|
Winning strategies for your eBay and Internet business.
contact
email
syndication
links
free
business resource
my
free blog network
"uncle
griff's" homepage
auction
bytes news
auction hints forum
marsha
collier's homepage
blog friends
tom peters
seth godin
scott wingo
mike enos
scott
prock
gary hendrickson
jennifer parks
brian mcgregor
linda bruton
tinu
|
Winners Circle
Learning, Earning, Returning
I know it's been a while since I posted to this blog. I have been swamped with other tasks as I'm sure you can understand if you're also in the business of internet marketing. Blogs are probably the first thing to get put on the virtual back-burner in this biz, unless of course you specialize in blog marketing. Or it could be that I'm just not cut out for keeping up with an online diary. Well, I just wanted to drop in to leave this quick note. I may be switching to wordpress soon, or I may decide to drop the blog entirely. Until further notice, take care and keep selling, bo
eMail Lists are a Pain in the Neck
Yeah, you heard me. Don't get me wrong. My email list provides my bread and butter. But man! What a hassle sometimes.
Since I got involved with sponsoring the Easter JV Give-Away my email list has grown over a thousand new subscribers. That's great, isn't it? Actually it is. It means I'm reaching my audience more effectively.
I had put most everything in place pretty well, utilizing my best subscriber scripts, and resources. However, I did not take the time to set up my auto-add feature to my email program - GroupMail Pro. I figured that adding them manually would be a small task, but I figured wrong.
After about two hours last night, I finally had everyone added to my email list for follow-up / updates. I even remember some of the names as there happened to be a few duplicates, that my program eventually weeded out. And I saw a few email addies that look as though they were contrived especially for this event. I am hoping that they are not going to turn out to be duds once the event passes.
Around 3AM I sent a short note to my group because today is the last day of the Easter JV and because there were a lot of new freebies added to the private access download area for members that I thought folks would want to see.
When I got home from church this morning I was a little disappointed to see that I had two unsubscribe requests. Out of the several thousand sellers I have in my group, I've only had 4 unsubscribes ever! One was a "freeloader" type unsubscribe, which is to say they downloaded my freebie and immediately unsubscribed obviously never with the intention of becoming a member. (I know! Can you believe that?) Two were very cordial unsubscribes, while the last was the most disturbing of all.
The man emailed me today and said he had never signed up (my records show that he actually either bought a $97 package from me a few months ago, or hacked his way into getting that product bundle.) He went on to say that he was mad because he could not directly email me from the site, which as you know if you know anything about running an online business that putting your email addie up on your site is like waving an invitation in the face of every spammer online. Rather you get around this with the email form submission. Thank you very much. And finally he demanded that I stop sending him "crap". I have sent out no more than 2 messages a week to subscribers (not counting "download" confirmation links as those are obviously under the control of the person clicking the links.) Sometimes, I have gone a couple or three weeks without sending a member email! My messages are usually very short (not like my blog posts-- haha.) And I don't think the info I send out is-- what was the word he used?-- oh, yes, "crap" and I hope my few thousand subscribers don't either.
Now, just to let you know, I answer my subscriber's emails personally. Not some machine somewhere. I only use auto-responders to send out confirmations and download links. When I send a message to my whole team, I write it myself. I even personalize marketing messages, and try to avoid the hyped up writing provided by most marketers who ask me to promote their products.
Maybe, I'm over-reacting to the email I got from that guy. I don't like being mistaken for the type of marketers who bombard their members with email. I guess I just really appreciate and respect my subscribers and hope that it goes both ways. Anyway, sorry you had to see me this way. Apparently, I'm in rare form today. But I'm sure the rest of this weekend will go much more smoothly.
I hope you never have to deal with the downside of email marketing. And I can't wait for RSS to become a readily available and accepted alternative to email. Until then, may your weekend be super!
Upcoming Events
There are a lot of interesting things going on.
eBay LIVE! is beginning to buzz. Are you going?
The Easter JV Give-away will be here soon (April 1) I've been busy putting together an awesome new product for this and you'll be the first to access it for free when it's complete. (Of course, only if you're subscribed to my mail-outs. )
Dave Lovelace is at it again. The Best of eBay II is in phase one of the pre-launch, and is expected to be due out around mid-April in full force. You can sign up to help promote that awesome deal here.
And yes, I'm still working on BidMama.com even while aflitter with distraction. My husband has gotten a bit impatient with me because I keep coming up with new ideas before I finish the first thing I started. BidMama falls into this category somewhat. Well, that and I'm getting frustrated with OSCommerce. I just don't have time to learn a whole new website building process right now. I've even thought about scrapping what I have and starting over though this would not be the smartest thing I've ever done.
One remarkable idea to sprout from my struggle with this particular transition came about when I decided to make either Mother's Day or May 1 (whichever I'm able to realistically meet), the launch date for BidMama. What could be more fitting? BidMama launches on Mother's Day. Maybe, I'll launch the 1st and have a grand opening of sorts on Mother's Day? Any thoughts?
And finally, I have a son who I am helping to prepare to go to college this year. Lots to do there!
So, I hope this post finds you well and you'll feel free to share your comments below. Until next time...
Many Blessings,
Thalia
Letter from Bill Cobb: New eBay
Dear eBay Community Member:
I'm delighted to officially introduce eBay Express--a brand new shopping destination coming this spring from eBay with a focus on new and now products.
Shoppers on eBay Express will have great new ways to search and browse, a familiar shopping cart, and the convenience of paying with PayPal or a credit card.
As a seller, you get exposure to more buyers in a whole new marketplace--without having to list your items twice or change the way you sell. Just meet the basic seller and listing criteria, and your Fixed Price and Store Inventory listings automatically become eBay Express listings.
Make sure you're ready to take full advantage of this exciting new selling opportunity. Take a minute now to review the eBay Express Seller Checklist and visit the eBay Express information pages. We'll be posting updates as the launch approaches, so check back often.
We look forward to working with you on eBay Express!
Sincerely, Bill Cobb
Brainstorming BidMama
I would LOVE to hear your thoughts on what you want to see happen with the new site. My mission is to make BidMama your best online source for making money. What would you most like to get out of BidMama? Here's a list of typical services you might find scattered around the web.
- Articles?
- Downloads?
- Software Reviews?
- Discussion Forum?
- Advertising?
- Free Tools?
- Affiliate Program?
- Wholesale Sources?
- Drop-ship Sources?
- Design Help?
- Image Hosting?
- Research?
- Fraud Reporting?
- Free Tutorials?
- eGreetings?
Also, which format do you prefer with the digital goods you buy? (executable, PDF, audio/video, web based info, ebooks or software, massive bundles vs. one quality item, etc.)
And finally, I'm working on a tagline for BidMama and thought you creative types might like to help. So far, this is what I've brain-stormed--
"BidMama... means business"
"BidMama... raising your bottom line"
"BidMama... where sales grow up"
"BidMama... success starts at home"
Anyway, let me know what you think. I'm still working on getting 'er done, but I'm only one girl and Rome wasn't built in a day. So, I will let you know as soon as everything is good to go.
Thanks very much for your support.
Until next time,
Thalia
Stuck in a Rut?
I got an email last night from someone who reminded me of myself. Maybe, you can relate to this too? By the way, I hope the writer of that email doesn't mind my sharing this but the story sounds all too familiar and this is how it goes...
Too much time, too much money, spent on this dream of online success with not much to show for it.
I've mentioned before that my personal problem is staying focused. You know, keeping to task? Spreading myself too thin? For every step forward, it often seems a step or two back progression.
When I was writing the APS book, I knew first of all that I had to get started, and that's the advice I gave last night and that I give you now. Get started with the easy things first because it's the sense of accomplishment that will give you momentum. Once you have a few things taken care of, you'll feel better about moving forward.
Another problem that can cause us to get stuck is researching a thing to death, AKA: Information Overload, AKA: Analysis Paralysis. This goes hand-in-hand with staying focused because even though it may seem like we are centered in on the task at hand, we're actually getting sucked down a rabbit hole and bogged down by superfluous information. When is enough ever enough? How much do we really need to know before taking the first step toward our goal?
I think we do this for a couple reasons. One may be that we want to perfect our work. Guess what? It will never be perfect, so get over it. You're operating from within a fantasy if you think your final cut will be perfect. Realize that there is a difference between excellence and perfection.
We get stifled by the idea that because we haven't perfected the work it must not be finished, which leads us to the next myth that will hold you back if you let it: thinking you'll finish the project to your satisfaction. Guess what? It will never be done, because if it is, so are you.
Your work online is a constant work-in-progress. And it should be! If you think that once you've set it, you can forget it, then your work will stagnate, and so will your progress. You have to keep it fresh, which can be a real hassle, but that's where the money is made. Money is made when you can keep 'em coming back for more and not more of the same dull stuff.
Another thing that blocks not only our ability to succeed online but also in practically every other area of our lives is fear. This comes out in different ways in different people: fear of failure, fear of success, fear of looking stupid, fear of being held accountable, etc. Whatever the fear may be that holds a person back, all fear has the same thing in common: it's almost always unfounded and it doesn't have to stop you. In fact, you don't even have to end your fears in order to overcome them.
Say what? You heard me right. You can continue to surpass your fear while still being afraid. It doesn't sound like much sense, but I know it works because I've been faced with things that frightened me a great deal but I went through them anyway while I still feared. The result? I fearfully completed the thing that scared me and learned that the initial fear was pointless.
What if you make a mistake? Good for you! Celebrate, because making mistakes is the only way you're really going to learn a lesson that sticks with you. Books and interviews can give you insight to the steps, including the mistakes, that someone else has taken toward to success, but nothing replaces experience. I hope you don't make too many mistakes, but you probably will make at least one during your dealings and when you do, don't worry, learn from it.
Now, finally, let's review how we might break these self-destructive cycles:
- Get Started! Do the easy stuff first. Once you get moving, it will be harder to stop you.
- Stay Motivated! Break up tasks into smaller jobs and give yourself reasonable deadlines.
- Stay Focused! Don't get sidetracked by the newest ebook, your email inbox or surfing the web.
- Do Your Best! Be realistic about what you can do and reward yourself for a job well done even if it never meets with your full satisfaction.
- Roll It Out! If you can't offer everything from the onset, plan on adding to it later.
- Do It Afraid If You Must! The only thing to fear is fear itself.
- Appreciate and Learn From Mistakes! We all make them, so let's make the most of them.
It wasn't until I overcame some of these obstacles in myself that I finally began to make money online. Unfortunately, this isn't a one-time fix. You may find that you have to overcome obstacles for every project you take on but it will get easier with practice and you will make money.
Have I arrived? No, I'm always striving higher.
Am I on my way? Yes and enjoying the journey.
How 'bout you?
Are you on your way?
Until next time,
Thalia
Suggestions?
Hi Everyone! Just a couple things as I'm preparing for the transition to the soon-to-be BidMama site. I sent out the January newsletter to subscribers. However, I'm currently testing new email software and haven't quite mastered the functionality of the new system, including the importing of emails in my database. Soooo, if you're getting emails but you're no longer subscribed or you never were, please disregard the emails (unless of course you want to subscribe now which you can do here). The new application seems to be pulling emails from every corner of my desktop it would seem. And considering that I receive thousands of email every week, well, you can see how that might cause some confusion! Please, don't hate me. Once I switch it all over to RSS feeds, I'll be free of email... mostly.
Anywho, this glitch in the matrix also apparently overlooked sending out to some of the subscriber base. (Yes, I know, it probably had more to do with my programming than it did with the actual software, but I'm trying to avoid looking stupid here. :)
So, since not everyone received it, I have sent out the January news again today. There are still SEVEN days left to pick up the member downloads before they go away, forever to be replaced with the wonder that will be BidMama.
Now, on a new note: I would LOVE to hear your thoughts on what you want to see happen with the new site. My mission is to make BidMama your best online source for making money. What would you most like to get out of BidMama? Here's a list of typical services you might find scattered around the web.
- Articles?
- Downloads?
- Software Reviews?
- Discussion Forum?
- Advertising?
- Free Tools?
- Affiliate Program?
- Wholesale Sources?
- Drop-ship Sources?
- Design Help?
- Image Hosting?
- Research?
- Fraud Reporting?
- Free Tutorials?
- eGreetings?
Also, which format do you prefer with the digital goods you buy? (executable, PDF, audio/video, web based info, ebooks or software, massive bundles vs. one quality item, etc.)
And finally, I'm working on a tagline for BidMama and thought you creative types might like to help. So far, this is what I've brain-stormed--
"BidMama... means business"
"BidMama... raising your bottom line"
"BidMama... where sales grow up"
"BidMama... success starts at home"
Anyway, let me know what you think.
I'm still working on getting 'er done, but I'm only one girl and Rome wasn't built in a day. So, I will let you know as soon as everything is good to go.
Thanks very much for your support.
Until next time,
Thalia
|
visit
calendar
|
