Steve Wagenheim’s Home Business Blog

A question I get all the time is, “How long should I make my ebook when I create it and how much should I charge for it?” This has been a puzzle for many marketers who are just starting out. There are many reasons for this problem. I will be covering these in this article and give you an answer to your question that is going to surprise you. If I’ve gotten your curiosity going, good. Keep reading and you’ll be quite surprised at what you’re about to discover.

One reason that marketers ask this question is because of the mind set that most Internet marketers have grown up with, either because it was drilled into their heads or they just assumed. The mind set I am talking about is the one that says that a book is only as good as the number of pages in it. Plus, if you’re going to charge a big price tag for your ebook, you better make sure that it has a good number of pages in it.

Personally, I would rather pay $997 for a 5 page ebook that will give me a technique that will generate me an extra $5,000 a month than pay $47 for a 100 page ebook that turns out to be nothing but regurgitated hype that won’t make me more than maybe a couple hundred bucks a month. I think anybody would feel the same way. The problem is, most people don’t believe that you can actually put together a 5 page book that would actually give you that kind of information. Well, would you believe me if I told you that I could give you one paragraph of information that would generate an extra $1200 a month? I could. And that’s the point. It’s not how many pages that your ebook contains. It’s how valuable the information in it is.

Another reason people ask this question is because of the products that they themselves have purchased. The theory that expensive books have to have tons of pages has permeated their brains. They can’t imagine putting together 25 pages of really solid information and charging $97 for it because nobody else is doing it.

The truth is, until somebody breaks this cycle, it’s not going to change. But the bigger truth is this. It doesn’t matter how many pages you have in your ebook. If the information isn’t worth even $1 then you’re going to get refunds no matter what you charge for it. As to the answer to the question put forth at the beginning of this article, your ebook should be as long as it needs to be to get all the information that you plan to impart to others into it. No more, no less. Pricing is a matter of testing. Test at one price. If it doesn’t sell, try another price. There is no set answer to this question.

To YOUR Success,

Steven Wagenheim
Don’t know where to start to create your first product? Check out my review of “The Complete Guide To Product Creation” at http://stevenwagenheim.blogspot.com/2008/09/review-of-complete-guide-to-product.html and get started TODAY! You too can create products that can earn you THOUSANDS monthly.

I have to admit it. I get a kick out of these ads that come into my in box each day. They all sound so wonderful. Then I click on the link in the email and I see some domain name like freewebsite/joeshmo and I just close up my browser in disgust. Marketers seem to think that the choice of a domain doesn’t matter. Just get the product out there in front of people and they’ll buy. It is that kind of thinking that has caused my people to fail online than I can count. If you don’t understand why domain names are important to your success, this article should more than change your mind.

Let me first start off by saying that with the exception of the few companies who have actually branded themselves in spite of a domain name that doesn’t at all suggest what they do or sell, such as Google, Amazon and the like, most domains for products or services have the product or service or at least the niche itself in the domain name. Did you ever stop to think why? Well, there are actually two reasons, and one of them is why companies fight to get great domain names.

One reason is because the domain name that accurately describes what the web site is selling will instill more confidence in the person going there than a domain name that says freewebsite/joeshmo These free web sites instill no confidence at all. People look at them, not as authoritative sites, but as sites that are just out to make a quick buck and totally unprofessional. You’ll almost never find one of these sites that has a substantial amount of traffic or income. Yes, there are exceptions, but they are not the norm.

But the main reason that companies fight for descriptive domain names is because many surfers will take stabs at domain names when they do searches. For example. If I were interested in a site that sold old antique clocks, I might type in something like antique clocks as a pretty good guess that there is a site out there with that name that specializes in antique clocks. If I do something like this, and I consider myself a typical Internet user, don’t you think that other people are going to use the same techniques for their searches? Of course they will. The company with a site like antique clocks is going to have more traffic, just from people who search in this manner, than other sites that don’t have descriptive domain names like these. They will have the advantage over everyone else.

So when you decide to put up your first web site, please think about the domain that you’re going to use.

It WILL make the difference between success and failure.

To YOUR Success,

Steven Wagenheim

Tired of busting your behind for peanuts online? Go to my web site and find out how I earn a monthly income that exceeds 5 figures and how I can help YOU do the same. Get your free report at http://www.mysecretarticles.com/report.html

You know, everybody talks about how wonderful it is working from home. You don’t have to deal with a boss. You don’t have to deal with a commute to work. You don’t have the expense of lunches out or gas or tolls. You don’t have to punch a clock. I can go on and on about the advantages of working from home. But nobody ever talks about the distractions that you have to deal with when you’re at home. You moms know what I’m talking about, especially you moms with little children who are still getting into everything. Seems like you can’t get five minutes at the computer without having to deal with some crisis. Well, this article is going to show you how to cope with some of those distractions. I hope these tips help.

For moms with little children who are too old to stay in a playpen all day and too young to know not to stick their fingers in the wall socket, I know, it’s a constant chore keeping up with them, and quite honestly, I don’t have a solution for you. I do however admire your stamina.

For those with little babies who actually sleep a lot, this is your time to get your work done. No excuses. If you don’t do it now that they’re catching twenty winks, you’re never going to do it. So as soon as the kid is asleep, get to work. If you force yourself into this routine, you’ll find that it becomes just that, routine, after a while.

For those with children old enough to know not to get into things but always seem to be bugging you for something, this is where you have to be firm. You need to tell them, and the rest of the family, that certain hours of the day are for you to get your work done. You may have to actually set up an office in a part of the house where you won’t be disturbed to get this accomplished. If that’s what it takes, do it. Eventually, the rest of the family will get the message that what you’re doing is important and your time is YOUR time.

Then of course there are the other distractions, such as TV, video games and so on. You know what I’m talking about. You’re on the computer working and the next thing you’re surfing the net looking for some cool YouTube videos. Hey, I do it too. But you have to keep this stuff to a minimum or you won’t get anything done. So pick a time during the day to have your fun. We all need it. Just keep it structured and you’ll be fine.

The few tips I’ve shared above should get you started in becoming more productive. I’ll have some more super tips in later articles.

To YOUR Success,

Steven Wagenheim
Looking for a solid 4 step plan to building your own business…FREE? Pick up my free report at http://www.stevewagenheim.com/4steps.html and get started TODAY!

When I was a teenager, I didn’t have a pot to spit in. I had no job, an allowance that wouldn’t buy a stick of gum today and no desire to get one. So why would anybody bother marketing to somebody like me? Because as poor as most teenagers are, they have more buying power than just about anybody else in the world. It’s called parents. This article is going to explain why teenagers have all this buying power and what you can do to capitalize on it.

The reasons teenagers have so much buying power, empty pockets and all, is because an unhappy teenager is a royal nightmare to have around the house. Ask any parent. I am one myself. My daughter, who just got her first paycheck today at age 18, has cost me more money than I can count on a hundred hands, if I had them. From the early teen years of Barbie Dolls to the later teen years of college, CDs, DVDs and countless other items, my teenage support costs, as I like to call them, have been astronomical, while my personal expenses amount to a pack of Lifesavers and some oatmeal cookies each week.

Bottom line…teens are expensive. Ask any parent.

So the question is, how can we capitalize on this? The answer is right in front of your nose. Just head on over to Google or your favorite search engine and take a look at all the products being sold to teens. I’m not just talking about acne medication, though that’s a great one. Just ask any teen who’s about to go to his or her prom and has a zit that looks like a third eye. This is major panic city we’re talking about. That’s why the acne prevention market is so big.

But there is so much more. If marketers would get out of the make money niche, just for a second, they would see that there is a ton of opportunity to reach teens. Just take a look at MySpace. Who do you think that site is targeting? Sure, adults go there too, but it is mostly a teen hangout. Same with Facebook. These sites are like teen magnets. And we’ve just scratched the surface of sites that target teens. What about Emusic? What about Itunes? The list is endless.

So if you’re trying to think of a market to target, why not think about those penniless kids who have more buying power than most people on this planet.

Just ask any parent who wants to keep peace in the house.

To YOUR Success,

Steven Wagenheim
Tired of busting your behind for peanuts online? Go to my web site and find out how I earn a monthly income that exceeds 5 figures and how I can help YOU do the same. Get your free report at http://www.mysecretarticles.com/report.html

I thought I’d take a moment to pass on some Thanksgiving cheer. We get so caught up in the rat race of marketing that sometimes we forget about the important things in life, like our loved ones. Well, Thanksgiving is a time to be thankful. Sometimes I wonder how many of us really are.

Running a business online is a funny thing. When you first start, you just hope to make some money…any money at all. I remember my first 5 months almost 6 years ago. It was a total disaster. I made all of $28. Today, I wear that figure like a red badge of courage.

Then we begin to have some success. We start to make a few hundred or even a couple of thousand a month. My next 5 months I was averaging about $1,500 to $2,000 monthly. I was thrilled…at first.

And then I started to want more. I wasn’t satisfied with just making some money. So I worked harder. I learned more. I did everything I could to improve my business.

By my 3rd year, I was making over $40,000 a year. It was almost as much as my last job when I was a QA manager and making 50K. I should have been thrilled…and I was. But the thrill didn’t last long. After a couple of years around the 50K mark, I wanted yet more. My goal was to hit $100,000 by my 5th year online.

I made it, banking a little over $122,000. I couldn’t believe it. I never thought I’d make it. And now, as I am ending my 6th year, I have already earned over $135,000 with one whole month to go. And I’m…

Not satisfied. I admit it. My goal for my 7th year online is to earn over 200K. And I will. I’ll be launching my first physical product in 2009 that will almost certainly earn me 200K alone in a matter of hours.

Seems like I have everything I want, doesn’t it.

But then how long until even that’s not enough? What’s the next goal going to be? Will it be $250,000, or will I just shoot for the million dollar mark right out of the gate in 2010?

And then, when I have more money than I know what to do with, what next? What will I have to shoot for then?

Do you see where this is going?

Sure, we want to run a successful business. We do have families to take care of and other obligations. The world makes it so that we need money to live. Nobody is just going to hand us things.

But how much money do we really need?

The truth is, I live a very modest existence, even with all my success. My hobbies (music) are relatively cheap. My recording studio only cost me about $5,000 complete, so how much do I really need?

We need to sit down and think about what’s really important. It’s not the money. It’s the quality of our lives. And that quality involves many things…not the least of which is helping others. There are so many out there who have so little. They can certainly use our help…whatever it is.

Today, at 8:30 this morning, with the day just barely started, I had already made $100 for the day. I am truly blessed. But I also worked very hard to get here. It didn’t happen overnight. Remember those first 5 months and the $28 I earned? I have more than paid my dues for my success.

Point is, we can do anything that we want if we put our minds to it. Be thankful that we live in a free society and can do anything we want. The startup costs for businesses on the Internet are close to nothing. There is no reason for anybody not to have some degree of success online. It may not happen overnight (just look at me) but with dedication and perseverance, it WILL happen.

To YOUR Success,

Steven Wagenheim
Looking for a solid 4 step plan to building your own business…FREE? Pick up my free report at http://www.stevewagenheim.com/4steps.html and get started TODAY!

If you stop by one of the biggest Internet marketing forums on the Internet, you’ll find a sub forum on copywriting with the following headline on the forum description…Copywriting Forum – Hooks, Headlines & Benefits. Why do you think they chose this as a description? Well, if you’re not sure, I’ll fill you in. It’s because these are three of the most important things you need to keep in mind when writing sales copy. I’m going to touch on each one briefly.

Hooks are very important because they draw the reader in. A good hook is really very important in any medium. As a former songwriter, I remember an A&R guy telling me that if you get nothing else right with your song, you MUST have a killer hook. That’s what sells the song. Well, it’s the same thing with writing copy. The hook is going to be what sells the reader. Sure, all the other things help, including the next thing I’m going to cover, but the hook is most of the battle.

Headlines sell your reader 80% of the time. In other words, if your headline stinks, your reader is probably not going to get past it. That’s why a headline is just as important as the hook. A great headline can tell your reader almost exactly what the rest of the sales message is going to be about. For example, my headline in my Basic Copywriting page says “If I Could Show You How To Save $2,500 To $15,000 In Copywriting Costs…Would That Be Worth 5 Minutes Of Your Time?” The reader knows right away what to expect with the rest of the copy and how long it’s going to take out of their day.

Finally there are the benefits. What many copywriters don’t understand is that features tell, but benefits sell. A person does not buy a PC with a 4 gig processor because it’s a 4 gig processor. They buy it because they know that it’s going to speed up their work and give them more time to do other things. That’s the benefit. That’s what people care about. When you understand that, you’re that much closer to making the sale.

Hooks, headlines and benefits are so important to effective sales copy. Master these three things and your copy will improve by 100%. Want to know how to improve them and a lot more? Check out the link in my signature. It WILL turn you into a copywriter in no time.

To YOUR Success,

Steven Wagenheim

Want to save $2,500 to $15,000 in copywriting costs? Want to write copy yourself that can command that kind of payday? Visit my site at http://www.bcipe.com/ and discover killer copywriting tips that have allowed me to write my own copy for years and earn myself a 6 figure a year income selling my own products.

I know the title is a little cryptic, but don’t worry, I’ll explain what I mean very shortly. Product creation is an art as much as it is a science. Sometimes even the slightest additions to a product can make all the difference in the world. And of course, more products means more revenue. Yes, it’s all about more, more, more. And I’m not talking about the Andrea True tune either. Anyway, this article is going to explain in detail just what I’m talking about, so don’t worry…you won’t be scratching your head by the time you’re done reading.

Let’s start with the topic of just more…period. As in more products related to your niche. For example, one of my main niches is in the make money online niche. Now, if I just had ONE product in this niche, such as a book on how to make money from home, there is only so much money I’d be able to make off of that one book. But, if I came out with a series of books related to making money online, well, my earning potential can double or even triple. So maybe a book on article writing for marketers and another book on copywriting could add a great deal of income to your bottom line. The more products you create, the more you make. This is common sense and yet it’s something a lot of people don’t think about. They make one thing and stop.

Okay, but what about more as in relation to more for that particular product itself? What do I mean? Well, let’s say you’ve decided to sell an ebook on debt relief. Hey, that’s great. And I’m sure you could probably get $20 for it or maybe even $30. But what if, in addition to that ebook, you included a series of videos and maybe even some mp3s that a person could load into their Ipod? Don’t you think including these extra items for the product would increase the value of it? Trust me, it will. And now, that same $30 ebook could be sold for maybe $67 or more. The more you add to the product itself, the greater the perceived value of that product.

So, as you can see, by either creating more products or adding more to the product that you are creating, you can turn more of a profit.

Yes, it’s really THAT simple.

To YOUR Success,

Steven Wagenheim
Don’t know where to start to create your first product? Check out my review of “The Complete Guide To Product Creation” at http://stevenwagenheim.blogspot.com/2008/09/review-of-complete-guide-to-product.html and get started TODAY! You too can create products that can earn you THOUSANDS monthly.

A question I get asked quite often by other article writers, especially those just starting out, is “How do I know if I’m giving away too much info?” Well, there is no one answer to that question because every article serves a different purpose. So in order to get an idea of whether or not you’re giving away too much info, you have to look at the article itself and the purpose behind it. So, in this article, we’re going to do just that. Hopefully, after reading this, you’ll have a pretty good idea of what to do with YOUR articles.

There are many reasons for writing an article. I’m going to look at two of them in this article. One is to strictly inform people with no hidden agenda. Maybe you’re writing for a publication that you’re getting paid from or you’re just doing this out of the goodness of your heart. Either way, the ultimate goal is to inform your reader. In this case, you have to look at the subject in question and the reader who’ll be reading the article.

For example, if it’s an article that is an introduction to physics and your readers are green recruits, so to speak, then you don’t want to give them too much info, especially not in detail as this will probably overload their brain. And if the person is just a casual reader, interested for non professional reasons, then you really want to make the article as simple as possible and just cover the bare basics.

However, if your target reader is a serious professional and they’re already in college and studying the discipline, then you might want to provide a little more information, otherwise they may feel cheated that the article wasn’t worth their time to read.

Yes, there is a balancing act here and it is sometimes hard to know where to draw the line. Over time, however, you will get better at recognizing the audience you’re reaching.

Now, another reason for writing articles is to promote your business online. In this case, you really don’t want to give away too much information because if you do, the reader may have no reason to go to your web page and purchase your product or service. So for example, let’s say you’re selling a book on how to sell your home. If you tell the reader every single way to do this in the article itself, there is no reason to buy your book.

Figuring out just how much info to give away does take some time to master. But once you’ve done it, you’ll find that your articles are much more effective…for whatever the purpose.

To YOUR Success,

Steven Wagenheim

Want to write articles that get people’s attention and can earn you up to $200 per article written? Then check out my Complete Article Writing And Marketing Guide that you can find at http://www.honestincomeprogram.com/tcawamg.html

Email marketing can be great. I’ve been doing it for over 5 years going on six. I have great success with it. However, some marketers can’t seem to get it to work at all for them. But why? Why is it that some people can make tons of money with email marketing and others can’t make squat? Well, this article is going to try to provide you with some answers. Hopefully, after reading this, your emails will start to generate the kind of income that you were expecting.

At the top of the list is you subject. You can’t get people to open your email with a bland and boring subject. Something like, “A Personal Message” isn’t going to do it. Who cares if it’s a personal message, which it really isn’t. You need to tell the person why they have to open your email. You have to give them a reason. So let’s say you’re selling a product on how to build a deck. A subject like “3 Killer Tips On How To Build A Sun Deck” might just get your target market to open your email.

Of course the actual message of your email better deliver. If you tell them in the subject that you’re going to give them those tips then the email itself better do just that. If it doesn’t, what happens is you have broken a trust. You told them one thing and then delivered something else. Do you think if you do this that anybody is going to buy from you? This whole business is about trust. Break that trust and you have no chance.

After you’ve delivered on your promise, you then need a strong call to action to go to your site to get more info. That’s after all why you emailed them. You want them to go to your site. So don’t be shy. Tell them to go to your site. Tell them what they’re going to find when they arrive. Make it sound like not going is going to be a big mistake and that they’re going to lose out. Fear of loss is a big motivator for people.

If you follow these simple tips, you’ll discover that your email marketing campaigns will run a lot better and you’ll make a heck of a lot more money in the process.

To YOUR Success,
Steven Wagenheim

Tired of not getting your emails delivered, read or opened? Sick of not making any sales from your email marketing efforts? Visit my site at http://www.stevewagenheim.com/emailmarketing/index.html and get your hands on 5 years of my personal experience with email marketing…experience that has earned me tens of thousands of dollars yearly.

One of the biggest reasons that home business owners fail to have any success, or the success that they should be having, is because they get sucked into unproductive activities. It’s easy to do. There are many reasons why. In this article, I’m going to explain some of those reasons and activities and how to avoid getting into bad habits with your business. It is my hope that after reading this you will spend more time doing things that will actually make you money.

I think the main reason people get sucked into unproductive activities is because of fear…the fear of failure. When confronted with having to actually do something that is going to improve your business, such as working on ads or salescopy, there is always the chance that you’ll do something wrong. So it’s easy to fall back into bad habits like checking your stats or your email. Those things are safe because you really can’t make a mistake checking your email or stats. But you also can’t improve your business doing these things either. They’re safe, but unproductive.

Another reason people get sucked into doing things that don’t get them anywhere is that it’s so easy to get distracted. That email comes in from a friend and it’s hard to ignore it. What if it’s important? Or what if it’s some hot juicy gossip? We certainly don’t want to miss out on something that’s going to entertain us. And let’s face it, reading about some starlet who just got photographed in a compromising position is a lot more fun than working on an ad campaign.

And that’s really the crux of the whole problem. For most people, their home business is work, and it shouldn’t be. This should be something that you enjoy because you don’t have to go to work for a boss. I know that’s why I run my own home business. For me, it’s not work at all. I love this stuff. As a result, I don’t allow myself to be distracted and don’t waste my time on nonsense.

Bottom line is this…if you want to succeed with your business you have to focus on things that are actually going to help your business…not hurt it.

To YOUR Success,
Steven Wagenheim

Looking for a solid 4 step plan to building your own business…FREE? Pick up my free report at http://www.stevewagenheim.com/4steps.html and get started TODAY!