Two years ago, I began using ezine advertising as the cornerstone of my online marketing efforts. From the need to determine the most productive and cost effective ezines to advertise in, I stumbled upon a method that revealed the secrets of successful online marketers.



The Method

My method is easy to follow. There's 3 basic steps:

1.Examine several communication tools the experts use such as an email or sales page.

2.Compare these tools and search for similarties.

3.Collect the common points and implement those findings.

For example, suppose I want to find out how to construct or improve a sales page for a product I own or have resell rights to. The first thing I do is to get online and do a search. In this example, I search using the phrase "internet marketing experts index". Second, I open every sales web page the search produces in a multi tab browser (Mozilla). Third, I compare the pages looking for similarities. I note these down in Windows notepad, taking care not to overlook details such as fonts, colors, graphics, etc. Finally, I incorporate the information I collected into my own sales pages.

Now you know my method. Next, I reveal the secrets my system has uncovered. The following sections disclose the common factors of various communication tools.

Web Sales-Copy Page

I've looked at, and studied countless web sales pages. (I estimate at least 50) Most of them have:

Red verdana headline in quotations

Testimonials (usually near the top)

Time or quantity limitations

A guarantee symbol graphic

Photo scan of their signature

Professional photograph

Background logo images

An audio or video

Free bonuses

Prices ending in the number 7

Most Cost Effective and Productive Ezines to Advertise In

I'm currently subscribed to about 30 ezines that I advertise in. My experience has shown that the most cost effective and productive ezines to advertise in usually have:

A testimonial page

Contact info including phone number and address

Solo ads running regularly (If they sell solo ads and you never see any, it's a bad sign)

A form for submitting ads

Require subscribers to double opt-in

Have a long waiting period for running my ad (indicates a very popular ezine for advertising)

Email Advertising

About 15 of the newsletters I'm subscibed to are from online experts like Yanik Silver, David Vallieres, Mike Filsaime, Russell Brunson, Len Thurmond, and others. When they send an advertisement in the email I note the common points are:

An irresistible headline that poses an open-ended question or statement

It's personalize

Short double spaced paragraphs

Bulleted benefits statements

Limited time of offer or quantity available

Special price or bonus for limited number of responders (i.e. the first 50 customers get half off)

Guarantee

P.S. that states a major benefit

Note: I save the most persuasive ads in a separate folder for study.

Search Engine Optimization (SEO)

I learn a lot about my competitors' SEO techniques by examining their linking campaign. I initially do a search for keywords related to my website. Next I get the url's of my competition. Finally, I use an online tool at http://www.marketleap.com/publinkpop to reveal the following:

How many links my competition has

Who links to them

Ideas for who to approach for link exchanges

Other related websites

I also use SEO Elite, a free tool to compare:

Keywords used

Keyword Density

Meta tags

Meta Description

That's just some of the specifics. More can be revealed by examining the benefits statements listed on the expert's sales page or in their emails. You can get clues to the info. you need to study. For example, one benefit statement for a sales page info. product might say "The 3 Things Every Sales Copy Page Must Have to be Successful." So, now you know you're looking for 3 things they ALL have in common.

Remember to get the big picture, look for similiarities, then study the details. That's the key to reveal the marketing secrets of the masters.