Donna Merrill
Forum Replies Created
-
Replies
-
Get the most out of the call by being prepared to speak, so to speak.
I mean, if the talk Sean is giving relates to anything you’re doing, and you can benefit from discussing it with him, getting your questions answered, etc… make sure to get on the phone with and discuss it.
That’s the greatest value of the live calls, I believe.
If you sit back and listen to others, you’ll learn a lot… but for actionable advice that can really impact your business, ask him for some guidance.
That’s why he does it.
3 users thanked author for this post.
-
I think “failure” is the failure to implement.
Now, “what” to implement is the big question.
Answer that + implement = success.
Regardless of results.
-
I think, Malik, one of the problems with free giveaways is that people give away cheap, useless stuff. Maybe PLR ebooks or whatever. If you give away something valuable and truly helpful, it will build trust with your subscribers and they’re far more likely to start paying attention to your emails.
Just “tricking” people onto your email list with some substandard lead magnet won’t get you the real loyal following you seek.
But that doesn’t mean you need to create something elaborate. Like I point out in this article, some of the best lead magnets you can think of can be created in just an hour or 2. If they really do help people, then they will convert well and build far more than just a list of “freebie seekers.”
I am one of those people who was not a fan of the free give away. But if I am being honest, I am also one of those people who did not offer a good give away.
Here lately, I have been giving away a better give away and one other and I am seeing better results.
-
Nice info, Malik.
I haven’t gotten big into Instagram because it’s all image based, but your mention of the 60 second videos is a spark for me.
I might give that a shot in order to reach new audiences.
How do YOU go about building a “target audience” on Instagram?
Thanks for putting this together. VEry valuable.
-
Nice to know, Bruce (I didn’t).
Looks like this is replacing the ARTICLES section that seems to have disappeared.
I had submitted an Article there, but it never showed up, so maybe things were in topsy turvy turmoil.
I’ll try submitting it to the Post Anything section instead.
Thanks for that.
1 user thanked author for this post.
-
Hey Bruce, I appreciate the thumbnail sketch of communicating out here.
My biggest issue is not responding to messages, but following up on replies to my past comments.
I would love to be able to find them, but once I leave a comment I’ll probably never know if anyone responded to it. So it kind of kills the “conversational thread” aspect of the forum.
Maybe it’s in the works.
Do you have a method for finding your old comments and replies?
PS: If you reply to this… I hope I can find it 🙂
I’ve had to develop a kind of routine in this forum.
First I check the new and unread comments and see if I can add something to those discussions that will benefit them.
Then I head over to the member’s section and invite people.
I also click on my name to see if anyone has sent me a private message. So far, there’s no way of knowing that short of actually looking.
If I can think of a good question – something that will get people to think – then I’ll ask it; and if I get an idea for an article, then I’ll make some notes for later, or write it on the spot.
-
I’m posting my quick dissent from all the video naysayers.
They CAN be too slow, monotonous, boring.
But if done right, they can be excellent.
PLUS, “done right” includes doing a series of short 3-4 minute topical clips vs. one big long run-on event.
That way, people can go straight to the topic they want (think keywords).
Also, video gives you an easy way to jump around from spot to spot.
So take that, all you text and audio fans… haha
1 user thanked author for this post.
-
If you don’t want to deal with shopping carts, affiliate software, checkout pages, etc… the simply solution (i think) is to publish your membership offer on JV Zoo or Clickbank (a new one I haven’t tried but looks good, very similar to zoo is Jv Share).
The advantage… they do all of the above for you. Yes, they take a % but Paypal and Stripe do, too, so I think dollar for dollar you’re best to let an affiliate platform handle all the tech stuff and take their small cut of the action.
You will need a membership site plugin, though, or if you want really, really simple… just deliver your incremental lessons via email + private links to videos, html pages etc. Then, you don’t even need a membership “site.”
You’ll have to fight for affiliates no matter what way you go, or you do your own direct selling. There are many ways.
2 users thanked author for this post.
-
Hi Bruce,
first of all, I actually posted an Article on this site about “Lead Magnets” detailing different types to use, but it seems to have evaporated, so I don’t really know what happened with the Articles in general, nor mine in particular.
Anyway…
While i prefer video over text (ebook), it must be short (5 to 10 minutes) or nobody’s going to consume the info.
Better yet, a checklist or list of resources or tools is really best IMHO.People like the brevity, the direct solve ONE problem approach and they’re easier (faster) for you to produce.
PDF is the way to go, but you can even make it a live page (private) on your blog or website and simply direct people to it (password protect if you wanna get crazy with it).
To make an impressive checklist or resource list, etc., go to free Canva and create it there. Looks cool & professional.
3 users thanked author for this post.
-
Hi Bruce,
Malik gives you a great rundown of how it works.
PS: I’m in the process of publishing a course on FB Live training, particularly gear toward making it profitable… so I have a fair idea of how this works.
Now, I’ll add a pinch to what Malik instructs.
First, you do need to be on your iPhone (when I say things like this I always have to disclaim… this stuff changes every single day… it’s truly a work in progress and FB is always tooling with it).
You can watch a FB Live from your computer, but the only way the Presenter can Invite anyone (ie., you) is if you are on iPhone. Otherwise, you wont’ pop up for them to see you as “in attendance” so they can’t invite you.
I’ve done several FB Live interviews, and I always tell my guests to simply jump onto their iPhone, when I see them in attendance, I’ll click on the Invite Guest option and voila… we are live on split screen.
Here’s one I did so you can see what it looks like… https://youtu.be/SMT5iaRU3Fg
Also… if you don’t have an iPhone, ask the interviewer if he/she can do it on YouTube HOA (hangouts on air).
It’s a great alternative and very easy, just different set of “how to” steps (of course) 🙂
5 users thanked author for this post.
-
I have a lot to learn, here 🙁
I still tend to work from immediacy rather than forethought.
Wake up late but also work late… that’s my best time.
everyone tells me it’s wrong, but it’s been that way my whole life.
Learn learn modify… sigh
-
As with anything in marketing, Bruce… focus on the benefits, not the features.
Don’t tell people what you can and will do, show them how they will benefit from having hired you to write for them.
People only care about how they will benefit from what you do, not how good it is, or why it’s the best thing etc.
So, for instance, NOT “look how great this sales letter is” BUT “think of the huge jump in sales you will get from my unique brand of sales letter”
5 users thanked author for this post.
-
Hi Diana,
All good advice here and I’m just going to add one thing.
Besides resizing your images, it’s a really good idea to compress them, especially since you are using so many of them.
Best, fastest way to compress that I know is to use a free tool called tinypng.com
just upload the image from you desktop (where it should be, for reasons Jennifer gave)…
then compress and download.The image SIZE remains the same as does the pixelation… it looks the same but is much much smaller.
This makes your site and pages load much faster, and greatly reduces your bandwidth.
Not a big deal for casual bloggers, maybe, but certain for an ecom style site it is.
-
Looks like you’re off an running, Scott.
Nice structure, a lot of work ahead of you 🙂
But it’s a labor of love, right?
Now, here’s my thought.
You mentioned this: “Eventually it will wind up organically in search engines and it will become the “go to” place for the topic and create its own traffic.”
I think SEO is a tough way to popularize a site and make it successful.
You should probably be thinking more along the lines of marketing your content OFF your site, with links back to your site, or to a squeeze page, or even a content upgrade to your article or video.
So think in terms of things like YouTube videos, micro-blogging on Medium, LinkedIn, Tumblr etc.
The real thrust of marketing online now is to go where your audience is… mostly social media sites.
That’s where you’ll get your chance to demonstrate the value you offer.
Eventually, through whatever info funnel you set up, you get them to come to your site… but only after you’ve already built a trust with them.
SEO traffic is essentially cold traffic.
People may come to your site, but if they don’t know you and haven’t had an opportunity to engage with you on some level, they’ll be much more likely to bounce.
Keep up the good work and it will be fun to see this develop.
2 users thanked author for this post.
-
To answer your question this is the target that II had for last campaign and will use for next (as similar product price point) and it got my good results (it was not in the IM market, but my next one will be)
– I will go with purchasing 100 clicks
– I want around 40-50% sign up if not test again with new squeeze page
– I also aim to get 2 sales and 1 upsell (if applicable)
– if I get that I then increase to 500 clicks
– sales 5+
– otos 1-3Not sure if Sean or others think this is good or bad?
After testing to know it is converting my biggest focus is getting others as my affiliates and I will be looking for new affiliate next week when I launch my new product.
It’s a good idea to project your numbers like that, Tina.
Malik is absolutely right… you have to know your numbers.
Once you’ve got it structured right, the goal is to make more money than you spend on advertising.
When you get to the point that you can depend on making money vs. spending it… you can scale up, just like you’ve illustrated.
Good plan, and of course, the exciting part is to see what actually happens when your money is on the table.
Good luck with your launch.
3 users thanked author for this post.
-
So just to take that one example of a paid ebook… the one you did on Insomnia… think of a quick lead magnet you could do.
Maybe a 5-point checklist (1 page, a few sentences) of the “5 things you tell yourself”
or
maybe a quick video of “1 thing you tell yourself” with a prompt to buy the ebook for the other 4
or
etc etc
These are things you can do in an hour, I’m sure.
Then, when somebody fails to convert on your sales page, redirect them to a pop-up or another page that says (Wait… don’t go away empty handed… get my 5 point checklist for free right now)… then at least you get a subscriber even if not a sale.
Congrats on your hard work at putting a product together.
I know it’s a job, but after you do your first, they get easier all the time 🙂
-
That’s a great technique, Mark, and effective because it gives real value to people.
It tells them you really care vs. “here’s an ebook… good luck”
I’m thinking of using a similar approach in conjunction with FB ads… lead magnet “report” that offers free phone/Skype consult. Only a thought at the moment, though… implementation is the only way I’ll ever see how effective it is, right?
1 user thanked author for this post.
-
So, Malik, if you do FB Live for business (a great way to go), keep this in mind…
If you’re doing a live talk, you have an audience, right?
Maybe general, maybe your friends, maybe a FB page you’re broadcasting on etc.
Now, if you Invite guests to share your screen and have a little discussion on your topic, your Guest’s friends are immediately notified by FB that they are now talking live at a FB LIVE event.
If you invite 3 different people to “step up to the camera”, just for an example… you get all 3 of their followings to be notified that their guy is LIVE.
This can really increase your live audience, especially if you’re talking with folks with a significant (and TARGETED) audience.
I use the number “3” only as an example. It can be 1 or 10 or any number. Even if you chat with someone for a minute or 2, you pick up their audience in addition to yours 🙂
Post-production, if you want to grab the replay link, you can post it and tag anyone, including of course, someone who had been a live guest… tell their followers “Thanks to @so-and-so who told us about xyz during this recent live event… link”
4 users thanked author for this post.
-
Yes, Bruce.
You need to download the FB app.
Without the app you can’t access FB, including FB Live.
Again, anybody can WATCH FB live right from their computer, but you can’t be invited into a 2-way convo unless you’re on your iphone with app.
That will change, I’m sure, but it’s the way things are right now.
The latest guidelines from FB are here… https://www.facebook.com/help/mentions/1168124233259553
3 users thanked author for this post.
-
Google classroom… new to me, Malik.
I’d love to learn more.
-
Hi Sean,
I can certainly be a sucker for “going through the motions.”
It feels good to be “busy” but sometimes I know I’m off he path, but still, I feel the need to keep churning until I figure out I should be doing.
Totally backwards I know, but still a compelling motivation sometimes.
-
Hi Julia,
things to “get rid of”… that’s probably my biggest challenge.
I always take on too much and it is so important to streamline and grab those blinders to anything that doesn’t help you get to your destination.
-
That’s a great system to follow, Malik.
Simplicity is such a complicated thing, eh?
