Advertising Online

A well-known cartoon shows two dogs in front of a computer. The caption reads, "On the Internet, nobody knows you're a dog."

While the cartoon is amusing, the reality is not. The inherent anonymity of the Internet has fostered a number of questionable advertising and marketing practices, such as unsolicited email spam. Over the past decade, Federal and state governments have passed advertising laws that protect consumer privacy and ensure fair and truthful advertising practices online.

If you plan to advertise online -- whether you're buying ads on search engines or direct marketing through email -- you'll need to understand some basic rules. Go to these resources to learn more:

1. Advertising and Marketing on the Internet: Rules of the Road: Discusses the applicability of federal advertising laws to Internet advertising and marketing.

2. Dot Com Disclosures: Describes information businesses should consider as they develop online ads to ensure that they comply with the law.

3. CAN-SPAM Act: Requirements for Businesses

Details the CAN-SPAM Act of 2003 (Controlling the Assault of Non-Solicited Pornography and Marketing Act), which establishes requirements for those who send commercial email. It also spells out penalties for spammers and companies whose products are advertised in spam if they violate the law, and gives consumers the right to ask emailers to stop spamming them. Commercial email messages must include: notice that the message is an advertisement or solicitation, an opt-out notice, and a valid postal address of the sender. CAN-SPAM also prohibits falsification of transmission information and deceptive subject headings. The Act creates criminal prohibitions against those who knowingly transmit spam through others' computers without authorization. The Federal Trade Commission may also pursue individuals who knowingly hire others to send deceptive spam.

4. "Remove Me" Responses and Responsibilities

Explains the truthful requirements for claims that you make in any advertisement for your products or services, including those sent by email. This means that you must honor any promises you make to remove consumers from email mailing lists.

Some marketers send email as a quick and cheap way to promote their goods and services. Be aware that the claims that you make in any advertisement for your products or services, including those sent by email, must be truthful.

If your email solicitations claim that consumers can opt-out of receiving future messages by following your removal instructions, such as "click here to unsubscribe" or "reply for removal," then the removal options must function as you claim. That means any hyperlinks in the email message must be active and the unsubscribe process must work. Keep in mind:

* You should review the removal claims made in your email solicitations to ensure that you are complying with any representations that you make.

* If you provide consumers a hyperlink for removal, then that hyperlink should be accessible by consumers.

* If you provide an email address for removal, then that address should be functioning and capable of receiving removal requests. It may be deceptive to claim that consumers can "unsubscribe" by responding to a "dead" email address.

* Any system in place to handle unsubscribe requests should process those requests in an effective manner.

The Federal Trade Commission Act prohibits unfair or deceptive advertising in any medium, including in email. That is, advertising must tell the truth and not mislead consumers. A claim can be misleading if it implies something that's not true or if it omits information necessary to keep the claims from bring misleading.

Other points to consider if you market through commercial email:

* Disclaimers and disclosures must be clear and conspicuous. That is, consumers must be able to notice, read or hear, and understand the information. Still, a disclaimer or disclosure alone usually is NOT enough to remedy a false or deceptive claim.

* If you promised refunds to dissatisfied customers, you must make them.

The FTC works to prevent fraudulent, deceptive and unfair business practices in the marketplace and to provide information to help consumers spot, stop and avoid them. To file a complaint or get free information on consumer issues, visit ftc.gov or call toll-free, 1-877-FTC-HELP (1-877-382-4357); TTY: 1-866-653-4261. Watch a video, How to File a Complaint, at ftc.gov/video to learn more.

The FTC enters consumer complaints into the Consumer Sentinel Network, a secure online database and investigative tool used by hundreds of civil and criminal law enforcement agencies in the U.S. and abroad.

Make sure that your marketing emails are designed to protect your business AND your customers. The last thing a business owner needs is to be hit with an FTC complaint while growing their business.

Happy Marketing!



~Manifest your Business Solutions and build a better business. The original post is on Manifest Business Solutions © copyright, 2011. Share it freely, but you must link back to this source. Regards, Admin

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The Manifest List: Best Business Tools

No matter what business niche you choose, there are basic tools that you need in each and every business, whether it's online or a traditional storefront operation. Those tools include website domain names, website hosting, autoresponders, and advertising at a minimum. Free business tools are great to get started, and will always hold a special place in my business "heart", but true Entreprenuers understand that when time is of the essence, paid versions of great business tools are the best choice.

Here's our list of the best business tools for 2011:

Website Domains - Fast and easy selection and set up for your domain name.

Website Hosting - Got a fantastic domain, and need a fantastic host for it? Why not start with the best and not have to worry about moving your website from year to year? You can even start your own Reseller Hosting Business for less than you think! Get your piece of online "real estate" from the best in the business.

Autoresponders (Paid) - No doubt, this is the best email marketing software for any business.

Autoresponders (FREE)- Not quite ready for a paid autoresponder? Use this one for free up to 500 email customers.

Add Content To Your Website (FREE): Use articles found here to edit and rewrite for your own niche.

Monetize Your Content (FREE)-: Let your content make money for you!

Advertising (FREE) - Building back-links can be a time-consuming, boring process. You can outsource the process to an agency and pay a lot of money. Or you can do it yourself with this Application. 25 unique back-links per submission. All links are on unique C-Class IP addresses and domains. This system saves time, and it's a great FREE tool.

Advertising (FREE) - Unlike Facebook, as soon as you join this site, YOUR business is seen by EVERY member!

Video Training (FREE) - "How to Make Money Online" video series

Write Your Own Paycheck (FREE) - A community of honest, like-minded entrepreneurs teaching others how to leverage this innovative system for generating more income...fast!

Your Business Brand - Branding your business can take up to a year if you do it alone; this team can do it within days.

Legal Protections - Learn what to do to protect your personal and business assets.

Toll-Free Phone Numbers - Do you really want your customers calling your private home phone? For less than $3.00 a month, you can get a toll-free number for your business (or your personal use!).

Create A Full Text Feed for Your Website Visitors(FREE) So easy!

Keep Up With Us for more up-to-date information on building a solid foundation for any business niche!



~Manifest your Business Solutions and build a better business. The original post is on Manifest Business Solutions © copyright, 2011. Share it freely, but you must link back to this source.

Regards,Admin

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Become A Better Email Marketer: Subscriber Expectations

Consistency is one of the most important expectations in your email marketing campaigns. When subscribers sign up for a "free ebook", or a "free gift"----that's what they expect: to receive one email that contains the link to receive the ebook/gift that they signed on for. They do not expect to begin receiving daily, weekly or monthly emails from you. If they do start receiving unwanted emails from you, then it's realistic to expect that they will report you for spamming.

Consistency matters – but before you can consistently meet the expectations of your Readers, you have to set them! If your subscribers don’t know what’s coming, it doesn’t matter how consistent the formatting and frequency are – those emails will still feel inconsistent with whatever preconceived notions subscribers had about them.

So how do you create expectations that you then meet?

As I see it, you get 3 critical opportunities to do so.

Today, let’s discuss the first one:

Create Subscriber Expectations Before The Opt-In

The minute potential subscribers become aware that you’re even offering something by email, they begin to make assumptions about that offering, like:

* What they’ll get from you if they sign up
* How often they’ll get it
* The value/benefit to them if they sign up (or the lack of it)
* The cost to them if they sign up (their time and privacy, plus: are you going to share their email address with someone else?)

If you don’t replace these assumptions with expectations that match what will actually happen, then these potential subscribers either won’t sign up, or they’ll be confused/dissatisfied/angry when what actually happens doesn’t match those assumptions. Which means that the next thing you must do is......

Clearly Explain, In or Near Your Opt-in Form:

* What kind of content you’ll be sending (you may even want to link to a sample email)
* How they’ll benefit as a subscriber (this is your email’s value proposition: why should someone subscribe?)
* When/how often the subscriber will hear from you (estimate if need be)
* What you do and won’t do with subscribers’ information (this may not be necessary in all cases – especially if you already have the visitor’s trust – but in general it’s a good idea)

Hope you enjoy this posting; Critical Opportunities #2 and #3 will be posted shortly. How are your efforts going with email marketing?


~Manifest your Business Solutions and build a better business. The original post is on Manifest Business Solutions © copyright, 2011. Share it freely, but you must link back to this source.Regards,Admin

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Blending Your Ideas and Email Marketing

Whether we like it or not, the words used in Email Marketing are very important. Whether you are writing a short or long email, your words must communicate your ideas.

But you don’t write words to communicate alone. You write them to request an action. Sometimes it’s subscribing, responding, purchasing – whatever you want YOUR Readers to do.

The words that carry most of the weight of the request are the few at the end, where you normally provide a link to proceed: your call to action. This is the decision point for your Readers. The words you use here could sway readers either way. And that, my friends, is WHY the words of your email are so very important!

Different words trigger different associations, and those can make or break the response. But your Readers’ responses will partly depend on your subject and the relationship you already have. A phrase, or wording that crashed and burned for me, may be the very same words that make your opt-in rate soar!

When choosing the words you want to write in your email marketing campaigns, keep in mind that you need to set correct expectations. Give your potential customers the information they need to make an informed choice. A well-informed subscriber is a happy subscriber.

Find out more by reading our article on Subscriber Expectations.





~Manifest your Business Solutions and build a better business. The original post is on Manifest Business Solutions © copyright, 2011. Share it freely, but you must link back to this source.Regards,Admin

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Email Marketing - Autoresponders

When writing your business plan, it makes sense to add a section titled "Email Marketing". If you plan to use an autoresponder script for email marketing, here’s a word of caution: get the correct autoresponder web hosting plan.

Don’t make the same mistake I did as a new entrepreneur. I installed my script in, and used my cheap autoresponder (with "unlimited" bandwidth) to send out a thousand emails one day. That didn't work out real good for me at all----the next day that my account was suspended. All because I "assumed" that there was no limit to the amount of emails that I could send in one day. I learned very quickly that ALL autoresponder providers limit the number of emails you can send in one day based on the level of service you sign up for.

Autoresponder Web Hosting Explained

All of the major autoresponders (iContact, Aweber, Constant Contact) offer these same autoresponder hosting options. Let's take a closer look at the 4 basic types of autoresponder web hosting options out there:

1. Shared Autoresponder Web Hosting – You share the same physical server/machine with thousands of other users. Although the hosting company may advertise “unlimited” bandwidth and space, there are tons of limitations in the fine print which makes that virtually impossible. Most importantly, with a shared hosting account you usually cannot send out more than 200 to 500 emails per day. This is an excellent choice for new business owners just starting their email marketing effort.

2. Reseller Autoresponder Web Hosting – A few resellers share the same server/ machine, and each reseller can create new accounts either for personal use or to be sold. Although you may have additional flexibility with a reseller account, the very fast that you’re still sharing the same resources with other users means that there will probably be some type of limitations on using autoresponder scripts as well. This is a great choice for business owners who want to add another stream of income to their primary business.

3. VPS (Virtual Private Server) Autoresponder Web Hosting – Similar to reseller hosting, a VPS provider has tons of servers and instead of giving you a big part of one server they give you small parts of many servers. That way it created some kind of “private network” for your web hosting accounts. With a VPS you have almost all the freedom you can get with web hosting, and you can host your autoresponder scripts with no problem. A VPS is the best choice for entrepreneurs who already have established their business and are interested in expanding it.

4. Dedicated Autoresponder Web Hosting Server – If you have many websites, then you may want to get a dedicated web server. With a dedicated server the entire machine is yours, and that means what you do does not effect anyone else. You’re free to host your auto-responder script, and the only reason we have ranked a dedicated server lower (at #4) than a VPS is because of the cost. This is strictly for business owners who have many (over 100) websites, and can afford the necessary costs that come with owning their own server.

Autoresponder Web Hosting – Recommendations

So, it’s clear that you should stay away from using a shared hosting account is you plan to install and use your own autoresponder script. A VPS is the best best, and HostGator VPS is a great choice. A VPS can handle multiple accounts as well, and it much cheaper than a pure dedicate server. You get the flexibility you need, without breaking the bank.

Think about what stage (new, intermediate or expanding) your business is in, and choose the best autoresponder web hosting account right from the start to avoid any unwanted problems!

This is the autoresponder I've used for years with absolutely no problems!



~Manifest your Business Solutions and build a better business. The original post is on Manifest Business Solutions © copyright, 2011. Share it freely, but you must link back to this source.

Regards,
Admin

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