Bryan Ellis is widely recognized as a expert in the fields of real estate investing and internet marketing, so it’s no wonder he’s regarded as a founding thinker of the new phenomenon of Virtual Real Estate Investing. I recently spoke with him about this topic:
Landlords, rehabbers and foreclosure investors, take notice - you may soon be focused on the new concepts of Virtual Real Estate Investing. Everything from using the internet as an avenue to make more money in real estate to online games such as SecondLife seem to be included in the popular definition of this term. And the pure financial potential is staggering.
In order to figure out the truth of the matter, I sought out Bryan Ellis whose experience in the fledgling industry is truly impressive.
“I began using the term ‘virtual real estate investing’ in the late 1990’s when I realized the clear similiarities in profit strategies, regardless of whether the real estate in question is ‘virtual’ or ‘physical’” said Ellis.
One example of the parallels between virtual and physical real estate Bryan Ellis cites is the similarity between the monetization of domain names versus physical property. He points out that control of a domain name or even a specific web page is much like controlling a real estate property: “those assets can be monetized in similar ways: By selling them for a profit, by leasing them, by offering advertising, etc. It’s not even necessary to own a website in order to profit from it.”
Bryan Ellis points to the example of websites like HubPages, Squidoo, Google Knol, etc. “Each of these services allows any person to write an article or create other type of content, and then allows the author to share in the revenue generated on that page. It’s almost as if you’re renting retail space in a highly desirable shopping district, only you get the benefit of a ‘great address’ in the form of a well-known domain host like Google.com but without paying a single penny in rental fees. It’s a win-win scenario.”
I must admit: Its easy to see the parallels. For example, if you’re the owner of a desirable property, its desirability is (in a business context) largely due to its being in a location that is of interest to others. Similarly, ownership of a desirable domain name is valuable for the same reasons. Regardless of the type of asset, you can sell or lease or use any number of strategies to turn the assets into cash.
In our next installment of this series on virtual real estate investing, Bryan Ellis will share the internet analogies to the physical concept of real estate development.
I founded a Saas company that provides help in the form of small business management and accounting software tools and education and support to thousands of startups and small businesses all over the world and whenever I explain to people what I do, I consistently get asked the same question “Given my working knowledge, how could I monetize it and make regular money from small business consulting? I’m always willing to provide my opinion as I am privileged enough to spend at least 75% of my day interacting with small business owners and staff eager to share their problems and needs.
Here is my response:
The net is the best way for finding customers and it makes it straightforward to speak to them and sell your expertise. A lot of small businesses turn to the internet to find knowledge or trusted advisors who can provide them with new knowledge and help them address problems.
Information marketing – package and sell your expertise to businesses through the Internet
What I am about to tell you doesn’t just apply to small businesses. You can repackage and sell your expertise in a multimedia format such as video, audio or documents. The software to create superb content are widely available on the network. Creating a series of lessons in simple to use web ready formats is now easy and affordable. You just have to be prepared to dedicate a bit of time playing with the software. The purpose here is to produce some valuable content that you can either sell or give away to customers to encourage them to do business with you.
You have to decide what you want to achieve. Consultancy and Information marketing go hand in hand and if you do both can be very provide a substantial income as the consultancy will provide you with the questions, the answers to which repurpose for sale through the internet and sold over and over again.
If you are starting from scratch with no customers but have expertise you know would be in demand by others then plan to create a two minute video to present yourself and your expertise to your prospect(s). Unless you know the market precise problem then make the video generic and stick tothe following format – S.T.A.R (Situation or Task, Action, Result). Be creative and concise. Now upload the video to your website/blog or even YouTube if you don’t have the former and send the target(s) an invitation by e-mail containing a personal message and a link to the video. Follow this up with a phone call. If you know the specific nature of the marketproblem then don’t make the video public, just put it somewhere away from prying eyeson the Web or even on a disk and post it, again follow up with a call.
This method is ideally suited to situations where you are individually targeting potential client(s). The one objective you should be constantly pursuing is the creation of a list that you can converse with and sell product to.. Treat the people on your list well and they will tell you their needs to which you can match and your content products. The more people on your list the more consulting and information marketing opportunities you will unearth. If you would like to understand more about how to do this then follow any of the links in this article. I would be very glad to help you.
What is a mobile billboard? Well as most of you already know what a regular billboard is, a mobile billboard is exactly the same thing, except it is moving or mobile.
You can see it in various forms. You can see it in advertising trucks San Diego, or vehicles built specifically to carry billboards around.
Why are there a lot of businesses using this type of advertising to get their message to the consumers? I have some unique insights I am going to share that I have gained from running my own San Diego mobile billboards company.
First off, let’s talk about it’s expenses. Mobile billboard rates are actually very comparable if not better than your traditional outdoor media such as traditional billboards.
With the advertising cost being comparable if not better, there is still another advantage in it’s favor.Actual views, exposures, or impressions to the prospects.
Compared to the usual billboards out there, that a prospect could just pass it by without even looking.But the way in which a mobile billboard get’s it’s message across, it is much more effective. And the way it does it is by being right in the consumer’s face. You can’t just drive by it.It is stuck with you in traffic right at eye level
This is powerful.A consumer who is going through traffic, with an ad message right in their face can’t be turned off.
That is one of the obstacles that TV and Radio face as traditional forms of advertising.With the invention of satellite radio and Tivo, a prospect could practically go without commercials.
So going with a mobile billboard allows the business to get their message read and impressed upon the mind of the consumer.
If you want to build brand recognition as a business, there aren’t too many better ways to display your ad than by showing it in beautiful color as a full color display ad.It speaks loudly for attention.And when the prospective customer is stuck in traffic with nothing better to do, you don’t have to be as loud as other types of advertising.
With the economy and a lot of businesses struggling, mobile advertising may just be the ticket to save their business.More leads and more sales are going to happen by using this type of advertising.
You are guaranteed exposure.You are practically ensured of having your ad read. What more can an advertiser want.
You can see that it is effective by the fact that many businesses are now using it to advertise.In 2004 by itself, there was more than $5.8 billion spent on this form of advertsing.With all kinds of money being spent, it must be effective.
For a lot of businesses who need that boost in getting to their customers, this could be exactly what they are looking for.
A good way to find home based business options is to do an online search. Keyword phrases like “Work From Home Online” or “Building A Home Internet Business” should lead you to some good sites. If these do not provide good results try “Business Opportunity At Home” as well.
You’re not demanded to sustain bylaws or keep seconds of annual board meetings, for illustration. Nonetheless, the necessities for making a LLC differ by state, so you have to analysis those necessities for the state in which you file. One choice to ponder while you’re developing a business is whether to integrate.
Copyright security is in place at the time you build your work. Nevertheless, if you opt to file an indictment contrary to somebody for utilizing your facts, the U.S. Copyright Office mentors that you need the official certificate of enrollment as proof of ownership.
While you complete this step and print a duplicate of your record, you’re completed. Congratulations - you now have an URL address that’s all yours! Finding Out What to Do While Someone gets there first, we wish that the realm you desire is the one you get while you index.
) Unconditionally verify whether you’re charged for live tech aid and whether the charge is based on use by the second, hour, or month. Those invoices could rack up quick, even for a seemingly easy query. A host might opt to make beaucoup (that’s French for lots of) additional characteristics obtainable with your plan. If all other reasons are equal, don’t delay to evaluate this variety of tiny treasures to find the host with the most!
Prioritize the variant options or actions, from most to minimum craved. For illustration, it may be more vital for visitors to click a page filled with items instead of click a link to register for a newsletter. Visitors to a Website scan data by commencing at the top of the page and moving downward.
Pay-Friend is then the only choice your clients have for buying items from you. As well as these valuing issues, all plans have a victorious deal price (STF) tacked on to your biweekly charges. This price permits Pro-Stores to take a portion of your gross sales as well as the biweekly price you already pay.
If your Internet page needs to reference another part of your Website, then make certain that link is present in the page. Numerous times, a Website offers links to other Websites that are complementary to it, or it companions with them for co-offer attempts. Forms soliciting clients to fill in data: For illustration, you need the name and transporting address for some clients who plan to request something, or join your mailing list.
In Novel II, Chapter 1, we give you a peek of what to anticipate of the tariff guy while we converse the pros and cons of assorted ownership frameworks for your business and how each form is levied. Despite what kind of business framework you pick, you face numerous tariff-interconnected necessities while you run an online business. For starters, few kinds of national and state levies are in all likelihood to apply to you, as we explain in the next few areas.
Despite where your business is pinpointed, you need a permit to perform it. A business permit is a piece of paper permitting you the right to do business within a city, county, or state. Permits are usually genuine for a one or two year period and are nontransferable.
Remember to look online for opportunities. We think you will find what you are looking for with an online search with the phrase “Home Businesses Ideas”. We also recommend making more than one search, try “Serious Home Based Business” also.
Inject your affiliate links in your follow up electronic mails or in your blog post. Make Extra Money On Ebay It is mandatory that you have an notion on while to anticipate your fees. The first thing is to find a thirsty market.
Do you need to trim your spending, but maintain your outreach to prospects and customers, then postcard printing may let you do both.
Because they’re smaller, and all in one simple unit with just two faces, postcard printing generally means less set up time and less ink used in print runs.
Given a decision in favor of postcards, you also have the option of going with black and white, rather than color. However, many postcard printing companies now print color for the same price as black and white, so this may no longer be an avenue of savings.
The cost of mailing a postcard in the U.S. beats the cost of mailing a letter; and that can make a significant difference if you do a major mailing. The pennies do add up once you get to mailings in the thousands or tens of thousands.
You also enjoy cost savings on processing costs, because the postcard is ready to travel as soon as it’s printed. You do not need to stuff mailers into envelopes, and that too represents a sizable saving.
Where your time may increase slightly will be in writing. Because you have limited real estate for your message, you may need extra time to boil down the messages. This is especially true if you use an image and no text on the side opposite the mailing address. Crafting a concise postcard message will be good exercise in building your communication skills.
In going through this process of creating your message, remember to think of the postcard as a lead generator, not a sales generator. Most postcards should emphasize contact information, such as phone numbers and web addresses as the end point, not the sale. Sell when the prospect calls or visits your website, not on the card.
Summing up, postcards provide an opportunity to get your message to prospects for less than the cost of traditional print materials. But be strategic and aim for leads, not sales, and focus on a concise message before you begin the postcard printing process.
“The Google Story” is about the most widely used search engine in the world - Google. The common phrase that people say when they want to look up something is ,”I’ll just Google it.”Everyone knows what you mean when you say “Google it” other wise if you haven’t heard of it, then you’ve been living in a cave or something.
Google was created by two men - Sergey Brin, a Russian and Larry Page, an American.Both of them met up at a prestigious college in America.They had this idea of wanting to create a search engine that would organise every piece of information and would be accessible to the public for free.They also wanted to make money from it to people in the form of selling ads called Adsense, which are a type of pay-per-click ad, where you make money from showing their ads on your site or blog. They also invented AdWords, where people would buy advertising and pay each time someone would click on their advertisement.Which is very expensive.
It can run into hundreds of dollars just to pay for advertising this way.The employees loved the recipe that the chef cooked which was Buttermilk Chicken.The meals would be provided for free to the workers and the recipe itself was Google-sized to the max. Sergey and Larry wanted to change the way the world searched for and researched for information.They looked to make money by selling targeted advertising to businesses on the results pages.
They wanted an accessible search engine that could be searched by people all over the world for free.
Book Review - Blogging Heroes By Michael A Banks “Blogging Heroes” is a great collection of the world’s 30 top bloggers.Michael A. Banks goes into detail as to how he tracked them down and noted their words into special software.He did it by using software that helps you dictate words into sentences on the computer screen as you speak the words out via audio tape.The software is called “Naturally Speaking”.
The bloggers themselves go into great detail as to how the came into blogging, what their previous experiences were before they tried blogging,What sort of jobs they had or still have and how much time they devote to it. Some of them (in fact, most of them) blog full-time and write content for much of the day and for many hours. I was gobsmacked as to how many blogs that they themselves looked at via rss readers and the hundreds of blogs that they read per day to do research for their specialised fields.
No doubt about it, you have to be dedicated to your craft if you want the loyal readers to keep reading your blog. Why do they blog? They are keen on doing it as bloggers and it takes up an enormous amount of time to do it. They give plenty of tips for the newbie blogger, such as: Be passionate about the topic you are writing about. Good content will outbeat SEO tactics all the time. Read and comment on other blogs,and continue the discussion rather that leave a short note.
Google will send a drip-feed of traffic to your site indefinately. And lots, lots more. Most of them had ezines and published text that were put together before the blog appeared. Some were employed by other big software companies. Dave Taylor, of AskDaveTaylor.com had this really good description of how to attract readers to your site. He likens it to going to a party. But you don’t go to a party and just leave. You go and engage in discussions. You have to make yourself known in the internet,and people will communicate with you.
You have designed a new product or you have just started providing a new type of service and you need to make it known. How can you replace the old advertising strategies with some new ones that are more fruitful? If there is no novelty in the promoted products, and there is some serious competition too, the challenge of getting visible will be a considerable one. So how can you stand out? Advertising consultants could make a difference for the matter.
Advertising consultants often have the answers that can turn a product or service into a hit. They rely on the fact that in the consume society, people are easily influenced by advertising and they buy what they are told. It is all about image and publicity. As a result, advertising consultants are very much sought after by people who want to gain profit and increase the market for their product.
There is tough competition between advertising consultants as well. Their offer has to include more than present success. Of course, an advertising campaign is truly effective when sales also increase. The success of a marketer is therefore directly connected with the degree of inspiration that advertising consultants infuse in the commercials, ads and their messages.
Advertising consultants nowadays know it is all a matter of image in order to sell a product. The types of adverts they rely on fall into various categories out of which one is more commonly used than others and that is the testimony-type ad. We have middle class people who come and declare how useful or beneficial the product is. When the person invited to speak about the product is a VIP or when the product itself is associated with the image that every one of us would love to identify with, then advertising consultants have made it big for sure.
Success in advertising comes with hitting hot spots within public desires to such a degree that it leads to longing for the product and not to rejecting or denying the information presented in the ad. That means that, the identification or the creation of the right subtle message that will increase sales is the merit and the talent of good advertising consultants.
There is a huge shift of advertising dollars going to another place for businesses large and small. I am not talking about advertising on the internet. What I am talking about is doing outdoor media advertising and more specifically truck advertising.
Outdoor media advertising comes in many forms but one of the forms that is gaining much popularity is using truckside advertising.
Today a prospect has a lot of choices on whether or not they want to see an advertisement. With the advent of Tivo and satellite radio, a consumer can easily switch off completely any of the traditional forms of advertising.
That is why a lot of businesses are looking for alternative forms of advertising. They want more ways to reach consumers.
But not only do they ask for different ways to get to the consumer, they also want it effective.
Mobile billboard advertising has that advantage. It allows an advertiser to get their message out in a way that can’t be turned off. With the way the message gets to the consumer it is plain to see why.
You have the advertisers message or brand boldly displayed on a truckside or on a mobile billboards. Those are usually vehicles specifically made just for the task of being a mobile billboard.
With their ad prominently displayed, and appearing to them in traffic. A consumer can’t help but read it. For an advertiser who wants maybe more brand recognition, this is a way to go.
Then when you compare it to other forms of advertising. The mobile billboards prices are actually very competitive, if not cheaper for what you get.
Because when you think about it, your advertisment will be noticed by the consumer because of they way it is delivered. More often it is likely at rush hour, or when they get stuck in traffic. So the consumer is left with no other choice but reading the ad. With that in it’s favor their add can easily be shown.
When you understand how much is being spent on outdoor media, you realize a lot of businesses are taking advantage of its potential.In 2004 by itself, $5.8 billion dollars was spent.
So for a business looking to expand in other ways to get their ad message out to the consumer, using truckside advertising is something they ought to consider.
Not the usual stand alone billboards people are used to seeing. But something put right in the consumer’s face is most definitely going to get the message across.
It’s a sunny morning and you’re sitting in your office. With a cup of hot coffee by your side and memories of the weekend’s activities still fresh in your mind, you feel relaxed and think, today at least, life is sweet.
You take a sip of your morning coffee and then feel a breeze of cool air and from the corner of your eye a movement. Like a rabbit pulled from a hat there is now an impeccably dressed stranger sitting in front of you. Surprised, you bet; you didn’t hear anyone knock and just as you are about to say something he begins in a calm and measured voice.
‘The deal is this’
‘I will advertise your product on billboards at the busiest junctions of every city of the world.’
‘I will be able to tell you how many people see the advertisement, their age, nationality and gender.’
‘I will tell you what they think of your product and in many cases I will give you their contact details. While they are looking at the billboard I will allow them to view your website and even make a purchase if they feel the urge.’
‘I will have all this ready in two days and it will cost you less than a small advertisement in your typical trade journal.’
He stops talking for just a second. ‘Interested?’
Okay you might be forgiven thinking that such an offer was too good to be true, you might think that you are going to wake up from a dream or maybe it really is time to get a lock on that office door.
But let’s just take time to reflect. If you are still reading this I am that man who has come from nowhere and offered you a deal.
The advertising site is on the Internet and the billboard I’m offering is the humble online survey.
Take a fresh look and start to associate an online survey with ‘marketing’ and not with ‘market research’. And not any type of marketing this is ‘Marketing’ with a very large capital ‘M’ and in flashing neon lights. Marketing that is quick, direct, effective and low cost.
You can advertise a published online survey on a website, or via email and like a billboard by the side of a major road junction, your message will appear in front of people. Unlike a static billboard where the amount of people that see an advert has to be estimated (based no doubt on some arbitrary percentage of total volume of traffic), the online survey accurately records the number of times a survey is started.
By asking demographic questions such as age, gender and nationality you can collate important information that will allow you to measure the effectiveness of your promotion and ensure that you are interacting with your target market on a one-on-one level.
Unlike a billboard where the message can often just be subliminal with an online survey you have the opportunity to connect with the public to find out what they really think about your product, how it relates to them, how it is perceived.
Using an online survey website it takes only minutes and hours to create a survey and using the power of the Internet an online survey can reach hundreds of thousands of people on a daily basis.
Throw in a prize as an incentive for people to complete the survey, maybe some Pay Per Click advertising to capture an even wider, or more focused audience and you are still talking low cost effective marketing.
The postcard printing process will give you a number of choices, and you’ll need to make decisions.
Let’s start by dividing the printing requirements into a couple of different types: fixed and variable. Fixed postcard printing means the content that does not change; it stays the same on each and every card. Usually, this means the ‘picture’ side and the left half of the other side.
Variable printing refers to the name and address on the right half, which obviously, will change for every postcard (hence the term ‘variable’). Other parts of the card could be variable, as well, but let’s think of them as fixed (unless we plan a really sophisticated printing process).
We shouldn’t forget the stamp, either, while considering the right half. Sometimes you can purchase ’stamps’ online, these are printed impressions that look like those made by postage meters. Others, though, don’t offer this service, so you have to use a postage meter, or starting sticking on the stamps yourself. By the way, some direct mail gurus advocate sticking on an old fashioned stamp, saying it gets better results. You, of course, should test that for yourself.
Many marketers outsource the fixed printing, to a company that specializes in postcard printing, and do the variable printing themselves. Of course, this assumes a modest postcard printing run; a run that gets into the many thousands would also get outsourced. The same holds for stamping; you only want to do it yourself on relatively small runs.
If the names and addresses come from your own list, and there aren’t a huge number of them, then you’ll probably do that part of the printing yourself. You put the data from your list into a mail merge program or the mail merge function of your word processor, and start running the cards through your desktop printer.
As noted, much will depend on the size of your run. For a thousand or less, outsource the fixed printing and do the variable printing yourself. Regardless of whether it’s postcards or anything else, you want to know what the printer charges for set-up costs. Having someone else set up mail merge can add a lot to your costs.
Asses the amount of tijme and money required for each type; this will allow you make a good decision on these options. A good starting point would be to consult with a postcard printing, such as PsPrint to identify your outsourced costs.
