Sunday, December 31, 2006

After you've writtten your ebook

Getting your ebook out is going to be your focus onceyou've finished writing it, just as it is with printbooks. People will hesitate to buy any book from anauthor they've never heard of. Wouldn't you?
The answer is simple: give it away! You will seeprofits in the form of promoting your own business andgetting your name out. You will find affiliates whowill ask you to place their links within your ebook,and these affiliates will in turn go out and make yourname known. Almost every single famous ebook authorhas started out this way.
Another powerful tool to attract people to your ebookis to make it interactive. Invent something for themto do within the book rather than just producing pagesthat contain static text. Let your readers fill outquestionnaires, forms, even crossword puzzles gearedto testing their knowledge on a particular subject.Have your readers hit a link that will allow them torecommend your book to their friends and associates.Or include an actual order form so at the end of theirreading journey, they can eagerly buy your product.
When people interact with books, they become a part ofthe world of that book. The fact is just as true forbooks in print as it is for ebooks.
That's why ebooks are so essential. Not only do theyprovide a forum for people to learn and make sense oftheir own thoughts, but they can also serve to promoteyour business at the same time.

Friday, December 29, 2006

Why Write an eBook?

It's not true that everything that has been said has already been written. Since that unfortunate axiomcame into use, the whole universe has changed.Technology has changed, ideas have changed, and the mindsets of entire nations have changed.
The fact is that this is the perfect time to write anebook. What the publishing industry needs are people who can tap into the world as it is today - innovative thinkers who can make the leap into the new millennium and figure out how to solve old problems in a new way. Ebooks are a new and powerful tool for original thinkers with fresh ideas to disseminate informationto the millions of people who are struggling to figure out how to do a plethora of different things.
Let's say you already have a brilliant idea, and the knowledge to back it up that will enable you to write an exceptional ebook. You may be sitting at your computer staring at a blank screen wondering, "Why? Why should I go through all the trouble of writing my ebook when it's so impossible to get anything published these days?
Well, let me assure you that publishing an ebook is entirely different than publishing a book in print.Let's look at the specifics of how the print and cyberpublishing industry differ, and the many reasons why you should take the plunge and get your fingers tapping across those keyboards!
Submitting a print book to conventional publishing houses or to agents is similar to wearing a hair shirt 24/7. No matter how good your book actually is, or how many critique services and mentor writers have told you that "you've got what it takes," your submitted manuscript keeps coming back to you as if it is a boomerang instead of a valuable mine of information.
Perhaps, in desperation, you've checked out self-publishing and found out just how expensive aventure it can be. Most "vanity presses" require minimal print runs of at least 500 copies, and even that amount will cost you thousands of dollars. Some presses' minimal run starts at 1,000 to 2,000 copies. And that's just for the printing and binding. Add in distribution, shipping, and promotional costs and -well, you do the math. Even if you wanted to go this route, you may not have that kind of money to risk.
Let's say you already have an Internet business with aquality website and a quality product. An ebook is oneof the most powerful ways to promote your business while educating people with the knowledge you already possess as a business owner of a specific product or service.
For example, let's say that you've spent the last twenty-five years growing and training bonsai trees,and now you're ready to share your knowledge and experience. An ebook is the perfect way to reach the largest audience of bonsai enthusiasts.
Ebooks will not only promote your business - they will help you make a name for yourself and your company,and establish you as an expert in your field. You may even find that you have enough to say to warrant a series of ebooks. Specific businesses are complicated and often require the different aspects to be divided in order for the reader to get the full story.
Perhaps your goals are more finely tuned in terms ofthe ebook scene. You may want to build a wholebusiness around writing and publishing ebooks.Essentially, you want to start an e-business. You are thinking of setting up a website to promote and market your ebooks. Maybe you're even thinking of producing an ezine.
One of the most prevalent reasons people read ebooks is to find information about how to turn their Internet businesses into a profit-making machine. And these people are looking to the writers of ebooks to provide them with new ideas and strategies because writers of ebooks are usually people who understandthe new cyberspace world we now live in. Ebook writers are experts in Internet marketing campaigns and the strategies of promoting and distributing ebooks. The cyberspace community needs its ebooks to be successful so that more and more ebooks will be written.
You may want to create affiliate programs that will also market your ebook. Affiliates can be people or businesses worldwide that will all be working to sell your ebooks. Think about this? Do you see a formulafor success here?
Figure out what your subject matter is, and then narrow it down. Your goal is to aim for specificity.Research what's out there already, and try to find avoid that your ebook might fill.
What about an ebook about a wedding cake business? Or an ebook about caring for elderly pets? How about the fine points of collecting ancient pottery?
You don't have to have three masters degrees to write about your subject. People need advice that is easy to read and easily understood. Parents need advice for dealing with their teenagers. College students need to learn good study skills - quickly. The possibilities are endless.

Tuesday, December 19, 2006

Build it, and They Will Come?

While “Build it, and They Will Come” might have worked in “Field of Dreams”, don’t count on the same results for your Web Commerce Site. The difference between success and failure is the ability to generate targeted responsive traffic to your site.

OK, now how do you accomplish this? I have read many articles by self appointed “Marketing Gurus” and, while most talk in vague generalities and platitudes, there are a few (very few) out there that provide concrete, usable advise. I have just come across a new eBook that is one of those very few.

It presents a strategy for selling any type of product using methods which will never become obsolete. Plus an ingenious twist which will send your traffic rocketing.

The Ultimate SuperTip, written by Harvey Segal (Mr SuperTips) is neatly set out, easy to follow, written without hype and not littered with annoying links. This book has been called the greatest viral marketing idea of all time

And the cost of this book ?

It's free !

And it ends with an amazing idea for making you money from the book itself.
I'd rush to get this book now if I were you at Ultimate Super Tips.


Larry Sullivan
http://www.internetpowerseller.com

Monday, December 18, 2006

Supercharge your eBay Listings with Turbo Lister!!

If you want to save both time and money selling on eBay, then Turbo Lister is for you, what’s more it’s FREE from eBay. There are many advantages using Turbo Lister and I seem to find more each time I use it (I have never been one for reading all of the instructions before I start to use something, I usually dive right in and learn as I go).

Advantages:
* You do all of the work offline. You can save a item and edit it later, copy it etc.

* You can do several listings and upload them any time. Individually or all at once. (There is an optimal time/day for listing certain items. Ideally an auction should be listed later in the day to allow bidders that wait for last minute to bid. I like 10:00PM EST, since it is not too late for the East coast people and the West coast people are home from work.)

* Since all of your listing are stored in your computer, you have a record of what and when each item was listed on eBay. Relisting at a later date is easy.

* A listing can be stored as a template and used later to list similar items.

* A listing can be copied allowing changes in format and description to test your marketing. ( I usually run a single item Fixed Price to see if I get buyers before running a multiple item Fixed Price. (on multiple item listings, you can’t make changes after someone makes a purchase))

* The “Description Builder” function will work as an HTML editor, allowing you to switch back and forth between HTML and ordinary typing. You can also insert photos in your ad text, without having to pay extra photo fees!! You have full control over font, font size, and color, to generate ads with Pizzazz (see my previous post)

* If you have an eBay Store, you can set up your entire inventory and drop it in all at once and you still have a record of everything you listed in your store.

* There are many other advantages, depending on your individual situation. If there are others that you want to share, please ad them in comments.


Follow this link to download Turbo Lister NOW!!!

Larry Sullivan
www.internetpowerseller.com

Sunday, December 17, 2006

Spice up your eBay Auction Descriptions – Habla HTML?

Do your auction descriptions look like they were done on your aunt Millie’s old typewriter, or do they have color, fonts, and pictures and, well pizzazz? There are many ways to make your auction descriptions jump off the page and actually SELL your item to the potential buyer. Remember, if you are fortunate enough to have someone visit your ad, your ad has to make them actually buy or bid on your item. Wimpy ads won’t work in the competitive market place that eBay has become.

How do you make ads with visual pizzazz?

There is software available that will guide you through the process and allow you to fill-in-the-blanks with your information and pictures, and create a visually impressive ad. The software that I have purchased and use is Auction-O-Matic . They allow up to six pictures to be placed in the ad (this avoids any additional eBay costs for extra pictures!!) and you have the option of allowing the reader to supersize each photo by clicking on it. Once you have the ad looking as you want it, it will create the necessary HTML (sorry, I used the four letter word) and simply paste it into the Description Builder box in the eBay ad maker.

Now that I have used the feared word (HTML), let’s talk about it a little. It is like visiting a foreign country, you don’t need to be fluent in the language to get around, but know a few words and phrases can make your stay a lot easier and a lot better. HTML is the same way. No one would sit down and try to compose an entire ad using HTML code. There is a lot of software that allows you to type normally and will convert whatever you put on the page into HTML. In eBay, however, if you input the description in HTML, you must edit it in HTML or redo it using Auction-O-Matic software and repaste the entire description. This is where knowing a little HTML can save a lot of time and trouble.

Familiarizing yourself with a little HTML can be quite easy. There are many books available or you could do as I did and visit Dave's Site. Dave provides a free, online, interactive tutorial in basic HTML (and other more advanced stuff) . Check it out, you will be glad you did. He also sells in a paper book that is great for reference.

Larry
www.internetpowerseller.com
linus172@verizon.net

Wednesday, December 13, 2006

Hey, Buddy! Wanna Buy a Nice Website?

Plenty to choose from right here on good old eBay, from “established website businesses”, complete with products, domain name and hosting, to glorified templates with none of the former goodies. The pitches are very enticing: “Sell one per day at $19.95 and receive a monthly profit of $598.50; Sell only 10 per week and a check for $798.00 will come your way at the end of the month.” The figures roll around in your head and you are RICH by the end of you first year. That is why I purchased my first website. I would pay for it with the first two sales and pocket the rest. Wow, I’m RICH!!

When reality finally set in, I realized that this is actually only 5th grade math; $19.95 x 10 x 4 = $798. The key is IF you sell x per day, no guarantee that you will or any idea on how you will sell this volume of product. You will learn very quickly that pretty websites are literally a dime a dozen, it’s the traffic to make them profitable that is very hard to generate.

That is why these people are selling these websites instead of keeping them and getting rich themselves. The other reason is that when you signup for hosting with them (they make it easy and offer incentives, like service and updates, to so) they create a monthly cash flow of around $10 per month. Of all of the money-making ideas on the internet, the subscription is the king, with a guaranteed payment every month.

There are many marketing gurus out there, each with his own plan to generate great traffic volume and make you rich (look out, 5th grade math again!). I have read many, and some sound actually plausible, but all will require a lot of work and time to realize any real profit. I will share some of the better ones with you at another post.

Larry Sullivan 12/13/2006
www.internetpowerseller.com

Tuesday, December 12, 2006

You Can't Give It Away on eBay!!

Recently I have been buying and now selling eBooks on eBay and taking advantage of being able to download them without having to pay any shipping fee. The process seemed straightforward enough and utilized a service available from eBay and PayPal. However, many people were still relying on either sending a download link via email or attaching the file to an email. Both methods may require some input from the seller after the item is paid for or some kind of autoresponder. There is a method of using MS Outlook (see note below) to work as an autoresponder, but it seemed complicated to me.

The other day, I received a short ebook as a bonus to something or other I purchased, and it very clearly explained the process for using options, already in place in both eBay and PayPal, to automatically provide a download link to the buyer as soon as the payment is verified with PayPal.

This technique is so simple and efficient that I thought everyone should have access to it. But how to spread the word? I decided to “sell” the information on eBay at the lowest possible price, which would make it available to more people. What is the minimum price that I can charge, and not loose money on each transaction. (I may want everyone to have the information, but I am not a philanthropist)

Lets see. eBay charges a minimum $.20 for an insertion fee plus 5.25% of the final value. That’s $.21, so far. But, you must have a “verified” Premier PayPal account and a feedback rating of 10 or more to do a ‘fixed price” listing. Now for a Basic account, PayPal does not charge a transaction fee, but, with the Premier account, they charge 1.9% PLUS $.30!! Now I’m up to $.50 plus $.50 x 5.25% and $.50 x 1.9% for a grand total of $.55.

Now I need to charge at least $.55 to “give away” something on eBay, without loosing money myself. (I did mention that I’m not a philanthropist, didn’t I?). They seem to get you coming and going!

Anyway, now that I am a Blogger, I have a forum that will allow me to make this information available to anyone that wants it, for FREE!!

Click Here for your Free Copy!!

Hope that it helps someone to save a little time and, maybe, make a little more money!!

Note: I have information to set up MS Outlook to send out an email to the buyer. If any one would like a copy, let me know.

Larry Sullivan 12/13/2006
www.internetpowerseller.com