When you have finished your article, do NOT send it off straight away. Let it lie fallow for 2 or 3 days and then come back and read it again. You'll be amazed at improvements you can make. Those final improvements are what make difference between an article that gets published and one that doesn't.

Word Of Mouth

“Word of mouth” advertising can be very effective. Besides, it is completely free. The Internet takes this ancient form of "buzz" and promotion and amplifies it with a global network of people connected digitally. "Word of mouth" now has an Internet version called "word of mouse" (computer mouse). With greatly increased speeds, people refer things to their friends and families spreading word through Internet and to far-reaching corners of world. This can be done for your ezines as well.

Many smart marketers and publicity people have learned to harness power of viral publicity with Internet "Tell-A-Friend" promotional techniques and tools.

Providing incentives as part of “Tell-A-Friend” technique ensures higher success rate. For instance, website www.wz.com conducted a giveaway contest where they gave away 4 Sony PS2's before Christmas as a website promotion. They also gave people who had entered Giveaway opportunity to get additional entries and additional chances to win by telling a few of their friends on “Thank You” page.

On “Thank You” page, every giveaway entrant received following message: "Tell your friends about WZ.com, and get an additional entry for each friend you email." In return for favor, they received an additional chance to win for every friend they refer. This simple addition increased Tell-a-Friend results by 96 times.

So how do you use this technique to leverage and increase your subscription rate, and "word of mouse" publicity? It's simple, just "Tell-A-Friend" or "Tell-A-Friend about everything”! You can add Viral "Tell-A-Friend" forms to all of your web pages just below subscription offer. This technique is simple and very effective.

Offer your ezines to all your customers, friends, relatives, and colleagues. Let them spread word. Offer your ezine as a promotional tool to your affiliates if you have an affiliate program. These can drastically improve subscriptions to your ezine.

Commit time to process. Commit a set amount of time each week to re-connect and maintain contact with people identified above. This is not about making a phone call, shooting off an e-mail or sending out a letter to let these individuals know about your business. It is process of re-establishing and maintaining relationships with these individuals.

Look for ways that you can assist and support them. Before you make a request for help from person you are connecting with, think about ways you can be of assistance to them. When you contact someone from your list, especially if it is someone you have not had contact with on an ongoing basis, tell them you want to update them on what you are doing and that you want to find out about what they are doing. Ask them what they need and how you might be of assistance. If appropriate based on your previous relationship, re-connect on a personal level as well as a business level. Ask how kids are and what they’re doing now.

Stay in touch. Networking is about relationships and relationships require ongoing contact and communication. The most effective way to maintain contact is to follow-up with referrals, information, or ideas that you can assist them with. It is not about calling once a month or once a quarter to see if they have any business or any referrals for you.

Don’t neglect those lower on your list. Don’t overlook those individuals who did not make top of your list, especially if they are people whom you have or had a strong connection with. These people may be able to assist you (and you may be able to assist them) in ways you never even dreamed of.

Incorporate everyone into your “Rolodex”. In this age of computerized address books and PDAs it is easy to maintain an up-to-date address book and carry it with you everywhere you go. You never know when you might be able to provide a referral for one of members of your network and it is powerful to be able to provide their name and contact information right on spot. Add them to mailing list for your newsletter, Holiday Cards, and any other mailings you might do. It’s just one more way to maintain ongoing contact.

Focusing on people you already know to jumpstart your network can be not only profitable but also very enjoyable as you reconnect with old friends and re-establish neglected relationships.

© 2003 Strategies-by-DESIGN. May be reprinted with credits and contact information.