DAY 10 -- Monetize & Monetize It!

SBI! Modules Used Today -- Monetize It!

C  T  P  M...   It's finally M time!

You have a solid and growing foundation of high-quality content pages. You are value-exchanging selectively and garnering quality in-pointing links from niche directories and other sources. Targeted traffic is building.

Your PREselling efforts are becoming more refined as you build your "Brand of One." You are nurturing trust and credibility with your new (and repeat!) visitors by OVERdelivering relevant, original, high-value information (through your site, Blog It!, e-zine, Content 2.0, etc.). People like your content... and you!

Now, your site is ready to convert those ever-increasing numbers of PREsold visitors into income. How? By blending together your primary monetization model with a few others, in order to create a diverse, stable online business.

Your DAY 10 goal is to begin implementing your DAY 4 Monetization plan.

After you have created 30 pages, you will use the Monetize It! module to further grow your site's monetization.

You are on the home stretch of the 10 DAY process. Nothing is more exhilarating than that first check your site generates!

Step 1 - Decide if it's the right time to Monetize.

In DAY 4, your focus was on "show me the money." You needed to be sure of the monetary potential. Now it's time to "make me the money."

There's no one-size-fits-all answer to the question, "When do I monetize?" As a general rule of thumb, do not monetize before you...

• have at least 30 pages
• have at least 4 relevant, quality in-pointing links, of which two should be from directories (ex., DMOZ, Yahoo! (dir.yahoo.com), niche directories)
• have started to receive a steady stream of visitors (at least 20 per day).

  Why wait? If you have less than 20 visitors per day, there is nothing to monetize (unless you sell an expensive service or specialized product). But there are all kinds of potential downsides to adding AdSense ads and affiliate links too soon on your site. Why risk it?

Does your site meet the above guidelines (review Day 4 details)? If not, keep adding content and get at least a few solid in-pointing links. Don't worry about how much money you could be making from those "15 visitors per day." You are not ready for M yet.

Once you can say "yes" to the above 3 criteria, ask yourself three more questions. These ones are "softer" (i.e., qualitative) but they are even more important for your long-term success.

1. Have I created value for my target audience? (See Adding Value to the Web: Why Your Article Matters.)
2. Does my content/information focus on the needs of my visitors first, rather than my need to make money?
3. Does my site have a clear VPP and voice or does it sound like an encyclopedia? Rewrite if you answer "encyclopedia." Do it now, before you realize you have to rewrite 100 pages!

These two resources will assist you...

• You are not Wikipedia.
• Write to PREsell.

Always remember...

You are a "Content Provider" first and foremost. You are not your monetization model (as this article explains).

High-quality, relevant Content is what drives the C  T  P engine that delivers high volumes of PREsold visitors who love you. Once you have a solid traffic base, monetization is easy.

If an affiliate link or an e-book (your own creation, or someone else's effort from ClickBank's marketplace, for example ) truly adds value to your visitors and it won't hurt your traffic-building potential (ex., it might keep you out of a directory if its editor objects to your site's "commercialization"), then you might consider monetizing earlier. But...

Really think it through, though.

• Would you add this offering even if you were not being paid for it?
• Does it truly help solve a problem for your visitors?
• Does it complement your site?

Make an objective judgement -- don't rush just to earn a few dollars right now. There is even some evidence to suggest that affiliate links on a "young site" can hurt your site's "reputation" at Google.

Be careful. Tread lightly. There is lots of time to blend in the M.

Bottom line?

Monetizing too soon will slow down your business-building process. Be patient. Focus on Priorities -- this stage-by-stage TNT article helps you determine what your most important priority is right now and whether or not Monetization is it.

Still can't decide whether or not it's time to monetize?

One of these forums might provide the clue. Another SBIer's business may be at the same stage of development as your own or just ahead of yours. His or her experiences will be invaluable...

MONETIZING (Day 10)

MONETIZING ---> E-goods Creators/Sellers

MONETIZING ---> Service Businesses, Professions, Sales and Rental Agents

MONETIZING ---> Other Monetization Models

And remember... help and be helped. The SBI! Forums are the most friendly and productive online community. Pay it forward.

Step 2 - Review, improve, and implement your Monetization Plan.

Are you ready to monetize? Great! It's time to reap tangible rewards for all of your efforts, your ROI. And that means switching your business mindset from providing quality unique information for free to generating income from your content.

Start by reviewing your DAY 4 Monetization plan. Actually, it's a good idea to re-read all of
DAY 4.

You know much more about your Site Concept now. Different monetization models may strike you as being appropriate. Scan through the Monetization HQ -- certain ideas and articles may mean more to you now.

No matter what your monetization strategy is, diversify to take full advantage of your PREsold traffic. Introduce at least two or three income streams, improving your chances of making every visitor to your site count.

• Are you getting the most out of AdSense? Review the strategies outlined on these two pages...

  http://mhq.sitesell.com/adsense-income-strategies.html

  http://mhq.sitesell.com/adsense-placement-strategies.html

  For just the top tips, click here to review this summary.

  

  The Google AdSense Video demonstrates how to set up AdSense on your site and shares tips and strategies to maximize your income.

  Click here to view the Google AdSense Video (under the DAY 10 section of the Video Action Guide).

• Hard goods seller? Create an e-book, "How To Get The Best Out of [the product]," and sell it, too! Or simply bundle up all of your top articles, add a cover, and market this new product through ClickBank.
• An affiliate? Offer special reports (less time-consuming to create than an e-book) that include your affiliate links (see "A Low-Priced Book or Report is Simple to Sell" article).
• Are you a travel site owner with several finder's fee arrangements in motion? Sell quality videos, or market your own top-notch DVD as well.
• What about adding another income stream via joint ventures with non-competitive businesses?

As you progress on your business-building journey, ask yourself this question often...

"How can I get more money out of a higher percentage of visitors?"

Diversification also brings stability. Never put all your eggs into one monetization basket.

Add each income stream one at a time, weeks or months apart. Assess each one. Optimize it. Keep building content while you focus on building more targeted traffic for your primary monetizer.

Once one model is well-established, add another. Take your time. Slowwwww down and tortoise it. Running too fast and adding a whole bunch of money-making schemes will get you nowhere fast.

Follow your plan, steadily and surely.

Monetization, if done properly, is not about adding a pile of affiliate links and a ton of AdSense ads all over the place. Think it through. Remember your visitor's experience. Although you are building your business to generate revenue, monetization is a careful, deliberate, and delicate process.

Keep two prime considerations in mind while monetizing...

• Get into the mindset of your visitor. Match the unique needs of your audience to the most ideal products and solutions.
• Avoid jeopardizing the goodwill (i.e., the PREselling) that your customer-focused content is building.

For example, when you select affiliate programs to join, make sure you know enough about the products before you endorse them. You don't want to ruin the credibility you've worked so hard to gain by recommending products you aren't familiar with. What if they turn out to be duds or a rip-off? That will instantly lower your credibility.

Plus, when you really know the products, you can write about them with a passion. Your audience will pick up on that natural enthusiasm, so instead of seeing a sales pitch, they'll view it as an honest recommendation from someone they trust.

Many 5 Pillar affiliates recommend SBI! from their "About Me" pages. Rather than hard-selling SBI! all over their site with banners and graphics, they simply tell a story about how they created their site and blend in some audience-relevant SBI! information. No loud hype. Just an honest story about a product they genuinely use and love.

Use this same know-your-product philosophy with every affiliate program you join. Recommend the best and leave the rest. When you really know the product and can communicate the relevant benefits to your visitors, you'll have a much better chance of converting the sale and sustaining that credibility you've gained with your PREselling.

Effective monetizing is a constantly evolving process. Periodically evaluate your monetization strategies to ensure that you are still in sync with the needs of your target audience.

Tah-dah! 30 Pages!

Once your site reaches 30 pages, a powerful tool opens to your command. You are ready to discover the power of Monetize It!. Literally "discover," because it will not appear before then.

Step 3 - Use Monetize It!.

What is Monetize It!?

Good question. Let's answer by telling you what it does...

Monetize It! (MI!) is a tool which pulls data together from a wide variety of sources...

• It starts with all your existing data in Brainstorm It! (ex., Value Demand, Real Supply, etc.).
• It imports new data from Google AdWords. Important Note: Monetize It! used to accept data from Yahoo! Search Marketing. However, Yahoo! switched their information formatting, so MI! can no longer use it. Focus on Google AdWords.
• Different MI! modules also pull together data from other areas of SBI! (ex., # visitors, SE rankings, etc.).

MI!'s special tools mine, combine and analyze all that data to build cost-effective lists of keywords to help you...

1. Build new Content (no matter what, continue to build more Content!).

   MI!'s Content-Building module helps you find "content holes." It uncovers valuable ("high-Keyworth") keywords for which you should create more content, as well as how/where to get more out of your existing content.

2. Sell advertising (if you are selling ads -- "sell high"). Do you place Google AdSense or Yahoo! Publisher Network ads on your site? MI!'s Ad-Selling module helps you maximize ad revenues. MI! shows you where to place ads and where not to.
3. Build PPC campaigns (if you are buying PPC -- "buy low").

   Do you have a high-profit product or service to sell? Use MI!'s PPC-Buying module to find cheap, targeted keywords for PPC campaigns at Google AdWords that drive more targeted traffic to your high-"ROI" ("Return on Investment") goods and services.

What's the Difference Between Brainstorm It! and Monetize It!?

Everything starts at Brainstorm It!. BI! builds and controls your Master Keyword List (the list of all brainstormed keywords). So you add, delete and brainstorm whole new sets of words there.

Monetize It! uses the MKL. It does not add or delete words. If you delete a keyword in the MKL, it will disappear from Monetize It! as well. And to add new keywords to your MKL, you must use Brainstorm It!, not MI!.

Monetize It! takes your MKL and builds upon it by adding monetization-relevant data into the list. It then uses advanced tools to mine that data and perform important monetizing functions that would not otherwise be possible.

It's a unique triple-module -- only SBI! has a master database that tracks everything that ever happens/happened on your site. This allows MI! to uncover lucrative new content-building, ad-selling, and PPC-buying opportunities.

Where Does All That Data Come From?

You already know about and have two of the important sources...

1. Master Keyword List

   You know all about Value Demand, Real Supply and Profitability. Those concepts are important to get you started. They are "big picture" measurements that show you where the best potential lies. Even your Notepads are going to come back into the picture, more important than ever.

   Prep Step

   Before starting MI!, prepare. One important prep step builds a strong, stripped-down starting point from which MI! will indeed "monetize you to the max." Here it is...

   Weed and prune the list of keywords in your MKL.

   Use the MKL tools (in Brainstorm It!) to eliminate all keywords that will not form part of your Web site. Do it now, before you start gathering data for Monetize It!. It's important...

   • It's good discipline for you -- it keeps you highly focused. You'll be looking at a lot of data. No point in wasting time on "no-fits."
   • It's considerate -- please do not needlessly suck Google PPC resources on "wasted words."

   Cull your MKL list down to a few hundred "keepers" and...

   Check the checkboxes of the words you do not want to keep. Then select "Delete Checked" from the Select Action drop-down menu.

   You'll be left with prime material, ready for Monetize It! to do its thing.

2. Existing Data Elsewhere

   MI! uses data from all of your Web pages, their Specific Keywords, the # of visitors that find each page and the # of visitors that find you for each keyword (not the same thing, as you'll see shortly).

   MI! also mines and analyzes your Search Engine HQ rankings, in different ways according to what the goal is. And, yes, even your good old MKL Notepad is coming back, more important than ever.

   And there is a third source of data, an outside source...

3. Google Adwords

   Monetize It! imports the Pay-Per-Click (PPC) and Predicted Click Demand Per Month (PCDM) data for all the keywords in your MKL. This monetary data enables MI! to attach a true, market-driven dollar value to keywords.

   Even if you are not interested in using Pay-Per-Click ("PPC") advertising to build more traffic to your site, you will register for a Google AdWords account to get this data because it boosts the yield of the first two MI! modules (Content-Building and Ad-Selling).

   As a side effect, you'll learn about PPC advertising. And you just may discover that PPC can indeed be applied to your business. If that happens, you'll find the third MI! module, PPC-Buying, useful too.

What Does MI! Do With All That Data?

Monetize It! takes the data from all three sources and combines and analyzes it in totally new ways. For example, it creates important new measurements such as Keyworth (a hard measure of what a keyword is actually worth).

Monetize It! uses this to help you find more profitable content-building opportunities. Yes, it actually helps you find more valuable keywords to build more content around.

And it helps you decide which pages should be ad-selling and which pages should be left ad-free.

PPC-buying? You may be surprised. MI! finds very cheap keywords, unusual overlooked "buying opportunities."

There are many ways to monetize, of course. Monetize It!'s modules do not help with all forms of monetizing, well not directly anyway...

• Content-Building is, of course, core to C  T  P  M. So you will use the Content-Building module to grow all aspects of your business.
• Ad-Selling (Google AdSense or Yahoo! Publisher Network ads) is a frequently used monetization model. So you likely will use the Ad-Selling module, too. It can easily double or triple your ad revenues.
• PPC-Buying may not be useful if you don't sell a high-profit product or service.

Whether only one or all three modules are useful for your particular business...

Tortoise It!... One Steady Step at a Time.

Don't rush into MI! and overwhelm yourself. MI! is a "super-module" composed of three substantial modules. Take it slowly...

• Start with the Content-Building module. It will find and show you new, high-profit ideas/keywords for more content.
• If you "sell" AdSense and/or other ads, progress to Ad-Selling. This module shows how to maximize your ad-generating dollars ("sell keywords high").
• Finally, if PPC-buying makes sense for your business, the PPC-Buying module shows you how to build the most cost-effective campaigns possible ("buy keywords low").

MI! is for advanced SBI! tortoises only.

Its modules will require some time and patience before you are comfortable using them...

That's OK. Take your time, learning them one by one as outlined above. If Monetize It! merely finds you great new Content opportunities...

It will have been worth its weight in electrons. But it will do much more than that.

It's not an "easy" module to master, but if you put the effort into it, MI! will constantly amaze you. Nothing like Monetize It! exists on the Web. So...

Let's Get Started

After your site reaches 30 pages of content, you will see a drop-down menu at the top of both the Brainstormer and the Master Keyword List sections of Brainstorm It!. Explore the four parts of Monetize It!...

• MONETIZE IT! HOME
• Content-Building
• Ad-Selling
• PPC-Buying

You will find your Master Keyword List in the Content-Building and PPC-Buying sections, along with some data. The Ad-Selling display is a list of all your pages, not all the keywords from your MKL.

Once you've looked around, head for "HOME." You have one "to do" at MI! HOME... Import the Google PPC data (discussed above). We will do that step by step (following online Help & Strategies), in just a moment.

First, though, let's go on a quick tour. Monetize It! is divided into 3 modules...

1. Content-Building: Use this to find great untapped areas for new content creation, as well as how/where to get more out of existing content.

   

   Mmmmm... just look at those high-Keyworth keywords, just begging the owner of anguilla-beaches.com to create new Content. Oh wait, sorry...

   You don't know how to "read" this yet. You will!

2. Ad-Selling: Maximize ad-selling revenues.

   

3. PPC-Buying: Build full Pay-Per-Click (PPC) campaigns if you sell a high-profit product or service.

   

See the yellow-highlighting in the above three displays? Monetize It! even gives you an indication of what it considers to be the most reliable keywords.

Intimidated? Don't be. There's no race. Go at your own pace.

Now, Where Were We? Oh Yes, at MI! HOME

You can get as much as you like out of MI!. Whether you stick to the basics or go totally berserk and get deep into MI!, you will indeed...

Monetize It!.

Ready to use this "cherry on the top" triple-module?

Just before the MI! tour, we were at MONETIZE IT! HOME and about to do our one "to do" here. Let's do it now!

Click on the next to the Monetize It! headline.

Proceed to the help for "Getting Data Into Monetize It!" and you will be on your way. Once you have this data, MI! is "fully loaded." You are good to go!

Go where?

Start and stick with the Content-Building module for as long as you like. If you master only one MI! module, make it this one. Once again, the Help & Strategies will walk you through it, step by tortoise step.

When you have mastered Content-Building, move on to Ad-Selling and finally to PPC-Buying (if relevant). Each module has its own dedicated Help & Strategies to show you how to squeeze the most out of it.

Guess what? You are almost finished your 10-DAY journey. There is just one more important principle to cover.

Step 4 - Keep moving forward on the C  T  P  M path... tortoise style.

Well, that's it. The end of DAY 10. The end, but just the beginning of the rest of your business!

You now know enough to...

• look deep within yourself and find your passion, knowledge, and expertise to start a new business, or to help you build a theme-based content site to boost an existing business (online or off!)
• create a site based upon that knowledge, full of high-profitability topics
• write content that acts like juicy bait to those hungry "Search Engine" spiders
• write content that PREsells and gets excellent Conversion Rates no matter how you monetize
• build even more PREsold traffic through a variety of techniques, including a frequently changing blog/RSS feed, a PREselling e-zine, and through contact forms, surveys, courses and other uses of Form Build It!
• monetize your traffic in a variety of ways -- make every visitor count and build a diverse, stable, profitable, online business.

In other words...

You know how to build and market a Web site that WORKS!

You are well on your way to doing that now, and will continue to build upon these skills over the coming months and years with this site... and your second, third, and fourth ones, too!

All you need to do is follow the SBI! process, step by step.

Use "Your Business-Building Checklist" as a compass to ensure that you don't miss any critical steps.

Along the way, of course, there will be victories and setbacks. There are humps to overcome. And wonderful breakthroughs happen at unexpected times.

For one good example, please see this update sent in by Elad. For other inspiring role models, see ongoing, ever-building success in action...

http://case-studies.sitesell.com/

http://results.sitesell.com/

If they can do it, you can too. Simple as that.

Have faith in C  T  P  M. Way too many people have used SBI! to succeed in six figures for this to be a fluke. Through it all...

• don't get too low when it proves to take a while to get some traffic -- the snowball does indeed build beautifully once you get over that first hump
• don't get too excited when traffic (and income) builds and builds -- there will be setbacks, through which you merely keep working
• enjoy the journey as much as the final destination -- that part is easy when you build based upon something you know and enjoy.

Go beyond following... do/live the Action Guide.

Step 5 - Never Stop Learning... SBI! Bookmarks

And now? Now it's in your hands. Never stop learning, but don't feel you have to know it all in a day. Honestly, if you just keep building more and more great content, you'll do well.

Along the way, there are lots of ways to keep on getting smarter, many ways to get questions answered. Let's review a few spots you should bookmark...

Find It!, a convenient way to locate a specific piece of SBI!-related information, is probably already on your personal radar screen...

http://findit.sitesell.com/

Visit the different HQs at Site Central often. Mine the information in...

• Monetization HQ  Articles on all the various monetization models.

• the Tips 'N Techniques HQ  Additional cream-of-the-crop information, tips, and how-to strategies. Don't miss...

  • Put On Your Blinders And Focus
  • BAM vs. Intelligence
  • Ken's Best Advice on Success
  • The Way of the Tortoise
  • Overwhelmed? -- A Post by Ken
• the SBI! Resources HQ  The best third-party (i.e., non-SiteSell) high-quality products that extend the power and profits of SBI!.
• the traffic-building HQs (reached via Site Central) -- Search Engine HQ, Value Exchange, Image Search HQ, Local Search HQ, Other Search HQ, and of course, Traffic Stats, too).

Keep in mind that the DownloadCenter in Site Central is your one-stop location for SBI! resource books.

Read the almost weekly issues of Site Build It! Xpress. Its articles are totally geared to your needs as an SBI! user. They are not to be missed. The most recent issues are at...

http://sbix.sitesell.com

Or... subscribe to SiteSell's "The Blog." The Zine Mailing section of this highly recommended blog ensures you receive notice of every e-zine mailing. To subscribe, go to...

http://blog.sitesell.com/

There are no extensive "back issue archives." Why not? Because you don't have time to read all back issues. So anything important is "absorbed" into the appropriate HQs. And out-of-date material is constantly deleted from all HQs.

The net result? You only ever have to follow the small amount of important info that is relevant to you. Cancel your subscriptions to all but the small number of zines critical to your business. All you need is SBI!. Really.

Yes... really.

Stay informed. Stay current. Stay smart!...

Plug into the important RSS feeds. Review Ken's Latest Posts, and SBI! Forums Latest Posts. It's an easy and super-convenient way to keep your finger on the SBI! pulse.

Make it a priority, whenever possible, to read Ken's Latest Posts. Packed with carefully written guidance, tips and fresh ideas, they are definitely worth your time! All new SBI! developments are also announced in these posts. Never miss a launch announcement again!

If you need to set yourself up with an RSS reader, please see...

http://sbitips.sitesell.com/learn-rss.html

Need help?

Check the FAQs in SiteSell Support.

The FAQs in the SBI! forums are super-informative, too.

And, of course, help and be helped at the SBI! Forums...

http://forums.sitesell.com/

Enhance every facet of your business-building efforts with Search It!. Become a business power-surfer! Leave Search It! open on your screen and try to do at least 5 searches per day. (Force yourself until it's a habit).

Start with the public version and then once you're comfortable with the tool, use the private SBIer version in Site Central's InfoCenter.

So What's The Secret to Success?

The big fraud of Internet Marketing is "the secret." There is none. There is no shortcut to the need to work hard to build a real business, one with enduring, growing value.

SBI! does not remove the need for hard work. But it does allow you to apply 100% of your time into building a business, not fighting technology or "mastering Search Engines."

And hard work does not mean 40 or 20 or even 10 hours per week. You can do this, like Ken's teenaged daughter did, on one hour per week. It just takes longer, that's all. "Hard work" is about consistency and getting it done, whatever your time budget may be.

By the way, that teenager now has the #1 site in the world on Anguilla. Lucky for that Caribbean island she's not spending 40 hours per week on the site. She'd own the island by now!

Ultimately, it all comes down to perseverance. It's the single most common "must-have" on the road to success. Do you know why persistence wins? Because "defeat" only happens when you make the decision to stop trying.

Determination works. Commit now to succeed. Decide now to accept nothing less. Steady forward motion, even if it's just a step per week, gets you there. So keep moving, even if it's only a small distance some weeks.

Only those willing to bring BAM to succeed will be the ones to reap the riches and independence the Web offers. Life and business have always been that way.

"BAM" people are the customers SBI! tries so hard for. You deserve to succeed. All SBI! does is offer all the tools, from brainstorming to Sitemap to Site-Blogging to (well, you know the list).

SBI! removes all the barriers that stop even those with BAM. You can stop wasting time, stop hitting your head on the walls of tedium and technology. Instead, you focus all your time and energy to...

Just do business!

And that brings me back to my all-time favorite quote that I shared at the end of DAY 5 and will repeat here...

"How to succeed? Try hard enough."
Malcolm Forbes
(1919-1990)

There's nothing else. Go get 'em. And...

Send us a post card every now and then.

P.S. Please spread the word. Tell your friends and family, colleagues at work, about SBI!. SBI! grows purely by word-of-mouth, allowing us to "grow without change"... to OVERdeliver value and your success. For more information, click here for an article by Ken.