4 Reasons to Create Your Own Podcast for Your Business or Hobby

Podcasting is a powerful, inexpensive and easy new medium for sharing your message with a focused and passionate audience. As a podcaster you’ll become a recognized expert in your area of interest or expertise. You can use podcasting to boost your credibility, build your list of customers and gain a fan base very quickly. This makes podcasting a great tool to promote a product or service. Here are four reasons you need to start a podcast today whether for fun or for business. 1. Become a Recognized Expert or Celebrity in Your Chosen Niche How would you like to be recognized as an authority in your area of interest or expertise? Podcasts are popping up all over the internet on every imaginable subject. But things are just getting started. Chances are you can still be one of the first to start a podcast in your chosen niche. You can quickly be recognized as an expert in your field. This is a powerful way to build a following or strong customer base. Think about when you hear or see someone on the radio or TV. They have instant credibility. As a podcaster you will enjoy the same credibility. People will value your opinion. You can leverage this position to influence your audience, promote yourself and even make money. If you have an audience that is interested in a specific niche, there will always be others who want to reach that audience, too. This is how you find advertisers or sponsors. 2. Quickly Gain a Very Focused Audience With the right content, you will gain listeners fast. Not only that, but your audience is potentially worldwide. You can offer quality content to keep in touch with your customers and keep yourself, your product or your service in the front of their mind. Podcasting is a great way to cut through the clutter and reach your audience. This is not like the radio where your listener is waiting for something that interests him. He has chosen to listen to your podcast because it interests him. This makes podcasts very effective for promotion, marketing and growing a focused audience. 3. Podcasting is a Convenient, Automatic and Inexpensive Way to Reach Your Audience or Customers One reason that podcasting has become so popular is that it's automated. Listeners subscribe to your feed. This means they don’t have to remember to return your site to check for new content. When you post new content, it's automatically downloaded to your listener. Because listeners subscribe to podcasts, they have chosen to receive your content. They have already shown interest in your message by subscribing. In addition, a podcast does not get lost in SPAM like with e-mail. You can be sure your message is reaching a focused audience. This means your content automatically reaches your audience without any barriers increasing the efficiency and ease of delivering your message. Because your podcast is delivered over the internet, it's a very inexpensive means of communication. 4. With Equipment You Probably Already Own and For Very Little Cost, Your Podcast Could be Online in Just Hours All you need to start your podcast is a computer, a microphone and a broadband internet connection. Later, you can buy nicer gear if you want. For now you can get started with very little cost. All you need is something to say and a desire to say it. If you were to try and do the same thing on the radio, you would have to face all kinds of FCC regulations to learn and follow. Plus you would have the expense of broadcasting. Podcasting removes all of that cost and trouble. With my how to podcast tutorial web site, your first podcast can be online in less than a day. SUMMARY Podcasting is a powerful and easy way to reach a focused audience. Whether for fun or to make money, podcasting allows you to easily reach a focused and loyal audience. You can brand yourself as an expert or celebrity in your niche. You can get started with no more gear than your computer, a microphone and a broadband internet connection. People could be listening to your podcast in less than a day. Make your voice heard.

3 Indispensable Tools to Catapult the Affiliate Marketer's Sales

Before plunging in and dissecting the three most important tools you'll need to succeed in Affiliate Marketing, let me first list at least some of the questions which any hopeful affiliate marketer worth his/her salt should want answered before even considering entering this profitable field. 1. What does it take to become a successful Affiliate Marketer? 2.


What are the key ingredients of an affiliate marketing success story? 3. Is there a shortcut to Affiliate Marketing glory? These are the kinds of questions that play around in the minds of hopeful affiliate marketers, and I'll do my best to answer them in this article. Although affiliate marketing is touted as one of the easiest and most effective ways to earn money online, it's not as easy as it sounds. The wise affiliate marketer plans every action and executes it the best way he can. Having the right tools can spell the difference between becoming a major success story, or winding up beaten and penniless, as many do.

 It is vital that the potential affiliate marketer accept the fact that only by using the right tools will his/her Affiliate Marketing business become a profitable venture. We have consulted some of the most successful affiliate marketers in the business in this regard and they have generously revealed what are, in their opinion, the top three Key Tools for a successful affiliate marketing business. Straight from them to you, these are discussed below.

 Key Tool #1: YOUR OWN WEBSITE The most important and indispensable tool in Affiliate Marketing is having your own website. The first step in any successful affiliate marketing business is building a good, credible and professional looking website. Your website is the jumping off point for all your marketing efforts. Thus, you must first build a user-friendly website which will appeal to your prospects and encourage them to click on the links to the products and services you are promoting (and, hopefully, make a purchase). It is vital, therefore, to focus your efforts on building a website that will cater to what your prospects need. The most important thing you should always keep in mind is that almost all web users go online to look for information, and not necessarily to buy something. Above all else, make your website full of original, relevant and useful content. People love articles that are appealing and helpful. Remember that, on the internet, content is king, and good, quality content will not only build your credibility, it can also help you achieve a higher search engine ranking. By posting relevant and useful articles, you establish yourself as an expert in that field, making you a more trustworthy endorser of the product or service you promote. Establishing a good reputation is a tremendous step in building up a loyal customer base.

 Key Tool #2: USING INCENTIVES Competition is extremely tight in the internet world. You must always be one step ahead of your competition to ensure that you capture a significant share of your target market. Therefore, you must use every possible means to encourage people not only to visit your site, but also to click and proceed to the websites of the products and services you're promoting. Building an opt-in email list is one of the best ways to gather potential prospects. Start your own newsletter or ezine. Then, offer value-added incentives to your prospects to encourage them to subscribe to your newsletter. You can give away fr.ee software, access to exclusive services, a fr.ee eBook, or even fr.ee access to any product you may have tried to market in the past which didn't sell well - this could be your own product, or one to which you have resell rights. The fact that it didn't sell well for you doesn't mean that your prospect won't find it a valuable gift...particularly, when it's fr.ee!

 Key Tool #3: LINK POPULARITY The importance of driving highly targeted traffic to your website can't be overemphasized. The all-important web traffic is at the top of the list of the most important properties in the internet world. Commit this to memory. Attracting people to your site should be your first, and foremost, order of business. Do everything to achieve a high search engine ranking. Link Popularity is one of the factors that search engines use to determine search engine rankings. Thus, to enhance your link popularity, you must launch an aggressive, no holds-barred, reciprocal link campaign. One of the best ways to do this, at no cost at all, is by submitting articles with your website's link in the resource box to e-zines and article directory sites. This will not only bring exposure, you will also have the opportunity to advertise for fr.ee just by including a link back to your site. The more sites you submit your articles to, the better your link popularity can be. Work diligently to make your articles are original, relevant and useful, so that more websites will pick them up. It's impossible to put a price tag on the exposure these efforts will bring you. There you have them...

 These are but three of the many tools that an affiliate marketer can use to maximize his/her earnings potential. The possibilities are endless and are limited only by your imagination, creativity, and resourcefulness. And, it goes without saying, you're encouraged to explore other ideas, and adapt other strategies besides these, in order to help you become a high rolling, well paid, affiliate marketer.

3 Essential Tools for the High Rolling Affiliate Marketer

Are you ready to discover the solutions you have been searching for? What does it need to become a prosperous Affiliate Marketer? What are the ingredients of an affiliate marketing success story? Is there a shortcut to Affiliate Marketing glory? All these questions play about in the minds of affiliate marketers who want to make it big in this area. Though affiliate marketing is touted as one of the easiest and uttermost effective ways to create money online, it is not as easy as it sounds. The wise affiliate marketer plans every move and executes it the best way he can. He should also increase the potential to succeed by utilizing the right tools appropriate for a successful Affiliate Marketing program. We have consulted several of the most successful affiliate marketers in the area and lower down are the top three essential tools for a thriving affiliate marketing business. Crucial Advice #1: Your Own Website The greatest important and indispensable tool in Affiliate Marketing is your own site. The chief step in any thriving affiliate marketing business is creating a good, believable and professional looking website. Your website is the jump off point of all your marketing efforts. Thus, you must first create an -easy-to-use website, which will appeal to your prospects and encourage them to click on the links to the goods and services you are promoting and hopefully create a purchase. Consequently, you must first focus your efforts in building a site that can cater to what your prospects need.The most important thing you should consider is that almost all web users go online to search for information, not automatically to go and buy something. Above all else, make your website full of original, pertinent and practical content. People love articles that are appealing and helpful. Keep in mind that, in the internet, content is always key and top quality content will not just raise your credibility, it can also help you fulfil a higher-level search engine ranking. By posting relevant and useful articles, you establish yourself as a credible authority in the field, displaying you a trustworthy endorser of the product or service you support. Establishing a good reputation is a good move in building up a loyal consumer base. Crucial Advice #2: Incentives Competition is extremely fierce in the internet world. You should always be one-movement in advance of your rivals to ensure that you capture a critical share of your target market. Therefore, you must use every conceivable means to inspire people not solely to visit your website but also to click and proceed to the websites of the opportunities and services you are promoting. Creating an opt-in email list is one of the better ways to gather prospects. Offer a newsletter or an e-zine. Better yet, offer incentives to your prospects to inspire them to subscribe to your newsletters. You can present free softwares, access to unique services and other freebies that will be helpful to your prospects. Important Advice #3: Url Popularity The value of driving highly targeted traffic to your website cannot be emphasized enough. The all-important web traffic is at the top of the list of the most crucial entities in the internet arena. Attracting people to your site has to be the first action you should carry out. Do everything to achieve a top search engine ranking. Link Popularity is one of the factors that search engines use to establish search engine rankings. so, to elevate your link popularity, you must launch an aggressive reciprocal link action. One of the better ways to do this, at no cost at all, is by submitting articles, with your site's web address in the resource box, to e-zines and free article sites. You may not only earn exposure, you may also have the opportunity to advertise for no cost, just include a link pointing to your site. The more sites you send your articles to, the better your link popularity is. Ensure your articles are unique, pertinent and practical so that other websites may pick it up and post it. These are but three of the many tools that an affiliate marketer can use to build up earning potential. The possibilities are endless and are restricted only by your vision, creativity, resourcefulness and resolution. You can always explore other ideas and adapt other strategies, which you believe might help you become a high rolling affiliate marketer. Thanks for taking the time to read my article. You should continue searching for additional information to help you. ________________________________________

2 Tier Affiliate Programs Explained

How will refering new affiliates to an affiliate program make me money in the future? Thats where a 2 tier affiliate program works like magic! Affiliates are getting cleverer by the day. So these days, affiliates know the difference between the different types of traffic they can get paid for. There are a lot of definitions though – CPM, CPC, CPA, CPL, CPD and many more. CPM is impressions, when the publisher (the website owner) gets paid every time a banner is shown.

 CPC is clicks, where the publisher (or email marketer and other marketers) gets paid every time a banner or text link is clicked upon. The other ways of getting paid are grouped together under the term performance marketing – and this is where the term affiliate is most commonly used as well. An affiliate is a marketer who sends visitors to another site using a variety of methods (such as placing banners or text links on their own site, buying sponsored listings on search engines, email marketing and many other different methods) and gets paid when an action happens. This action can be a lead (CPL stands for Cost per Lead), a Sale (CPS stands for Cost per Sale), a download (CPD stands for Cost per download) and many other variations. Some in the Internet industry refer to performance based marketing as CPA (cost per acquisition), although the term is also sometimes used for specific types of campaigns such as leads or sales. Now that we’ve got over the hard part, the rest is easy to understand. The affiliate gets paid for sending visitors to a specific landing page where an action happens – either a lead, a sale, a download or some other sort of action that the advertiser requires. As an example, some advertisers are looking to build up their databases, so they pay for each opt in email address they receive, others want leads from specific locations, so they pay for zip codes, and then try convince the visitors after they fill in their zip code, to fill in a more detailed lead form. The common denominator is that the affiliate gets paid when an action happens. A 2 Tier affiliate program is simply finding new marketers to sign up under you to do EXACTLY what you are doing – sending visitors to different offers and getting paid when the visitors perform some sort of action. So why would you want other marketers to sign up under you to promote the same offers? Simple – you get paid a percentage of the amount the affiliate you refer gets paid? Sounds complicated? Don’t worry, it’s not hard to understand.

As an example, say John promotes 5 different offers on a single affiliate network. He gets paid for every lead, sale, email and zip code he generates from these different offers. John now tells Mark about the Network and gets Mark to sign up using a banner or text link that has John’s referral code built into it. Mark now signs up to the Affiliate Network under John and starts promoting various offers and advertisers from the Affiliate Network.

These offers DON’T have to be the same offers that John is promoting. Mark can promote ANY of the offers on the Affiliate Network. And this is the best part… For any amounts that Mark gets paid, John receives a percentage of the amount over and above what Mark gets paid. So if Mark gets paid $1000 in Month 1, and the 2 Tier Affiliate program is paying 5%, then John would receive $50 just for referring Mark. But it gets even better… Some 2 Tier Affiliate Networks pay LIFETIME commissions.

So John wouldn’t get a referral commission just for a month or a year – he receives it FOR ALL TIME. If Mark becomes a super affiliate and starts generating HUGE commissions every month, John can just sit back and collect the checks as he referred him. There are 3 important things to know when finding affiliates to sign up under you on 2 Tier Affiliate Programs: Is the affiliate program or affiliate network credible, has proper tracking so your referrals are correctly tracked, has good campaigns and offers for the affiliates to promote so they actually do make money, and do they pay timeously? Assuming that the affiliate program or network is good, what percentage do they pay you on amounts that your referrals get paid? All programs vary so compare different programs to see what the industry standard is. How long do you continue receiving referral commissions for? Some pay for a month, some for the lifetime, and of course there are many variations in between. So do your homework and find a 2 Tier program that can make you money long in the future for the work you’re doing today.

How to Increase Your Site Traffic and Succeed With Your Affiliate Marketing Programs

As an affiliate, your main objective is to sell the products and services offered by your partner merchants. Unless you can do this, you can never hope to make a significant amount of money with affiliate marketing programs. So how do you boost sales? All things being equal, you will need to increase your site traffic before you can experience more sales. By the law of averages, the more people are aware of the products you are offering, the more products you will sell. Here are a few tips that can help you boost your site traffic: 1. Optimize for the search engines. The most successful sites on the internet are the most visible ones. Now there are various ways to achieve increased visibility on the internet, but the foremost method is that of search engine optimization. The details are too technical to discuss here, but the purpose of search engine optimization (SEO) is to help your site achieve higher rankings on the search engines. If you have used a search engine, you will notice that any particular keyword search will return thousands, if not millions of results. Most people will not bother to browse through all those results; they will prefer to look into the sites already displayed. Statistically speaking, the sites listed on the first results page will garner the highest amount of traffic, putting those sites in a better position to make money. 2. Joining internet directories. While internet directories are no longer as widely used as search engines, some people do use them. It is important that you do not overlook the potential customers that these directories can bring to your site. To join an internet directory, you will have to submit your site for approval, and you will be categorized accordingly. 3. Provide fresh content. Your site must continually be updated if you expect your visitors to keep coming back. Your site must have useful content, as well as tools that will help your target audience. Make your site as easy to navigate as possible, and be sure that your links work the way that they should. There is nothing that frustrates people more than a “broken” website, and once your site has been labeled as such, chances are slim that many people will want to come back. 4. Build an online community. In other words, build relationships with your potential customers. Make your visitors feel welcome and appreciated, and they are likely to come back. Be interested in solving their problems and they will thank you with their business. Making your affiliate marketing program work is really not that much different from operating a traditional business. The only way you can keep your customers is to treat them right. The Japanese have a saying: The customer is God. As long as you treat your customers with respect and exert effort in trying to meet their needs, you will find that they will be more than willing to help you with yours. Affiliate Marketing and Requesting Customer Support As a webmaster, you are bound to run into problems. Even though you have spent a good amount of time learning the affiliate marketing trade, sooner or later you will run into some challenges that you will need help to resolve. Areas such as e-mail services, affiliate marketing software, and online services are often particularly troublesome. Unfortunately, getting help is not often easy, even from your web host. But there are ways to make the process simpler for both sides. Here are some questions that you might consider before you call your service provider: Who are you? This is a common problem. Many people report their problems without providing their personal information, such as their username. Unless the support team knows who you are, how do you expect them to solve your problem? What is the problem? Be specific. Identify which product or service is not working properly. Keep in mind that you are just one of your web host’s customers. Unless you can pinpoint the problem, chances are pretty slim that you will receive appropriate and timely help. What software are you using? Your web host’s support team will need information on the software you are using. For instance, they will ask you what type of system you are using in your computer. It is a well-known fact that certain applications do not work well on certain systems. Be sure to give any relevant details about the services or applications that you use. When did the problem start? Identifying the time you became aware of the problem is important. If you have recently made any changes to your system and the problem appeared soon after, it is quite likely that particular change is the cause. Don’t withhold information from the support team; every bit of knowledge is crucial to identifying the source of difficulty. What have you tried to fix the problem? If you have attempted to fix the problem yourself, be sure to include an account of your attempts in your report. Letting the support team know what you’ve already done will help them save time, and also make a more accurate diagnosis of what’s wrong. Have you kept it simple? For security purposes, some support systems do not allow HTML display.

4 Miscellaneous Email Marketing Advices

Email is one of the most personal advertising medium ever invented. Here are four of the many ways you can improve your email marketing results. Spread the Word Get others to sign up for your mailing lists with their consent. Spread the word about your mailing list through word of mouth.

 The beauty in this is that the list of emails will be self-screened and the database will only contain the people who are interested in your offers. Make sure you have their consent beforehand. You don’t want to risk losing reputation or SPAM penalties. Persistence Before the internet, they used to say it takes around 7.3 impacts to make an impression with an ad. Today I would guess it to be over twice as high with the internet present.

 Make sure you are reaching out to your clients at least once a month in emails or other medium. Just because you emailed a list of people and had little or no response does not necessarily mean your audience isn’t interested in your product. Experiment with different emails, get to know which email strategy works best, and keep using it to reach out to your audience.  

They Want Useful Information Emails should contain something that the customer wants. It shouldn’t be just a summary of your company or your resume. Focus on giving more than just what you sell. Specific content, messages, and other targeted information that interests your customers are good to include. For example, if you were selling makeup, you may want to include advice on how to apply the makeup or any makeup in general.  

Make Sure Your Audience Reads Your Emails Graphics, Flash animations, logos are often blocked by email filters. Although they look impressive on an email, they will often lower your impression statistics. I recommend using flat text with hyperlinks to your site. Once they get to your site, you can show them as many graphics as you want. Although some businesses have both a plain and a rich text edition of their email, for starters, stick to the plain text.

3 Ways To Build A Quick Profitable Opt In List

The following paragraphs summarize the work of opt-in list experts who are completely familiar with all the aspects of opt-in lists. Heed their advice to avoid any opt-in list surprises. You finally realize that you need a good opt-in list. After reading countless articles and sought expert advices and have read many success stories of people creating a small fortune with opt-in lists you finally decide to have one of your own.

Then it happens, you think you have known everything there is to know about opt-in lists and have followed their advices to the T and you still weren’t able to make a profit. In fact, you may be losing money. You maybe hiring writers to help you out, or there are some expenses incurred, even if you have a big list, but only a very small percentage actually buys from you, your still losing profit. You’ll realize that after a few months when you see your statistics and sales figures. So what could have gone wrong? Why have others succeeded where you have failed? The most common mistake is that you dived straight right in.

 You chose a topic where you think could be quite popular and would earn you money. This just not the case. Just because you wrote people from the list doesn’t mean they are going to buy instantly. Here I will offer more advice, for those who have started an opt-in list and have failed, you can rejuvenate your failed venture. For those who are starting, here are three quick and easy ways to build a profitable opt-in list. 1) Get your customers to trust you and your products first. Just launching your opt-in list would not make you an expert and a believable seller.

Put many articles first before you start an opt-in list. Write about the topic you know and have started and used for your site. Try to put forums first to gain knowledge about your customers about their wants and needs and target those wants and needs. Join forums from other sites as well. Provide expert advices and recommendations. When you feel that people trust you already, you will be able to start your own opt-in list. You can build a base as well with other forum users. You can ask them to join your list. Friends are always good customers. Put up a link to your site so that they may be able to see what you're business is all about. If you find yourself confused by what you've read to this point, don't despair. Everything should be crystal clear by the time you finish.


 The certain truth is, the money will only come in when the consumers and subscribers believe and trust in you. They want a product or service that could be a good exchange for their money. People are not going to buy something out of your recommendation if they don’t know you.
2) Find a product or service that people want and need. Although it may not be your forte, if you provide a service and product that you have researched and learned about well, you can carry it on forward. Invest your time, effort and money that you could sell as well as the buyers or subscribers of your opt-in list can use.

 While it is true that it is best to sell something that you have interest in, there are not many people who have the same interest as you if you decide to sell something that is not entirely popular or profitable. Do your research well and you would see the profits come in. Also provide your subscribers with promotional material that they could actually use and spread around. 3) Make friends with other opt-in list users.


This is basically beneficial especially if it is someone who has already launched a successful opt-in list. These are people that have the experience in this venture and experience is still the best teacher. While there are many articles available for you in the internet to use, there is nothing like getting a first hand account from someone you trust. Experienced opt-in list users will be able to tell you what to do and what not to do because they have gone through it. While different situations occur for different people, the general concept can still be very helpful.


There are many things to avoid and these people will be able to tell you which ones. Building a profitable opt-in list don’t just happen overnight. There are many preparations and effort to do. Opt-in lists are built from scratch, as your list grows, you should also maintain the quality of your list. Keep it organized and manageable. Get or hire help if need be, just make sure that your subscribers are happy and satisfied and they will be willing to buy from you.
Now you can understand why there's a growing interest in opt-in list. When people start looking for more information about opt-in lists, you'll be in a position to meet their needs.