A Local Biz Paying Me for IM - Advice?

7 replies
I need a bit of guidance from folks doing off-line IM for clients. I have unwittingly found myself on contract with an off-line company to provide them with IM services. They asked what I knew how to do, I told them (basically drive traffic to their site through SEO, PPA, link-building, social networking, and other tried-and-true IM activities), and they said, "great, how much?"

Soooo, AAARRRGGGHHH!

Better now. My main question is: what do you recommend beyond the things I said above?

- Since I am not the subject matter expert, I can't provide a steady stream of articles and blog posts. So do I just ask the client to provide that, and maybe supplement with PLR, auto-blogging, etc.

- Do I do list-building still? If so, I am going to be hard-pressed to send regular e-mails to a list without that steady stream of content.

- Is article marketing still part of the equation? Again with the content source question.

What, if anything, is the primary difference (other than what I have just mentioned) between IM for my audio recording info-product business, and doing IM for an off-line company?

Any advice appreciated!

Thanks.

Ken
#advice #biz #local #paying
  • Profile picture of the author alanborcic
    You should negotiate those items with your client. It is the best if they provide content since they know their business the best. You just set them up, they send you content and you publish it.
    If your client does not want to do that, then you charge more for content creation and outsource the work.
    Signature

    Get Life You Deserve
    Alan Borcic
    www.alanborcic.tv

    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[3446455].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author mnlewis
    I think article marketing should be apart of the link building strategy. You can easily outsource this. You can also offer to create YouTube videos of their business. Those are some few ideas you can offer your client.

    Best of Luck!
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[3446500].message }}
    • Profile picture of the author KenTheriot
      Thanks! That makes sense.

      Ken
      {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[3446750].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author iansinfo
    Ken the client knows their business best let them do all the content creation. Your expertise is the IT side as you suggest I would look building on their list of clients on email and expanding that
    Signature

    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[3447164].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author akazo
    Originally Posted by KenTheriot View Post

    I need a bit of guidance from folks doing off-line IM for clients. I have unwittingly found myself on contract with an off-line company to provide them with IM services. They asked what I knew how to do, I told them (basically drive traffic to their site through SEO, PPA, link-building, social networking, and other tried-and-true IM activities), and they said, "great, how much?"

    Soooo, AAARRRGGGHHH!

    Better now. My main question is: what do you recommend beyond the things I said above?

    - Since I am not the subject matter expert, I can't provide a steady stream of articles and blog posts. So do I just ask the client to provide that, and maybe supplement with PLR, auto-blogging, etc.

    - Do I do list-building still? If so, I am going to be hard-pressed to send regular e-mails to a list without that steady stream of content.

    - Is article marketing still part of the equation? Again with the content source question.

    What, if anything, is the primary difference (other than what I have just mentioned) between IM for my audio recording info-product business, and doing IM for an off-line company?

    Any advice appreciated!

    Thanks.

    Ken
    Well, ask 5 people and you are likely to get 5 answers.

    As for articles, it would depend on business and the purpose. For example, suppose your client is a car wash. How many people are going to go to ezine and decide that they need their car washed at your client's business? Probably not many, but articles for backlinks, in this case, are fine for improving SERPs. Better SERPs... better traffic. In this case, outsource the work and be done with it.

    Blog posts are another matter and you can still outsource if the business doesn't want to write them, and many many many of them won't do it. That's why they pay us. just always make the client sign off on them before posting.

    And, do not use auto blogging or PLR! It does not take too long to take PLR or whatever and rewrite it to be unique. You are getting paid, so take the time to do it right.

    List building, IMHO, is going to be determined by the industry. I think that list building for an electrician, for example, is a waste. Some services are one-off events and list building does not constitute an ROI, and nobody is going to sign up for the list. A lot of people will probably disagree, but that is my experience.

    The difference between online and offline, to a large degree, will come down to what the business is... give more details and maybe people can give better, more concrete feedback.

    Good Luck!
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[3447343].message }}
    • Profile picture of the author Kevin AKA Hubcap
      I think one of the main things you're missing is what happens once they reach your client's site.

      As you know, traffic+conversions is the Ying and Yang of internet marketing. So let me ask you this. Once a prospect lands on your client's site, does the content do its job.

      Does it make that prospect more disposed to spend their money for the product or service your client provides?

      If not another site is merely a click away. So what should you be addressing on your client's site.

      First off-- Common concerns/fears. Face it nobody likes to feel like they've been taking advantage. Certain industries (construction/car repair) are more suspect than others so address those common fears up front.

      Value-- We all want value for the money we spend. Prove to the prospect that you're client offers the best value solution regardless of price.

      There are a number of ways to do this but getting the site high in the search engines is only half the battle.

      Once they arrive at your site they are your client's customers to lose.

      Kevin
      {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[3447973].message }}

Trending Topics