Tag: book marketing

 
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Three Rookie Summit Mistakes You’re Probably Making

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Three Powerful Tools That Make Hosting a Virtual Summit Easy

Ask any online event organizer or host what her biggest struggle is, and she’ll nearly always say it’s technology.

From not knowing what apps to use to not understanding how they work to fighting to connect them with each other, tech is the one thing that holds most people back from hosting an online event.

Even just a few years ago, this was a legitimate concern. Today, though, you have lots of options for every piece of the puzzle, including video recording, landing page creation, and content delivery.

Google Hangouts Make Recording Easy

You no longer need to invest in expensive systems such as GoToWebinar or Adobe Connect. Now all you need is a Google account and a web cam. With Google Hangouts, you can:

· Share screens and slideshows

· Record your interview

· Invite guests with just an email address (nothing for them to download and install)

· Automatically post to your YouTube channel

The biggest benefit, though, is that it’s free. And you just can’t beat that!

Landing Pages Come Together Quickly With LeadPages

Landing pages—even if you use a CMS system such as WordPress—are a pain to get right. Getting your opt-in box aligned properly and connected to your autoresponder is frustrating. Split testing is nearly impossible. And formatting? Unless you’re a CSS whiz (or you hire one) you’ll likely have trouble.

LeadPages has taken all the work out of landing page creation by providing an ever-growing library of proven, editable templates ideal for any type of event.

Protect Content With Wishlist Member

If you’ll be delivering replays, you don’t want them available to the public. You can protect content with a simple password set up on your site, but for a more professional look and feel, consider upgrading to a membership site. Wishlist is easy to use and configure, and will automatically create protected pages for your summit recordings.

If you’ve procrastinated hosting your own event because you didn’t think you could manage the tech, you can no longer use that excuse. These three tools together make it super easy to create, promote and host a virtual event. So what are you waiting for?

To start – fill in the The Complete Assessment for a free assessment

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Taming Technology: How to Easily Manage Your Coaching Business

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All About Product Funnels for Coaches

Do your clients move predictably from one product to the next, allowing you to accurately calculate your expected income from month to month? Or do you experience radical ups and downs, with some months high and others…well, pretty low?

If you’re not able to predict your income each and every month, chances are your funnel is out of whack—or maybe doesn’t even exist. Tighten your product and services funnel, and your business will grow on autopilot.

The Funnel Opening

Here is where all your potential clients first arrive on the scene. Perhaps she read your blog, received a forwarded email from a friend, attended a free webinar, or downloaded your opt-in incentive.

She’s not yet a paying customer, but she is getting to know you better. She’s learning whether or not your personality and style is a match for her, and whether or not she believes you can help her.

Your job for this potential client is to entice her to make a purchase.

Low-Cost Offers

Often called “tripwires,” these low-cost items are a way for your customers to take you for a test drive. No commitment, no risk, just an easy-to-consume eBook, self-study course, or other small purchase.

But don’t let her just buy and bolt! A well-planned funnel will include a related product as an upsell, too. She’s already in a buying mood, so make sure she sees what the next logical step is for her, and she might just pick that up as well!

Mid- and High-Range Offers

You see where this is going, right? A solid funnel moves smoothly from free to low-cost to high-end, with each step along the way being the very next thing your ideal client needs in her training arsenal.

For example, a great coaching funnel might include:

1. A free webinar

2. An eBook or small training program

3. A self-study course or membership

4. Group coaching

5. Private coaching

6. VIP coaching

Not all clients who enter your funnel at the top will make it all the way to your VIP coaching level, but you should build your funnel as if that’s what you expect to happen. As you increase the number of people who are active in your funnel, you can tweak your landing and sales pages to increase conversions and reduce the number of opt-outs you experience.

With analysis and attention, you’ll see a rise in the percentage of those who continue in your funnel all the way through to the end.

To start – fill in the The Complete Assessment for a free assessment

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Slide Secrets: How to Create Attention Grabbing Slide Presentations

If the very thought of PowerPoint makes your eyes glaze over, you’re not alone. The world is filled with incredibly boring presentations, and you’ve no doubt sat through your share of them.

Now that you’re preparing your own presentations, how can you ensure your audience doesn’t feel the same way? By creating engaging, fun slides that grab and hold their attention.

Bullet Point Poison

While you may want to outline—and yes—use bullet points in your notes, the last thing that should appear on your slides are bullets. They’re the hallmark of an amateur presenter, and should only be used as a last resort.

More Slides, Not Fewer

It’s a common mistake many new (and even experienced) presenters make: too few slides. As a general rule of thumb, plan at least one slide per minute, on average. So a 45 minute presentation should have 45 slides, give or take a few.

Fewer Words, More Images

You’ll often see presentations—particularly in the corporate world—that contain nothing but words. Some presenters even read right from their slides. Talk about boring!

Instead, mix up your slides to include words, images, screenshots, graphs and other visually appealing elements. Use images that match your personality and style. For example, one of the highlights of watching any presentation by Nicole Dean is her liberal use of dog images. Not only do they help to solidify her message, but they keep the viewer entertained as well.

Don’t Forget Branding

Like all of your web properties, you want to be sure your slides are clearly branded. Your site colors, logo, tagline, URL and other elements help to remind viewers of who you are and what your business is. Consider creating a PowerPoint theme that you can use for all your presentations.

Clearly State Your Offer

The last few minutes of any presentation are typically reserved for your offer, so don’t skimp out here. Be sure your offer is clearly presented on your final slides, including the URL, any discount or bonuses, and the deadline for claiming them.

Finally, take the time to study the slides of the presenters you truly enjoy. Chances are if you are attentive to their presentation, others are as well. Follow their lead when it comes to number of slides, types of images, and how the offer is presented, and you’ll soon be wowing your audience, too.

To start – fill in the The Complete Assessment for a free assessment

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Webinar Repurposing Strategies That Make Sense

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Webinar Magic: 3 Powerful Benefits Every Webinar Offers

Been on a webinar lately? I bet you have.

The fact is, webinars are one of today’s hottest marketing trends. Each and every week, you’ll find small business owners hosting webinars about book publishing, blogging, and even how to sell T-shirts online. No matter what your niche or industry, webinars are a great option for growing your market.

List Building

Perhaps the number one reason to host a webinar—especially if you partner with another business owner in a complementary niche—is to grow your list. Here’s why it works so well.

As a business owner with resources and information to share, you’re in demand, and there are plenty of others out there looking to partner with you. Find a colleague in a related niche to host your event. Ask her to mail her list with an offer to join you both on the call. Collect emails in your mailing list system. Any sales you make from the event will pay your partner an affiliate commission. That way you both win: You build your mailing list, and she earns cash for her time.

Show Off Your Expertise

You’ve no doubt heard plenty of people talking about the “know, like and trust factor.” It’s a simple reminder that very few people will buy from you the first time they encounter your website or get an email from you. They need more info.

A webinar is a fantastic way to build up their trust. Because they can hear your voice, and maybe even see your face, there’s an instant connection. Not only that, but you get to impress them with your knowledge of the topic. Your audience will walk away not only knowing you better, but also with the impression that you are the go-to person in your niche.

Sell to a Captive Audience

Here’s a fact you may not have considered: Webinar attendees are primed to buy. Make them an irresistible offer, and you’ll be amazed at how effective “selling from the stage” can be.

What’s irresistible? Try these proven tactics:

· Fast acting bonuses just for those who buy while on the call or shortly after it ends.

· Deep discounts available only for a limited time—typically if they buy before midnight of the day of the event.

Both plans have worked for thousands of webinar presenters, and will work for you, too.

Whether you’ve never hosted a webinar before, or you’re already an old hand, there’s little doubt that this is a tool that really performs. The amount of time you spend preparing and promoting is minor compared to the potential returns, so get out there and start planning your next webinar event!

To start – fill in the The Complete Assessment for a free assessment

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Top Tips for Hosting an Engaging Webinar

It’s true. No one wants to hear you drone on and on. But unless you take steps to keep your viewers engaged during your webinar, that’s exactly what you risk happening.

Top presenters have learned several tricks for keeping their viewers interested (and listening) even if the webinar seems to go on longer than they anticipated.

Hold Your Questions

If it seems like your viewers drop off the call just as you’re about to make an offer, you’re not imagining things. Many viewers attend for the training, with no thought to buy, and will leave the minute it’s clear the training is over.

You can curb that with one simple trick: hold the questions until after your offer. By breaking up the training with an offer in the middle, you’re more likely to hold your audience’s attention for the duration of the event.

Host a Contest

Much like holding questions until after the offer, the same effect can be had by hosting a contest in which the winner is not announced until the end of the webinar. Alternately, you could offer a prize to the first viewer to answer a question correctly—the question, of course, is based on the content of the webinar. This virtually ensures your viewers are paying attention.

Turn the Tables

Don’t let your viewers just sit and passively watch. Instead, get them talking.

Most webinar platforms have some kind of chat or question feature, so make use of it by chatting them up. At the beginning of the event, be sure to ask them to let you know if they can hear you and see your slides. Throughout the call, as you make a point or reveal a great tip, ask for their acknowledgment. Not only will this keep them interested and listening, but it will also help them learn how the chat function works, so when it’s time for Q & A they don’t have any trouble.

Tell a Story

Everyone loves a great story, and if you’ve got one, now is the time to tell it. Whether it’s the time you nearly got arrested in college, or how you had to eat peanut butter and jelly sandwiches for a month after your car died, if you can link your story to your webinar message, it’s a good candidate.

Just remember to practice telling it first, because if you’re not a natural-born story teller (many of us are not) then it can quickly backfire.

The last thing you want is for your webinar to be a boring, hour-long event that drives viewers away. It’s pretty depressing to watch the attendee number drop before you’re even halfway through your slides, but if you put these tips in play, you’ll have much happier—and attentive—webinar viewers.

To start – fill in the The Complete Assessment for a free assessment

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Webinar Timeline: A Proven Outline for Webinar Success

Does the thought of putting together a training webinar stop you cold? If you’re feeling overwhelmed at the possibilities, you’re not alone. Many small business owners freeze up at the prospect of creating an hour-long presentation.

The good news is, it’s not that difficult, if you have a plan to follow.

First 5 Minutes

Here’s where you’re going to introduce the subject matter. Tell your audience what they can expect to learn. Much like sales copy, it’s a good idea here to tease them a bit to get them excited about the subject matter.

Your Introduction

Next up, it’s all about you. Your listeners want to know who you are, how you gained your knowledge, and why you’re the one teaching the webinar. Don’t be afraid to get a bit personal here. Share pictures of your family vacation, you “working” on the beach, or anything else that will help created a connection.

Remember, we buy from people we know, like, and trust, and this is your audience’s chance to get to know you better. Plan to spend five to ten minutes on your introduction.

The Main Event

The next 30 minutes or so will be devoted to training. While 30 minutes might seem like a lot of time, when you’re teaching a complex subject it will go much faster than you can imagine.

Break up your training into three or five main points. Any more than that and you’ll run out of time. Remember that you should have approximately one slide per minute, and your slides should be short and punchy. A single word or image will speak volumes, and will help keep your audience attentive.

The Pitch

Most times, this is the reason for the webinar, so don’t skimp here. Plan to spend ten minutes or so selling. Share the benefits of your course or coaching or service (whatever you’re promoting), clearly explain any bonuses you’re offering, and emphasize any discounts the audience will receive for acting fast.

For most new—and even experienced—presenters, this is the most difficult portion of the webinar. You’ll want to be sure you practice it until you’re comfortable, preferably in front of a mirror or even a camera.

Q & A Time

Finally, you’ll want to offer your audience a chance to ask questions. It’s a good idea to hold this section until the end of the call (after the pitch), so your viewers don’t drop off before you have a chance to present your offer.

By breaking down your presentation into very specific chunks of time, it’s much less overwhelming to outline your webinar. Start by determining the approximate number of slides you’ll need, then block off the five webinar sections. Once you see that you really only need about 30 teaching slides, it’s suddenly much easier to fill that time.

To start – fill in the The Complete Assessment for a free assessment

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What Your Potential Clients Wish You Knew