SiteSell Blog

Does the "M" Stage Make You Feel Uncomfortable?

Monetization

The art of business is for the marketer and the customer to gladly make a profit off each other. Your customer happily parts with time or money in return for whatever you are offering.

Selling something does not put you in the "used car salesman" slot unless you do it badly, meaning that your customer does not make a profit off of what you offer.

Many online business owners don't want to be seen as "money-grabbing." Push past that growth-limiting attitude and evolve. You must decide to make money or have a hobby site.

Pointers for Sourcing Product

Monetization

Do you want to sell hard goods online? Are you considering an online store as one of your income streams? Either you make the products yourself to sell or you find third party "makers" and sell their goods. The hunt for the latter is known as "sourcing product."

Start your search close by. You may know people who create their own products (artist, designer, pewter maker, sculptor, welder, wood carver, writer, etc.). Do their products fit with your site's theme? Yes? Contact them, and set up a sales agreement. You market and distribute their products, and they pay you an acceptable percentage. This way, no out-of-pocket expenses are required to stock inventory on your part.

When you are sourcing product, all it takes is a little creative "outside the box" thinking to locate an opportunity that "fits" with your e-business. Instead of being a "creator of product" become an "aggregator of products."

Lots of Traffic? Sell Ad Space!

Monetization

Are you planning to sell advertising space on your well-established website? Advertising rates vary widely among niches. A site about finance or investing can demand a higher ad fee than a site about novelty gifts.

If there's no "set standard," how do you calculate the value of an ad on your site? Here are some suggestions...

1) Over and above your niche consideration, take into account factors such as...

• PageRank of page (when linking out)

• Your site's Alexa traffic rank

• Traffic numbers for the page where the link will be located

• Keyword value (both the keywords the advertiser wants to use in the ad and keyword value of the page where the ad will be located)

• Age of your site (a well established site vs. a new and not as virally connected site).

2) Use the Google Adwords Keyword Tool to find out what advertisers are paying for each of your important keywords.

3) Do a search for advertising rate sheets available from other sites. You will get a good idea of what your competition is charging for ads.

Once you finalize your rate structure, move on to the next step...

Why Are Testimonials Like Potato Chips?

Digital & Hard Goods

What’s the biggest single factor your visitor will look for if she decides your product is just what she wants?

Your credibility.

Overcome any fears and doubts convincingly by telling her what your present customers have experienced.

Testimonials are incredibly persuasive. If you can get your visitor to read a testimonial, you have jumped quite a bit ahead in your sales effort. And testimonials are like potato chips... once you eat one, you want another and another and another.

The keys to an effective testimonial are...

Want to Sell a Product? Focus on Its Benefits

Monetization

Many businesses that sell a product (or service) mistake its "features" for "benefits" over and over again. Why? Because they design features into the product. They don't, however, experience the benefits... customers do.

And the customers want the benefits, not the features. You know the old saying..."Customers don't want quarter-inch drill bits... they want quarter-inch holes."

So you must deliver benefits, not features. Don't confuse the two on your sales page.

Does eBay Own Your Online Auctions? Start Turning the Tables!

Monetization

Net auction selling (and eBay, specifically) is attractive for several reasons...

• easy to do
• no financial risk
• only an auction listing is required
• lots of targeted traffic actively searching for your type of product or service
• fun and excitement
• etc.

These positive attributes paint a rosy picture, and for the most part, this "picture" is valid. That's why entrepreneurs continue to join and stay with eBay. The payback potential is high and there is a strong sense of community among auction sellers. On a daily basis, you get to meet and/or do business with people who share similar interests to yours.

The Finder's Fee Model Generates Leads

Monetization

The finder's fee model is as classic as business itself... get paid for referrers or a finder's fee by finding customers (or "leads"). In other words, you become the key intermediary between surfers looking for information/solutions and business owners (especially those ones offline) who provide the products or services these surfers are seeking.

It's a worthwhile monetization option for your SBI! site because...

Monetization Lessons

Monetization

Apply these SBI! monetization lessons as you grow your online business. Remember "M" (making money online) comes after you have lots of presold targeted traffic... Content Traffic PREsell Monetization.

http://ctpm.sitesell.com/

• "How can I use this on my website, for my visitors?" Think hard on that question. Quick, smart answers only tend to pop into your head after a lot of hard thought.
• You make as much or more as your efforts deserve.
• Income (and effort) depends on your goals. Perhaps you want to replace a full time salary (and make it grow) or supplement family income for a summer vacation and/or save for college for the kids....

Monetize User-Generated Content with AdSense It!

Monetization

Content Traffic PREsell is the engine that drives successful e-businesses. Not just any content, though. High-quality relevant information, written to please both human visitors and Search Engines alike, is what turns information into income.

And you need lots of content to pull in targeted traffic. Once you have twenty-five to thirty pages of content, you can see business-building momentum happening. With a hundred pages, your site's foundation is solid, with room to grow, of course.

Researching and writing customer-focused content pages is one of the most time-consuming aspects of your e-business, at least in the early stages. You are always on the hunt for fresh topic ideas and new trends within your niche market. Plus...

It's critical for you, especially in the beginning, to put your personal stamp on your site via your writing style. That's how your visitors get to know, like, and trust you, the person behind the site and business. It's your content that "warms them up."

Information-packed content presented with personality both attracts and presells targeted traffic. Presold visitors convert more easily into customers. Conversion = Profits. And round and round the C T P M process goes.

It all begins with Content. There's an easy way to fuel that "C" sparkplug and it won't cost you a cent...

How and When To Monetize Your Site

Monetization

Building a Theme-Based Content Site is a flexible strategy that anyone can use to create an online income. But do you know the #1 mistake that most small business people commit while starting their online businesses?

They start with Monetization. For example...

Some people want to open an e-store and sell widgets. Great! But it's way too early to work on the M in Content Traffic PREsell Monetize. They need to nail down Content Traffic PREsell first.

Others have decided to start a work-from-home business. They've heard of Google AdSense and want to create a site just to "sell" AdSense ads. Good idea, but wrong mindset.

Others want to earn income by being affiliates, another way of never dealing with a customer. There are several other ways to earn "income without customers."

Or they are already eBayers and want to expand their established "power seller" eBay status, and drive more traffic to their eBay stores.

Perhaps they realize the power of the Web for building a Network Marketing business. What an advantage! MLM online is a disaster area. No one "gets it" yet! Build a C T P L site. What does the "L" stand for? Leads... warm, PREsold leads who call the MLMer!

Maybe they want to boost traffic to an existing e-commerce venture. Or even boost their local, offline retail store or real estate agency.

Or they have plans to write an e-book to sell from a dedicated sales page on their own site, and/or in other locations such as ClickBank's Marketplace.

These are all great ideas, but...

It's too early to have decided upon "the" way to monetize when they start building their online business. And it would be too early for you as well.

Here's another way to look at it...

Think of the M as the finish line, the gold medal, the trophy—after completing a road race or a sports event. It's what we strive for—the glorious reward for our efforts.

The M comes last, yes... But think about it before you build your web site, before you even settle for a site concept.

First, please realize that you most likely won't choose only one monetization model. A diversified portfolio of monetization options will build you a stronger, more profitable, and more stable business. So...

Even if you think you know exactly how you will monetize, don't lock yourself into one monetization model. Be willing to consider other ways to monetize. Why leave money on the table?

There are many more ways to convert C T P into M. A diversified business is a bigger, more prosperous business.

Check this site for examples of business models and how to make them thrive online: find.sitesell.com.