Are We Devaluing A Great Resource

Writen by Theresa Cahill

When I started earlier today to write this article, it ended up three pages long while I tried to "tip toe around" what really just needed to be said.

After rereading it for the millionth time, still concerned that 1) I wasn't saying what needed saying, and 2) had I "offended" anyone? I trashed it all and started over.

Right up front, my intention is not to offend anyone, ever, but there's something going on in the ezine and solo advertising world that is - well - alarming.

And it's not just my reaction... many advertisers and publishers are expressing these very same sentiments to me.

While competition is healthy, never for a minute would I even doubt that, undercutting to the point of devaluing a service or product is downright dangerous. Dangerous for the publisher, dangerous for the co-op, and most certainly dangerous for the advertiser.

Why? Why aren't rock-bottom prices best?

Ezine and solo advertising is a valuable commodity. It is the one thing that just about anyone wanting to market online can still afford to do.

So, what happens if the cost of ezine and solo advertising becomes so rock-bottom that it devalues the service - makes it worthless?

At first, truly low, low, low prices may seem like such a great idea! People scramble to order, the skies the limit! Life is good!

Then, reality hits home because sooner or later these same orders must "hit the airwaves," or, in this case inboxes, all over the world.

First one arrives, then two, then three, then 10, then 20, then 100 - all in one day?!?

Yikes!

The typical reaction has got to be, "Hey enough is enough will ya!" and delete keys go crazy if only in self defense.

I truly enjoy helping people. I've even talked some potential advertisers out of advertising on occasion if they just weren't ready. It's important that when someone is ready, they receive a quality product or service in return.

I think, for what it's worth, that we as publishers need to sit back and think for a moment, get our priorities straight.

Our #1 priority is to our subscribers. We need to ensure we are offering subscribers and advertisers quality publications and worthwhile avenues to advertise in via our own sales links and co-ops.

We have a responsibility not to become the spam we all despise so much.

We need to take a hard look at what's good for our growing businesses and what's not. Stick with the services and ideas that serve us well, and treat us right, and out with the old.

As advertisers, we need to determine if cheap means good. If you aren't subscribing and choosing cheap, think again. Regardless, if you aren't subscribing - do. To effectively use any resource, we need to participate with that resource. The opportunity for additional, free advertising and building our own name branding by providing input and feedback is just plain crazy to pass up!

The world of ezines and ezine advertising holds huge potential for advertisers and publishers alike. Ezines are needed and necessary.

Let's just make sure that in 2003, and beyond, they still mean something.

All the very best to you and yours!

© Theresa Cahill - All Rights Reserved. Feel free to distribute this article. Please keep it intact and with the resource box included below.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Theresa Cahill, a two decade veteran of marketing, is the owner of http://www.mywizardads.com and invites you to take a look at the services of MWA and download fr.ee helpful information and more at http://www.mywizardads.com/sitemap.html

Essential Ezine Questions Answered 1 Why Publish An Ezine

Writen by Teri Mramer

It seems as though everyone is telling you that you should have an ezine for your web site, heck even if you don't even have a web site! But why?

There are several good reasons to publish your own ezine, the not the least of which is to keep in touch with visitors to your web site. Here are several more reasons:

(1) Staying in contact with customers on a regular basis so they remember your site amongst the billions of web sites on the Internet today.

(2) Site announcements

(3) Staying in contact with potential customers (Maybe one of the most important reasons)

(4) Updating your affiliates

(5) Sending information in the form of articles and editorials

(6) A mechanism to deliver results of a survey or contest

(7) Establish yourself as knowledgeable in a field

(8) Increase your Search Engine ranking

(9) Add content to your web site

(10) As an advertising vehicle

(11) Earn revenue through selling ads

(12) Gain writing experience

Those are a few of the main reasons that I can think of off the top of my head. So let's discuss a couple of them, shall we?

It is very important to stay in contact with both visitors (Potential customers) and current customers. The trick is finding that perfect balance between being helpful and delivering value and information with your ezine and being a pest by sending too many issues, notices, ad sheets, and classifieds.

On a side note:

Don't be a baby bird!

One of my pet peeves (And probably a lot of other people's as well!) is the "You gotta try this!" email every single week from some publishers.

Every week, sometimes several times a week, I get this breathless email from some publisher that is extolling the virtues of yet another "Joint Venture Letter Writer", "Make Super Money as a Super Affiliate" ebook, or pop-up generating software.

Enough already!

Just because the different affiliate programs you are a member of all send you a new "Solo Ad", "Classified Ad", etc. doesn't mean that it is the greatest thing since sliced white bread! There is nothing that will make me unsubscribe faster than a publisher that claims I "Absolutely can't live (Or do business) without X, Y, or Z product every other day.

Especially when all of the products are just variations on a theme and I see the same ad from 4 different people (Each "customized" to make it look like it came from them!). Don't you think your subscribers read more than one ezine?

Don't get caught up in this advertising frenzy or you will lose that list of subscribers you worked so hard to gain the trust of. Just because you reach that magic subscriber base # of 5,000 or 10,000 people doesn't mean that the focus of your ezine should suddenly switch from providing information to being your private cash box.

So, don't sit in your "nest" with your mouth continuously open waiting to be fed like a baby bird chirp, chirp, chirping away all day!

End of Rant :)

The main reason you are sending out your ezine is to showcase your knowledge (Or humor, or artistic ability, whatever your "thing" is) and as you provide valuable information, tutorials, articles, resources, etc., every week you gain the trust of your subscribers.

Then, when you mention that you use "X product" to achieve "Y results", your subscribers will listen to you and if you provide a link, they may even reward you by buying your product!

Some of the Less Obvious Reasons to Publish an Ezine:

Another great reason to write an ezine is to boost your search engine ranking by archiving your past issues online. Later in this series we will be discussing exactly how to do that step-by-step, but for now, let's just assume you know how to add your issues to your web site.

Search engines just love content. Instead of filling your web with other people's articles use your past issue to boost your sites value. I'm not saying their articles are bad or even that having them is bad, but don't you think your visitors will be more impressed with more content written by you in your site than by others? Plus, you have the added bonus of looking smarter!

Your past ezines are definitely on the same topic as your web site which will make a search engine like Google very happy when its spider finds that large group of web pages all on the same general topic. Be sure they are all interlinked, to each other and to the home page. Here's a couple of ways to link them:

1. List the "Articles by Title" down the left side of the page. Link them using the title as the link. This is a much bigger boost in page rating than the "next article" link. Keywords used as the text of the link itself - it doesn't get better than that - baby!

2. Have a navigation bar across the bottom of the page

3. Have "Next" and "Back" links, plus a little arrow icon pointing left and right respectively. Use the "Alt" description for the picture to stick a keyword in the page. Not a bunch, one per is ok...

If you use FrontPage or other WYSIWYG editor, right click on the picture, click on properties, then type in your keyword where the space for the "alternate text" goes.

Include the word "arrow" too, in case your picture pulls a no show or someone has their graphics turned off the text makes sense. Like for our fishing magazine example (Article #2 in the Series) you could use "click arrow for next fishing article" as your alternate text.

We will cover this topic more deeply in the "How to Archive Your Past Issues" Article further along in this series. But for now,just keep it in mind.

And the final reason we will discuss in this section is writing experience. What better way to gain experience and find your writing "Voice" than to write an ezine every week? If you have ever contemplated writing your own ebook, special report, short story or novel, an ezine is great writing practice.

You have to do research, proofread, type, (Unless you have "you talk it records" software that is!) and keep a schedule. All great warm-ups for you true project, whatever that is.

So there you have it, a nice even dozen reasons you should get up off your rear - or sit down on it as it were - and start writing your own ezine.

"Techie" Teri Mramer is the owner of the new training site sensation, Web Master Insider Training Club Get your free 3 week trial membership today and start building your business web site tomorrow!

Publishers Are Standing In Line To Publish You

Writen by Raymond Johnston Jr

As a publisher, one of the hardest things to find is fresh material for your ezine. There is a lot of material out there and it would make it very easy to just grab something and call it good. In fact, there are many ezines and newsletters that do just that.

The number of ezines popping up is staggering, yet quality material to fill them is still quite limited. It's certainly not a lack of quantity.

I spend hours each day reading to find good information to pass on to my subscribers.

It's not an easy task.

Why? Well, most of the quality work gets published in every decent publication around.

The quantity of "good" material available is very hard to find.

Too many people writing articles are trying to write about subjects they are not qualified to write about.

Everyone wants to act the part of an expert.

You don't need to be an expert to write articles. Everyone has an opinion. Everyone has experiences. Everyone can do a little research and find a few facts. Heck, today you don't even have to know how to spell.

Publishers like to give their subscribers various views. Yours doesn't have to be the same as everyone else's.

You want to improve your business? You want to increase traffic to your website? You want to brand your name?

Take the time and start writing some articles. The first few may not even get published but the more you write the better those articles will get.

Please write. Publishers are standing in line to publish you.

Article was written by Raymond Johnston Jr You will find more of his articles along with web marketing tools on his website at http://www.RaymondJohnston.com.