How To Live Up to Your Greatest Potential (Part 2)

If you haven't read the first part of this post, go here Part 1

OK. You probably have no interest in playing basketball. Then go to your assessment of yourself. What do you have a major interest in? What do you have a natural aptitude for? Go for it. Devote yourself to something you really like to do. Don't choose something just because you think you could make more money at it than you could by doing something else that you would really rather work at. You won't work to develop your full potential. You may start out with enthusiasm, but you will soon flag. It will be a chore to go to work. You'll probably find yourself hating to go. It'll be difficult to work on improving your skills because you don't like what you are doing. You probably won't be working up to your potential. Your success will probably be limited by your growing lack of interest and your happiness will surely be affected.

If, however, you devote yourself to something you really like to do, you'll enjoy your work, you'll be enthusiastic, and you'll probably find yourself working on improving your skills just for the sheer joy of it. You will be working to reach your full potential. You'll probably soon find you are making more money at this truly interesting occupation than you ever dreamed possible. And because you like what you are doing, you will be happier.

When you know you are working to your full potential and you enjoy your work and begin to feel successful, you will find that self-confidence and happiness soon follow.

But, you must be realistic and honest with yourself. If you set goals that you can't possibly reach, you are setting yourself up for failure. You will make yourself frustrated and unhappy. The key here is a realistic and honest assessment of your potential.

Although most people will be unnecessarily harsh in their assessments, it is easy to become too hopeful when you start breaking down barriers. If, for instance, you're extremely interested in and fond of music and would love to be a singer, it would be unreasonable to set a singing career as your goal if you can't sing a note (some talents are inborn). But if you are knowledgeable about the music business and would be happy being involved in some other capacity, then it would be reasonable to pursue a career in the business.

Be wary of making otherwise perfectly reasonable goals unattainable because of stringent time frames. When you set a goal, you will most likely set times for achieving certain steps along your way to achieving your final goal. Even if you don't set the time frames formally, you will probably have a pretty good idea of how long you are giving yourself. It's wise to sit down and formally set these goals. Think about it and give yourself a reasonable time to achieve them. Make a deal with yourself to view these time limits as flexible.

Don't get discouraged if things don't work out as planned. Sometimes finding our place takes both time and error. All of us experience failures of one magnitude or another. The key is to view the failures as a learning experience - if nothing else, failures teach us what not to do. Remain flexible. As long as you keep focusing on your strengths and potential, the right thing will come along - and probably sooner rather than later. But don't quit at the first sign of boredom. Even if you have truly found your niche, you will not feel enthusiastic 100 percent of the time.

Don't worry about others - don't compare your progress with that of others. No matter how successful you are, there will be someone else who, to you, looks like he/she's got it made - who looks like they're getting where you want to go faster and easier than you are. Maybe they are. Maybe they aren't. Who cares? Focus on your own achievements. Work to develop your skills and talents to their full potential. Compete with yourself - your short-term goals should be based on today's accomplishments. If you have reached Point A today, make Point B your next objective - improve yourself and don't worry about the other guy.

TO BE CONTINUED!

Next week we'll cover what you should do next, Getting Clear Through Visualization.

As always,
To your success!

Please leave a comment below to let us know how we’re doing.

Feel free to leave any suggestions for future posts or content. Or ask any questions regarding anything you don’t understand or need help with, I would be happy to help in any way I can.

I hope you find this information helpful. Thank you for reading.

P.S. Are you tired of wasting time and money on Affiliate Marketing that doesn't work? Want to copy a real business in just days? CLICK HERE TO LEARN MORE

How To Live Up to Your Greatest Potential (Part 1)

What makes a high achiever? Is it luck, intelligence, talent, dedication? All of these things figure in - they all make a difference. But we all know intelligent, talented, hard-working people who do not consider themselves very successful or even happy. And we know people who are not exceptionally bright but seem happy and successful.

If you want to make more of your talents - live up to your full potential - you have to learn to use them. You have the power to change your habits - to acquire new skills and fully use the skills you now have. You can improve your performance, your productivity, and the quality of your whole life.

So there must be something else, some secret to success. Actually, there are several secrets to achieving your peak performance - living up to your full potential.

Your success at business, friendship, love, sports - just about anything you try - is largely determined by your own self-image. Your unhappiness is something you choose. So, you're thinking no one chooses to be unhappy. Well, maybe not - but you have to consciously choose to be happy, self-confident, and successful.

Happiness is elusive when we go after it directly. So is self-confidence. Both seem to be more "side-products" than something you can achieve in and for itself. So how, then, can consciously choosing to be these things be of any value? Well, the secret is to focus on other things.

First, focus on your potential. Begin by making a complete and accurate assessment of your potential. To do this you must take an inventory of yourself - you will make a few lists. Sit down and make a list of all the things you can do well. Be honest with yourself. When that list is done, make a list of all the things you like to do, even if you think you can't do them well. Then, make a list of all the things you would like to do if you could. Now list your hobbies.

Then, go back to the list of things you can do well. You are probably being much too hard on yourself. Most of us are. We have this little voice in our heads telling us things like: "You're so dumb," or "You can't learn to do that," or "You never do anything right," or similar nasty things. And even worse, we listen to that voice as if it's telling us the gospel truth. So now, shut off that voice - you can do it - and add a few more things to the list of things you can do well. Pretend you are your best friend - it's amazing how much more forgiving and charitable we are with our friends than we are with ourselves. Now that you are your best friend, you should be able to add a few more items to your "do well" list. But to be honest - don't list things you feel you really can't do well.

Next, go to your list of things you like to do but you feel you don't do well. Speaking as your own best friend, do you think there are some things on this list that could be moved to your "do well" list? There probably are. If you like to do it, chances are you do pretty well at it. Treat your hobby list in the same manner.

Next, go to your list of things you would like to do if you could. Ask yourself, "Why can't I do this, if I'd like to?" Put your reasons on another list. OK. So you have a lot of lists going - what good is that going to do? Well, you have just made an assessment of yourself. If you have been truly honest in making these lists, it may even be a fairly accurate assessment. Probably it isn't, but that's OK. This assessment isn't carved in stone. It's subject to change. But for now, we will work with what's on the lists. At least you have a place to start.

Look over your lists again. You are focusing on all the things you feel you can't do and the reasons why you can't do them, right? Well, don't. FOCUS ON WHAT YOU CAN DO - FOCUS ON YOUR POTENTIAL. Make it a habit to focus on your strengths. Don't forget to include your undeveloped potential, as well. Train yourself to focus on your potential instead of your limitations.

Now that's not to say that you should ignore your list of reasons for not doing some of the things you would like to do. Not at all! But look at them from the viewpoint of your strengths. For instance, you'd like to play basketball but you think you are too short, so you don't even try. In this case, you are looking at it from the viewpoint of your limitations. Now, when you look at it from the viewpoint of your strengths, you would say, "Well, I may be pretty short to play, BUT I am fast. I can handle the ball well. I have a lot of stamina. I can't change being short, but I can refuse to let my limitations overcome my strengths."

You see the difference? Focusing on your limitations lets those limitations make your decisions for you. Focusing on your strengths lets YOU make the decision. To go back to our example: when you've decided to overcome your height limitations to play basketball - something you really want to do - you will be more determined to develop your strengths to compensate. You will do well because you will be doing what you really want to do and you will be determined to develop the full potential of your strengths. Very few people concentrate on fully developing any of their strengths. That's where you will have the edge. You know your true disadvantages but your determination, your singleness of purpose, will inspire you to fully develop the talents and skills you do have.

TO BE CONTINUED!

Next week we'll cover what you should do next, Goal Setting.

As always,
To your success!

Please leave a comment below to let us know how we’re doing.

Feel free to leave any suggestions for future posts or content. Or ask any questions regarding anything you don’t understand or need help with, I would be happy to help in any way I can.

I hope you find this information helpful. Thank you for reading.

P.S. Are you tired of wasting time and money on Affiliate Marketing that doesn't work? Want to copy a real business in just days? CLICK HERE TO LEARN MORE

How To Get Free Broadcast Advertising

The specific strategy we highlight in this article is applicable to other forms of advertising, but it was first developed and used in the radio & television industries, so we have written it with a slant in that direction.

If you are looking to do some broadcast advertising then you will find this article very useful, especially if you are of limited means with regard to advertising dollars. This technique is still a viable and effective one, so I hope you will keep an open mind.

Where applicable, we explain how it's possible to tie this into an online advertising system as well.

Let's get started, shall we?

It's an accepted reality in business that one of your largest expenses is going to be for advertising.

Advertising is a must. No business will grow without advertising. Advertising is the "life-blood" of any profitable business. And regardless of what methods, techniques, or strategies you use or where, when, and how you advertise, it's going to cost you something in one form or another (cash, time, energy, etc).

All successful businesses are primarily built upon a solid foundation of good advertising. The largest and most successful companies in the world have advertising budgets that number in the millions of dollars annually.

Now you may not be able to match their advertising efforts, at least not in the beginning while working from your garage, kitchen table, or basement, but there are ways you can get similar results without spending astronomical amounts of money on advertising. This technique is called "P.I" Advertising.

"P.I." means “per inquiry”, and even though this kind of advertising is mostly associated with the broadcasting industry (radio and television), it can be adapted to almost any advertising medium. Just use your imagination and be creative and you might be surprised at what you can do with this strategy.

What makes the “P.I.” strategy so attractive is that you only pay for the responses you get from your advertising message. It's very popular (somewhat akin to bartering) and is used by many more advertisers than what most people realize.

The advantage of “P.I.” Advertising for the marketer is (as stated above) you only pay for the results the advertising produces.

The advantage of “P.I.” Advertising for the provider, in this kind of advertising arrangement, is that they are able to fill unused or lower value advertising slots with cash-generating ads, creating a greater opportunity for them to see profits they would not have previously expected.

To benefit from this "free" advertising (it's not really free because you will be paying the provider a commission, but you won't have to take money out of your pocket to do it, as your clients will have already paid you before you pay the provider), start by creating a file (or by getting a loose-leaf notebook and about 100 sheets of filler paper, if you don't have a computer) and make a list of advertising providers.

1. For internet advertising providers just do a Google search for solo, classified, or emailing marketing services.

• After compiling your list, just email the providers with your proposal and see who is willing to work with you on your terms. It may be difficult to find some that will do this because of the popularity on online marketing, but if you find some new providers looking to grow their online presence, you might get a few that are interested.

2. For broadcast advertising providers visit your public library and start poring through the:

• Broadcast Yearbook on radio stations in the U.S. (this publication actually ceased publishing in print in July 2010, but the information is in digital format, generally for free, available online. CLICK HERE to get access to the last published issue of the yearbook. You will also find a great deal of information there that can help you with this step.

• Standard Rate and Data Services Directory. This publication can be accessed online (www.srds.com) but it is very expensive. Retailing for just under $900 for a one-year subscription to each database and each category is it's own database (radio being one database, television being another database, newspaper another, etc.), so the cost adds up very quickly.

Both these resources will provide you with just about all the information you could ever need to know about licensed broadcasting stations.

After you gain access to either of these publications, start with the state or states where you want to advertise first. It makes the most sense to begin in your own state and then work outward to surrounding states.

You wouldn't try to sell suntan lotion in Minnesota in December or winter Parkas in Florida in July, would you? Ok. Then, you will want to use some good, old-fashioned common sense here when planning out your marketing strategy. Think: “Who are the people most likely to be interested in my offer?”, and “Where will I find the largest numbers of these people?”.*

*Regarding online concentrations, just search “forums + your niche (like, “health”, or “gardening”, or whatever)”

NOTE: If you are marketing a “How to make money online” or “work from home” report, for example, you will probably want to target those states (or better yet cities) reporting the highest unemployment rates first before branching out to other areas.

Once you've got your target area(s) selected, go through the radio listings for the cities and towns in that area, and update your file or jot down in your notebook the names of general managers, the station call letters, telephone numbers and addresses.

Initially, you should only list one radio or television station or newspaper per city. There isn't really a limit to the internet component, whatever you are comfortable with is what you should do.

Pick out the stations where the people most interested in your product would most likely be listening. This can be determined by the programming description contained within the data column about the station in the Broadcasting Yearbook or the SRDS Directory.

On the first contact, you should treat it as a way of introducing yourself, and inquire if they would consider a “P.I.” Advertising campaign. Tell the station manager that you have a product you feel will sell very well in their market, briefly describe the product, and explain that you would like to test it before going ahead with a paid advertising program.

Quickly highlight product benefits and price point. Then tell them that during this test, you propose to allow the service provider a 50/50 split with you on each response their station generates for your product.

Let them know that you will handle all aspects of the deal for them: from writing the commercials and/or ads, to all accounting and bookkeeping, to fulfilment of all orders, to settling any refunds or complaints. Basically, all they will have to do is schedule your commercials and/or ads to broadcast and give them their "best shot."

If you've contacted them by phone, and they have agreed to look over your “P.I.” material, tell them “thank you” and promise to get a complete "package" to them immediately. Then follow thru with your promise.

Include a short cover letter, placed on top of your complete “P.I.” Advertising Package, and get it to them without delay.

As responses come into the station or website, they count them and forward them on to you for fulfilment. You make out a check for payment to them, fill & deliver the orders and everybody's happy.

As explained in the previous section, where applicable, we describe how it's possible to tie this into an online advertising system as well.

Continuing...

Contacting your perspective providers by phone is certainly the quickest, least expensive, and most efficient method of inquiring as to whether those stations are willing to consider your “P.I.” proposal.

Upon your initial phone contact, naturally, you will, unfortunately, experience a few “No”s. If you should happen to get turned down, and they are not interested in undertaking any “P.I.” Advertising, simply thank them, make a notation in your file or notebook by their name, and go to the next call.

In some cases, circumstances may turn out to be less expensive to make this initial contact by letter or postcard.

If you determine that writing is your best form of contact, simply address your postcard or letter to the listed contact person. Always be straightforward and positive in tone. Ensure everything you present is complete.

Present all the details in a logical fashion on one page, perfectly typed on your letterhead paper, and mailed in a typed-address envelope. (Ink-stamped letterheads/addresses just won't work, they are rarely even read).

Ideally, include a self-addressed/stamped postcard with spaces for positive or negative check marks for responding to your questions: “Will you” or “Won't you” look over my material and consider a mutually profitable "Per Inquiry" advertising campaign to broadcast on your station?

After they look over your materials (if you have done a good job presenting your proposal) and given serious consideration for your “P.I.” program, you most likely will reach some kind of agreement. Now, you have your foot in the door.

Once you have a verbal commitment from your contact at the radio station, move quickly to get your cover letter and package off to them by First Class mail, maybe even Special Delivery if you can afford it.

Don't allow time for that interest in your program to be lost or even to cool down. Have everything put together and ready to mail just as soon as you have a positive response. You should be organizing your advertising package at the same time you organize your "radio station notebook".

The “P.I.” Advertising Package

Start with a follow-up letter, written to fit most, if not all, standard situations. Have 250 copies printed. Next, you'll want to put together at least two thirty-second commercials and two sixty-second commercials. You should write these up, and have 250 copies of these printed and organized as a part of your “P.I.” Advertising Package.

Then you should have some sort of advertising contract written up, detailing everything about your program, outlining how everything is to be handled and by whom.

• How and when payment to the radio station is to be made.

• Plus any special paragraphs relative to refunds, complaints, and liabilities.

All this can be very quickly written up. Have, a minimum of 250 copies of carbonless, multi-part, snap-out business forms printed and organized as a part of your “P.I.” Advertising Package.

And finally, include a self-addressed/stamped postcard the radio or television station can use to let you know that they are going to use your “P.I.” Advertising program. This postcard should also have them list:

• when they will start running your commercials on the air

• how often your commercials will run

• and during which time periods

Again, you simply type out these “reply postcards” with the wording and in the format you want to use. Have copies printed for these mailings and organized as the last part of your “P.I.” Advertising Package.

After you have all that done, you're ready to send out your advertising packages. All you'll have to do when you get a positive commitment is fill in the business salutation and sign it. If you discussed any different arrangements or a specific matter with your initial contact, you will want to type a different letter incorporating those specific comments or answers to the points discussed. This personal touch won't take long, and could pay huge dividends!

Now, really, the hard part is done.

Okay, Let's wrap this discussion up by doing a little review.

The first step is to do some planning and make some decisions. You have already developed a product (a physical product, book, service, training program, something you will sell).

You have an idea of who and where to find your customers.

Now, you can do some initial research by scanning through the SRDS or Broadcasting Yearbook to begin compiling a 'contact information list' of possible markets to target and the broadcasters that service those markets.

After you compile your list you will make contact with those stations by phone or mail. If turned down, simply say thanks, and go to the next station on the list. For any of those who respond positively and want to know more about your proposal, you immediately deliver a “P.I.” Advertising Package to them via the fastest method possible. Don't let that interest wane.

Your “P.I.” Advertising Package should contain the following:

1. Cover letter
2. Sample brochure, product literature
3. Thirty-second and sixty-second commercials
4. “P.I.” Advertising Contract
5. Self-addressed stamped postcard for station acknowledgement and acceptance of your program.

As we all know, everything about business changes from day to day (conditions change, people get busy, and other things come up). Having both an acknowledgement postcard and a contract reinforces your position in case there is a change in the environment between you and the station.

Consider this, the station manager may have signed a “P.I.” advertising contract with you agreeing to start your advertising on the 1^st of March. But suppose the contract was actually signed on the 1^st of January, yet when March 1^st rolls around, they may have forgotten, been replaced, or even decided against running your ad.

Having multiple pieces of paper seemingly "covering all the details" can be very reassuring and impressive to many broadcast station managers. Giving them confidence that you are serious and that they will benefit by doing business with your company.

Try not to be too impatient to get started with your own “P.I.” Advertising campaign. Don't let your excitement get the better of your judgment, radio and television station people are just as professional and dedicated as anyone else in business, so be sure that you have developed a product or service that lends itself well to selling via a broadcaster's inquiry system.

Remember that anything can be sold, and even sold easily and by any method, you decide upon, provided it is presented in the right way.

For example: "Hello folks! Who wants to buy a mailing list for 10 cents per thousand names?" couldn't even get on the air. However, what if you had the addresses of, let's say, the top 100 movie stars, and you put together an idea that would enable people to write to these movie stars directly, you might have a winner, and might end up selling a lot of mailing lists of those movie stars.

Another point to consider is that you have a great deal riding on the quality of the content of your commercial (what benefits you offer to the listener, and the ease with which they may enjoy those benefits, etc.), so it's in your best interest to ensure that your commercials are nothing less than top notch.

Let's say, you have a new book on how to find jobs during a time when there are very few jobs available. Your market (the people you will want to talk to) are the people who are desperately searching for employment.

You must speak to them in words that not only grab their interest but also cause them to feel that you're offering them something that will solve their problem. It's the product and in the writing of the advertising message about that product that will bring in those sales responses.

If you put your sales package together properly, radio and television station managers will be sold on your idea and will be willing to work with you. Providing a reasonable number of responses come in with your first offer, you just might set yourself up for an entire series of successes.

Success has a "ripple effect," that you can build on with each new project, but only if you take action and move on that first one.

As always,

To your success!

Next time we start a new 3-part discussion series on “How To Get Free Publicity With Press Releases”

Please leave a comment below to let us know how we’re doing.

Feel free to leave any suggestions for future posts or content. Or ask any questions regarding anything you don’t understand or need help with, I would be happy to help in any way I can.

I hope you find this information helpful. Thank you for reading.

P.S. A Business doesn’t have to be complicated, expensive, or time-consuming. We can show you a better way. CLICK HERE TO LEARN MORE

How To Get Free Publicity With Press Releases

It doesn't matter what kind of business you are operating, you should want, even strive for, as much publicity for your business, your products or services, as possible.

It is "free advertising" after all, isn't it? And as we have said repeatedly, advertising is essential to the success and growth of your business.

In the simplest of terms, product publicity is the most basic kind of low/no cost advertising that seems to almost always bring orders into your business.

Probably not since the advent of the printing press itself has there been a better, more effective form of generating publicity than through the use of what's known as the press or news release. The release is most usually a single page story or article about your business, your product/service, or an event related to your business that will soon happen or has just recently occurred. These publicity announcements are generally blasted out to all of the various media outlets: local newspapers, radio and TV, and trade publications.

You should have a well thought out publicity strategy, just as you should plan out any marketing campaign you implement in your business. Pre-planning these publicity efforts will assure maximum results.

The most difficult aspect of this strategy is getting the people to whom you've sent these publicity announcements, to publish or broadcast them. Which leads us right back to the issue of what's the best or "right way " of writing them and submitting them.

The absolute surest way to approach this is to send a short cover letter addressed to the person you want your material to be considered by. This usually means that you send your article to one of the following:

• the city editor of the newspapers
• the news directors of the radio and TV station
• the managing editors of the various trade publications

The most critical thing here is that you make contact with the person who has the authority to make the final decision on what is published or broadcast. Make sure you structure the article so that person's use of your material will ultimately make them out to look like the "hero" to their readers, viewers, or listeners, describing how you're a long-time advertiser, subscriber, or listener will do you no good whatsoever.

It's also important to remember to avoid sending your material to the advertising, circulation, or business managers. They rarely, if ever, have the authority to sign-off on publishing your story.

The Note

Start with your cover letter. This cover letter should be in the form of a short note.

From a local office supply store, you will want to get about a hundred or so sheets of good bond paper - 8½” X 11”, preferably in a pastel colour such as blue or ivory. Either have them cut the paper into quarters (if they can) or do it yourself so that you have a grand total of 400 sheets of this notepaper.

Stay away from those pre-printed "From the desk of..." note sheets at first, they are too elaborate to use as a cold introduction. Wait until the people you're contacting get to know you and have used your material, then you might go to these semi-formal note sheets.

This note sheet should start with the date across the top. Then skip down a couple of rows and very quickly and succinctly let the recipient of the note know that the attached material is something new and should be of real interest to their readers, viewers or listeners.

Below is an example of a note that you might send out to the editors and news directors of the media in your area (this note should be typed and double-spaced):

"Here's something brand new and truly helpful, for a change, to anyone trying to cope with the soaring costs of living while engaged in trying to build an extra income business of their own. This should be of interest and great value to your readers. Please look it over and if you have any questions, or if you want more info, give me a call at (XXX) XXX-XXXX..."

Then skip down about another three or four spaces and type:

• your name
• your business name
• your address

Then sign your name above where it's typed, and staple this note in the upper right-hand corner of your news release.

Okay, now you've finished putting together your cover letter, and you know who to send it to. It's time to change our focus to the Press Release itself. It should go without saying that it must be neatly typed, but for the sake of clarity I've gone ahead and stated the obvious.

The page format should look like this:

• One inch margin from the top and bottom of the paper
• One and a half inch margin on both the left and right sides of the paper

The text should be as follows: From the left hand margin on the top line, typed in all capital letters and underlined: “PRESS RELEASE:”, then immediately following the colon, but not in all capital letters, type in the date (always set the date forward by at least one day after the day you intend to mail the release).

On the right-hand side of the page also on the top line, and in all capital letters and underlined, type the words, “FOR FURTHER INFORMATION:” Immediately below that, but not in all capital letters, type your name - your address - and your phone number.

Skip a couple of rows down from the top line and type a story headline centred between the margins. Skip down the page another couple of rows and from the left-hand margin, type the words, “FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:” in all capital letters.

After that, it's the news or publicity story itself.

It really doesn't matter whether you write the headline to fit the story or the story to fit the headline, either way, you should think of it as the same as writing a space ad or a sales letter. You attract attention and interest with the headline and fill in the details using the story.

Here's an example of some headlines we have used on publicity blurbs for promoting our products:

THE FREEDOM LIFESTYLE

FREE REPORT: “SIMPLE AFFILIATE MARKETING”

You should use this opportunity to continue to sell and engage the editor. Their readers are always looking to them for better ways to make life easier, and these editors are specifically interested in what our promise involves. They will want their readers to "think confidently" of the information they provide to them so they will read deeply into the story to find out who, what, where, when, and how.

The person you send your press or publicity release too, must quickly see and understand how your product or service will benefit their readers (making the editor a hero to their readers in the process) and the editor must absolutely be assured your product will do what you promise in your headline.

Your headline and the story you present to the editor is what you will use to accomplish this. This point is so critical that it bears repeating, the headline and story must be written in such a way as to impress the editors on the benefits your product or service delivers to their readers, and unless it specifically does this, they will not use it.

Don't beat around the bush or try to be coy or slick in your writing. Always come right to the point and sell the benefits of your product, whether that means that your product is lower in price or more convenient to use or whatever it may be. Describe in what way your product or service is useful to these people in general.

You will also want to include a complimentary sample of your product or an opportunity for the editors to sample your services.

If you have been following along with this discussion the advantages and concepts here should be clear by now, however, there is more yet to come, so let's get right into it.

The people you are engaged in these business discussions with are not in the least bit interested in you or your credentials. Don't forget, the editors looking at your information are fully aware of it's intent - Free Advertising! If you've sold them on the benefits of your business to deliver value to their readers, and they want more details, they will call you.

That's why you list your telephone number and address and that's why you need to focus on the benefits your business can offer.

Editors are very busy people. They just don't have the time, nor the interest in reading about your trials and tribulations or your plans for the future. They're only looking for "a heads up" alert, notifying them to something new and of possible real interest to their readers.

Sell the editor first. Convince them that you've built the better mousetrap. Show them that your product or service (aka - your business) fills a need and will be of interest to a large segment of their readers, viewers, or listeners.

Be sure that you always follow-up with a short thank you note to an editor that uses your publicity release.

If your first publicity effort is unsuccessful, then try reviewing your materials; maybe you can write it from a different perspective. You should also make sure you're sending it to the proper person – and then try again!

Never, and I mean never, send a publicity release to an editor and then call or write demanding to know why they didn't use it, didn't use it as you wrote it, or only gave you a quick mention. Do this only once, and that particular media will "file 22" (trashcan) any further material received from you, unopened! This is very unprofessional and will get you and your business blacklisted in a hurry.

As we stated earlier, these people are very busy, with hundreds of publicity releases passing across their desks every day and they only have so much time to read & consider them and only so much space to publish them, therefore your material has to immediately jump out at them and in some significant way, fit with the information the editors want to pass along to their readers, viewers or listeners.

Irrespective of your business or product/service, you have to write your press release from a perspective or about a feature that makes it beneficial or of interest to the readers, viewer or listeners of the media you are wanting to run your press release. Without this special ingredient, you've lost the war before you've even fought your first battle!

And as with many things in business (as-well-as marketing) timing of your press release can mean everything. Associating your press release with current events in the news, i.e. A story on job layoffs and increased unemployment carried in the newspapers, on TV and radio, would prompt us to get a publicity release out to all the media outlets around on the help and opportunity offered by “SIMPLE AFFILIATE MARKETING”!

Another example might be that there's a flood of chain letters and pyramid schemes spreading through the community, which the media picks up on it and attempts to warn the people to beware! If you had a product to answer this issue, you could get a publicity release out, explaining the availability of your product that deals with this problem on chain letters and pyramid schemes within 3 to 5 days – perhaps a report that explains everything from “A to Z - who're the winners and who're the real losers”.

There's yet another kind of timing you must also keep in mind...and that's 'Publication deadlines'. For best results, it has always been our experience to try to time it so your materials reach the editor in time for the Sunday paper. This seems to work better because that's when the papers have their greatest circulation and the most space is available.

It is also best because it's when people have the most time to read the paper, so there is a greater possibility of more people seeing your release.

If you would like your article to appear in the Sunday paper, you'll generally have to get your release in at least nine days prior to the date of publication, but it's a good idea to call and ask about the deadline date, just to be sure. This will allow you to plan so you can react quickly to any developing opportunities you see arising. Responding faster than anybody else can, gives you a definite advantage over your competitors

IN SUMMARY:

Choose the media most likely to carry your press release. Select those that carry similar write-ups on a regular basis.

Always use a cover letter of some kind. It pays to call ahead to find out the name of the person you should be sending your press release to and the publishing deadline dates.

Use the proper press release form, complete with a headline that will interest the person deciding whether or not to use your item.

Be sure your press release is letter-perfect - no typo's or misspelled words - and don't photo-copy - always have each letter or press release individually typed or printed.

When your item is used, send a thank you note or call the editor on the phone and thank them for using your press release.

Never, and I mean never, call or write an editor demanding to know why they didn't use your press release, why they had it rewritten or cut it short - just try, and try again!

It should be obvious to you by now at just how effective this strategy can be and it's not really all that complicated to implement within any business model.

Next time we start a new 2-part discussion series titled “Classified & Display Advertising, What You Should Know.”, you won't want to miss.

Please leave a comment below to let us know how we’re doing.

Feel free to leave any suggestions for future posts or content. Or ask any questions regarding anything you don’t understand or need help with, I would be happy to help in any way I can.

I hope you find this information helpful. Thank you for reading.

P.S. A Business doesn’t have to be complicated, expensive, or time-consuming. We can show you a better way. CLICK HERE TO LEARN MORE

Classified & Display Advertising, What You Should Know.

Advertising isn't all that difficult to do. You should write or prepare an advertisement/classified ad to sell your product or generate interest so people ask you to send them more information, usually in exchange for their contact information. Most people make the mistake of either sending their content to be published in the wrong place or not properly developing their ability to write effective ad copy.

Here are some pointers to follow:

Pricing:

• Anything selling for $5 or less, you can advertise using a small display or classified ad. If you are marketing something selling for more than $5, it will require a more significant size of advertising real estate. The bottom line is that using a small classified ad for bigger ticket items simply doesn't give you enough space to adequately explain to the prospect everything they need to know to entice them to order.

• The "Two-Step" method of advertising can be far more effective in such situations. Have the prospect send you $2 or 4 first-class postage stamps and a self-addressed envelope for more information. When they respond, you send them a brochure, flyer, order form with a cover letter so they can place an order for the real product.

• For online prospects, you can have them submit their name and email address in exchange for a free product that is related to or “leads into” the real product (a FREE REPORT, EBOOK, or CHECKLIST, etc). This will allow you to market to these prospects over and over again. Which could lead to even greater profits because you can offer other products/services to them later regardless if they bought your first offer or not?

Writing Effective Copy:

• Now that we've set our pricing guidelines, let's discuss writing the ad copy. It may seem a bit over-simplified but in my opinion, the best way to learn how to write effective advertising copy is to read the ads other people have written. Focus both on what you read that is working and what isn't working, that way you can possibly avoid making some mistakes while developing your advertising copywriting skills.

• You don't want to copy other advertisers messages word-for-word, instead, use them as a guide or template to write your own ads. Before you know it, once you get some experience, you'll be writing effective ad copy just like the pros.

Advertising in the Right Publication:

• Even though you might think this is only common sense, there are still people who will often overlook this factor when choosing where to advertise.

• The factor most people look at first is cost, They will look for the lowest price for the amount of circulation their ad could receive. Unfortunately, this turns out to be a major mistake because, for example, if you are advertising baby clothes in a men's magazine, regardless of the cost, your ad is probably not going to generate any interest or, more importantly, any sales.

• You need to pre-qualify any publication(s) you wish to advertise in before you make your decision on where to spend your advertising dollars. Even though it's generally a good idea to look for good deals that make it easy on your bank balance, you will just be throwing your money away if you don't pre-qualify the publication(s) you consider.

• A great way of pre-qualifying a publication is to send for a sample copy. Most publishers will gladly send them to you free of charge for the asking.

• Study the publication(s) to see what kind of products/services other people are advertising and how they are advertising them. Particularly, you will want to pay attention to their ad copy, headline, graphics (if any), format/structure, slant, etc.

• Contact some of the people who sell items similar to your own and offer to network with them. You might be surprised at just how much free publicity you can get simply from the corresponding, calling, and networking with others.

• Once you have decided on a publication you want to advertise in, give it a try and run your ad(s) for 3 months. If your response rate is low (only a few orders) or non-existent, try another publication. There are literally millions of them out there and eventually, you will hit upon the right target market that will be interested in what you have to sell.

• Don't Stop With One Publication. The more eyes you can put on your ads, the greater your chances of making a sale. Just because you locate the target market of people who are interested in purchasing your product in one publication, that is certainly no reason you shouldn't advertise in other publications. In fact, you would be remiss if you don't, and besides your ad will most likely become stale by being limited to a single reader base. If the same people continue to see your ad every month they will probably grow tired of looking at it. Chances are if they wanted the product they would have ordered it by now anyway, so don't tire them out! Make sure you alternate different size ads and get rid of ones that don't work well.

• Let your ad(s) run for as long as they continue to bring in orders for you, while advertising in 5, 10, 20 or 50 other publications at the same time, to also generate a steady stream of orders and to reach more people.

Display and classified advertising can open up an entirely new source of prospects and customers to a business if done properly. In the first part of this article, we discussed a few of the important aspects of this method of advertising.

In this part, we will complete our exploration of this method by discussing a couple more critical elements to consider before implementing this into your business, so here we go.

Key Your Ads:

• The biggest mistake many beginners make when starting out in the mail-order business is that they fail to key their ads so they know what publication people saw their ads in. They just don't understand the importance of it and/or they just don't want to take the time to learn and incorporate this element into their advertising methodology.

• The term “Keying your ads” just means tracking your sales by linking them to specific ads based on the insertion of a code of some sort in your address so that when people write and order something from you, you immediately will know where they saw your ad.

• Online advertising is much simpler, the tracking can be accomplished easily by inserting a small bit of unique programming code (conveniently called a “tracking code” or “tracking pixel”) into the digital ads that will automatically tell you which ad the sale or opt-in came from.

• You should keep a record of every name and address of every publisher you send an advertisement too. Also record the date you sent the ad and the date you received a checking copy, proving that your ad appeared. Lastly, and probably most important, record the "code" you used so you can immediately identify where it came from.

• Here is an easy way to do this for your mail order sales: If your address is "123 Anytown St," it could become "123 Anytown St, Suite A" for one publication and "Suite B" for another. The postman will still deliver your mail to "123 Anytown St." Of course, if you live in an apartment complex and there are apartment numbers you could turn "111 Johnson Apt A" into "111 Johnson, Apt A-1" for one publication and "Apt A-2" for another. Post office box addresses are also simple. Turn "PO Box 585" into "PO Box 585, Dept A-1" for one publication and "Dept A-2" for another.

• Another method of “keying” is to change the name on the ad. You might see the name "Harry's Hunting Guide" instead of Harry Johnson. Harry might also use "Harry of the Great Outdoors" or even "Harry's Field Guide to Big Game" on his ads relating to these products. You can see the endless possibilities, so just use your own imagination and soon, keying your ads will be a normal part of your business.

• At the same time be sure to keep track (on your Record Sheet or computer spreadsheet) of how many responses you receive from each publication. After 3 months, look over your Record/Spread Sheet and get rid of the publications that didn't do well.

• You'll go broke if you spend $10 per month advertising a 2-inch ad if you only receive $1 back in orders. After a while, you'll be able to see where it pays you to advertise your particular product and then you can test some larger ads in those publications. Continue using this method and you'll always get orders in your mailbox/inbox. It's a win-win situation for everybody!

Tabloids -vs- Adsheets:

• One question concerning advertising that many people ask has to do with whether it's better to advertise in tabloids or adsheets. Both Tabloids and AdSheets are fantastic advertising vehicles. Sometimes people feel a small 1" camera-ready ad gets lost in a tabloid filled with 100's of them. This may be true in some circumstances and not true in others.

• Do you look at 1" ads in tabloids? Of course, you do. You scan the pages and your vision is always directed to one or two on the page that might catch your eye. Ask yourself "why" they caught your eye. Was it because the ad was placed in a specific area on the page? Was it because of the headline or the word "free"?

• Sometimes classified ads work well in Tabloids and AdSheets and sometimes they don't, just look in the back of the Globe or Enquirer. They have page after page of classified ads, don't they? If nobody were reading those ads and responding to them, the advertisers wouldn't keep submitting ads to the Globe or Enquirer. So evidently, people ARE still reading and responding to classified ads - even if there are 100's of them. Test it for yourself to see and do what works the best for you.

Keep in mind that many people will try to sell you information on “What's the best day to mail?” and “When is the best time of the year to advertise?”. These people think they have it all down to a science and they will work hard to convince you of the righteousness of their methods.

However, Don't be fooled, there are NO set rules that can be employed by everyone. That's because there are a number of ways to approach the marketing of various products. If you sell travel services and read a report that told you not to advertise during the summer months, you'd go broke. The summer is the travel industry's biggest money-making season!

Don't get hung up on claims made by people who sell themselves as being expert researchers. There is no better way to determine what is best for your business than for you to try it for yourself and see what works. You are the person in control of your business and you have to be the one where the buck stops. Take advantage of your authority and consider every angle you can think of until you determine what's best for your company's product and/or service.

Well, that pretty much wraps-up our discussion on Display & Classified Advertising. We hope you take-away some value from it.

Please leave a comment below to let us know how we’re doing.

Feel free to leave any suggestions for future posts or content. Or ask any questions regarding anything you don’t understand or need help with, I would be happy to help in any way I can.

I hope you find this information helpful. Thank you for reading.

P.S. A Business doesn’t have to be complicated, expensive, or time-consuming. We can show you a better way. CLICK HERE TO LEARN MORE