| |
| |
|
Internet Marketing Information |
|
|
|
Save This Page Links 
6 Steps to Establish Your Expertise
Like the Internet itself, online marketing resources such as blogs, chat rooms, and user groups are vast and puzzling. On one hand they offer that elusive "promise land" of free and effective marketing. On the other, they embody a "time sink" of astronomical proportions. They have addictive qualities and their effectiveness is measured only by your own self-control. That said, let's briefly describe each opportunity and explore their potential. "Blog" is short for "web log" - an online diary of sorts that is relatively user-friendly, at least by Internet standards. Through free services such as Blogger.com, an author (or "blogger" as they have come to be known) can compose content and then, with the click of a button, become "published" online within a matter of seconds for the world to see. Whether or not the world actually does see it, however, is a matter of distribution. The topic of distributing blogs is outside the scope of this article, but may be one I tackle in an upcoming newsletter. Suffice it to say, it's a little more technical, requiring techno-babble references to jargon-esque acronyms and geek-speak like .xml, atom, and RSS. In the meantime, let's discuss the other two Internet venues. Online chat rooms and user groups also provide a forum for the self-promoter. While they share similarities with blogs they lack some of the distribution possibilities. Yahoo offers both chat rooms and use groups/bulletin boards organized by subject, and you can find similarly themed groups on Google. I briefly discuss blogs, chat rooms, and user groups in my book Publishing Gems: Insider Information for the Self-Publishing Writer when covering ways in which to establish yourself as an expert. Here are six steps for establishing yourself as an expert: 1 Write a book You've done this already, right? If you haven't, consider it. You may find yourself closer to a finished manuscript than you realize. Writing a publishable book from your knowledge or experience is often a matter of simply putting your expertise on paper. 2 Publish your book A published book becomes a calling card to line-up speaking engagements, freelance writing gigs, and other opportunities. Once your book is published, the Catch-22 kicks in: You are an expert because you have published a book, and your published book proves your expertise. Get your book published at OutskirtsPress.com. 3 Promote your expertise Two good places to begin are AOL and ABOUT.COM. Both have category-specific forums in which you can participate. By mentioning that you are the "author of such-and-such" or the "vice president of so-and-so" within the scope of your communication, you begin to label yourself as an expert. Web-logs, or "blogs" are also a cost effective, efficient way to promote your expertise. Blogs utilize .xml and RSS feeds to provide dynamic, up-to-the minute publication across a variety of searchable platforms. The integration between blogs and contextual search engines becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy toward recognition. If you write about something, people searching for the topic will invariably find you, and that makes you an expert! 4 Overcome the hurdles Being recognized as an expert in a technical category is admittedly easier than other subjective categories. Even so, it is important to do whatever is necessary to establish your expertise. Let's take the example of fiction authors -- not exactly an easy sell, right? But becoming a recognized expert is not only possible, but mandatory. Just look at Clancy, Rowling, and Robbins. 5 Explore the possibilities Whether you've penned a techno-thriller, children's fantasy, or romance, (or exist in the more technical fields where your education and/or publishing credits alone might be enough) there is a forum in which to voice your expertise. The Internet is full of chat rooms, writing groups, genre-sites, and more. They're all thirsty for content from published authors and knowledgeable people. You just have to know where to look. Conducting a Google search is a good place to start. 6 Join, participate, schmooze Seek out conferences, associations, and other experts to help you. Find forums, websites, and ezines in which to promote yourself. Brent Sampson is the President & CEO of Outskirts Press Publishing at OutskirtsPress.com and author of Publishing Gems: Insider Information for the Self-Publishing Writer. Information at http://outskirtspress.com/publishinggems
MORE RESOURCES:
Google News |
|
|
|
RELATED ARTICLES
Seven Marketing Questions You Should Ask Before You Get A 10 Year Old To Build Your Website Google tells us there are 4 billion websites- almost one for everyone on the planet. And today you have decided to make it 4 billion and 1. 3 Link Exchange Methods Link exchange is one of the many Internet marketing strategies aimed at:1. Boosting Traffic 2. Five Ways To Maximize Profit In Resale Rights Marketing Product creation is usually one of the first concerns of an internet marketer. Conceptualizing a profitable idea and formulating a marketing plan to sell it is a relatively exhausting task. Yardstyle Marketing It is just crazy. Every time I open my mouth to talk about Internet marketing, it is like I am speaking a foreign language to my audience. Online Sales: 10 Mind Boggling, Electrifying Tricks To Ignite Your Sales Do you want to unleash a tsunami of sales at your website?If yes, then use these 10 online sales, electrifying insider's tricks of the trade.1. The Essentials of Free Internet Marketing Given a solid product, a well-developed Web site, and a carefully designed marketing strategy it's possible to make good -- even excellent -- sales without investing any money in promotion. That said, it does take a serious investment of time as well as marketing know-how. Creating Your Internet Marketing Plan For large corporations, a marketing plan is a huge document detailing strategies for the fiscal year. It may include competitor analysis or a sales forecast. How to Build an Asset Out of Giving Stuff Away for Free We all do it I guess: give something away for free to stimulate interest in our online promotions, an e-book here; a report there, whatever elsewhere.But can you really build an asset out of giving stuff away?I believe you can and I'll tell you why. Growing Your Business On-line: A Fresh Perspective Rather than thinking about the web as technology, let's consider the web as a purely connective device - perhaps the most powerful connective tool that mankind has created to date.The web can literally - physically - connect companies, people, ideas, and processes instantly. How To Be 100% Sure That Your New Product Is A Winner Yes folks, there is a way of making absolutely certain-sure that you have developed a winning product.Do you want to know how to do this? You do?Well, it's quite simple: You allow the punters to tell you whether or not they want your product. Eyes on your eCommerce Website Copyright 2005 Richard KeirIn a recent article I talked about Google AdSense placement based on eye-tracking research. However, research by The Poynter Institute, Eyetools and the Estlow Center for Journalism and New Media has a lot to say about more than where to put an AdSense block. How to get an Internet Marketing Education Without Spending a Nickel Do you want to create a passive income? Are you bewildered by all the educational Marketing products out there? Are you on a low budget or trying to escape from a huge debt load?Well, I answered a big "Yes!" to all the above, especially, the last oneMy job sucks. I can barely make ends meet and I have some medical problems which make a "normal" working lifestyle very difficult. e-Marketing Strategy: 7 Dimensions to Consider (the e-Marketing Mix) What is e-Marketing?e-Marketing is still quite a controversial subject to talk about, since no one succeeded to unify the various theories around it; however there is one thing upon which there is no doubt - that e-Marketing first appeared under the form of various techniques deployed by pioneer companies selling their products via the internet in the early 90's.The frenzy around these new marketing techniques created by e-tailers and supported by the internet rapidly gave birth to a new dimension of what we knew as Marketing: the e-Marketing (electronic Marketing). Sheep Spend and Lose, Leaders Make Money Remember that leaders spend more money on learning and growing, but they do their homework and work hard to make money.Sheep follow the herd blindly with their wallets open hoping someone else will will do their work for them. 7 Simple Steps To Web Wealth A lot of people and companies have websites. They also have products and services they want people to know about. The Power of Taglines: Take My Tagline Test! An effective logo/tagline combination can be one of the best ways to successfully brand your business. But you don't have to take my word for it. Internet Marketing Reality Check There are thousands of web sites, books, CD-ROM's, cassette tapes and various other forms of communication devoted to the topic of Internet marketing. The majority of these sites profess to offer "secret strategies" and "killer tactics" which promise to increase your chances of having success on the Internet. What is Guerrilla Marketing? The history of these battles is the history of guerrilla warfare.There are similar stories in business. Headlines Bring Sales--Where and How to Use Them - Part 2 Headlines are short vital statements to stimulate your potential customers and clients to take action. That means sales! Since you only have 10 seconds to attract your visitor or reader, create headlines to make ultimate sales. 10 Psychological Desires To Insert Into Your Ad 1. Most people like surprises because it's a change of pace from their routine.
|
