This video is a tutorial on how fast and easy it is to incorporate autoresponder software on to your website:

Now, you may be brand new to online marketing, or you may be a seasoned hand.  Regardless, you should absolutely be using some sort of autoresponder software on your website, for three main reasons:

1. Database Building

Building a database is one of the most profitable things you can do for creating residual income and having a long-term asset.  At HBSA, we use always go into a new market with the mindset of building assets.  Different business models take different tools to execute, and our mindset has always been “long term”, and having a database is essential to building a long-term, profitable asset.

2. Automated Followup

Are you busy?  Got a lot going on? Yeah, we know.  We do too.  And the fact is that as much as we all love the “human touch” in business, humans make mistakes.  They overlook details.  The forget stuff.

And that’s why we love autoresponders so much.  We use this technology to take some of the “oops, it slipped through the cracks” out of our businesses.   It basically allows you to write up a series of emails that go out on an automatic “drip” timeline, so that each person who opts into your list gets a predictable, steady flow of content and information from you.  Helps to build relationships, and be of service to your clients.

3. Broadcasting

This is where you can send out an email to your entire list, just with a click of one button.  Makes sending out invitations to webinars and teleseminars a breeze.  It also allows you to advertise time-sensitive specials and updates to your list as you need it.  I sent out an email last week to over 126,000 people, and it took less than 15 minutes.

Here are some additional considerations when using an autoresponder:

1. Website

What is your website designed to do?  If you have an optin website (which you can build easily with Weebly) then an autoresponder works well.  If you have a blog, it works well.  If you have a corporate website, and no offer to give people who opt in, you probably won’t get much action.  Give people an ethical bribe (i.e., a good reason to opt in) and you’ll get better results.

2. Single Opt In Vs Double Opt In

This is a hotly debated topic in the permission-based marketing field.  Kinda like when you get a bunch of Mac fanboy’s in a room full of PC nerds, the inevitable argument can be well-stated and well-made by either side, and it’s ultimately a matter of opinion.

The process for a single-optin setup is:

Lead goes to website >>> Lead opts into autoresponder >>> Lead receives what was promised immediately upon first email

The process for a double-optin setup is:

Lead goes to website >>> Lead opts into autoresponder >>> Lead gets email from autoresponder asking lead to confirm their identity >>> Lead receives what was promised after they confirm their subscription

Email marketing purists argue that double optin helps keep spam rates low (sometimes true) and filters your most “serious” people up to the top.

Personally, I prefer single optin.  I prefer to let leads filter themselves.  Fact is, some people want what you have (they opted in already) but they won’t confirm a subscription.  Plus, those email confirmation messages sometimes get sent to the users spam filter…meaning they never even get a chance to double opt in.

I’m able to keep spam rates low by only sending broadcasts that contain value.  Seems to work ok for us

3. Setbacks

You’re going to have setbacks when using an autoresponder.  It’s a fact.  If you’re new to autoresponders, understand that it is definitely one of the most profitable tools you can introduce to your online marketing campaigns.  It’s also new – which means you’ll need to learn the system.  As goofs will occur, it’s important to understand the mindset for how to deal with setbacks.  At the same time, you can avoid a lot of the more common goofs by getting an autoresponder service that simply has quality training on how to use their products.

There are several autoresponder softwares available.  We personally like Aweber.com for autoresponder software.  They have the highest deliver-ability of any that we’ve tested (and we’ve tested a lot).   Feel free to test ‘em all out, but this is the autoresponder we use.

Questions? Comments?  Post ‘em up below.

Entrepreneurs make mistakes.  It’s our job.  We are pretty much professional mistake-makers.  So long as we learn from our mistakes (and don’t repeat them) it’s all good.  Everyone successful entrepreneur has built their success on big piles of fail.

However, there is one mistake in particular that I’m seeing more and more that is concerning, simply because of ramifications of this mistake.  I’ve watched a lot of business owners crash during this recession, many of which fell prey to this one mistake.

And that one big mistake is simply this:

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So you want to make money online? Good for you!  There are many ways to make it happen, and some are even fast, free, and fun.

But before we get into all that, we need to talk about an ugly truth that may seem obvious.  It is easy to overlook this seemingly obvious factoid when we are looking for ways to earn some income online.  And this simple truth is…

Making money in anything takes work. The Interwebz is no exception.

Do you work hard at your job?  Do expect to get paid?  Good.  Because to succeed in working from home, you’ll need to work just as hard, and maybe even harder at the beginning.  The rewards are more than worth it, but it does take some sweat equity…especially if you’re doing it on the cheap.

I’m going to give you some of the best ways to get started in making money online.  One thing that I want you to keep in mind is that making money online from home is not a fallacy or a myth.  Real people do it every day.  I’ve been making a killing online for a long time.   It’s a TON of fun, it’s interesting, and it doesn’t take a technical genius to figure it out.  It just takes a little perseverance, some sweat equity, and some focus.

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Thanks to everyone for helping us to pull of a great training webinar!  We appreciated the opportunity to clear the air about AdWords, and how to structure a proper campaign.

Enjoy the recording below.  We also have some recommended resources below, and if you have any questions just let us know in the comments.

Gmail Riches – Highly recommended resource to use Gmail Marketing on AdWords

Marketing Sherpa – Compendium of case-studies, surveys, and online resources for marketers.

Pingdom – Checks your web page load time.

AdWords External Keyword Tool – Pure awesomeness.

I love getting emails that go something like this:

“Do I have to be ________ (talented, smart, brilliant, good looking, a technical genius, a great speaker, etc) to be rich / successful?”

The answer is no.

Most wealthy people are not that smart – and they are happy to admit it.

Many wealth people are not particularly talented – and they will admit that too.

The vast majority of wealthy people are not blessed with uncommonly good looks, a privileged background, or any other type of advantageous predisposition that would guarantee success, or even make it easier to acquire.

In fact, in my examination of the wealthy / rich / successful from the rest of population, there is really only two character traits I can observe that stand out:

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