Remember the late 90′s? Back then, there were tons of startup dot coms which seemingly spent all of their money advertising offline in the effort to bring in visitors. These usually brought in a short-lived surge of traffic, with few of these visitors returning and even fewer becoming paid customers. The whole idea was that if you kept your content fresh, repeat traffic would follow naturally.

For some websites this is certainly the case (news sites, for example). However, this is not true for many other types of websites.

A lot of the lead generation work we do on behalf of our clients involves building websites geared towards getting new clients for the business. Once a prospect becomes a paying customer, the need to have fresh content to net repeat visits is dramatically less; the website has already performed its function.

One of the adages often repeated in the marketing world is that it takes seven contacts to make a conversion; but in reality, this depends on the nature of the product or service on offer. The more complex (or expensive) the wares, the more visits it will usually take to make a conversion.

Using a lead capture technique is the best way to make conversions from these repeat visitors. This can be a newsletter (with opt-in form) or in the form of providing contact information in return for a freebie such as a report, whitepaper or e-book.

This allows you to educate prospects about the value that you offer as well as stay in touch. Your followup contacts will keep prospects coming back to your site to dip back into your content.

We use this strategy extensively, both on our own website and on client websites. Whether or not you use a lead capture mechanism as a means to keep prospects interested and returning to your site will depend on how tough it is to convert a website visitor into an enquirer.

However, don’t think that adding new content to your website doesn’t matter; it’s just not the ONLY thing that matters.

Keeping your content fresh can do great things for websites, particularly niche focused websites. Adding informative, niche-driven content can help these websites to establish themselves as authoritative sources of information. If your site is one of these, then a dedicated articles section may be very helpful in getting repeat traffic.

This is a good thing, but it will take some effort, as you’ll have to write this content (or have it written for you) and keep your site updated – and it’s no guarantee of success, either.

Many business owners we talk to are eager to include a “latest news” section on their sites in order to bring in repeat traffic. There are two reasons why I don’t generally recommend this.

1. If you aren’t truly an authority in your field, then these news sections may not be all that well, newsworthy.

2. This section will involve posting regular updates; something which is often neglected. I’m guessing you run across “latest news” pages all the time which haven’t been updated in years.

The message here is to plan ahead. If you’re building a website which will need weekly updates, then make sure that the resources are in place ahead of time so this will be done. If you can’t make sure that this gets done, low maintenance is the way to go.

Today I received a long letter from a man who created a new self-defense system. He claims he can defeat anyone in under 3 minutes.

He wants me to promote him and his method. He went on to say he’d be happy to meet with me to prove his skills.

What did he have in mind?

He wants to beat me up.

I’m serious.

“If I can defeat you within 3 minutes,” he said in his letter, “then you promise to promote me and my products. Deal?”

He went on to give me the contact information for his agent so I could set up the match.

It might have made an interesting webcast. I can just see the headline:

“51-year-old formerly obese Internet Marketing Expert meets 30-year-old Superman-fit Martial Arts Expert in Quick-Kill Match. Register now.”

Gee, I wonder who would win?

I’d lose even if I went armed.

What would you have done?

How would you have responded to his offer?

Unless you’re a fighter looking for a match, you’d probably toss this offer in the trash.

I often wonder what people are thinking. Does this guy really think I’ll fight him? And then, if I lose, I’ll gladly smile and start marketing him?

I don’t claim to be a fighter and am not seeking bouts. I’m also not seeking new clients. Especially clients who want to break my nose to prove they are better than me.

When you reach out to anyone, keep in mind that no one likes to be told they are inferior. It is not a good way to win friends and influence people. In fact, it’s not a good way to do much of anything.

I think the lesson here is that we all have egos. The better way to approach people is to put your ego under theirs.

In other words, be willing to lower your status. Don’t flaunt your stuff. Instead, show your weakness and ask for help.

This nervy fighter might have done better by offering to teach me his new method, not offering to embarrass me with it.

Contrast his behavior to that of a man in Florence, Italy. This gent heard I loved leather jackets. He went and bought two of them and sent them to me, gratis.

I’ll never forget *him*.

This works in your marketing, too.

Rather than boast that you or your business is the greatest, focus on how you or your business can make your customer or client the greatest.

Or surprise your customers by giving them gifts (much like this article is a gift). People love to be surprised on the positive side.

See the difference?

This redirection of focus can trigger a true transformation in your sales.

Take heed.

See you in the ring.

There are a plethora of different methods of online lead generation for network marketers. Leads, after all, are the backbone of any network marketing business. Without a constant stream of quality, pre-qualified prospects coming to your virtual door, you’re never going to build your business. Lead generation strategies vary, and you may have to test out a few methods until you find the one(s) that work best for you. However, to get you started, here are some of the top methods of online lead generation for network marketers, as well as one particular method that you should NOT use.

One thing you might want to try is partnering with another network marketer to exchange leads, or to barter for access to the leads of the other marketer by providing that marketer with a service that’s beneficial to his business. The beauty of the internet is that you can do all of this online over email or through instant messaging, so the person you trade with can be literally anywhere in the world. You can use network marketing forums to meet other marketers with whom you want to do business.

If you have a website advertising yourself, you can include your email address somewhere on the site, inviting interested visitors to contact you for more information. You may not get as many leads this way, but the ones you get will be highly targeted leads (which are the most valuable). People who go to the trouble of sending you an email will already be interested in your business, so you won’t have to try quite as hard to sell to them.

If you want to build a list of customers that will return to you website you will need to get them to sign up for your newletter. I have found that the best way to do this is to offer them something that you know they really want, good information on the topic of your site. That’s how they got there in the first place so you know that they are interested in hearing what you have to say.

Creating your own landing page with a contact capture form is also a great idea. Ask for the names and email addresses of every visitor to your site, then send this information to your auto responder for storage. Of course, you’ll have to offer something in exchange, since no one is going to give you their contact information just because you asked nicely. You could give extraordinary information on your website that the visitor has to “register” to see. You could also give away an ebook or report that requires contact information for you to send it.

One method of online lead generation for network marketers you should absolutely avoid is buying leads. Leads that you purchase are often of very poor quality, and usually out of date. It may sound great to be able to buy hundreds of thousands of names for just a few dollars, but it’s really not worth it in the end. You’ll just end up wasting your time and your money on worthless leads.

Most Lead list will be sold to other marketers also, so when you call them there is a good chance they have been called by two or three other people already. That is why a lot of time we can expect negative and even hateful comments from people we prospect on lead list.

The Internet has made it possible for anyone to achieve network marketing success. It’s not like the old days when you had to go approach strangers in public and try to sell to your family and friends. Today, you can find interested, qualified prospects throughout the world. Using the top methods of online lead generation for network marketers, you can be very successful, even more than you ever dreamed was possible.

People will contact your customer service to ask questions about your business or products. Did you know you can increase your orders by training your customer service to actually sell products?

You should include your signature file with all the questions you answer by e-mail. Your signature file should be no longer than 5 lines, 65 characters per line. Include your contact information, business name and an attention getting headline.

Tell people about the new products and services that you offer after you’re done answering their question(s) by phone. If they have already bought products from you in the past, offer them add-on or backend products.

If you’re using FAQ “Frequently Asked Questions”, include your banner ad on top of your FAQ site. You could also include a subscription form for your free e-zine on the site as well.

When you answer peoples questions by snail mail, include an insert advertisement for the products or services your business offers. Include your web site address, e-mail address, logo, slogan and other information on all marketing material you send.

The competition in the world of MLM’s is getting tougher each year as more people are drawn to the flexibility, freedom, and financial rewards that come from being their own boss. To set themselves apart from their competitors, high level business owners are looking toward innovative marketing solutions. The emphasis is on effectiveness rather than cost, since anyone who has been successful with an MLM will tell you-the payoff for securing your target market is enormous. Some MLM owners have recently discovered Voice Broadcasting or Voice Blasting as a way to gain a bigger share of their market.

It’s easy to understand the problems associated with traditional mass voice broadcasts, though. They are typically in cold call form and sent to everyone in a very general, non-specific manner. Let’s be clear on this. The fact that an individual has a phone number does not mean they are at all interested in what you’re selling. Subsequently, a random cold-call about your product has the real possibility of turning them off to your service completely. This is why you must be very specific when you target leads in the open marketplace.

How can you employ the technology of voice broadcasting, and still take into consideration the interest level of your prospects? One such solution is through iBuzzPro software. This system generates targeted lists of leads, providing you with contact information for individuals who you know have an interest in your product-and in a cost-effective manner.

Usually, home-based business owners or sales professionals wanting to make a mass voice-blast had to pay a steep price for the service. Not to mention the additional per-minute charges, and more fees for each dial (connects and other). Lastly, you encountered a bunch of other fees to scrub against the Do-Not-Call (DNC) list.

iBuzzPro is about one-third the amount you would pay for a conventional bulk voice broadcasting campaign. Add to that the additional savings of not being charged for calls that fail to connect, or for calls placed against the DNC lists. Finally, because the software provides you with professional lead lists, you will save time by avoiding random cold calls to prospect who have little or no interest in your product or service.

For home based businesses, iBuzzPro is an excellent value. The software costs $500 with an additional $50 setup fee. After that there is a minor per month charge of $28. It is a simple process to install the software, with step-by-step instructions, on-demand webinars, and excellent customer support. You’ll have complete instructions on how to create your campaign, including voice recording and scheduling the calls.

In my opinion, iBuzzPro is one of the best overall marketing options for a small business. The targeted leads and wide broadcast makes it an extremely beneficial alternative to traditional voice broadcasting, or other kinds of marketing campaigns. In fact, the quality of the service and the value it brings to the company using it makes it a viable option for larger, established businesses as well.

Voice broadcasting can be effective, but for small businesses, MLM’s, and entrepreneurs it can be cost prohibitive. IBuzzPro is an affordable, viable solution that gives everyone access to powerful marketing tools regardless of their budget, time limits, or experience.