How Much Money Have You Made?

Have you gotten this question? It's hard for newbies, but can be hard to answer once you've been around a while too. Art Jonak asked his mentor, Tom "Big al" Schreiter this very question, and Tom gives us the answer that can diffuse this question immediately.

Weekly Advertising Tip: Traffic Exchanges

It has been a couple weeks since I did one of these marketing venue posts. I hope you all find something to take from this one.

Here is a rather controversial advertising method. For every person that says Traffic Exchanges don't work, another will tell you how they work wonderfully. I can tell you that they do work, to an extent, but what and how you promote makes ALL the difference. 

There are so many hundreds of traffic exchanges out there, so many programs, and so many individuals that there is no magic formula. There is no one size fits all strategy. However, the basics of using traffic exchanges are constant. 

The number one thing to remember about using traffic exchanges is branding. If you are using any pages that do not have your name and picture on them, you are wasting your time. But, if you have your picture and name getting out there, and your message is consistent, people will start to know you, and they will start to respond. 

Another thing to consider is WHAT you are promoting. Promoting a business opportunity does not work well. While this is the only venue remaining that will yield any result from pitching an opportunity, it's still not the best idea. Offering to help people with the things they need for their business works Much better. Traffic, prospects, coaching, time savers and such are things everyone is looking for. Find something you can offer, preferably something unique that nobody else is offering, but you can always use an existing product until you develop something of your own. 

The main drawback to traffic exchanges is the time investment involved. You can spend hours, days and weeks clicking for credits. The other option is to buy credits, but I would be sure your ads are getting response before doing that. 

One more thing to consider is which exchanges to use. There are hundreds of them out there. At one point, I was actively using more than 50 of them. That was exhausting. I did get results, people giving up their contact info for my incentive offer. 

On the plus side, there are so many exchanges, and so many people using them, that a team could theoretically be built using nothing but traffic exchanges. 

One of my business partners, Wilfredo Diaz, just posted a great piece on traffic exchanges as well. I urge you to have a look at his link below.

The First Traffic Exchange Program With Its Own Algorithms

Here are a few other links pertaining to Traffic exchanges that you may find helpful.

You Best Converting Traffic Exchanges

Your favorite smaller exchanges

massivefreetraffic/traffic-exchanges

 

 Are you currently using traffic exchanges? Do you plan to in the future? I would love to hear about your experiences, past, present or projected. Please leave a comment below to let us know.

Who is Your Coach?

It's Bill here again, and again I'm borrowing from Randy Gage. If you are not subscribed to hit blog, newsletter and/or youtube channel, I suggest you go handle that right now, then come back and finish reading this.

The video from Randy below asks the question, "Who is your coach?" This questions really hit home for me. I've had lots of coaches, or mentors, in my life. From a job, to business, and of course spiritual coaches and mentors have helped me along the path at every turn.

Unfortunately, some coaches just are not that good at it, particularly when it comes to Network Marketing Business Coaches. For most, it is not their fault. They are working from the same tired old playbook that didn't work 30 years ago, and certainly dose not work now.

On the plus side, there are people out there who will help coach and mentor you, regardless of what company you are with, and they will never charge you a dime. How can we do this you ask? It's simple. Anything that can help improve our industry as a whole, is a benefit to us all.

Let's face it, there are a lot of MLM companies out there that are not worth the time it takes to fill out the enrollment form. If we can help make a positive change, and help to reform our industry as a whole, then maybe we can eventually root out many of the misconceptions about the Network Marketing Industry. That would make life easier for us all right? You bet it would.

I have also recently started working along side some other wonderful people from outside the MLM industry. These life and career coaches are some of the most amazing people. They help folks from all walks of life to better themselves. What could possibly be more rewarding?

That is what we do too. We hope to help as many people as possible. Even if you are not in the same company as me, that's okay. I still hope to see you be successful, and will do anything I can to help make that happen.

Alright, I know you're wonder, "What's the catch". Well here it is. I will only work with the volunteers. If you don't show an interest, I'm not going to waste my time chasing you down. Beyond that, all I ask is that you be coachble and be willing to do what is required, and I can almost guarantee your success.

So, who is your coach? If you are in need of a business coach, show me that you are a volunteer and read the eBook, "Success in 10 Steps" and I will b e in contact with you soon.

Are You Always Thinking Positive?

Is every thought that passes between your ears, on a daily basis, a positive one? If you answered "Yes", you're only lying to yourself. We know the truth. Negative thoughts are going to creep in. It's a matter of how we handle them that makes ALL the difference. 

We hear a lot of talk in our industry about the power of positive thinking. Most every MLM Blog has posts on the topic. Countless book, eBooks, videos, webinars and conference calls have been devoted to the topic of positive thinking. 

Think about all of these instances you have seen. Have any of them even suggested that positive thinking was anything less than 100%? Now, do you really think that anyone alive, in this fallen world, could possibly maintain 100% positive thoughts? Me either. 

Well, I do know of one mention of positive thinking, only one, that sheds light on this dilemma. I share videos here from Randy Gage from time to time and this is one of my personal favorites. It is the first time I ever recall anyone mentioning that it is absurd to think anyone could never have a negative thought.

Enter the 51% Rule. 

If you are like most of us, you try to remain positive, but it can be discouraging when those negative thoughts creep in. Negativity breeds negativity. One negative thought creates discouragement, and therefore more negativity. But, there is hope. 

 The 51% Rule is so simple it's scary. Fully positive thought is not the goal. The goal is to reach 51% positive thoughts. This is the point in which real change starts to happen. But how do you get to this point?

Here is an idea. Every time, throughout the day, that a negative thought comes to mind, counter it with a positive one. Keep in mind that simply thinking of ice cream, a puppy, or anything else will not work. You must infuse these positive thoughts with emotion. Thinking of your first kiss, your wedding day, or the day your child was born could all be good ways to counteract negativity. 

Without emotion, these positive thoughts cannot reach the subconscious mind. They linger briefly in the conscious mind until something else draws it's focus. Since the conscious mind can only focus on one thing at a time, that unemotional positive thought will be gone, never to return. 

I can tell you this works. I woke up this morning tired from having stayed up too late. I felt the negativity monster creeping in, and immediately went to that moment when my daughter was born. Before I knew it , I was dressed and ready to head out, and had not had another negative thought. 

Just remember, it's okay to have a negative thought. Don't beat yourself up over it. Replace it with a positive one and move on. 

Now, here is the video where Randy Gage presented this, and the inspiration for this post.

Weekly Advertising Tip: Offline #1

I was on the fence as to what to write about this week. There are so many options, but I read a post this morning that gave me some new ideas, and I decided to go with some offline marketing tactics.

The article I was reading this morning was on 37 Ways to Re purpose a Single Blog Post. This was a good post, and it prompted me to think about how those older posts could be used offline. Particularly, the author mentions using those posts for a printed Home Business Newsletter. This is something that I plan to do in the near future. I even looked for newsletter templates, and Microsoft has plenty available right here: http://office.microsoft.com/en-us/templates/CT010104328.aspx#

 If you have a decent color printer you should be able to get things started on your own. Once you find enough places to distribute your Home Business Newsletter, you may look into having them printed. For a single sheet, printed on both sides, then folded once to make a 4 page newsletter, you could reasonably expect no more than a few cents per copy at most print shops. 


Okay, I know what you're thinking. "Where could I distribute these?" Well I'm glad you asked... so to speak. Here are a few ideas of places you may find to place some copies of your Home Business Newsletter. First, look for any place that has a bulletin board. A magnetic clip of some sort, with a few copies fanned out, would be good use. What abotu the car wash or oil change place? Do they have magazines laid out? Maybe you could leave a few copies of your Home Business Newsletter lying around with the magazines. Same for the doctor's office or anywhere else with a waiting room.


Your public library may be another good place to check. They may have a place where you could leave some, and they may even know of other community resources that may be of benefit to you. I've heard of people inserting business cards into most of the books on business. The same could work here, but I cannot condone this activity.

There is always the option of blanketing parking lots or hanging them on front doors of houses, but these methods are not very effective.  Most of your newsletters will eventually find their way into the trash or storm drain. 


Be sure to have your contact info prominently displayed. Another consideration would be to allow a space on the back for a postage label. Now you are prepared for when people subscribe to your Home Business Newsletter. 


I would love to hear some other ideas you may have. If anyone has any other ideas for where to distribute their newsletters, please share in the comments section for all to read.