Infoproducts can be your way forward on the Internet
Right, we will not go into the cliché about the Internet being an information superhighway.
But isn’t it that?
You cannot deny that!
Infoproducts implies the publishing of information-rich content on the Internet. This content can take any form, but generally when we speak about Infoproducts, we are talking about
- eBooks
- Newsletters
- Videos
- Audiobooks
- Podcasts
- Webinars
- Online courses.
Generally, this is content that people can download and store on their hard disk and withdraw it later according to their convenience or they can listen and learn. There is one more common strand running through all the Infoproducts – they must provide good content to the user; the best ones will also include a Call To Action!
There are three ways in which you can get into the Infoproducts business: –
- You could create the info content yourself
- Outsource it to someone so that you have your own product to sell.
- You could promote someone else’s product on your website or blog.
Whichever way, you are distributing informative content.
One of the ways to distribute this content is through affiliate marketing. If you are going to promote products of other people, you could select the available products from an affiliate network and sell it through a service like Google Ads (used to be known as AdWords). In that case, you would not need to have your own website or blog even. However, you could also sell such a product directly. Selling makes a good option if your product is good quality. Using methods such as SEO, viral marketing, social networking, and such, you could build a brand presence for your product and garner a market for it. Once that is created, you will find that your product starts earning for you an unending stream of income.
Writing your own content is one of the best ways to move up Google rankings. I find this is great for creative writing or personal stories such as Travel Blogs. However it can be very time consuming – but very rewarding!
If you have your own product, there are many more advantages. Number one, people associate you with someone who is an expert in the subject. Your name in the byline means a lot for your credibility. This will ensure that your other products get a niche for themselves too.
Now, having your own product does not mean that you must sit and create stuff yourself. You could outsource work quite easily. On job sites such as Fiverr.com and GetAFreelancer it is quite easy to find professionals who would work for you at an attractive price, and give you the rights of their work.
For video content, you could publish interesting videos on YouTube and combine their impact with another product that you are selling. You can Outsource video making too. Or you can use your phone to record things – most modern phones have excellent video recording facilities. Editing the video is another issue altogether!
Your video should provide people with good information and at the same time include a link from where they can download an eBook or other product that you are promoting. That way, you can combine your marketing efforts and gain added benefits.
A great package for making your own videos is VideoMakerFX.com. There is a one-time fee for this package. It allows you to produce animated short videos very quickly.
Get the maximum mileage out of your Infoproducts endeavour.
If you are looking to stick with your online home business for a long time, you will need a presence on the Internet, and nothing works better than Infoproducts.
Blog your Way to Internet Success
Very few models are as popular today as the business blogging model. This is one model where people entertain themselves by networking with other people, build on their knowledge and, of course, build on their business prospects.
So, why aren’t you blogging already?
The one thing about blogging that you need to know is that you can monetize it in several different ways. There is not just one way in which you can make money out of a blog; there are several. Once you have a blog of your own, it is a learning experience. But, at the same time, the money begins flowing in almost immediately, which motivates you into milking your blog further.
A very good platform to build your blog would be WordPress or Blogger . These are blogging platforms, i.e. you can create your blog using the software they provide. In addition, you will also need some hosting space and domain name to set your blog running.
The one difference between WordPress and Blogger is that Blogger is a free tool. WordPress can be a free blog too. That means, you will have to contend with advertisements from other people on your blog. WordPress is more focused and speaks better of the commercial blogger’s intentions.
Another blogging service that you might like is Type pad (http://www.typepad.com/). Type pad is an uploading and hosting service. You just pay them, build your blog through WordPress, and Typepad will take care of the uploading and hosting. One perk is that Typepad does a lot of search engine optimization for you, so you can be sure that your blog will begin ranking high right from the start.
For an overview of other blogging platforms use your search engine and look for posts like this.
If you get good content on your blog (including keyword optimized text, videos, and photos), you can be sure that it will get populated soon. The search engines love blogs because they get a constant update of content and because so many people keep visiting them. In today’s scenario, blogs are more effective in websites. Content can be totally original posts like creative writing or hobby work. Or it could be derived from PLR. Usually best if you can use edited PLR, adding your own words where appropriate.
The following are some ways in which you can monetize your blog: –
- You could use PPC advertising on your blog.
- You could directly sell or advertise products.
- You could give away an eBook or a newsletter subscription and get leads.
- You could build a blog, populate it, and then sell the whole thing for a tidy profit.
If you have a successful blog, then leave a comment and show us what you do! As they say, success leaves clues.
Just a thought
Build a Niche Content Site to take your Business to a New Level
What are people on the Internet mainly looking for?
Information, that is right! If you provide them the information they are looking for, you are a winner all the way.
What is a niche content site, to begin with? A niche content site is a site that panders to a group of people. Like gardening is a niche; cooking is a niche; motor repair is a niche. Other people would not be interested in reading about these topics. But people who are interested in these topics will surely throng your website and even come repeatedly to look for new information that you must put up all the time.
There can be a niche within a niche. Like, in gardening, there could be a sub-niche of how to do away with aphids or how to use the right mix of fertilizers to make those grapes bigger. These are sub niches. You must remember one thing here… the narrower you are making your niche, the lesser is the number of people you are getting for your site, but at the same time, these people are more focused and they will be more interested in doing business with you.
Think about it. If someone really wants to have some information on aphid removal, they are not going to find too many sites on it. If your site has that content and promotes some product relating to it, like an aphid spray, the likelihood of that visitor buying the product from your site is indeed high.
This is the way you need to go about it.
First, think of a popular niche that you would like to build a site on. There are plenty of sites that can give you ideas. As an example, I searched for ‘search tools for niches’ and got over 17 million hits straight away!
Some example are
https://www.wordstream.com/keyword-niche-finder ,
https://www.chrisducker.com/finding-your-niche/ ,
https://www.shoutmeloud.com/best-keyword-research-tools-niche.html .
Another great site for ideas is https://answerthepublic.com/ .
Then there is always Amazon or ebay which will give a good indication of things that are selling well.
Google or Bing or whatever search engine you use will also give you a host of keywords that you can use. These are the keywords that people are popularly searching.
You now need to Build content for your site and there are many sources. You will need to have at least 50 pages or so of content to make impact. Spruce up this content by using the right keywords so that it reaches out to the people who are looking for the specific information. You can build content by using PLR –Private Label Rights products.
Here is a great example of a free product on marketing.
Then, look for products on your affiliate network site to promote on your niche site. Refer to my previous post on how to become a member of an affiliate network site. You can put ads in the form of text and banners. You can design your own banners at canva.com. By having your own site, you are saving money on advertising services such as Google AdWords. You must popularize your site so that more people visit, which in turn will increase the number of clicks (and sales) that you get. At the same time, the popularity of your ads will increase the prospect of your website.
I hope this is of some use to you. Let me know what you think.
Unleashing the Untold Wealth of Affiliate Marketing
Affiliating with businesses to promote them is not a new concept. But what you need to know here is that it can generate an income and you would not even have to physically venture an inch out of your house.
If anyone was asked to name a single method that marketers use to make a surefire rapid income on the Internet, then most of them would give you the same answer – “affiliate marketing”. Though there are dozens of home business models on the Internet, it is quite safe to say that affiliate marketing must rank within the top three, or maybe even at the top of the heap.
Basically, the affiliate marketing model means to promote someone’s product over the Internet. You are helping them with their advertising and are getting paid a commission for that.
You can start by making an account on an affiliate network such as Clickbank. This is a place where advertisers post their advertising requirements. When you are a part of this network, you can choose the products you want to promote. These are products of people within the network.
Once you are done with that, you will need an affiliate marketing service to promote the products you have chosen on the Internet. One of the best in this category is Google Ads (https://ads.google.com/intl/en_MA/home/) – this used to be known as AdWords. You merely must start a campaign here, mentioning the product you want to promote and give the URL that you are advertising. AdWords will automatically search for the right website matches for the product and will advertise on them.
The payment is fantastic. You get paid for every click that your ad gets. This is known as Pay Per Click (PPC). However, there are some affiliate networking sites, that pay only when a sale is done. In that case, it becomes a Pay Per Sale (PPS) affiliate service.
Your only expense is in starting the AdWords campaign. However, here you can bid on how much you want to spend. There are also Facebook Ads, Social Media Links, YouTube channels etc. Hence, you are in charge of your expense. The returns, however, are much more than whatever money you will put into the business.
In Summary
Thought for today
5 tips when writing articles.
I love to write; articles, short stories, poems, book reviews, novels or news reports. It’s great fun to see your own work in print and always a bonus if you can get some income from it.
In this short note I want to think about some key points that should be included if you want your article to be noticed.
Love it!
I believe this is an essential – have passion for what you’re writing. There are two reasons for this. Firstly is that it is so much easier to write when you’re writing abut something you enjoy. Do you have a blog? Is it filled with things that keep you happy? Second is that readers can generally tell if you’re writing from the heart – passion comes across! I believe that this is the core to all writing – love it and enjoy it. Even when you have an assigned piece of writing – remember you promised your friend you’d do a piece for him – do it from a point of enjoyment. This can mean putting humour into the article which can be successful if you know how to tell a joke; if you don’t then forget it!
Grab a snappy title.
Keep it short and have a biof mystery in it. Make people want to read it. When I was a research Physicist I had to read so many scientific papers that it made my eyes bleed! The content was often excellent but the titles… Having this experience led me to a fun way to get school students to write Science papers; I would get them to write up their report as though they were a sensationalist journalist! Great stuff – and it inspired them to study Science further.
Lists.
Everybody loves a list. How often do you click the link on a website when it says ’10 ways to see if you have the right partner’ or ‘7 ways to boost your sales’ or ‘5 ways to meet more girls/boys’; or ’50 ways to leave your lover’ as Paul Simon said. (Who is singing this in their head right now?)
What is hot?
Articles on current topics will get noticed. It could be about the latest fad in Food, Fashion, Music or Science! Be careful though as these articles generally have a short shelf life.
Paragraphs.
Keep it short – people skim read and it’s easier!
There are some ideas to work on.
Did I follow my own guidelines?
Let me know.
Write some more but enjoy it first!
5 Ideas for your online business
I recently attended a Webinar called 20 ways to make money online presented by Simon Coulson. I have attended some of Simons Online courses in the past and have access to many more, which will be another article later. I decided to filter the list down to 5 that could be a good starting point.
Selling your stuff online
Everybody has a house full of things they no longer need or want. Why not sell these things online. You can use ebay, gumtree, freecycle or Facebook Marketplace. There are probably dozens of other places to go too! This could be a starting point for your first venture online.
Then you could extend it and start selling for others while taking a commission. Help people to get rid of their unwanted items and take up to half the money yourself!
There are plenty of sources to help you get started. Use a search engine and look for free articles like these;
Affiliate Marketing
This is another way you can sell products or services for other people and take a commission. Amazon is a good place to start as they have a well structured training programme to help you get started. There are lots of online marketers making a good income from being Amazon Associates and some making £millions!
Search with Google to find many other sources such as Clickbank and OfferVault.com
Information Product Reseller
In an earlier post I mentioned using ebook written by other parties which you can edit and then sell as your own. This means using products that you can obtain for free or at a low cost, which have Private Label Rights (PLR).
PLR products come in many forms from books to articles to online courses and video series. The Licence that you acquire gives you different rights, again depending on the product. Generally a PLR licence will allow you to edit or change the product, add images, a new cover etc and then put your name to the product and sell it as though you created it.
I use a site called SureFire Wealth. There are three levels of membership – Free, Silver and Gold. The Free Membership you can literally download products for free. As an example, what about a free download on email Marketing?
There are many other sources of PLR products such as
Google Free PLR and you will get over 8 million hits!
Online teaching
Maybe something you have never considered though it can be rewarding, not just financially. I have spent many years of my life teaching in schools, though I have also taught First Aid, Rock Climbing, Sailing and Marketing! For some people, the desire to pass on skills to others is very strong – hence this blog.
A couple of site where you can earn £30 to £50 an hour as an online teacher;
For both of these you have to be UK based.
https://tutorhub.com/pages/for_tutors
Or what about teaching English to Chinese students?
Fiverr
This is not actually a ‘job’ , it is a site where you can monetise your skills to deliver products and services. Be creative! You can offer any service you wish as long as it’s legal and complies with their terms. There are over 200 categories you can browse to get ideas.
You can offer whatever you want from Logo Design, Website building, Voice Overs, Writing, Translation etc The best thing to do is explore their site and see if you match any of the skill sets that are in demand.
Testing websites
I know I said 5 but I have also just been exploring sites that will pay you for testing websites. I have a new blog on this coming up soon but just as a taster have a look at this site;
10 Authors who dealt with Rejection.
Continuing the theme of writing a book
You and I love to write. It’s a special gift and a privelege we have creating story’s, sometimes just for ourselves, for our famils and friends. But we all reach the point when we believe in what we write and we want to see it published – and we’d also like to make money from our writing too!
There are many famous writers, old and new, who have gone from the personal writing to looking for publication only to be rejected. I think many of you reading this will have a few rejection letters yourself – if not get ready for some! I have a few myself and each time I get one I either take on board the positive criticsm or I reject it if it is just negative criticism!
Below, in no particular order, are ten well known authors who suffered their fair share of rejection. However they didn’t let it stop them – they kept going an eventually found fame and fortune from their writing. We should take heart from these examples and remember – success is not just about what you do but about the attitude and determination you have to suucceed.
- C.S. Lewis. Author of the Chronicles of Narnia, the most famous being The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe. Lewis received more than 800 rejections before he sold anything. Next time you watch one of the movies just smile at his determination.
- Margaret Mitchell. Not an author that jumps into ones head easily – she wrote Gone With The Wind. An all time classic that was rejected by 25 publishers.
- Robert M. Pisig. The author of a modern classic much loved by undergraduate college students. Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance took four years to write and was rejected 121 times!
- George Orwell. A personal favourite of mine as he worked at the local newspaper in my hometown and took his pen name from the River Orwell. His iconic book on Stalinist Russia, Animal Farm, was rejected repeatedly, one American publisher claiming that ‘animal stories don’t sell’.
- The Diary of Anne Frank was repeatedly rejected as many publishers felt it was of little interest to the general public. By 1998 this book had sold more than 25 million copies and remains a bestseller to this day.
- William Golding. The Lord of the Flies, an intriguing book about the lives and violence of young boys stranded on a tropical island, was rejected more than 20 times. The book has gone on to sell more than 14 million copies and the author received the Nobel Prize for Literature.
- James Joyce. Possibly one of the most famous Irish writers of the 20th Century saw his novel Ulysses rejected over and over for being obscene.
- Jasper Fforde. Again a personal favourite. I have all of his Thursday Next novels and love the Nursery Crime series. Jasper collected 76 rejections before The Eyre Affair was accepted for publication.
- J.K. Rowling. Probably the best known rejected author of modern times. The first Harry Potter book was turned down by 12 major publishing houses before being accepted by Bloomsbury one of the smaller London publishers. Now each of her books has been turned into a movie, there are the books, computer games, merchandise etc.
- Frank Herbert. The best selling Science Fiction novel of all time was rejected 20 times. When accepted Dune sold so well that Herbert was contracted to write five more in the series.
All great books – how many have you actually read? – the common thread being rejection and perseverance. I have just finished the first draft of the manuscript for my second novel and will soon be reviewing and editing. Then there will be the submissions and the rejections. Or maybe go straight to Kindle?
Meanwhile I keep my cash flowing by writing articles, short storys, poetry and tutoring. I feel priveleged, like I said at the start of this article, that I can spend time writing and helping others. I particularly like to write comedy – not one of the easiest genres but great fun. I sometimes burst out laughing when I read the things I’ve written.
Don’t ever get downhearted about your writing.
Write for yourself when you can.
Write articles to improve your skills (and get paid).
Write for your friends and family.
Just write!
Phoenix Education 