Wednesday, September 14, 2005

Increase Sales By Flying Under Your Prospects' "Radar Defenses"

(c) Jim Edwards - All Rights reserved
http://www.thenetreporter.com
=====================================

How do you persuade someone to do what you want them to do?

A whole world of marketing exists around us trying to do
that every minute of the day. Do you even notice it anymore
or, like your prospects, have you subconsciously set up a
system of "radar defenses" against the daily bombardment of
marketing messages?

Take a minute and count up the advertising methods which
fight for your attention (and money) every day. Just the
basic list includes:

· Yellow page ads

· Newspaper and magazine ads

· Postcards, catalogs, and direct mail circulars in your
"snail mail" box

· Radio pitches interrupting the flow of your favorite songs

· TV ads - about 20 minutes worth per hour now

· Hundreds of storefronts, "mega" malls, and strip malls

· Highway billboards by the thousands

· Circulars hung on your doorknob

· Illegal signs on stop signs and telephone poles

· Legitimate email messages

· Spam email or UCE (unsolicited commercial email)

Just these 11 sources can overwhelm your brain with
marketing messages. Like trapped rats, people develop
defenses against this never-ending onslaught. They throw up
a wall or a "radar defense" that goes into action the minute
they smell a "pitch" or a sales job. Don't blame them. We
all do it!

So how can you get around this psychological wall against
the constant sales and marketing messages? Well, the answer
does NOT lie in hitting people with more frequent and
obnoxious advertising or sly, sneaky tactics. You might get
them to trust you for a minute, but it will backfire in the
long run.

You must do two things instead:

1. First, you must establish credibility for yourself and
your business as an expert.

2. Second, you must reduce their fears about doing business
with you.

Doing these two things will get you past their defenses and
allow you the opportunity to persuade them to buy your
product.

So how do you accomplish these two "simple" things? What
will win someone's attention, raise your credibility, and
lower their fear factor all at the same time? The one-word
answer really applies to most everyone.

Trust!

If a seller can get behind your defenses with information
which makes you trust them, then that credibility will carry
over into a sale much of the time.

How can you get this credibility?

Well, take this next fact as online marketing "gospel," for
many people have proven its effectiveness.

Fact: Publishing and promoting with free articles gives you
one of the most powerful opportunities available to tip the
buyer's credibility scale in your favor.

How can we prove this works? Quite easily actually. Take a
break from reading this and go check out a newspaper or
magazine for a minute.

Which do you trust more, the ads or the articles? Most
people will choose the articles hands down. Why? Because
the articles don't try to "sell" you anything. Instead, they
hand out useful information for educational or other
practical purposes.

Most of us grew up in a culture which says we can believe
and "trust" what appears in the standard "news" or
"information" format. In other words, if it appears in
print, then we can believe and trust the author.

So go ahead! Use this lifetime of conditioning to your
advantage in selling your products and services!

Very few things will create an atmosphere of trust and
confidence in people as reading one of your articles on a
subject that greatly interests them. It shows you know your
business. It also demonstrates you will do more than just
try to sell them something.

Publishing articles literally lets you fly under their
advertising "radar defenses."

So remember these points when deciding whether or not to use
articles to promote your business:

1. Few things create as much trust and confidence in the
minds of potential customers as reading an article you wrote
on a subject which specifically and intensely interests
them.

2. Articles establish credibility quickly because, right or
wrong, we've all been trained to trust the "news."

3. An article, or series of articles, will differentiate you
from the competition, who bombard people with nothing but
sales messages.

4. Providing content-rich, non-sales-oriented articles will
also help build and solidify your relationship with existing
customers so they give you repeat business.

----

Jim Edwards is a syndicated newspaper columnist and the co-
author of an amazing new ebook, "Turn Words Into Traffic,"
that will teach you how to use free articles to quickly
drive thousands of targeted visitors to your website or
affiliate link!
Click Here ==> http://hop.clickbank.net/?siebooks/ezarticles

-=-=-==-=-=-=-==-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
Need MORE TRAFFIC to your website or affiliate links?
"Turn Words Into Traffic" reveals the secrets for using
FREE articles to drive Thousands of NEW visitors to your
website or affiliate links... without spending a dime on
advertising! Click Here> http://hop.clickbank.net/?siebooks/ezarticles

Free Marketing Encyclopedia, Resource Network

The Top Seven Mistakes eBook Authors Make

By Jim Edwards and David Garfinkel

© 2002 Jim Edwards and David Garfinkel

eBooks are the hottest thing going on the Web right now!

Authors with the entrepreneurial instinct are making
anywhere from a few hundred to tens of thousands of dollars
per month - that's right, per month - by selling ebooks
online.

Why are some authors doing so much better than others?
We've discovered seven key mistakes that most ebook authors
make (and in doing so, hold themselves back from major
success):

1. They don't write to a specific, target audience.

The biggest mistake most ebook authors make is they don't
clearly define, identify and visualize who they are selling
their ebook to. On the Web, to be successful, you must
write to a specific group of people who have specific
interests. Make sure that you know exactly who is going to
buy your ebook, and where you can find them online.

2. They don't automate as many of their business activities
as possible.

Selling ebooks, though it is highly profitable, is not a
business where you make hundreds of dollars per sale.

Automate everything you can - credit card processing, ebook
delivery, as much technical support as possible. If you
can't automate a function, delegate it to someone else.

3. They don't have a compelling title for their ebook.

Use words that convey the benefit of what's in the ebook, as
well as words your audience is familiar with.

A bad title for an ebook: "Online Marketing for Newbies." A
good title for the same ebook: "97 Ways to Promote Your
Website - No Experience Required."

4. They try to cover too much ground.

Many ebook authors convey a lot of information but don't
cover anything in-depth. As a result, they never fully
explain anything in enough detail to provide any useful
value to their readers. This is a very bad mistake to make,
especially when it comes to how-to ebooks, which happen to
be the best type to write.

5. They are not proactive in their marketing.

It would be nice if marketing for your ebook simply happened
on its own - but it doesn't. You have to do it yourself.
After you've promoted your ebook to the people on your own
mailing list (if you have one), then you have to contact
other Website owners and persuade them to be your
affiliates. You should do this continually.

6. They don't differentiate their ebook from its
competitors.

When you choose your topic, even if there are a hundred
other ebooks out there on same general subject, choose an
angle for yours that will make it easy for yours to be
distinguished from the others.

For example, right now job-hunting ebooks are very popular.
There are dozens that are big sellers. "Secrets of Breaking
Into Pharmaceutical Sales" has a very specific title that
sets it apart from the competition, and is aimed at a
clearly identified target audience. Incidentally, it's
selling very well itself.

7. They write ebooks that nobody will pay for.

Many ebook authors write about information that either
people can get for free, or that people are not actually
interested in enough to pay for the information.

Before you invest weeks or months into the writing of your
ebook, invest a little time investigating whether other
ebooks in the same subject area are selling on the Web.

So, there you have it - the seven big mistakes to avoid.
Remember, the opportunities are plentiful - and huge - right
now for anyone who wants to become a best-selling ebook
author. Simply use common sense, follow our advice, and let
your literary career flourish!


Jim Edwards and David Garfinkel are co-authors of "eBook
Secrets Exposed: How to Make Massive Amounts of Money in
Record Time With Your Own eBook (whether you wrote it or
not!)," the authoritative guide to publishing and marketing
ebooks on the Web.

Guerrilla Marketing author Jay Conrad Levinson says, "If
there ever was a 'must-read' for this century, it's this
book." For more information
Ebook Secrets


Free Marketing Encyclopedia, Resource Network