If used correctly, blogs can make great platforms to use to sell services, information, or even hard products. The problem is, most internet marketers don't really understand the internet selling process well enough to make their blogs into cash machines. This article will explore the process of how you write to sell and how that affects selling from a blog.
Let's get a few basics out of the way.
A blog is a website where the web pages (called posts) are listed in sequential order down the page. Each post is usually dated, and they are usually categorized in some fashion, with the categories being in a navigation window or bar either on the left-hand side of the blog or the right-hand side of the blog.
There are number of blogging platforms you can use. Google provides one called Blogger. There are also a ton of Web 2.0 platforms--Weebly is one of my favorites. WordPress has a free blogging platform you can use just by registering.
If you want to host your own blog (which you should if you're serious), then WordPress is the current gold standard.
Most people think of blogs like online journals. In fact, there are millions upon millions of blogs out there. Most of these are personal blogs, written by individuals. These blogs mainly talk about the individual's life--what they ate for breakfast, what happened when their dog got run over, that sort of thing.
A few years ago, businesses discovered blogging. Most businesses still haven't a clue about what to do with their blog. They see blogging as a way of communicating on a more informal way with their marketplace. That's okay, I guess, but since I'm basically a direct marketer, I don't like advertising that doesn't create immediate sales.
That's actually what I use blogs for! Immediate sales. Recently, internet marketers like myself have caught on to the fact that blogs make great platforms to sell stuff from.
If you know how.
To understand how to use a blog to sell whatever it is you're selling, you need to understand how the average internet customer buys.
People who end up buying something on the Internet, usually start by searching for information. They have a problem. They search for information to solve that problem. And, lo and behold, there is a solution for their actual problem--all they need to do is pull out the credit card and buy the solution.
That pattern--problem, search for information, find information, find out about a product that will solve their problem, buy the product--is the basic way people buy on the internet.
As internet marketers, we need to understand this process so we can become part of it--and make money.
Where do blogs fit in?
Blogs are great places to write information about a particular problem searchers have. The blog's posts get indexed by Google. The prospect with the problem finds out about the posts through a Google search. He or she reads our stuff, and, following our recommendation, buys whatever it is we're offering.
To learn more about how to promote your website, download my free ebook: Five Steps to Web Profits!
Lee Cole is an successful internet marketer who can help you get your internet business up and running, and most importantly--profitable! To learn more, visit Lee's website!
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