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In today's newsletter...
Don't Give Up Yet -- Maybe You're
Not Failing After All.
By Jim Daniels
I get a lot of email from people throwing in the towel on
their web business dreams. It's kinda depressing. Unfortunately, many of them are closer to success than they realize...
I'll share some proof with you right after
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Too
many people give up on their web business dreams too early.
Some of them have a good reasons,
but many of them simply quit a little too early.
In fact, I bought a subscriber
list from another marketer a few years back who was a perfect
example of giving up too early.
He had built his list to several
thousand subscribers over the period of a couple years, but was
having a hard time making much money from it. So he threw in the
towel and sold it for a song.
I was happy to continue what he
had started. I added his subscribers to my own list and
continued what he started -- helping his subscribers with their business.
Over the years I can't measure the value I received from that
transaction. If it's less than 20x the investment I'd be
shocked.
Before you make the same mistake
and give up too early, I'd like to share some stats about web
business that may surprise you. When you see these stats you'll
understand why most gurus don't share them. (They're afraid
if they do, you'll never buy their business opportunity or
program!)
Now I have to warn you, these
stats may seem dismal at first glance. But they are the facts of
doing business online. And once you understand and accept them,
you'll understand why success takes time, and
stick-to-itiveness.
These stats I've
compiled over the years from my own experiences as well as many
of my readers shared experiences. These stats or similar stats apply to most businesses
online.
Stat #1: Clickthrough Rates
Let's take banner ads like the
tower ad you see over there to the left of this newsletter. The
average banner ad clickthrough rate nowadays is, get this...
0.19%. That's one click for every 500 or so times the banner
shows. Wow, that's dismal. It's no wonder banner advertising
costs have dropped so much.
Of course you can get better
clickthrough rates with text ads, sponsor ads and contextual
copy like articles containing links within or at the end. Bet
even those need to be seen by about 50-100 people to generate a
clickthrough.
Stat #2: Email Open Rates
I'm sure you've always heard "the money is the the list",
right. Well true as that is, over the years email open rates
have steadily declined due to high volumes of spam, email
filters to block spam and other email delivery issues.
My own latest stats show that some 5-10% of the people on
your email list will open any given email. Less if you're not
sending quality content on a regular basis. That means if you
have 10,000 people on your opt-in list you can expect 500-1000
to open any particular email.
Next you have to consider that of the 1000 that do open the
message, only 15-25% of them will read the message and go on to
click the link in your email. Now you're down to 250 clicks from
a mailing to 10,000. Yikes, combine that with the next stat and
you can see where the trouble really starts...
Stat #3: Conversion Rates
Did you know that the average sales letter online gets about
a 1% conversion? That means for every 100 people you get to a
sales letter, you'll get one sale. Some sales letters do much
better, but some do even worse. I've had letters convert as high
as 14% with the right offer to the right people. But I've also
seen sales letters from affiliate offers I've mailed do less
than 0.5%.
So, let's go back to the math. I'll use the high end
averages: 10,000 subscribers results in 1000 opened emails and
250 clicks. Assuming a very solid sales letter converting at 3%,
you'd get a total of.... drum roll please.... 8 sales.
Of course if those 8 sales generate a hundred bucks or so
each, and you mailed a different offer once a week or so, you'd
be looking at almost $40k a year. That ain't bad for a "work
when you want" gig.
Also keep in mind that some opt-in lists get much higher open
to click rates and some sales letters convert closer to 5%, and
that is really what can make the difference.
Again, that's why sharing useful info with your subscribers
on a regular basis is so important. If keeps them reading your
stuff and clicking through to the sites you recommend.
But too many marketers online do not share quality
info regularly, and most newcomers are not seasoned enough to
get 5% conversions. Now are you beginning to see why so many
people give up before they reach a decent income level?
OK, enough dismal stats.
After this quick sponsor message I'll explain why despite all
those stats, web business may still be your best shot at
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OK, enough dismal stats.
Buy now you understand why folks may think they're failing
when the fact is, they just need to keep growing.
Contrary to what all the get rich quick sites and hyped up
sales letters tell you, it takes TIME and EFFORT to build a
serious business on the web.
If I've scared you away from doing business online, that was
not my intention. After all, I'd be shooting myself in the foot,
since helping people build business online is my livelihood.
The fact is, lots of people DO make it, and make it BIG online.
Despite all those dismal stats, I urge you to
give this a shot, and stick with it for as long as it takes.
You see, all of these stats have similar "sister stats" in
the world of offline business. Local advertising is pricey. Lots
of people who come into your store buy very little if anything.
Mailing
postcards is costly and gets 1-2% response if you're lucky.
Inventory tax is high in many areas. Returns are a hassle you
always have to deal with. I could go on and on.
Yet people succeed in brick and mortar businesses all the time! And even more people
make it online.
That's because doing business online is much less expensive.
But just like in the real world, it all comes down to a
numbers game...
The more people who see your offer, the more prospects you
get. The more prospects you get, the more sales you make, and the
more you earn.
So before you give up on your web business dream, consider
carefully just how active you have been in growing those
numbers.
Maybe all you need to do is increase your reach by doing more
advertising or grass roots marketing. There are great
advertising resources everywhere online. Try a solo mailing with
an opt-in email list company. Try some low-cost ezine
advertising. Start an affiliate
program. Find some joint venture partners. Grow your opt-in
lists with quality giveaways.
If you offer quality content and help to people in your niche, you'll get there.
Yes, it takes work and constant promotion. And it takes laser
like focus. Forget about the next big thing that comes along and
focus on your own business. You are the next big thing!
And
don't give up too early. Giving up is the ONLY way you'll fail.
Jim
Daniels
JDD Publishing Co.
www.ezwebbusinessbuilder.com
www.make-a-living-online.com
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