Create the desire so people buy from you!

Pat Sutton | March 14th, 2010 - 3:04 pm

The ‘desire’ portion of your profile is where you present the facts of your expertise and success; create and justify your prospect’s conviction and cause him to demand a piece of the action’ for himself. MPj04443420000[1]
It’s vitally necessary that you present proven facts because survey results show that at least 80% of the people reading your profile – especially those reading it for the first time – will tend to question its truthfullness. So, the more facts you can present, the more credible you will be.

As you write your profile, always remember that the more facts about “you” you present, the more products you’ll sell.
People want facts as reasons, and/or excuses for buying a product – to justify to themselves and others, that they have not been ‘taken’ by a slick copywriter. It’s like the girl who wants to marry the guy her father calls a ‘no good waster’, her heart – her emotions – tell her yes, but she needs to nullify the seed of doubt lingering in her mind – to rationalize her decision to go on with the wedding.
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About the Author: Pat Sutton is A Profile Coach and Internet Marketing Specialist. She is Senior Editor of http://www.PatSutton.com Don't forget to sign up for her mailing list to receive the FREE E-Book on how to profit from posting on forums!Create the desire so people buy from you!

Email Marketing using Auto Responders.

Pat Sutton | February 15th, 2010 - 5:49 pm

Sales letters through your letter box are hated by everyone. It’s unwanted, uninvited and fills your re-cycling bin. But it’s pretty clear that it’s also incredibly popular with advertisers. Why? Because while most potential customers throw away their junk letters with barely a glance, enough take action to make it all worthwhile.
They do buy—and in high enough numbers to more than cover the cost of those who don’t.

Email marketing is pretty similar, but with one important difference: on the Web, you can only send marketing emails to people who have already chosen to receive them. A bit tricky!

On the other hand, because those people have already chosen to receive your emails, you can be confident that they’re going to be interested in them.

So how do you get these valuable e-mail address? [...]

About the Author: Pat Sutton is A Profile Coach and Internet Marketing Specialist. She is Senior Editor of http://www.PatSutton.com Don't forget to sign up for her mailing list to receive the FREE E-Book on how to profit from posting on forums!Email Marketing using Auto Responders.

The best affiliates for your blog.

Pat Sutton | February 14th, 2010 - 9:24 am

A lot of people ask me to suggest affiliates. They want to know which ones are the most effective at monetising their blog. I suppose it would be safe to say that I have done a hell of a lot of research on this subject as bad choices can make the difference between a profitable blogging business and bad choices can mean no business at all.

It is a difficult one because it all depends on your target audience.
Of-course there are some great generic ones like Chitika which is an online advertising network which works a little like Adsense. For me Chitika far surpasses Adsense because not only can you earn with click throughs you can also earn a residual income for 15 months on your referrals earnings. [...]

About the Author: Pat Sutton is A Profile Coach and Internet Marketing Specialist. She is Senior Editor of http://www.PatSutton.com Don't forget to sign up for her mailing list to receive the FREE E-Book on how to profit from posting on forums!The best affiliates for your blog.

How To Plan The Perfect Website!

Pat Sutton | February 9th, 2010 - 1:52 pm

According to Wikipedia – The Internet actually started in 1969, (yes, only 1969!), as the ARPANET, a Defense Department system designed to let survivors share files after a nuclear attack. From being available on just a handful of top secret computers, it’s grown to millions and millions of users.

And it’s still growing. According to a recent survey, the volume of Internet traffic is expected to double annually over the next five years. Consumers are expected to account for 70 percent of all Internet traffic over that period with the rest of the market made up of business users.

What does that mean for you?

It means customers—millions of them.

No other business tool can put the products you sell in front of so many people so easily. Nothing even comes close. [...]

About the Author: Pat Sutton is A Profile Coach and Internet Marketing Specialist. She is Senior Editor of http://www.PatSutton.com Don't forget to sign up for her mailing list to receive the FREE E-Book on how to profit from posting on forums!How To Plan The Perfect Website!

Has your business suffered due to the credit crunch?

Pat Sutton | February 4th, 2010 - 3:00 pm

It’s not often that I blatently promote something but for once our government has made the right decision to help ailing businesses in the West Midlands in The UK. It is a fact that the West Midlands has suffered more than any other area in the UK and at last this is being addressed. So I am un-ashamedly championing this directive, namely, The Business Recovery Service.
If you are a business in the West Midlands, UK, and you are struggling, The Business Recovery Service will provide a FREE responsive, targeted service to West Midlands small to medium enterprises that can demonstrate they are ‘at risk’ due to the current economic climate.

This dedicated service will ensure that businesses have a strategic business recovery action plan that will initially stabilise the business and stem its losses to ensure its survival. The business can then be introduced back into the mainstream business support.

What does this free programme deliver? [...]

About the Author: Pat Sutton is A Profile Coach and Internet Marketing Specialist. She is Senior Editor of http://www.PatSutton.com Don't forget to sign up for her mailing list to receive the FREE E-Book on how to profit from posting on forums!Has your business suffered due to the credit crunch?

The IPad – I want one.

Pat Sutton | January 31st, 2010 - 12:14 pm

I change my mobile every 6 or 7 months for no other reason than I fancy a change.

I buy something then use it for a little while then, when the novelty wears off, I sell it on Ebay.

If you were to look at my Ebay profile you would see that I actually admit to being a gadget freak.

I have been hankering for an e-book reader and have been doing some extensive research on them but I am so glad that I haven’t succumbed as I have fallen in love with the idea of having the new Apple IPad.

I have got to say that it’s one of my failings, I fall in love with the idea of having something but once I have it in my sticky hands there is always an anti-climax. I think the fun is in the chase and the more difficult it is to get the more excitement for me.

The one thing I hate doing is waiting, if I want something I want it now! I want the IPad, the one with all the bells and whistles but shock horror, I will have to wait until at least April 2010 for it – oh the pain!

Well according to the Apple website, it is going to beat netbooks and e-readers hands down….oooh can’t wait!
So watch this space for my honest review when I get it in my mits!

About the Author: Pat Sutton is A Profile Coach and Internet Marketing Specialist. She is Senior Editor of http://www.PatSutton.com Don't forget to sign up for her mailing list to receive the FREE E-Book on how to profit from posting on forums!The IPad – I want one.

Don’t wait for Business Opportunities to knock – you’ll wait forever!

Pat Sutton | January 30th, 2010 - 11:47 am

If you’re sitting at home on the sofa watching Law and Order and you hear a rat-a-tat-tat on your door! Don’t get excited, it’s not a business opportunity knocking!
If you’re comfy in front of your computer chatting to someone on Facebook then your attention is in the wrong direction to notice a fleeting business opportunity flying by.

I know it’s a cliché, but you need to get out of your comfort zone and rattle some cages!

Here are my five tips for opportunity ambushing.

1. Join referral networking clubs – people buy from people so you need to get out there and talk about yourself and your business. Be prepared to refer members and they will in return refer you, that’s how these clubs work. There’s only one downfall to these type of clubs – they are usually at an ungodly hour of the morning so make sure you make the most of them – not my best time!

2. Join LinkedIn groups – for instance, if you’re a widget training business, it’s pointless joining a group of widget trainers, unless it’s to get a few pointers. You need to look for groups of people who are likely to want your service. Interact with the right people, listen to their story, answer their questions and comment on their articles. Get known and seen! An opportunity will come out of it, I promise.

3. Give something away for free. Something that will show your potential customer just how good you are. They may not buy from you straight away but they will remember you when they are in need of a service such as yours.

4. Send “snail mail” – a postcard to a business up your street is a very inexpensive way of marketing but it can be effective. I use Vistaprint for the cheapest postcards and business cards.
You see, regardless of the long arm of the World Wide Web, many of us still like to work with people from our own local area. Let’s say you are looking for some widget training. You’ve found two companies that can do it for £250 a day. One is located the other side of the country and the other is just around the corner, which would you choose?
Keep a record of your mailing list and what has gone to them because once is never enough, you need to get in front of them as many times as you can so they will think of you when the time comes. If you’re worried that you’re wasting your time and money then give them a call and politely ask them if they would like to continue to receive correspondence from you – you never know, it could spark up a relationship at least!

5. Join small online social networks – I’m not talking about drowning in the Facebook pool. I’m talking about small free networks like my women’s peer network where you can get to know people and join their groups and actually interact. You can make connections and even learn something new.

Just one health warning – An opportunity that may well come knocking is the sheep in wolf’s clothing with a, never to be missed, get rich quick scheme. If it sounds too good to be true, then it usually is!

About the Author: Pat Sutton is A Profile Coach and Internet Marketing Specialist. She is Senior Editor of http://www.PatSutton.com Don't forget to sign up for her mailing list to receive the FREE E-Book on how to profit from posting on forums!Don’t wait for Business Opportunities to knock – you’ll wait forever!

A good way to beat writer’s block!

Pat Sutton | January 18th, 2010 - 1:34 pm

One of my favourite bloggers at the moment is James Chartrand. Here is one of his wonderful tips for when we’re suffering from blogger’s block.
“Great quotations are the richest goldmine of blog post ideas you’ll ever have.”

So I popped over to Wikiquote and found this great quotation by Sarah Bernhardt -  “Life engenders life. Energy creates energy. It is by spending oneself that one becomes rich.”

This is what I have been prattling on about for months. Give, give, give and eventually you will receive. Take a look at my blog, “Selling to the taxi driver” and you’ll see what I mean.

Here’s another:

“Life is either a daring adventure, or nothing.” Helen Keller

I love this one, how many of you have the courage to really take a chance – to give up that job you hate or walk away from an employer who infuriates you? How may of you would love to be your own boss but have no idea how to do it?

I did it, I gave up a full time job to become an internet entrepreneur and I have never looked back. My choice of businesses fitted my values and beliefs, I chose to build a Blog site, this one, and to join a company called LifePathUnlimited.
It is important that you choose the right one for you and also the right mentor to help you on your way. If you want help with your life decisions please do contact me.

If you see yourself as an author and are interested in a monetised blog site then don’t forget to check out the fabulous Darren Rowse’s Blogger’s Workbook, it is what set me off on the right track.

“Just remember that even a long life is not long enough and an opportunity missed is not something lost but something never achieved.”
And that’s one of mine!

Pat Sutton – Blog Author at http://www.patsutton.com

A good way to beat writer’s block!

How to market your website so that people buy from you!

Pat Sutton | December 7th, 2009 - 9:02 pm

It doesn’t matter what kind of business you have and how benevolent you are, you can give things away for free, you can raise money for great causes, you can hold people’s hands but everyone at sometime needs to make a living.
The baker puts bread on your table, not to feed your family but to feed his own!42-15654396

I am sure, if you own a bakery or a grocers then online marketing is not so important but if you have a product or service that has a website at it’s heart then you need to know how to drive traffic, create a contact list and to make sales.

Ok, so you have a great website that showcases your products or services or you have signed up for an online, work at home business that has provided you with their propriatory website to promote – what next?

It doesn’t matter what kind of online or offline business you have, if you sell from a website then you need to get it out there to the right target audience.

Not many of us are really clever enough to know, for sure, who will buy from us, I promise you, I have had many surprises! But somehow we need to work out how to get our business in front of buying customers. So a scatter gun approach is not really the way to do it, you need to target the right people.

So how do you recruit people to an online business. How do you get people to come to your website?
Online? Offline? Cold calling? Friends and family?

Let’s look at Friends and Family first.
If you want to lose friends then pitch to them, the same with family members. I don’t know about you but I would hate it if my loved ones avoided me because they felt guilty for not buying into my business! So that is a definite “no no”.

Cold calling? Hey! I’m into this online gig because I want to enjoy it, I want a better quality of life and cold calling just does not do it for me! So, for me, that’s out too.

Offline – now here’s a thing – yes it can work, even for an online business. You could:

1. Get out there to your local business networking events.

2. Build relationships with local business owners to encourage referrals.

3. Take stands at exhibitions.

4. Advertise in the newspapers.

5. Give out flyer’s in shopping malls and markets.

6. Carry business cards for those chance encounters!

Then there’s ONLINE.
Now this is where your marketing can really rock!

Here are my 5 very best online marketing tips.

1. Any good at writing?
You don’t have to be Jeffrey Archer but a good clear blog with all the right keywords can be a fantastic marketing tool.
The article should not be about your business but about something helpful for the reader. Of-course it should be linked to your business, for instance if you are a garden landscaper then an article or blog about growing roses would be good but a blog about baking a chocolate cake may not be.
You need to engage with the reader, they need to see you as a leader and expert.
Once you have constructed your blog or article you then need to add a clear succinct signature at the bottom, this is very important for obvious reasons.

I know what you’re asking….what do I do with my blog once it is finished?

Well if you have a blog section on your website then that is ideal as readers can click to your website to read the blog.

You would open your blog on your website, copy the URL or address and add that link along with a catchy intro like:
An easy way to bake a chocolate cake – if you love chocolate you’ll love this – http://www……
You would add it to places like Facebook, Twitter, Ecademy, LinkedIn etc that’s assuming that you are a member of all these social sites, if not why not???

If you have written your blog on someone else’s website, like Blogger, Ezines or another blogging platform like my site for business women, TheBusinessWoman then you need to make sure that all your website details are in your signature.

2. Twitter!
I know a lot of people think that Twitter is a waste of time well, I promise you that it is not, if you do it right.
A daily tweet containing great advice to followers who are your target audience can really boost your profile. If you have a good profile then people will see you in a good light and are more likely to buy from you. If you read my blog, How to market on Twitter, you will see how you can make Twitter really work for your business.

3. Facebook Fan Pages.
Create a fan page with the same name as your business then set to work making friends and then inviting them to become fans of your page. Once you have a reasonable amount of members you can create a badge to upload onto your website. This creates a sense of community and will give confidence to your website visitors. Of-course you also have your fans to market to as well.

4. Relationships.
Join groups and forums to get to know people, (not to pitch to them), once they get to know you they will eventually ask you what you do and then you can get away with a subtle pitch.

5. LinkedIn groups.
Join the groups on LinkedIn, you are allowed upto 50 group memberships. Of-course you need to find groups of people who would be interested in your sector and will be beneficial to you as well. Then once in a group you can upload your articles or blogs to their discussion pages. These are then sent out by the system to the group members in update e-mails. Some of the groups have memberships of thousands of people each so your one article alone can get you enormous exposure.

Pat Sutton – Internet Marketing Specialist – Official Blog Site http://www.PatSutton.com
Business Mentor with LifePath Unlimited – http://www.ThisBusinessRocks.com

How to market your website so that people buy from you!

Forget the glass ceiling – use the fire escape instead!

Pat Sutton | December 2nd, 2009 - 5:36 am

When, after 8 years, I decided to emerge from the security of a monthly salary I was met with the usual, “Are you sures and are you mads”

Thankfully, I didn’t listenj0443905

I felt that as Marketing Director of a company like Advantage Business Angels I was being held back.
My talent for thinking outside the box was not really required in a, dare I say it, formal, don’t do anything radical, don’t do anything crazy, institution like ABA.
I understood, we had to be seen as reliable, dependable, professional – in other words a bit stuffy, for people to take us seriously but it didn’t help me and my yearning to have my creativity unleashed!

My multi tasking skills are quite good, after all I am a woman, but even the most organised of people would struggle with a seriously demanding Managing Director, (sorry Neil), Magistrate’s duties, mothering duties, grandmothering duties and trying to run a business in my spare time duties.

So I did it – I’m now free – free to follow my dream to be an Internet marketing queen.
And I have just received my first official accolade – I am in the company of some fabulous ladies on The Forbes List of The 30 Women Entrepreneurs to follow on Twitter – I have made my mother so proud and I’m quite proud of myself as well.

Pat Sutton – Professional Blogger and Internet Marketing Specialist – Official Blog – http://www.PatSutton.com
Follow me on Twitter “TheBizWoman”

Forget the glass ceiling – use the fire escape instead!