Day 4 -- Investigate and Plan Monetization Options
SBI! Modules Used Today -- Brainstorm It!, Search It!, Monetization HQ
You're almost ready to finalize a domain name and then start building! You have identified your best Site Concept. You have brainstormed it extensively, and then pruned & sorted your keywords into a 3-TIER blueprint. Today...
Your DAY 4 goal is to fully investigate and plan the monetization models for your upcoming site.
"Read" and "watch."
Click here to access the Action Guide Videos!
Keep these words by Thomas A. Edison in mind as you work through DAY 4...
"Good fortune is what happens when opportunity meets with planning."
Today's Action Steps
C 
T P M Finally... It's M time!
Here is how you will investigate and plan your Monetization Mix...
- Do a quick preliminary assessment of your theme's profitability.
- Review the Monetization HQ articles, identifying "best-fit" monetization models.
- Explore the SBI! Monetization Forums.
- Use Search It!.
- Use a very special Brainstorm It! tool... Site Info Notepads.
- "Finalize" your Monetization Mix.
The M Comes Last
The "theme-based content site" is a flexible strategy that anyone can create and monetize. But do you know the #1 mistake that most small business people commit while starting their online businesses?
They start at the M. For example...
Some entrepreneurs want to open an e-store and sell widgets. Great! But it's way too early to work on the M -- let's nail down C T P first.
Others have decided to start a SOHO/work-from-home business. They've heard of Google AdSense and want to create a site just to sell Google ads. Good idea, but wrong mindset.
"SOHO" is a common abbreviation that stands for "Small Office, Home Office." It is basically another way of saying home-based business.
You have likely seen many businesses promoting "AdSense sites." Just put a bunch of mini-sites up, customize some pre-written content, and BINGO! "Just watch the AdSense dollars flow in!"
No, it does not work like that. The term "AdSense site" is a great example of putting the "Monetization-cart" before the "Content-horse."
Site Build It! existed well before AdSense was on the e-commerce scene. Its focus has always been C T P M.
You will not build an "AdSense site" with SBI!. You will do far better...
You will build a high-value, Theme-Based Content Site that OVERdelivers superb, original content (not regurgitated info or "pap" by customizing articles pre-written by others). That site will build high volumes of targeted, PREsold traffic.
Then, and only then, do you monetize. If AdSense happens to be an important part of your Monetization plans, that's fine. But the point is...
Do not think like others -- they fail. You are not your monetization model.
Take a minute or two now, and read this article. I'll wait for you...
Others want to earn income by being affiliates, another way of never dealing with a customer. There are several ways to earn "income without customers"...
And yes, you really can build an infopreneurial business with SBI!. You never have to deal directly with a customer! It could even become your family's #1 income stream. But you develop your Monetization plans just like everyone else... after doing proper brainstorming and research (which you have done!).
An infopreneur converts knowledge into valuable online content and then monetizes that using models that do not involve dealing directly with customers (ex., Google AdSense, finding affiliate programs, offline business referrals, etc.).
Bottom line? Almost everyone chooses and focuses on the M way too soon.
Almost everyone? Many SBIers, of course, have a pre-existing business. They want to use SBI! to leverage that business. So it's natural to choose that as your primary monetization vehicle.
For example, if you want to grow your local dentist practice or sell your Java programming skills to a world-wide audience, you're going to do well. An SBI! site will grow your existing local business substantially.
Even if your business is local, don't completely "assume the M." Keep your eyes open for other Monetization possibilities. One SBIer had a local asphalt-sealing business. Now he sells asphalt-sealing kits around the world thanks to SBI!.
Let's continue with the #1 "mistaken mindset" that most small business people have as they are starting their online business...
They start at the M.
Other people decide, before writing the first word of their sites, that they want to "do eBay." Or they are already eBayers and want to expand their established "power seller" 
eBay status, and drive more traffic to their eBay stores.
Perhaps you realize the power of the Web for building a Network Marketing business. What an advantage! MLM online is a disaster area. No one "gets it" yet! Build a C T P L site. What does the "L" stand for? Leads... warm, PREsold leads who call you!
Maybe you want to boost traffic to an existing e-commerce venture? Or even boost your local, offline retail store or real estate agency?
Or do you have plans to write an e-book to sell from a dedicated sales page on your own site, and/or in other locations such as ClickBank's Marketplace?
These are all great ideas, but...
It's too early to have decided upon "the" way to monetize.
Here's another way to look at it...
Think of the M as the finish line, the gold medal, the trophy - after completing a road race or a sports event. It is what we strive for - the glorious reward for our efforts.
The M Comes Last, Yes... But Think About It Now
First, please realize that you most likely will not choose only one monetization model. A diversified portfolio of M's will build you a stronger, more profitable and more stable business. So...
Even if you think you know exactly how you will monetize (and that might change as you proceed), don't lock yourself into one monetization model. Why leave money on the table?
There are many more ways to convert C T P into M. A diversified business is a bigger, more stable growing business.
Before proceeding to name your domain, tell your Site Concept to "Show me the money!" Let's go back to that great movie, Jerry Maguire (1996)...
I <AHEM> am Tom Cruise, who plays Jerry Maguire. Mr. Maguire is your agent. His job is to build your income. In this upcoming "scene"...
You (Rod Tidwell, the football player) give him very precise instructions. The scene starts with your loyal Action Guide, Tom Cruise, asking you "what can I do for you, Rod?" And you are going to tell me, in no uncertain terms...
Ready? Here we go... Let's play "Show Me The Money!"
SBI! provides you with all you need to build more than enough PREsold traffic that will indeed "show you the money." So...
Think about potential income streams, monetization models, NOW. You won't start them all at the same time, of course. But you must...
- be able to identify enough good monetization models to know that your successful C T P site is going to have several ways to convert PREsold traffic into dollars.
- find those monetization models now and understand how they will "fit" with your Site Concept, before you commit to your domain name.
The Jerry Maguire bit of fun is, in fact, very much in tune with
C T P M.
If Rod Tidwell does not play football well enough to be a star, no one will be interested in him. Playing football well is the Content that builds Traffic (TV viewership). It builds his "Brand of One," PREselling his fans into warm recipients of his commercial messages (i.e., Monetization).
Now here's the great news. It's easy to "show you the M" after we've done the C T P together. Tom Cruise, the agent, won't be out on the football field, helping him play better. But...
I'll be there, every step of the way.
Here's the bottom line...
Make every visitor to your Web site contribute to your bottom line. If they don't want to buy something, they'll submit a lead via a form. Or they'll click on a Google ad. Or they'll click on a contextual affiliate text link that recommends the product of a related merchant (weave affiliate links naturally and smoothly into your content).
You don't have to sell anything to customers if this does not interest you. Some of the most successful SBIers create pure "information" sites. They are "infopreneurs." They do not have a product or service to sell. They monetize traffic several ways.
For example, let's say that your theme is about "home decor." Where do you find related e-books or digital products to represent?
A fast way is to use Search It!...
- Select the "Monetization" category in STEP 1.
- Choose "Find Products/Affiliate Programs At ClickBank" in STEP 2.
- Enter the term "home decor" in STEP 3.
Your search turns up four potential e-book candidates. Decide which one(s) you want to promote and you're off and running! ClickBank guides you through the set-up process.
Tip: Always select the best related products to represent as an affiliate and group them according to your high-profitability keywords.
As a "home decor" infopreneur, your monetization options are wide open. Register for the Google AdSense program, and sell ad space. Or use Form Build It! to make referrals to local vendors (for a fee).
See how easy it is to diversify, even without a product to sell?
No matter how your site will monetize, here's the net-net...
If your Site Concept is right, you will build an extremely profitable SBI! site.
1) Investigate and assure yourself that this Site Concept can indeed make substantial profits. Of course, not every monetization model has to start immediately. But the potential must be there!
2) Lay out your plan for the Monetization Mix. Which one will be your primary income stream? How and when will you lay out the others? Which others?
So plan M now. Fulfill it later.
All set? Let's do the plan. Well, you do it...
I'll watch.
Step 1 - Do a preliminary check of your theme's profitability.
The only way your site will monetize successfully is if you execute C T P first. However...
Even though C T P is first and M comes last, you do have to plan the M now.
Why? Because if you don't investigate and plan M now, it would be depressing to find out that your particular Site Concept has very little "monetizability" after you've spent months building informative, creative Content!
Also, you may need to adjust the Site Concept, fine-tuning its approach, according to the Monetization Mix you develop now.
So your first step is to do an initial "M" assessment by checking the AdSense-earning potential of your Master Keyword List. AdSense is an excellent low-maintenance way for just about every SBI! site to "prime the monetization pump" and gain some confidence.
If you do not plan on using AdSense in your monetization mix, you can skip this step. However, except in special businesses, diversifying income is a good strategy. And AdSense is an excellent way to add an income stream.
With the help of the Google Traffic (and CPC) Estimator tool, used by Advertisers to see how much ads will cost them, you can get an indication of the demand for your Site Concept and how well it can be monetized by Google AdSense.
This action will help you determine whether you should keep going forward with this Site Concept (due to good AdSense potential), or go back to DAY 3 for further refinements (due to low AdSense potential)... or even return to DAY 2 to select a different concept.
Click here for the "M" assessment tool and follow the step-by-step directions outlined in a mini tutorial (which includes helpful screenshots).
This quick shortcut saves you time now that you have a full Master Keyword List. There is no need to repeat the full Google AdWords Tool brainstorming exercise as outlined in DAY 2, unless you wish to do so.
Step 2 - Research the Monetization HQ, identifying best-fit monetization models.
MONETIZE your warm, willing-to-buy visitors in various ways. Sell hard goods, e-goods, your personal or professional services... or all three. Or become a "pure infopreneur" and earn substantial income without selling at all, through Google AdSense, affiliate fees, finder's fees and other techniques. A blend of monetization options will help you build a thriving, diversified business.
Review potential monetization models (presented below). Consider each one carefully. Depending on your particular niche and business intentions, some will apply to you. Some won't. Tailor your choice of monetization models according to your time constraints and priorities.
The key is to never be dependent on any one income source.
"All your eggs in one basket" is a high-risk strategy. By diversifying, your revenues increase, your business is more stable, and YOU are in charge of your business destiny.
But always remember... Traffic comes before Monetization. And it's Content that builds Traffic and then PREsells those visitors.
Content Traffic PREsell Monetize
Make it your new business mantra.
Consider your Site Concept and how you will grow it in order to develop multiple streams of income. Diversification is key. As noted above...
Too many small businesses start out thinking that they "want to be an affiliate," or sell hard goods through an "online store." Sure...
Do you have a primary monetization model in mind, but plan to diversify into multiple streams of revenue to maximize income, growth and stability? Take full advantage of the PREsold traffic you will develop with SBI!.
Someone may not be interested in hiring your professional travel service... yet. But they might click on a Google ad. Or buy your e-book or DVD. Or submit a form to take a cruise (for which you earn a commission). And so on.
Think of it this way... if you don't monetize a visitor one way, convert her into dollars another way!
Ready? Let's get started on your monetization plan/blueprint...
1) Print a copy of the Monetization Planning worksheet, a great way to organize your research.
2) Review the monetization models below, and make notes about those that might fit your Site Concept...
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AdSense. Most SBIers use this as their starting monetization model. You simply place Google AdWords ads on your site and get paid for each click.
For more information, review the AdSense series in the Monetization HQ.
For the latest and greatest ideas and advice, see this SBI! forum, too...
AdSense & Contextual Advertising Alternatives
Don't worry about people leaving your site due to an AdSense ad. Think of it like this...
1) No matter how great your site is, you "lose" 100% of your visitors. Everyone leaves. The idea is to monetize as many of them as possible.
2) Google makes billions on exactly this model. Everyone leaves. Many click on editorial links, earning them nothing (for the moment). However, enough do click on ads, earning Google big money.
The key for you is to provide great content so that C
T P M builds and builds and builds.
The key for Google is to provide an excellent search experience. So they created a set of criteria (restrictions) on the types of content you can have on your site and still include AdSense ads.
For pointers to help you keep your AdSense account in good shape, see the AdSense Series, starting with...
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Infopreneur. Here's another low-maintenance time-saving way to build a business -- no product or service to sell. Gather ideas about selling ads, representing affiliate programs, requesting donations, etc.
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Hard Goods Creators/Sellers. The hard goods category offers several ideas on selling your own product. You'll also find ideas on selling someone else's product and/or using the convenience of drop-shipping.
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Affiliate Businesses. In this category, find a full spectrum of strategies, including a tutorial by Allan Gardyne, a well-respected Affiliate Marketing guru. Learn about Clickbank's affiliate program, and get ideas for travel affiliates.
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Service Businesses. Your site can be a great vehicle for starting up a service business or expanding your existing one. Learn how to use your quality content to build credibility and make your visitors want to contact you about a contract.
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Local Offline Businesses. Use your Web site as an extension of your offline business, and increase your customer base.
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Referrers/Finders. If your Site Concept fits, make use of this under-utilized monetization model. Discover how to build one-on-one, lead generating relationships that create word-of-mouth buzz.
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Web Professionals. Hanging out your Webmaster shingle? The demand is high. Find out how to satisfy your clients and get a jump on your competitors.
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Net Auction Sellers. Put eBay to work for you, rather than the other way around. Learn how to be your own "Power Seller."
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MLM/Network Marketing. Discover the "real" way to do MLM/Network Marketing in this monetization category. Be ahead of most Network Marketing companies and discover how to do it right on the Net.
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E-goods Creators/Sellers. Low overheads and no stock to carry. These are just 2 reasons that make e-goods an ideal monetization model. E-goods are not limited to e-books -- for example, you'll also see how you can use audio to generate revenue.
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Sales and Rental Agents. "If you can represent it, you can sell or rent it on the Net." Read this category to inspire and spur ideas to generate income as a sales and rental agent.
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Existing E-businesses. Funnel your SBI! targeted PREsold traffic to your existing online store or business site -- a great way to leverage your efforts and profits.
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AdSense/Other Ad Strategies. Try to make every visitor count (i.e., generate income). Learn about effective AdSense positioning, Infolinks and in-text advertising, and other ad selling ideas, and more.
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PREselling SBI!. Here is a load of ideas for PREselling SBI!, from how to write a PREselling page to using a teleconference to word-of-mouth ideas.
Remember to think "outside the box" -- use your Monetization Planning worksheet, and mix 'n match the monetization models to suit your site topic. You are not limited to only one monetization model.
Step 3 - Explore the SBI! Monetization Forums.
DAY 4 has its own forum, Planning Your Monetization Mix. Jump in and join the discussions. Don't be shy -- ask questions. (And remember... help others, too.) To spot new monetization ideas...
The Monetizing (DAY 10) forums, including the supplementary Other Monetization Models forum, frequently come up with great new ideas, too. One important thought about the forums...
Return more to the community than you get out of it. You may be learning about how to triple AdSense income from a fellow SBIer, but you now know enough about brainstorming to help someone else in the BI! forum. There are always threads open where you can "pay it forward."
Step 4 - Use Search It!.
Search It! is another useful way to assess monetization potential...
There are two ways to access Search It!...
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The Public Version, which uses tutorials to explain how to get the most out of each respective Search Type.
-OR-
- The Private Version for SBIers -- After you have built your home page and have access to Site Central, and once you are ready to use Search It! without the tutorials, switch to this version.
Explore all of the Search Types of the the Monetization Category of Search It!. There are bound to be one or more queries of value for your particular business (ex., finding companies with good affiliate programs, or identifying product opportunities). For example...
Would you like to know the exact financial value of certain keywords? Try both the Google and the Yahoo! versions of the Monetization > What Are Your Keywords Worth?" query...
You learn what advertisers are paying per click for your keywords. The higher the bid price, the more money you'll make when someone clicks on an Ad on one of your Keyword-Focused Content Pages.
This is a particularly valuable query if your primary monetization model will be Google Adsense and/or Yahoo! Publisher Network.
Once you have progressed to DAY 10 and built at least 30 pages, the Monetize It! tool will help you identify your best "Ad opportunities." For now, though, you simply want to do your homework and ensure that there are good bids on a reasonable cross sample of your keywords.
And there's a forum for Search It!, too. SBIers gather to help and be helped for the only ecommerce-related search resource that you will ever need...
Step 5 - Use a very special Brainstorm It! tool... Site Info Notepads.
Now for some high-octane power!
Site Info is a column of Notepad icons in your MKL.
To get Site Info for any particular keyword, click on the Notepad icon in the Site Info column for the keyword in that row.
The Site Info Notepads in your MKL give you in-depth, competitive information for each keyword. It also enables you to evaluate and develop Monetization options and strategies.
Like any powerful tool, use it where it counts most...
- your Site Concept keyword (ex. "anguilla"), and for
- relatively high-Demand/high-Profitability, specific keywords that are most likely to be "monetizable" (ex. "anguilla villas" and "anguilla real estate").
As your site progresses, keep returning to Site Info Notepads. Use them on all of your most important, profitable keywords. The more you use this tool, the more you discover the power contained in the data, the more new strategies you will develop to monetize.
Site Info Notepads deliver...
- up to 10 top sites found for each keyword (according to Google), including Contact information (should you identify a future potential advertiser, affiliate program, or other type of monetization opportunity)
- a complete competitive profile for each top site, including its Title, Description, URL, Alexa Rank, Inbound Links (from Google, Yahoo! and Windows Live), and a link to see the top Google PR sites that link to it
- up to 10 "Related Sites" for each Top 10 site. These are sites that tend to be in the visitor's clickpath (as tracked by Alexa), either before or after visiting the Top 10 site. Each Related Site come with considerable info, too, including their URLs, Alexa rankings, Inbound Links and Contact Info!
How To Use Site Info To Assess Competition
A site that publishes content in a niche like yours is a serious competitor if...
- its Alexa rankings is within the top 100,000
- it has lots of inbound links from all three major engines (1,000 inbound links at Yahoo! and Windows Live, 100 at Google)
- it has many top Google PR sites linking to it
- it tends to be related to excellent other sites.
Let's look at the three links in more detail...
The Show link for Inbound Links opens a new browser window that delivers a Web page that shows you all Google, Yahoo! Search and Windows Live Search inbound links to the domain of each URL. This is tremendous information. It tells you much about the link popularity of the site across all three engines.
The Find Top Google PR Sites link for each of the Top 10 sites shows you the highest PR sites that link to it. If the Top 10 site is a competitor and has lots of high PR (5 or more) sites linking to it, that's strong.
Assess the quality of the Related Sites by evaluating their Alexa rankings and Inbound Links. Consider lots of high-quality Related Sites to mean that the Top 10 site "lives" in an excellent neighborhood.
A few serious competitors is no reason to back down. There is lots of room in this world for more than one excellent site in any given niche. Establishing your VPP and unique voice will go a long way towards differentiating you and your site.
Of course, if you find too many super-strong competitors for your Site Concept keyword and other high-potential ones, you might want to reconsider your Site Concept! Avoiding mistakes is part of the power of great research.
On the other hand, these sites are showing you the "Content and Monetization" footprints on the path to success. Learn from strong competition, borrowing/customizing good techniques and ideas, and perhaps approaching matters from a different angle.
Either way, know who you are dealing with and plan accordingly.
The Site Info data-gathering process is resource-intensive. It does approximately 250 queries on the Web. So...
Use it for your highest potential keywords. The limit is 10 per day. And please be patient... each Site Info process takes about 5 minutes, but it brings back a day's worth of research.
"What else do I do with Site Info?"
Good question! Explore the sites -- you'll notice three types of sites...
- Irrelevant -- For whatever reason (off-topic, geographic, lousy site, etc.), they just don't fit. Skip these.
- Content -- These sites will be your direct competitors. This was discussed above.
- Merchants -- These sites sell a product or service related to your niche. That may give you monetization ideas for your site. Or, if they have an affiliate program that fits your concept, enter the URL of the "join page" for the affiliate program (if you want to use the affiliate monetization model) into your Notepad. Or once you build up substantial traffic, they may buy advertising directly from you. Perhaps a Joint Venture?
Important:
Add ideas/thoughts/comments into each Site Info Notepad as soon as you find an opportunity/get an idea, or you'll forget. Borrow the best from your competition! Enter great ideas for Content and Monetization.
(Keep your Notepads organized... put monetization ideas into the Monetization Notepad, etc.)
And here's where that Contact link comes in handy...
The Contact link displays contact information for each site. Try contacting the Administrative Contact if you spot a potential advertiser or future affiliate (those who link to your competition will link to you, in the future). This is often the phone number and e-mail address of the key person who makes decisions!
Save your notes by clicking on the Save Notes button when done. And please note... The Site Info Notepad turns "yellow-written" after you click on the little Notepad icon (which brings back Site Info data for that keyword), even if you do not subsequently enter your own notes. This lets you know that the Notepad contains data.
Site Info has so many useful applications. You will find...
- merchant sites that will buy advertising from you, or content sites that will sell you advertising.
- "Content competitors." Learn from the good ones (ex., study their content, which affiliate programs they have chosen, etc.) and then... do it better and do it differently (more on this in the Make Your Content PREsell! e-book, DAY 5). And remember... there is lots of room for several great sites in a niche.
- potential value (link) exchanges. These are content sites that are complementary to yours, not competitive.
- high quality forums. Look for opportunities to build your Brand of One by posting great content... do NOT sell!
- even uncover super-affiliates of sites selling similar products or services to yours. Here's how...
Find Out About Any Site That Interests You
Suppose a competitor sells an e-book that has the same target market as your e-book. Enter the domain name of your competitor as a new keyword into your MKL. Then click on its Site Info Notepad.
For example, SiteSell has no true competition. No other company offers a product like Site Build It!. However...
We know that when a small business person makes a mistake and decides to spend money at 1and1.com, a large small-business Web host, s/he is going to take a year or so to fail. That means we've lost that customer "until the next time." 1and1.com is an SBI! competitor, in that sense.
So, if I was Ken Evoy (!), I'd go to MKL and add "1and1.com" as a keyword. Next, I'd click on the Site Info Notepad for "1and1.com." And then...
I'd analyze the Site Info intensively. Click on the Show link to see which sites link to 1and1.com...
As you study this Site Info page in detail, the data becomes information...
- You will discover super-affiliates of competitors -- approach those affiliates to promote your product.
- You will find joint venture partners.
- It will uncover what customers are saying (at forums, for example).
- And you will even find the competitors of your competitors, which may be your competitors, too, or perhaps your next Joint Venture partner or super-affiliate!
Be prepared to be amazed. Open your mind. Spend time on Site Info. There is a lot of data there -- your job is to turn data into usable information.
Once you learn how to get the most out of Site Info, it's like turning on the lights!
Step 6 - "Finalize" your Monetization Mix.
You do remember what I said about diversification, don't you?
I'd like to leave you with words that are a little stronger...
Diversify, or die... online!
Take your time as you review and think about the wide variety of possible monetization models of your choice... the possibilities are endless. Now is the time to think about what potential income streams (i.e., how you monetize your traffic) would "fit" with your Site Concept. Remember the goal?...
Make every visitor to your Web site contribute to your bottom line.
You're getting to the end of Day 4, and I want to remind you when you finish this day, go to the Monetization HQ and do your research - remember to "think outside the box", and use your worksheet to determine your possible options for monetization.
By doing some "future" thinking now, you will know if your present choice of a Site Concept will allow for more than one profitable opportunity. And you'll get an idea of how profitable it can be. Don't box yourself into a corner before you even get started!
Why is more than one income stream necessary?
Realistically, not every visitor who lands on your site will be interested in your primary offering. They are at your site for different reasons. They are looking for different solutions.
You've worked very hard to get them to your site in the first place, right?
Maybe they are not ready to buy real estate in Anguilla. If not, they won't fill in the form for the real estate agent you recommend. But they do ...
want to take the boat cruise.
Or
they want to stay at a good, low-cost hotel.
Or
even if they are just dreaming about a Caribbean vacation, they see a Google ad that interests them.
See how diversification works?
Not only do you monetize more visitors in more ways, but you are not dependent on a single kind of income stream.
Your income is both larger and more stable!
Never be dependent on any one income source. "All your eggs in one basket" is a high-risk strategy. By diversifying, your revenues increase, your business is more stable, and you are in charge of your business destiny.
Not right now. You are merely assessing "monetization viability and possibilities" of your site concept. As a general rule of thumb, do not monetize before you...
- have at least 30 pages
- are accepted into two or more directories (ex., niche directories, Open Directory Project), or have at least a few quality, relevant in-pointing links (directory or not)
You will commonly see "inbound links" referred to as "back links." Not at SBI!, though. It's a confusing term. "Back" to where or from where? Whose "back?" We will use the more obvious terms "inbound links" or "in-pointing links" or even "incoming links." They all mean links from other sites that are pointing, coming or bound to your site.
- have started to receive a steady stream of visitors (at least 20 per day).
Pace your monetization implementation. And, while you may be planning five different Monetization models, add them one at a time, weeks or months apart. Assess each one. And more importantly, after you introduce your first income-generator, during the early weeks, even months after that...
Focus on building more targeted traffic for your primary monetizer. Then when you are ready, plug your next "visitor-to-dollar converter" into your site.
Multiple income opportunities should never be introduced at the expense of your main business, or at the expense of building great content.
Let's repeat...
Before you can effectively monetize your site, you must have a solid traffic base. Why? Because...
No traffic = No income.
You may be thinking... "Hey, I don't want to miss out on any potential income. I want to build a commercial site right from the start!"
Mistake. Big mistake.
Do not be in a rush to monetize your site. Traffic-building (and lots of it) comes before Monetization. Do not over-commercialize your site and do not commercialize it at the beginning. Keep these two important points in mind...
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Quality benefit-focused content is what attracts more visitors and keeps traffic coming back again and again. Quality content is what creates warm, willing-to-buy/hire visitors who trust you and your business.
In other words, by providing great content, you PREsell your reader, increasing your click through to your income source and your Conversion Rate. That is not going to happen if your site is just one big pile of links. Both the Search Engines and surfers will ignore you.
Think of PREselling as building your "Brand of One"... whether the "one" is you personally or your small business company name. Amazon has a brand -- that gives them credibility. You have no brand. So...
Build it! Build... your "Brand of One."
- You can get into directories more easily if your site is "pure content" when you apply. This is a really important point. Yes, the perfect time to apply is when you are first building your C T P and have not yet "commercialized" your site with M.
"Directories" are not the same as "Search Engines." Every URL in a directory (ex., Open Directory Project) is reviewed by a human editor BEFORE it is listed. There is a limit, of course, to the number of pages that humans can process, so directories have far fewer URLs in them. But the pages are all of good quality.
Search Engines, however, are generated by small computer programs called spiders. They roam the Web at high speed and return billions of Web pages into the engine's database. Since no human actually reads-and-rates each page, the engines develop "ranking algorithms" to decide how high to rank each page for each keyword search.
There are numerous "niche or themed" directories. We will cover how to submit and be accepted into directories later. The importance of directories as a direct source of traffic is near-zero -- but they can be a valuable link for building your "link popularity" (more on this at the right time).
It can take anywhere from 4-8 weeks for the directories (and Search Engines) to pick up, list, and start driving traffic to your site. So traffic only begins in 2-3 months. Stay non-commercial during that time. That means...
If you add two quality pages to your site per day, it only takes 15 days to have enough content to be ready to apply to the directories. It will take one month if you build one page per day. However quickly you build good content...
Do not apply to directories before you have built 30 KFCPs. And do not commercialize your site until accepted, or at least until you have a few good-quality, relevant inbound links from other sites.
If a directory, such as Open Directory Project, should happen to reject your application, keep matters in perspective. There is a certain level of arbitrariness in an editor-based system. So do not let it bother you.
You have many other directory options. The niche directories/mini-hubs are useful. See this TNT HQ directory series. (And, of course, you will cover many other linking strategies during DAY 7.)
It is OK to add a "Contact Me" form (gently, in good taste) early, in order to monetize a service you sell. But affiliate links will hurt directory applications. Google ads may, too. And in this case... "the more, the not merrier."
... I'd shout, "That's the way to do it!"
The tortoise ultimately wins this race. But you can't wait for a link from a directory forever, before you monetize. As mentioned above...
Once you have built 30+ terrific pages, have developed a few high-quality, relevant, non-directory inbound links and once traffic is starting to grow (20+ visitors per day), you will start integrating your monetization options into your site -- no point in waiting, just for a directory.
But should you not be getting much traffic, have only 20 pages and one or two inbound links, you should not monetize yet. Instead, create more and more great content, while adding the occasional high-quality inbound link. More on this in later DAYs.
Bottom Line?
As always, everything begins with Content. Quality content gets the attention and approval of your visitors and the Search Engines, which builds Traffic. The content PREsells those targeted visitors effectively, which in turn increases Conversion Rates, which is what Monetizes...
CONTENT TRAFFIC PREsell MONETIZE
So... how did I do?
Did I "show you the money"?
(Yes, you now know my secret identity.)
Evaluate your Site Concept. Does it offer good monetization possibilities? If not, review/improve your monetization plan right now, before proceeding to DAY 5.
Or go back to DAY 3 and brainstorm more high-profit keywords. A "branch-brainstorm" (of an interesting General Keyword) may be just what your business needs. Grow and fine-tune your Content Blueprint.
Or go back to DAY 2 and develop one of your other two Site Concepts. Drastic? Not at all...
After all, if you don't see now how you can make money with your site (assuming this is a business and not a hobby), what's the point? Now that you've done the process, you can repeat it for a different Site Concept in less than an hour.
On the other hand (the good hand!)...
If your planned Monetization Mix does have solid income potential, you are ready to complete your plans for your site and to choose a domain name that accommodates your exciting vision of the future.
You have come a long way since choosing your theme on DAY 2. You've fully brainstormed your Site Concept and developed your "Site Content Blueprint." And you have now assessed your monetization options, investigated the competition in more
(Site Info Notepad), and "finalized" your potential Monetization Mix.
If you have any doubts about your Site Concept at this point, and if other possible Site Concepts are still niggling at the back of your mind, try running it all through Niche Choose It! one last time.
Once you are 100% sure...