Flat Tires, Slow Leaks, and Online Marketing

Does your online marketing campaign have a flat tire? Or is it more like a slow leak?

Today my 16 year old son Fritz called on the cell phone from high school. Mom took the call. "Could Dad fix my flat tire during the day?" Of course I would fix it.

And then it hit me. Knowing you have a flat tire is a lot better than not knowing. Unfortunately, when your online marketing campaign has a flat tire or a slow leak, it may take a while before you realize it or fix it.

My e-book website has had a few flat tires and a few slow leaks. Bad e-book cover, slow website loads, advertising to people who would never buy, and other problems. But I think I've repaired the flats and the slow leaks. I hope.

Here's my first online flat tire. When I first published my e-book on the Internet in November of 2003, my e-book cover was running at a loss. As I remember, I was making a dollar for every 3 dollars I spent on advertising. What was the flat tire? Please take a look at my original e-book cover. It's below. It was horrible.

http://www.theworldsshortestexcelbook.com/HorribleBookCover.jpg

Actually, my website didn't have a flat tire; it was more like a car wreck. But if you looked at my e-book cover on the link shown above, I definitely had an online flat tire. (There's a reason why I earned only passing grades in art classes). I went cheap on the e-book cover and built my own. I took a fishing photo of myself and put it on a book cover. Not only did I have a flat tire, I had slashed all my tires with a knife, to save pennies.

Then I found Vaughan Davidson at http://killercovers.com/covers and he did a professional e-book cover for me. Visit my new e-book cover shown below.

http://www.theworldsshortestexcelbook.com/BookC.gif

I think I changed the e-book cover in mid-December 2003, turned off my Google advertising, and took a holiday break. It was nice being away from email for a change. When I checked my email on January 2, 2004, I had sold 3 e-books.

Using Excel to measure my conversion rates, my conversion rate during late 2003 was about .003. I was selling 3 books for every 1000 visitors. That was selling at a loss. After my new e-book cover from http://killercovers.com/covers and a week of web page changes, my e-book conversion rate rocketed to .009. A 300% increase. A profit.

So keep a good lookout for the flat tires and slow leaks of online marketing. Using Excel to track your online marketing successes (or not so great successes) would be a great idea.

Copyright 2004 Richard Kraneis

About The Author

Richard Kraneis is a computer training consultant, e-book author, and an aspiring online marketer. Online marketing on the Internet reminds him of his favorite hobby, fishing. His website www.TheWorldsShortestExcelBook.com can help you improve your Excel skills so you can measure your online marketing success. If you'd like to locate some of the best e-books in the world, visit his 2nd website, www.WorldClassEbooks.com. You can reach Richard at rich@TheWorldsShortestExcelBook.com if you'd like to share your online marketing "flat tire" story with him.

---

Niche Marketing - The Way to Succeed Online

If you think that all money to be made online... Read More

Don Quixotes Post Humous Virtual Expedition - Filling The Black Holes In Cyber Space

Perhaps the online community today is not so different from... Read More

How to Market Your Web Site with Ethical Linking

Your web site's search engine rankings are determined in part... Read More

Building An Online Business Is Like Starting A Garden, You First MUST Plant Your Seeds

I know what your thinking, "what the heck does starting... Read More

My Dumbest Marketing Blunder And How You Can Avoid It

When I started submitting Ezine articles, I never realized their... Read More

Affiliate Marketing Versus Network Marketing (MLM): Income formula Revealed!

Both affiliate marketing and network marketing pay people for referring... Read More

Ecards as a marketing tool

As any successful businessman will confirm, having a great product... Read More

Stitching Up a Niche

I am a great admirer of businesses that serve and... Read More

The Deadly Itch!

It is a story about Manku, a blind man who... Read More

13 Killer Ways To Multiply Your Sales

1. When you make your first sale, follow-up with the... Read More

How To Win The Marketing War, Capture Your Prospects Mind

As a marketer you are engaged in a "War" with... Read More

Its a Community Thing!

You have this great website, you have sent out e-mails... Read More

3 Simple Steps To Get Free Original Content for Your Website

As a web business owner you will be well aware... Read More

10 Viral Internet Marketing Strategies That Produce A Massive Surge of Web Site Traffic and Sales

1. Start a newsletter that people can subscribe to, and... Read More

Online Marketing & Promotions: Joint Ventures Super Secrets Revealed

What is a Joint Venture?How can this online marketing and... Read More

Celebrating A Decade Of Online Marketing

Yes, it has been ten successful years of online marketing... Read More

Book Yourself Solid Tip: Cash In On The Brilliant, Creative And Quirky You!

What do Donald Trump, Oprah Winfrey and Robin Williams have... Read More

I Too Was An Internet Marketing Junkie!

I spent every waking hour at my computer, looking for... Read More

Want To Make Money Online? You Need To Sell What People Are Buying

For several years now, enterprising individuals like you have been... Read More

Internet Marketing - Surviving the First Year

So you've decided to take the leap into deep water... Read More

7 Tips to Help Internet Marketers

To make a living online is the dream of many... Read More

Increasing The Perceived Value of Your Product or Service

Whether online or offline, small businesses often show little faith... Read More

E Is for Everything?

Just this week, a member of my audience asked me... Read More

Top 5 tips for Marketing Your Real Products in Our Virtual World

It can be a challenge to market real/tangible products in... Read More

The Secret To Having A Successful Online Business

For three years in Internet Marketing, I've tried to find... Read More

You Know Internet Marketing Is for You When

There are many people in the world who feel stuck... Read More

Use Photos as Part of your Marketing Arsenal

Photos should be important parts of your marketing. The photos... Read More

Book Yourself Solid Key Number 2: Choose Your Ideal Clients

The Book Yourself Solid article series continues withKey Number 2:... Read More

Providing Information Will Boost Your Web Site

I was at a meeting the other day when one... Read More

Niche Marketing and Finding Your Way to Profits

If you haven't heard the word 'niche' being batted around... Read More

Website Sales: 10 Super-Charged Tactics To Spark Up Your Sales

If your website sales are down and you desire to... Read More

Progress to Success

It was supposed to happen in thirty days. Buy the... Read More

Internet Marketing and Leveraging the Power of Networks

Creating a network -- meaning a community of users --... Read More