Ruck at Cashtactics.net has written a fantastic, free, downloadable eBook that describes his system for using Yahoo Answers to generate traffic and sales for his business. I've read it, and I think he covers some great points overall, and I also appreciate that he cautions about using the service for spam and just mindless blanketing of your advertising. I worry about people reading his advice and taking it to the extreme and doing just that, but I'm certain that Yahoo has - or will have - a system in place to deal with such as necessary. BTW, Cashtactics is an awesome blog that I highly recommend for internet marketing advice, he definitely knows of what he speaks!
A lot of people either aren't aware of Yahoo Answers, or maybe know of it but never spent any real time there. Let me tell you, it's very addictive and if you're not careful, you can get stuck there for hours. It's a different kind of social networking, less for the soul than for the brain. Basically, people ask questions, and people answer questions. In a nutshell. It's totally free with a Yahoo account, and the beauty in this for you, the broke entrepreneur, is that if you're smart (and I know you are!), you can easily become an authority on your industry (or any other topic you choose) and spread your knowledge throughout the Yahoo Answers community, while helping people with their concerns, and advertising your business, website or blog at the same time - totally free. It's a wonderful thing.
It's the perfect hangout for Resident Smartypants such as myself who sometimes have all of the answers - and yet other times I have nothing but questions! Ruck tells you how to take it a bit further by applying some little known SEO tricks to the process and turning it into a virtual marketing goldmine. Play it right though, and even a little bit of participation will reap big rewards.
Yahoo Answers might prove to be so habit-forming that you won't even notice that you're actually doing promotion because you're having so much fun. Download and read Cashtactics eBook, read the rules at Yahoo Answers, then jump in and make it work for you. Just remember to be helpful and focused at all times, don't spam or inject your link where its not wanted, and keep in mind that there is no need to dig for opportunities to promote, there are literally hundreds of thousands of questions waiting to be answered at all times, so you're certain to find one that requires your type of expertise!
Wednesday, September 19, 2007
Creating a (free) buzz with Yahoo Answers
Thursday, August 9, 2007
Thinking of how to get started?
Are you still tossing around ideas of what type of online business to start? 
Affiliate marketing is one of the best ways to get your feet wet with an internet business. It is very cost effective to begin and has great potential for earnings. These types of marketing programs are a great way to start off your business by earning some capital to begin your enterprise, and it is the cheapest, easiest way to start your online business. All you need to do is to pre sell your visitors and get them to click through to your sponsor's site, where their sales page completes the purchase and you collect commission. Once you have started to earn, you can develop your business knowing you have a consistent source of income.
Here are some steps to help you to begin:
Choosing an affiliate program: You will need to join a variety of affiliate programs to best judge which ones perform (payout) the best. You can join an affiliate network like Commission Junction or individual companies with whom you've done business online and appreciated their offerings. Visit their websites and look for links to their individual affiliate programs.
Decide which affiliate programs will have products and services that match your current market. This is very important because you don't want to offend your audience by displaying ads that are totally irrelevant or offensive to their needs. Choosing the proper market will result in sales for both your affiliate program and also your linking business because you build a community of trust between yourself and your clients
You will promote your affiliate products via a coded link. It is smart to keep this linking as seamless as possible so as not to lose your client or distract them from the focus of your sale. Too many clicks and popups will prove to be irritating, and your site visitor will be tempted to just close the window and go elsewhere.
There are several ways to market your sponsor's product or service - review them all and choose the best ones that provide a hassle free experience for your website visitors and potential clients:
- Direct marketing, including advertising on related websites and targeted publications and Pay-Per-Click campaigns like Google Adwords.
- Passive marketing such as search engine submission
- Social marketing sites like MySpace, YouTube, Forums and business networks etc. Advertising in forums is considered distasteful and could be construed as spam, so you should join the community, participate in the discussions and use your signature area to display your website address
- Newsletter marketing: Offering a free newsletter through your website allows you to build a client list and keep in touch with them on a regular basis. Be sure you have exciting and interesting content for your newsletter so that you're not perceived as spamming their mailbox with ad content only.
A great affiliate program that lets you start earning money almost immediately, is MoreNiche. It's a fantastic way to earn while you learn all about the affiliate business with their detailed guides on getting started and building your traffic. Most affiliates just give you some code and rely on you to build your own clientele, but you'll appreciate the support you get from MoreNiche.
broke entrepreneurs
