Online Affiliate Marketing Program Checklist

Posted on November 28, 2011 by

By Michelle Pate, MA, MBA

Online affiliate programs are used by a company who sells its products and services online. You contract with affiliate marketing companies whose main purpose is to market and/or sell your company’s products and services. The affiliate marketers may have huge lists or niche markets they target, therefore, expanding your marketing and/or sales reach online. The affiliate marketers are paid a commission for selling your wares online.

Use this checklist within your company to help develop your strategic marketing program with affiliates. An affiliate program is usually very easy to develop if you write out a detailed plan.

Affiliate Marketing Program Checklist

  1. Determine your niche market
    1. Zero in on specific population and understand their needs
  2. Research your niche partners
    1. Determine top like-minded niche subjects
    2. Research businesses/websites that are engaged with your niche market
    3. Look for businesses that have developed traffic to their site
    4. Determine how businesses will benefit from your affiliate program
    5. Consider affiliate companies who specialize in selling products like yours
  3. Develop affiliate program offerings for:
    1. Selling products /services (give them full descriptions)
    2. Signing up customers for your newsletter (determine acceptable customers)
    3. Gathering viable leads (determine acceptable leads)
  4. Develop affiliate program incentives
  5. Give affiliate partners promotional materials for your company
    1. Goal is for easy and quick conversion – give them what they need
  6. Develop affiliate customer support plan
    1. Updates on your products/services
    2. Sales and marketing tips
    3. Help desk
    4. Tracking tools
    5. Commissions and pay out schedule
  7. Determine more niche subjects and businesses/websites to expand affiliate program
Posted in Internet Marketing, Marketing Communications, Marketing Strategy | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Promoting Yourself at Networking Events

Posted on October 21, 2011 by

By Michelle Pate, MA, MBA

People go to social events to have fun,  hopefully meet other fun and interesting people to talk with at the event, and possibly become friends in the future.

Most people bring their “persona” to the party, and because they are nervous or excited, they can interact with strangers in an more exaggerated manner than how they regularly interact with known associates.

For example, an introverted person will listen more than normal and an extrovert will talk more than usual. Someone who drinks regularly will drink more, and an anxious person will have more stomach problems and headaches. All in all, because of the nervousness or excitability a social event can provoke, people are not always on their most thoughtful and mindful behavior.

Though a networking event is social in nature, it is NOT a social event. Too many people mix this up. Going to a networking event is more like going to an interview. Treat a networking event as a possible interview. You might meet a potential employer and be pulled into a spontaneous interview. It happens. I have been there.

Your mantras: Be prepared. Be mindful. Be thoughtful.

To be effective, people need to look at networking events as more of a business meeting than a social event. Many people take these events seriously and are there to find a job or prospects for business. Don’t waste their time. Prepare yourself and put your best foot forward.

Radiate Confidence

I understand that the economy is tough and many people are discouraged about work, but when you go to networking events, you must put on your best game face. Dress up like you are going to an interview or out to a nice dinner. How you look is 90% of what people remember, over what you say. People will often forget what you said, but they will never forget how you made them feel. Make it matter.

Having performed on stage and in sports, I learned very quickly that you must put on a positive, happy and energetic face to the world, even when you don’t feel like it. Like we say in show business, “the show must go on”! Whether you just got laid off, your spouse left you, or you have been looking for a job for two years without success, you must present  a together and polished look when you go to a networking event.

For several years, I worked at a place where I had to put on my happiest public face. Every day right before I’d walk through those doors, I would take a deep breath, leave myself and my life problems at the door and take on my confident happy work alter ego. I smiled when I didn’t feel like it, and worked hard even when exhausted. Several times I got overwhelmed. I went into the back and cried. I got it out, dried my eyes, used a little Visine and put my makeup on all over again. I went out and smiled real hard at everyone and was pleasant. Nobody was the wiser.

It’s what we need to do sometimes in order to make it in life. There are some companies who will fire people who bring their problems to work, and you can lose contracts if you aren’t cheerful and helpful with your clients. Putting your best foot forward is sometimes all you have to make it to the next day. This is especially tough to do in these economic times because there are a LOT of people who are very negative and distressed about their current situation. But do whatever you can to keep a positive face to the world. It matters.

You must always be on your toes, because you don’t know if the next person you talk to is going to be your next contract or employer.

You are the CEO of your life, act like it.

Focus on Business

Several people at networking events talk about other subjects rather than business at hand. There is a limited amount of time to meet people, make it worth your while and theirs. Focus on what you are looking for in a job position or company and communicate it clearly to the people you talk to. Don’t ramble on about what you have been doing, or share the frustrating parts of your past, focus on what you are looking for and what you want to do next.

Reciprocate

If people don’t tell you what they are looking for, ask them how you can support them. Even if you don’t think they can help YOU, be interested in THEM and what they are looking for. This one exchange is worth a lot, because job seekers and business people encounter rejection most of the time. Just offering to be on the lookout for them will get their attention and have them remember you, thus creating a new connection.

This kind of reciprocation broadens your listening of the world at large. You might overhear someone looking for a supply chain manager, and you just met one at a networking event a week ago. Imagine if that person got the job because of you. You will have a friend for life. Not to mention good karma points. And… an inside connection to a company. Guess who will be calling you when a job opens at their company?

Put out good energy toward people. Be interested in them. Even if you don’t think they can provide YOU with anything, you never know who they know. If they LIKE you, they will be more inclined to help you in the future.

Be a Courteous Communicator

The mark of a strong business person is effective communication. People will want to continue a connection with you in the future if they feel listened to and respected. When you are at a networking event, your focus is on making connections. Even if you are in a different area of business or industry as the person who is talking, listen to what they are saying. They will more respond to what you are saying if you do.

Let other people finish their own sentences. It’s not polite to interrupt. I am still amazed at how many educated and experienced people still do this. Take your turn listening. You might learn something. Remember what your mom said? You have two ears and one mouth because it’s more important to listen than to talk.

Take turns talking. If you dominate the conversation, people will eventually lose interest and move on. No one likes to be talked at. No one likes to feel they are being used by you just to hear yourself talk. What sucks for you in this scenario, is most people are too polite to say anything, you will just find that they disappeared from your life.

Only give people advice if they ask you for it. Otherwise, ask them if you can give them a tip. It shows that you respect them and their expertise. Most of the time, they have already done what you want to tell them to do. Find out if they have tried what you are going to suggest. State it as a question, not a demand. Say “did you try this?” rather than “do this!” It’s just proper etiquette. These people are your PEERS, not your CHILDREN.

How many times have people given you advice for something when it wasn’t even what you needed at the moment? Didn’t that frustrate you and leave you feeling not cared about? If you listen and get to know someone for at least 15 minutes, they are much more likely to listen to any advice you are going to give them. You are then giving more informed advice. Chances are they have already tried what you are going to offer them anyway. And it either didn’t work for them, or they know that is the thing they need to do, but don’t WANT to.

Be Prepared

Have an elevator pitch ready. You will have about 30 seconds to tell people who you are, what kind of business you are proficient at, and what you are looking for. Make it count.

Also, tell people what you are looking for and what support you need. That tells them how they can help you. A good elevator pitch will make people want to know you. A bad one will have them look the other way. The point is to be quick, enthusiastic, and tell them who you are before you lose their attention.

I am always perplexed at why people would go to a networking event without business cards or have an outdated card from a company they don’t work with any longer.

It’s very easy to make your own cards. Visit an office supply store and buy clean edge business cards. A pack costs around $20, and has enough sheets to make 80 cards. They break apart along a clean edge and look very professional. You design them yourself from a template in Microsoft Word and print them out on your printer. You can also visit a print services center and they will help you design and print your cards. You get 250 basic cards for under $50. You can also email your Word document to the print center and they will print out your cards per your specs. You can get 500 cards for under $60.

Promote Your Online Portfolio

I am also amazed that so many job seekers and business people do not have their own website. The point of a website is to have you stand out from the crowd and to tell people more about you. Many people don’t create a website, because they feel uncomfortable with what they perceive as bragging about themselves. But in order to stand out in this economy, you must present yourself to others on a professional website. Companies are very impressed by people to take the initiative to put their careers out there online. It shows you have confidence and initiative. I have heard about people creating their own website, target marketing companies they want to work for, showcasing how their experience and education will benefit the company, and getting hired by the company to work at the very projects they desired.

You can very easily create your own website using a WordPress.com site. This website you are looking at right now was created using WordPress. This site is very easy to use and you can update all material yourself. You can tell the world about yourself, what you have done and what you want to do next. You can upload pictures and documents to your website to show projects you have completed in the past. Your home page is usually configured as a blog so you can update people on what you have been doing or write informational articles like the one here.

A WordPress site is free. You can have your site route to your own URL. All you need to do is buy a domain at a site like GoDaddy.com or WhoIs.com. You can usually buy a URL for $20 per year (or less). You can then have WordPress host your site for only $12 a year. If you want to spend the time learning web design more in depth, you can buy your own webhosting at Blue Host for only $6.95/mo (check for discounts), free domain included. Using Blue Host can be very economical if you decide to create alternative websites to showcase your business.

Make sure the graphics and colors on your business cards and website convey the same image. This is your branding and shows you are experienced in promoting yourself. Think about how you want to represent yourself, and go from there.

If you need help with the creation and writing of your website and business cards, contact me at michellepate@yahoo.com.

Don’t Get Drunk

This might seem like common sense, but many people don’t think properly when they are drinking alcohol. Often, the thought process goes, “One was good, so two must be better. Aw, heck, I’m having fun, so let’s have another.”

Dangerous!

Remember, a networking event is NOT the same as a social event or party. It involves putting your best foot forward as if you were going to a job interview. You wouldn’t have a few drinks right before a job interview, would you?

Drinking at events makes most people lose their ability to focus and keep the task on business. Some people unwittingly make fools of themselves while drinking without realizing it. Your executive brain is shut down, and your emotional brain is on loud speaker, so you might think you are making connections when you really aren’t. Drinking distorts your self image. You might think you are being the life of the party, but a person who is trying to get to know you might just get annoyed and is trying to find a way to get rid of you.

It’s very easy to get caught up in the moment in a social situation, but you need to know your limits and that alcohol affects your relations with others. Some people drink to calm their nerves in social situations, and other people drink too much when they are talking with others. It is so easy to have too many drinks socially without even thinking about it.

Remember, you are in a business meeting away from home. If you do drink, keep it to a drink or two. You also don’t want the terrible hassle of getting a DUI. A ticket of that nature takes several thousand dollars out of your pocket, and steals dozens of hours of your time. Plus, you can’t drive for a month after you get a DUI and you must drive completely sober for three years after. If you have even a .005 BAC within this time frame, you will be cited for another DUI and incur more hassles. All of this is unnecessary and gets in the way of your business anyway. So just say NO.

Follow Up

When you connect with people, make sure you get in contact with them a few days after the event to keep the conversation going. You can send them a short, friendly email or add them to your professional network on LinkedIn.

I hope this article has been a helpful reminder to be on our best business behavior at networking events, so we can all have a better experience while expanding our networks. You don’t want to waste your time, and you desire connections that will last far into the future. Put your best foot forward, and be prepared.

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How to Deliver an Effective Networking Event

Posted on October 21, 2011 by

By Michelle Pate, MA, MBA

When people go to events, they usually have expectations of how it will go. People go to networking events specifically to get leads for business. Unless their expectations are met, they are unlikely to attend the same event held by the same promoters again.

Having attended and hosted many events over the years, I understand the social arena very well. Most of us know that to hold an effective networking event, you have to mix a little business with a little psychology. You have to consider what people want, and give them what they came for.

Disappointment

I have yet to experience an event that was truly successful and effective in meeting people to do business with. With the exception of CEO Space, which is one of the best business networking organizations I have come into contact with, I usually leave disappointed not having enough time to make connections with the people present.

At a networking event, the coordinator usually delivers an exercise that give people a reason to interact with each other. People are directed to do an exercise, and that leaves them at the mercy of some very non-effective manners of business development. Several times, I have NOT done the exercise because I have found by experience what works and what does not. I find other people standing on the sidelines, not doing the exercise either. I meet my best prospects this way.

Event coordinators often tell me they have trouble coming up with effective ways for people to meet each other at our events. They might put together something that they think will connect people, but don’t know if it was effective or not.

Think like a Marketer. What are their needs?

To be effective, think about the people who are coming to your event. What do they need? What are they looking for? How can I best serve their needs? And most importantly, how can I get them to SUPPORT each other?

Event coordinators need to remember that their event is an extension of their company and its brand. If a person has a negative or neutral experience at a networking event, they are less likely to pay attention to anything the company does from that point on. People don’t have a lot of time to waste and most of us need to be guided to effectively meet people at a large event.

There are several exercises event coordinators use for people to meet each other, such as introducing themselves around a round table, talking to the person next to you and then introducing them to the group, playing a bingo game where participants get signatures based on trivial life matters, or sharing the list of things we want to do before we die.

These are all fun ways of getting to know people socially, but we need to consider what people come to a networking event to do = meet other people in hopes of getting prospects or finding a job.

Consider This.

In this spirit, consider this exercise as an effective way to have your networkers meet as many people as possible and learn what is important about each other on a business level in the least amount of time possible.

Consider that most networking events are three or less hours long, there is a limited time for people to meet each other. Most people want to meet the most amount of people during that time and get to know people better later.

Set up this effective exercise in the following manner.

  1. Explain to people how to do an elevator pitch. Most people already know how to do this, but as business changes, the pitch can always be changing as well. An elevator pitch is a short summary of who you are and why you are at the event. You want to state your company and title, what your background is, and what you are looking for. Tell people how they can support you. The reason this is called an elevator pitch is based on the premise that you can share who you are in a very short period of time, as long an elevator ride takes. If you are unemployed, state your previous experience and education first, and quickly go into what you are looking for. Painting a picture of your future and what you need to get there is the focus in this scenario.
  2. People group together with four other people and each group has a total of five minutes for everyone to deliver their elevator pitch. Make sure you keep your pitch to thirty seconds so everyone has time to share. It IS preferred that someone people to stop at 30 seconds. (Knowing how long 30 seconds is can be very important as you build your business.) Each person needs to speak succinctly and stay on task, so only share the most important parts.
  3. If someone mentioned an item that resonated with you during their pitch and
    you have a resource for them, write that on the back of your card. When everyone completes their elevator pitch, each person exchanges cards, mentioning quickly that you would like to support them. A connection is made and the person leading the exercise instructs people to move on to another group to meet more people.
  4. If 100 people show up at an event and we do this exercise 25 times during two hour’s time, then you will meet every person at the event. Even doing this event for an hour will get better results for the participants than using other networking activities. The biggest challenge in this exercise is for people to quickly get into a new group with people they do not know. If everyone pays attention to what is going on, this will work.
  5. During the last part of the evening, people can talk more with others they have connected with. Also, people will have more cards they can take home to stay in touch with those they met at the event or add their to their LinkedIn profiles and find out more about them.

Using a structured networking exercise that has attendees meet the most amount of people in the least amount of time is very helpful because it gives them practice delivering their elevator pitch to several different groups of people as well as allows them to meet the most amount of people in the least amount of time, giving them 99 new people to network with, instead the usual 10-15.

More connections means more possibilities, so… network on!

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PR Media Strategies 2.0

Posted on September 23, 2011 by

Calendar of EventsBy Michelle Pate, MA, MBA

When most public relations specialists write a media press release, their focus is on the content of the press release, not what happens to it once it goes out to the media outlets. Chances are your press release ends up sitting in a file on an editor’s email inbox, in a pile of other press releases on a desk, or worse yet in the recycling bin, aka: garbage can.

When you realize that a press release is simply sent out to the media to get their attention and possibly write about you; consider using other methods that more effectively showcase what is happening with your company.

There are effective public relations strategies your company can use to get your story out to the media. If your goal is to have your company written about or put on the air, the strategies here will likely give you more positive results than simply sending a press release.

The first strategy in this four-part series is the Calendar Listing.

Calendar Listing

Most newspapers have calendar sections that list local events. Using calendar listings to get your event noticed is more effective than simply sending the newspaper a press release because you have a much higher chance that the event is going to be seen.

Some newspapers have free listings and others will charge your company to add your event to their pages. To submit your event, look for the calendar of events on your newspaper’s web site. You can usually add the event to your newspaper’s online database. Other newspapers will have an email address listed to submit your event.

Write a simple paragraph about your event, including the topic, date(s), and artist’s/production’s name, and venue. Include who should attend, and if possible, a jpeg of the event and photographer’s name (for credit).

Some newspapers will immediately show your event online, but consider you for newspaper print later at their discretion. Your listing needs to be submitted several weeks in advance for print publication. Listings are printed on a space-available basis and are at the discretion of the editors. Check your newspaper’s guidelines to make sure you meet their standards and deadlines.

Call the newspaper after you submit your event to follow up. Some newspapers will only have online submissions or email for correspondence, so you should get email confirmation stating if they need more information or when you can expect your event to be published.

Submitting an event to your local newspaper’s calendar is an effective way to publicize your event at a low to free cost. This is a main way that some businesses grow their customer base.

Your listing might also catch the eye of a reporter who will write a feature about your business.

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The Life of A Marketing Executive

Posted on September 12, 2011 by

By Michelle Pate, MA, MBA

Consider the life of a marketing executive: rising at 5am to write weekly, monthly, and quarterly reports, strategic plans and analyzing sales reports before even going into the office.

7:30am starts a hectic day of meeting with other executives and staff to prepare for interviews, presentations, and plans for the staff to carry through to fruition. Lunch is usually eaten on-the-go in meetings, and the afternoon is spent in more meetings determining the best avenue to present a company’s product and service to the public.

Every day is evaluated against the big picture and it is often a race against the clock to excite customers into buying products while balancing revenues against costs and profit margins.

Deep immersion into the marketing field

A marketing executive is fully immersed into the company’s products and services, historicial and potential markets, media costs and response, and budgeting issues. They are responsible for a team of talented workers whose job is to create a bridge between their company and the publics they sell to. Each product may have a different sales campaign and reach into the customer base. Keeping up on each program is a challenging task to say the least. But its exciting to juggle well and stimulate the market.

Marketing executives have deep understanding of the advertising medias, such as internet, SEO, social media, radio, TV, phone and mail campaigns, and promotional and community events. They need to be able to think linearly with project timelines and sales pipelines, while also understanding the psychology of buyers, and additionally being visually and energetically creative in advertising effectively to the public. By visually, I mean knowing what types of ads attract customers, and energetically, knowing human decision-making well enough to know how to reach them.

Knowledge plus instinct

Knowing when to focus on a product’s benefits, a competitor’s flaws, or educating people of their needs for your product is a necessary component of working in the marketing department. The biggest challenge is determining how to best use each advertising media venue to the company’s best advantage and the greatest satisfaction lies in creating campaigns that make higher sales and profits for the company.

A marketing executive needs a good staff around him/her because much time is spent on analyzing demographics, regional sales figures, and the competitive markets. Both common sense and creative out-of-the box thinking are valuable traits in the marketing field. A good marketing executive will be able to step into the shoes of the customer and see how they would approach buying a product and service, then work backward to develop the appropriate marketing and sales programs.

Needed: An Excellent Team

Marketing executives work closely with public relations, marketing communication, sales, product managers, developers, advertisers, and production managers to ensure a product’s successful promotion.

Marketing executives cannot be “maternal” about their products and programs, they need to often let go and let others make decisions to push a promotion through. Often, time is not on our side and we need to let others make important decisions, and we still take responsibility for the decisions they make. This can often be stressful, but if a marketing executive has spent considerable time creating and nurturing a competent and effective marketing team, the executive will be assured of a positive outcome of team work that they will be proud of. They need not only have confidence in their own abilities but in determining the abilities and chosing teams who can think on their feet, collaborate well with others, who can be both analytical and creative, and pay close attention to ROI.

After all, the marketing department needs to continually stay aware that a company considers this department “overhead”, so they need to be able to continually justify their contribution to the bottom line. With an excellent team, rich with knowledge, good writing skills, imagination, and synergy, this should be a fulfilling journey.

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Personal Vision and Mission Statements for Business Leaders

Posted on September 9, 2011 by

By Michelle Pate, MA, MBA

We have all heard of vision and mission statements for companies, yet it is equally important for each company member to create a personal vision and mission statement for their own unique role within their company. When each person operates from their personal statement, it makes the act of creating the company vision and mission statements much more powerful. Each person knows where they stand within the company and what their unique contribution is to the company’s operations and growth.

Check out Module one of my Strategy Seminar by clicking the link below. Positively impact your bottom line today.

Personal Mission and Vision Statements for Business Leaders

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Down-to-Earth SEO Definitions

Posted on September 7, 2011 by

By Michelle Pate, MA, MBA

SEO is complicated enough for those of us who have studied computer technologies, so I can only imagine the impossible maze of the uninitiated in trying to figure it out . Learning a few terms will help you understand the SEO landscape better.

These easy-to-understand definitions will help you decipher your SEO consultant’s jargon and get your company more customers from the Internet.

Search Engine – Designed to help people find information on the Internet. The search results are called “hits” and are shown in a listing on your browser. The most popular search engines are Google, Yahoo, and Bing.

Search Engine Marketing (SEM) – Internet marketing strategy that seeks to increase your website’s visibility in Search Engine Result Pages through paid advertisements, organic search results, and social media.

SERP = Search Engine Result Pages

Search Engine Optimization (SEO) - The non-paid process of improving the visibility of your website in a search engine’s results. The goal is to get your webpage in the top 5 in the search results so more people will find and visit your website. With SEO you can also search through image, local, video, news and industry search engines.

Organic Search Results - Non-paid results from search engines that show up because of their relevance to your search terms.

Non-organic Search Results – Paid advertisements that show up at the top or right side of the search results page.

Pay Per Click (PPC) – Internet advertising (usually through an affiliate) that directs traffic to websites, paying the affiliate when the advertisement is clicked. Advertisers bid for keyword phrases they believe people will use when searching for their product/service.

Among PPC providers, the three largest are Google AdWords, Yahoo Search Marketing, and Microsoft adCenter.

Cost Per Mille [Latin for Thousand] (CPM) or Cost Per Impression (CPI) - An advertising pricing structure based on what it costs to show the advertisement to one thousand viewers online. This technique is mostly used with web banners and text links.

If a website sells banner ads for a $20 CPM, that means it costs $20 to show the banner on 1000 page views.

Algorithm - A data-processing/calculation method (aka: computer program) that instructs the search engine to find the information you are looking for.

Backlink – Incoming links to a website from other web pages, directories, websites, or top level domains. The number of backlinks shows the popularity of your website. Search engines use the number of backlinks that your website has as a very important factor in determining your website’s search engine ranking.

To create more backlinks, you need to participate in the online community. You can write and submit articles, post on forums, and make comments on blogs in your niche. Internet directories also provide backlinks. Social media also provides a lot of backlinks and a company will show up higher on a search engine if you participate with Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and other social media sites.

Be careful to not spam anyone. If you create too many backlinks in a day, the search engines will penalize you. This is a very time consuming activity, so consider hiring a reputable SEO company to help you create your backlinks for you. Companies such as seolace.com have excellent programs to create relevant backlinks that will boost your search engine ranking.

WebCrawler - A computer program that browses the internet in search of new information. Search engines use Webcrawlers to gather updated content from websites. The Webcrawlers will make a copy of visited pages for later processing by a search engine that will index the pages to provide fast searches. The website needs to have key words placed in the content because Webcrawlers will index these words for key word searches by visitors. A Webcrawler is also called Spider, Ant, Bot, Robot, Automatic indexers, and Scutters…

Search Engine Indexing – The process of search engines finding web page data on the Internet. Search engine indexing collects, breaks down, and stores data to facilitate fast and accurate information retrieval through key word searches. A Webcrawler or bot will index data from a website.

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