As a multi-channel marketer, many of my responsibilities over the years have required me to buy ad space in magazines, newspapers, radio, TV, and the Web. Along the way, I’ve become an expert (especially with online media), and picked up a few techniques that could save you hundreds, maybe even thousands, of dollars

But before I explain further, I’d like to point out that there are differences in online advertising.

You can focus your ad to be direct-response-oriented, which includes lead generation (acquiring e-mail names) and product sales. Or you can focus your ad on branding. Branding isn’t direct-response marketing – meaning it doesn’t require an immediate action from the consumer. Its goal, rather, is to build awareness and name recognition of a product over time and help it stay in the minds of prospects. In the offline world, think the battle of the cola giants. In the online world, it’s typically video ads like the ones you see for a new car or truck.

Because results are harder to measure with branding, many online marketers lean toward the direct-response model.

Your job as a media buyer is simply to try to get the best bang for the buck when purchasing media units. It involves allocating money for advertising in various outlets, print or online, and negotiating the actual advertising agreement with the publisher. This agreement is known as an IO (insertion order), and will cover the ad unit cost, size, placement, and other critical components (which I’ll address shortly).

Here are some helpful hints to keep in mind when buying media for your sales campaigns.

Hint #1: Keep up with the industry.

Sign up for free industry trade papers, such as DM News, Response Magazine, and Target Marketing, and as many free e-letters as you can read. One of my favorite e-letters is Clickz.com, because it covers the online marketing world in a comprehensive and dynamic way. I also like mediabuyerplanner.com, which keeps you abreast of the latest media-buying news, and DoubleClick.com, which provides some of the marketing industry’s best practices, trends, and forecast reports.

One current trend is flash banners. These ad units support audio/video use (which engages the viewer and is great for branding), but they are more costly than standard flat (no animation) or animated banners.

Hint #2: Know the ad units.

There are many types of banner ads to choose from: leader boards, skyscrapers, buttons, micro banners, and more. You can find a full list of types of ads, as well as industry guidelines for how and when to use them, at iab.net. All of these ad units are available on most websites, but not every type is effective.

For instance, it has been my experience that leader boards (ads that run horizontally across the top of a Web page) or skyscrapers (ads that run vertically along the side of a Web page) are the least effective. The best placements are typically LRECs – large rectangles, such as 300 x 250 IMUs, at the top or middle of a page or within the content. (IMU stands for Internet Marketing Unit.) Putting an ad inside the body of an article is a great placement, since the reader must breeze over the ad while absorbing the content. A recent eyetracking study by The Poynter Institute supported this observation, indicating that banner ads at the top left of the page, as well as ads close in proximity to the body of an article, garnered the most attention from viewers.

This is where you want your message to be!

Hint #3: Master the art of negotiation.

You will be required to analyze many proposals when you’re looking for the right ad space. You’ll need to determine if the prices are cost effective and comparable to industry rates. If you’re looking into buying ad space on CNN.com, for instance, check out the prices for that same ad unit and timeframe on similarly ranked news websites. Also, check out various ad networks to see if any include CNN.com in their coverage. (For more on ad networks, see Hint #7.)

Since many variables can affect ad prices, I recommend starting an “ad unit matrix” to keep track of rates. Break down a spreadsheet into columns for ad unit type, size, placement, website, impressions (how many times the ad unit appears on the website), and CPM (cost per thousand impressions). Click here to se a great tool that easily calculates the CPM for you.

Another factor that can affect pricing is seasonality. Internet traffic typically drops during July and August (because so many people are on summer vacation) and, depending on the industry you’re in, can be slower around the holidays as well. So, when you’re negotiating your media buy, try to get lower rates during those times. If you’re running near a typically slow time, let’s say around Thanksgiving, you may want to pause your ad unit the day before the holiday and the day after so you don’t waste impressions.

To help ensure that you’re getting a comparable rate, check out each site’s traffic ranking and page views to see where it stands in relation to its competitors in terms of popularity and reach. It’s best to get this information from a subscription ranking service, like Nielsen//NetRatings or ComScore – but if you don’t have access to such services, consider the free Alexa ranking website (Alexa.com).

Hint #4: Reporting rules.

Make sure, especially if you buy media from an online ad network, that you have full access to the OAS (online ad server) reporting system. Look for key performance indicators, such as impressions served (ad units that ran), and click-thru rate (the percentage of people who saw your ad and clicked on a link in it). If you are testing various ad units and sizes, each one should have a unique tracking code. If your advertiser doesn’t give you access to their OAS, ask about getting daily or weekly reports from your account executive. These reports will be critical in refining your ad to get maximum results.

As a general guideline, the average click-thru rate for a banner ad/text ad is 0.5 to 2 percent, and the average click-thru rate for a dedicated e-mail (an e-mail ad that a third party sends to their subscribers on your behalf) is 7.5 percent.

Hint #5: Know when to hold ‘em and when to fold ‘em.

In your insertion order, have a clause that allows you to terminate your advertising commitment without penalty at a given time (an “out clause” or “termination right”). For instance, most online campaigns can be optimized in about a week. If you’re watching your reporting daily (which I suggest you do for the first two weeks) and notice that not many viewers are clicking on your ad, then you should switch to a different ad. If the second ad is not working, you may want to initiate your termination right, end the campaign, and pay only for the impressions you were served.

Not all advertisers will offer this option, but you should certainly ask for it.

Hint #6: There are no stupid questions.

If you’re buying banner ads or other advertising spots on a website, it’s key to find out a few things from your account executive:

• Will your ad be ROS (run of site)? Typically, this means your ad will randomly appear on a site’s home page and most (if not all) subpages within the site. This is more cost effective than a targeted ad in a specific section of the site.
• Will your ad position be fixed or rotated (shared) with anyone else’s ad? If shared, what percentage of impressions will your ad receive?
• If you’re considering buying a dedicated e-mail from a third-party, find out the size of their e-mail list, how often the list gets mailed, the AUS (average unit sale) per subscriber, and whether or not there will be an introduction or implied endorsement by the list owner. (According to copywriting genius John Forde, this can often help boost response rates by 25 percent or more.) All of these factors will help determine the value of the list and, ultimately, the cost you’re willing to pay to access the people on it.

Hint #7: Be on the lookout for low-cost options.

If you’re targeting a specific audience or a niche buyer, go directly to the website’s publisher for an advertising quote. Cutting out the middleman (ad broker) may get you a better rate. PLUS, it will help you build a relationship with the publisher – which can be advantageous for you down the road.

If your goal is to reach the biggest, broadest audience possible, and you want to run an ad on various websites that have a distinct “channel” or genre (such as entertainment, finance, health, etc.) within the broader subject range of the site, consider an ad network.

Ad networks have an agreement with a variety of popular websites to serve up their ads, and they can sort by website type. Since they typically buy their ad units in bulk from the publishing sites, the networks can pass the savings down to the advertiser and charge a lower CPM rate. Some popular networks include Advertising.com and ValueClick.com. You can find a full list at iwebtool.com.

Just remember to get proposals from more than one network. Some of the lesser-known (Tier 2) networks are looking to make a name for themselves, and may offer better rates. But be wary of “micro” sites, which have little traffic or Web presence. Be sure to ask for a sample of the network’s site listings. I always go for quality over quantity.

Depending on how many impressions you buy from these ad networks, your average cost for an LREC can range from $2 to $5. For blog ads and blog networks, you can often find CPMs lower than $1 or even 50 cents. And if you’re looking to save even more money, ask if remnant inventory is available. Remnant inventory is simply an advertising unit that is not as popular as other ad units on a site and is unsold. Depending on your marketing goal, these ad units may accomplish your objective – and to make them more attractive, networks usually offer them at a lower rate.

Hint #8: Show your poker face.

In this industry, it’s all about confidence and knowledge. If you come across as someone who is savvy to media buying, you’re less likely to be taken advantage of.

Do your homework and follow some of the recommendations above… but your best lessons will happen as you buy.

[Ed. Note: Wendy Montes de Oca, MBA, is ETR's Vice President of Marketing and Business Development. Learn more money-saving, time-saving, business-building Internet marketing techniques at this fall's Info Marketing Bootcamp: Making a Fast Fortune on the "Other Side" of the Internet.]

Today, I’m going to show you a simple way to get started in social media marketing – and an easy three-step process you can use to measure how well it’s working.

In a nutshell, social media is an interactive platform where people can correspond – via chat rooms, forums, bulletin boards, networks (as in MySpace, Facebook, Classmates, LinkedIn, Bebo), user-generated content sharing (as in Digg, StumbleUpon, Reddit), wikis (interactive online encyclopedias), and blogs – with like minded individuals who share similar interests, whatever those interests may be.

Cutting-edge businesses and marketing-centric companies have jumped on the social media bandwagon to leverage the increased popularity of this phenomenon. Companies large and small got their marketers to create MySpace, FaceBook, or LinkedIn profiles in order to have their fingers on the pulse of the market, correspond with consumers, and create buzz about their products.

Here at ETR, we’ve been on the Web for some time now, dabbling in all sorts of social media activities with content syndication, viral marketing, and online PR efforts.

Recently, we started leveraging the presence of our individual team members on LinkedIn. If you’re not familiar with this site, it’s a network community for business professionals. Users can set up profiles highlighting their corporate experience and areas of expertise.

Edwin Huertas, one of ETR’s search engine marketing specialists, answers select questions on LinkedIn that are related to his area of expertise. He also uploads blog posts about a variety of search engine optimization (SEO), search engine marketing (SEM), pay-per-click (PPC), and social media practices. This helps create buzz about ETR (through Edwin’s profile and position at ETR). Plus, he sometimes supplements his posts with links back to relevant articles on our website – which helps drive traffic to the ETR site.

This is a practice you can emulate easily. Simply register as a member of one of the social media groups. Then begin to participate in the discussions. For instance, if a LinkedIn member posts a specific question about SEO, Edwin will try to find an article on our ETR site that addresses that issue. He then answers the question in his own words, but recommends that the member also read the ETR article, which has more valuable information. By answering questions posed by your fellow members (making sure you add relevant links back to content on your website), your posts will begin to generate “free” traffic.

Another site that works well for us is StumbleUpon.com. This site directs Internet surfers to Web pages based on the surfer’s pre-selected categories every time they click on the “Stumble” icon on their toolbar.

You can install the StumbleUpon toolbar on your own computer and recommend articles on your own site. This allows you to give any page a “Thumbs Up” or “Thumbs Down” rating. It also allows you to include a brief description and category for your submission. If you rate your article, it will appear in the StumbleUpon rotation – which, again, means ‘free’ traffic to your site.

Getting started is super-easy. But the key to making social media work for you is the same with any marketing medium: You need to have a way to find out if it’s working.

Although many marketers have been going all out with their social media efforts, most haven’t a clue as to how to actually measure the campaign’s success or failure.

Let’s say Early to Rise just published an article on goal setting for 2009. The article is followed by a related product ad in the ETR issue, as well as by a separate e-mail promotion for a related goal setting product, like our Total Success Achievement program. Product sales are generated from the e-mail and from the ad. Meanwhile, the social media aspect takes over.

The article content is syndicated via RSS feeds, as well as top article directories (like EzineArticles, GoArticles, ArticleBase, Buzzle, and others) and user-generated content networks (such as Digg and Reddit). Readers may also discuss the article on goal setting and self-improvement blogs, forums, and bulletin boards.

So how could you measure the social media aspect of such an effort?

It’s easy. By using the same metrics that are used to measure a public relations effort: Outputs, outcomes, and objectives – what I like to call the “3 O’s.”

1. Outputs (measures effectiveness and efficiency)

For our example, I’d look at Google Analytics for spikes in traffic to the Early to Rise homepage in the days following the article’s publication. I’d look specifically at traffic sources, visits, unique visits, and visit percentages. I’d also look at referring sites and search engines to see whether the traffic is coming directly from social media platforms. And I’d look for an increase in new ETR subscriber sign-ups (leads) during that same time period.

2. Outcomes (measures behavioral changes)

For this metric, I’d look at feedback from our customers… e-mails, phone calls, comments posted on our ETR member forum. I’d also do some reputation monitoring by searching the Web for keywords like “ETR,” the article title, and the product name to see if others were talking about it in chat rooms, external forums, and bulletin boards.

3. Objectives (measures business objectives/sales)

The most obvious and directly related metric is direct sales of the product that are tied to the editorial. Orders generated from an e-mail link or ad link are coded for tracking, so attributing sales to those sources is definitive. If the sales come from a product page on our website where the true “source” cannot be tracked, I’d look at the sales during the corresponding dates of the campaign for correlations.

Finally, for each of the above, I would compare the current campaign data versus the year-to-date (YTD) average and year-over-year data to clearly illustrate pre- and post- campaign performance. In other words, I’d check out website traffic, unique visits, specific product sales, etc. – all for the same time periods. That way, I’d have an established benchmark against which to measure our current social media efforts.

Social media is a low cost and effective way to spread the word about your company and products, as well as to conduct market research. By understanding the “3 O’s” and how they work, you can actually quantify your efforts with hard data… a critical component for any direct marketer.

[Ed. Note: You don't need a whole lot of money to get an Internet business up and running... or to market to your potential customers. Of course, marketing is only one part of getting your business to start churning out cash. With a membership in ETR's Internet Money Club, our panel of experts will guide you through every business-building step... and keep you energized and motivated.

If you're interested in an automatic income stream that can generate profits for the rest of your life, there's probably NEVER been a better opportunity than this one. Learn more here.]

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All of our extended family would arrive around 7:00 p.m. We’d sit around drinking wine or sparkling cider and eating antipasto while watching a Yule log burn on TV. The air was filled with Dean Martin and Johnny Mathis holiday tunes. And the kids clustered around the tree shaking boxes and trying to figure out what was in them.

Dinner started around 10:00 p.m. – and, as at every family event, we had an adult table and a kids’ table (with the “kids” ranging in age from toddler to 18 years old!). The food and conversation was savored for hours. We’d reminisce about the past, and poke fun at Uncle “Joe” (you know, that quirky relative that every family has). And we’d laugh until our faces turned as red as the wine.

Finally, the magical moment of midnight arrived. The kids moved like a swarm of bees from the table to the tree – waiting for “the word” to start opening their gifts. Then they were off like the start of the Kentucky Derby, ripping open their beautifully wrapped gifts and checking to see who got what. Mom, Dad, aunts and uncles watched with glee as each child seemed to get exactly what they’d wished for.

And then – just when you’d think it was all over – there were the stocking stuffers. We’d run over to the stair rail where we’d hung our stockings and find lots of goodies stuffed neatly inside (usually chocolates, jewelry, and other small trinkets).

Things started to wrap up around 2:00 a.m., and we all went to sleep with full bellies and full hearts.

When we awoke on Christmas morning, there were no stockings to ransack or gifts to open. But there were plenty of new things to play with all day long… with one caveat: We had to wait until we got back from church.

[Ed. Note: What's your favorite holiday tradition? Let us know right here.]

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For example, here at Early to Rise I just completed media buy (i.e., outside advertising purchasing) recommendations for all of our newsletters – Early to Rise, Total Health Breakthroughs, and Investor’s Daily Edge. My advice was to reduce them to help control costs through the end of 2008, as the tough economy continues to impact everyone. But my number one focus is, instead, for each marketing manager to concentrate on leveraging the marketing and editorial relationships we have with our fellow publishers and aggressively pursuing ad swaps, guest editorials, and joint ventures (JV).

The idea is to develop synergistic relationships that are mutually beneficial – to look for areas of deficiency in your competitors and think of ways your company can fill the void.

One potential partner may have a great front-end product (e.g., a low cost e-book) but no up-sell (e.g., a higher-priced related kit containing DVDs, CDs, and workbooks). Another potential partner may have an innovative back-end product but no cost-effective front-end product to bring new customers in the door. Still others may have large, qualified lists but need editorial to bond with their lists. (This frequently happens when marketers collect names through their websites or direct mail, but don’t have a regularly scheduled publication – such as an e-newsletter – to offer people who sign up.)

Some tips to keep in mind when looking for potential partners:

• Do your homework. Find out, in advance, who will be at industry events that you’ll be attending. (Check the program for speakers, vendors, and participants.) Sign up for their e-newsletters. Read their promotional e-mails. Maybe even purchase some of their products.

• Look at EVERY opportunity as a way to maximize your company’s brand. When you go to industry events, don’t eat dinner alone in your hotel room. Go to functions. Mingle. Network. Have a genuine conversation with a potential partner… then, if there’s a synergy between your two companies, exchange business cards.

At this year’s ETR Info Marketing Bootcamp, I noticed that attendees were really taking advantage of all the opportunities to network with each other and the ETR staff…during presentation breaks, lunch time, cocktail parties – whenever and wherever – making the most out of the experience!

• Before you contact a potential partner, get familiar with his products and target audience and figure out how your company may be able to dovetail with his product line or marketing efforts.

So, once you’ve made the connection, now what?

Ad Swaps

Assuming you both have e-newsletters, you can test the waters and see how your lists will react by doing an advertising swap. In other words, you run an ad in his e-newsletter and he runs an ad in yours.

To make sense out of the results of that test, you have to know your “opportunity cost” – the “cost” you will incur for running an outside ad to your list instead of your own ad. If you normally sell ad space in your e-newsletter, this cost could simply be the flat rate fee you typically charge. Or, if you know the average revenues an issue brings in, you could calculate the potential “missed opportunity” of letting another ad run to your list on a given day.

You should also agree to share important information with your partner. Before his ad runs in your e-newsletter, point out any creative issues. (Perhaps the copy is too inflammatory for your list. Perhaps it’s too competitive.) Provide your partner with your e-newsletter’s sent and deliverability sizes, open rate, and ad click rate. Exchanging performance data is critical to a long and mutually beneficial relationship. It has to be a win/win situation for the partnership to work.

Whether your goal is to attract names for your e-list (lead generation) or to make sales, reciprocate in kind. If your partner is letting you do a name collection ad to his list, for example, let him run the same kind of ad to your list. But first make sure his list is approximately the same size as yours. If it’s substantially smaller, you may want to hold off on an ad swap with that publisher until he builds his subscriber base. You don’t want the initiative to be one-sided.

However, on a case-by-case basis, it doesn’t hurt to extend “good will” to a fellow publisher with proven marketing muscle. For example, when Total Health Breakthroughs launched in summer of 2007, I reached out to several industry friends and colleagues, asking if we could run a lead generation ad to their lists to help us build our subscriber base. We had little to offer in return at the time. (We barely had a list of our own.) But, thankfully, many agreed. The THB list grew in no time, and we were soon able to reciprocate.

Guest Editorials

You can also look into doing guest editorials in other publishers’ e-newsletters – with an editorial note or byline that links to your offer. This is a great way to get introduced to a new list with the “implied” endorsement of the publisher. His endorsement gives you credibility. And if you provide his readers with good, solid, useful information, they will bond with you quickly.

This is a soft-sell approach that may or may not yield results on its own. But when coordinated with either a dedicated e-mail (if your partner is on board with a revenue split) or an e-newsletter ad the same week, your conversion rate (the number of people who go on to buy your product) will dramatically improve.

Joint Ventures (JVs)

I’ve got one more idea for you: joint venturing. This is a quick and cost-effective way to make money with your list even if you have not yet developed any products.  

With a JV, you have an instant product line with no overhead costs. Your partner will supply the products, fulfill orders, and provide customer support. All you have to do is promote the products to your list and split the net revenues with them. For an even a more turnkey approach, you can sell e-reports through sites like Clickbank.com, where everything is automated.

To determine the viability of a potential JV product, there are several strategic marketing variables to consider. I like to think of them as “PPPGS”:

P = Product quality

P = Price point

P = Performance (when promoted to your potential partner’s house list, as well as to outside lists)

G = General market demand

S = Subscriber interest (when promoted to your list, as determined by feedback, surveys, etc.)

Remember – you’re looking for long-term partners, not one-hit-wonders. So carefully select the people you approach, making sure their products make sense relative to your business…and, together, you can reap the unlimited profit potential of reciprocal marketing!

[Ed. Note: You don't need a whole lot of money to get an Internet business up and running...or to market to your potential customers. Of course, marketing is only one aspect of getting your business to start churning out cash. With a membership in ETR's Internet Money Club, our panel of experts will guide you through every business-building step... and keep you energized and motivated the whole year long.

If you're interested in an automatic income stream that can generate profits for the rest of your life, there's probably NEVER been a better opportunity than this one. Learn more here.]

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Dinner at our house is a culinary tour de force with the best traditional American, Italian, and Latin American foods you can imagine. Of course, we have turkey with stuffing (pavo con pan relleno), mashed potatoes (pure de papas), and veggies. We also have my Uncle Joe’s famous antipasto with the sharpest of provolone cheese, pepperoni, and artichokes, as well as my mother-in-law’s mouthwatering lechon and ensalada Russa. Lechon, a holiday dish in South America, is a whole or quarter roasted pig. And ensalada Russa, or “Russia salad,” is simply potato salad with peas, carrots, and hard-boiled eggs.

After hours of eating, chatting, drinking sidra (apple cider), and listening to Uruguayan folk music, the meal is topped off with good ole American apple pie… and a game of soccer. Truly the best of both worlds.

[Ed. Note: What is your #1 favorite Thanksgiving tradition? Let us know right here.]

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The ideas in the book were very innovative at the time. The Internet and e-mail marketing were still young, and, like the Wild Wild West, most marketers and business owners were still trying to “wrangle it in” and figure out how to leverage the Web’s possibilities… and, more important, turn those possibilities into profits.

In a nutshell, the book explained “how to turn strangers into friends and friends into customers.” The principle behind this is to first understand the difference between cold (or interruption) marketing - like those annoying phone calls you always seem to get during dinner asking you to subscribe to the local newspaper… and permission marketing – where the prospect is actually giving you permission to contact them by “opting in” to receive your messages.

To help you get the most out of your Internet marketing, I have expanded on Mr. Godin’s “stranger/friend/customer” concept and added two key components: multi-buyer and advocate. And I’ll show you how you can leverage each of these segments to help grow your business.

Leveraging Your Customers Throughout Their Life Cycle

You may think that a customer is someone who buys from you – period. But that’s a very limited view. From the instant you “meet” your customer… until he’s become a VIP buyer who’s spent hundreds or thousands of dollars with your company… you should be interacting with him in different ways. Treating him properly every step of the way will create a true win/win situation. Your customer will continue to enjoy satisfying experiences with your company, and your company will enjoy the positive effect this relationship will have on its bottom line.

Here are the five stages a customer can go through during his life cycle, and how you can make the most of each one…

Stage 1: Stranger

The stranger or “prospect” doesn’t know you. Your job is to get her attention. You have only a few seconds to get her to react – whether it’s by asking her to click on your ad or open your e-mail message. Which means that your copy for the ad headline or e-mail subject line is critical.

Once you’ve captured her attention, your #1 goal is to have this stranger “opt in” to receive your messages, giving you a chance to continue to bond with her. This is also the time to start to build trust. Show your creditability. And explain what you can do for her (fill a desire, answer a need).

Stage 2: Friend

The friend has demonstrated an interest in your initial promotion and has opted in to receive more information from you. This gives you an outstanding opportunity to introduce him to your philosophy, your company, and your mission, and to re-enforce how you can help him.

During this stage, it’s best to send a series of introduction e-mails (anywhere from 5 to 7) and withhold your new friends from your general mailing list. You don’t want them (the newest names on your list) to start receiving promotional messages BEFORE they receive some of your editorial messages.

We send six introductory e-mails to new Early to Rise subscribers. Each e-mail is a special issue of ETR that’s composed of articles that present our core philosophies. This gives our new subscribers a chance to “warm up” to our expert contributors, the format of our newsletter, and the topics we typically address. Only after they are warmed up do we start sending them ETR as usual – including our promotional e-mails.

Stage 3: Customer/Client

The customer (or client) is someone who has bought into your philosophy and purchased a product (or service) from you.

Many companies make the mistake of ending the customer relationship at this point. But after reading this article, you’ll know better… you’ll know that getting the customer is only the beginning. Keeping him is another story.

You don’t want to put all your eggs into one acquisition basket while having few or no retention efforts. Good retention strategies entail ongoing communication (both promotional and editorial), outstanding customer service, quality products, and fulfilling your promises. Of course there will always be things outside of your control (like losing customers to market conditions). But the idea is to be proactive and not reactive. Keep the “80/20 rule” in mind – which states that 80 percent of your sales come from 20 percent of your customers.

Stage 4: Multi-Buyer

The multi-buyer is a customer who is tied into your brand and demonstrates product loyalty with your company. Multi-buyers have purchased several products from you, and are not afraid to spend money. These folks are your best list to roll out new products to or test higher price points. If you are thinking about creating a “VIP” or “Lifetime” product, you’re going to want to advertise to this list. Multi-buyers will have a high lifetime value (LTV) for you, and will likely purchase cross-channel. In other words, they will buy from you no matter how you contact them – whether via banner ads, e-mail marketing, direct mail, or telemarketing.

Stage 5: Advocate

This segment of your customer database is your holy grail. Your list of advocates is made up of the most satisfied and loyal of your customers – and contains your best “unpaid” employees. Advocates will do your advertising for you by telling friends, family, colleagues, and acquaintances about your products and services. And in today’s Net-based environment, advocates are a major force in getting your name in the blogsphere and social communities… and spreading your marketing message virally.

So how do you create advocates? Well, advocates are not created, they’re cultivated over time. The advocate must, of course, believe in your products and services. But for this special group, the customer experience goes deeper… to an emotional level. The advocate feels personally touched by your service, product, or guru. Because of you, her life is changed – and she’s busting at the seams to help others as she has been helped.

Your advocates are people you want testimonials from. People you can invite to be in BETA test or focus groups. And people to get feedback from to help develop future products. Even better, this group can help you make more money in the future. At ETR, some of our best JV (joint venture) partnerships have been with our advocates – people who understand our core values, respect our business, and have a company or product that’s synergistic to our own.

You want to treat these folks like the VIPs they are and invite them to special events or let them be the first to receive discounted offers. You may even consider creating affiliate marketing or referral programs to “formalize” this group’s verbal recommendations.

Always keep in mind that the effort does not stop at the sale. Since it costs more to obtain new leads than to retain existing customers – now, more than ever – you have to know how to optimize the five stages of the customer life cycle.

[Ed. Note: Treating your customers right - no matter where they are in their life cycle - will ensure that your business prospers.

To get a clear and easy-to-follow model for building your own information marketing powerhouse, order ETR's 2008 Info Marketing Bootcamp DVD Library. It's your chance to learn dozens of additional strategies for treating your customers well, marketing your products, and helping your business grow. Get your copy today.]

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If you did, I’m sure you’ve seen those little windows that magically appear on your computer screen.

They’re known as “rescue pop-ups,” and many successful e-tailers use them in a last-minute attempt to save the sale. Some of these pop-ups ask you if you’re sure you want to end the purchase (in case you backed out of the page by accident). Others offer you an incentive to continue with the purchase, perhaps free shipping or a discount.

Recently, some sites have taken a multi-channel approach that encourages the user to “click here to speak to a live person.” In essence, you’re crossing from one marketing channel to another – going from click to call. This is especially attractive to customers who feel hesitant about doing an online transaction… or who simply need that extra human interaction before making the purchase.

Although some find rescue pop-ups intrusive or annoying, they definitely serve a purpose. And if even one sale is saved as a result, it’s worth it for the e-tailer. Hey, if your customers don’t want to see ‘em, they can always enable their pop-up blockers!

[Ed. Note: Using a rescue pop-up is just one marketing strategy you might want to test. Remember, the more channels you involve in your marketing mix, the better your chance of reaching your customer exactly when she wants to buy. Get the comprehensive guide to multi-channel marketing - and learn how it can make you a more valuable employee and a better businessperson - right here.]

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CTC, or Changing the Channel, is the new book co-written by Michael Masterson and MaryEllen Tribby. Whether you’re a marketer, entrepreneur, expert, or novice – if you’re looking to increase revenues and start or grow your business through breakthrough multi-channel marketing techniques, this is a “must-have” for your business-building arsenal. Changing the Channel has cost-effective, powerful, and easily executable real-world solutions to common business problems.

I’ve been in direct marketing for almost 15 years, and before I read the galley (a pre-publication version of the book) I figured, “What else is there to learn? I’ve practically seen and done it all.”

However, I still took away some very useful tactics from Changing the Channel. It took me less than a day to read the entire book. And if you’re like me – passionate about marketing and business – you won’t be able to put this book down.

What I like best about Changing the Channel is that it not only gives theory but also practical, hands-on examples that anyone – from a stay-at-home mom looking to start a home-based business, to a struggling entrepreneur, to a marketing director at a Fortune 500 company – can use to make money. And that the tactics are not wallet-busting either, which is ideal in today’s current economic environment.

Some of my favorite parts of the book include:

1. The “putting it all together” section of the Direct Mail chapter, which clearly illustrates a comprehensive mail plan spreadsheet.

2. Chapter 15, “The Incredible Power of a Multi-Channel Campaign,” which includes what NOT to do in a new product launch.

3. The Appendix. Yes, the Appendix. I know that appendices in books are usually wasted space, containing useless, boring addendums. But this Appendix is chock full of real multi-channel marketing examples you can study and emulate.

Plain and simple, if you’re looking to excel at business… ANY business… you’ve got to pick up a copy of Changing the Channel. 

[Ed. Note: The more marketing channels you use, the more money you stand to make. But before you jump into any new form of marketing, you should know a little about it. You can get the details behind channels like Internet marketing, television, magazines, and much more in the brand-new book by MaryEllen Tribby and Michael Masterson. Learn how to get your copy right here.]

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I’m talking about organic search via search engine marketing and optimization (SEM/SEO).

Many marketers think focusing on organic search is "a waste of time." Some think there’s no way to monitor, measure, and monetize the results. But they’re either clueless or misinformed. For instance, according to a recent survey by Jupiter Research, 80 percent of Web users get information from organic search results. And measuring sources of traffic and visitors is easy with the free Web tool Google Analytics.

Search engines like diversity in relevant back links to your website. And one of the best ways to get lots of relevant back links – as I said in my article about the SONAR Method of Content Distribution – is with a synchronized distribution of your content to a variety of sources.

So in addition to having optimized website pages, having a variety of news aggregators, social networks, blogs, and directories linking to your site helps give you a heavier weight in organic listings. This helps build your organic market presence for little or no cost. And, let’s face it, low cost is a good thing.

Using organic search strategies helped increase traffic rank and visits to ETR’s sister publication, Total Health Breakthroughs, by 3,160 percent and 81.5 percent, respectively, in only three months. In that same time period, Total Health Breakthroughs had a 62.01 percent rate of converting that organic search traffic into subscribers. That’s about 16,000 organic names in three months at virtually no cost!

Now tell me… does that seem like a waste of time to you?

[Ed. Note: Wendy Montes de Oca is ETR's Vice President of Marketing & Business Development. For step-by-step instructions on starting your own Internet business, get ETR's Magic Button program. Click here to learn more.]

I was working for a financial division of General Electric in New York City. GE was very big on continuing education for their employees at every level of the organization.

Most everyone in the training session that day, including me, was in their early twenties and had administrative positions. A few of my co-workers were skeptical about the session. They thought it was hokey and would have no real, tangible benefit for them. They looked at it as two easy days out of the office.

The session started with a series of mental exercises. Then the facilitator asked us to close our eyes and see ourselves in 10-15 years.

We went around the room, listening to each person’s visualization, one by one. Most of the participants weren’t very enthusiastic. They had little to say and just a vague idea of where they saw themselves in the future.

Finally, it was my turn. I announced to the room that I saw myself in a professional office environment, wearing a red "power" suit. I was confident and respected. I seemed busy, but in control. I was knowledgeable and successful. I described a complete scenario, right down to the wood my desk was made of (mahogany).

Now I wasn’t sure what my actual job was in that scenario. (At the time, I was an administrative assistant in the company’s marketing department and was going to college, majoring in pre-law.) Yet, I could see myself as an accomplished, corporate professional.

Until then, I’d never envisioned with such clarity what I wanted to do with my life. However, after seeing in my mind’s eye where I wanted to be, I was inspired to put in the time and education needed to get there.

As with any journey, having a map helps you get to your destination quicker than if you try to go it alone. And that’s what visualization is: a mental blueprint or personal roadmap for success. The image I had of myself and my future made it easier for me to take the actions I had to take.

In two years, I advanced from an administrative to a directorial position. And because I was so eager to achieve my "vision," I continued to work full-time while going to school full-time to complete my Bachelor’s degree. The fire within me continued to burn, and I went on to graduate school, completing my Master’s degree several years ago.

So for those who say the power of visualization is baloney, I say "It works." And I’m not the only one.

Bob Cox, the "voice" of ETR’s Total Success Achievement program, is a big believer in the power of visualization. "It helps you reconnect to the ‘why’ behind your goals," he says. "Why do you want additional income? If the reason is to buy a new car, visualize what your new car looks like and what features it has. If you want to take your family on vacation, visualize in detail where you’re going and what you’re doing. Visualizing in detail will keep your goals real and motivate you to take action."

Robert Ringer has been an advocate of visualization for many years. He uses "active visualization" to handle obstacles in the boardroom and on the baseball field. Michael Masterson has used visualization to help reduce the anxiety of facing a challenge. And Brian Tracy recommends using visualization to transform bad habits into good ones.

You can apply the technique of visualization to attract success, money, love, health, power, and more.

What do you want? Where do you want to be in five or 10 or 15 years? Get a mental snapshot of the "big picture," then let your mind fill in the specifics. You may even find a picture in a magazine – a beautiful house, a sports car, or a person with a super-fit body – that will be your motivation for success.

Once you have a concrete vision in your head, you’ll be much more excited about doing what’s necessary to turn it into reality.

See what the power of visualization can do for you… and put yourself in control of your own destiny. You won’t be disappointed.

[Ed Note: Wendy Montes de Oca is ETR's Vice President of Marketing & Business Development. People from all over the country have already experienced the power of managing their destinies through motivation, determination, and goal setting. Discover the secrets that have made them successful. Click here now to learn more.]