must have" requirements.
Hey, I'm not that tough. Really. I'm just looking for
some basic stuff in a website that compels me to stick
around.
If I'm compelled to bookmark a site, chances are good
it's a place where I'm comfortable spending money. Think
about your own spending habits on the Internet. What it is
about a site that makes you feel comfortable with your buying
decision?
It's really nothing more than knowing you're doing
business with a professional.
The following 5 tips are a sampling of the powerful
strategies employed by professional sites to bring in
repeat visitors and higher revenues. Read them over
and see for yourself how they can help your site.
1) Display a Privacy Statement
What will you do with the information your visitors
share with you? Security is headline news nowadays, and for
the serious buyer a full disclosure of your practices can
mean the difference between a sale or no sale.
I put together my privacy statement in less than 30
minutes using the TRUSTe wizard at:
http://www.etrust.com
2) Use the Power of FREE!
I see way too many sites that are nothing more than a
sales pitch. My favorite sites keep me coming back with
valuable, FREE information or services I can USE. Sure
they want to sell something, but by sharing their
expertise and assistance without asking for anything in
return, they've turned me into a repeat visitor. Will
I be more likely to make a purchase through repeated
visits. You bet!
I have many free offerings at my website. My free
download page is consistently one of the top five most
visited pages. I also offer my time for free. By sharing my
experience with visitors one-on-one, I have the
opportunity to earn a visitors confidence, and build a
long-term relationship!
FreeClutter.com is a great example of the pulling power
of FREE. Their newsletter currently has 108,000 subscribers!
http://www.freeclutter.com
3) Are You Running a Yard Sale or an Online Business?
Take a long hard look at the appearance of your site.
Is it organized and professional or does it feel like
you're walking through your neighbor's yard sale? Ask a
few people (not your family or friends) to give their
honest and unforgiving opinion about your site. Shy away
from being defensive towards their remarks. Seriously
evaluate their advice for changes you can implement.
You might want to try this tactic... give away
something free or enter visitors in a drawing in exchange
for filling out a short form rating your site!
4) Start Your Own Opt-In Email List
If you're not asking your visitors to leave their
address, you're missing out on the best leads you'll ever
get. Give visitors a reason to subscribe to your
newsletter, "Coupon Alert", or "Hot Tip of the Week."
Convince them to subscribe with hard-hitting copy that
makes them feel as if they HAVE to subscribe. Let them
know you are THE source for this information.
With regular mailings, your list subscribers become a
great source of repeat visits. Be sure to give subscribers
your best specials and newest deals, and they'll never
have a reason to be disappointed! For a really great
guide and template to help you start your own opt-in list:
http://www.mbn-businesscomplex.net/NewbieGuide.html
5) Promote Your Site Like Crazy!
The Internet is a huge place with a capital H. Use
multiple advertising tools to let people know how much they
need you! Trade links with other sites, advertise in ezines,
submit your article to ezines, get listed with the
major search engines and directories, send out a press
release,and the list goes on!
For more on promoting your site, try this FREE download
from the Make Your Site Sell e-book:
http://www.homebiztools.com/myssdownload.htm
So what do you think? Is your site lacking any of these
items. Just pick one for now, and work through the list.
No doubt you'll be pleased with what they can do for the
profitability of your home business!
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QUICK NEWS BYTES
Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago president Michael
Moskow again urged the U.S. public not to overreact to
fears of year-end computer problems by withdrawing large
sums of cash from bank accounts. To see the whole story:
http://news.cnet.com/news/0-1009-202-1485053.html
Samsung unveils what it calls the world's first mobile
phone with a built in television. For the whole story go to:
http://news.cnet.com/news/0-1006-202-1485039.html
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BIZ-TOOL ESSENTIALS
What the heck are they talking about? ISP, PERL, TCP/IP,
CGI, LAN. Try these glossaries to find out!
1. http://www.matisse.net/files/glossary.html
2. http://www.idea.org.uk/online_training/course/gloss.htm
**********
Got your "dot com" yet? Get your own domain name
and park it for FREE!
http://www.homebiztools.com/hosting.htm
**********
If you're DEAD SERIOUS about making money online...
http://www.homebiztools.com/sell.htm
**********
EARN 50% Commissions Selling the Hottest Product
on the Internet!!
That’s right!! Information is King and you can Earn from
the Best. Internet Marketing Expert Rick Beneteau shares
with you the ONLY Method he used to build his business,
his reputation and how to get millions of impressions per
month. LEARN with his Powerful New eBook, The Ezine
Marketing Machine, and EARN whopping 50%
Commissions!! Become Rick’s Partner.
Click here to LEARN & EARN:
http://www.homebiztools.com/ezine.htm
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FEATURE ARTICLE
Design Your Resume For The Web
by Brett Krkosska
The rules have changed for the document that
sells YOU on the Internet!
The standard resume style that worked so well in the paper
and pen world just isn't good enough for today's web-based
job market. Employers seeking applicants are relying more
on computers to sort, categorize, and narrow their search.
In order to capitalize on these changes, rework your old
resume to reflect the expectations of this technology.
First, let's consider just how an employer will find you
among the field of qualified applicants.
USE KEYWORDS TO GET NOTICED
If an employer is searching a database, they'll most
likely use keywords to narrow down the field. Keywords are
primarily nouns, not verbs. Computers that scan resumes
into a database use these keywords for sorting and
categorizing.
For instance, let's say that one of your accomplishments
is "implemented inventory tracking and improved loss
control procedures." By thinking in terms of keywords,
nouns and noun phrases can extend your resume's life in a
database and bring more hits from a search. Examples of
keywords might be Inventory Management, Systems Analyst,
or Total Quality Management.
DESIGNING YOUR RESUME
Your electronic resume should have the following
characteristics:
1. Use standard fonts such as Helvetica, Times, or
Courier. Keep font size between 10 to 14 point (avoid 10
point times). Keep 1/4" between lines and do not condense
letter spacing.
2. Do not use underlines, italics, colors, or other text
enhancing styles (exception is bolding/capitalization as
noted in #3).
3. Bold or capitalize section headings.
3. Use a single column format. Do not use borders, lines,
indents, or centering.
4. Place your name at the top of the page on its own line.
5. Place your address below your name in standard 3 line
format. List phone numbers individually on their own lines.
6. Save and Submit your online resume using ASCII text.
*******************************
Here is a sample outline of an electronic resume:
NAME
Address Line 1
Address Line 2
Address Line 3
Phone #
Fax #
OBJECTIVE:
Text here.
EMPLOYMENT HISTORY:
Most recent employment here.
Next line here.
EDUCATION:
Text here.
SKILLS:
Keywords here.
*******************************
MAKE YOUR RESUME STAND OUT!
During my days as a hiring and firing guy, there was
nothing I hated more than wading through a resume
searching for the person's familiarity with specific
programs or applications.
If I couldn't get through to the meat of the resume in under
10 seconds, my eyes would glaze over and my tacky
finger would uncontrollably reach for the next resume. Make
it easy for an employer to see that you've got experience
with Excel, LAN, C++, or whatever your skills may be.
An innovative way to do this is by placing your keywords in
a SKILLS or AREAS OF EXPERTISE section closer to the
top of the page. Who says your resume has follow the same
cloned format everyone else uses?
Why not? It's a new era!
For more resources to help you build and submit your resume visit:
http://www.homebiztools.com/homejobs.htm
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FEEDBACK FORUM
If you have comments that you'd like to share with
our readers, send them to:
mailto:feedback@homebiztools.com
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GUEST COLUMN
How To Get Great Marketing Ideas Anytime
by Kevin Nunley
Mark Twain used to call it "getting stuck." You need a
fresh, effective marketing idea to give your product,
service, or organization a boost. But your mind keeps
falling back on old ideas. You're tired of them. You want a
marketing approach that is exciting and full of life.
I got some real insight into fresh marketing recently when
my wife gave birth to a baby boy. As I stood in the
delivery room, looking at my new son for the first time, I
did what most parents do. I looked for familiar features.
Yup. He had my wife's hands. My forehead (poor child!).
Some features seemed to be a blending of things I'd seen in
other family members. Other features seemed entirely new.
Nature is no dummy. We can learn a lot by looking at the
way nature does things. We can jump ahead by bringing those
lessons to business.
I once worked with a promising young media executive (now
the president of a network) who advised me to become rich
and famous by borrowing other people's good ideas. There's
a lot of truth to the old adage that "there's nothing new
under the sun."
Many of the best ideas you will come across have been used
by other's in your business again and again. They wouldn't
keep using them if the marketing ideas didn't work.
Sometimes great good ideas become neglected. Are there old
marketing techniques from the 80's, 70s, or 1960s that
might work well today? How about great marketing ideas
widely used in another city that haven't been tried yet in
your town? Network, borrow, and steal those good ideas.
Remember, people can't copyright an idea, only the specific
words used to express it.
Experts on creativity advise us to mix ideas to come up
with something new. Think of two commonly done marketing
tactics. Can they be combined into something that is fresh,
but has the successful elements of the tried and true?
Self-publishing guru Dan Poynter says that most books only
contain 5% new material. The remaining 95% is lifted from
other books and articles. Taking the information and
writing it in your own way is called "research." The
publishing industry depends upon it.
Psychologists also remind us that most people don't like
things that are totally new. When prospects tell you they
want something new, they really may be telling you that
they want a product or service that is familiar, but
packaged with a fresh twist.
So keep these three methods of creativity in mind as you
plan your marketing campaigns in the weeks ahead.
1. Borrow great ideas from other people.
2. Look for ways to combine two or more good ideas into
something that appears fresh and new.
3. Look for good marketing ideas that are used in other
places. Bring them to your industry or city.
The key to coming up with great new marketing ideas is,
more often than not, based on looking for familiar friends
that can be used in a slightly innovative way. I look
forward to hearing from you about your fresh marketing
ideas.
-----------------------------
Kevin Nunley provides marketing advice and copy writing
for businesses and organizations. Read all his money-saving
marketing tips at http://DrNunley.com/. Reach him at
kevin@drnunley.com or (801)253-4536.
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Would you like to be a guest columnist?
We're always looking for great topics that will keep
our subscribers informed.
To have your article considered for publication in our
Guest Column, just send it to:
mailto:submitarticle@homebiztools.com
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That's all for this issue. Thanks again to everyone for
your support! Please drop me an e-mail anytime with
your questions, comments, scoldings, or just to say hi!
Brett Krkosska
Founder, Editor, Net-a-Holic,
mailto:brett@homebiztools.com
HomeBizTools: a division of B-K Publications
http://www.homebiztools.com
All the tools you need to work at home... in one place!
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