In this issue:

1) Tip of the Week

2) FEATURE ARTICLE: Multiplying With Networking by Dr. Donald E. Wetmore

3) CLASSIFIEDS

4) FREE Resources

5) POWERQUOTE

6) MARKETING MINUTE: How To Convert Hits Into Sales by Kevin Sinclair

If you'd like to read previously ran tips and features, go to http://netcheckspayroll.com/newsletter.html

"Tip of the Week"

Today's marketing writer gives us several pointers for closing sales including posting testimonials. Here's another look at how vital testimonials are to creating credibility and trust on the internet:

Testimonials and Bonuses: The Greatest One-Two Punch To Extraordinary Affiliate Sales! Nathan Lynch © 1999

Question: which factor would most sway you to purchase a product or service on the net? Lower price or a fantastic testimonial.

A heart-felt honest testimonial is hands down the best way to get a prospect to buy.

The importance of seeing one another's testimonial is one of The biggest reasons people purchase on-line and off. Combine this with your own unique selling proposition and see your affiliate sales explode right before your eyes!

People love to see someone having success with a product or service. Just look at Brad Ricdale or any other informational guru. Most of the half hour long commercials are made up of testimonials.

Why is this even more powerful on the Net?

Well, the 'Net' is impersonal and sometimes intimidating. Lets just take for example someone coming from a search engine. He or she are looking for some product or service that you have. This is probably the first time they have seen your or heard anything about you or your affiliate they are less inclined to buy.

Even the seasoned internet surfer, or in this case, an internet marketer will hesitate to buy if there has not been enough information provided or if they do not feel comfortable with you or your affiliate. Put your prospect at ease and your selling will be more effective.

Hint: A testimonial from a fellow webmaster or a personal endorsement in an ezine will pay incredible dividends. This is the missing ingredient when selling products or services on the Net. Create trust on the net and thrive not just survive.

Now lets combine this incredible testimonial with your own USP (Unique Selling Point) or, as I call it your "Unique Selling Position". Once you offer your unique selling position to the prospect you have put your product or service in "A Unique Position to Sell!". Make sure that it is totally different from what anybody is offering and if the prospect perceives it as ultra-useful you've got a winner on your hands. Combine some software, e-book or information that the prospect may feel adds value to your product or service. Voila! Guaranteed Sale!

Why?

Because know one else does this. People just think that if they get a lot of traffic to their site and put up an affiliate's banner that the orders will just come flooding in. Wrong! Give more than anyone else and watch your sales shoot through the roof!

Now Take Action! Good Luck and see You at the Top!

"The Most Powerful Click I Have Ever Made On The Net!" http://www.selllikecrazy.bizland.com/testimonial.html

Just a sidenote regarding building trust and establishing credibility on the net, there is an organization called the Better Internet Bureau who will inspect your site and certify that you meet the "trustworthiness" criteria necessary to wear the BIB emblem. This certification will go a long way in easing the minds of your prospects as to your ability to protect them. http://www.better-internet-bureau.org/welcome/bib87int/index.html

Multiplying With Networking

by: Dr. Donald E. Wetmore

In over twenty years as a Public Speaker, time and time again, I realize that better than half of the average person's personal productivity and success in life is through the good cooperation of other people. I do not mean to suggest that if one does not have the good cooperation of other people that he or she cannot be productive and successful, but rather, that one cannot be "AS" productive and successful.

And the sad thing about those who do not enjoy the good cooperation of other people is that they will never know what they did not receive. They will never know the business connections that they did not get, the social invitations they could have had, or the helpful advice they might have been presented with to make their lives easier.

Networking is as old as time. It is the idea that we need not do everything ourselves and re-invent the wheel over and again. We can all mutually benefit from the experiences and knowledge of others. It is not a new practice to any of us. We network all the time. The question is, "how far do you want to go with it?" Time management and personal productivity are significantly enhanced when we use the concept seriously and methodically practice the concept.

With six billion people now on the planet it is said that all of us are related within no more than six levels, the "Six Degrees of Separation". To get to the answers, the help, and the information you need to make your life better is never far away.

My own success in the Professional Speaking Business has come to me largely through networking and the good cooperation of other people, although, like the cobbler's son who had no shoes, I sometimes fail to follow my own advice. When I started my business twenty years ago I thought I was a marketing genius. After all, I had an MBA with a concentration in marketing. I then proceeded to do every bone-headed thing imaginable, wasting precious resources of time and money until I began to practice what I preached and reached out to others who were already successful in my field.

And I got the help that I needed because the number one topic of conversation that most people enjoy is themselves. And when people talk about themselves, they like to talk about their successes, don't they?

I learned how to market and promote my business and how to manage it effectively as well. Through the generous help of others, I stopped spinning my wheels learning the errors that others had already learned. I now spend a good amount of my time helping new speakers to succeed sharing the information that I have received, adding in my own successes.

And that is the essence of networking because networking is not a selfish technique, just drawing from the well. It is consistently helping to fill the well. Not only taking but giving back. The more help you offer others, the more you get in return.

I have prepared a companion article entitled, "Neat Networking" that contains five specific steps to help you to network more effectively and increase your personal productivity. To get your free copy email your request for "neat" to: ctsem@msn.com

Would you like to receive free Timely Time Management Tips on a regular basis to increase your personal productivity and get more out of every day? Sign up now for our free "TIME MANAGEMENT DISCUSSION LIST". Just go to: http://www.topica.com/lists/timemanagement and select "subscribe" . We welcome you aboard!

Dr. Donald E. Wetmore-Professional Speaker Productivity Institute Time Management Seminars 60 Huntington St., P.O. Box 2126 Shelton, CT 06484 (800) 969-3773 (203) 929-9902 Fax: (203) 929-8151 Email: ctsem@msn.com http://www.balancetime.com Professional Member-National Speakers Association

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"The finest gift you can give anyone is encouragement. Yet, almost no one gets the encouragement they need to grow to their full potential. If everyone received the encouragement they need to grow, the genius in most everyone would blossom and the world would produce abundance beyond our wildest dreams."

- Sidney Madwed, American Poet and Philosopher

Questions to Ponder

How much encouragement do I give to others each day?

Who do I know who most needs encouragement?

Copyright the Discian Group from the Powerquotes ezine. See http://discian.com/powerquote.htm for more information.

How To Convert Hits Into Sales By Kevin Sinclair, CPA.

One of the common questions asked by web site owners is: "I'm getting plenty of hits but no sales - what is going on?" This article will give you some tips on how to address this issue.

1. Your Product

The first area to review is the product or service that you are offering. Does a market exist for it? To answer this question you need to find out whether similar products are being sold on the Internet successfully. If not, you may need to rethink your Internet strategy. If others are selling a similar product successfully, then this would tend to confirm that there is a market for your product.

Next, look at the strategy and pricing being adopted by your competitors. How do you compare? Why should your visitors buy from you rather than one of your competitors? Answering these questions will provide you with valuable information you can use to improve your situation and generate more sales.

Also, take a critical look at your product quality. Does it live up to the claims you are making on your web pages? If not, improve your product so that it does or modify your web page to be more truthful about it.

2. Provide Solutions

Your visitors are looking for a solution to a problem. Do you know what problems your visitors are looking for solutions to? Does your web site show how your product will solve your visitor's problem? You will need to put yourself into your visitor's shoes to better understand what they are seeking so that you can provide the solution they need.

One way to better understand your visitors is to monitor where your visitors are coming from. If they are coming from the search engines, knowing what search terms they are using can provide some clues. You may find some surprises when you review this information about your site. The tool I use to capture this information is WebPosition Gold. More information can be found at the URL: http://www.webposition.com/

Once you understand the problem your visitors want solved, revise your web pages to show that your product will provide the solution they need.

3. Site Design

Your site needs to look like it is a commercial web site rather than an amateur home page. The design needs to be consistent from page to page and it needs to be easy to navigate. Contact details including physical address, phone numbers and email address need to be shown.

Graphics need to be minimized to ensure that your page downloads quickly. Also, ensure that your web host provides a fast connection to the Internet. Most people will not wait for a page that takes a long time to download. They will just move on to your competitor.

Make it easy to order. I recall seeing statistics recently that suggested that a large number of people abandon a web site in the middle of the order process. A common reason for this is that the order process is too time consuming and complicated. Make yours simple and quick and you will lose fewer sales.

Ensure that your web page has a strong headline that grabs your visitors and makes them want to read more. Your headline should in effect say "You have this problem, here is the solution". Your web site should then demonstrate that you understand the problem and that you can in fact provide the solution.

4. Testimonials and Guarantees

Testimonials and guarantees can have a huge impact on your level of sales. On the web, a key priority is to build credibility. The common methods used are having a privacy statement, publishing a newsletter, publishing testimonials from satisfied customers and providing a strong guarantee.

Take every opportunity to gather comments from your customers about how your product has helped them. Get their permission to publish these comments as testimonials. If need be, provide them with a gift for giving you their permission to publish their comments. A way of getting comments is a customer feedback survey. This can be used for the purpose of gaining testimonials as well as seeking ways to improve your product or develop additional products your customers may need.

A strong guarantee will provide your visitor with greater confidence to purchase your product. Try to make your guarantee simple and without too many conditions. Always honour your guarantee without question or delay.

5. Conclusion

Getting plenty of hits to your web site is a very positive situation to be in. By implementing some of the hints provided in this article, you can convert these visitors into being your customers.

Article by Kevin Sinclair, CPA, of Be Successful! Business & Personal Success Resources (http://www.ksinclair.com/). He is the author of 2 free ebooks: "Success Secrets" & "How To Choose A Home Based Business". Kevin is also the publisher of "Be Successful News" - a free ezine dedicated to your online business success - to subscribe, send a blank email to mailto:pbsr-subscribe@listbot.com

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