Archive for January, 2006

Jim Edwards here with this week’s article (below)…

This will be published in tomorrow’s paper, but you get the
“scoop” today

With the rise of online video, several video portals have
gained tremendous popularity… creating a situation where
you can get a lot of FR-EE exposure for your own online
videos and your website.

In fact, one of the sites I talk about in the article below
has a national TV show that does nothing but play web videos
to millions of viewers.

Online video is a phenomenon that can’t be ignored… it’s
taking over the Internet, and creating a situation where
someone with a video camera and a good idea can compete
with companies operating with million dollar budgets.

It’s not about the tools any more, it’s about knowing WHAT
to do with them that counts

To your success,

Jim

PS – Feel free to share this article on your blog, on your
website, in your autoresponder, or in your newsletter (see
simple reprint instructions at the end).

PPS – Mike Stewart and I plan to re-release Website Video
Secrets the middle of February… stay tuned!
http://www.WebsiteVideoSecrets.com

PPPS – you can leave feedback about this article on my blog
below

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Free Websites Showcase Your Videos Online

– by Jim Edwards

© Jim Edwards – All Rights reserved
http://www.thenetreporter.com
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If you didn’t realize that video will take over online this
year, you haven’t been paying attention.

Everything from video blogs to full-blown website
infomercials keep cropping up all across the Internet.

The driving force behind this video explosion is a
combination of cheap bandwidth, easy-to-use authoring tools,
and Flash video (a video format that works on both PC and
MAC).

With the sudden increase in homemade videos about everything
from “how-to break dance” to infomercials about real estate
products, it seems only natural that another explosion
should follow: the appearance of numerous websites that
showcase these homegrown Steven Spielberg’s.

In fact, these online videos have gained so much popularity
some have even crossed over into mainstream television.

Of the three main online video hosting services I looked at,
they all shared the following characteristics.

They all allow you to upload your video and host it free of
charge, making it super easy for even the most technically
challenged videographer.

They all allow visitors to search their sites using
keywords, so describing your video and choosing a good title
(with keywords people search for) will help increase your
exposure.

One of the most exciting features common to these sites is
that they allow you and others to get copy-and-paste code
that you can place on a blog or website (or anywhere else
you can paste html code) and display a video without hosting
it yourself.

This one feature can cause an explosive “viral” effect if
you create a video that appeals to a mass audience because
people can not only pass it along, but post it in additional
locations for everyone to see.

Video.Google.com – Google’s video service makes it possible
to upload and play your videos for people searching through
their growing catalog of homegrown video.

You’ll find everything from web-cam karaoke to infomercials
and “live” seminars. One of the best things about Google
video is the daily report about how many pages views your
video got during the previous day or week.

Also, Google allows you to charge for your videos if you
want, something the other sites don’t yet offer.

A disadvantage of the service is that, of the three, Google
Video takes the longest to approve your videos and make them
available, sometimes taking 48 hours or longer to make a
video “live.”

YouTube.com - YouTube seems to want to foster a feeling of
community with its video portal.

Unlike Google Video, which requires a separate software
program to upload video, YouTube allows users to upload
video right through their website interface. Of the three
sites profiled here, YouTube’s embedded player makes it
easiest to share and pass along video from a blog.

They also approved my video and had it live online in less
than 10-minutes.

IFilm.com - The coolest thing about IFilm.com is the fact
that they have a show on VH1 every Friday called “Web Junk
20″ which features the funniest web videos of the week on
real television.

They also actively promote the concept of “viral videos”
with a separate category in their directory profiling videos
you want to share.

The only negative was that their pass-along player forces
viewers to watch a short ad about IFilm at the beginning,
something the other two don’t do.

–
Jim Edwards is a syndicated newspaper columnist and the
creator of an amazing course that will teach you step-by-
step and click-by-click how to get your own money-making
videos posted online…

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“Finally! A Quick and Easy Way For YOU To Painlessly Create,
Post and PROFIT From Your Own Money-Making Online Videos…
Without Being a Computer Geek or Paying Outrageous Fees To A
Webmaster!” (Even If You Can Barely Point-and-Click)

Click Here => http://www.WebsiteVideoSecrets.com
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** Attn Ezine editors / Site owners **
Feel free to reprint this article in its entirety in your
ezine, blog, autoresponder, or on your site so long as you
leave all links in place, do not modify the content and
include our resource box as listed above.

If you do use the material please send us a note
so we can take a look. Thanks.

© Guaranteed Response Marketing, LLC

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How To Buy Online Without Getting Ripped Off

– by Jim Edwards

© Jim Edwards – All Rights reserved
http://www.thenetreporter.com
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I frequently get similar questions from viewers and
subscribers all over the world.

They often ask me “Jim, what do you think of So-and-So’s
product?” or “How does So-and-So’s product compare to your
product?” or “Should I buy So-and-So’s product?”

Typically these questions are about physical products,
software or information products.

People ask for my opinion not only because I write a
newspaper column, but also because I’ve produced and sold
tens-of-thousands of products to people all around the world
for the past nine years.

Bottom line: people want a clear, concise “yardstick”
against which to measure any online purchase so they never
feel ripped off.

Let me say right up front that I believe 100% in free-market
competition and that having multiple products and
perspectives on the same topic ultimately improves any
marketplace for everyone.

I thank the Firefox browser and Linux operating system for
getting Microsoft off its gigantic backside and addressing
some serious issues.

But, with so many new products coming to market online,
everyone must operate with a simple, effective criteria for
evaluating any offer, especially in the business arena.

Let me offer you the exact same 2-part benchmark I use to
evaluate any business offering that crosses my desktop.

This will help you avoid getting caught up in the “hysteria”
of the moment and buying on impulse, rather than on careful
thought.

Part #1 – I ask myself this question: Do I really need this
in my business or is this just something “new” for the sake
of something new?

If I realize that I’m just getting sucked into the “try
something new” mentality, I put the purchase on hold for 48
hours to “cool off.”

If I honestly decide I need the product, then I move on to
part 2.

Par #2 – I ask myself this question: Has the person selling
me this software, product or course actually DONE (more than
once) what they are selling me “how to” do – and can they
prove it?

If someone sells a piece of software, I want to know how
much time it saved, how much money it saved, how much effort
it helped avoid, and how much money was made as a result of
using it – and I want proof!

Let me simply repeat the mantra of the classic Wendy’s
commercial from the 1980’s: “Where’s the beef?”

If someone tries to sell you a piece of software that claims
to get 10,000 visitors to your site, ask to see screen shots
of their server logs and sales in their merchant account.

If someone tries to sell you a course on creating website
video, ask how many money-making videos they’ve put online
over the years (ask for specific URLs) and run like heck if
their personal website doesn’t have the first video on it
(or if they just put one up this week)!

You’ll never go wrong if, before you buy anything online,
you demand concrete, demonstrable proof that lives up to the
claims made by the person or company selling it.

In the immortal words of Ronald Reagan, “Trust but verify!”
–
Jim Edwards is a syndicated newspaper columnist and the
creator of an amazing course that will teach you step-by-
step and click-by-click how to finally create your own
money-making mini-sites…

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“Finally! A Quick and Easy Way For YOU to Painlessly Set Up
Your OWN Moneymaking ‘Mini’ Websites… Without Being a
Computer Geek, Buying Expensive Software, or Paying
Outrageous Fees To A Webmaster!”

Click Here => http://www.MiniSiteCreator.com
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** Attn Ezine editors / Site owners **
Feel free to reprint this article in its entirety in your
ezine, blog, autoresponder, or on your site so long as you
leave all links in place, do not modify the content and
include our resource box as listed above.

Feel free to join our affiliate program, substitute your
affiliate link in the resource box, and earn a healthy
commission on each sale…

Get the details here:
=> http://www.minisitecreator.com/affiliate.html

If you do use the material please send us a note
so we can take a look. Thanks.

© Guaranteed Response Marketing, LLC

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How Big Websites Help The “Little Guys” Grow

– by Jim Edwards

© Jim Edwards – All Rights reserved
“The Online Business Show”
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One of the most frequent questions I get goes something like
this:

“I don’t have a lot of money. How can I start an online
business or expose my existing online business to the world
without spending a fortune to do it?”

Basically, people want to know how they can exploit the
power of the Internet to grow their businesses with the
least amount of time, energy, effort and money.

My answer: Ride the coattails of the huge websites who’ve
done all the trailblazing you’ll ever need to kick-start
your online business.

According to Alexa.com, the following websites rank among
the Top 10 sites on the Internet out of the billions and
billions of websites available today.

As I list them, pay attention to how they can help any
“bootstrapping” business, no matter what size.

1. Yahoo.com – This perennial search giant not only helps
you research online, but can help get traffic to your site.
Most notably their advertising subsidiary, Overture.com, can
attract visitors to your site starting as low as a dime per
click.

2. MSN.com – Microsoft’s portal site can lead you to free
email accounts (Hotmail.com) and free instant messaging
(Messenger.MSN.com) to make online communication free and
easy.

3. Google.com – Currently the Web’s most popular search
engine and all-around media powerhouse, Google can help you,
among other things, buy clicks starting at about a dime
(AdWords.Google.com) and expose your full-length, full-
motion videos to the world free of charge
(Video.Google.com).

4. eBay.com – The Web’s #1 online auction site, eBay.com
gets millions of visitors daily, all of whom want to spend
money on something. You can spend less than a dollar to put
up some used, damaged, or older merchandise from your
business to gain exposure to new customers and create a new
revenue stream.

5. Passport.net – Passport.net is related to MSN.com and
should get grouped with #2.

6. Amazon.com – The Web’s largest bookseller is also one of
the largest online retailers of consumer goods. You can grow
your business by targeting Amazon’s millions of visitors
with your own books, CDs, DVDs and more for surprisingly
little cost. Also, the Amazon Marketplace makes it easy for
you to sell new and used merchandise directly through
Amazon.

7. MySpace.com – Allows you to create a website that’s part
blog, part chat room and part networking space. MySpace.com
provides a fast way to post and share information with
associates online.

8. Microsoft.com – Besides providing the vast majority of PC
operating systems in the world, Microsoft.com also boasts
one of the largest available clipart and photo collections
on the Web. You can quickly find and use these professional
images in Web sites, brochures and more.

9. Google.co.uk – The popularity of Google’s United Kingdom
site demonstrates that if you sell anything online, figure
out a way to sell it to people in England too! You can
automatically advertise on this site through Google’s
AdWords program (see #3).

10. AOL.com – America Online’s portal site enables you to
get an email box with 2 GB of storage along with their
classic AIM (AOL Instant Messenger) to facilitate all your
online communications.

–
Jim Edwards is a syndicated newspaper columnist and the
creator of an amazing course that will teach you step-by-
step and click-by-click how to finally create your own
money-making mini-sites…

-=-=-==-=-=-=-==-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
“Finally! A Quick and Easy Way For YOU to Painlessly Set Up
Your OWN Moneymaking ‘Mini’ Websites… Without Being a
Computer Geek, Buying Expensive Software, or Paying
Outrageous Fees To A Webmaster!”

Click Here => Money-Making Mini-Sites
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** Attn Ezine editors / Site owners **
Feel free to reprint this article in its entirety in your
ezine, blog, autoresponder, or on your site so long as you
leave all links in place, do not modify the content and
include our resource box as listed above.

Feel free to join our affiliate program, substitute your
affiliate link in the resource box, and earn a healthy
commission on each sale…

Get the details here:
=> Mini-Site Creator Affiliate Program

If you do use the material please send us a note
so we can take a look. Thanks.

© Guaranteed Response Marketing, LLC

Jim Edwards here with a quick update.

I’ve been doing a lot of experiments with Google’s new
Video Store in the last week (testing various formats,
lengths, etc.).

I’ve got one video that I could easily charge for, but I
decided to give it to you in exchange for YOUR *feedback*.

STEP #1 – You can watch this full-length video right now -
for FR’EE -through Google Video…
Title: “How To Use Website Audio Buttons To
Skyrocket Your Sales”

VIDEO -> http://www.igottatellyou.com/GoogleButtonVideo.html

This FR’EE video will teach you my “FORMULA” to create audio
messages for your website that will increase sales, increase
subscriptions, and have people clicking your links on your
website.

STEP #2 – After you watch the video, please leave feedback
about it here on my blog (below).

You can also see my other videos on Google Video here:

More VIDEO -> http://www.igottatellyou.com/JimGoogle.html

Have a great weekend!

Jim

PS – Don’t have your mini-site up yet? Have no fear!
“Finally! A Quick and Easy Way For YOU to Painlessly Set Up
Your OWN Moneymaking ‘Mini’ Websites… Without Being a
Computer Geek, Buying Expensive Software, or Paying
Outrageous Fees To A Webmaster!”

Click Here => http://www.MiniSiteCreator.com

I just posted a website infomercial combined with a
full-length sales letter at http://www.7dayebook.com

It’s very cool and I’m split testing it to see if it raises conversion rates

You can check it out by going to “How To Write And Publish Your Own Ebook… In As Little As 7 Days”