If you have read other articles about Contact List Builder here or elsewhere you may know that it comprises a set of programs that together make up a toolset for internet marketers.
Given that your primary objective is to bring new people to your business AND that doing that means finding leads, what are these basic tools and how are they used?
There are a heap of autoresponders out there, some are better than others, some are easier or harder to use and some are inexpensive (a few are free) and others will take a big hunk of your marketing budget every month. It’s the same with all the other tools. You’ve really got to choose according to your pocket. I will make some recommendations at the end.
So, what is the NUMBER ONE tool that you absolutely cannot do without?
1. Autoresponders
As I said, there are a few autoresponders out there that are free, but you can pretty well discard that idea as they are just not up to the job. If you only have $10 to spend on building your business each month, then you really have to spend it on an autoresponder. So how do they work?
Broadly speaking, you will have a web page with an ad that has a form to put in a name and email address (plus optional extras like Skype or phone number), and when someone enters that information, your autoresponder will scoop it up and store it for you. The way it does that, is to give you a little script to put into the web page that captures the information. This is why we call this type of page a lead capture page. Here is an example one for CLB –
Now here is the number one important thing to understand. Once you have those people subscribed to your autoresponder, you can keep feeding them details of any and every program and business tool that you join, from traffic exchanges to high level training programs. The bigger your list is, the more likely it is that some will join. You can broadcast to your list any time you wish and you can have any number of capture pages that feed that list. Your autoresponder will let you build a range of scripts which can send them to different pages once they put in their info.
2. Lead Capture Page creator.
This is a special type of editor that allows you to create pages with an embedded autoresponder script. The page will give the viewer an idea of what they might achieve or get by joining your program or business. Once again, there are free ones and others that you pay for. Budget for another $10 a month.
3. Places to advertise your webpage.
This is the nicer part because you can get a LOT for nothing more than your time. Whether we are talking about Safelists or Traffic Exchanges, the basic way they work is that you look at other people’s websites in return for them looking at yours. With more budget you can short circuit it by buying advertising credits. You have to take a deep breath now. For every 1000 views of your site link on an average traffic exchange or mailer, you will be lucky to get 30 or 40 that actually click through to look at your site more closely. If one or two in 1000 actually fill in that form, you are doing really well. It pays to have multiple places where your site is seen because they are likely to be unique views – new eyeballs on your site!
(NB Solo mailings have a much better return rate – another topic for another day)
4. Ad tracker.
Ideally you want to be know which of your ads is most effective. Which sites are producing the most entries to your autoresponder, and then coming into your program or programs. Once again, you have the choice of free or paid. Your budget, your choice.
Contact List Builder has in the past been very prescriptive about which specific tools you should use. It has already made a concession that if you come in and you are already a member of an autoresponder site, that’s fine, you won’t have to switch. My prediction is that it may continue on this path and give you options on other programs too, at some time in the future.
For the time being however, CLB still makes recommendations about what to use and it does this on grounds of cost and effectiveness.
Autoresponder – GVO Host then Profit. At $9.95 it is cheaper than many others and INCLUDES web hosting for up to 4 web domains
Lead Capture Page creator – currently Adkreator, and as a free CLB member you can get a 50% discount bringing the monthly cost down to $9.95.
Splash Wizard is new, the pages you can make are more up to date in appearance and the cost is the same per month. Both have free options. Try both and decide. For the moment, CLB only gives you ready made pages for Adkreator. I am finding that the page I created for CLB in SplashWizard is enticing more people to put in their names and emails.
Ad Tracker. CLB recommends Trck.me and it is very good – another $9.95 a month, but it does have very good analytics and you can track unlimited links.
You get 30 days free trial to decide. CashTrackbar is free, you can only track up to 5 ad links though.
As for advertising places, CLB makes some suggestions and you will find a myriad more as you start to market your business. One way to reduce the amount of surfing for credits you have to do is to take advantage of the free credit codes on TrafficCodex a really superb site that everyone should join. There are free codes for most of the well known exchanges and mailers AND the whole site is a giant downline builder, so money to be made over there too.
The basic idea behind Contact List Builder is that you join a specific set of sites, your referrals follow you in and you make additional income streams from that in addition to the chance to introduce them to your primary business. You get free training to help you get familiar with all these types of programs and what you should be doing and the training is exceptionally good, something no new marketer should miss.
Now, if you add up the monthly costs of these basics it can come to the equivalent of a cup of coffee a day in your favourite coffee shop. I think that is a good investment to build your business and really the absolute minimum. To be honest, anything less than that, and you are just playing at being a marketer.
Even if your principal business allows you to be a free affiliate – and Karatbars does – you will bring in many more prospects and customers if you are prepared to lay out just a small amount each month to invest in the tools of your trade.
