Tuesday, December 23, 2003 - Volume 1 Issue 8
Colin Evans, Editor (mailto:
)
In this issue
1. From the Editor
2. Why link submissions are dangerous - By Colin Evans
3. Featured Articles:
--- What Constitutes a Good Life? - By Jim Rohn
--- The State of the Internet Address - 2003 - By Jim Edwards
4. Motivational Quotes
5. Take A Break: Happy Confession
6. Tell Me what You Think
From the Editor - Colin Evans
Hi Everyone 
Welcome to this, the final edition this year, of Cols-A-To-Z.
I hope all of you have had a successful year - I certainly have.
Loads of things didn't work out for me but I gained a little
experience and knowledge from everything I did this year.
My experiences have led me to the point where I distrust anything
remotely MLM and anything with a matrix. I lost a fortune on the
internet this year by entering a couple of "guaranteed" programs.
I did not have a large and receptive advertising base (e.g. a
large optin list of my own), so I struggled to even cover costs,
never mind make any money.
And the few free programs into which I recruited hundreds...
Two things:
- The commission on free is US$0.00
- The people I recruited were not receptive to my advertisements for paid programs (MLM, fancy payment matricees or otherwise).
I have changed my online marketing focus completely and will be
reporting on my methods and successes next year.
All that remains is for me to wish you all a very happy Christmas
(for those of you that celibrate it) and a very prosperous 2004.
Until the next time...
Why link submissions are dangerous - By Colin Evans
With the CAN SPAM act becoming law in January 2004, FFA programs
are very much under the spotlight.
I want to take a look at the results of FFA advertising, but from
a different perspective.
As online marketers we are told that we have to own our own domain
and have it hosted. This is a good idea because it gives you:
- Credibility
- Your own website (you control the content)
- Unlimited e-mail addresses
- Web stats (useful for analysing your advertising efforts)
- Ulimited re-directs (framed or meta refresh)
- Unlimited lead capture pages (your own design)
And it is these last two that can cause you quite a few headaches.
Why?
Because sooner or later you will become involved in some form of
search engine optimization and the associated link popularity and
reputation.
Let me explain...
Search engines like Google have pretty complicated ranking
algorithyms that rely quite heavily on the number and reputation
of the links pointing to your website in their calculations.
To put it simply, your page ranking is decided by the number of
links from high ranking pages pointing to your web page.
Links from any kind of mass advertising or link farm are
penalised. This means that any link from a FFA page, link farm or
classified ad site will seriously degrade your ranking.
Most online marketers are told to submit their links to the
various submission systems out there, they do so, after all it's
free advertising.
The next step is to use re-direct pages using their own domain
so they can track their results. Pretty soon they will start
building a website and ultimately they will try to get a good
ranking in the search engines.
But this is where the trouble starts.
All those redirect pages that were submitted, all pointing back
to their domain will now carry heavy penalties. Some of those
links could stay on a link page for months or years (I still
have over thirty links pointing back at one of my lead capture
pages and I have not used a submission service in over six
months).
As far as search engines are concerned, traffic exchanges fall
into the same category as link pages.
So if you want to use any kind of advertising or submission
service, make sure that the links do not point to your domain.
Make sure that:
- Your re-direct links DO NOT contain your url in them - use a redirect service e.g. www.opportunity.com
- If you want your own lead capture pages, host them using free hosting services.
Featured Article: What Constitutes a Good Life? - By Jim Rohn
The ultimate expression of life is not a paycheck. The ultimate
expression of life is not a Mercedes. The ultimate expression of
life is not a million dollars or a bank account or a home. Here's
the ultimate expression of life in my opinion, and that is living
the good life. Here's what we must ask constantly, "What for me
would be a good life?" And you have to keep going over and over
the list. A list including areas such as spirituality, economics,
health, relationships and recreation. What would constitute a good
life? I've got a short list.
- Number one, productivity. You won't be happy if you don't
produce. The game of life is not rest. We must rest, but only
long enough to gather strength to get back to productivity.
What's the reason for the seasons and the seeds, the soil and the
sunshine, the rain and the miracle of life? It's to see what you
can do with it. To try your hand, other people have tried their
hand; here's what they did. You try your hand to see what you can
do. So part of life is productivity.
- Next are good friends. Friendship is probably the greatest
support system in the world. Don't deny yourself the time to
develop this support system. Nothing can match it. It's
extraordinary in its benefit. Friends are those wonderful people
who know all about you and still like you.
A few years ago I lost one of my dearest friends. He died at age
53 - heart attack. David is gone, but he was one of my very
special friends. I used to say of David that if I was stuck in a
foreign jail somewhere accused unduly and if they would allow me
one phone call, I would call David. Why? He would come and get me.
That's a friend. Somebody who would come and get you. Now we've
all got casual friends. And if you called them they would say,
"Hey, if you get back, call me we'll have a party." So you've got
to have both, real friends and casual friends.
- Next on the list of a good life is your culture. Your language,
your music, the ceremonies, the traditions, the dress. All of that
is so vitally important that you must keep it alive. In fact it is
the uniqueness of all of us that when blended together brings
vitality, energy, power, influence, uniqueness and rightness to
the world.
- Next is your spirituality. It helps to form the foundation
of the family that builds the nation. And make sure you study,
practice and teach. Don't be careless about the spiritual part
of your nature, it's what makes us who we are, different from
animals, dogs, cats, birds and mice. Spirituality.
- Next - here's what my parents taught me. Don't miss anything.
Don't miss the game. Don't miss the performance, don't miss the
movie, don't miss the show, don't miss the dance. Go to everything
you possible can. Buy a ticket to everything you possibly can. Go
see everything and experience all you possibly can. This has
served me so well to this day. Just before my father died at age
93 if you were to call him at 10:30 or 11:00 at night, he wouldn't
be home. He was at the rodeo, he was watching the kids play
softball, he was listening to the concert, he was at church, he
was somewhere every night.
Live a vital life. Here's one of the reasons why. If you live
well, you will earn well. If you live well it will show in your
face, it will show in the texture of your voice. There will be
something unique and magical about you if you live well. It will
infuse not only your personal life but also your business life.
And it will give you a vitality nothing else can give.
- Next are your family and the inner circle. Invest in them and
they'll invest in you. Inspire them and they'll inspire you. With
your inner circle take care of the details. When my father was
still alive, I used to call him when I traveled. He'd have
breakfast most every morning with the farmers. Little place
called The Decoy Inn out in the country where we lived in
Southwest Idaho. So Papa would go there and have breakfast and
I'd call him just to give him a special day. Now if I was in
Israel, I'd have to get up in the middle of the night, but it
only took five minutes, ten minutes. So I'd call Papa and they'd
bring him the phone. I'd say, "Papa I'm in Israel." He'd say,
"Israel! Son, how are things in Israel?" He'd talk real loud so
everybody could hear - my son's calling me from Israel. I'd say,
"Papa last night they gave me a reception on the rooftop
underneath the stars overlooking the Mediterranean." He'd say,
"Son, a reception on the rooftop underneath the stars overlooking
the Mediterranean." Now everybody knows the story. It only took
5 - 10 minutes, but what a special day for my father, age 93.
If a father walks out of the house and he can still feel his
daughter's kiss on his face all day, he's a powerful man. If a
husband walks out of the house and he can still feel the imprint
of his wife's arms around his body he's invincible all day. It's
the special stuff with the inner circle that makes you strong and
powerful and influential. So don't miss that opportunity. Here's
the greatest value. The prophet said, "There are many virtues and
values, but here's the greatest, one person caring for another."
There is no greater value than love. Better to live in a tent on
the beach with someone you love than to live in a mansion by
yourself. One person caring for another, that's one of life's
greatest expressions.
So make sure in your busy day to remember the true purpose and
the reasons you do what you do. May you truly live the kind of
life that will bring the fruit and rewards that you desire.
To Your Success,
Jim Rohn
This article was submitted by Jim Rohn, America's Foremost Business Philosopher. To subscribe to the Free Jim Rohn Weekly E-zine go to
http://www.jimrohn.com
Copyright © 2000 Jim Rohn International. All rights reserved worldwide.
Featured Article: The State of the Internet Address - 2003
- By Jim Edwards
As 2003 draws to a close, we've seen a lot of things come and go
this past year.
Decorations for the approaching Holiday season remind us that
another calendar is almost used up and it's time to start fresh
with a brand new year full of promise.
It's been a wild ride through 2003!
Even though we're busy, it often helps to take a moment and
reflect on where we've been, what's happened, and take a hard
look at the current state of affairs so we can predict what we're
likely to see in the coming year.
So what happened this past year online and -- more importantly --
what can we learn from it and how can we use it?
Well, pull up a chair by the fire and let your old friend Jim
break it down for you...
The FTC
The Federal Trade Commission weighed in this year and made its
presence known around the world.
Fines, asset seizure, and all-around scary stuff happened when
the FTC decided to crack down on what it termed "deceptive
advertising practices."
Reaction to the FTC's actions made for a very interesting study
of human behavior.
Some people adopted the "ostrich" legal self-help approach by
sticking their heads in the sand and doing nothing.
Others imitated "Chicken Little" by running around proclaiming
that the "the sky is falling... the sky is falling!"
Still others took legal advice from the online equivalent of
"jailhouse lawyers" by following the rumor and innuendo found in
forums and newsgroups... none of which rate as a very sound legal
strategy.
In the end, most took the sensible approach and took time to
educate themselves on the real dangers of running afoul of the
FTC by adding the proper disclaimers and disclosures to their
websites.
They also modified their promises and statements on their
websites to ensure a more compliant positioning with FTC
advertising rules.
The current situation:
Basically nobody is really talking about the FTC anymore because
nobody we've heard of has gotten stung with court papers... but
that doesn't mean the FTC stopped watching! All that means is you
haven't heard what they're doing or who they're watching.
And even if they aren't doing anything, the actions they took
should burn a message into everybody's brain as a warning against
making the same mistakes got others got whacked for good and hard.
My predictions for the FTC in 2004:
The FTC will continue watching for any flagrant violations of
their fair advertising and other rules and, if they get enough
complaints (not sure how many "enough" is), will act swiftly to
smack down anyone they see acting inappropriately.
The moral of the story: Don't let your guard down and think "Big
Brother" isn't watching... because he IS!
The "Canned Meat" Avalanche
Spam!
It's gotten so bad that the U.S. Federal Government actually
wants to weigh in and try to help solve the problem.
Unfortunately, in my opinion, any legislation currently under
debate won't help much... and may even do more harm than good.
I personally saw the amount of UCE (Unsolicited Commercial Email)
triple in my email box this year. Every morning I wake up to find
250 to 400 messages waiting... when I get done deleting the spam,
I usually end up with 35 legitimate messages.
Amazingly BAD ratio!
The current situation looks pretty grim for actually solving the
problem.
Services like SpamCop often succeed in blocking legitimate email
while the spammers just keep merrily sending their avalanche of
messages guaranteed to help you get filthy rich, meet interesting
people, find the world's smallest automobile toy and, of course,
make certain body parts bigger!
My predictions for SPAM in 2004:
The problem will only get worse if you don't take any action to
protect yourself.
I personally plan to revamp my entire email setup after the
holidays by eliminating almost all of my existing email accounts
(which web spiders harvested from my websites). I'll then "cloak"
the addresses appearing on the pages so they can't get read by
anyone but a human being who intends to email me personally.
(I plan to document what I do and share it at a later date).
A whole bunch of "snake oil" solutions will appear claiming to
solve the problem... but the amazing thing is that the majority
of them will get sold via SPAM!
Additional Resources:
Here's an article with some basic help
"SPAM Killers"
Lights, Camera, Action!
In case you didn't notice, a lot more audio, video, and
multimedia appeared online this year... due largely to
improvements in streaming technology. Connection speeds didn't
get faster, but the software used to deliver the content sure
did!
We've seen audio testimonials, multi-media newsletters -
like my ground-breaking www.IgottaTellYou.com newsletter -
and a host of downloadable products incorporating much more
than written words on digital paper.
As the hardware gets cheaper (computers, microphones, sound
boards) and the software gets better and more universal
(flash, mp3, etc), you'll see a lot more people jumping on
the audio/video bandwagon.
My predictions about Multi-Media for 2004:
First, you'll see an ever-increasing number of multi-media products.
Unfortunately, many of them will absolutely bore you to tears!
Fair Warning: Anyone who wants to create multi-media products or
newsletters should invest time learning how not only to educate
people... but also entertain them!
Second, a lot of really cool tools will come out this year to help the
technically challenged (like ME) do some really awesome things
with video and audio.
Third, high-quality, full-motion streaming video will NOT make it to
dial up connections this year (like it has for high- speed)...
but 2005? My guess says... YES!
Block Those Pop Up's
Ah yes... pop-up windows.
Nothing short of a good insult toward someone's mother will get
people to express an opinion about something faster than
mentioning pop-up windows.
In fact, they're such a hot topic that AOL and Netscape use their
"pop-blocker" software as a marketing benefit for people to sign
up!
Undeniably, however, pop-ups rate as one of the best ways to
build a targeted optin list by making a VERY specific offer to
each targeted website visitor.
In truth, the vast majority of my subscribers come from exit
pop-up windows on my websites.
So it seems the online world finds itself engaged in a standoff...
"to POP or not to POP - that is the question!"
My predictions about Pop-up's for 2004:
We've already seen some interesting contributions to the pop-up
window issue, on both sides.
Armand Morin and Corey Rudl both sell software to help you get
around the majority of pop-up blocking software.
On the other hand, major players like Google and Alexa offer free
pop-up blockers integrated into their toolbars.
Bottom line: somebody will come up with a solution that rates as
effective as pop-ups, but it won't offend people.
(And whoever does that will enjoy my undying gratitude!)
Sold to the Highest Bidder
Did you realize that eBay, the web's leading auction site, ranks
as the 6th most popular site on the Internet (according to
Alexa.com).
In fact, according to Alexa, more people go to eBay's website
than even AOL or CNN!
Think about that for a minute. The website that started out
selling beanie babies and old stuff from people's attics now
gets millions of visitors every single week... and the majority
of those people WANT to BUY something!
Think about all that targeted traffic - with credit card and
checkbook in hand - going to one central spot to spend their
money... in some cases FIGHTING and COMPETING against other
people for the right to spend their money. Amazing!
The biggest challenge any online business owner faces, ultimately,
comes down to getting traffic to their websites. Just think if
you could get some of those millions of visitors who hit eBay
every week to come take a peek at your website! Well you can (and
many people do)!
My prediction about eBay for 2004:
eBay will just keep on getting bigger... and bigger... and bigger!
If you're looking to start an online business and you're starting
from scratch (or even if you're already established) - take a
hard look at incorporating eBay into your overall marketing
strategy.
They've got the targeted traffic you may need to launch a
successful business quickly or take your existing business to
the next level.
Google takes over Top Spot as preferred search engine
Google. The name strikes fear into the heart of other search
engines and creates dreams of riches and untold avalanches of
traffic for online marketers.
Not since Yahoo! dominated the search scene 4 years ago has one
search vehicle held such power to make or break online businesses.
Unfortunately, as more and more businesses come online,
competition for the elusive TOP 10 spots on Google seems to
bring out the predator in every marketer.
Add in Google's "Ad Words" and you incorporate the other main
ingredient in search engine marketing, pay-per-click.
To increase their overall marketing reach, Google syndicated not
only their search results, but also their pay-per-click Ad Words
results across major sites.
My predictions for Google in 2004:
Google will only get bigger.
Their Ad Words and Ad Sense, along with their regular "free"
search engine listings (how long can that last?) make them "THE"
search vehicle to watch.
The smart marketers will invest time in understanding HOW Google
works... so you can make it work for your business.
Are eBooks dead?
I've had a lot of people ask me, "Are ebooks still an effective
a way to publish and sell information... or has their time passed
us by?"
My answer: YES - ebooks still rate, in my opinion, as the best
way to get started selling information on the Internet.
Why?
Because ebooks require the least amount of technical expertise to
create and distribute.
Also, the people who buy ebooks now have the technical ability to
download and read them.
A few years ago ebook authors (like myself) spent half their time
just explaining to people HOW to download the ebooks and read
them! Instead of feeling like an author, you felt more like a
tech support rep for Internet 101.
Now, the average user who buys ebooks has very little problem in
buying your information and using it.
Also, cheaper and easier technology has evolved to make it VERY
easy for the average ebook author to set up a truly auto-pilot
ebook delivery system.
A simple website, a ClickBank account, and a decent autoresponder
- and you're in business with a real, legitimate, functional
online business.
On the downside, because the price of entry has gone so low,
anybody can create an "ebook" and go into business online.
A lot of crummy ebooks get hawked around the Internet every day,
and a lot of them really stink! But there's a silver lining to
that cloud too...
Since so many bad ebooks get circulated online, when people find
a good one, they are actually MORE impressed than in the past.
It's actually EASIER to stand out now than it was a couple of
years ago because people crave good content!
My predictions for eBooks in 2004:
eBooks will not only survive in 2004, they'll get published in
record numbers.
Many of them will significantly change how we use the Internet
and some of them will even make their authors rich and famous
around the world.
eBooks still rate the #1 way for smart, dedicated people to start
a highly profitable business selling information on the Internet.
I don't see this changing in the foreseeable future.
Additional Resources:
Here's an article that should interest you
"Let's Get One Thing Straight About Being A Published Author"
My personal thoughts on the coming year, 2004
I see three trends driving people's behavior in the coming year.
You should take these into consideration when planning your
Internet business and other web activities.
First, in general, the Internet has gotten "noisy" and crowded.
People get bombarded with information every single day. Even with
information they want to receive, it's easy for people to feel
overwhelmed by the sheer volume of data coming their way.
Second, since they get bombarded daily, people's level of
skepticism and mistrust towards just about everything seems to
increase daily. It's just plain harder to get and hold people's
attention, let alone their trust, for an extended period of time
without constant effort.
Third, people are drowning in a sea of information, but they are
thirsting for knowledge. In other words, they've got plenty of
information already, but what they need is someone to show them
how to APPLY it to their unique situations.
What does this mean to you?
Make sure whatever you do or create online (website, email,
ebooks, articles, etc.) helps people make sense of what's going
on and doesn't add to their confusion. The people who help bring
order from the chaos will turn out the big winners when we look
back a year from now.
The key to success in 2004 is not more information... a better
sales pitch... or a website that burps and sings with more bells
and whistles than anyone else's.
The winners in 2004 will be the people who get back to
basics and:
- Find out exactly what people want...
- Sell it to them the way they want it...
- Treat people with honesty and integrity...
- Don't settle for anything less than the absolute best they are capable of producing!
To YOUR success!
Jim Edwards is a syndicated newspaper columnist and the co-author of an amazing new ebook that will teach you how to use fr-e articles to quickly drive thousands of targeted visitors to your website or affiliate links...
Need MORE TRAFFIC to your website or affiliate links?
"Turn Words Into Traffic" reveals the secrets for driving Thousands of NEW visitors to your website or affiliate links... without spending a dime on advertising!
Click Here => http://www.turnwordsintotraffic.com
Motivational Quotes
Never continue in a job you don’t enjoy. If you’re happy in what
you’re doing, you’ll like yourself, you’ll have inner peace. And
if you have that along with physical health, you will have had
more success than you could possibly have imagined.
- Johnny Carson
Far better it is to date mighty things, to win glorious triumphs,
even though checkered by failure, than to rank with those poor
spirits who neither enjoy much nor suffer much, because they live
in the grey twilight that knows neither victory nor defeat.
- Theodore Roosevelt
Take A Break: Happy Confession
A young Irish woman went to confession and upon entering the
confessional she said, "Forgive me Father, for I have sinned."
The priest said, "Confess your sins and be forgiven."
The young woman said, "Last night my boyfriend made mad
passionate love to me seven times."
The priest thought long and hard and then said, "Take seven
lemons and squeeze them into a glass and then drink it."
The young woman asked, "Will this cleanse me of my sins?"
The priest said "NO, but it will wipe the smile off of your
face."
Tell Me What You Think
I would love to hear what you think of this issue of the "Cols-A-To-Z" Newsletter.
And of course, if you have any suggestions for upcoming issues that you'd like to
share with me, please send those, too!
Just e-mail me at:
To subscribe to my "Cols-A-To-Z" Newsletter, go to the following URL:
http://www.cols-a-to-z.com/join.html
Written by Colin Evans
President, Cols-A-To-Z.com
© copyright 2003 Cols-A-To-Z.com
