One of the primary purposes of your blog should be to collect subscriber names and email addresses to add to your list. The best way to achieve this is to consistently post great content to your blog to generate traffic and then offer a item of high value free in exchange for the subscribers opt in to your list. I like using either a free e-book, a seven part email course (delivered over 21 days), or a free video based product.

Let’s examine the options of offering an e-book in greater detail and take a look at a couple to tools to help you get up and running quickly. I am also going to show you a short cut used by many of top marketers on the Internet!

I. Free E-Books

Marketing free e-books is an effective way to build your list regardless if the content is your original work or work for which you have obtained “resell rights.” If you follow the recommendations found in this post, you will be able to create numerous viral funnels that will drive traffic to your blog and build your subscriber list by simply giving information away.

If marketed correctly your e-books will be viewed by thousands of Internet users over time making them viral. the more relevant the content is to your targeted audience the greater the opportunity for your e-books to be seen as valuable within your niche.

II. Write Your E-book Written

Be sure to select a relevant topic that your niche will respond to and create a high quality e-book. Just because it is to be given away for free, the subscriber is entitled to truly valuable content. Remember, you are making a first impression with your e-book.

Please understand, you do not have to be a Pulitzer Prize winning author to write an authoritative special report or e-book. Simply select a topic you know something about, do any additional research needed to create authoritative content, organize your material in a logical sequence, and write in a very instructional manner as you would be speaking to one person, make it personal to your reader.

If the idea of writing an e-book seems overwhelming you can employ a ghost writer or use resell rights for published work or private label rights products from a quality source.

Here is the shortcut I promised – use resell rights e-books.

III. Using Resell Rights

I have published an e-book titled “James Holmes Exposes Resell Rights Secrets,” which provides a number of tips to help you use resell rights to build and reward your list with relative ease. I highly recommend clicking on the link above, acquire a copy of the e-book by immediate download and take action.

IV. Quick Tips

1. There are few hard and fast rules when it comes to creating an e-book, you can provide a ten page special report or a one hundred page book – there are no limits to how you present your content.

2. Always deliver your e-books as a digital PDF, only offer to mail an e-book if it is part of a larger course that should also include recorded media, either MP files or DVDs. Your subscribers are looking for the immediate gratification of receiving your material as soon as they opt in – they will not want to wait for snail mail!

3. Be sure that your e-book is created to be viral by including several links to your website, blog, and other resources including affiliate links and your contact information. If the e-book is a free offer, be sure to provide “give-way rights” in the copy write section of your book.

4. Be sure to include a “subscribe” link in several places in your book so that anyone who ends up with a copy can easily join your list.

5. Do not stop with one e-book, you must continue to produce content on a regular basis, reward your current list members with new material and keep your offers for new subscribers fresh. The more content that you can produce and distribute online, the more traffic you will generate and the bigger list you will build.

V. Leverage Your E-books to Build Your Subscriber List

There are several ways that you can use your e-book to build your mailing list, pick one and master it:

1. Simply offer the complete e-book for free in return for your visitor’s name and email address.

2. Authoring an e-book helps to establish you as an expert in your field and builds your credibility.

3. Post your e-book on a variety of  niche sites and social media sites in order to maximize the number of opt ins and download your viral e-book receives.

4. Generate sales for your paid content such as e-books and courses by giving away the first two chapters of your e-book along with a special offer to buy the full e-book as a new subscriber.

5. Offer your paid content for free as limited “time sensitive offer” to create true urgency and deliver a valuable resource for free to new subscribers.

I welcome your comments or questions, so please feel free to leave a comment and if you like what you have read, be sure to re-tweet this post.

I am here to help you succeed!

P.S. Here is a free account that allows you to re-brand vial e-books: Get Free E-Books

(c) Copyright 2008-2010 James A. Holmes. All Rights Reserved.

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James Holmes, Global Team Builder, Coach and Trainer, combining online and offline techniques to help you grow your business. To request a free 30 minute consultation contact James by phone at 303-523-9503 or email at james@AskJamesHolmes.com

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Note: If you’d like to reprint this article on your blog or in your newsletter you have permission to do so as long as the copyright information and the resource box above remains with the article.

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In recent years many Internet Marketers and Solo-preneurs have embraced the tremendous opportunity to outsource a variety of daily task and projects in order to become more productive and free up time to enjoy more life. Smart entrepreneurs are becoming more profitable and getting more done everyday.

Most business owners I mastermind with have used outsource resources  in India, Philippines, Australia and other parts of the world often motivated by cost. These resources are effective, but their are often challenges centering around language nuances and time zone differences that can cause some communications issues. When most think about outsource they think about offshore, until now.

On today’s show my special guest is Traci Knobbe the creator of “Your Web Tech Team” a United States based outsource firm with a variety of advantages for you. Whether you are a newer marketer or an experienced marketer looking to maximize your progress, you will benefit from the time you  invest by listening to our show.

Your Web Tech Team is owned and operated by Traci Knoppe. Traci has been a professional web designer since 1999, primarily specializing in e-commerce web design solutions, and blog installations.

Here are the show details:

Podcast Show Page: Internet Business Blueprint

Show Date: Friday February 26th, 2010

Show Time: 1:00 PM EST

Call In Number Guest Line: 1-646-727-3058

I will be accepting your questions for Traci live on the air, so feel free to call into the show and return to this post after the show and leave a comment.

I am here to help you succeed in your business!

(c) Copyright 2008-2010 James A. Holmes. All Rights Reserved.

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James Holmes, Global Team Builder, Coach and Trainer, combining online and offline techniques to help you grow your business. To request a free 30 minute consultation contact James by phone at 303-523-9503 or email at james@AskJamesHolmes.com

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Note: If you’d like to reprint this article on your blog or in your newsletter you have permission to do so as long as the copyright information and the resource box above remains with the article.

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Colin Klinkert Co-Founder of Viral URL was my guest February 17th on the “Internet Business Blueprint Podcast” on Blog Talk Radio. The program more than delivered on my expectations as we were also joined by Frank Bauer the other founder of this powerful marketing tool. During the show we covered the history and idea behind Virl URL, Viral Networks and Viral Hosts. In the event that you missed the show, I wanted to provide you with the replay link as well as extend a special bonus that Colin extended to my listeners.

Here are a few notes:

1. Viral URL was founded in October 2007

2. Viral URL has more than 63,000 active members

3. Viral URL has than 250,000 cloaked links in their system

4. Viral URL is a Link Cloaker, List Builder, Safe-list Mailer and Integrated Marketing System

5. Viral URL offers both FREE and Upgraded Paid Memberships

The services provided by Viral URL are ideal for Internet Marketers, Affiliate Marketers, or anyone that wants to cloak and track URLs for a variety of reasons. At the very least I would recommend signing up today for a free account and take a look at the marketing resources included in this system. In addition to being able to cloak all of your affiliate URLs and other links, you will be able to promote to your programs and track your marketing efforts to identify what is actually working.

In addition to discussing their businesses we also discussed several “best practices” and Colin and Frank both offered tips to help you grow your brand presence and financial results in your online business. I asked what the top users and most effective members of Viral URL are doing to generate opt ins to their list and generate referral commissions by referring new members, here are a few key points.

1. Consistently send high value email messages every three days

2. Don’t pitch and sell, instead brand yourself and add value to your market

3. Create splash pages and auto response campaigns to develop relationship with your list

4. Invest a little time reading member emails and take advantage of the credit links therein

In addition, we had a great conversation concerning viral marketing in general and innovations within the niche. This is a very informative interview and is worth your investment of time listening to the recording.

Here is the Interview Replay Link: Internet with Colin Kilnert

To Join Viral URL for Free Click Here: Viral URL Free Account

To claim your special bonus accept the one time offer when you sign up, log into your new account and go to the “Ad Credit Section” from there click on “Claim As Credits Coupon” from the drop down menu and enter this code: jamesholmesgold

Once you have joined and taken a tour of the site, be sure to set up your campaign and start marketing. Stop back here and provide your feedback after your have sent out a few messages and cloaked a few links.

I am here to help you succeed in all aspects of your business!

P.S. Here is a list of the sites referenced in the interview:

Viral URL

Viral Networks

Viral Host

On January 22, 2010 I wrote a post which provided an overview and week one results for a test I have been running on the Prosperity Marketing System. You can read that post including my financial results after the first week here: Week One PMS Test

My objective was to prove that anyone who took action and followed the simple system I have established could successfully promote this self-funded proposal system to enroll new members into the primary program of their choice and monetize a percentage of their prospects even if they did not enroll in the business opportunity. The key is that I did not undertake any special measures in marketing the system, such as PPC, ezines, article writing, video marketing, or any other paid advertising other than on traffic exchanges.

To recap here is were the elements of the system I used during the test:

1.) Your Prosperity Marketing System:

http://YourProsperityMarketingSystem.com

2.) The Method I Used to Drive Traffic:

http://askjamesholmes.com/optimumtrafficformulamodule1.pdf

3.) The Primary Program I Promoted:

http://askjamesholmes.com/gvo

I wanted to conclude the test by sharing my final results after approximately four weeks as I wanted to conclude this phase of my promotion of this system test with the first months full commissions. I wanted to ensure that the commissions that I reported where actually paid in full and that there were no pending charge backs from cancellations.

Here are the final numbers:

Total Test Period Gross Income $588.37

Net Profit for the Month = $496.45

My test with very limited marketing effort produced a meaningful profit and helped to place me #14 on the leader board in GVO for the month of January.  In addition, I converted web surfers into team members or students in the training system adding them to my list. The logical extension of this test would likely yield similar results thereby doubling the income without any additional monthly expenses (the total from month two on will be $64.92) in the second month as the cost are fixed.

In order to remain complient with FTC reguations, the income figures that I am sharing here are my results based on the specific actions I took to promote this program. In should be clearly understood that your results may vary and be higher or lower based on your conversions rates and other factors.

My intention would be to re-invest the profits from this system each month in order to maximize the growth in both programs throughout the year using paid advertising methods with moderate cost. I consider this a best practice although you may decide to take your profits as income, which is perfectly fine.

I am here to help you succeed!

(c) Copyright 2008-2010 James A. Holmes. All Rights Reserved.

James Holmes, Global Team Builder, Coach and Trainer, combining online and offline techniques to help you grow your business. To request a free 30 minute consultation contact James by phone at 303-523-9503 or email at james@AskJamesHolmes.com

Note: I am a Affiliate Marketer and it should be assumed that links provided within the content of this blog and individual blog post are affiliate links from which I may be compensated for sales made at the recommended sites. All products and service recommendations are made as a result of my personal experience with the product or service provider.

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Note: If you’d like to reprint this article on your blog or in your newsletter you have permission to do so as long as the copyright information and the resource box above remains with the article.

When first began blogging I used Blogger as the platform for all of my blogs, I still have several hosted there. I must admit that what attracted me to the service was the ease of use and that fact that it was free. I couldn’t have imagined what my investment of a little time learning about Word Press and less than five dollars per month for hosting would mean for my results from blogging.

There are numerous advantages gained by using WordPress as the platform for your blog, the variety of plugins available is among the most significant. Plugins allow you to maximize every aspect of your blog both in appearance and function. Today, I was visiting with a marketer who is in the process of evolving his first blog and we were discussing how to make the most of your blog theme and structure.

I concluded the conversation by promising to write a short post sharing my recommendation of a few key plugins to optimize WordPress. I’ve decided to share ten, the list could easily be thirty as there really are some innovative options depending on what you want to achieve. Let me start with a quick explanation of what a plugin is and the purpose of adding them to your blog.

Simply stated, a plugin is a piece of code that controls certain aspects of your blog, from SEO optimization to appearance you can dramatically enhance every aspect of your blog. Here is a resource to help you better understand the value of using WordPress and Plugins:

Here is my top ten for today. I recommend that you install these in your blog and take care to set each one up and take full advantage of each customizable feature when available.

1. All in One SEO Pack by Michael Torbert: This plugin will provide you all of the basic features for search engine optimization and will satisfy the needs of most bloggers. There is a Pro Version of this plugin worth consideration and you can read more about Michael Tobert and his plugins on his blog http://michaeltorbert.com

I use this plugin or another called Platinum SEO Pack on all of my blogs. There are other SEO related plugins, but this is the one I would recommend for most bloggers.

2. Google XML Site Map by Arne Brachhold: This plugin makes it very simple to install a SEO friendly site map on your blog, which is essential to maximize both search engine optimization and your users experience. To learn more about Arne Brachhold and access some amazing content visit his blog http://www.arnebrachhold.de

3. SEO Title Tag by Stephan Spencer: Create a customized title tag for any post, static page, category page, UltimateTagWarrior tag page – indeed, any URL! And will auto-insert the tag name into the title on tag pages generated by UltimateTagWarrior plugin. Admin allows for mass editing of title tags. To learn more about StephanSpencer visit his blog http://www.netconcepts.com/seo-title-tag-plugin

4. Hyper Cache by Stefano Lissa: Hyper Cache system for WordPress will improve your blog perfomance and save resources. By utilizing a cache plugin you will improve page load times among a number of other benefits. To learn more about Stefano Lissa visit his blog http://www.satollo.net

5. MBP Ping Optimizer by Max Blog Press: Using this plug in will save your Word Press blog from getting tagged as ping spammer which may result in your blog being banned from these vital services.n. This plug in solves a couple of critical issues with the manner in which Word Press auto pings your post. To learn more about Max Blog Press visit their blog http://www.maxblogpress.com

6. Link Within by Link within: I love this plug in because it ensures that your older post remain relevant to new visitors to your blog by offering an attractive thumbnail of a few of your past post at the footer of every post on your blog. To learn more about Max Blog Press visit their blog, although there is not a ton of content there – just access to a few recommended uses and the download link http://www.linkwithin.com/learn

7. Pretty Link by Blair Williams: As an affiliate marketer and information products publisher, Pretty Link has become one of my favorite plugins. This clever plug in allows you to add a keyword redirect to the end of your domain name, which can be used to redirect your visitors to product sales pages, PDF doacuments, etc. This plugin cloaks, redirects and tracks your links all in one action. There is a very easy to use administration panel accessible within the WordPress dashboard. To learn more about Blair Williams visit his blog http://blairwilliams.com

8. Exclude Pages from Navigation by Simon Wheatley:  Provides a checkbox on the editing page which allows you to exclude pages from the primary navigation. This will remove the pages from any “consumer” side page listings, which may not be limited to your page navigation listings, so test the pages you exclude to ensure that they are accessible based on your initial intent. To learn more about Simon Wheatley visit his blog http://simonwheatley.co.uk

9. CommentLuv by Andy Bailey: This cleaver plugin shows the last post from your commenter’s blog by parsing the feed at their given URL when they leave a comment on your blog. This will reward your readers and encourage more comments because they are allowed to promote their post while benefiting yours. To learn more about Andy Bailey visit his blog http://fiddyp.co.uk

10. Sexy Bookmarks By Josh Jones, Jamie Carter, Gautum Gupta, Norman Yung: SexyBookmarks adds a (X)HTML compliant list of social bookmarking icons to each of your posts. This plugin does this beautifully with attractive icons and a unique multi-line listing of multiple social sites. To learn more about the authors visit his blog http://blog2life.net

Do you have a list of your favorite plugins that you can share? Be sure to add them along with a comment here and I will look forward to exploring your recommendations.

I am here to help you succeed!

(c) Copyright 2008-2010 James A. Holmes. All Rights Reserved.

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James Holmes, Global Team Builder, Coach and Trainer, combining online and offline techniques to help you grow your business. To request a free 30 minute consultation contact James by phone at 303-523-9503 or email at james@AskJamesHolmes.com

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Note: If you’d like to reprint this article on your blog or in your newsletter you have permission to do so as long as the copyright information and the resource box above remains with the article.

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I love to to reward my loyal reader and newsletter subscribers, that is why I created “My Private Vault” where my subscribers have access to over $2,000 value in the form of software, video training, audio mp3 files, e-books, special reports, software and much more. I add new products every month and eventually the vault will be worth tens of thousands of dollars – my subscribers will still have free access!

As a bonus to you regardless if this is your first time visiting my blog or if you are a regular reader, I have something for you.  I wanted to provide you with an excellent short video course on email marketing by Internet Marketer Michael Rasmussen.

The Video Course:

“Email Promos Exposed – How to Write Killer Email Promos that Get Results.”

Michael’s video course will teach you:

A simple way to create an “email blueprint” that practically writes the email for you!

The single biggest mistake people make with subject lines that guarantees your email won’t
get opened.

A simple trick that will keep your readers eyes glued to the screen and force them to read every
word! It involves using the three “magic words.

How to force people to keep reading once they open your email – proven tricks from the world’s

How to create bullets that captures people’s attention, and makes your offer irresistible!

Six mistakes people make when writing promos that hurts their results.

Many other useful and immediately actionable tips to maximize your email marketing.

Click Here To Get FREE Private Access

One of the biggest mistakes marketers make is writing ineffective subject lines which often guarantees your email simply will not be opened. There are simple rules to follow that will result in your reader become highly motivated to take a look and see what is inside your messages.  This course provides you with several key concepts gleaned from several of the top copywriters in the internet marketing niche.

Once inside, your readers have to be compelled to continue reading to understand the message you are trying to convey or the offer you are presenting. This course will teach you how to write compelling copy and high impact bullet points and effectively deliver your message.

Finally, the course details six specific mistakes that marketers make when writing promotional emails that great impact the effectiveness of their promotions – are you making these same errors?

This course is free for you to download and view at your leisure. Simply follow the link provided and accept this as my way of saying thank you for reading my blog.

Go Here To Claim Your Copy: E-Mail Promos Exposed Free!

Be sure to re-tweet or bookmark this post using the tools provided at the end of the post. Invite others to claim there copy of this free course as well. They will thank you for it.

I am here to help you succeed!

(c) Copyright 2008-2010 James A. Holmes. All Rights Reserved.

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James Holmes, Global Team Builder, Coach and Trainer, combining online and offline techniques to help you grow your business. To request a free 30 minute consultation contact James by phone at 303-523-9503 or email at james@AskJamesHolmes.com

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Note: If you’d like to reprint this article on your blog or in your newsletter you have permission to do so as long as the copyright information and the resource box above remains with the article.

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One of the first membership sites I joined upon entering into the realm of Internet Marketing was Colin Klinkert and Frank Bauer’s Viral URL.  I have been a big fan of Colin’s work since that time and have since utilized many other sites and services the team don under has released. On Wednesday February 17th at 11:00 PM EST (Thursday at 2:00 PM in Brisbane, Australia), Colin Klinkert will be my guest on the Internet Business Blueprint Podcast to discuss his journey, viral marketing, his biggest challenge, and where we are headed in the internet marketing space in 2010.

Join us for a lively discussion on viral marketing and how to get the most from viral tools. We will take your questions live and the chat room will also be open.

To attend log in here: http://www.JamesHolmesRadio.com

The Guest Line is here: (646) 727-3058

So who is Colin Klinkert?

Colin was born in South Africa and immigrated to Australia for High School and College after living several years in the UK.  A brilliant marketer and innovator in the viral marketing niche. A perfectionist and collaborative creator of a number of successful projects.

Here are several of Colin’s websites:

Viral URL

Viral Host

Viral Networks

In addition to these sites Colin Clinkert also maintains several additional sites and has additional projects under development.

Be sure to visit the show page: The Internet Business Blueprint Podcast

Be sure to join us live and take advantage of a rare chance to speak to one of the most innovative marketers in the viral marketing niche. I will look forward to your questions and feedback from the show.

I am here to help you succeed!

(c) Copyright 2008-2010 James A. Holmes. All Rights Reserved.

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James Holmes, Global Team Builder, Coach and Trainer, combining online and offline techniques to help you grow your business. To request a free 30 minute consultation contact James by phone at 303-523-9503 or email at james@AskJamesHolmes.com

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Note: If you’d like to reprint this article on your blog or in your newsletter you have permission to do so as long as the copyright information and the resource box above remains with the article.

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Spam filtering has made it increasingly difficult to ensure email deliver-ability to your opt in subscribers, which is critical to your success in monetizing your list and delivering value to your subscribers consistently. An incorrect spam filter classification can reduce your click through response rates by as much as 20-30% of your total number of messages sent.

Here are are 12 specific actions you can take to ensure your email gets delivered.

#1. Always be CAN-SPAM Compliant

This is RULE NUMBER ONE! The January 2004 Federal CAN-SPAM law introduced a number of rules regarding the delivery of email. It’s important you have your legal counsel review your practices and ensure you are in compliance. The two most important rules include having a valid postal mail address listed in all commercial messages and a working unsubscribe link that is promptly honored to remove the subscriber from future messages.

#2. Get Your Subscribers Permission

Confirming that the people who ask for your information have actually requested to be on your list is the number one step in the battle for deliverability. You should be using a process called confirmed opt-in or verified opt-in to send a unique link to the attempted subscriber when they request information. Before adding the person to your list they must click that unique link verifying that they are indeed the same person that owns the email address and requested to subscribe.

#3. Get Your Subscriber’s Best Email Address

Always ask you new subscribers to opt into your list using their “real or best” email address. Many online marketers and information seekers use a throw away or catch list as a means of sorting through opt in email. Typically this is set up using a free email service such as G-mail, Yahoo, Hotmail, etc. This means that the address you are mailing to can be easily thrown away or at their capacity, which will result in bouncing email addresses that hurts your delivery statistics.

By confirming an email address that is hosted with the subscribers primary ISP, you develop a higher quality list, dramatically increase your deliverability an achieve higher click through rates.

#4. Maintain Your List and Sort Out the Bad Addresses

Review your campaign stats after every mailing and promptly remove all email addresses that are bouncing. Make note of the address and send a direct private email that request a new email address, advise the subscriber that you had to remove them from your list and provide a simple opt in gift to persuade the subscriber to subscribe back into your list. If this email bounces, move on and do not invest anymore time correcting this problem.

There are times when a bounce is caused by a temporary situation, such as a full email in box or ISP downtime. A less aggressive practice would be to review addresses that return a permanent error more that three times in 30 days should be removed from your list. Keep in mind that ISPs track the number of emails you send to accounts on their servers that are closed and with enough frequency may in turn block you from address as a result.

#5. Use the Multi-part Message Format

For marketers HTML messages provide a powerful opportunity for branding and sending multi-column messages to format newsletters and e-zines. Most auto-responders offer both HTML and text formats for sending your email, the best services for marketers offer a feature known as Text/HTML multi-part mime format, which allows you to create both an HTML and text version of your message and the format delivered will depend on the receivers email client.

AWeber conducted a study in 2004 which determined that plain text messages are undeliverale 1.15% of each mailing and HTML only messages were undeleverable 2.3% of each mailing. consider this, many spam messages are HTML formatted and it can be difficult for spam filters to determine spam from requested email. I personally feel that the brand opportunity is greater than the risk of a small percentage of your messages being filtered out. I always use the multi-part format and so should you.

#6. Write Spam Free Content

Many ISP’s filter messages based on the content that appears within the message text itself in addition to the sender’s email address. Be sure to use an auto responder service that includes a “spam grader” feature that measures the likelihood of your message to be blocked as spam based on your content. The “spam grade” is determined by the frequency of words appearing in your message that are deemed to be spammy such as make money, business opportunity, etc.

Don’t make your messages appear to be spam by using odd character and spacing to disguise spam sensitive key phrases (for example ca$h). If you must use a phrase in your message that results in a high spam grade, try to replace the phase with the same meaning and re-score your message. Repeat this process until you find a phrase that works.

#7. Advertiser’s Website URLs Matter

If you are offering advertising opportunities on your newsletter or e-zine, take care to research potential advertisers before allowing them to place ads in your newsletter issues. If they have used their website URL to send spam, just having their URL appear in your newsletter could cause the entire message to be filtered.

#8. Use Images Selectively

Properly titled images can greatly enhance your SEO results and should be used to enhance your newsletter and e-zines. When it comes to email, I would largely avoid using images or do so sparingly.

#9. Always Use Links and Rarely Use Attachments

With viruses running rampant and spreading thru the usage of malicious email attachments many users are wary of attached documents. It’s often better to link to files via a website URL to reduce recipient fear of attachments and reduce the overall message size.

#10 Monitor and Protect Your Reputation

As you grow your list and begin to deliver a growing volume if email across a growing number of ISPs it become a necessity to monitor, manage and protect your reputation within the ISP community. Many new and experienced marketers alike are unaware that you can take a proactive stance in exposing your good practices to the “Reputation Services” that many ISPs reply upon to identify safe senders.

Take the initiative to become listed with these services and as a result, your messages will be given far less scrutiny or in many cases may no longer be subject to filtering as long as your reputation is maintained.

Here are three reputation services your should consider:

http://www.bondedsender.com

http://www.habeas.com

http://www.isipp.com/iadb.php

#11. Relationships & Whitelisting

Several of the major ISPs including Yahoo and AOL have specific whitelisting programs and postmaster website management tools developed to ensure your email is delivered on the condition that you messages meet their stated policies and procedures. Again, be proactive and advise the major ISP’s and email service providers of your opt in and mailing procedures and policies related to subscriber email.

#12. Always Give Your Reader an Easy Opt Out

No matter how hard you try to ensure the quality of your list, from time to time a subscriber will forget that they opted in or decide that they no longer want to receive your mail. When these circumstances occur you must make it easy for them to opt out, which will decrease the chances of a false spam complaint.

The major email service providers include a subscription management function which places an opt out script at the bottom of your messages by default – verify that this is the case with the provider you use. If not, create a signature to include in all of your email message resulting in a one click opt out function.

Email deliverability is about ensuring requested opt-in email is delivered to the intended recipient. While no single tip will enable you to get 100% of your email delivered each one utilized as a group can go a long way to reaching that goal.

By following the advice provided here you can ensure that your email is delivered and that your sender reputation is maintained as a viable asset in your online business. I welcome your comments or questions, so please feel free to leave a comment and if you like what you have read, be sure to re-tweet this post.

I am here to help you succeed!

(c) Copyright 2008-2009 James A. Holmes. All Rights Reserved.

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James Holmes, Global Team Builder, Coach and Trainer, combining online and offline techniques to help you grow your business. To request a free 30 minute consultation contact James by phone at 303-523-9503 or email at james@AskJamesHolmes.com

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Note: If you’d like to reprint this article on your blog or in your newsletter you have permission to do so as long as the copyright information and the resource box above remains with the article.

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Effective List Building Part 4

As an entrepreneur you are rewarded for two specific outcomes:

1. The Value You Provide

2. The Problems You solve

When it comes to list building the rewards you earn are loyal responsive subscribers who choose to remain on your list and sales of your info products, affiliate programs, business opportunities, and other resources you recommend.  My goal in this post is to help you maximize your list building activities by providing your subscribers with extreme value first, allowing you to create loyalty and solidify your relationship with your list.

Here is my strategy for adding value as a component of  effective list building!

Give Your Subscribers What They Want and Need

Be consistent and targeted with the information you send to your list. Keep in mind that you attracted your subscribers based on a invitation or item of value likely focused on a specific niche. For example, if a subscriber opted into your list for an internet marketing product, they likely will not expect you to email them information about cooking or how to restore a vintage automobile. If you work in a variety of niches, you should build separate list for each niche and only mail across all of your list when the information is relevant to the entire list.

If you email your list with targeted information that provides added value for their lives and helps them grow their businesses, you will develop loyalty and maximize your rightful opportunity to monetize your list. People like to buy from those they know, like and trust – you can develop these three qualities by seeking to add value first and monetize second.

Provide High Value Content and Resources for FREE

I have constructed “My Private Vault” to give high value resources to my list free of charge. The vault includes software, videos, audio MP3s, e-books, marketing systems, training materials and so much more. I offer literally thousands of dollars in value to my list every day in order to help them grow their businesses. You should be doing something very similar to this and then watch your list grow.

In addition to adding value to your subscribers, you can also use free items to “pre-sell” your paid products and services by providing your subscribers with a free sample of a paid product or a complete version of a paid product. By doing this you allow your list to try it before they buy it and in the long term all parties will benefit from this high value sales cycle.

Build a Quality List and Maintain it

From day one set your objective on building a quality list and maintaining your list quality as it grows. The highest quality list is a targeted list of loyal subscribers who choose to remain on your list and are responsive, meaning they choose to open your emails and follow your recommendations.

Here are 10 Key Tips to Get You Started

I have found that presenting your opt in as a “subscription” to a newsletter or inner circle list works best across mmultiple platforms. Keep in mind that you need to identify an opt in gift (example) worthy of attracting subscribers and then take action on the following marketing ideas.

1. Offer a free subscriptions to targeted (by niche) Ning communities
2. Offer a free subscription to popular forum members in your niche
3. Offer a free subscription to members of social networks such as Facebook and Twitter
4. Offer a free subscription through online classified advertising sites
5. Offer a free subscription in your email signature and auto reply from your email service
6. Issue press releases virally to publicize your free newsletter
7. Offer a free subscription on ALL the pages of your blog and website
8. Acquire relevant opt-in e-mail lists and introduce yourself with a free subscription creating a actual opt in
9. Offer a free subscription to members of professional associations in your niche
10. Use a “Tell a Friend” script to encourage your subscribers to spread the word and provide “gift subscriptions” to their friends

Closing Thoughts

Building a subscriber list is essential to the long term viability of your online business and creating a responsive list requires focus and commitment to adding value to your subscribers. If you follow the advice I provide in this series of post on effective list building, you will be well on your way to developing a thriving, responsive list of loyal subscribers.

Be sure to leave a comment and share this post with your friends and members of your social networks. Remember the more value you provide and the greater problems you solve the bigger your reward.

Remember, I am here to help you succeed!

(c) Copyright 2008-2009 James A. Holmes. All Rights Reserved.

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James Holmes, Global Team Builder, Coach and Trainer, combining online and offline techniques to help you grow your business. To request a free 30 minute consultation contact James by phone at 303-523-9503 or email at james@AskJamesHolmes.com

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Note: If you’d like to reprint this article on your blog or in your newsletter you have permission to do so as long as the copyright information and the resource box above remains with the article.

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Joel Therien is making a very big push in the month of February as GVO continues to help marketers and online business owners save money by bundling many of the most commonly used tools such as web hosting, auto-responders and video producer software, among others. In addition to customers of these GVO services, many choose to also build a downline organization to take advantage of GVO’s lucrative compensation plan.

It was announced last week that existing members of GVO can promote a special free trail period for new memberships to their associates, subscribers and prospects, which will allow new members to try the full bundle of services provided by GVO at no cost and with no risk.

I have personally been using GVO products for a few months and they represent a tremendous value, I actually reduced my monthly expenditure by over one hundred dollars by switching to GVO’s bundled services and I have built a down-line, which means I am actually making money every month at the same time.

I wanted to share this opportunity with you here and suggest that it might be worth your time to sign up for a free account and spend a couple of weeks evaluating all aspects of the GVO business and service model. I think you will be impressed once you have experienced it for yourself.

Here is the Free Membership Sign Up Link: GVO Give Way

Keep in mind the purpose of my blog is to provide you with mentor-ship, resources and tools to help you grow your online business. Feel free to contact me directly if I can answer any direct questions or provide assistance.

I am here to help you succeed!

(c) Copyright 2008-2009 James A. Holmes. All Rights Reserved.

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James Holmes, Global Team Builder, Coach and Trainer, combining online and offline techniques to help you grow your business. To request a free 30 minute consultation contact James by phone at 303-523-9503 or email at james@AskJamesHolmes.com

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Note: If you’d like to reprint this article on your blog or in your newsletter you have permission to do so as long as the copyright information and the resource box above remains with the article.

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