Friday, January 21, 2011
Tuesday, April 27, 2010
Get More Buyers
Have you ever wondered how Internet marketing experts
send out a single email and make enough money to buy a
car?
It's a little silly when you think about it. Sounds
too good to be true. For most people, it is too good
to be true. But not when you have the "secret weapon"
those experts don't tell you about. If you had it, you
can reproduce their results without breaking a sweat.
That secret weapon is a buyer list.
Most people think that a big mailing list is the
secret to wealth. It really isn't. What really counts
is the quality of the people on your list, and by that
I mean, do they buy when you send out an email?
If they don't, they're just sitting there. It wouldn't
matter if you had a million people on your list. No
buyers means no business.
So if you want to know the "secret" to making money
online, it's having a list of people who willingly
hand over money when you invite them to. It's never
been more complex than that.
What stands in the way of most people reaching that
goal is not knowing how to build a list of buyers. You
can cram a list full of subscribers, but then all you
have is a big list. Will they buy? Probably not, and
most marketers know that they get only about 1-2%
response when they send out an email.
That's not bad if your list is huge, but what if you
could send an email to a list of 2,500 people and get
10% of them to buy? That's 250 sales for you!
Now, which do you think is easier...getting 25,000
people on your list and hoping that one-percent buy so
you can get your 250 sales, or getting 2,500 buyers on
your list who buy like crazy whenever you email?
Surprisingly, getting those 2,500 buyers is actually
easier. And to tell the truth, most people with
massive lists don't even get 1-2% response when they
email. It's more like 0.05%. That means you'd have to
kill yourself to build a list of 500,000 people to get
those 250 sales. No, thanks.
Remember, quality counts more than quantity for most
things, certainly for mailing lists. If you'll focus
your efforts on getting buyers to join your list,
you'll be far better off. Pretty soon, you'll have
your own six-figure stories to tell.
send out a single email and make enough money to buy a
car?
It's a little silly when you think about it. Sounds
too good to be true. For most people, it is too good
to be true. But not when you have the "secret weapon"
those experts don't tell you about. If you had it, you
can reproduce their results without breaking a sweat.
That secret weapon is a buyer list.
Most people think that a big mailing list is the
secret to wealth. It really isn't. What really counts
is the quality of the people on your list, and by that
I mean, do they buy when you send out an email?
If they don't, they're just sitting there. It wouldn't
matter if you had a million people on your list. No
buyers means no business.
So if you want to know the "secret" to making money
online, it's having a list of people who willingly
hand over money when you invite them to. It's never
been more complex than that.
What stands in the way of most people reaching that
goal is not knowing how to build a list of buyers. You
can cram a list full of subscribers, but then all you
have is a big list. Will they buy? Probably not, and
most marketers know that they get only about 1-2%
response when they send out an email.
That's not bad if your list is huge, but what if you
could send an email to a list of 2,500 people and get
10% of them to buy? That's 250 sales for you!
Now, which do you think is easier...getting 25,000
people on your list and hoping that one-percent buy so
you can get your 250 sales, or getting 2,500 buyers on
your list who buy like crazy whenever you email?
Surprisingly, getting those 2,500 buyers is actually
easier. And to tell the truth, most people with
massive lists don't even get 1-2% response when they
email. It's more like 0.05%. That means you'd have to
kill yourself to build a list of 500,000 people to get
those 250 sales. No, thanks.
Remember, quality counts more than quantity for most
things, certainly for mailing lists. If you'll focus
your efforts on getting buyers to join your list,
you'll be far better off. Pretty soon, you'll have
your own six-figure stories to tell.
Wednesday, July 15, 2009
Downloading a Free Podcast
Its easy to find and download a free podcast. The best
way to find free podcasts is probably to check a podcast
directory. A podcast directory is a listing of many,
sometimes thousands of different podcasts. The podcast
directory will usually organize the podcasts by topic and
genre, making it easy to find the type of podcast that is
sought. In addition, podcast directories often allow the
visitors to comment on the podcasts listed, and provide
a list of the favorite podcasts on the site, making it easy
for users to find the best podcasts available. These
podcast directories can be used to browse through,
introducing users to many different podcasts they
otherwise would not have found.
Once a podcast has been found that interests the user, it
is necessary to download the free podcast. The vast
majority of podcasts will be free, but there will be a few
that may cost a small amount of money. The process to
subscribe to and download the podcasts is the same in
either case. First, a podcast client needs to be found and
installed. There are many free podast clients available,
all providing a slightly different user interface and range
of options. They come with many different names, such
as Podscape, or Nimiq, and searching for 'free podcast
client' or something like it will turn up many
possibilities. When the podcast client has been
installed, inputting the feed address will allow the
podcast to be downloaded. The podcast client will
check the address given for a small, machine readable
file called an RSS file. This file will contain
information about the podcasts, perhaps some text
about the individual episodes, as well as the location of
the episode file. Once the podcast client has been
located the file referred to in the RSS feed, it will be
downloaded and stored on the users computer until the
want to view it.
Sometimes, of course, access to a personal computer is
not available, but it is still necessary to check a certain
podcast. Fortunately, many podcast directories offer
built in podcast readers in the site. Not only do they
often show each recent episode that is available, they
may also offer a way to view or listen to those podcast
episodes from within the site. By using the viewer
contained within the site, it is no longer necessary to
even download the podcast episodes. However, the
ability to move and share the episodes after
downloading is one of the wonderful things about
podcasting. The files can be placed on almost and
media player, ranging from iPods to the new Play
Station Portable. This flexibility is one of the reasons
podcasts have succeeded, despite other technologies
like streaming music and video. The desire of
consumers to have control over technology cannot be
over estimated.
way to find free podcasts is probably to check a podcast
directory. A podcast directory is a listing of many,
sometimes thousands of different podcasts. The podcast
directory will usually organize the podcasts by topic and
genre, making it easy to find the type of podcast that is
sought. In addition, podcast directories often allow the
visitors to comment on the podcasts listed, and provide
a list of the favorite podcasts on the site, making it easy
for users to find the best podcasts available. These
podcast directories can be used to browse through,
introducing users to many different podcasts they
otherwise would not have found.
Once a podcast has been found that interests the user, it
is necessary to download the free podcast. The vast
majority of podcasts will be free, but there will be a few
that may cost a small amount of money. The process to
subscribe to and download the podcasts is the same in
either case. First, a podcast client needs to be found and
installed. There are many free podast clients available,
all providing a slightly different user interface and range
of options. They come with many different names, such
as Podscape, or Nimiq, and searching for 'free podcast
client' or something like it will turn up many
possibilities. When the podcast client has been
installed, inputting the feed address will allow the
podcast to be downloaded. The podcast client will
check the address given for a small, machine readable
file called an RSS file. This file will contain
information about the podcasts, perhaps some text
about the individual episodes, as well as the location of
the episode file. Once the podcast client has been
located the file referred to in the RSS feed, it will be
downloaded and stored on the users computer until the
want to view it.
Sometimes, of course, access to a personal computer is
not available, but it is still necessary to check a certain
podcast. Fortunately, many podcast directories offer
built in podcast readers in the site. Not only do they
often show each recent episode that is available, they
may also offer a way to view or listen to those podcast
episodes from within the site. By using the viewer
contained within the site, it is no longer necessary to
even download the podcast episodes. However, the
ability to move and share the episodes after
downloading is one of the wonderful things about
podcasting. The files can be placed on almost and
media player, ranging from iPods to the new Play
Station Portable. This flexibility is one of the reasons
podcasts have succeeded, despite other technologies
like streaming music and video. The desire of
consumers to have control over technology cannot be
over estimated.
Comedy Podcasts
Many podcasts are available to subscribe to and watch
in a variety of genres, and one of these is the comedy
podcast. Every small scale wannabe writer has a chance
to become a comedian through podcasting, since the
low entry cost allows people to start podcasting with
minimum effort and money. To find some of these
comedy podcasters, check a podcast directory. A
podcast directory is a listing of many, sometimes
several thousands, of podcasts submitted and divided
into categories. A podcast directory will probably have
a large number of comedy podcasts available to
subscribe to.
These comedy podcasts are usually created by a small
team of people who do the work in their free time, as a
hobby, not as a source of income. Because it is a hobby,
they're more willing to give the work away for free, for
nothing more than recognition, probably in the hopes
they can parlay that recognition into a more mainstream
job. Some more corporate groups also put together
comedy podcasts, however. The satirical comedy web
site TheOnion.com puts out a regular comedy podcast,
featuring readings from their fake news site.
Placing a comedy podcast on the Internet has several
advantages for the creators. They get to showcase their
work, easily distributing their art to many people. This
following is likely to be be unusually passionate,
following the artist with more enthusiasm than the
artist's average audience. The comedian has a chance to
be more open with the audience, engaging in a sort of
dialogue with them. The comedian broadcasts the files,
which enter the computer of the user, already a more
personal level than simply hearing the jokester on the
radio or on television. Compedy podcast subscribers
will often then write back to the podcaster, or leave
comments on the blog which often accompanies a
podcast site. This can give them a degree of input and
connection with the writers of the comedy podcast that
is far removed from other styles of comedy distribution.
The writers and producers of a comedy podcast thus
benefit from several advantages of the podcast form. It
is cheap and easy to set up, and uses a distribution
mechanism that is also easy to use. The way the podcast
form is designed, as well, creates greater connection
between the producer and the subscribers. The comedy
writer has a greater ability to interact with the
subscribers and to find out what they appreciate or do
not. Because podcasting is so simple to get involved in,
requiring only a small investment to get started, many
amateur comedy writers have begun starting their own
shows and distributing the feed. It is likely, because of
the unique connection podcasting offers between writer
and listener, that we will see at least some of these
amateur comedians make the leap to the professional
stage.
in a variety of genres, and one of these is the comedy
podcast. Every small scale wannabe writer has a chance
to become a comedian through podcasting, since the
low entry cost allows people to start podcasting with
minimum effort and money. To find some of these
comedy podcasters, check a podcast directory. A
podcast directory is a listing of many, sometimes
several thousands, of podcasts submitted and divided
into categories. A podcast directory will probably have
a large number of comedy podcasts available to
subscribe to.
These comedy podcasts are usually created by a small
team of people who do the work in their free time, as a
hobby, not as a source of income. Because it is a hobby,
they're more willing to give the work away for free, for
nothing more than recognition, probably in the hopes
they can parlay that recognition into a more mainstream
job. Some more corporate groups also put together
comedy podcasts, however. The satirical comedy web
site TheOnion.com puts out a regular comedy podcast,
featuring readings from their fake news site.
Placing a comedy podcast on the Internet has several
advantages for the creators. They get to showcase their
work, easily distributing their art to many people. This
following is likely to be be unusually passionate,
following the artist with more enthusiasm than the
artist's average audience. The comedian has a chance to
be more open with the audience, engaging in a sort of
dialogue with them. The comedian broadcasts the files,
which enter the computer of the user, already a more
personal level than simply hearing the jokester on the
radio or on television. Compedy podcast subscribers
will often then write back to the podcaster, or leave
comments on the blog which often accompanies a
podcast site. This can give them a degree of input and
connection with the writers of the comedy podcast that
is far removed from other styles of comedy distribution.
The writers and producers of a comedy podcast thus
benefit from several advantages of the podcast form. It
is cheap and easy to set up, and uses a distribution
mechanism that is also easy to use. The way the podcast
form is designed, as well, creates greater connection
between the producer and the subscribers. The comedy
writer has a greater ability to interact with the
subscribers and to find out what they appreciate or do
not. Because podcasting is so simple to get involved in,
requiring only a small investment to get started, many
amateur comedy writers have begun starting their own
shows and distributing the feed. It is likely, because of
the unique connection podcasting offers between writer
and listener, that we will see at least some of these
amateur comedians make the leap to the professional
stage.
Wednesday, July 8, 2009
Podcast RSS Feeds
A Podcast RSS feed is what allows the entire system to
function. To begin at the beginning, a podcast is a
regular distribution of audio or visual files, called
episodes, to a users podcast client. The people who use
a podcast are called subscribers, and the podcast client
is what allows them to subscribe to a feed. The podcast
client is a program that connects to the internet, looking
for a specific file the user has subscribed to, or told it to
look for. That file is an RSS feed, a machine readable
piece of coding that sends information back to the
podcast client. RSS feeds can be used to distribute
many kinds of information, and were originally used for
blogging and distributing blog posts to subscribers. As
time went on, however, a few people had the idea of
enclosing information about media files within the RSS
feed so that software could be written to find that
information and download the files described.
The Podcast RSS feeds became a hit, and podcast
clients were quickly written to allow people to use the
new encoding. Podcasting became a means of quickly
and cheaply sharing episodes with subscribers. Rather
than requiring subscribers to visit the site that hosted
the files everytime they wanted to know if a new
episode was released, users could rely on the podcast
client to do the work for them, keeping track of
numerous podcast rss feeds that interested them and
downloading the files to be viewed when they wished.
Podcast RSS feeds are now used to distribute a number
of different types of podcasts. Some producers use it as
way to share a comedy or news program that they
produce, others podcast in order to share music files
they create, and some podcast to share video files they
have created and to showcase their work. Podcasting
allows the producers to become radio or television stars
without the large investment in time and money that
wuld be required to do that. Because podcasting has
such a low entry cost, requiring little more than a server
and a domain to host the site and a way to record the
media, thousands of people who otherwise would not
have a chance to work in a media environment have a
chance to do so through their podcast rss feeds.
In this way, podcast RSS feeds allow media publishing
over the internet at a fraction of the cost of other forms
of media distribution, permitting people with much
smaller budgets to compete in some way. However,
podcast rss feeds are also attracting more established
companies and groups as well, bringing people from
NPR radio stations and news organizations like CNN
who use podcasting as yet another means to distribute
their product to end users.
function. To begin at the beginning, a podcast is a
regular distribution of audio or visual files, called
episodes, to a users podcast client. The people who use
a podcast are called subscribers, and the podcast client
is what allows them to subscribe to a feed. The podcast
client is a program that connects to the internet, looking
for a specific file the user has subscribed to, or told it to
look for. That file is an RSS feed, a machine readable
piece of coding that sends information back to the
podcast client. RSS feeds can be used to distribute
many kinds of information, and were originally used for
blogging and distributing blog posts to subscribers. As
time went on, however, a few people had the idea of
enclosing information about media files within the RSS
feed so that software could be written to find that
information and download the files described.
The Podcast RSS feeds became a hit, and podcast
clients were quickly written to allow people to use the
new encoding. Podcasting became a means of quickly
and cheaply sharing episodes with subscribers. Rather
than requiring subscribers to visit the site that hosted
the files everytime they wanted to know if a new
episode was released, users could rely on the podcast
client to do the work for them, keeping track of
numerous podcast rss feeds that interested them and
downloading the files to be viewed when they wished.
Podcast RSS feeds are now used to distribute a number
of different types of podcasts. Some producers use it as
way to share a comedy or news program that they
produce, others podcast in order to share music files
they create, and some podcast to share video files they
have created and to showcase their work. Podcasting
allows the producers to become radio or television stars
without the large investment in time and money that
wuld be required to do that. Because podcasting has
such a low entry cost, requiring little more than a server
and a domain to host the site and a way to record the
media, thousands of people who otherwise would not
have a chance to work in a media environment have a
chance to do so through their podcast rss feeds.
In this way, podcast RSS feeds allow media publishing
over the internet at a fraction of the cost of other forms
of media distribution, permitting people with much
smaller budgets to compete in some way. However,
podcast rss feeds are also attracting more established
companies and groups as well, bringing people from
NPR radio stations and news organizations like CNN
who use podcasting as yet another means to distribute
their product to end users.
Tuesday, July 7, 2009
What Is A Podcast?
The word “podcasting” is a portmanteau combining the words “broadcasting” and “iPod.” In case you have had your head in the sand recently or don’t keep up with popular technology an iPod is a portable music player produced by Apple Computers. Apple was lucky/smart enough that their brand was wrapped into a term for a new technology much like the Sony Walkman becoming the popular name for a portable radio/cassette player or inline skates being called “rollerblades”, which is brand name for a company that produced inline skates.
The most popular format of a podcast is MP3. An MP3 is a popular digital audio encoding and lossy compression format.
Ahh, right. Some of that definition is quite technical, but all you really need to know is that an MP3 is a popular audio file type for podcasts. There are other audio file types that are used for podcasting but in general as long as you have a music player on your computer you should be able to listen to a podcast file.
Podcasting is a form of audio broadcasting on the Internet. The reason it became linked with the iPod in name was because people download podcasts (audio shows) to listen to on their iPods. However you don’t have to listen to podcasts only on iPods; you can use your computer with some music software such as Windows built-in Media Player or my favourite player, Winamp, or other portable music players (iPod competitors) such as Creative Zen or iRiver. It really doesn’t matter, as long as you have some way to play music on your computer you will be able to listen to podcasts.
What Makes Podcasting Different?
When I first heard of podcasting I didn’t understand what made it different from simply searching and then downloading a music file and listening to it much like I had been doing for years with MP3 music tracks. I had a knowledge gap because I still didn’t understand RSS and content syndication. After playing with RSS feed readers (which you should know about if you followed my instructions and read my primer article about RSS before reading this article) I understood the difference between searching and downloading music files and subscribing to podcasts. It’s all about having the files come to you through syndication instead of you going to the files through search.
You subscribe to podcasts much like you subscribe to blogs. In fact often podcasts are distributed through a blog and provided your feed reading software handles podcasts you should be able to either instruct your reader to download new podcasts whenever they become available or manually choose which podcasts you want to download by clicking a link to the audio file. These files can then be listened to on your computer or you can transfer them to your portable player to listen to later. Some podcast feed reading software are configured to download and transfer the podcast directly to your portable player automatically so you can plug it in and walk away a few minutes later with your latest podcasts downloaded and ready to digest.
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