Are You Using Video Marketing?

I'll bet you've watched a video or two on YouTube, whether it was for entertainment or information. Did you know that you can post videos there for free, and that yours could be among about one billion viewed there every day? Not bad potential for free, eh?

So - what do you need to consider to get onto that platform? As far as a monetary investment, a really capable little video camera can easily be had for $150-200. The current digital video recorders offer much greater transfer speeds than the old tape models, and can even provide high definition without getting too expensive. One accessory you'll really want is a tripod, and while a full height one can come in real handy, at least get a little desk top model to keep the camera steady and aligned.

Then, unless you want to get into sophisticated production, you probably already have free editing software on your PC (Moviemaker) or Mac (imovie) which will even allow you to add text to your video to display your name, title or business url. Once the movie's loaded into and completed in your computer, it's easy to upload to the web.

After you've gotten your gear together, you then get to work on the two big things you bring to the show - yourself and content. And when I say "yourself", I mean your real self, because we are talking about a social medium where you want people to perceive you as genuine, relatable and trustworthy. In short, unless you actually wear a suit when you're relaxed, you probably don't want to dress up & "play professional" to make a video presentation.

Also connected to presenting yourself, in addition to your clothing, is your setting. Sure, a comfortable place in your home or home office (as long as it doesn't look a mess) is a natural choice, but a place "in nature" can also help provide comfort to your viewer. I've seen and actually used the car as an everyday site for videos. Just be careful with your driving!

Then - present content on which you're knowledgeable which will be of interest and value to your audience. If you can make it entertaining, all the better - if your video is fun, it may get spread virally! Go for it - you can be in the movies.

JJ Fraser Attends and Applauds Wealth Masters International M2 Wealth Conference

JJ Fraser Attends and Applauds Wealth Masters International M2 Wealth Conference

J.J. Fraser Partners with Russell Brunson to Provide Internet Marketing Training - Free-Press-Release.com

J.J. Fraser Partners with Russell Brunson to Provide Internet Marketing Training - Free-Press-Release.com

Get and Use All the Right Tools

I'll never forget the time I was washing my car and my son, then about age 3, decided that he wanted to help and do what Daddy was doing. The problem was, I was using a big, round sponge, and there wasn't another one laying around for him to pick up. There were, however, a number of similar-looking rocks in the landscaping along the driveway . . .

I've skipped here a repeat of the blood-curdling scream I let out when I realized the results my "helper" was getting. Suffice it to say he would've been more on track if I had been sanding.

To get back to marketing tools, I remember when I used to write individual emails to leads and business prospects - how inefficient! If you're gathering names, and have a few people to communicate with you must get an autoresponder!

Probably the best-known (and for good reason) autoresponder service around is Aweber. It's the one used by my primary online business and it offers you the abiity to not only have all your respondents/leads automatically get added to an email list, but it lets you automatically send them an immediate reply, send them scheduled follow up messages, broadcast to a whole list or even send a "newsletter". Leveraging your time is so important to doing volume marketing communications effectively - be sure you use this tool.

Then - regarding your marketing communications, as I've mentioned before - it's not just about the features you offer, but the emotions you need to stir in your readers. Despite my avocation as a songwriter, I've spent so many years as a lawyer writing factual, logical stuff for judges that I have to really concentrate to write good emotional copy. (a topic in itself!)

But - there is a wonderful free tool on the web that rates headlines for you, and considering that your headlines are the most important part of your messages, you owe it to yourself to test them before you publish them. The Advanced Marketing Institute provides a free analyzer of the intellectual and emotional weight of your words, and it is really an amazing jewel of a tool. Make your efforts as effective as possible!

What it Takes to be a Successful Entrepreneur

1. Ask yourself – which is more important to you – security or independence? Assuming that you have a job to begin with, but maybe you’re not completely happy with it – you need to consider whether you just want to change jobs and keep the “security” (as if there was much of that any more) of a steady paycheck, or if you really want to chart your own course and be your own boss. Are you just looking for a raise or a better paying job, or do you really want to run your own show?

2. Consider your “why”. So, you’d rather be your own boss than an employee. But, is that just so you can be lazy, and not punch a clock for someone else? If you expect your business to really go, there must be a reason that’s big enough to still get you up and into your own office or shop. Do you have a passion for some subject or cause or craft that will drive you to do whatever it takes? It may be your family, a lifestyle goal or it may be a charity, but if you don’t have a real “why”, the work probably won’t get done. Remember – your business rests on you.

3. Consider the investment and risk. The size and strength of your “why” will influence this decision, but understand – you will have to spend money to make money. The thing about being an entrepreneur – in business for yourself – is that you must accept that, along with the potential for making more profit than you could ever expect in a wage or salary, there also comes the risk of having less income, at least for a while. So – do you have some cash or credit that you’re willing to invest in your own venture?

4. Do you have self-discipline? Remember that you won’t have a boss breathing down your neck – you’re going to have to make yourself get up, get to it, and get things done.

5. Can you think long term? If you’re looking into going into business, that’s way different from a lotto ticket or get rich quick scheme. Don’t expect “overnight success” – that’s a pipe dream. Are you prepared and determined to stick with it for the long haul, if necessary?

6. Do you take responsibility for the results? When you run your own business, you are where the buck stops. If you tend to want to blame someone else for the way things are, that will no longer work.

7. Can you delegate what can be offloaded? If you run a traditional business with employees you’ll probably need to have a manager to allow you to keep from living in the shop. If you grow a big internet business, you’ll eventually need to outsource some communications, at least. Can you let go a little?

8. Finally – do you care about serving people? Sure, you ultimately want your business to pay you, but that will only happen if you give others something of value. If you believe and practice the old adage that “you will get what you want if you help enough other people get what they want”, you can make it as an entrepreneur!

Two Key Elements to Your Success

OK - there are many elements required for any business to be successful - like good products and service and marketing, etc. But how about what you have to provide personally to assure that the business "goes"? First - belief. You must honestly believe in what you are offering and doing. Then, this will support the second element - work.
Have you ever encountered a sales person who let you know (intuitively, if not expressly) that they were just trying to move some product because it was their job? They could tell you about price and some features, but you never got the sense that they had personal experience with the offer or otherwise knew enough about it to have faith in it, to believe that it was great and that it came with their personal recommendation? They didn't inspire you to buy, did they?
And how about the person who complains that they're not having much or any success with their marketing or team building efforts, but just reports that their product or service is "pretty good, I guess"? Have you noticed a correlation between the attitude and the results? Belief is vital to both your inspiration to perform and your ability to inspire others to act. If you don't feel it, you can't show it, and others will sense all that and - they won't follow your lead. In the age of internet marketing by personal branding, attraction marketing and social media, you'd better be genuine!
Of course, if you don't believe that you've got something great to share or that you're working for a good cause, it'll be hard to give the effort necessary to get your message out there, to get things done. Belief is necessary to support work effort at 100%, but even a fireball of belief won't get you results without the work.
This is where you must perform a transfer of energy - from your head/heart to your hands/mouth. Most of the great internet marketers I know don't put together web pages and sales letters and adword campaigns and videos just because they love typing or research and analytics. (OK some love talking.) But - they understand the law of cause and effect - output effects like good production require the input of work by writing, talking and posting.
So - have you got something you can believe in - your system, your product, your mentor, your team? I hope it merits your putting in effort to do something with it - to promote it, nurture it, grow it. Because then, there's the happy completion of the circle - your work will produce positive results, and what? More belief . . . and . . .

Your Primary Business or Affiliate to Someone Else?

If you're at all like me, when you turned to the internet for a business opportunity you were probably looking for a (as in one) good way to make money other than going to a job and selling your time to someone else. Then, as you started to investigate, and maybe sign in to get more information about an opportunity or two, you began getting emails and seeing ads about other opportunities. Eventually, it becomes evident - there are thousands of business "opportunities" on the web!

But - as your wife, friends or even self are wont to ask - isn't it just a scam? Well, sure - with all the gifting and matrix deals and "auto pilot" work from home programs, clearly some are not realistic, much less legit. Let's face it - real business success always requires some real effort. And the most successful not only work hard, but work smart.

So - you do your research and you settle on what you have found to be a solid, established business that you can believe in that also has a great compensation plan. (I found mine in the CCPRO BiB) You then begin your training and marketing with dedication and focus and that is great - it's what you should do! Yes, if you want to have your own business, you better treat it like you own it and are responsible for it.

But, as you market and socialize, you begin to get more and more emails and tweets from other marketers, and you get distracted. Maybe you begin to wonder if the grass is truly greener or the deal is sweeter elsewhere. I mean, there are folks out there who've been doing this longer than we, right? Yes, and here's the point - the successful and wealthy are that way because they provided a lot of value to a lot of people. The bottom line is that you must do the same.

But, you don't have your own marketing training program or business system and compensation plan, and not everyone you contact wants into your primary business opportunity. And, you're spending money marketing your business, and a little extra cash flow would help, so do you hook up with some one else - another opportunity? Yes. Keep plenty of effort on your business to nourish it, but it certainly can make sense to affiliate with "bigger fish".

Face it - few can compare to Yanik Silver, Mike Dillard or Perry Marshall when it comes to successful internet marketing experience and knowledge, and many in this internet marketing community can still benefit from the guidance they provide. But - you may actually be making contacts that they aren't! So, "gurus" such as these will offer you commissions when you affiliate with them and become a personal referral source to them.

It's a win-win situation, in that you benefited from the knowledge of another; you shared that valuable resource with someone else, and; the teacher pays you a commission for their new customer. In the best of these deals, not only will the teacher get a new customer, but you should get a new lead and potential customer for yourself along with your commission.

However, please be prudent and discerning. What do I mean? I simply suggest that, if you're going to help promote another individual or opportunity that is not the primary opportunity you already know and love, you should know enough about it (him/her) to do so with confidence, respect and pride so your community credibility is preserved. (e.g. MLM Traffic Formula2) If you haven't noticed already, the "big boys" are also affiliates, touting the programs of others they know and respect.

So - do go for more than one stream of income; just be judicious about your choices and don't get so many lines in the water that your efforts are diluted. With the right (valuable) products or information and plenty of smart activity you, too, can become a "big fish" in this world-wide pond.