Students Of Success

If you’re a writer, researcher, subject matter expert, enthusiastic hobbyist, or an authority on almost any topic, there has never been a better time to start your own subscription website or online newsletter.

And if you’re already publishing a hobby website, now is the ideal time to convert at least a portion of the content to fee-paid access.

Smart website owners are now realizing just how valuable their hard-earned knowledge is to others. Much of the information that used to be available for free to anyone and everyone on the World Wide Web is moving behind closed doors, accessible only to paying subscribers.

Savvy writers and publishers are not giving it away anymore. They’re setting up profit-driven, members-only websites and building online communities of subscribers who value their knowledge. Perhaps surprisingly, resistance to paying for content is gradually melting away.

The end of free

This trend away from websites offering free information and toward a subscription, or pay-for-access business model, has several causes.

First, only a few websites operated by big companies can afford to provide valuable content without being compensated. Some of them can do it for the public relations value, but they are the exception.

The rest of us can’t be so generous. And trying to recapture our expenses by selling advertising on our websites has failed to pay the bills. Online advertising and click-through rates are on the decline.

Second, many people are now more than willing to pay to learn what you already know, as thousands of online publishers of subscription websites have already proven.

Why subscribers are ready to pay

The Internet has enabled people with similar interests to find each other and form online communities. Whether your interest is in politics, gardening, or model railroading, the Internet enables you to connect to others who share your enthusiasms and values.

But in the current political and social climate, there is heightened anxiety and concern about privacy. If you previously contributed to public online discussion forums, you may now be feeling vulnerable. You never know who is lurking and reading your comments, or gathering information about you. One frequent concern: what spammers are harvesting your e-mail address?

However, in the seclusion of a subscribers-only website, you feel more protected. You can share ideas with an affinity group of like-minded people with less fear of ridicule or repercussions. The publisher moderates the forum and promises to honor your privacy.

These concerns are not diminishing over time, they are intensifying as people perceive the world — and cyberspace — as an increasingly dangerous place. The result has been a proliferation of private, members-only, subscription websites and online newsletters covering literally hundreds of diverse and specialized topics.

Finding the right subscription business model

Coming up with the right topic for a successful subscription website is usually the biggest stumbling block for those wanting to get into this business. Choosing your site topic is a serious issue, as the topic you select pretty much dictates your chances of success with a subscription website.

Research by the Subscription Website Publishers Association (http://www.SWEPA.com) shows at least five successful models for subscription website topic selection. These include existing print newsletter topics; trade and professional associations; career advancement, personality based or insider tips; and downloadable product libraries. For details go to http://www.swepa.com/public/136.cfm.

As the Internet changes, it is creating moneymaking opportunities for people who like to write, teach and otherwise share their expertise. Your years of study, hands-on experience, and tried and true wisdom could be worth a hefty income when turned into an online community.

Online communities bring together people who are interested in a common topic. They create value by providing insiders’ secrets that the group is eager to learn about. And best of all, the members are willing to pay money to join.

Why having a subscription website on the Internet is so great

As the publisher of a subscription website, you have an almost unfair advantage over other print publications that don’t operate on the Internet. Consider the benefits:

• Low cost of entry — a computer, minimal software and Internet access are all you need.

• No or low rent — work from home.

• Low overhead — production and distribution costs are close to zero.

• No employees — do it all yourself.

• Operate from anywhere in the world.

• Access a worldwide audience.

• Reach a well educated, affluent market.

• Offer a visually rich website, with text, images, audio or video.

• Sell and deliver digital information products instantly.

• Build loyal communities through discussion groups, online events.

The next phase in the subscription website evolution

Information is increasing in value. Over the next several years, the trend to information provided on the Internet by paid subscription will continue.

A two-tier model for the dissemination of quality content is emerging. Successful online publishers provide samples of their wares for free, either on the public portion of their website, or through a free, opt-in e-mail newsletter.

But to get down to the most valuable data — the premium content of secrets and the insider’s tips and techniques — subscribers are learning that they have to pay. Information seekers are getting accustomed to the change, just as they have learned to pay for premium content on cable and satellite television.

The most successful online publishers will be those who can strike the perfect balance between free and fee. The time to get started with your own subscription website is now.

About The Author

Peter A. Schaible is executive director of the Subscription Website Publishers Association (http://www.SWEPA.com).

SWEPA exists to support online publishing by providing education, training and industry recognition. Our goal is to help members build successful, profitable subscription websites.

Copyright 2003 Subscription Website Publishers Association. Permission to reprint is granted provided the references and hypertext links to SWEPA are included.

peter@swepa.com

With gas prices higher than a year ago and most likely not going down, and people’s schedules being busier than ever it is easy to see why on-line shopping is growing in popularity. Virtual Malls, or on-line shopping malls, offer you the same products as you get in the store, and in some cases even more than that same local store would carry. If they are out of stock you can place your order and they will ship it when it comes in or you can go to the next store and see if they have it. You aren’t wasting time and gas on driving from store to store or making a second trip back only to find out they didn’t come in or sold out again.

There are some issues that prevent people from shopping on-line, such as age/generation. Some older people just don’t trust the system, which is understandable. Another issue is security. There is a concern about credit card information being stolen over the internet which puts you at risk for Identity Theft. This is a very reasonable concern to have but shopping in the stores does not eliminate this risk, in fact it may even increase the risk. If you use the credit card at the store it is still transmitted to the bank in a similar manner. Not only that but you have the cashier who can take your numbers from a copy of the receipt. There is usually a person in the cash office counting the money and receipts, so there is another exposure.

Another reason to not shop on-line is the possibility of shipping costs. While most retailers offer free shipping on some items, if not all, the shipping costs are no different than gas money doing the driving yourself. It may not seem the same because you are putting gas in your car anyway but think of how much more you may use if you need to drive any distance at all to get to the mall.

There are always going to be the people out there that are trying to save money and they think they can do it better on their own. You know the kind of person I am talking about, the person that will drive 10 miles out of his way to go to the cheaper gas station only to save $.02 a gallon. What that person doesn’t realize is if he is charged shipping for an on-line purchase it will be offset by the lack of sales tax as most retailers don’t charge sales tax on-line.

I am of the firm belief that your time is valuable. If you spend 4 hours, between commuting time and shopping time, at the mall and you could have gotten everything done in 2 hours on the internet, in the comfort of your own home, you are making out much better on-line. You also have the option of getting a better price on-line because there are 100 stores at the click of a button waiting to earn your sale. At the mall you get one or two stores selling the same product so your options are limited. If someone really wants to steal you credit card information they will find a way to do it, either by robbing you, breaking into your house, stealing your mail from the mailbox, or at the local store. Do not let that be the reason you go to the store.

The next time you have to do some shopping, and you have never tried the internet, give it a shot. I think you will convert once you see how easy it is.

Scott Bianchi operates http://www.best-internet-bargains.com If you would like to be included in his mailing list when he publishes a new article send an email to articles@bestinternetbargains.com

The advent of the internet has given rise to a new avenue of sales for retail companies. The pervasive nature of a retail web site creates new opportunities as well as dangers for a business. Today, I want to discuss a concept I coined called “collective discount intelligence” (CDI). CDI refers to the discount power derived from the collective intelligence of the internet. Sites such as FatWallet.com and SlickDeals.net give rise to collective information sharing of discount information for various retail deals. This by itself is a good thing, as discounts are offered by companies with the intent to spur further sales.

Where this process goes wrong is when a hole is found in the system and a discount is used in a manner with unforeseen consequences.
The most immediate affect of CDI is a loss of expected revenue. A recent example of this can be seen where a company was offering $10 discounts for $50 purchases, but a glitch in the system applied the discount to each item in the purchase regardless of price, resulting in thousands of dollars of lost revenue . Another example involved $250 gift cards given to sign up for a yearly service that totaled $180. Customers signed up for 3 or more accounts and cancelled the contracts to pocket the $70 difference to be applied to the products of their choice.

In the past, these kind of activities might have been limited in nature. However, with the rise of CDI, any kind of loophole will not only be discovered, but will be quickly disseminated to a wider and wider audience. Many times, the discount abuses will start out being unintentional, as the individual customer may view the situation as an incredible bargain. As the discount information gets passed on to a central information hub, the discount is further analyzed by savvy customers who will manipulate the discount for maximum yield – this is usually the point at which CDI becomes abusive in nature. Retailers will often absorb the income loss, rather than risk alienating their customers.

Making matters worse, abuses like these can happen during the weekend or at night when detection and fixes can be very difficult to accomplish due to resource constraints. The 24 hour presence of a website also makes the monitoring of these types of abuses difficult and cost prohibitive.
Another consequence of CDI is drops in sales due to competitor discounts. When a retail competitor has a discount on a commonly carried product, CDI will hurt the sales for any companies not matching the discounted price. The price matching policy of various retailers further hurts profit margins on any discounted products, as CDI will force price matching whenever possible. As customers start purchasing more and more commodity items on the web, the consequence of CDI will need to be better anticipated by businesses.

As web businesses grow, the area of CDI will become more valuable. Dealing with CDI in a proactive manner will result in increased revenue and better customer satisfaction.

James Yang is president of Lattice Consulting Inc, a software development company. Please visit http://www.jcy.us to share and discuss ideas.

With the overwhelming amount of information out there regarding internet merchant accounts, how do you know you’re getting a good rate and with a good company? In this article, I will show you some key things you need to know before you open a merchant account with anyone, whether or not it’s for an Internet store.

The first thing most people don’t realize is that all credit card processors pay the same amount to Visa, MasterCard, etc. when a transaction is processed. These are called interchange rates, and while they vary based upon the type of merchant, the rates are all standardized.

For example, when a customer at a retail store pays $20 with their Visa credit card, Visa charges the merchant’s processor 1.64% ($0.33) plus $0.18, for a total of $0.51. The actual interchange rates can be found several places on the Internet. The current rate for eCommerce merchants is 2.05% + $0.18 per transaction.

It is up to the processor how much to charge the merchant. Usually, this will be around 1.79% plus 25 cents per transaction. It doesn’t sound like a lot, but it adds up for large merchants or if the processor has many merchants.

The second thing you should know is that when applying for a new merchant account, you have exceptional bargaining power, even if you’re one of the little guys. For example, the first things to avoid are monthly minimums. There is no need for a processor to charge you a minimum fee per month in addition to their other monthly fees. Cardservice International is fond of this scheme.

Finally, keep in mind that if you’re dealing with a trustworthy agent and processor, you should always be able to negotiate the best discount rate (%) and monthly fees based upon your business needs. Larger clients will probably want lower discount rates, and smaller clients will want lower monthly fees, especially for when sales are slow.

That’s all for now. Stay tuned for the next insider tip!

Brian C. Wiles writes for the Internet Merchant Account Info column and is the founder of Poldon Industries, a company that provides a wide range of services to the merchant account and eCommerce industries. He teaches others what he initially learned from starting a company where people can buy movies on DVD.

In affiliate marketing, an affiliate marketer doesn’t need to have their own products and services to sell. All they need to do is to refer people to the merchant’s business site for them to buy the products and thereby, earn a commission. Affiliate marketing is great for beginners new to the internet business as well as those that want to add to their current business.

That sounds a great idea – what do I need to be good at Affiliate Marketing?

Well, obviously a computer, but also a web site will make life a lot easier, but mostly you need a great affiliate program and an efficient and detailed marketing strategy.

So how you choose the right affiliate program for yourself? Here’s Some Tips

Information: Join affiliate forums and learn some tips and get suggestions from experienced affiliate marketers. Find a program that suits your interests and experience.

Quality of the Program: As an affiliate marketer your goal is not only to make visitors of your site click the link to the business site; but more importantly, to promote the product so they buy it. They don’t buy – you don’t earn. Make sure the products you are endorsing are worthwhile or in the business context, saleable. Ask yourself: if I were the customer, would I buy it? Would I recommend it to my family or good friends? If you can’t convince yourself or your family and friends to buy it, take a look at your next option.

Compensation Level: Carefully study the company’s compensation plan. Your purpose for joining the program is to earn, so make sure you’ll be paid for all your efforts fairly.

Marketing Pack: If you do not have the time or ability to create graphics, sales pages or articles, choose affiliate programs that help you create these for your web site. It would be great if the company provides training on how to effectively market products online. Remember that affiliate marketing is a partnership, so make sure your partner is able to support you as you help him promote their products and services.

Write down all the advantages and disadvantages of each program you are considering so you can clearly see the difference among your options; then later, compare the advantages of the programs with your own checklist. Take time to gather all the info you need to choose the right program.

Remember an informed choice is the best choice.

© Copyright 2006 Biz Guru LLC

Lee Lister, writes as The Biz Guru, for a number of web sites including her own site http://www.BizGuru.us With over 20 years management and business consultancy experience with businesses large and small as well as being a serial entrepreneur, she now helps others set up, develop and market their businesses. Also visit http://www.clikks.com for all our informational products. You might like to join our:

Clikks Ezine: - aimed at the small businesses – click or brick with a web site presence. We provide business strategy and internet marketing assistance and products. clikks_ezine@aweber.com

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