A Guide To Advertising on the Internet

A Guide To Advertising on the Internet

by Joe Rispoli

You can advertise Free on the Internet. It's simple and very profitable, if you only Plan before you begin. There are many ways to
market a product or service on the Internet. Understanding Net culture is critical to succeeding on the Internet. Before you send out any electronic advertisements you should do some research on Net etiquette. The newsgroup, alt.current.events.net-abuse will help get you started.

Enterprises that succeed on the Internet usually have one thing in common: customers who are already on the Net in large numbers.

Here is some advice on placing an ad out on the Internet, whether it be in a newsgroup or on one of the many free classifieds found out on the World Wide Web.

To start, it is very hard to convince a customer to send you money for your product in a small ad. You do not have much space to provide enough information to convince someone to buy your product.
You should never ask for more than five dollars in a classified ad. If you do, you are wasting your time. It has been proven to be more profitable to offer free information, and then follow up with a more complete packet to a customer who you know is interested.

Always send the free information as quickly as possible, and make sureyour product or service is what your customer expects after reading your information.

You can place classified ads on Bulletin Board Services, either free or for a very low price. Many Boards offer a classified ad section where anything can be bought or sold. Most services do not deny access to anyone who is not a member, but you are asked to type in your name, address, phone number and a password. Remember, never ask for money
in an ad, offer free information.

Before advertising on the Net, try to determine all possible results, and be prepared to handle them. Sometimes it is better to be expecting alot of business, then to suddenly receive more business then you can possibly deal with. Just remember to start slowly, advertising on the Internet is much different then traditional media.

Newsgroups

There are about 10,000 newsgroups, and each one has a specific subject.

When advertising you can target a particular newsgroup that relates to your product or service. Not posting to any un-related newsgroup is a good way to avoid being flamed. Flamed is when you receive rude messages from people that do not appreciate advertisements on un-related newsgroups.

It is estimated that over 10 million people read newsgroups. The most read ones are, news.announce.newusers and news.answers.
The actual number of people that read a newsgroup is not important, you must target a group for advertising that relates to your business.

That way you know that people who access that newsgroup are interested in what you have to offer. Here is a Web site that contains helpful information on usenet advertising:
www.cyberfiber.com/articles/usenet_advertising.htm

When posting an advertisement to a newsgroup always remember to stay on topic, give a brief description of what you are offering and then offer free information. The subject line can be very important, because most people use this to determine whether they will read the article.

The following grabber words will help get responses: Discover, Guarantee, Health, Love, Money, New, Proven, Results, Safety, Save,
You, and Free.

World Wide Web
What can a WWW site do for your business? Well, it can promote your business, it can display a catalog, and take orders. A site can also provide up to date reference information for your customers.

People want to learn something on the Internet, if they do not from your site, then they wont return. It is a good idea to determine what makes your web site different from others Ask yourself what your
competitive advantage may be. For example, do you offer quick delivery or are you one of the few to offer your product or service?

Most Internet users pay an hourly fee, so most will not search for long to determine what makes your site stand out. Be concise. One small, memorable sentence at the beginning of your page should suffice to explain your competitive advantage.

Before you begin to market a product or service, you should try to create a presence for your business on the Internet, such as providing valuable information that improves businesses or personal lives.
Once people visit your site offer more information that guides them to buy your product. Also, use your on-line sources to direct customers to traditional advertisements for your business.

What kind of information should you offer
to achieve your goals?

First, you must identify your goals and then determine what information you could offer to accomplish them. Offer as much information as possible in an organized way so people can easily find want they want without getting confused. If possible, present your information in a way that allows people to understand exactly what they are buying.

If people find the information you present on your site useful, then they will come back again.

Why should you have your own Web site?

1) You can develop your own content and have complete control.

2) Its simple to update.

3) Allows you to establish a dialog with your customers.

4) Very low cost, much cheaper than traditional media.

5) Allows customers to select the information they need.

6) You can keep track of the number of responses and purchases.

All documents on your web page need to be converted to HTML Hypertext Markup Language is used to create web pages. All you need to know to be able to write HTML programs is your native language and a handful of simple text markup codes. Pages written with HTML allow customers to enter transaction data using forms, enable people to jump from one page to another, and can display logos, pictures, or any other kind of graphics. If you know how to use Windows, a word processor and a mouse then your skilled enough to create your own web pages. A good resource for learning how to create web pages is HTML For Dummies, it includes a very helpful diskette.

Email

Electronic mail can be used to distribute information about your business to customers and prospects. The amount of work is low, and cost is minimal. Most large printed publications, such as newspapers are on the Net. E-mail can be one of the fastest ways to contact them.

The Net itself is host to dozens of electronic publications, which can provide publicity opportunities for anyone, you can even start one of your own, such as a newsletter.

You should never send a message to someone who has not asked to receive any information from you. There are many ways to get people to
request information, such as advertising your product or service on a newsgroup.

You can also advertise on some of the free classifieds offered on the Net. You can describe your product in a short and precise manner and then ask people to send you an email if they would like free information.

Another way to use your email account for advertising is to come up with an informative signature file.

A signature file is information you can create that will display at the end of every message that you send out. It can include yourcompany name, address, phone number, web site address, anything you want! Be creative! Your email software should let you create a signature file, for Eudora pull down the Window bar and click on signature. Try to keep them under six lines and always include your email address, since some email systems strip the header info off the top of every incoming message, so unless you include your address in the body of your message or in your signature file, the recipient may not know your email address.

Building a Presence on the Net

How well you publicize your Web site around the Net will determine how many people visit.

There are many places on the net that will allow you to place a free classified, for a free list go to ucanto.com/freeclas.htm

Classified's are good for you business because it allows you to link with another web site. I have used free classifieds to promote my web site, and to advertise products. You can to! Most of them have a section for business, new products or services, books, and just almost anything.

If your not sure where to put your ad, then take a guess.

What do you have to lose?

You can generate interest in your website by providing useful information that will help others to improve the quality of their lives.

About Joe Rispoli
Joe Rispoli has been involved in online marketing for over 10 years. He believes that personal development is the foundation for all success in life. A formal education will make you a living, but self-education will make you a fortune!

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