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Eyeball Popping Online Business Ideas for Document Marketing

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OK so you have heard me talk about Scribd (actually pronounced: “Scribbd”). But some of you have asked me for more details. So I am going to discuss exactly what document marketing is and how it is more powerful than many other forms of internet marketing. Creating a site like Scribd is one of the best online business ideas I have seen. I lead in 23 secret niches on Scribd from my niche marketing business. And I am revvi9ng up in the next few weeks to gain presence from my main profile (actual name vs. pen names) which until now I haven’t used.

Document marketing is another form of article marketing.Like article marketing you bring more links to your site. But the difference is your creating more content and establishing your credibility through quality statistical data like graphs or PDF reports and guides. So the article s are not published but easily uploaded on their site.

It is like having (hint hint) a portion of your blog in a PDF document and sharing with others in return for links. But that’s only the beginning. You can also include “in-text” links and pictures, which sets it ahead of the crowd. Especially if you’re using Scribd for self-promotion. You can also create certain types of advertisements but you have to follow their guidelines. They don’t play about banning people. In fact they even erased a ton of content that people were using to plagiarize others works. So even though Techcrunch calls Scribd “Youtube for Documents” be well aware they do care a lot more about who adds what to their website.

Plus Google loves it when you add more content to other sites and you have a link back to yours. But here is the biggest plus. Scribd is “the largest social publishing company in the world” with over 50 million readers a month. Twitter has over 75 million but according to recent sources most are inactive users. The majority of Twitter and Facebook doesn’t use them. What this means is that there is a virtual untapped market.

You can cross market your products in small sneak peak, e-course fashion via Scribd. But that’s just the tip of the iceberg.

Look at several of these online business ideas you can market

•   Books
•   Brochures & Catalogs
•   Business & Law
•   Creative Writing
•   Government Docs
•   How-to-Guides & Manuals
•   Illustrations & Maps
•   Magazines & Newspapers
•   Presentations & Slideshows
•   Puzzles & Games
•   Recipes & Menus
•   Research
•   Resumes & CVs
•   School Work
•   Spreadsheets

Hey there is a ton of opportunity waiting for you this isn’t a fly by night website they been around since 2007. The real question becomes “How do you market yourself the right way without looking dumb?” Learn from my mistakes and embarrassment in one niche.

I don’t think anyone would argue that one of your smartest online business ideas involves anticipating trends on the web. Those who can anticipate them sooner than later become the leaders on the web.

Wow Darren Document Marketing is hot I want to learn more!

13 Apr

Online Business Ideas for Spanish Speaking People

Online Business Ideas for Marketing Spanish Speaking People

There are a LOT of opportunities to build a strong following online in the Spanish world. Often I am told by Spanish people that this community is behind in buying online. That is a BIG misconception. There are millions of Spanish speaking people who are just waiting for their problems to be solved…..by YOU!

And the major issue? You probably guessed it language barrier.

Most “make money online” materials are written in English. So do you know what that means? You don’t have to remake anything. One of the smartest online business ideas is to setup deals with current content providers to translate and custom fit their products to your market.

Really simple. You build a following with great content in Spanish and offer deals to either transcribe or create new versions for Spanish. You could almost offer anyone.

All that matters is what type of tribe do you belong too?

First Tribe is more of a Seth Godin approach laid back extremely non sales

Second Tribe is the aggressive Mike Filsaime, John Chow type of marketer who is very in your face “BUY NOW!!” type of marketer.

Third Tribe is more a combo of the two. They are the cool Seth Godin meets John Chow (laughing) KIDDING. Third Tribers are cool but they like to make money also. They are not as passive as the 1st tribe. But not as aggressive as the 2nd. A balance in between.

Choosing a tribe is more for your level of marketing comfort not your markets. No matter what language each tribe has members. Spanish speaking people are like everyone else in that regard. They like everyone else want to make money. And also like everyone respond differently to a variety of different approaches. The idea is for you to come across as authentic. The only way you will do that is to market from the tribe philosophy that fits you best.

Start your blog

Now you know which type of approach you are using (which tribe) now it is time to start your blog. Remember if you have no following then you are really looking dumb in front of anyone your approach to get translation rights. And even if they already provide a Spanish version you have to have someone to market to right? My point here is get your market underway. I help you do this with my simple hacks for blogging if your a beginner. You need your online business ideas making you money in ANY language!

Step 1 resell English Internet Marketers with premade Spanish versions

After you have built your following on your blog now is the time to test products from a major English Internet marketer. The first and easiest thing you want to do is find out if they have premade Spanish versions. You don’t want to put the time and energy into transcribing something your market doesn’t want.

Another way to look at this is break it down by different types of info

Ebooks, guides and reports (written material: these are good testers run very little and if they are premade Spanish then you can test your sale to see which area they are more interested in. For example if you know most of your market wants to know about Social Media vs SEO. They you know that is you focus.

Videos, courses and programs: Make sure you base them on the written info I explained above. In that example I said your market wanted more Social Media vs. SEO. So your videos and courses need to reflect this.

Step 2 approach English Internet Marketers with non Spanish versions.

The first step helps you pinpoint what your market is interested in and build your customer list. Also the first step makes the second step easier. Once you have a list KNOW what they want the rest is easy (well not super easy).

You need to reach someone who is smart enough to recognize your market as a viable opportunity. You have to position yourself as a leader in your market. I don’t think it would hurt to describe your sales from the Spanish versions of other English Internet Marketers products either. Let them know you are saving them some time by BETA testing their product. I would even be bold and ask for 70% of the sales in return for transcribing their products.

Fortune favors the bold and anyone willing to go the extra steps. If it is cookie cutter easy then I guarantee you that you will not succeed. Show me a turnkey system I will show you a turkey system. Guess who the turkey is?You guessed it YOU. The best online business ideas are developed not operated. The most money made was by the people who developed it for you to operate.

I guarantee you that if you speak fluent Spanish right now the money is there. And don’t worry about the competition because the saturation is no where near the English market.

02 Apr

10 Online Business Ideas for Salons

If your a salon owner do you realize how much money you are missing online? Oh I am not talking about that standard get advertising sponsor bull. I am talking about you building a mini online empire! The irony is that the guy writing this (me) is losing his hair (laughing out loud). But I am more than happy to share online business ideas with you.

Salons involve fashion, gossip, and men (yeah guys they talk about us). And the more interesting part is that they break down into sub micro niches. No two hair salons (even if they look like it) are actually alike. People in the salon industry are very particular about what they do, want, and sell. And as all of us seasoned vets online know that is actually a GOOD combination for any online business.

1. Online Entrepreneurs offer local Salons the following services: hey many salon owners may need help setting up their business. I explained this online business opportunity for online entrepreneurs in a similar post about restaurants.

2. Create a localized geo targeted TMZ part to your website: Hey if there is anyplace that would be better why not have a TMZ section or something similar to it? The purpose is to generate traffic so you can possibly sell products and schedule appointments.

3. Print out copies to the TMZ section of your website to give to your salon patrons. Let the people see what your doing as well as those magazines they are flipping through. The BEST part is that unlike the magazines they can walkout with your printouts.

4. Create a online fashion section from head to toe: cover all areas of fashion and see if you can get some affiliate links to fashion products.

5. Create a sexy men online calendar: Hey ladies would come to your site often if you talked it up a week or two before the release. Use cafepress to get them printed up. Besides you can get a lot of public domain photos as well. You could give them to customers for FREE. Also give them away at any expos you attend.

6. Create a info product line like “Inside Sister Secrets to Hair Care” guide for sale and download. You could sell through e-junkie.

7. Create online scheduling. And offer discounts for prepayments. Hey remember money now is always better than money later.

8. Create a online incentive program to get them purchasing from you online. An example would be “buy anything online and get a FREE shampoo.” My fellow Third Tribe brother Derek has some great online business ideas for developing online customer loyalty.

9. Get your product supplier to fund your online web development and growth: WARNING this is only AFTER you build up the ideas I mentioned earlier. The other online business ideas in this article have to be executed. Not all but you have to do something. That way you can show you are bringing traffic. Get them to for instance pa for your printing of your gossip section or a newsletter all together.

10. Get a SEO expert to help you get local area ranking in one of those salon 10 or 1 box maps in Google search engines. Here is an example of what I am talking about.

Somebody should start a blog targeted at helping salon owners become bloggers and web owners themselves. Your money is waiting on you.

01 Apr

The Secret Lie of a Top 10 Home Based Business

Shhh don’t tell anyone” said the secretive GURU to his friend. “If they find out that these top 10 home based business ideas are actually the top 30 business ideas then we are out of business.” If you visited this site before then you know two things. 1. I don’t like being called a “GURU” and 2. I always come up with quotes so here is a new one. “In internet marketing the GURUs truth is not a lie. Its only a delayed truth positioned in a way that doesn’t allow them to lie.” In other words the trick isn’t in their tricks but in inability of some to understand their magic.

There are plenty of online business ideas that create great business. But the part that becomes dangerous is when a idea reaches a plateau. My mentors for years have tried to get me to do live webinars. I have considered lately doing them. However, I am leaning towards NOT doing them. Why? Because one of the top 10 home based business strategies is to do a webinar. And now it has gotten crazy. People are doing webinars on doing webinars. And if I got in early 6 months to a year ago I would have been on the cutting edge.

So it starts when a group unrelated to each other comes up with some keen ideas for business. Then the second level of people come in and really make things interesting. They say “WOW this works hey I wonder how many people would like to know this for a price?”And that’s when the end of great online business ideas begin.

Now at this point I should tell you that there is nothing WRONG with selling info. I of course sell info products and provide consulting. But the issue here is the misrepresentation of the information being sold. I will NEVER tell you to buy something that isn’t what I absolutely believe it is period.

There is a secret shelf life to these so called top 10 home based business listings. Also a secret street life. Look on Social media and see what they are selling that stands out suddenly. If it seems like every Tom, Dick, and GURU are selling or doing it then maybe it is not something you want to invest your time into.

The exception of course is if you have

Micro Niche unrelated to info products
Unique Selling proposition.

In order for a great opportunity to exist a TOP opportunity to exist you need a source that is trustworthy with a track record. Then you need to know if everyone is selling it and the same exact thing. A Top 10 Home Based Business. May be ready to actually topple so beware. The essence of the secret is

Time of discovery X GURU X Customers X Broadcast on social medias = NOT a Top 10 Home Based Business. but a home based business about to flame out.

29 Mar

Incredible Marketing Ploys to Build False Credibility

Since the new FTC regulations announcement many internet marketers have been flipping out and changing their approach. In fact some are even trying to think up more entrepreneur ideas to sell FTC rules which are FREE (wild). I honestly don’t know why this is a major issue IF you do not make phoney testimonials. If you have an issue with real testimonials or honest reviews then you will have trouble with the FTC. You have to let people know you are an affiliate that makes money from a product or service. But the way I review thing is that I either use them or watch them for a year.

Unfortunately we have had some serious habitual line steppers. Meaning people who step over the line and then teach others to do the same.

In 7 Insane Ways to Develop Trust with Your Online Business I said the number one thing is authenticity. The real question is there a real person on the other end of a blog? Same thing goes for sales pages and email signups.

Here is a true story. Many years ago I bought a program from a famous internet marketer. And they tried to tell me this “new secret” (sound familiar?) and come to find out they wanted me to set up review sites and use PPC (pay per click). I promptly asked for my money back. a very poorly thought out execution of entrepreneur ideas has taken place across the internet.

The program was one of those Google assimilation BS named programs. The amazing thing is that they setup these review sites and tell everyone that it is a real deal and then try to teach you to be unethical. Credibility GONE.

How do you Know someone is credible? That’s a good question.

Ask them a question regarding their product and see if they reply.

Check their testimonials like you were an HR department and they were an applicant. Hey my testimonials on my twitter program are REAL people. In fact Aron Stevenson just had his first baby (congrats Aron).

Check their social media profiles and ask do they ENGAGE you in conversation? At least say thank you for a retweet? I do. I mean why would I want to do business with someone who can’t even tweet and thank you?Yes there are special circumstances but not always. One of the dumbest entrepreneurs ideas in the world is to sell a social media program and yet you are not social.

GOOGLE them with negative phrases to see what the results are. I for instance am a member of the Warriors Forum, Third Tribe and Seth Godins tribes as you can read here. Believe me if I am full of it or a scam these groups would reveal that along with other forums I cannot begin to imagine.

Recently Tech Crunch posted something about reputation. There are business popping up that are going to address the idea of reputation more directly. The more we become open source with reputation and credibility the better.

23 Mar

The Real Truth about the Third Tribe Part 1

Here’s the Real Truth about the Third Tribe

This is part of an ongoing series I am posting with testimonials from members, cool excerpts from the content, and other Third Tribe information.

I have received a lot of questions about them especially after my 3 tribes article. So I know you are wondering what Third Tribe is all about. Well first let me tell you that I am a member (paying member) and also an affiliate thus the banners and links I have on this site and in this post. That means if you do decide to join by clicking any of these links I can stop sticking up little old ladies at the grocery store (laughing and kidding of course). I am going to explain to you WHY I joined and more importantly what is in it for you. I am also going to share some real people experiences from the members who come from a variety of backgrounds.

But first I have to admit something: I don’t know if this actually is for you. Only you can answer that. I will share some of my experiences and ideas about Third Tribe and several perspectives from the members and leaders. However from there the choice is yours.

The Founders and Leaders

Super bloggers Brian Clark, Sonia Simone of Copyblogger, Chris Brogan, and the legendary Darren Rowse of Problogger created Third Tribe. The concept began from a very long commented post on Copyblogger in February of 2009. Then the idea just grew from there.

The Members (real people)

First I want to say thank you to all of the members who were kind enough to leave their replies and give me permission to use their information.

Below I asked (3) questions.

When did you start with Third Tribe?
What exactly has been the benefit for you?
WHO do YOU think should join Third Tribe?

The answers are in bold

So here are a few testimonials from a few of the 2000 plus members on Third Tribe Marketing

———————————————————————————

Darren Monroe

1. When did you start with Third Tribe? Feb 2010

2. What exactly has been the benefit for you?
I learned more about email marketing common issues I thought only I had. I have also received some tremendous FREE ebooks, resources, and advice. The advice is the type of feedback that comes from experienced internet entrepreneurs like myself. I have made my money back, restructured my site and created new partnerships thanks to Third Tribe.

3. Who do You think should join Third Tribe?
In my opinion I think intermediate bloggers, writers, internet marketers will “GET” Third Tribe. Though we are in business of course for a profit we are not as aggressive in our tactics as say the more traditional internet marketers. In other words you will learn from experienced operators how to make money ethically while being cool. But again I believe only the people who have gone through the basics of starting a blog in my opinion should join.

———————————————————————————

Heather M. Claus aka thesomeex is one of our TOP posters and have some amazing stories. One of her most popular posts she shared was her now legendary post of how she got 80,000 visitors in 2 weeks!

1. When did you start with Third Tribe? February 2010

2. What exactly has been the benefit for you?

So far, I have made back my investment by 2700% in one month. I have gotten feedback that has helped me change my site concept (for a personal project) before launch for better SEO organization. I have met some amazing people who are becoming friends, clients and potentially partners. I have been inspired. I have been given links to resources I would not have found on my own. I have met other successful people doing things their way, which expands my ideas on how things can be done.

3. Who do You think should join Third Tribe?

I believe that Third Tribe is not for a specific skill-set, but rather a mind set. If you are a student of life, someone who looks for ways to learn from others at every opportunity then PUT THAT INTO ACTION for yourself, Third Tribe will be worth every penny for you.

If you prefer to be handed the promise of quick money on a silver platter, then Third Tribe will not satisfy you.

———————————————————————————

Jim Raffel a really nice blogger out of Sussex, WI said the following.

1. When did you start with Third Tribe? February 2010

2. What exactly has been the benefit for you?
In just 30 days as a member I have learned:

* How to improve this blog in so many small ways.
* How to Improve my ColorMetrix business site.
* How to Improve traffic and usability of the ColorMetrix on-line store.
* …and I’m just getting started!

More importantly I have met so many like-minded individuals. Other bloggers, other marketers, other people struggling to understand how business and marketing in the on-line world really work. I’ve been able to interact with people like Chris Brogan, Brian Clark and other heavy hitters in the world of blogging and on-line marketing.

When I am feeling overwhelmed by my day or just need a ten minute break Third Tribe Marketing is where I turn now. The forums are my favorite place in Third Tribe to spend time. I feel safe there – I will write and share things there that are a bit too raw and unedited for this blog. I learn, I contribute, I share with an awesome community of like-minded individuals.

3. Who do You think should join Third Tribe?

People who are serious about their on-line marketing activities

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Remarkablogger aka super nice guy Michael Martine: If you have seen ANY of my tweets for the past year you have seen this guy. I have talked about him since my 2009 24 hour marathon on Twitter.

1. When did you start with Third Tribe?

I started in the Third Tribe as soon as it started in February 2010. This was something I had been waiting for ever since Brian, Sonia, Chris, and Darren announced it was coming at the BlogWorld Expo 2009 conference.

2. What exactly has been the benefit for you?

Since joining, the Third Tribe has helped me tremendously in two ways: one, I’m learning tons; two, I’m making great connections with people who feel the same way I do about building and marketing online media properties. This is helping me refine my business and my approach and it’s also helping me better reach my audience. All of this benefits my bottom line, which makes the investment in joining the Third Tribe worth it.

Plus, I just enjoy helping others when I can. I don’t go into the forums looking to receive help, I go looking to give help to others.

3. Who do You think should join Third Tribe?
I think anyone who feels caught between the make-no-money world of blogging and the profitable but over-hyped tactics of internet marketing should join the Third Tribe. Anyone who wants to earn a good living while still being able to live with themselves and sleep peacefully at night should join the Third Tribe.

The “middle way” is the Third Tribe.

———————————————————————————

V. Scott Ellis aka my drinking and eating buddy at Trinity Hall in Dallas is great IT guy who I met through Third Tribes.

When did you start with Third Tribe?
I started with Third Tribe in February 2010.
What exactly has been the benefit for you?

The most valuable thing has been the wealth of information shared in the Third Tribe that has accelerated my tactical understanding of internet marketing more in the first month of membership than I could have gained in a year without it. I’ve had an the opportunity to network, and even meet in person, with some incredibly talented bloggers, copywriters and internet marketers. Inside Third Tribe many people are sharing their products for free, or at notable discounts. I’m impressed by the quality of people here and the lack of they “spammy” types.
WHO do YOU think should join Third Tribe?

Anyone who is interested in learning and sharing ideas and accelerating their on line success should join the Third Tribe, whether you are a novice or seasoned pro.

———————————————————————————

Steve Gillis runs several sites and said the following

When did you start with Third Tribe?

I started with Third Tribe Feb 2010.

What exactly has been the benefit for you?

The feedback that I have received from fellow Tribers has helped me to focus my energies on what I need to do to grow my business.

WHO do YOU think should join Third Tribe?
Anyone looking to learn how to use social media as a means to grow one’s business should join Third Tribe.

———————————————————————————

And there you have it so does this sound like something for you?

Please feel free to contact me if you have any questions. I would be more than happy to answer. I will be posting part 2 very soon.

you are serious about your on-line marketing activities

16 Mar

Online Business Ideas for Identifying Your Unique Selling Proposition

This post is going to be a little different. I am going to provide you with some online business ideas through questions to help you identify your unique selling proposition. But before I can help you do that I must first explain to you why you must identify this or your in trouble. You see the reason I am writing about offline and online business ideas is that I always have them. ALWAYS. I have an ability to generate and develop off and online business ideas. that is what I do. In fact I explained to this in detail in my article Why I Share Online Business Ideas. I also explained how I discovered my unique selling proposition.

What you and I are going to learn right now is exactly HOW unique you are so that you can develop your cutting edge. Remember Mrs Field Cookies in the (USA)? She started a cookie shop at a time when millions were just buying cookies at the grocery store. Debbi Field the founder knew her unique selling proposition was baking great cookies. She grew up as a great cook but was able to refine her love for cookies.

My point here is that YOU have to refine your unique selling proposition.

1. Lets talk about your competitions online business ideas

But first you have to make sure you know who they are first. This is easy just use your keyword phrases in Google and find the top 3-5 websites. Then visit each one and make an assessment.

Which competitor stands out and why?
How do you think you can stand out from all of them?
What are they offering in terms of FREE content?
What are they offering in terms of premiums (things for sell) content?
Are your competitors solving a problem? If so what? Don’t worry about how their site looks more about if they are answering the search keyword phrases.
What type of promotions are they doing? Do they have an email list? any special events?

2. Now lets talk about you

How does the above answers make you different from your competitors online business ideas?

The quicker you can answer the above questions the faster you can identify your unique selling proposition. Doing what everyone else is doing is death wish marketing. That type of marketing dooms you to failure. The smartest didn’t just follow what everyone else was doing. They identified what made them different and how they could uniquely solve their customers problems.

In a future article I will help you identify HOW to create unique selling propositions after you have identified yours.

Need more online business ideas that work? Let me know

04 Mar

150+ Online Business Ideas and Resources to Help You

There is no shortage of online business ideas in the web community. But to see such creative ideologies is great. When I talk about ideas I am referring to the way or thinking or philosophy behind making your business grow.

So I thought it would be really cool to list some amazing sources for online business ideas. But I must warn you, if your looking for a get rich quick scheme this isn’t it (laughing).

This is broken by Seth Godin will teach you how to spot problems that you could possibly solve thus create a business. His video, humor, pictures, and thinking is amazing.

SEO, Popularity And The Way Forward is a forward thinking post about SEO (Search Engine Optimization) from one of THE most authoritative sites on the web.

My FREE Entrepreneurship Online eBook Volume 1 was downloaded over 5,000 times. The ebook though small contains 21 information packed sources to grow your business.

70+ Web Resources for Entrepreneurs Online was downloaded over 10,000 times.

Online Business Ideas FREE 7 Ways Report Series This is a FREE Case study report on very common and some uncommon issues bloggers have. The great thing is that this in itself was an online business idea I created from shring online business ideas (laughing).

9 Great Conference, Slide Presentation, and Meeting Sites Need to put together a presentation online? This may be the best way to do it.

67 Ways to Get Your Content Into the Cloud is a great checklist to use to make sure your blog is getting “out there”. I am sure the most experienced blogger “slips” on a few of them. And they aren’t things you have to do all the time. Just a checklist to cover yourself.

I have no idea what niche your in or what you do and I guarantee I don’t have the answers to everything. But I know that this listing will at least help you with ONE of your main solutions.

03 Mar

Online Business Ideas for the Girl Scouts and You

I wanted to share some online business ideas for the Girl Scouts cookie website. OK as you will see in the video below I am a official and admitted Thin Mint Cookie addict! So The main idea in this post is to show you how to apply this model to your local organizations. You can either make money, build your referrals for future business or have strong barters. enjoy if you have questions let me know I am on my way to get cookies LOL!

Thanks for your inquiry about Girl Scout cookies!

Girl Scouts of Northeast Texas
will contact you soon to tell you how to purchase Girl Scout cookies.
To learn more about their cookie sale now, visit their Web site.

Did you know that Americans purchase approximately 200 million boxes of Girl Scout cookies each year? To achieve this extraordinary level of accomplishment, Girl Scouts use 21st-century business skills. Many design business cards, newsletters, press kits, charts and posters to support their cookie program goals. Others make formal presentations to close cookie sales with local businesses.

Our Cookie Program is the leading business and economic literacy program for girls. From making change to tracking revenues, girls practice the basics of money management and learn how to earn what they spend and stay on budget. In some parts of the country, local businesswomen mentor girls about business and marketing skills as part of the Girl Scout Cookie Program. And unlike many youth programs, the Girl Scout Cookie Program empowers girls themselves to decide how to spend part of the proceeds.

From their beginnings 90 years ago to their current popularity, We have developed valuable life skills and make the world a better place.

Online Business Ideas for the Girl Scout Website Business Model

Download the PDF Chart Here

03 Mar

Online Business Ideas for Viral Commercials

Here are some great online business ideas for viral videos. But first what makes a video go viral? I am asked that all the time and here is the simple answer.

The key to a viral video is anything that is quick, simple, understandable, and makes someone want to share with others. I know some of you are saying “well duh Darren I knew that”. But here is the root cause of a viral video.

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

A message, connection, and timeliness. One other hint is that 95% of the viral videos you see are actually less than a minute long. The Orbit gum 30 second video may not last the test of time. But luckily it appeared on You Tube right away and it was uploaded by consumers (might have been engineered by Orbit who knows) and has gone viral with millions of views (see video below). People are even making their own spoofs that go viral themselves.

So lets talk money: yeah that’s great and all they increased their brand and even have positioning in the rankings on Google. In fact wordtracker has them getting over 350 searches a day. And Google Adwords tool has them in the thousands. But what does that mean if they are NOT selling online?

Here are some online business ideas you should follow when your video goes viral. And of course get some conversions in the process.

Setup an online function to SELL a call to action! I know Orbit is probably respecting their wholesalers by NOT selling online but HEY they should grow and setup some shipping or at least a ecommerce through their retailers online. But thats one of the worst online business ideas IN THE WORLD. Sell on line retailer and wholesaler be damned!

Create a cool hip online community: haven’t checked but they should have a fan page just for the commercial (the orbit chewing lint lickers or the french toast orbit crew LOL) page where they just “talk” to their market to get more ideas for further branding.

Create a SUPER cool Orbit email marketing campaign where you send everyone that signs up a 12 pack of FREE GUM). Would it cost you money? YES and if you did it right you could get some heat behind it.But the branding would be priceless not to mention online sales.

What you can learn from their mistakes. Take any online business opportunities and run wild. It is clear that their viral commercials could be marketed further for a direct sale. Lets say on a smaller scale you get 20,000 views of a video. You need to be tagging that video and creating a social media presence that points to

Sale
Feedback
Further brand recognition far beyond the initial views.

And you need to have payment solution in place always BEFORE you ever launch any video campaigns. Heard the one about the guy who had a video that went viral and he didn’t make a cent from it? Yeah I heard that one too. Lets just make sure it isn’t anyone reading this OK? Good!

01 Mar

The 3 Tribes of Marketing

Did you know that there are 3 Tribes of Marketing? Recently I have joined a group called Third Tribe and a popular thread I created caused me to work on a FREE report I released.

The first tribe is lead by Seth Godins group cool smart super loved and popular. According to some this tribe has trouble selling as aggressively as the other tribes.

Then there is the second tribe which some have said that Internet marketers like Frank Kern lead. Not all of the people in this group are GURU scammers. The infamous ones are actually in small amounts. But the problem is that many people don’t see the difference. That’s because the scam guys emulate the real ones. I actually like reading Frank Kerns books. His writings tell stories. Stories you and I can relate to as online professionals no matter what tribe you may reside (or not reside) in. In my opinion a second tribe hangout would be the Warriors Forum.

The Third Tribe was created by Brian Clark, Chris Brogan, and Darren Rowse. The idea is that this tribe is a little more focused on money than the first tribe and less aggressive as the second. There was a post that gave birth to all of this here.

OK so does that make me an exclusive Third Triber? I don’t think so but I DO feel good about what is happening there and think I will continue to be a member. And I have met some amazingly good people there who’s blogs I read all the time. I have been a member of Seth Godins Tribes for over a year now. And I also have a profile on the Warriors Forum (2nd Tribe). I think my approach will be moving forward I could do better on first 2 tribes with contributing which I will work harder to do. I think I would like to try to deal with the better sides of all.

In other words I will become a better contributor and learner and see which one kicks me out (laughing). I figured if I call Darren Rowse “Darren number 2″ (you know who is number one right?) enough times maybe I will get kicked out of Third Tribe (laughing again).

PS funny note: all three have haters. And not necessarily from other tribes. Seems like no matter where you go there will always be people mad at mad and upset about it LOL. God bless them all.

01 Mar

Online Business Ideas for the Restaurant Niche

Online business ideas for the restaurant niche involves helping the late comers transition online via YOUR services (website development, marketing and ecommerce). I have had (7) different customers come to me with this idea in the last month telling me about this niche in detail. Think about it, you don’t even need to know how to create a website thanks to freelancers who can build the site for you. The idea tech skills or not is that you are the middle person.

WHY: OK lets talk about WHY they want to create online business opportunities.

Explain to their business that a website that takes orders solves two problems.

The easier they can get orders online the better they can have them prepared. Here is a great example a restaurant that has a business lunch crowd could save time and pickup their order and skip the line.

Another plus would be their ability to ship food long distance like my favorite pizza place Giordanos in Chicago. I am from Chicago but living in Dallas (company based in Las Vegas). And I will tell you that the fact that they deliver to Dallas or anywhere in the USA is GREAT! If you know of a restaurant that is famous in your area they may want to consider this option depending on the type of food they offer.

The Plan: OK now you know what problem you are helping them solve so how do you reach them? Unfortunately there is no one easy answer to this. And if some one claims there is then RUN. Because get so called Guru is trying to take your money. The following online business ideas are some realistic suggestions. Keep in mind that you should target small business vs. corporations unless you have a connection to working with that model. Small business are usually more apparent.

Find out if your bank or banks in your target area are doing any training for business. Offer to introduce them to several online business opportunities by offering a free service i.e. a FREE website setup and hosting for a year if they purchase an option to setup their e commerce system through you.

Trade shows: Another great way to get people interested.
Chamber of Commerce events: great opportunity to share your online business ideas with other members and non members.
Local Business Associations: i.e. a restaurants association.

You have to formulate what services you are going to offer them and always present them with at least (3) different choices of packages and a fourth choice can be custom package. The average package I saw between all (7) clients seemed to be on the low end $1200 USD on the high end $6,000 USD.

The variation also depends on the type of business. Remember a location that has more than 70% business sales is more than likely to spend more because they see the money if their smart. But if it s business that get mostly residential patrons then make the price low and work with them.

PS UPDATE: I had to show you a a great link case study. This is how you can show potential clients how they can generate MORE customers from the internet! Thanks AJ for alerting me of this post.

23 Feb

What Einstein Teaches us about Marketing Online

What Einstein teaches us about marketing online. Though he has been dead for over 50 years there is a lot the genius can teach us today.

Despite the many online business ideas I have shared I seem to always come across someone looking at the forest before the trees. There is a misconception that marketing online means pursuing a formal education. Yet the most successful people seem to lack that very education. Don’t get me wrong I am in favor of education.

For years Einstein wanted to be a teacher and yet ended up in the patent office. Even there he shared some great idea’s for patents. He published a ton of brilliant written works from the patent office. Why didn’t he just do his job? Why didn’t he just focus on becoming a teacher? A bird doesn’t ask permission to become bird it just flies away. Einstein and the bird didn’t need permission to become what they believed themselves to actually be. Gary Vaynerchuk didn’t let the fact he didn’t really write or that he had little formal education on or offline prevent him from blogging.

My point here is marketing online is like Einstein and the bird. You should do what comes naturally. Not everyone is a social media person. Not everyone is a email marketing person (though it would help to be one). Though it ‘s important to gain an education about those area’s. Focusing on the next new fad may not be the way to go.

I have been building niche websites for years and I used to focus only on a few niches hoping to gain success in making money online. However until recent years I found myself doing more consulting work. All that time I focused on one route and mastered and maxed it out until I could go no further. I used to think you had to be “established” to consult for people big degrees and all. And when I tried to open the door to that it continued to close shut. Yet I noticed that people just kept coming to me for online business ideas. I did it unofficially for 10 years and here I am actually doing it now. No titles bells or whistles just real words, ideas and follow through.

Lesson 1: marketing online involves doing more than a title (GURU anyone?). You should do what your naturally do not what you have permission or title to do. A teacher is a teach because they teach not because they have the title.

Lesson 2: whatever your doing you better be GOOD at it (talent)

Lesson 3: Unlike the genius make sure you have a revenue stream tied to your endeavors. Searching for what your audience is looking for via Google is one of the best ideas created. Because it helps you build (or rebuild) the correct following.

27 Sep

Seth Godin Sunday: Writing a Book in the Internet Age

ANNOUNCEMENT: I have the Seth Godin Sunday listings now listed under categories so you can look at past postings. I recently was discussing with Seth a book I am writing and the best way to achieve this goal (publishing a printed book). His response was short and direct leading to this article he wrote some time ago. The smart thing here is that when ever someone asks him a question (I have started doing this also) he creates a post he can direct them towards.

Advice for authors

Always beware free advice. It is worth what it costs!

That said, I get a fair number of notes from well respected, intelligent people who are embarking on their first non-fiction book project. They tend to ask very similar questions, so I thought I’d go ahead and put down my five big ideas in one place to make it easier for everyone.

I guarantee you that you won’t agree with all of them, but, as they say, your mileage my vary.

1. Please understand that book publishing is an organized hobby, not a business.
The return on equity and return on time for authors and for publishers is horrendous. If you’re doing it for the money, you’re going to be disappointed.

On the other hand, a book gives you leverage to spread an idea and a brand far and wide. There’s a worldview that’s quite common that says that people who write books know what they are talking about and that a book confers some sort of authority.

2. The timeframe for the launch of books has gone from silly to unrealistic.
When the world moved more slowly, waiting more than a year for a book to come out was not great, but tolerable. Today, even though all other media has accelerated rapidly, books still take a year or more. You need to consider what the shelf life of your idea is.

3. There is no such thing as effective book promotion by a book publisher. read more here

21 Sep

Leaders and Parrots aka Product Launch Syndrome

usb-parrot Seems like every week there are a million product launches. And that doesn’t bother me especially when there are a billion plus people online.

What really grinds my gears is when they all promote the SAME stuff to the same list. So much so they have to add their own special bonuses. I wouldn’t even mind this except that copycat Guru wannabe syndrome is ridiculously contagious.

I am launching more personal products but what I am ever careful of is the leadership to parrot ratio. Don’t get me wrong if there is an offer you feel strongly about then promote it.But explain in detail WHY you feel strongly about promoting it despite others doing the same.I did this several times throughout Niche Product Classroom. But the difference was I haven’t followed up with a “brand new” whatever since or in other words 2 weeks later.

I promoted a recent program called Niche Product Classroom because they have been one of THE most informative courses I have seen and taken. I have promoted them for all of 2009 not just for a few weeks.

Six Minute to Success is a 6 minute a day course I take and recommend because I have taken that program all year . I have lost weight, and quadrupled my business vs a year ago.

11 Forgotten Laws I have also studied for sometime. I didn’t promote when everyone else did I promoted when I felt comfortable recommending them. Because I in fact used them.

The point here is that you must LEAD with interesting projects and not buckle under the pressure of the piss poor parrot syndrome.

20 Sep

Seth Godin Sunday: The Master of ONE

sethgodin I have spoke about this under One Thing at a Time. Unfortunately some don’t “get it.” Multitasking means NOTHING if you can’t DO one thing at a time. International speaker and author Dr Wayne Dyer says “We can only do ONE thing at a time”.

People get confused (I was here once too) into thinking that multitasking is more productive. WRONG. Successful people FOCUS one step at a time. My wife Cara and I have been wondering what a Chai Wallah was since we saw the Academy Award winning film “Slumdog Millionaire” a incredible movie! Also the story below is similar point Seth made a year ago about Looking for the guy with a hammer. The point as focus on mastery. Remember my saying “A Master of anything does not have to do everything.”

Chai Wallah

It’s so tempting to do a little bit of everything. All the tools are there, a click away. You can be the designer, the copywriter, the head of customer service. Hey, you can even do the manufacturing or easily outsource it to a commodity producer. One benefit of diversification is that you can average out your risk.

Or you can be a wallah. Someone who does only that one thing.

An old colleague of mine calls himself a chai wallah. Perhaps he loves spiced tea, but I’d prefer to believe it’s a reminder that his success lives and dies on the performance of just one task.

When you go all in, it focuses your attention and effort, doesn’t it?

13 Sep

Seth Godin Sundays: Dangerous Digital Thoughts

sethgodin I have been doing a lot of building and interviews for the media lately since my Forbes gig and the BBC honor on one of my niche sites. totally scared the hell out of a group Thus little time until now to blog.

One of the scariest things I have introduced since my time away is a thought to my online music business students about FREE. One of the many sites our company has launched this year is called BIZ4DaSoul which is a site that teaches people who want to make money online with their music.

I asked what if you gave away 90% of your music? Sell the 10% at a low price but make that 10% premium stuff they can’t get anywhere else.

The 90% would be used to get more live gigs and concert ticket sales and create online sales of other types of merchandise. The prerequisite is that you need an actual following but besides that you are set. Like Seth said in the article below. I know your music is worth a price but here is another way to look at it. You could create a greater crowd on the front end. And a lot of FREE publicity/ word of mouth. The wealthy are wealthy because they did what their competition didn’t.

Sam Walton was building where Kmart wasn’t (little towns and rural area’s)

Like Seth said flip it. No matter what your niche or area of expertise you should flip it. In this current economical environment what have you got to lose?

Flipping abundance and scarcity by Seth Godin

I think it’s dangerous and often fatal to put free on top of an existing business model. Things fall apart.

People look at the free revolution and say, “oh, that could never work. If I gave x, y or z away for free, I’d fail.” They’re right. They will fail… If they keep the model the same and just give away stuff for free.

The way you win is by reinventing the model itself. So, for example, lululemon doing giant free yoga classes in New York. The more people come, the more clothes they’ll sell… it’ll become a movement. Or Crossfit, publishing their insane work outs online. The more people do them, the better the scarce part (private coaching, etc.) does.

We spent a generation believing certain parts of our business needed to be scarce and that advertising and other interruption should be abundant. Part of the pitch of free is that when advertising goes away, you need to make something else abundant in order to gain attention. Then, and only then, will you be able to sell something that’s naturally scarce.

This is an uncomfortable flip to make, because the stuff you’ve been charging for feels like it should be charged for, and the new scarcity is often difficult to find. But, especially in the digital world, this is happening, and faster than ever.

06 Sep

Seth Godin Sunday:If its Magic

I was reading the post below by Seth and immediately thought of Stevie Wonders “If it’s Magic” from Songs in the Key of Life. Seth makes a strong point about the job/ role of the online market (entrepreneur).

Fail Fast Forward is my credo! Corporate marketers get eaten alive on this side of marketing. Online marketing or entrepreneurship is not a game nor get rich quick scheme. Online endeavors takes time and attention. Magic it is not.

Magic beans, TV and the web

New media isn’t the perfect marketing medium, and it won’t be until we find the magic beans.

TV had magic beans for forty years. For forty years, anyone, even a complete moron, could make a lot of money using TV ads. Buy enough ads, don’t screw up, you’re rich.

The hard part was buying enough ads, but once you did that, victory could be declared.

On the web, there are countless marketers just standing around waiting for someone to hand them the magic beans. And that’s the problem.

Marketing online takes too much measurement, patience, creativity, technical knowledge, flexibility, speed and authenticity. It requires too much thinking and not enough going out for dinner with clients.

Perhaps there will never be magic beans again. Perhaps marketing is about to transition to a new kind of profession, one that requires insight, dedication and smarts.

Or maybe someone will find some magic beans.

30 Aug

Seth Godin Sunday: Meaning

The following is a brilliant thought by Seth. However I am not sure if you are doing it by heart or doing it by “training”. I think we all of us are so used to reacting a certain way that we often don’t STOP to wonder why.

Do me a favor. After you read below. stop and wonder why you are here. Is it for me, Seth, or you? Are you looking for something and if so what is it? As Seth said below is it obvious because it’s true, or true because it’s obvious.

The problem with doing it by heart

The following does not appear in the Star Spangled Banner:

“Babe Ruth through the night…”

When you do something by heart, it bypasses some of the common sense processing we use to navigate our day. Of course Babe Ruth wasn’t even a sparkle in Mrs. Ruth’s eye during the War of 1812, but if you’re singing by heart, you don’t think about it.

I walked into a cheap noodle joint in Soho last month and decided I wanted tofu with vegetables. They had a little plate on display (a special, I guess) and I asked for tofu, vegetables, no sauce. The cashier pointed to the display model and said, “like this?”

I said, “with no sauce,” because the gloppy stuff didn’t appeal to me.

So, after asking, clearly, twice, I sat down. Four minutes later, they called my number and handed me an identical copy to the display item, oozing with fluorescent sauce.

“I was hoping that there’d be no sauce…”

She didn’t miss a beat. She said, “that’s the way it always comes.”

She wasn’t being evil. She was merely doing it by heart. Just like the intolerant judgmental guy who can quote you chapter and verse from his spiritual book of choice but never thought about the meaning of the words inside or the status quo protecting technician who isn’t a scientist because she’s afraid of violating something that feels like a law.

The next time you or one of your people starts rattling off the obvious truth by heart, wonder about whether it’s obvious because it’s true, or true because it’s obvious.

23 Aug

Seth Godin Sunday: Different

Someone along the line of blogging said you should write a 7 top list

Someone told you to write lists long so people would bookmark them

They told you to write about how to’s

They told you to write about SEO

The told you to do a lot of the same.

What IF just IF you wrote to share something you loved?

What if you didn’t give a darn if it is more economical and practical to say what a conventional copywriter suggested and you wrote from your soul?

Being different isn’t a choice it is an acceptance. After all God made us all different. Seth wrote a blog about the long tale you should read.

16 Aug

Is Seth Godin Talking about Niche Businesses?

4 out of 4 Seth's recommend it !

Is Seth Godin Talking about Niche Businesses? I think so.

He wrote a really cool post called Lessons from very tiny businesses.

In it Seth said

1. Go where your customers are.

2. Be micro-focused and the search engines will find you.

3. Outlast the competition.

4. Leverage.

5. Respond.

And the interesting thing is that said avoided the lists and 5 things headlines LOL! .

16 Aug

Seth Godin Sunday: 2 Posts to Consider and Why

4 out of 4 Seth's recommend it !

Seth was ON FIRE this week as you will see in excerpts of the two posts listed. I am also adding two more posts about his week he really touched bases with me. I hope he does the same with you.

These two posts touch home with me because of the crazy comments I see on posts that people place just to get attention. But it’s the wrong type of attention. The attention isn’t based on knowledge. A lot of screaming opinions. Sound familiar my fellow entrepreneurs? LOL!

The second article is right on point with my thoughts about the incubator baby system. Start and test small then grow from there. Afterall how in the world would your business model run correctly as a airline when it doesn’t run correctly as a cab company?

Willfully ignorant vs. aggressively skeptical

Challenging the status quo is what I do for a living. Either that or encourage other people to do it.

But there are two ways to do it, and one of them is ineffective, short-sighted and threatens the fabric of the tribe. The other seems to work.

I heard someone screaming about death panels and how the government was not only going to kill his grandmother, but would take out Stephen Hawking himself if it had the chance.

The screaming is a key part, because screaming is often a tool used to balance out the lazy ignorance of someone parroting opposition to an idea that they don’t understand. (If you want to write to me about this post, please write to me about the screaming part, not about whether or not you agree with the facts or the science. That’s what the post is about, the screaming.)

If you want to challenge the conventional wisdom of health care reform, please do! It’ll make the final outcome better. But if you choose to do that, it’s essential that you know more about it than everyone else, not less. Certainly not zero. Be skeptical, but be informed (about everything important, not just this issue, of course). Screaming ignorance gets read more

Lessons from very tiny businesses

1. Go where your customers are.

Jacquelyne runs a tiny juice company called Chakwave. I met her in Los Angeles, standing next to an organic lunch truck. Like the little birds that clean the teeth of the hippo, there’s synergy here. The kind of person that visits the truck for lunch is the sort of person that would happily pay for something as wonderfully weird as her juice. And the truck owners benefit from the rolling festival farmer’s market feel that comes from having a synergistic partner set up on a bridge table right next door.

2. Be micro-focused and the search engines will find you.

My friend Patti Jo is an extraordinary teacher and tutor. Her new business, The Scarsdale Tutor doesn’t need many clients in order to be successful. This permits her to focus obsessively and that gets rewarded with front page results on Google. Not because she’s tried to manipulate the seo (she hasn’t) but because this is exactly the page you’d hope to find if you typed “scarsdale tutor” into a search engine. Could she do this nationwide? Of course not. But she doesn’t want to or need to. Living on the long tail can be profitable. read more you will love this!

11 Aug

Tips for Transitioning from DIY Marketer to Marketing Manager in a Week

This has been one of my largest growth years. And Since the growth of 60+ Niche sites management is a big thing for me these days. Allen Taylor at Taylor and Associates reached out to me a week ago with a blog post that I think several of us should read.