No Sales Pitch Allowed!

Posted on April 22, 2013 by Tom Antion

Content marketing is a technique used to create and distribute relevant and valuable content that is used to attract and turn consumers into a profit. You want to attract consumers that are interested in purchasing your products or services and content marketing can help with that.

Using content to market your business is very popular and effective for either large or small businesses. There is a lot of value by having an integrated content marketing plan for your business. At IMTC our instructors always teach our students the power of content marketing. Content marketing is effective because it takes the sales pitch out of the sale. Content marketing will allow you to deliver info that will educate your target market. Times have changed and consumers are bombarded with sales pitches so they automatically have their guard up, but with content marketing the process becomes a win-win situation. You can establish and build rapport with your target market without being a pushy car salesman.

The classes offered at IMTC will give you the knowledge needed to create quality content that will keep your target audience coming back for return visits. You will also be prepared to deliver content that works best with your unique business and target market. The most popular content marketing methods are blogging, video tutorials, email newsletters, telesiminars, and e-books. Our instructors will teach you how to make a profit from each of those methods.

Visit us at IMTC to discover how you can jump start your business with content marketing.

Benefits of Building Websites with WordPress

Posted on April 19, 2013 by Tom Antion

Here at IMTC we strongly recommend using WordPress websites. WordPress is a popular tool for building websites because it is not extremely complicated and it allows the user to completley customize the functionality by adding “plugins.” A plugin will allow you to change or add a functionality to your WordPress website. We teach you everything you will need to set up your own WordPress website, it may seem overwhelming but with basic computer knowledge and a open mind you can master the basics.

Our user friendly WordPress Website Creation lessons will walk you through the steps to install and set up WordPress website. Our lessons include a combination of videos, articles, and screenshots to cater to every learning style. The diligent instructors have even complied a reference guide of frequently used, and mandatory plugins that will be very useful to you as you walk through the WordPress Creation lessons.

5 Reasons IMTC Loves WordPress

Ease of Use
WordPress is so simple to update on a regular basis. You can add new pages and blog posts quickly and effectively. Skip trying to learn Dreamweaver or any other complicated HTML editing software.

Fully Customizable
With the many different theme, widget, and plugin options you can make a unique website that shows your personality and reflects your business accurately to consumers. Adding your social networking links, a calendar, or an opt in form to your website are a few popular options that are available and easy to use.

Built in Blog
Make your website more interesting by blogging. Blogging will establish you as an expert in your field and you will be able to interact with your consumers. RSS, comments, and email subscriptions are all possible with a WordPress website.

Search Engines like WordPress
SEO becomes a breeze because you will have full control over the meta tag keywords, descriptions, and titles. The simple interface also makes it easy for search engines to read and index your website. If done correctly you can get more visitors to your website.

Multiple Users
You can set up multiple users to manage the site.

If you are a business owner we believe that you should understand how WordPress works so you can edit and update your own website without having to rely on a web designer for the simple tasks. After mastering the WordPress Website Creation lessons you will have the skills and knowledge to be self sufficient in running your own business website or you can be a WordPress consultant and help other businesses set up their own WordPress websites.

The options are open to you and here at IMTC we make sure you are well prepared and qualified. Check us out and start your career in Internet Marketing.

Crowdfunding, How Can It Help Me?

Posted on March 13, 2013 by Tom Antion

Crowdfunding is raising funds to start a business idea by reaching out to your community and friends. Crowdfunding has become popular because of social networking. To date there have been thousands of business's that were funded by a crowdfunding project.

Everyday people push their business ideas to the back burner because they do not have the money to start working on their dream. This is where crowdfunding comes into play. There are multiple crowdfunding platforms:
KickStarter
Indiegogo
Fundable

It doesn't matter which platform you choose, they are each unique so do your research. In order to be successful with a crowdfundong project there are a few steps that you must follow and execute.

1. Promote, you have to reach out to all your friends, family, and social networks so they can help fund your project. In this case the more the merrier.

2. Engage your supporters by making it a competition by offering a reward for the highest bidder.

3. Communicate your goals and let your social network know your current progress and be passionate and personable.

4. Make sure you pick an realistic time goal to raise your money. If its too short your project will not have enough time to win the interest of your network. If it is too long you will annoy your network. A good idea is to let your community know your plans and create excitement before you post your crowdfunding project.

These are just a few tips to get you headed in the right direction when looking to fund your great business idea. Make sure you stay motivated and positive through the duration to get your supporters excited fpr your new business venture.

5 Important Steps to Successful Internet Marketing

Posted on March 4, 2013 by Tom Antion

Step 1: Be specific when defining your goals
Most people fail at Internet Marketing because they haven't decided on a specific goal.

Step2: Know your target audience
Online marketing involves understanding your target audience and knowing what they want and don't want.

Step 3: Know your competition
Know what Internet Marketing Strategies they are using. If your competition is successful, take notes. If your competition is not successful, and take notes to learn from their mistakes.

Step 4: Measure progress
Measure and check to see if your goals were achieved. This is the only way to gauge the success of your Internet Marketing efforts.

Step 5: Know when to outsource
Making the decision to learn how to make your own logo or hiring somebody to do it for you is very important. As a business owner it is your responsibility to decide what is more cost effective for your business.

Here at IMTCV we teach our students each one of these important steps in Internet Marketing. Just skipping one step will greatly hinder your marketing efforts. Make sure you understand how to implement each of these steps into your business marketing plan. If you want to learn more visit IMTCVA.org.

All Online Businesses Need an SEO Specialist

Posted on March 1, 2013 by Tom Antion

Internet Marketing careers are in high demand. There are many businesses that are not online yet and need your help. If you are reading this you probably already know how powerful the Internet is, and you are looking for a career in Internet Marketing. Lucky for you there are many options for anybody looking to tackle the Internet head on.

One popular topic in the Internet Marketers world is search engine optimization or SEO for short. SEO involves using strategies and techniques to increase the amount of visitors you get to your website because your page ranks higher than the competition.

Over the years the job of an SEO Specialist has become more complex. Most business owners simply do not have time to learn SEO and use it effectively, so your services will allow them to focus on what they do best. To be a good SEO Specialist you must:

Always be learning because the search engines are forever changing.
Be a great communicator because you will be collaborating with webmasters, copywriters, and graphic designers.
Pay attention to detail.
Love solving problems to get the desired search engine results for your client.
Be a creative thinker because thinking outside of the box will keep you ahead of your competition.

A good SEO Specialist is a very valuable asset for any online business. Here at IMTCVA we teach the best and most current SEO practices to get websites ranked higher in search engines. Start your career as a SEO Specialist now!

Consumer Online Activities

Posted on February 27, 2013 by Tom Antion

There are many different reasons consumers go online. Listed below are the top 6 activities consumers perform online:

92% Email
92% Search
81% Check the Weather
76% Read News
71% Watch Videos
71% Purchase Products

You are reading this because you are thinking about starting a career in Internet Marketing or you already have a business and you are trying to increase your web presence. As an Internet Marketer it is your job to capitalize on the current trends. A lot of tasks we used to do offline have been replaced by online activities. For example the Netflix streaming volume exceeded rentals in 2012. Consumers are still watching movies but the Internet has made it easier, you don't even have to leave your couch to purchase the latest movie. While Netflix is making profits, Blockbuster went bankrupt. Instead of going against the trends, stay ahead of the curve and visit IMTCVA.org to start your profitable Internet Marketing career.

Writing Articles at Home for a Career – IMTCVA

Posted on January 15, 2013 by Tom Antion

Do you like to write? Was this something you were good at in school?

Content and article marketing is taking the Internet by storm. As Google looks to change the way people search and find information on the web, good content that is keyword rich and interesting is taking center stage. Businesses can bring in web traffic from all over the world by having good and relevant content spread all over the Internet. The catch is: there's not enough writers for the demand for good content.

Businesses are turning towards outsourcing in foreign countries to fill the void. A lack of English skills has created a large amount of content that is ineffective at best, not to mention the inability to understand the nuances of search engine optimization. Effective articles need to have the proper keyword ‘weight' to them — the right keywords that people are searching for in just the right amounts. Too few keywords and the article becomes irrelevant; too many and it looks like spamming.

It's not hard when you learn exactly how to do it. It's an important task that is growing more popular all of the time. This creates an excellent opportunity for young people with good writing skills to work at home and have the freedom of self employment. What could working from home at a lucrative and growing career field mean for you?

The answers are right here…

Marketing on Discussion Forums

Posted on November 21, 2012 by Tom Antion

Discussion forums are a great place to get to network with like-minded people and express your expert opinions and answer questions for others. Many forums are heavily populated with users that log in a couple of times a week, and have a large subscribership. Most forums are broken down into a main topic and many sub-topics, attracting a narrow interest focus of highly qualified visitors. It's for this reason that forums can be used as a great marketing tool.

As a member of a forum, it's bad etiquette to simply try and sell from the forum discussions. In fact, leaving a URL to an outside website address in the post body itself can get you into trouble. But most forum mediators let members create a ‘signature file' that is appended to the end of each conversation and response, that can help drive traffic to websites and information. These sites can be blogs, websites or affiliate products that each member has a chance to promote. Here is a snapshot of a signature file in a member's post:

For a member like this, who has posted over 2000 times on this forum alone, think about the millions of people who have read these posts and possibly clicked on the links in his signature file at the bottom (clickable links in blue). And these clicks aren't random — they are from people who are familar with this member's expertise and trust what he has to say. How can you use forum marketing to your advantage?

Sales Letter Headlines: Stir Your Reader’s Curiosity

Posted on March 6, 2012 by Tom Antion

The headline of a piece of sales copy or advertising is the most important part of the entire ad. That's because it's the first point of contact and the single element that ‘pulls' the reader in further. You can't sell to someone if they don't read the ad. The headline needs to be well thought out and stir the emotions of the reader so they will dive in head first. What are some important elements to look for?

Does it relate to them? – TO PEOPLE WHO WANT TO WRITE — BUT CAN’T GET STARTED

Do they imagine it could be them? – THOUSANDS HAVE THIS PRICELESS GIFT — BUT NEVER DISCOVER IT!

Does it create a fear? – LAST FRIDAY…WAS I SCARED!—MY BOSS ALMOST FIRED ME!

Does it create a sense of wanting to change? – OFTEN A BRIDESMAID, NEVER A BRIDE

Does it ‘personalize' and identify with someone else? – IMAGINE SOMEONE LIKE ME…HOLDING AN AUDIENCE SPELLBOUND FOR 30 MINUTES

These are emotional ‘triggers' that stir curiosity in the reader and will make them want to read further. It's important to try and put a point across without sounding to salesy. You want them to focus more on the information: What's in it for them? What benefits will they get? Rather than making it look like something's for sale.

Writing ads will never go away. There are even more places on the Internet to compel people to buy: squeeze pages, videos, articles, banner ads, etc… and each one has a certain element that makes it stand out to your visitor. IMTC teaches the techniques of good web copy and profit pulling content. It's something that will make you more valuable in the workplace. Be your own attention-grabbing headline and lure employers to you!

Choosing a Niche Market Wisely

Posted on February 1, 2012 by Tom Antion

Choosing a Niche Market

Choosing a niche market can be rather challenging for new Internet marketers. One of the biggest and worst mistakes anyone can possibly make is picking a niche without data to support potential profitability, then spending weeks or months building up their websites content hoping the traffic will follow. Sorry, but it doesn't work that way.

Before you put any eggs into your online marketing basket you need to make sure you have all your ducks in a row first; before proceeding with your website building phase. Here's a few things to keep in mind whenever selecting a niche market for your Internet marketing business.

Niche Potential Profitability

You should always choose a niche that has a large enough audience that are ready and willing to purchase products or services in that specific niche. Yet, you also want to make certain that the competition level isn't overly saturated, which makes it extremely difficult to make money. Having some competition in your niche is a good indicator of profitability, and by performing the proper keyword research can help you match those profitable keywords and phrases to highly sort after products or services.

Finding Niches of Interest

Although there's nothing wrong with finding profitable niches in markets that don't really interest you, you should consider markets that you enjoy, or have an extreme interest in. The reason for this is simple; people tend to have more longevity when doing something they really enjoy versus something they have little interest in. So to stay focused and motivated you should choose a niche that you absolutely enjoy.

You should try to come up with at least five things you really enjoy, and begin researching these niches. More than likely you will find one that's not only interesting to you, but profitable as well.

Niche Lifespan and Scalability

You should select a niche market that has an indefinite lifespan and the potential to grow. For instance, I would stay away from niches such as Halloween costumes simply because it's a seasonal niche. Once Halloween ends your paychecks disappears until next season!

Whenever searching for a niche market to dive into, make certain that it has the potential to grow on a long term basis. Many niches have the potential to sustain long term growth, and have related products and services to add to your niche market.

These are a just few key things to remember when choosing profitable niche markets. To learn more about choosing niche markets come on over to The Internet Marketing Training Center of Virgina, and don’t forget to download your FREE brochure.