I was in the second hangout and there was a lot of great info discussed so I wanted to share it with you.

You can join us in Toronto next month through this link: Exposure and Profit

The smart people featured in the video are all attending Exposure and Profit and are Advisors and Speakers.

They include:

• Alice Seba
• David Perdew
• Justin Popovic
• Ronnie Nijmeh
• Dan Morris
• Derrall Eves

The only speaker who wasn't able to make it on this call was Connie Ragen Green. She was on the call the day before, though, so she wasn't slacking or anything.

I hope you enjoy the discussion. I did!

Warmly,
Nicole Dean

PS. If you enjoyed that and want to learn lots more about content marketing and also get a big hug from me, be at  Exposure & Profit, Toronto, Canada – Click here for Details.

This week I asked our panel of experts a question that I have been contemplating the last few weeks…

“I'm in the process of rebranding a branch of my company.

When you are trying to stand out, what things do you take
into consideration?”

I love that some of the responses are about rebranding a company and others are about rebranding yourself (which I may get further into in an upcoming post as I find it fascinating and know a lot of people struggle with this).

Here are the awesome responses from my smart friends.

Kevin Riley of  Maximum E-Mail Marketing Profits In 2013 says:

I've actually been working on the branding for my new Japan-only publishing/education business, so this is great timing.

One thing that's vital when considering how you can stand out is asking yourself, “What can I offer my customers that is better than what the existing competition is offering? How can I be better than them? What benefit can I provide?” Because, that's what makes you stand out – offering something that is of benefit to the customer. And, the branding must convey that benefit – make sure your potential customers can see right away how you will benefit them.

Since my new business will be providing educational materials to a Japanese market that has very little spare time, I had to consider how I could provide them the education they needed without taking up their precious time. After much research and planning, I designed a course outline that would allow them to study in small increments during downtime – such as while commuting on the train. My branding reflects this in its name and in our tagline/USP. Within seconds, my branding conveys that this will be quick, that it can be done during these small packets of free time, and that they will see improvement.

So, I highly recommend that you first consider well how you can deliver maximum benefit to your customers – help them improve, help them attain something, do it easily, do it quickly, etc.

You can learn about email marketing from
Kevin here ->  Maximum E-Mail Marketing Profits In 2013

Lou Bortone of Video in a Day says:

It's tough to come up with one, particular strategy to stand out when re-branding or developing your brand, because branding is really the sum total of all your marketing efforts.

To build a strong brand, you have to be consistent – maybe even relentless – with your messaging. Your branding is made up of every communication and every “touch” with your target market – whether it's your website, e-mail marketing, videos, articles, blog posts, social media… the whole enchilada! Think of every video you create, every Facebook post, and every ezine you put out as the building blocks of your brand.

Your brand is the big picture made up of all the tiny snapshots.

Want to learn about adding video in your business?
Lou's your man. -> Video in a Day

Karon Thackston of Step-by-Step Copywriting Course says:

I love to refer to Sally Hogshead's book “Fascinate: Your 7 Triggers to Persuasion and Captivation” which goes into some very cool ways to brand a company.

The things I take into consideration are:

1) What the new brand is about. What am I now offering/doing differently that will impact my target customers in a positive way?

2) How can I effectively and clearly communicate this brand so that my target customers immediately see the value for them?

3) How can I promote the new brand? I use the new brand as my ruler to measure all promotional decisions against. When writing articles, website copy, doing social posts, creating logos, deciding on colors… everything must fall in line with the new brand messaging so I am consistent and don't confuse my customers.

4) Comfort. I take a note from major brands who use phrasing like “Same you love. Great new packaging” (or whatnot). That way previous customers/followers don't think you've ditched them. (Unless you have completely jumped ship and are doing something radically new – lol.)

I think the transition from old brand to new brand is a vital as what the new brand offers. If people get confused or frustrated over the transition, they'll leave. Not a good thing

When you think Copywriting, you think of Karon.
Check out her Step-by-Step Copywriting Course if you want to ramp up your skills.

Tiffany Dow of Ghostwriting Cash says:

The best advice I have for this is to be 100% yourself. There is nobody else like you, and the biggest problem we have as marketers is that we don’t just learn techniques and strategies – we try emulating the most successful people.

But consumers don’t want that. They don’t want two Nicole Deans because they already have a Nicole Dean. They want a Rachel Rofe and a Vera Raposo and a Kelly McCausey – and yes, even a blunt, sometimes annoying Tiffany Dow.

When you remove the fear most people have to be totally at ease with who they are and what they believe in and want to project, then you automatically begin to stand apart from the crowd.

I never actively seek out to see what someone else is doing when it comes to branding. But here are two things I do consider:

1. How can I create a branding campaign that accurately and clearly defines what this business or product is about?

Too many people launch something online with a vague message – or worse, no message at all. You might land on a blog that talks equally about making money, raising their dog, and what food they ate last night – in addition to a political rant.

When you don’t tie everything in, or have a primary focus for the content, it leaves your reader confused.

2. What do my readers want to know about my brand or product?

There are some things that are important – and some things that aren’t. If it’s a health product, then the person’s education and experience in health might be important. If it’s making money, then that person’s own success would play a big role. If it’s a relationship product, then I may want to know if you’ve been married and divorced a dozen times.

I try to create a branding message that fits the audience it needs to find, as well as weeds out my non-audience.

For example, with my Ghostwriting Cash product, I have a whole section on who is NOT right for that product. Why? Well first, I hate to see people waste money on things that won’t work for them. Second, I don’t like seeing refunds, so I want to repel my non audience and embrace those who are right for my brand and products.

Branding is a very intimidating thing when you have the poorly guided intention of trying to cater to everyone and make sure everyone’s pleased with you. As soon as you realize that you can segregate the audience into those who will benefit from you and those who won’t, it helps you create a VERY strong message that improves loyalty and conversions.

Tiffany has been a ghostwriter for years, writing for the Who's Who of Internet Marketing.

Learn her mad skills here -> Ghostwriting Cash

Ronnie Nijmeh of PLR.me (< -click for a special free offer from Ronnie) says:

The only thing I can add is about the logo.

Create a logo that can be used anywhere – print, on white backgrounds, on dark backgrounds, big, and small. So if you're planning on printing the logo on a black t-shirt, it'll look just as good (and consistent!) as a logo on the website, or the little favicon that people see beside the URL!)

Ronnie makes beautiful PLR that can brand you as a professional, fast.

Check out his free gift here -> Free PLR from Ronnie

Vera Raposo of The Creative Entrepreneurs Biz Planner says:

When you're thinking about rebranding anything inside your company it's important to realize that it's more than just about changing a logo graphic.

The first question you should ask is, “What do people already know this part of my company for?”

Did you know that your brand is more about what people think about you and your company more than what you think it is?

If I were to be re-branding my company I would look at these items very closely.

1) Is the name well known? If so, then maybe you want to keep this or put a spin on it. If you completely change the name then you risk people not remembering it.

2) Do what feels RIGHT to you. Most brand experts will tell you to never completely change the name, but I'm a bit of a wild card — I have the true heart of an entrepreneur that doesn't always listen to the advice of “branding experts.” I think if it feels right, then jump and do it. The reason why is because you will put more effort into it AND your vision will grow.

3) If you choose to do #2 then make sure you put HUGE effort into letting your customers know. This is very important, you don't want to confuse people, remember your brand is what they THINK about YOU and your company, not what you think.

4) If your brand has been in the marketplace for many years I would caution a complete turn around and think more about putting a twist on it instead.

I'd like to share with you some tips on a course that I co-wrote a few years back on branding your business.

Your Logo – this must have an emotional impact on your customers, they need to “feel” what it's like to work with you. Creating a logo right off a word processor is not the way to go. Create something lovely, memorable and something that will impact them.

Brand Image – Overall, your brand image is the visual aspect of your brand. Your brand image should be consistent with what tone you are representing. It should reflect the style and attitude of the company.

Brand Values – Sit down and really flesh out what your values are. What is the attitude of the people that work within your company? How are they serving your customers and do they TRULY reflect the core values that you have set in place?

Here's the thing, when rebranding do what YOU feel is right but at the same time, get feedback from your customers. They are the ones who know the value of your brand and will either sing your praises or kick you to the curb. Keep a pulse on what they love about you, your products and your company, this is the most important person in your branding decisions.

Vera created a beautiful planner for entrepreneurs to journal and plan for success.

Check it out here -> The Creative Entrepreneurs Biz Planner

Kelly McCausey of Solo Smarts Podcast says:

I had been hosting Work at Home Moms Talk Radio since November of 2003. Up to around six months ago, I thought I’d be hosting it forever. I’m a bit naive that way, I like to think that good things will stay the same. I realized though, that good things need to change sometimes – especially when I’ve changed myself.

My son grew up and moved out in 2009 and at first I didn’t feel any different about the Work at Home Mom brand – but soon I was.

It is important to me to be genuine. For more than seven years I had voiced the joys and tribulations of being a work at home mom.

Not having had to plan my day around my son in so long, was I starting to come off like a fraud to my listeners? Nobody said so, but the thought was in my head and I decided to make a change.

I needed to establish a new brand, one that suited me.

Thinking about who I am and who I best relate to, I decided to go with a ‘solopreneur’ target market. Solopreneurs are building awesome businesses by the sweat of their brow and the skills they’ve developed.

Interestingly enough, when I announced my change, many work at home moms pointed out that they are solopreneurs too. True!

Need Focus?

Check out The Power of a Focused Business

Susanne Myers of  Daily Affiliate Tasks says:

I did a good bit of rebranding when I first took over HillbillyHousewife.com.

While I kept the name of the site, the look and feel of it changed quite a bit. I turned it from a static black and white site that was hardly ever changed to an interactive online community with fresh content added daily, monetized by advertizing and eventually added my own paid products to the mix as well.

It was a pretty big change but went over really well. Yes, there were a few complaints here and there (there always are), but overall the feedback was very positive. I think the rebranding went over well because:

1) I was very open and upfront about what I was doing and why.

2) I kept pointing out the benefits to my readers. The focus was on what was in it for them, instead of me.

3) I changed things gradually. I didn’t implement every single new thing at once, instead I slowly added them over the course of a year.

4) I asked for reader feedback and incorporated as much of it as possible. For example, my readers were asking for a weekly newsletter. I’ve been running that successfully for years. It helps me grow my list and readers enjoy each edition.

Those are my biggest take-aways from my own re-branding experience.

Are you an Affiliate Marketer?

Check out Susanne's Daily Affiliate Tasks program for a plan of what to do every day.

Nicole Dean of .. here! .. says:

As I mentioned in the question, I have been in the process of rebranding one part of my business.

EasyCoachingTools.com is our old site.

While I felt that it had a very clear brand, it wasn't really a “7-figure” type of site. The name doesn't scream Amazon.com or Coke or Burger King or even Monster.com. You know what I mean?

Yes, it's clear. But not something totally memorable and exciting.

So my business partner, Melissa Ingold, and I went back to the drawing board.

The new site is still being tweaked but here's what we have as of today…

((drumroll please))

Introducing CoachGlue.com.

It's cute. And, we think it's pretty memorable, especially with the tagline “We make your clients stick to you” – although now that I look at it, I think we should make that “Tools, Templates, and Training to Make your Clients Stick to You”. It's clearer.

So, what do you think?

Also, please let me know what your biggest questions are about branding in the comments below. I can ask the group and other friends for their input.

Best of luck.
Nicole

Big Favor – If you love Expert Briefs, be sure to check out my smart friends.

The more peeps I send their way, the more I can get them to contribute.  Here are the links again in the order that I received their responses.

• Maximum E-Mail Marketing Profits In 2013
• Video in a Day
• Step-by-Step Copywriting Course
• Ghostwriting Cash
• PLR.me
• The Creative Entrepreneurs Biz Planner
• The Power of a Focused Business
• Daily Affiliate Tasks

This week I asked our panel of experts …

“What's a typical work/week day like in your home? (As typical as it can get, that is.)

Include a schedule for a snapshot into one day, if you would like.”

I think you'll find the answers interesting.

Rachel Rofe of Time Management Tricks sent in a video:

You can see her referenced blog post here: 7 Tips To Make Working From Cafes More Productive and A Lot Of Fun!

And, be sure to check out Time Management Tricks, too.

Kristen Eckstein of Self Publish on Demand says:

Funny you should ask! My “typical” work week went out the window when my hubby lost his job a few months ago and joined our business full-time. There's been no shortage of work, but our schedules have been quite erratic as we've juggled working together, moving offices, who does what when and how, and so on. He likes a rigid structure (“From 9am-2pm I do xyz”) and I like more of a fly-by-the-seat-of-my-pants schedule (“Ooo shiny email! Must go handle…”). The fact is I need more structure in order to focus and get projects done, and he needs more flexibility to avoid getting stressed out and take time to spontaneously go for a walk or catch a movie in the middle of the day without guilt. To me, working from home is all about flexibility!

It hasn't been easy, and there have been several moments of overwhelm. However, we've slowly figured out what works, what times of the day should be devoted to what activities, and over the past two weeks I worked with my kickin' awesome life coach Therese Sparby to design a work schedule that meshes well with my hubby's, but still allows me the freedom I crave (see photo).

What I have found that works well for me is to batch my time. For example, I was able to Write a Non-Fiction Book in 3 1/2 Days because I had those days completely dedicated to my project and I was able to focus. Now I've applied the same principle to my entire schedule. Because my work relies heavily on communication and I need to check email several times a day, instead of just having my email up all day and checking it because it's there I now have “red” zone times where I work on things like sending author proofs, communicating, writing articles and blog posts, business marketing and networking, etc. I discovered those are activities I need to do every day, several times a day, but not necessarily all day (except Mondays).

An amazing thing happened when I implemented this schedule five days ago. The first day I got caught up on a lot of work. The second day I got to a task I'd been putting off for seven months. The third day I got everything crossed off my list, plus three more tasks from the next day's list! The fourth day everything was “done” by 2:30pm and I allowed myself time for fun and to dabble with a new project. And today, day five? I caught up on email, will work a little more on the new project, and this afternoon I'm skipping out early and going to a movie.

Here in a nutshell are things that have worked for me with this new schedule:

• I have a life coach. No one should have to do life alone. I was getting in my own way and literally pounding my head on the desk out of guilt and frustration for not getting things done. I lacked focus and was continuously stressed out. My type of schedule won't work for everyone. My life coach made a scheduling recommendation that I was then able to adapt to come up with something that totally works for me. For the first time in my life I feel like I can relax without feeling like I “should” be doing something!
• I batch my time. As you can see from my pretty color-coded schedule, parts of each day are divided for different activities. I crave variety, so my batches allow for flexibility. See those striped areas? While yellow times are reserved for coaching clients, if I don't have any coaching clients I do something in the striped color category.
• I allow myself plenty of morning and evening time. While my “office” time typically starts at 10am or sometimes later, my mornings give me the flexibility to hit the gym, make smoothies, get started on work early or sleep in. My evenings give me permission to stop working, but I still have fun playing on projects because I'm energized to do so.
• I don't over book myself. I highly recommend that while scheduling your tasks you only schedule one bigger project to work on each day and reserve the rest of your tasks for little things. If you get that one big thing done first (priority), even if you didn't get to half the little tasks you'll feel like you had a productive day. I also only reserve two days a week for coaching clients and appointments. What I've found is the days I've reserved for meetings are the natural days most people have chosen on my calendar anyway, so it won't be a big deal if people only have those two days to choose from. This also frees up the rest of my week for interviews, webinars and JV calls. If someone can't make one of my pre-scheduled appointment slots, I'm willing to still work with them, but I've found usually they can find a time that works for them even if it's on a typical lunch break.

I'm super excited to see where this new schedule will lead. Some people have thought I'm super productive before, and all I can say is watch out, now I'm focused! I encourage you to play around with various types of schedules until you come up with one that works for you!

Connie Ragen Green of Affiliate Marketing Case Studies says:

I like to say that every day is a Thursday for me now. I used to say every day was Saturday, but Saturdays can be very busy with running errands and catching up with things that didn’t get done during the week. Thursdays are more quiet and peaceful, and that's more of my typical day these days.

My typical day varies, depending on if I am at my home in Santa Clarita, California, or in Santa Barbara, or if I am away at an event or on vacation. What does not change is the fact that I love to start writing as soon as I get up, and I typically write for an hour or so before doing anything else.

If I’m in Santa Clarita, I get up by six because I have lots of little dogs who get up early and want to go outside. They go out, get a drink of water, and then go back to sleep, allowing me to start my writing. By nine or ten I’m ready to go to one of the charities I’m involved in to volunteer on one of their projects. Right now we have a project for the returning veterans and their families that I am enjoying very much.

In Santa Barbara I go for a walk when I arise, which is usually around seven or eight. I live near the Mission, and love walking through the rose gardens and around the magnificent surroundings to start my day. Then I go home and write for an hour before heading down to the beach to sit down with a book and listen to the ocean waves crashing gently to the shore. Later in the day I go to one of our Farmer's Markets to pick up some healthy foods. Some days I volunteer at the homeless shelter or at the library.

Having the time to write, go for long walks, spend time with my dogs, be an active volunteer, and do many other things I enjoy any time I want to is a true gift. Having an online business makes this all possible.

Kelly McCausey of Solo Smarts Podcast says:

Just saying ‘typical work week' gives me a shudder. I like variety and love to keep things from getting too predictable. Still, I have clients who depend on me so a schedule is a must.

I'm up for the day around 7:30 to 8:00am. When I'm home, I'm a one cup of coffee (no breakfast) gal and enjoy it with my devotional reading and some soft music. After that I check email, buzz Facebook and hit the forum at Solo Masterminds.

Mondays, Wednesdays and Thursdays I do phone time. Phone time includes my coaching clients and podcast interviews. I use TimeTrade.com to make appointments on varying lengths available on those days between 9:00am and 3:00pm Eastern. I also have a three hour window on Thursday nights for clients with day jobs.

I schedule any personal appointments to fall on Tuesday if possible because I consider it my ‘off day'. I meet my stepdad for breakfast or lunch, do my shopping and use the empty hours on my schedule to plan and tackle miscellaneous small projects. Fridays are left open as a project day, some time set aside for clients, some for me.

I often take a long nap in the late afternoon, a couple of hours somewhere between 3 and 7pm. That sounds just awful to most people but it fits into my rhythm. I wake up totally refreshed and full of mental energy. If I don't have plans elsewhere, I work from 8:00pm til whenever, at last as midnight or 1:00am. A few nights a week I take a break to go to the gym.

Weekends are up to me. I'll confess I've been working through them a lot lately. Big goals and back to back projects require the extra time and I'm OK with it for a season. Overall, I'm not working as hard as most people think. I take breaks, walk away, run for a meal date with my Kindle – or my son or my sis. If I ever paint myself into a schedule that doesn't allow for that, I'm likely to just drop kick it and take the break anyways. (That's the advantage of being a solopreneur – you get to decide!)

Tiffany Dow of Ghostwriting Cash says:

Part of what I love about this career is that it does allow me to have an atypical word day or week. If I need to shelve work for my daughter’s play, I can. If life happens and I can’t focus for 2-3 days, it’s okay. But I do have some common days where I kind of keep to a schedule, so I’ll share that with you.

I work seven days a week – except when I don’t want to. When you do what you love, you crave it and you just have to check in on it. Some weeks I work more than others, depending on projects and external factors.

On a typical weekday, I wake up around 5:30 AM and while having coffee, I go through my Chrome tabs. I start opening tabs to go through various folders. I start with my main blog, and in between other tasks, I’m approving and responding to comments that came in overnight.

Then I move on to my Money folder where I go through PayPal, ClickBank, and all of my various money sources to see how they performed while I was sleeping. I then check email, Facebook, Twitter, Squidoo, Forums, traffic stats, and I let myself get all riled about while visiting news websites.

While doing all of these, I’m up and down – making lunches, waking my kids up for the third time, making sure they’re all packed up, dressed right and in a good mood.

After that (around 7:15 AM) I do carpool – a 1 hour trek to and from my kids’ school. When I get back, I take out an old fashioned spiral notebook and jot down my to do list for the day. It usually includes things like:

• Continue or Start a Product Implementation Review
• Work on a New PLR Pack for PLR Mini Mart
• Work on New Product as eCourse or Kindle
• Do Some Tangible Affiliate Marketing Research
• Ghostwriting (like I teach in Ghostwriting Cash)

I then decide what needs to be outsourced (like having content written for a lens or my affiliate sites) and get started working on each item. I eat lunch sometime during the day while working or I sometimes stop to eat while catching up on Tivo.

At 2:30 PM I leave for pickup at school and return home around 4 PM. I work (while making sure homework gets done and stopping to chat with my kids about their day) until around 6:30 PM, when I make dinner.

I work right up until bed, but in between work, I spend time with my kids and relax a little in a nice scalding hot bath. Bedtime is anywhere from 8:30-10 PM, depending on whether or not I’m running on fumes at that point. All day long I check in on email or it becomes a beast.

Now there’s a big difference between the schedule you just read above and the one I used to have when I was a ghostwriter for others. When I only did service providing, I wasn’t fulfilled, so I couldn’t wait to call it a day. Now, I can’t wait to wake up tomorrow so I can see how my business is building, how I’m helping people, and discovering new levels of growth I can pursue.

I never feel overworked anymore. I might get tired, but it’s usually from external factors in my life – not from the work itself. I have tried many variations, like quit working at noon, only work 5 days a week, etc. But none of those ever satisfied me like the flexible one I have now where I work when I can and don’t work when I need to stop.

And if I need to go on vacation to the beach for two weeks, I can – I just do a light check in on email and customer support but I leave the rest of my work until I get “back on the clock” after my trip is over.

Nicole Dean of .. here! .. says:

If you've missed past Expert Briefs, you can click on the undies to see them all –>

This week we're talking about pen names. I asked our panel of experts …

Do you Use Author Pseudonyms (Pen Names)? If so, tips,
successes, utter failures? Dish it.

This could be on blogs, on Amazon, in EzineArticles.com or in general.

Why use a Pen Name?

There are many reasons why you might choose to use a pseudonym.

Some of them are…

1. Protect your privacy from your workplace (if there is a conflict).

2. Protect the privacy of your family (if they are subjects in your posts).

3. Protect your own privacy. Perhaps the blog is about something like yeast infections or impotence. (Sorry…)

4. Protect your “brand”. If you're known as the Nutrition Coach, but want to start a blog on parenting an Autistic child, you may choose to use a pseudonym to keep your brand clear on places like Amazon, especially.

5. Added credibility. If you're a woman, but you want to write to men, you may choose a gender neutral name to go by.

Just added: 6. You have a long, hard to spell and/or brand name. Thanks to A.J. Buonpastore for that reminder.

One of the most unexpected outings of a pen name was in 2009 when James Chartrand of Men with Pens uncovered that he wears women's underpants in this post. Yes, James is really a woman, not a cross-dresser. (That post is very interesting. I recommend checking it out.)

So, this week, I thought I would ask my friends for advice on this sticky subject.  Read their answers below.

Ronnie Nijmeh of PLR.me (< -click for a special free offer from Ronnie) says:

Of all people, I probably should be one person who used a pen name when starting up online, haha

Being blessed with an unpronounceable last name (it's pronounced: “Nish-may” and means “star” by the way!) and being a content publisher doesn't give me great street cred at first glance.

But I didn't let that stop me… it just meant that I needed to up the ante: so I did face to face videos, did a lot of webinars (so people can hear me speak without an accent!), and I always mention that I'm a native Toronto boy.

It's worked out for me, but I can't help but wonder how many sales were lost because someone assumed that “Nijmeh” was a non-native English content publisher from overseas!

The only time I'd use a pen name is if I were to enter into a different niche that is entirely unrelated to my already established niche. I have clients who use pen names to avoid internet stalkers or their day job boss from finding out what they're doing online… and that can make sense too.

Jeanette S. Cates, PhD of Organize Your Online Business says:

I use a pen name on several of my off-topic sites and have done so for many years. The main reason is that I don't want to confuse the marketplace. After all, if someone searches for Jeanette Cates – I want them to find my information on Online Success – not some of my other unrelated topics.

So while I do use a pseudonym, I don't do a lot of article publishing or forum posts under that name. Instead it's used primarily for blog posts. In fact, “she” doesn't even have an email address of her own! So obviously I didn't try to hide it too much.

I think where people get into trouble with pen names is trying to pass them off as real people, instead of a pen name. For centuries people have used pen names, so there is nothing wrong with that. But adding a fake photo and trying to “be” that person is close to the edge. I'm not seeing it as much now as a few years ago, when people went over the line.

Most of all – have fun with it! You can “be” anyone you want to be!

Connie Ragen Green of Affiliate Marketing Secrets Explained says:

When I was just getting started I had a site about relationships. I'm divorced, so I thought that it wouldn't make sense for me to write on this topic using my own name. I chose a nom de plume and began writing.

I soon came to the conclusion that I would prefer to write everything under my real name and share that experience as a Case Study for my students. That became a part of my transparency in my business. My topics include small dogs, home repair, fitness, and, of course, relationships.

My recommendation for someone considering writing on a topic that is very different than what they are already known for is to decide whether the new niche would confuse people. Try using a nom de plume for awhile to see how it feels and plays to your audience before making your final decision.

And what name did I choose for this while I was experimenting? Cydney Greene. It was appealing because my gender could be ambiguous and it seemed to flow well.

Nicole Dean of .. here! .. says:

I get asked this question – often. Particularly, because I started off back in 2005 doing niche sites. Lots of them. So, yes, I have pen names.

In fact, I was asked this question just last week on my public Facebook page. You can read and or comment on that here: Should I use a Pen Name for Privacy?

In case you can't see the graphic clearly, she asks:

“Hi Nicole, I am just about to launch a blog, however, I am struggling with whether to post anonymously or not as I would like to share some of my personal experiences but I want to protect the privacy of my husband and children. My husband loathes Facebook and I have a 12 year old who would be completely mortified if I posted or shared images. Any suggestions or thoughts ?”

And, my answer is this.

“Hi Nat. In that case, just post as a fun name that's OBVIOUSLY a pen name. That way you can still “out” yourself down the road if you choose to do a book deal or something. You have more options. Like “The Mad Hatter” or something totally not a name. Hope that helps! N”

So, yes I have pen names. Is it ethical?

In my work, I strive to provide value and to “make the web a better place”. So, I have no fear of being outed for any of my sites.

Now, if I was using pen names to hide something shady, then that's totally different. But, really, if someone finds out that I've got a site about Romance in Marriage (which I do) or Recipes (which I do) – bit fat hairy deal.

So talk to me.

What are your questions about pen names? Have any experiences you would like to share?

Thank you!

Warmly,
Nicole Dean

If you've missed past Expert Briefs, you can click on the undies to see them all –>

Last week we discussed interesting and unique ways to make money in your business.

This week we're talking about lessons learned. I asked our panel of experts …

What's a marketing or business lesson that you've learned from a totally unexpected place?

Kelly McCausey of Solo Smarts Podcast says:

A Lesson Learned from Soggy Fries at McDonald's.

McDonald's often reminds me to ‘just get it right!'. They have the best fries on the planet, right? Well, at least one out of three visits to McDonalds will end up a disappointment. Some employee with no concept of quality control sends sad and wilted fries out the window into my car. There's nothing quite as disappointing as a wilted fry when you're expecting crisp and hot deliciousness!

I am always frustrated by this. How hard is it to notice that the fries have gone past their prime? It's a small thing in the greater scope of life, I know this – but still… it is such a let down.

Whenever I get crappy fries, I think about how they've let me down. Recently I got to thinking about my own customer satisfaction. Do I ever let my people down like McDonalds? Great, great – then a flop?

I'll never give up on McDonald's because when the fries are good they are very VERY good – but I don't want to risk losing a customer due to poor quality control. I'm double checking my sales process to make sure that my customers aren't disappointed!

Shannon Cherry of Learn How I Get *Paid* to Attend Events says:

A Lesson in Grace from the UN.

Lessons are everywhere if we choose to see them.

And a few years ago, I got a big one.

You see, I attended an event my husband was hosting at the United Nations. It was a ‘debate' so-to-speak about a proposal for a UN resolution to call for blasphemy laws. One of the debaters and proponents of the resolution was the head of the organization of Islamic states. This man represented all countries where Islam is the the country's religion.

At one point during the very civil debate, a woman in the audience started screaming at this man. She had no right to speak, let alone be so hostile.

This man bowed to her and apologized for offending her and then said he would not continue if his viewpoints were so offensive.

All I could think of was, “Wow! This man could have shouted back at her. This man could have had this woman removed. This extremely powerful man could have done anything to her. But he didn't.”

I learned that being gracious makes a bigger impression sometimes than being a fighter. His actions spoke louder than words. So today, I try to make sure I am gracious as much as possible in my business.

Susanne Myers of  Daily Affiliate Tasks says:

Lesson's Learned from The Knitting Niche.

I’ve been doing a lot of sock knitting lately and in the process have come across few different Indy dyers (these are people that take bland white yarn and turn them into colorful pieces of art that you then knit socks out of). I could out-market most of them, but my two favorites are doing a few things really well that could easily be adopted no matter what you’re marketing.

Yarn Dyer #1.

The first is a fairly new dyer who doesn’t have much of a following. She’s growing rapidly though because she does a few things very well:

• She is where her target market is. She’s very active on social media and yarn specific forums.
• She’s showing her product in variety of ways including images and videos.
• She ships super fast and has the yarn ready at the time of order.
• She adds some personal touches to each shipment including a handwritten note.

The Takeaway: Hang out where your customers are already interacting online. Show your product in a variety of different formats. Focus on great customer service and get back with your readers/
subscribers and customers quickly. Add some personal touches and focus on building a loyal following.

Yarn Dyer #2.

The second dyer is well established and has quite a following. She has to do no actual marketing. In fact her yarn goes so quickly, it took me six months to figure out how to grab some before it sells out. Each batch of her yarn is gone within 3 to 5 minutes. Why?

• She has a quality product that’s consistently good.
• She keeps coming up with new and exciting colorways.
• She encourages her customers to share items they’ve knit with her yarn online (that’s how I first came across her yarn).
• She’s very personal and always ready to go the extra mile for a good customer. I missed out on some holiday yarn this past weekend because I was traveling. She offered to dye up an extra
  skein for me.
• She adds some little surprise goodies to each shipment.
• She recently teamed up with a popular project bag creator (it’s a knitting thing) to create coordinating yarns and bags. In other words she was JVing and leveraging both her and her friend’s client base to generate more sales for everyone involved.

The Takeaway: You can slow down on your direct marketing once you’re established provided you keep your customers happy. Focus instead on cultivating your loyal following and create the products they need over and over again. Leverage your success by JVing with other marketers in related fields that complement what you are doing.

If you are a knitter, get in touch with me and I’ll gladly the contact info for both those Indy yarn dyers with you.

Rachel Rofe of How To Get Every Book You Write Onto The First Page Of Kindle says:

Lessons Learned from People Watching.

Eben Pagan mentioned years ago that every once in a while he'll go to a Wal-Mart and just people watch. I love doing the same thing (and also at train stations, subways, and wherever I can get away with it ;)). I remember sitting at a train station in Rio de Janeiro for hours, not understanding Portuguese but loving watching everyone..

It's really fun to see how people live. How they react to things. What their body language looks like. What they say.

Studies say you're the average of the 5 closest people in your life. So normally I try and surround myself with other successful business owners who identify as go-getters, ambitious, healthy, conscious, etc.

And while that sounds great on the surface, sometimes it can detach you from every day reality. That's where people watching comes in. I remember walking past a McDonald's one day (a place I don't go) and felt a flash of surprise that people eat there. In my world, that just doesn't happen.

So I think watching people provides a “reality check”. It boosts up your empathy skills and allows you to relate to more people. This is incredible for all your sales communication, for copywriting, and really, just for getting through life.

Ronnie Nijmeh of PLR.me (< -click for a special free offer from Ronnie) says:

Lesson Learned from Foam.

The unrelated business that opened my eyes and blew my mind is the foam industry.

Yup, foam.

There's this foam manufacturer called Foamite just outside of Toronto that we first heard about at a “Home Show” a couple years back… It's one of those expos with aisle after aisle of products and vendors.

Foamite stood out from the others because the owner was actually there manning the booth, they use a super high quality and natural foam, and it's a family-owned business. We bought our mattress from them two years ago, as well as the foam for a window seat, and we bought another mattress for a guest bed this week. We love them.

Why am I saying this?

Well, the way they do business is so different than anything I've seen.

First, they actually MAKE the foam AND they sell direct to consumers. That's pretty unusual since you typically go to a department store or mattress store to buy a mattress at a massive markup. These guys sell for less, the quality is better, and they're very proud of their product — they aren't shy about telling you either.

Next, they've supplied foam for some of the big mattress companies like Ikea, Tempur-pedic, and others. So they've got another type of client there… an industry with regular, massive purchase orders for bulk quantities of foam.

Next, they supply raw foam in custom sizes and cuts for designers and furniture makers… A totally different sub-niche and a niche that keeps coming back to make new stuff all the time.

Then, they go after entire industries. And WEIRD ones, too.

Like supplying foam cushions for 18,000 seat arenas… or outfitting the bumpers for curling clubs across Canada (it's a strange sport played on ice)… and they even make giant dense foam pipe cleaners that are used to clean underground pipes that are as wide as I am tall!

When I asked the sales rep how they find these businesses, she said: “they find us.” Crazy cool.

What are the key lessons from Foamite?

1. They have a product that they can fully control and make on demand. They are the product creator, not just an affiliate (but they do sell other related products — i.e. upsells — that they don't make, like pillows and mattress covers).

2. They have a product that many, many different types of people and businesses want and need… and they have different lead generating methods to attract the right person or business into the right product. A guy looking to clean pipes goes through a different funnel than the couple who wants a mattress.

3. They took a boring product and made it relevant across different niches. It's easy to think that foam is only good for mattresses, where there's lots of competiton and lower-ticket sales… but it's genius to dream of unique uses for foam, like underground pipe cleaners, curling bumpers, and arena seats where there's little competition and HUGE lucrative contracts.

When you look around, you'll see business lessons everywhere!

Nicole Dean of .. here! .. says:

Lessons Learned from the Liquor Store.

My favorite place to go for marketing inspiration, especially when it comes to creative branding, is the liquor store.

Well, for that reason and so I can grab some wine, of course.

On my recent mastermind weekend with Connie Green, we stopped at a liquor store so that I could grab some wine. I mentioned to Connie my fascination with the branding on the bottles and she, so graciously asked the gentleman running the store if I could take a few pictures. He agreed. I was so excited!

Here are a couple of the pictures that I took in those few minutes….

Angry Orchard.

I love how the creators of this brand took the Wizard of Oz reference and ran with it.

Skinny Girl Cocktails.

I could write for days about Skinny Girl and  their brand. But, basically, who wants a beer gut? Skinny girl to the rescue.

Oddka Vodka.

Last but certainly not least is Oddka Vodka.

What makes Oddka unique? Well, they have oddly flavored Vodka. Nothing as cool as Bacon Vodka, but still pretty awesome as you are about to see.

Their two oddest flavors are Fresh Cut Grass and Wasabi.

See?

and

Oddka reminds me of Harry Potter's Bertie Bott's Every Flavour Beans ? 1.2 oz Box – the jelly beans that come in earthworm, fresh cut grass, and booger flavor. Why not attract that market for vodka? (Not that I want to drink Booger Vodka, but you get what I mean.)

So talk to me.

Where do you find odd inspiration for your marketing?

Warmly,
Nicole Dean

PS. Yes, if you are over the age of 21, feel free to click on any of the images above and check them out. It's a pretty interesting study in branding if you ask me.

PS again. I know I should have something to sell here, but I just wanted to ask the question. If you like this post – share it and check out my friends' sites. That'll make me happy! Appreciate you!

If you've missed past Expert Briefs, you can click on the undies to see them all –>

Last week I asked our panel of experts…

What's the #1 thing someone can do to get your attention so that you'd consider promoting them as an affiliate?

Here are their awesome, honestly wonderful answers.

Seriously, if you sell your own products and have an affiliate program – you will want to bookmark this page and come back often.

Terry Dean of My Marketing Coach says:

A lot of times people like to “give a system” here, but I'm going to tell you the last couple that got my attention for a first promotion.

Step one is to reply to one of my email newsletters. (You can get on my list here: Terry Dean's email newsletter.) That guarantees your message will get opened in my office. That's more likely to get my own attention than even a direct message through social media.

Get to the point quickly. Why does your product and offer fit my audience and what I normally share? If you quickly quote something I've recently said you'll probably get promoted past the gatekeepers to me.

Then you let me know why your product is a unique offer my customers will appreciate. This is more important to me than the EPC or numbers you claim. Simply put, if I don't know you yet, I don't believe the income per visitor claims you would make anyway.

Include a link to the download of the product or username/password to access it. I'm not going to waste time playing email tag with you. And then the product better fulfill what you promised. If I'm interested I'm likely to look at it when I get the time.

Have a unique offer. Seriously. Since I'm in internet marketing, so much new stuff is just routine and exactly like what everyone else is offering. Don't send another here's how to make your first $100 online or another “blind bus opp” offer.

Specialized products with a story behind them are required.

Thinking back to the ones that got me to actually promote, they either already had a relationship with me in some way or they had someone else promote already that I knew.

A relationship would mean they're a customer, commented on an article of mine, promoted me, sent a testimonial, or I hired them for a project (such as a VA, designer, writer, etc.). There's a reason I recognize their name beyond just their email asking me to promote.

If we haven't done business, then early in their contact they'll need to mention someone else I know and trust who promoted for them. For example, they could say, “Nicole Dean promoted for me two weeks ago and had excellent results.”

They've now passed that hurdle for me to read more.

During the contact, be direct and to the point. Don't try any tricks. Don't use a “teaser” at all…trying to get me curious to ask you more. I won't. I'll delete it if the whole “short” 5 W's story (Who, What, When, Where, Why) isn't in just a few paragraphs like the intro of a press release.

Long emails are deleted on sight (defined as a page or more).

The concise pitch should include what their unique promise is for their offer and either a link to check out the product immediately or ask me to simply reply for a copy.

I've received gifts in the mail, and they have grabbed attention but they still had these 3 major items.

You asked for the #1 thing, but it's not really one thing.

These are all required:

1) A unique, specialized promise that I haven't received 3+ pitches for in the past month.
2) A previous business relationship OR a relationship with someone I respect.
3) Concise email spelling out the 5 W's with an offer to try out a copy.

Terry Dean is pretty awesome! Check out his stuff at – My Marketing Coach.

Kristen Eckstein of Self Publish on Demand says:

First of all, please don't just assume I'm going to promote you. I've spent time and money to build my list, and I've built a level of trust with them that I don't wish to violate.

Here's how you can properly get my attention:

1. Learn about me.

Read my profile, my bio, and become my friend on Facebook. Interact with me, get to know me, and see if there's any sort of synergy in our relationship.

2. Understand I paid for my list.

This doesn't mean I bought the list from somewhere else. It means I paid blood, sweat, tears, advertising dollars, and hours of my and my staff's time to maintain my list. I care about them, so if you ask me to promote your stuff for free I'm not going to do it. If it's an affiliate product, make sure it's a good fit for my list. A great way to do that is to join my list & see what kinds of things I send them.

3. If you get through #1 & #2, approach me through proper channels.

Email me through my website to contact my business manager. She maintains a spreadsheet of potential JVs and will know instantly if you're a good fit to speak with me further.

4. I don't promote anything without either knowing the person who created it or trying it myself.

So either give me the product to try out, or let me get to know and trust you. My business is built on relationship, not sales. If all you want to do is JV with me to sell something or get me to sell your affiliate product, I'm going to say, “Syanara.” If we click and build a relationship, you have a great chance of me promoting you to my list. If I don't know you, a cold email isn't going to get you anywhere.

5. Honor your word.

If you say you'll do a guest blog post or have promotional emails ready for me, have them on time. We plan out our promotions calendar months in advance and need to make sure yours is going where it's planned to go. I understand “stuff” happens, so if you feel there will be a delay please let me know asap so we can move your promotion to a later date and fill it with something else. My team doesn't appreciate having to constantly deal with things last minute.

If you have any products that would benefit entrepreneurs in the speaking, coaching or consulting realm, we may be a good fit. I look forward to hearing from you!

Kristen is my Book Coach. Check out her program at Self Publish on Demand

Jeanette S. Cates, PhD of Organize Your Online Business says:

In order for me to promote someone as an affiliate, I generally have three criteria:

1. I need to be impressed with your product.

I generally buy a product myself first – to check out the product and the process.

2. I need to be comfortable with your sales process.

Too many upsells and inundating me with emails and offers after the sale turn me off.

3. I need to know you.

I may not have met you face-to-face (although in 90% of the cases I have), but I generally want to have been on your list long
enough that I know you're not going to pull any surprises. Another way I get to know people is by their being MY customer. Then we build a relationship where I am more open to promoting your product.

When all three of those criteria have been met, then I will generally ask YOU for an affiliate link.

I can count on one hand the number of times someone I didn't know approached me to promote a product I hadn't bought and it turned out well for my subscribers. So I am very careful and protective of my list.

Let Jeanette help you organize your business with her free tips -> Organize Your Online Business

Kelly McCausey of Solo Smarts says:

Demonstrate knowledge about who I am and who I reach, then offer me a full version of the product to evaluate. Offer to walk me through it personally if it's a big resource.

If you go above and beyond and offer to prepare unique content for my blog or be an interesting guest on my podcast I'm going to give it genuine attention.

By going above and beyond I mean …

1. Write me a terrific guest blog post, format it nicely, provide a unique image and send it WordPress ready.

2. Think up a list of ten or twelve great questions I could ask you in an interview and give me a blurb's worth of answers. This helps me to immediately see if you'd be a great fit for my audience. Really want to ‘Wow me'? Write up show notes in my voice to go with your interview! The more time you save me, the more likely I am to act quickly.

Be sure to check out Kelly's coaching program here. Solo Masterminds – it's where I got started!

David Perdew of NAMS says:

When I looked at Nicole Dean's affiliate account a few days ago, I pinged her and asked, “Nicole, did you know that you've made money every day with MyNAMS since May 1, 2012 except for 5?”

That was 5 days out of 139 days when Nicole didn't make a commission by promoting MyNAMS membership, workshop (our live event in Atlanta), and other products. That's a powerful story!

First, her response was “Holy Cow!”

And second, she said that's an e-mail… and a blog post.

Numbers don't lie.

I look at my numbers too.

I received this offer this morning:

“X (Big Name Marketer) has a new webinar that's killing it – we're doing $150-$170 per attendee that shows up…converting 15% up to 27% on the webinar.”

That's was part of a much longer message. Usually, I wouldn't have considered it because I don't have the relationship with the marketer, but…

…the numbers stopped me. Those are good numbers. He had my attention.

Now, I ask the other questions:

1. What's the topic?
2. Is the product any good?
3. Does this conflict with anything that my current NAMS instructor base teaches?

The answer to the last question stopped me. Yes, it did conflict with a good relationship that I already have and promote. I won't screw that up.

But the numbers got my attention and I'll respond back honestly.

When you, the product owner, have numbers that reinforce the truth, and enhances the potential reward on my effort, I'll pay attention, ESPECIALLY if we have a prior relationship.

When I can click on a report that shows me exactly how much money I can expect if I drive a certain number of clicks using the average historical conversion for my interaction, I can plan my business accordingly.

The example above is from Nicole's affiliate report at MyNAMS.com. Notice the key numbers are there: Unique Clicks, Conversion, Click Value, and Value Per Transaction.

With this kind of data, you can decide to drive enough traffic to generate the kind of money you want each month.That's the way the corporate world conducts business too.

McDonalds doesn't build a new store on an untried location without knowing how much traffic they will have on the first day, and making projections for the first-day totals and follow-up growth based on their historical data.

That data, combined with the location specific market research, allows the McDonalds corporate office and the franchise owner to know if they're making money when they open the doors.

I'm in business too. If I can't plan my income based on historical data, I can't set realistic income expectations.

You can give me special content and lot of promises, you can have celebrity endorsements and big marketers behind you, but if you can't show me average numbers, then I can't do business with you.

Numbers are the affiliates best friend. That's why I show them and talk to affiliates all the time about their numbers.

It gets their attention.

From Nik: Obviously I love NAMS – or I wouldn't promote it so much. My favorite part is the Workshop in Atlanta twice annually. If you would like to tell your readers about free webinars and get paid over and over and over again, sign up to become an affiliate here.

Alice Seba of Step-by-Step PLR Guides says:

I'll start by telling you what repels my interest. Someone who approaches me with a high dollar value product, tells me the huge commissions I'll make per sale and then proceeds to give me a list of all their awesome, well-known JV rock star partners who have already promoted them.

First of all, I don't believe we need high ticket products to make great money through affiliate programs. Therefore, products that are inflated in price for the sole purpose of big commissions are of no interest to me.

Second of all, one's list of JV partners really doesn't amount to hill a beans on the reputation front for me. I know that JV rock stars are lured by dollar signs and will sometimes promote just about anything. I also know that just because someone was your affiliate, it doesn't mean that they are happy about it. I need to know your REAL personal reputation first and the reputation of your products and customer service first.

So now that we know what I don't like, let's get into specifics about what I do like…

In the Internet Marketing niche, the individual would probably have to be my friend who produces awesome stuff or possibly be introduced by a friend…and they still have to produce awesome stuff. It sounds cliquey, but it's not. I want to make sure I can trust that person, that they've been around for a while and I can vouch for their quality. If they're not my friends, I probably can't do that.

In other niches, I would be hard-pressed to figure out the #1 thing. Reputation is so important and I am more likely to seek out a reputable merchant than to be romanced by an individual or company I don't know. I usually seek out my own offers to promote and if I happen to know individuals in those niches and know they are solid, I will probably promote their stuff too.

That said though, in every market, if you have a product that is such an amazing fit for what I do for my audience, I will often take a look at it. Targeting is definitely important too and if you have just the right product, I might investigate further.

Alice has some really cool visual step-by-step PLR here -> Step-by-Step PLR Guides

Ronnie Nijmeh of PLR.me (< -click for a special free offer from Ronnie) says:

Do a personal video Say my name, get to know me and my stuff, and record a genuine personalized video just for me. That'll REALLY make you stand out.

Simple, yet incredibly effective!

Shannon Cherry of Quick Tweaks for More Profit sent in this video:

Check out Shannon’s Cool program (and get a special discount here: Quick Tweaks for More Profit

Lain Ehmann of Business Love Potion says:

Buy my product and send me a testimonial!

I often get pleas for attention, for mentoring, for “lunch,” etc., from people who haven't even taken the time to buy one of my products, read my blog, or understand my audience. For instance, I just got several emails from someone who wanted me to push a crochet tool. I'm sure it's a great tool – but my audience is scrapbookers! Ummm… no thanks.

Show you've done your homework and invested in my business before you ask me to invest in yours.

Is your Blog just not getting the results you wanted? Sign up for a  Blog Critique from Lain Here

Nancy Marmolejo of Viva Visibility Blog says:

RELEVANCE. If their offer is not relevant to my list, then it really has no place. If it is relevant and provides a non-competing, complementary solution then I'm all ears.

Revenue is also important, a big commission will always turn my head, but first and foremost it has to speak to the needs of my list and provide a solution I'm not already offering. If I'm being asked to tie my list up for 2 weeks and the payoff is miniscule, then that's not a go.

Recognition is also a factor, meaning I like to partner with people who I either have heard of, heard good things about, or who have some visibility already in the industry.

And yes, I technically gave you three answers when you asked for one, but they all tie in together!

A great resource I created for prospective JV partners is an exclusive page talking about what I'm looking for. So let's add a 4th R: READ because I pretty much have it all spelled out on JVwithNancy.com

Need more clients? Check out Nancy's resource – How to Get Clients to Find You, Follow You and Buy From You

Nicole Dean of .. here! .. says:

My answer is simple.

My #1 Rule that can not be broken is the “What's in it for Them” rule – where “THEM” is my readers.

What RESULTS will my readers get if they purchase your product and take action?

Don't come at me with the “X Marketer promoted and had $X per click.” I don't care one iota.

I want to know how my readers will benefit from buying and using your product.

This is how you can get me to consider promoting your product:

That about sums it up for me.

However, having been an Affiliate Manager for years and coaching infoproduct sellers as my main focus, I'd better share a bit more than that, right? I don't want you all throwing tomatoes at me, thinking I'm holding out on you.

So, in addition to having a super-awesome product that I know will give my readers RESULTS, the following are requested, as well. In no particular order…

1. Show interest in my business before asking me for favors. (*Helpful, but not Required.)

While this should be common sense, unfortunately, it isn't. Relationships are all the same. You can't leap ahead in them too far or you just look creepy.

For instance, it doesn't really work to go up to a beautiful lady in a bar and say “Hi, my  name is Bob. Will you marry me and bear my children?” You've got to take it a bit slower.

So, start by getting to know me and let me get to recognize your name, a bit, too.

A few ways you can do that are:

• By signing up for my newsletters. (read my stuff)
• Leaving comments on my blog. (comment on my stuff)
• Being a customer. (buying my stuff)
• Sharing my content on social media. (share my stuff)
• Being one of my affiliate. (promote my stuff)

All of these get my attention more than a random email.

The Law of Reciprocity is stronger, young Padawan. So, when I get “Will you mail for my product” emails from strangers … BIG TURNOFF. But, if I get them from loyal customers, or from my affiliates, I actually read them. I may or may not promote (see reasons below) – but I may have a tip or a connection that I can share with you.

2. Respect my time. (*Very helpful.)

Please respect my time. It's my most valuable resource (as it should be yours, as well).  Don't email, phone or Facebook me constantly if I don't know you. While your product may, in fact, be the bees knees, I also have a life and other priorities. It doesn't mean that I will never promote you. Just maybe not right now. (Refer back to #1)

3. Make it EASY to promote you. (*Very helpful.)

Do not send me a big long email where I have to jump through hoops to sign up for your affiliate program.

Affiliates are three things.

• Busy
• Lazy
• Greedy (said tongue in cheek)

And, we have every right to be all three. So,  if you make it EASY for me to promote a great product that will help my people… you'll stand a better chance than if you come to me and ask me to host a webinar with you – which takes effort on my part.

Example: If you're selling on Clickbank, then take the time to find my Clickbank ID and include my link to your product inside the email you send to me. That way I don't have to run in circles to figure it out.

4. Tell me What Makes your Product Unique. (*Very helpful.)

I may get 5 JV requests for a similar topic each week like Pinterest, Kindle Publishing, or Getting more Traffic.

So… If your course is unique, specifically if it is about you personally or includes a unique angle, then you have a much better chance at getting my attention.

Example:

Which sounds more interesting?

• “How to Guest Blog”
• “How I Did a 15 Week Blog Tour and Had a Waiting List of People Begging Me to Steal their Traffic“

To me, the second is much more interesting. Well, I mean other than because it's my course.

Plus, if your course is tied to a true case study, then I know it's an original product and that the author is uniquely qualified to teach my folks.

5. Be the “Obvious Expert”. (*Very helpful.)

I had a gal at NAMS in August ask me why I promoted another Social Media Course and not hers. (She said that in a much sweeter way than it just came out.)

My response was that the two ladies who I promoted were totally and uniquely Rock Stars in the field – with huge clients. Whenever Facebook made changes, they went into their labs and played with the changes until they had data that they could share with their customers. They, to me, were two of the “Obvious Experts” when I think of Social Media. They get results. And, they have the proof to back it.

* Elsom Eldridge coined the term “Obvious Experts“. <- That's the link to his book on Amazon.

6. Price vs. Value. (*Required.)

Like Alice, I have to really be convinced to promote a high price product. Personally, I don't buy high priced products, so I can't expect my people to.

The exception is this. If the product is high priced, I won't promote – UNLESS the product has additional pieces and parts, like a Live Event, Software, One-on-One coaching, or an Element of “Done for You”  involved. Then, it's worth it.

Why don't I buy high-price products?

If I see a $797-1997 product that tempts me, the first thing I will do is to see if that person has either a Coaching Program or a “Done-for-You” option. I know there's no way on earth that I will ever consume a 16 Hour Audio or Video course, so it's wasted money for me. I might as well take the wad of cash and flush it right down the toilet.

However… I will easily pay someone $797 or more to be able to have them personally walk through a process with me or answer my questions. And, if I can pay them to handle the whole process for me? Even better.

So, would I promote a $797 video or audio series to my people? Nah. I can't. If I won't put my own money on the line, I won't ask them to.

7. The Buying Experience. (*Required.)

I'm a little different than a few of my friends above. I don't like to get review copies of courses.

Well, let me step back for a sec. I won't typically promote someone even if they send a review copy anyway if I don't know them. It's too risky. The stars would have to align in order for me to share their product. It would have to be THAT good.

However, if it's an interesting product from someone who I know – I don't want a review copy either. I want to buy it with my own money for two reasons.

1. I do not feel right in asking my people to pay for it if I'm getting it free.

2. I want to see the ordering process to make sure it runs smoothly, the product gets delivered, and that customer support info is easy to access.

In fact, if I'm promoting for someone new, I have on a few occasions made up a problem and submitted a support ticket into their help desk – just to make sure that it gets answered in a timely fashion. If not, no promo from me. My people need to be able to get their questions answered, well and fast.

Now in all honesty, on occasion, when I purchase these review copies, the product seller may see my order come through and refund me without my asking. But, that's not something I request.

8. Your Reputation. (*Very helpful.)

Alice touched on this a bit. Do you take care of your customers? Do people speak highly of you? Are you, in fact, making the web and the world a better place?

If not, I'm not sending my people your way.

9. Got Freebies? (*Very helpful.)

Kelly mentioned content. If you have a great product that meets the criteria above, and also are willing to write a guest blog post for me or you have a free training video that is high quality that I can share with my people, it makes it a lot easier to promote you. I love giving away great stuff to my people.

Make it easy for me to share great content, and make me money at the same time, and you've just figured out how this all works.

Example: The minute I released this free Blog Brainstorming Printout (top of the page after you click) – I had a bunch of affiliates mailings for me.

10. The Sales Page. (*Very helpful.)

Even if the product is awesome, if the sales page doesn't pass inspection, I may not promote. Several people have asked me to promote lately and they've all had big warning signs on their sales pages.

A few had big links saying “Sign up for my affiliate program” right under the buy button. Others, the code was messed up and looked terrible.

Rookie mistakes like that can undermine my initial confidence in your product and systems.

11. Your Bonuses. (*Very helpful.)

I have promoted items where the course was ok, but where the bonuses were AMAZING for the price. If your bonuses are totally relevant and high value, that may sway a potential affiliate towards you. So, think of how you can add more value to your existing product.

Example: If you look at the sales page for Blog CPR – you'll see there are several bonuses that I think are worth way more than the price of the course.

12. Your Cart. (*Very helpful.)

I hate to even mention this one, but I'm going to, because it's important.

There are a few shopping carts that people use that are, in my opinion, really poor choices. I do not like to promote products on those two platforms, because I find them … (looking for a nice word)… distasteful.

But, all is not lost. If you've got a killer product that I know will help my people, we can make side arrangements to run a promo through my cart or to just set up an alternate payment method.

Here's a blog post about which carts I do like: Which Payment Methods are Best for an Infoproduct Business?

All right, my friends. I'd better cut this thing off as we are now nearly at 4500 words.

Please ask your questions below. I would love to know what you think about this topic.

Warmly,
Nicole

If you've missed past Expert Briefs, you can click on the undies to see them all –>

This week I asked our panel of experts …

With PayPal lately banning Internet Marketers – how do you personally diversify the income streams in your business?

I think you'll find the answers this week interesting and very helpful.

Terry Dean of My Marketing Coach says:

I currently accept orders through Paypal, Clickbank, and my own merchant account. Merchant accounts may not be for someone who is just getting started, but as soon as you have to ask about “diversifying” your income, you should definitely have your own. It gives you the most control of what you're doing and how you're processing orders.

In my main shopping cart, customers can choose to pay by credit card or by Paypal during the order process.

One of the big elements to mention here though is prevention. When dealing with a large company like Paypal, they can make some random decisions at times. So nothing is foolproof, but here are a few things you should always do.

• Make sure you communicate with them. When you're going to have a surge in orders, let them know.
• Communicate with customers and keep claims to a minimum.
• Be careful about any income claims or weight loss claims on your site (both major issues).
• Be careful what you're offering on your site. Remember, Paypal doesn't like 2 tier affiliate programs in most cases, for example.

Jeanette S. Cates, PhD of Organize Your Online Business says:

I've not personally had any problems with Paypal, but I work hard to keep down my refund rate. And in 99% of my products, I also provide a credit card option for buyers. With my less expensive products people tend to use Paypal. But with my more expensive products and larger orders I see more credit cards coming through.

There are so many options for taking money online now that I don't think anyone should be held hostage by a single payment method. With Google checkout and Clickbank everyone can take payments online.

If you want your own merchant account I highly recommend iPowerPay – they understand Internet marketers and work with many of the largest marketers, so you don't have to worry about them “freezing” your account.

Kelly McCausey of Solo Smarts says:

If PayPal were to slap me tomorrow I'd survive. I do have a separate merchant account that feeds payments from credit cards directly into my checking account. Right now I only use it has a back up for those who don't like using PayPal but I could swiftly move my ecommerce over to use that as primary.

A couple big income streams I've developed have nothing to do with PayPal. My blog ad network is paid by monthly check and one of my partnerships is paid through direct bank transfer. I love that I'm not paying big PayPal fees on these payments each month.

The biggest challenge I'd face would be paying my affiliates. If I can't use PayPal I'm going to end up writing checks and that is so much more time intensive. I hope I never have to deal with it.

Ronnie Nijmeh of PLR.me (< -click for a special free offer from Ronnie) says:

Firstly, I try not to worry too much about Paypal banning accounts. I mean, I'm not doing anything wrong and I try to be as legit and “legal” as possible.

My company is a registered corporation here in Canada. I have my phone # and address on my site, in the footer, etc. I keep money inside of Paypal (instead of siphoning it out immediately, which would seem suspicious, right?). I pay my staff mainly through Paypal, so Paypal sees that it's not just money coming in and withdrawn to my bank account.

The bottom line is, I use it like I would a regular bank account and don't do anything crazy.

With that said, I also have a merchant account that I use to diversify my payment options. Some clients prefer to avoid Paypal anyhow, so I can accept credit cards without having to deal with Paypal.

Since I'm in Canada, I use Beanstream.com – they seem to be really solid… the support is awesome and responsive, and they even have an iPhone app I can use to collect money in person (although, since I'm entirely online, I haven't tried it).

The key is to be smart – setup accounts with other payment services and merchant accounts, honor your guarantees, and don't worry about it.

Nicole Dean of .. here! .. says:

I've heard of people losing their paypal accounts since I came online nearly a decade ago and it is still a looming fear of many.

The more things change, the more they stay the same, right?

I decided awhile ago to have multiple types of income streams outside of Paypal – but then I slacked on it a bit until recently when the buzz about Paypal banning Internet Marketers came up again.

Like my very smart friends have said in their answers above, there are really two issues at play here when it comes to Paypal.

1. Prevention. What to do to keep your PayPal account.
2. Insurance. What do have in place in case you lose your PayPal account.

Let's address each individually.

Prevention.

Terry and the others were spot on in my opinion. Here's what I'd say is important.

1. Play by the rules.
If you're using PayPal, you want to always be aware of what their rules are and understand one fact. They are the judge and jury of their own kingdom and we are merely visiting. Yes, we make them money through our transactions, but in the end, what they decide is law. So, read up on their rules and stay informed to make sure you're on their good side and you stay there.

2. Be CLEAR on your sales page.
Make sure what you say you're selling is very very clear – and you deliver as promised.

If you use the term “book” in your sales copy, clarify multiple times if it's really a downloadable book, so the customer isn't waiting by their mailbox day after day, getting more and more upset about their order that didn't arrive. (This is obviously more important in certain niches than in others.)

If you say “videos” make sure you explain that the videos are in mp4 format, in case the customer lives in a town just east of Boondocks and south of Nowhere where he only has a dial-up modem.

This will help keep people from starting disputes against you.

3. If customers complain about something being unclear during your ordering process – FIX IT!
This feedback is golden. Listen to your customers and try to fix what you can. If you can't fix it, then be very clear up front so that customers know what to expect.

For instance, my shopping cart had a setting where downloads expired after 48 hours. There's nothing I could do about it for a long time. So, I put a note in bold on the order page that said “Please download your order immediately. The link will expire in 48 hours. If you have any issues or need this link reset, please contact (and I had the support link)”. This helped people to actually access the products they paid for…. kind of an important thing.

4. Make your support desk easy to contact.
There have been a few times when I've ordered something and could not contact the person through any means when I had an issue.

• I tried the website. Nothing.
• I tried to reply to an email. No-Reply@TheirSite.com.
• I tried to reply to their paypal email address. No response.
• I even googled the person, trying to find their help desk. No luck.

They left me with no option but to file a Paypal dispute. Don't force your customers to resort to contacting PayPal.

5. Like Terry said, communicate directly with PayPal.
If you have an issue, pick up the phone. I know, as Internet Marketers, most of us hate the phone – but, in my experience, the people at PayPal want your business account with them to remain in good standing – and will help if they can.

6. Be careful in setting up multiple accounts.
I've heard through the grapevine that transferring money through multiple accounts can raise a red flag.

Insurance.

The next part of your protection is what I call Insurance and this is where the diversification part comes in.

I, personally, get paid from a variety of sources – which helps me to sleep at night, in case, God forbid, I were to lose my PayPal account.

1. Google Adsense.
I still receive deposits directly into my bank account from Google Adsense (from some of my niche sites). The deposits aren't as big as they used to be, but they're big enough to make a difference if I needed the money.

2. Clickbank (as a product seller).
I have several products on Clickbank for a few reasons. You'll see that I run YummyPLR.com through Clickbank and JustAddSweat.com, too.

Why? The first reason is because I love how easy Clickbank makes it for me to use them. It's very hands-off for me – which is important, especially in the branches of my business that are not the core of what I do. The second reason is because the money gets deposited directly into my bank account – which is another separate income stream for me.

You can learn how to put your products on Clickbank here -> How to Sell your Products on Clickbank.

3. Promoting Affiliate Products that Pay in Various Ways.
I promote a few affiliate programs that pay by check and/or direct deposit. I didn't choose these affiliate programs because they paid via check or direct deposit. I chose them because they were good. The payment part was just a lucky coincidence.

A few to look into are -> CJ.com, LinkShare.com, and ShareaSale.com – (and, of course, Clickbank.com)

4. Offline Clients.
I also dabble a bit in the offline world where I have a few clients. If I were in a position where I needed a quick influx of cash, I could easily go to them with more offerings or ask for referrals to bring in more income quickly – outside of PayPal.

5. Partnerships.
I have one partnership where my business partner pays me with direct deposit every month.

6. Merchant Account.
I had a merchant account, but let it go. (Long story.) I am ready to try again and will be looking into iPowerPayas I'm impressed by them.

Last year, I spoke with their reps at an event in Orlando and really liked their commitment to Internet Marketers. So, watch for that update soon.

7. Amazon Kindle.
One of my most favorite revenue streams is from publishing on Amazon Kindle. In fact, I plan to do it more in the coming months. Amazon Kindle deposits money into my bank account and it's totally hands-free for me. I don't even have to do my own customer support. Thank you, Amazon!

I may be forgetting something. If I think of it, I'll add it below.

So, how about you?

Got questions? Got resources? Please share below.

Thanks for stopping by!

Much love,
Nicole

PS. Resources –

Here are the resources mentioned in this post:

• iPowerPay – Merchant Account for Internet Marketers
• How to Sell your Products on Clickbank.

PS Again – The Experts –

• Ronnie Nijmeh of PLR.me
• Kelly McCausey of Solo Smarts
• Jeanette S. Cates, PhD of Organize Your Online Business
• Terry Dean of My Marketing Coach

If you haven't watched that video you, you can see it here: Product Creator Pro Demo.

Today, I decided to play with the software a bit.

I took one of my old reports and created three totally new versions of it, inside and out.

(Remember, this program designs the INTERIOR pages, too!)

Here's the original ugly report… (ducking and running)

UGLY VERSION -> PLR Frequently Asked Questions (pdf)

And, here are three versions I literally whipped out in minutes from that original doc.

New Version 1.

Click to see the cover and interior.

New Version 2.

Click to see the cover and interior.

New Version 3.

Click to see the cover and interior.

If you think this is something that can help you, here's what to do.

1. Be sure to check out the demo video here: Product Creator Pro Demo

2. Then check out the special offer that Ronnie put together. (You can get $100 in free PLR for signing up.) Sweet deal. Check out the special offer here: Discount Product Creator Pro

Either way, the reports are yours to play with and enjoy.

Warmly,
Nicole

PS. It took me longer to put together this blog post than it did to make those three documents. Crazy, right?!

If you've missed past Expert Briefs, you can click on the undies to see them all –>

This week I asked our panel of experts about a topic we hear discussed in the internet marketing world a lot…

One of the most difficult decisions in running an online business is choosing a shopping cart / payment processing system.

So, which one do you use to power your business?

Do you like it? Why or why not?

Note:  There are no right or wrong answers here. Just perception and personal experience.

I hope that this week's expert responses will be helpful in making this decision for your own business.

Terry Dean of My Marketing Coach says:

I've tested and/or have direct experience with a lot of shopping cart systems including 1SC, Clickbank, Paypal, Amember, RAP, Infusionsoft, and others.

1ShoppingCart.

1ShoppingCart

The one I personally use is Netofficetoolbox.com which is a private label of 1shoppingcart. The reason I like it best is it integrates everything into one system including processing both credit cards and Paypal, your affiliate program, upsells, and more.

Since they've been around for years, they have had ups and downs. There were periods where their autoresponders couldn't get delivered and other points where they didn't integrate well with recurring billing on membership software like Amember. For me at least these problems have been solved and have been running well for the past 12 months+.

I use both my own merchant account and Paypal for processing orders through them.

So, that's what I use to run my primary business.

Clickbank.

Clickbank

I also use Clickbank for digital products I release in other markets other than my main one. I've found if you're in niches you can often recruit additional affiliates just by getting into their system and getting a few affiliates selling for you.

This also means I have a secondary system in place in my business in case there were ever problems with one of my accounts. I have money coming in 3 different ways (merchant account, Paypal, and Clickbank) in addition to the affiliate programs I promote.

Be sure to learn more from Terry here:  My Marketing Coach

Ronnie Nijmeh of PLR.me (< -click for a special free offer from Ronnie) says:

I've been through what I affectionately call “Shopping Cart Hell” several times over the years.

I've been with:

1. A “custom” cart – This is crazy and only recommended in very few instances.
2. Infusionsoft – Expensive, always something going wrong
3. 1ShoppingCart – Not my favorite, but workable
4. Amember  – I use this currently for my PLR store where I sell Personal Development PLR
5. Foxycart – I use this currently for Product Creator Pro

Amember.

So let's first talk about Amember.

Amember

It's a useful tool that I've initially disliked, but grown to enjoy.

At first, I found the interface (of the old 3.0 version) pretty intense and daunting… a lot of features are tucked away, and you need to be a bit technical to understand certain things like protecting folders (folder permissions, htaccess, etc). But like anything, once you learn it, it becomes easy.

Also, it's very customizable with lots of plugins which, again, only becomes useful if you're a techie (or you have a technical person on staff).

The bad news is that they've revamped the software to version 4 (which looks very slick, by the way!), but this rendered a lot of old plugins un-useable until the plugin creators update their code. And their support is pretty slow.

I would recommend Amember if you have a lot of products to protect (like a membership or several PLR packs for instance! )

But if you have just one or two products, it's probably not the best solution.

FoxyCart.

FoxyCart

The other cart I'm using is called FoxyCart, which I'm using for my publishing web app called Product Creator Pro (which is really cool and you should check it out).

I actually like this cart in a lot of ways because it “saves” the customer's information on file, so they can just login and never have to enter their billing details or credit card details again.

It is a hosted solution (meaning you have to pay a monthly fee), but that means you don't have to worry about things like “PCI Compliance” and server security. A big deal if you take people's credit card information.

It's pretty extensive and can be highly customized, but it's not going to handle things like email marketing or an affiliate program like 1ShoppingCart or Amember can. They've just focused on building a really good shopping cart.

Check out Ronnie's New Project and Set up a Free Account: Product Creator Pro. It helps you to make Professional Looking Ebooks in Minutes

Alice Seba of  PLR That you Can Resell says:

Over the years, I have tried a lot of different systems. Many people take so much time to decide on a shopping cart, but hold themselves back from getting started. The only way I was able to find out what I liked best was by trying a variety of options, so for anyone looking, I recommend just digging in and figuring it out as you go.

After all this time, I have settled in with Amember as my absolute favorite.

Amember

I like Amember for a few reasons:

* No monthly payment:

While I see the attraction in a 3rd party system that automatically does the software upgrades for you, I don't think the price of many of monthly payment shopping carts is really justified. Sure, profits can pay for this monthly fee, but if I can keep more of that profit back in my pocket, that's good for me.

* All-inclusive:

Amember includes my shopping cart, membership system, affiliate program and mailing lists…all in one place. I have always preferred all-inclusive systems because it allows me to segment lists and ensure better targeting with my market. It also avoids a lot of duplication if you happen to have your bits in pieces all over the place.

* Customization and control:

I love that I can control how Amember looks and functions. I've had a number of customizations developed that have allowed me to improve my email marketing, product delivery and more.

I know Amember isn't for everybody though. It is a little more complex than other systems and some people complain about the “extra steps” they have to do to set up a product. I have no problem with the extra steps because, ultimately, they are the things that allow me to have control over the way Amember functions.

This is cool. Check out Alice's PLR That you Can Resell

David Perdew of NAMS says:

I’ve tried a bunch of cart platforms!

When I built the MyNAMS memberhip community , the search was on for a membership software that also had the flexibility to run my business the way I wanted to do it, not the way the software maker thought I should.

I’m just ending a 7-year relationship with 1ShoppingCart. They have gotten so much better over the years, but the one thing it didn’t do well for me was affiliate tracking. The system required a number of different (and unrelated – hence the problem) links if you had different products.

From an affiliate perspective, that was a nightmare with the type of affiliate relationships I wanted to build. For example:

If an affiliate – say Nicole Dean – refers someone to MyNAMS for the first time, and that referral signs up for a free product or purchases product A, I want Nicole to be rewarded for every purchase from A to Z that person ever makes in MyNAMS going forward. Why?

Well, she said it not long ago:

“David, every time YOU send an email to your lists, I make money!”

I LIKE sending affiliate payments.

For product owners who rely on affiliate relationships, those partnerships are as important as customers are! Good affiliates will hold a product owner like me accountable for many more transgressions if they’re protecting their lists than a customer will. So, affiliates have to be cherished as business partners and rewarded generously.

That’s why I chose aMember even though it was more technical and not quite as up-to-date as, say InfusionSoft.

Amember

aMember 4 – just released is much better and is just the ticket. I’m committed because it gives me great affiliate management tools in a very flexible way.

Cross-product affiliate relationships, first-click affiliate tagging, and database driven affiliate referral system versus cookie affiliate programs were the key for me. Everything else is just standard fare.

Be sure to sign up here for David's Weekly FREE Webinars. (They're good stuff.)

Kelly McCausey of Solo Smarts says:

I've been an Amember fan since 2004 when my partners and I launched our first membership site.  Back then we had to ‘plug in' an autoresponder script and a separate affiliate program script but over the years the company that makes Amember has improved it so much that today it stands alone and does everything I need.

Amember

Important to point out though that I am not using Amember to manage a large mailing list.  That would be a bad idea because Amember is software that runs on your own hosting account. So while I use Amember to manage small product specific customer email lists, I will always use a separate Email Service Provider to take care of my large lists.

I have used other carts.  I used 1ShoppingCart for a couple of years on a project I bought from someone else.  I've also used (Note from Nicole: Name removed by me because they are awful and I don't want to even mention them as it may be construed as an endorsement) in the distant past.  While I don't mind a monthly expense that proves it's worth, I never found the $50 and $99 per month I paid for their system to be all that superior to what I got from Amember without a monthly cost.

Amember is intended to be a membership system that protects member content.  I use it to manage the sale of services and one off products as well as memberships.

This past fall the company released a new version and since I was rebranding and starting over with a new cart I gave the new version a spin.  I am so impressed with it!  They've built in some cool features that have cut down the time it takes to add a new product or update product resources.  There's a built in help desk and it was a snap branding the whole thing to look like the rest of my site.

What would make Amember even more dear in my eyes?  A plugin that makes my Aweber account work with my Amember installation.  (Not currently available for the newest version.)

Are you a woman in business? Check out Kelly's awesome mastermind group.

Susanne Myers of Daily Affiliate Tasks says:

My favorite shopping cart solution is Amember.

I was first introduced to it way back when I ran a meal planning service with Christine Steendahl (The Menu Mom), and we needed something flexible and inexpensive that would allow for recurring payments and an affiliate program. I’ve had a bit of a love/hate relationship with it over the years, but always stuck with it because I have yet to find anything better at a reasonable price.

Amember

One of my favorite things about Amember is how it handles affiliates. ]

Let’s say Nicole sends me a customer over at Affiliate Niche Packs and they end up ordering a pack. Amember creates a customer record and one of the pieces of information it notes is that Nicole sent me this customer in the first place. This means that from here on out, anytime this person buys something else from me, Nicole will get an affiliate commission. There are no cookies that could expire or be deleted. It doesn’t matter what computer the person orders from (or even if they order from their smart phone or iPad), Nicole will still get credit. This makes it much easier to attract and work with super affiliates (like Nicole).

Amember has a bit of a learning curve when you first get started and I’ve had plenty of days when I was ready to pull my hair out because it wouldn’t do what I wanted it to. In the end though, it was well worth the extra effort. Do keep in mind that the developer and support staff are in Eastern Europe. As a result of time difference it usually takes almost a day to get replies back from customer support.

Want to make more money with Affiliate Marketing? Check out Susanne's program –  Daily Affiliate Tasks

Nicole Dean of .. here! .. says:

Well, I asked the question, so you know that I have opinions, too.

Having been an Affiliate Manager for several years, I've worked behind the scenes with most of the carts mentioned above and even a few that weren't mentioned, too.

Plus, with my own infoproducts, I've used … eek! SEVEN different carts.

Which seven? Well, one of them is out of business and two others I do NOT like so they shall remain nameless. But, I will share the ones that pass muster.

There's a lot to take into consideration when choosing a cart, but it really comes down to just three main factors –

1. Your Needs – Now and in the future as you grow
2. Your Customers' Experience – Will the ordering process be positive for them?
3. Your Affiliates – Will They Be Treated as you Wish?

Whew, right?

Let's start at the bottom, since that's the easiest, in my opinion.

1. What's best for your affiliates?

I will tell you this. I earn the MOST money (as an affiliate) when I promote people who are using either Amember or Nanacast. Hands down.

Amember

NanaCast

Disclaimer #1: That is making one big assumption and that's that the person that I'm promoting has multiple products for sale – and they are actually telling their customers about them so that you can get repeat sales. But, I know that the sales track and I get repeat sales – both of which are hugely important in getting and retaining loyal affiliates.

Disclaimer #2: I do not choose what to promote based upon the cart, but if two products are equal in all ways, I will at that point, recommend the one that's running on either Amember or Nanacast.

Most of the other carts do not track referrals as well.

What about Clickbank? Is that attractive to affiliates?

Clickbank

Clickbank can either be really good in this area or really bad. Depending on the niche you're in, it may be more difficult to get loyal affiliates, since affiliate theft is so easy. What this means is that I can, as an affiliate, promote a product on Clickbank. Some people who go to purchase (upon my recommendation) will replace my affiliate ID with theirs to get a discount. While this is frowned upon in most circles, Clickbank does nothing to monitor this. This can make it more difficult to get good affiliates to promote you – if you're on Clickbank.

On the other hand, Clickbank has one very distinct advantage. They DO pay on time, every time. Unfortunately, it's becoming more and more common for people to just think they can NOT pay their affiliates (which is theft) – and get away with it. It's very frustrating as an affiliate when you have to ask where your commissions are – and it just should not have to happen. Plus, affiliates talk with each other. I've been in a number of conversations in the past year about who not to promote – because they don't pay their affiliates. (You'll see another blog post about this next week.) However, when you promote someone on Clickbank – you know you'll get paid – because Clickbank is in control.

2. Customer Experience.

This is another tricky one. If you sell multiple products (and you darned well should) – it's very helpful to have a “members area” where the customer's purchases can be accessed for years to come.  It's also handy if your customers don't have to enter ALL of their information every time they order and can just log in to quickly order from you. Again, Amember wins here, in my opinion.

If you've only got one product at this point, then Clickbank has a nice smooth and easy ordering process. Plus, they automatically process credit cards, which frees you up to not have to have a separate merchant account, which is nice, too.

In fact, most of the carts have a nice ordering process. The only thing that stands out is if you'll have repeat customers – in which case, having a members area is very nice for them to continually order and access their purchases.

3. Your Needs as a Merchant.

Finally, the third big consideration is what you need as the product seller. Here's where it is SO important to know yourself, your resources, and your business.

If you're just getting started, are completely non-techie and/or you are unsure about your niche – then I'd recommend Clickbank. You can always leave that product on Clickbank and also set up a separate cart down the road once you get rockin'. From a merchant perspective, there are a few weaknesses with Clickbank that are easily overcome with Easy Click Mate – a program that I use on three of my sites. It enables you to run several products from one Clickbank account.

-> I created a resource for helping you to get your product up on Clickbank and you can see it here:   How to Sell Your Products on Clickbank

If you've got a solid business (and are totally non-techie) and want something a bit meatier that you have more control on, 1ShoppingCart is solid. It's super easy and can be set up and running very quickly. Plus, as Terry mentioned – the upsell capability is huge. The downside is price, of course, paying monthly for your cart as opposed to paying once. And, affiliate tracking is less than desirably, in my humble opinion.

Of course, there are as many options and scenarios as there are people, but that's just a quick suggestion for you.

There are a few carts that have not been mentioned that are also viable options. E-Junkies is fine for beginners, but is not the best for attracting affiliates. It's a very cumbersome process for affiliates to get links, and you can't get them for the affiliates as there's no clear pattern to how they are created.

So what do I use?

Enough chatter, right? What do I actually use in my business – RIGHT NOW?

On EasyPLR.com, I use Quick Sales which is a reseller of 1ShoppingCart. It's fine, but I do wish I'd gone with Amember.

 
Powered by Quick Sales

On JustAddSweat.com and YummyPLR.com, I use Clickbank along with Easy Click Mate.

Powered by Clickbank & Easy Click Mate

Powered by Clickbank & Easy Click Mate

For the rest of my projects I use Amember (I have three separate installations of it).
 

Powered by Amember

Time for Feedback!

So, what about you? Are you stuck on this decision? Or do you have a cart you recommend? Please join in the discussion!

If you're at the point right now where you need to change carts for some reason – let me know. I'll recommend a cart for you based upon your needs.

Warmly,
Nicole Dean

Resources RECOMMENDED in this Article:

• Amember – All in One Membership Site Software
• Clickbank – Hands off. For non-techies. Includes a marketplace to recruit affiliates for you. (Use Easy Click Mate to make it more powerful.)
• 1ShoppingCart – Powerful cart.
• Foxycart – I don't know much about this one, but Ronnie recommended it.
• NanaCast – Another powerful options with a lot of features.
• E-Junkies – Fine but very simple.

I had an HTC that was SLOOOOOOOW. I'd get a text and it would literally take minutes to be able to load and read it. So this weekend I finally talked my husband into driving me over to Foley, Alabama to upgrade our phones at the CSpire store. (We chose CSpire for service because we are grandfathered into a super cheap plan – that's no longer available – and because it's one of the only services that my husband and son can access at school.)

Plus, I'd won an iPhone in an affiliate contest awhile back that Ronnie Nijmeh ran and I asked him send me the money instead. So, I was sitting on the cash – and wanted my stinkin' iPhone already! I'd earned it. I wanted it.

So, I've been playing with my new iPhone this weekend and am LOVING LOVING LOVING it! I use my iPad a lot, but this… so cool.

These are the apps I put on it so far. (Yes, I'm well aware that they are pretty much ALL time wasters. lol!)

What am I missing?

I'm also going to go back through this blog post and see what's good. Best Apps for Business Productivity but wanted to ask you for your favorites first since that blog post is a few months old now.

Thanks so much for reading … as always. I appreciate you!

Warmly,
Nicole Dean