Traffic exchanges are great lead generation sites
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"NO SELLING" ZONE
I'm just going to come right out and say it. The fastest and most effective way to waste money and time with Traffic Exchanges (TE) is to try to use them to sell something.
Here's the logic behind this statement:
Ask yourself the question, "What are the people who use TEs really looking for?" Plain and simple, they're not looking for . . . anything! A person is surfing a TE to earn credits that can be turned into traffic to send to their web page. It's all very well to say that they have an interest in marketing, home business, and so on, but if they're not in a frame of mind where they're actively looking for information on this subject, then interrupting their surfing to try and sell them something is not only futile, it's also rather foolish.
When someone is busy surfing for credits, they don't really want to be disturbed. Disturbances slow down the process of generating traffic. If you jump in and aggressively try to sell them something, no matter how good the product is and no matter how keen the person is on the subject, most people are going to be irritated rather than interested. To illustrate:
Anyone for Tennis?
My friend has joined a new tennis club and he can get $100 cash back if he can get someone else to join. Now I like playing tennis a great deal, but if he was to turn up at my house and bounce a tennis ball off my head while I'm trying to work, I'm not going to be too pleased. In fact, the possibility of bloodshed would be fairly high.
But what if he drops round to return a DVD that he's borrowed and just so happens to do so while carrying his tennis racquet and a brand new tube of Wilson's? I may be busy working, but I really like tennis and it's going to get my attention. I may decide to stop working for a moment and see what he's up to.
Notice the difference here between throwing a tennis ball at me to MAKE me stop what I'm doing, and tactfully getting my attention so I can CHOOSE to stop what I'm doing, even if just for a few moments. Now that my friend has my attention he demands that I join this new tennis club and that I have to decide one way or the other within the next five seconds.
Effective? Hardly.
My friend has more sense and simply tells me that he is on his way to his new tennis club that, by the way, have these amazing, third-generation, artificial grass courts that provide one significant advantage over the older style Astroturf. Notice that my friend has not asked me to do anything, and yet now I'm curious. What is this new artificial turf like and what is this particular advantage that it provides?
My friend who, as you might have guessed, makes his living as an Internet Marketer, now has my full attention. But he's smart enough to know that my work is important and that he only has a few moments to close the deal before my attention goes back to my work. So he tells me that it's difficult to describe and that it's something I have to see for myself. Fortunately, the tennis centre that's featuring these new courts will let him bring a friend down for a free trial session and, if I like, he can get them to reserve me a slot for tonight.
Now I'm hooked. I want to try these new courts and I'm being given the opportunity to do so, free of charge! Best of all, I don't have to think about whether I can afford the time away from work, because the promised freebie isn't taking place until this evening. All my friend has to do before letting me get back to work is to convince me to take some small action. Something that will get me started on a route that could potentially lead me to becoming a full member myself. He tells me that, to get the free session, I just have to give the tennis club my email address so they can send me more information about their facilities at a later date.
A free session of tennis on a new and intriguing surface in exchange for my email address? How do I say "no" to that?
Obviously, I don't. I hand over a business card and my friend promises to call me after I've finished work to let me know where the place is and what time I should come down. After which he promptly leaves and lets me get back to work or, more likely, finishing my game of MSN Backgammon.
That evening I get my free tennis session and marvel at the new courts. One of the administrators of the club - after complimenting me on my two-handed forehand - offers me a full membership at a discounted rate. I'm definitely interested, but membership is still expensive and I remain undecided. No problem, the administrator promises to send me some more information by email and, sure enough, the next morning I get a message in my inbox. I've been offered another 10% discount off the regular price and better yet, once I join, I can get $100 cash back if I recommend someone else to the club . . .
If you're an experienced marketer - in fact, even if you're not an experienced marketer - it's not difficult to see how effective this approach is compared to my friend turning up at my home and demanding that I join. And you also don't have to be experienced to see how this approach can be transferred to TEs.
Take some time over the next few weeks to contemplate this illustration and ensure that you're clear about the marketing techniques involved. In the Next article I'll show you how to replicate this strategy with a TE campaign.
Or you can check out the Hidden Traffic formula My Home study course on how to Dominate traffic exchanges
The Hidden Traffic Formula
I'm just going to come right out and say it. The fastest and most effective way to waste money and time with Traffic Exchanges (TE) is to try to use them to sell something.
Here's the logic behind this statement:
Ask yourself the question, "What are the people who use TEs really looking for?" Plain and simple, they're not looking for . . . anything! A person is surfing a TE to earn credits that can be turned into traffic to send to their web page. It's all very well to say that they have an interest in marketing, home business, and so on, but if they're not in a frame of mind where they're actively looking for information on this subject, then interrupting their surfing to try and sell them something is not only futile, it's also rather foolish.
When someone is busy surfing for credits, they don't really want to be disturbed. Disturbances slow down the process of generating traffic. If you jump in and aggressively try to sell them something, no matter how good the product is and no matter how keen the person is on the subject, most people are going to be irritated rather than interested. To illustrate:
Anyone for Tennis?
My friend has joined a new tennis club and he can get $100 cash back if he can get someone else to join. Now I like playing tennis a great deal, but if he was to turn up at my house and bounce a tennis ball off my head while I'm trying to work, I'm not going to be too pleased. In fact, the possibility of bloodshed would be fairly high.
But what if he drops round to return a DVD that he's borrowed and just so happens to do so while carrying his tennis racquet and a brand new tube of Wilson's? I may be busy working, but I really like tennis and it's going to get my attention. I may decide to stop working for a moment and see what he's up to.
Notice the difference here between throwing a tennis ball at me to MAKE me stop what I'm doing, and tactfully getting my attention so I can CHOOSE to stop what I'm doing, even if just for a few moments. Now that my friend has my attention he demands that I join this new tennis club and that I have to decide one way or the other within the next five seconds.
Effective? Hardly.
My friend has more sense and simply tells me that he is on his way to his new tennis club that, by the way, have these amazing, third-generation, artificial grass courts that provide one significant advantage over the older style Astroturf. Notice that my friend has not asked me to do anything, and yet now I'm curious. What is this new artificial turf like and what is this particular advantage that it provides?
My friend who, as you might have guessed, makes his living as an Internet Marketer, now has my full attention. But he's smart enough to know that my work is important and that he only has a few moments to close the deal before my attention goes back to my work. So he tells me that it's difficult to describe and that it's something I have to see for myself. Fortunately, the tennis centre that's featuring these new courts will let him bring a friend down for a free trial session and, if I like, he can get them to reserve me a slot for tonight.
Now I'm hooked. I want to try these new courts and I'm being given the opportunity to do so, free of charge! Best of all, I don't have to think about whether I can afford the time away from work, because the promised freebie isn't taking place until this evening. All my friend has to do before letting me get back to work is to convince me to take some small action. Something that will get me started on a route that could potentially lead me to becoming a full member myself. He tells me that, to get the free session, I just have to give the tennis club my email address so they can send me more information about their facilities at a later date.
A free session of tennis on a new and intriguing surface in exchange for my email address? How do I say "no" to that?
Obviously, I don't. I hand over a business card and my friend promises to call me after I've finished work to let me know where the place is and what time I should come down. After which he promptly leaves and lets me get back to work or, more likely, finishing my game of MSN Backgammon.
That evening I get my free tennis session and marvel at the new courts. One of the administrators of the club - after complimenting me on my two-handed forehand - offers me a full membership at a discounted rate. I'm definitely interested, but membership is still expensive and I remain undecided. No problem, the administrator promises to send me some more information by email and, sure enough, the next morning I get a message in my inbox. I've been offered another 10% discount off the regular price and better yet, once I join, I can get $100 cash back if I recommend someone else to the club . . .
If you're an experienced marketer - in fact, even if you're not an experienced marketer - it's not difficult to see how effective this approach is compared to my friend turning up at my home and demanding that I join. And you also don't have to be experienced to see how this approach can be transferred to TEs.
Take some time over the next few weeks to contemplate this illustration and ensure that you're clear about the marketing techniques involved. In the Next article I'll show you how to replicate this strategy with a TE campaign.
Or you can check out the Hidden Traffic formula My Home study course on how to Dominate traffic exchanges
The Hidden Traffic Formula