How NOT to Create YouTube Videos That Will Get Traffic to Your Site

In my last post, I told you it was very true that getting noticed on the Internet was relatively easy using YouTube.  That you could use YouTube and other video channels to get to the top of the Search Engine Results Pages and I even had an example of how I did it. 

If you want to go back and read that article, you can access it here: Using YouTube to GenerateTraffic to Your Site

Let’s Talk About How Not To Make YouTube Videos

The thing that will separate the men from the boys in video creation is QUALITY!

It’s just like any other information source on the Internet, 85 to 90% of what is out there is done half-way, (if you know what I mean.). Very few people put out quality information that's even coherent, and very, very few do it on a long-term, consistent basis.

So, don’t make videos that are not well thought out.

Pet Peeve Time:   I don’t know how it all started in the Internet Marketing arena, but videos of IM gurus and IM wannabe gurus driving their cars, while talking about how slick they are is rampant on the Internet.  Usually, they are leaning back talking like they have all the time in the world, while driving along the beach. 

To me, it wreaks of snake oil salesmen.

What they are saying in their videos is:  Here I am driving my Jaguar in my Hawaiian shirt, along a beach where beautiful women are walking around in bikinis and I’m making bazillions of dollars while doing it.  

---And if you listen to me and follow a few basic steps, you too can be just like me.  Click on this link and I’ll put you in my slick sales funnel.

Here's what I think ...And don't ever forget I'm never wrong! 

For one thing, THERE ARE VERY FEW NEW INTERNET MARKETING TECHNIQUES OUT THERE, AND JUST BECAUSE THEY DID IT, DOES NOT MEAN FOR A SECOND THAT YOU’LL HAVE THE SAME SUCCESS.  

By the way, you can go to just about any Internet marketing forum, ask for help, and people (victims) that have already followed these gurus will tell you the same thing for free.

Instructional Videos Are Best

Let’s define something here for a second.  I’m not talking about cat videos, viral videos that go viral just to be viral or junk like that. I’m talking about videos that add value to your business and give your prospects something that will help them.  Oh, and being genuine helps too.

The best type of videos to create are those that teach something that people can actually learn.  A well thought out, coherent and high quality video will say volumes about your business.  This fulfills at least two missions of your marketing efforts:

1.  If you post your Web address to your video, you may get some traffic to your site.

2.  It will create familiarity with your audience.  Familiarity is very important because people will buy from sources they know.  And it’s not just in the product and services arena that this works.  Have you ever noticed how much easier it is for people to get hired at a company or business because they knew the people that were hiring?  So, becoming a recognized face in your niche is very important.

3.  If you really know what you’re doing, and your video is well made, then you will gain some “authority status” and thereby be the go-to-guy in your niche.

Not only all that, but you’ll want a video that is relevant to your niche as well.  It won’t make much sense to create a real good video about gerbils when your website and business is built around bicycle parts.

One other thing.  Have you ever watched a video created by some hotshot marketing guru, and you just knew that the video was created for the sole purpose of selling you something?  It really made you doubt in your mind the sincerity of the individual promoting it.  As a matter of fact, whenever I watch free videos anymore, there are some people I know from the past that I immediately smell a major league sale coming on. 

Do you think that kind of a reputation is the one you want?  

I’m not saying that your marketing efforts aren't there to make money, but just be aware of the fact that as time goes on, the masses of people that jump onto the Internet will become more sensitive and aware of the game afoot.

Tomorrow's post, I will show you the actual nuts and bolts of creating videos.  What type of software to use, how to write your script, and other important facets of video marketing that will help you on your way to video marketing heaven.

Until then…

Mark “Elmo” Ellis

"When it Comes to High-Response Copy - I've Got Your Back!"

www.MarkEllisCopy.com

 (859) 797-9560

elmo033057@gmail.com

P.S.  Here's an interesting video on creating videos I think you'll enjoy!

Using Offline Web Savvy Tactics to Generate Online Traffic

But First a little encouragement…

Let me tell you a little secret, I’m not a good blog writer.  I know that’s hard for you to believe, but it’s true. (I hope you can detect my genuine sense of humor too.)  I don’t sit down and write an outline and meticulously plan out what I’m going to say.  I usually have a general idea about what I’m going to talk about and then I spit it out.

So, if you’re starting to blog or write pages of content in order to get people to come to your site, take heart; you don’t have to be a blogging or writing genius to get started.  Just make sure you are writing coherently, concisely, and you’re sticking to your subject.  If you’re real bad at writing, then you may want to get a tutor.  You can find all sorts of them online.

The main thing is that you get started, no matter what.

I personally never studied grammar.  All through my eight plus years of college, I did tons of writing and my professors never complained a bit.  Other than my English teachers, I think that most of them didn't know all the rules of grammar and English either.  I still have problems with using commas in all of the correct places, but I can recall only once when someone told me I had used one wrong.

Using Offline Marketing to Get Traffic to Your Site

Once again, this is an easy thing to learn, you just have to implement it.  If you

are a regular, offline bricks and mortar business, then you should consider getting a website.  Today, most people, won’t take your business serious unless you have a website.  Just like the days before the Internet, people wouldn't take you serious unless you had a business card.

Having a website will drive business to your offline business and having an offline business can drive traffic to your website.

The lesson I Learned from A Catering Business

Years ago I used to build websites and show them how to market their businesses off and online.  I had a client that had a catering business and he wanted a website for various reasons.  Since I was designing and setting websites up for people, it was part of my services to help people market their businesses and give them some advice on how they could get more traffic to their site and business.

 

In this case, the owner had a pick up stand that people would come to and pick up their orders as well as a delivery service.  I told the owner common sense marketing stuff like:

·         When people come to your place of business, offer them a free cookie in exchange for filling out their contact information on a form.  Keep a database of clients and send them email newsletters as well as snail mail newsletters where you mention promotions, giveaways and contests that you are having.

• ·         Put your web address on your bags, cups etc. encouraging people to go there and leave their contact info in the opt-in box for a free chicken wing.
• 
  
• ·         Write occasional articles, leave recipes so that people will go to your site and somehow participate.
• 
  
• ·         Use social media sites to create a ravenous crowd of fans that’ll go to your site and refer friends.
• 
  
• ·         Put testimonials, maps etc. on the website to make it more appealing for people to come to and find.

Unfortunately, as common and common sense as these ideas were to a business, the owner did none of them, and has since closed his doors.  I’m not saying he closed because he didn’t use MY marketing ideas, but because he didn't use ANYBODY’S ideas…PERIOD.

The reason why this type of marketing (or any type for that matter) doesn’t work is because clients won’t try it.  Plain and simple.  I don’t think I’ve read a single Dan Kennedy marketing book wherein he hasn't mentioned the fact that people will tell him, “Well, that type of marketing won’t work in my business…” 

This type of marketing does take some money, some commitment and some patience.  You can’t expect overnight success in any type of marketing, ESPECIALLY INTERNET MARKETING!!!!

Speaking of persistence…

On my last blog post I told you how you can get the awesome New York Times bestseller, “Million Dollar Habits -- 10 Steps for Getting Everything You Want in Life” by Robert Ringer for FREE.  I’m only on chapter II right now, but it’s an excellent read so far. 

The best way I can describe the book so far is a very detailed, intellectual and almost metaphysical look at what makes a person successful.  Plus, Ringer’s stories that he uses to relate the ideas and concepts to you are very well written.  Not boring at all.

So if you haven’t gotten a copy of this great book, click on this link: Million Dollar Habits.  I don’t think you’ll be disappointed.

To Your Success!

Mark “Elmo” Ellis

www.MarkEllisCopy.com

"When it comes to high response copy, I've got your back!"

 (859) 797-9560

elmo033057@gmail.com

Portfolio Site: http://markelliscopyportfolio.blogspot.com/

P.S.  If you like what I've written or hate it, please leave a comment so I can tell you how wonderful or half-baked you are.

Is Your Reputation Killing Your Traffic Generation AND Business?

I say dangerous things sometimes.  Well, here goes…

Most people that are in business (especially Internet marketers) are missing this.  This is probably the easiest way to drive traffic to your business either online or off.  However, in my humble opinion it is the LEAST used method that I have seen.  I’m not saying that you’ll get massive traffic from this overnight, because this is kind of like branding your product or service.  It takes time, cultivating relationships and building a list of customers or clients. 

Let me explain…

Your Reputation Is Paramount

If you think for one second that people are going to buy a product or service from you, and not form an opinion of you one way or another, you’re kidding yourself.  Recently, I was thinking of purchasing an online product from a company I had heard of for years. 

A lot of big time marketing gurus were touting it as one of the best courses that had ever been made.

I decided to look around the Internet to see if anyone had formed an opinion of it one way or the other.  What I found was rather shocking.  As a matter of fact, it has changed the way I’ll view almost ANY product online from now on.

If You Suck On The Internet Everyone Will Know It

This business and product, which has been touted as an industry standard by well-known practitioners in the field, was one of the most hated on the Internet.  As a matter of fact, so many people complained in one forum alone, I can’t imagine why anyone would want to do business with them.  The rants ran on for pages and pages. 

Suddenly, I felt like I had been taken.   Even though I had not actually bought the product, I felt as though the gurus I had believed in for so long, were out making paid endorsements for one and other. 

As I said before, many experts were praising this product. I thought, “Wow!  I've been buying products from these “experts” for years. Could it be that I’m just an easy mark?  P.T. Barnum could quickly validate his most favorite phrase by watching the likes of me.”

I have to say, the people that were selling the service, were great at selling their product, because it had gained so much traction over the years.  However, the goods were tainted.  Very, very tainted.  And unfortunately, many people felt like they had been ripped off.

The Info-Product Model of Stupidity

If I were at an expensive seminar, some toothy-grinning guru would probably tell me that I’m being negative.  However, reality is reality.  If something sucks and there are a whole bunch of very intelligent people spilling their guts, then what does it say for that product or service?

Buy hey, this is the way info marketing is done over the Internet.  Build up all of this hype, brag endlessly about your BIG PRODUCT LAUNCH, talk about false scarcity, tell everyone that this is a one-time offer when it actually isn’t, and then sell them crap. 

Once you are in their pipeline, you’ll be “invited” to their seminar at $2,500 a shot.  You better hurry too!  The last one was sold out!  Of course, they deliberately picked a smaller conference room where they could have the scarcity principle work for them.  They could honestly say, “…we only have “x” number of seats at this event, so you better hurry and fork over the bucks.” 

Then they give this impressive list of speakers that have all written books, so therefore are an authority on the subject.

 (This is the reason why I’m a firm believer in going on Amazon and buying their books…USED.  Not only that, but if you are an info-vulture like me, you’ll eventually find some of these products on eBay for a lark rather than the $500 + they’ll charge you for an uncomfortable chair at a seminar.  (Any chair outside of my recliner is uncomfortable, especially when I’m reading a good book.))

I’m serious, though.  If Joe or Josephine Blow is giving an expensive seminar,

why don’t you try to find their book on Amazon?  I doubt that whatever they’ll tell you at the expensive seminar will be any different than what they wrote IN GREAT DETAIL in their book.  Plus, you’ll have access to their expertise any time you want. 

Now, these are people that’ll tell you to track everything you do.  Track your sales, track your direct mail campaign, track your Internet traffic, track how many times a day you take a crap…You know the drill.  Well, I have never heard or seen any proof of their attendee’s rate of success.  In other words, how many people made “X” number of dollars after going to one of their seminars?

I have never seen those stats.   They’ll tell you they have no way of tracking that.  

Isn't that convenient? 

It’s kinda like the government telling you it knows every dime you make, so you better pay every cent you owe in taxes, but has no recollection of the fact they had spent 20 bazillion dollars covertly invading Kazakhstan.   Very, very convenient.

 This is Where You Can be Different.

Now listen, I’m not saying that everyone that sells info products is like this is a charlatan, snake oil salesman.  There are some really good info marketers out there that sell well made products.  I’m sure there are some really great seminars too.  I am also positive that you can learn something from some of these resources that will benefit you and your business. 

However, if you are going to charge top dollar for your product or service, then you better deliver. 

Actually, you better OVER-DELIVER!

And, if you can dredge it up, some honest caring about the people you are marketing to, wouldn't hurt either. Because, so few businesses actually care about their fellow human.  They look at around and all they see are dollar signs, and it eventually will be seen as that by the people they do business with.

However, if you actually care about the people you sell to and service and go the extra mile for them, they will never forget you.  At the very least, you’ll have someone that appreciates you and what you've done for them. 

I just had to get some of this off my chest.


Mark "Elmo" Ellis

www.MarkEllisCopy.com

"When it comes to high response copy, I've got your back!"

 (859) 797-9560

elmo033057@gmail.com

Portfolio Site: http://markelliscopyportfolio.blogspot.com/

How Accounting Firms Can Quickly and Easily Use Ad Copy To Increase Their Client Base - And Their Bottom Lines!

5 Easy Ways to Increase Revenue with Your Accounting Firm’s Website

By

Mark Elmo Ellis

The bottom line.  Everyone in the accounting industry talks to their clients about increasing it, yet few firms take simple steps boost their own.    It’s easy to spot this malady, just take a look at the average accounting organization’s website.  Tedious “Welcome” sections that nobody reads, the usual bookkeeping assurances that every site has, and the biggest sin of all:  few, if any, benefits of doing business with the firm.

                No wonder accountants get portrayed as formal bookworms in movies; their websites are so boring! Not only that, but there’s hardly any sales or marketing messages on the page at all.  When you do this, you are literally walking away from a chance to work with clients that could generate revenue long-term.  So, what I’d like to do, is take a few moments and show you how you can drop the monotony, attract more clients, and increase your bottom line.  I promise, this won’t be dull.

                The first thing you need to keep in mind, is that the Internet is a merciless, cold hearted marketing venue.  One second of boredom, and “click”, you’re gone.  Your home page must generate interest and curiosity from the get – go.  The best way to do that is to have a headline at the top of your page that does two things:  generate interest, while showing your prospects the most important benefits you can provide them.  Remember this simple rule: Interest + Benefits = Headline.

Here’s an example:

“Find Out How Our Firm Uses Little Known Techniques That’ll Save You Big Money ― Giving You More Cash To Increase Your Investment Portfolio!”

                While I realize this headline does not demonstrate the mission of every accounting practice in the industry, it gives you an idea of how you can create interest in what you have to offer. It has the two elements I mentioned above, Interest, (through curiosity, in this case) and a major benefit.  This one element is extremely important, so much so, that a good advertising copywriter will spend 80% of his time crafting it.  It must make the reader want to move further down the page to your marketing message, otherwise “click”.

                After you have generated enough interest in your site, the next thing to do is get the reader to move their eyes further down the site.  This can be accomplished by using two proven features: formatting and subheadings.  When a person reads a webpage, they usually scan down the page, looking for information that is easy to find and read quickly.  A subheading is a mini-headline that is short and drives home benefits in short, punchy statements.  If you use subheadings that are slightly bigger and bolder letters this is a natural target for their eyes.  Subheadings are usually placed before blocks of text that explain something, like this:

Clerical Errors – The Easiest way To Lose Money!

“Working with clients, we pay very close attention to business tax planning and preparation.  If not handled properly, valuable tax deductions can be lost by simple clerical errors.  Using successful and proven tax strategies, we can make sure you get money saving reductions on your taxes so that you can put that cash to work in your business or portfolio.”

The third advertising copy component that you can easily implement is the use of bullet statements.  Not just any bullet statements, but bullet statements with benefits.  What I mean by this is you create a bullet statement with a feature or a benefit like so:

Our firm will give you monthly financial counseling

Next, you add a more in depth benefit or group of benefits to the bullet:

 – We’ll guide you through expenditure planning, help you set goals, and warn you of any financial hazards along the way

The whole statement reads, and look like this: 

•             Our firm will give you monthly financial counseling — we’ll guide you through expenditure planning, help you set goals, and warn you of any financial hazards along the way!

•              Imagine what the impact a series of bullet statements like this will have on your prospect.  Of course you will need to brainstorm as many benefits your company has in order to write these, but the chore is well worth it.

         Another way to grab attention and gain the trust of a client or prospect is to let them become familiar with your and your staff.  A good professional picture of yourself and members of your team will allow potential patrons to take a good look at whom they are dealing with.   A way to make this even more effective is to tell a story about yourself or company. 

Here's some corrections I made on an accounting Web site recently.
Click on image to see larger view.

         The big mistake most accounting businesses make on their sales pages is they will have a paragraph or

two with information that’ll put people to sleep.  As the National Enquirer will tell you, “Enquiring Minds Want to Know!”  People love exciting and intriguing stories about other people.  If you can come up with a unique story about yourself or business, you will be remembered and differentiated in the market place.  So, a great picture of you or your staff, accompanied by a unique story is important to your home or sales page. 

       Finally, your home page should have a call to action on it.  Just like any other business, you have to ask for the sale.  If your company has a newsletter that goes out regularly, you can ask for the prospect’s contact information in exchange for a free issue.   You can also offer free promotional items if potential clients make an appointment with you.  At any rate, asking for the prospect to contact you for more information should be a tantalizing offer, especially if you have used all of these advertising copy elements and implemented them into your site. 

     If you want to get compelling copy to work for you while increasing your bottom line, I'm your man!
My contact information is listed below:

Mark Elmo Ellis

Phone Number : (859) 797-9560

Email: elmo033057@gmail.com

www.MarkEllisCopy.com
Mark Ellis Portfolio

The ONE Key Element That’ll Make Your Ads Stick Out Like A Sore Thumb On Facebook ― And Give You The Power to Dominate The Entire Page!

Do you feel frustrated because your ads just “get lost in the crowd” on Facebook?

Ever felt confused about why you post, and post, and post on Facebook, and NEVER get a response?

Are your ads so similar to everyone else’s that you could almost pull your hair out?

My name is Mark “Elmo” Ellis and I am a “Go-To-Guy for writing high response ads and copy.  Years ago, my wife and I learned a very important lesson about advertising copy.  

If you do it right, it’ll create such an avalanche of business you won’t be able to handle it all.  I had to actually shut down our small manufacturing business because we got too many orders!

Later, I’ll tell you how you can read the full, gut- wrenching details of this story.  But for now, let’s talk about your problem…

Most people that go into business selling items like beauty products, or dietary supplements, exercise classes or whatever, don’t understand just how competitive it is on Facebook.  As a matter of fact, the Internet is a cruel, pitiless marketing-beast where one little click can wipe you off the page in a nanosecond.

Don’t believe me?  Consider this:

Let’s paint a pretty scenario. The Google Search Engine Results Page (SERPS) gods are smiling upon you.  You’re selling wrinkle elimination cream and when people type into Google’s search page, “wrinkle elimination cream”, your business or product came in at first place, top of the page for that term. 

Congrats!

However, on closer analysis, you find out that any top of the page results, on average, will only get about a 36% click-through rate. This means that for every 100 people that type in “wrinkle elimination cream”, 36 out of 100 of them will click on your link or ad.

If you think that’s small, consider this: 

If your ad ever falls into 2nd place, your click through rate will fall off to 12.5%. 3rd place is 9.5%, and I don’t need to tell you how insignificant you’ll be on the slippery - slope of search engine results if you fell any further.

Like I said, the Internet is a cruel, pitiless marketing-beast.

However, these are results based on your website or sales page coming in at first place on the SERPS. 

We’re not EVEN talking about posting generic, commonly seen ads on Facebook where the click-through rates are much, much lower. 

So, based on my brilliant dissertation thus far, you can easily see your dilemma.

If you are going to have a presence on Facebook, you’re going to need all the marketing ammo you can get your hands on.

Here are my three recommendations for sticking out like a sore thumb on Facebook ads:

#1 You must have a mind – grabbing headline that sucks the prospect in like a powerful magnet and leads her down your ad to your irresistible offer. Usually, the top benefit of your product needs to be in your headline in such a manner that it makes your prospect want to read the rest of your ad.  Here is an example:

Nation’s top models finally forced into revealing…

“HOW TO GET BEAUTIFUL, DROP-DEAD GORGEOUS, WRINKLE FREE SKIN THAT WILL MAKE MEN’S HEADS TURN, WHILE MAKING OTHER WOMEN GREEN WITH ENVY ― ALMOST OVERNIGHT!”

#2  You’ll need to hit your prospect where it hurts.  In the case of our wrinkle elimination cream, you could talk about how it’s hard to keep looking young and attractive.  How wrinkles in your prospect’s face detract away from her other beauty features.

 At least three or four of these kinds of facts will remind the prospect of WHY she is looking at a product like this.

#3 YOU MUST ASK FOR THE SALE AND HAVE AN IRRESISTIBLE OFFER!!!  I have seen some extremely great ads that ask for the offer in three or four different ways.  There are a number of ways to do this, but remember, without asking for the prospect to buy, and buy right now, you won’t have too many sales.

As you can see, there are some great strategies that you can use to increase your sales and conversion rates.  As a matter of fact, there is so much more you could do to sell your products to your clients and generate a flow of sales that you wouldn't believe it. 

This can easily be done using nothing but words on a page.

However, rather than just hand you a pile of information like this, I’d like to make you an offer that you can really use and learn from.

As I have told you, I am a copywriter that has spent copious hours of my life learning how to write compelling advertising copy.  Last week, I turned down a potential client that offered me a percentage of his company for my services.  Usually, my fees start at $2500 for a full sales page and go up from there so, I’d rather just do my thing, collect my money and hit the road. 

However, Facebook ads are smaller, easier for me to write and require less time for me to complete.

So, here is what I want to do on a limited basis:

I want to design short, effective ads for people that want to post to Facebook.  Since I am a Photoshop expert and can layout ads very effectively, I can easily make advertisements with copy for your business that’ll get better conversion rates than you can get on your own.

Not only that, but I will give you a $267 report on how to REALLY sell your product or service using both online and offline techniques absolutely FREE!

This incredible report covers:

• ·         How to easily find people that are buying what you have to offer
• ·         How to make your business different from other similar businesses ― using one simple technique
• ·         Where you can quickly find great examples of headlines that you can adapt for Facebook ads or any other types of advertisements
• ·         Marketing ideas and tools that you can use to promote your products or businesses
• ·         Lists of the best resources that you can use to build a great marketing arsenal

Please order today, because this offer will end on July, 31, 2014

This Deal Has Since Ended

However, here is are a couple of books that are absolute dynamite, that will do you a world of good.  I figured since you didn't get in on the excellent deal I offered on my copywriting services, I would pass along these excellent nuggets of info to you.

Here is one of them:

A SYSTEM OF INTERNET MARKETING WRITTEN BY THE INTERNET MARKETING PIONEER HIMSELF!

Learn from Ken McCarthy, the man that actually coined the term "Internet Marketing"  (Don't believe me?  Check out his credentials here: Ken McCarthy's Background) 

Click on image for more info

Mr. McCarthy's System Seminar used to run as a part of Dan Kennedy's $2000.00 a seat seminar several years ago, and he also conducted his own very expensive System Seminar yearly.  I'm not sure if he is still doing this, but it was a very pricey affair to begin with, and you had to fly into a really big city where these meetings were held.  

Now, you can get the "System's" primary principle's of online marketing without going to the seminar and spending tons of cash.  This is one of those books that if you don't have it on your shelf, you probably aren't serious about making it as an Internet entrepreneur.  

What this book will do for you is give you a blueprint or plan of action that you can take to move yourself forward in the game of Internet Marketing every day.  Most people don't have a system of any kind, this book will give it to you and show you how to measure your success!

To get a copy of this excellent book click here: The System's Secrets

LEARN TO UNLEASH THE POWER OF SELLING USING NOTHING BUT WORDS ON A PAGE IN YOUR BUSINESS

The other book I'd like to recommend is a book by Bob Bly.  Bob Bly has written loads and loads of books and he is an excellent copywriter.  "The Copywriter's Handbook" is absolutely essential for selling your products, whether on the Internet or through direct mail.  

Click on image for more info

I personally have a copy within reach whenever I write copy for a client or myself. Bob, takes you by the hand and breaks down all of the components of advertising copy with you, so that you can cut the learning curve of writing your own copy in half.  

Now, to be honest with you, it will take you quite some time to learn advertising copy like a pro, but if you want to learn how to do it for your own business, it will certainly be better than nothing.

Anyway, this is just another book that I think is indispensable for any entrepreneur.