Affiliate Marketing

I had always thought that this little venture was more trouble than it was worth. I put up a few links on my website and thought no more about it. Last week, I got two checks in the mail. Not lotto sized checks by any means, but checks that I was not expecting, nonetheless. So today I decided to spend a little bit of time securing a few more links and updating some that I had already. It took about 30 minutes total, so no big deal. I even put a note in my Outlook Calendar to spend a few minutes every Monday morning updating these links.
My point is this: Why not start a small affiliate marketing program on your website/blog/email marketing? Here are a few steps to get you started:

1. Find a few sites that specialize in links. I'm using Linkshare and Amazon and have included their links on my blog and website (hint, hint...click now and begin shopping). These two are quite user friendly and they do send checks.
2. Do not believe the hype all over the web that you will get rich quick from starting an affiliate program. Remember, gentle reader, if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is...
3. Choose links from businesses that you have used in the past or that have upstanding reputations in their field. Don't send your valuable customers to a scam site or worse yet, give them a virus! This is another reason that I like Linkshare, all of their links come from legitimate businesses most of which I have heard of!
4. Set aside time each week to update and refresh your links and check your accounts. I am up nuts early in the morning so that I can spend time on this sort of thing before I start with client projects.
5. Don't have time for this type of project? That's OK....Your Virtual Assistant can likely handle that for you, quickly and efficiently. Don't have a VA? Why not? (Shameless Plug of the Day!)

Are You Collecting Emails?

Depending on what kind of business you own/operate, you probably keep records of your customers' mailing addresses and phone numbers. But are you collecting email addresses? Email Marketing is one of the cheapest and most effective ways to keep your business in your customer's mind. It can get them back in the store if you have a bricks and mortar. It can open dialogue and increase exposure. It can even earn more customers through viral marketing, which, for the most part, is free exposure. Today's world is full of technology just waiting for a savvy business owner to pounce on.
Spam regulations are becoming a lot more strict in recent years, so the key is to collect emails the legal way. Here are some easy tips for building a large opt-in list:
1. When collecting the snail mail and phone numbers for your customer, ask for their email as part of your documentation. Let them know that you do send out newsletters from time to time and ask if they would like to receive them. If they say no, make a note of it! Whatever you do, don't send them any marketing emails, just correspondence.
2. Make sure your website has an opt-in form for visitors to complete. Make sure every page of your site has a link to this page. "Contact Us" or "Sign Up for Monthly Newsletters" are usually a good way to go. Have that page open up in a separate window so that they can keep shopping after they have completed it.
3. For your current customers: You can use an Append Service to locate customers' email addresses using their phone number and/or address. A word of caution: This option is expensive and often unreliable. Depending on the number of customers in your database, it may be cheaper to call them and do a follow up, asking for an email at that time.
Build your email marketing into your business culture and it will become second nature for you to automatically ask for the address. The more often you communicate on a regular basis with your customers, the likelihood of them returning to your business increases. More on email marketing in weeks to follow.

Is the Phone Book a thing of the past?

So I had an interesting thought over the last month. Right before I ventured off on my own to start Desert DiVassistant, a very nice lady came by the house delivering the local phone books in a large shopping bag. I stopped her and told her that I don't need one as I use the online phone book. She told me she had to deliver them, so instead of having the three books take up valuable office space, I trucked them over to the annual phone book recycling dumpster at the local grocery store. Problem solved...
Then I got my city business license and my previously "do not call" phone number began ringing off the hook. Since I am in cyberspace, I answered pretty much all of the calls as they could be possible clients. One of them was from the Qwest Yellow Pages. I told the incredibly professional and kind sales person the above story and told her I wasn't interested as I have a limited space for clients. I mean, I'm only one gal and there are only so many hours in the week. I explained to her that I get all of my clients through referrals, either with networking groups or through friends, family and current clients. Besides, the listings could cost upwards of $700 per month! That's more than my mortgage (remember one gal, small house, simple needs)!
The next week, I signed a fantastic new client for just a few hours a month that wanted to do some email newsletters and update and edit her website. She also had Yellow Pages ads for a whopping $500 per month and admitted that most of her new clientele find her on the web as she has a beautifully optimized website.
So my question to you, gentle reader, is this: Are you spending $500+ per month on an ad in a book that some people will lug to the recycling center the day they get it? It is fine to spend $500 a month on marketing, but there has to be a return on investment. You should be making at least $2000 per month from that advertising expenditure. Besides, if you operate, for example, a dog grooming salon called "Zoe's", chances are, if people checked the yellow pages, they would never find you: you're a "Z"!
Helpful tip: Do you ask your customers how they heard about you? Try that for a month and keep a tally. Your customers will always tell you what you need to know about your business, don't be afraid to ask. They already like and trust you or they wouldn't be handing you their money, right?