How is email marketing perceived at the time of budget? And does maturity phase have anything to do with the perception a company has about email marketing?

These are the questions many online marketers are struggling with, as this knowledge will help them grow their business. To answer this question, MarketingSherpa has conducted a study titled MarketingSherpa Email Marketing Benchmark Survey by taking a sample size of more than 1,100 marketers.

The study result showed that only 38% have said that the company seemed in favor of increasing the email marketing budget in the strategic phase, as they see value in it. But this enthusiasm was not seen in transition and trail phase.

The percentage of marketers who showed reluctance to increase the budget (yet did so) in maturity phase was 38%, in trial phase this percentage shoots up to 41, and in transition phase this percentage was highest (43%).

Total percentage of marketers who refused to invest in email marketing in maturity phase was 24%, and 38% refused to give any money in transition phase, whereas, 40% reflected negative vibes in trial phase (see image).

As per the study, the decision makers seemed to be divided in their views on email marketing expenditure, but the data suggested that more and more people are willing to embrace it. It’s a piece of good news for the industry.

The tips I am going to share below will help you in that.

PPC ads writing tips

1. Do not be verbose. Sometimes saying less actually creates more impact. What could be more effective than Nike’s Just Do It, and Apple’s Think Different?
2. Add powerful call to action in the body of a PPC ad.
3. Do not use your PPC ad as a sales engine. It will prove to be very ineffective sales engine. I would recommend you to use it as a hook to pull visitors to your website. The single goal of your ad should be to make visitors click the ad. Leave rest on your website’s copy.
4. If you are a B2B wholesaler, use the order size so that people looking for one piece do not click and waste your money. You can say something like, minimum lot: 1000 pieces, or no retail inquiry, etc. Including lot size is a nice strategy to keep B2C customers from clicking your ads.
5. Write multiple versions of a PPC ad, and send all live, do the testing, and keep the ones that converts well.
6. Use action words and active voice. Do not use passive voice in your PPC ads. It will not get you desired result.
7. Flaunt awards and recognitions, if they matter to end users.

These are some key rules of writing PPC ads. Do not tamper with any of the above. You will soon see the result.

Here are some tips about getting organized.

Start connecting things

Start making mental connections. Organizing things is a mental process. Start treating similar objects as a group. As for example, suppose you are shifting to a new house. While packing your stuff keep kitchen equipments together in a box. All glass items which are breakable could be in one box. Put all woolen clothes in a box. This way, you are actually memorizing things which are similar in nature or by any other reference. You could also group things of same material or color or size. Start grouping and connecting things in your mind.

Divide things

Just similar to the process of assembling or connecting, you can also divide things into separate entities. If you have a huge database of names, you could divide them alphabetically into different sections. And then put them into different folders, with alphabets of names written on top. Too many things together need segregation into many parts. It gets easier to remember.

Keep things in their own place

Don’t keep shifting place of things, it will confuse you and make you forget when needed. So make sure a book is in the book shelf only, money is in the wallet. If you use a thing, place it back where it was initially. If a thing is in its actual position for long, it becomes memorized and habituated to.

Re-sort things often

Even if you are super organized, with time things get scattered, mixed and cluttered. Such situation calls for re-sorting and re-arrangement. New clothes get mixed with the old ones, gadgets pile up, shoes get stored one on the other and such situations calls for re-arrangement and re-sorting.

Get rid of stuffs

At times one needs to get rid of not so important or obsolete old stuffs, to make space for the new upcoming ones. If something has been part of your life since long but has no such meaning in present term, get rid of it. You need not be sentimental about it.

43% of the respondent, across the age group, said that given a chance they will want to be richer than anything else — anything being thinner, smarter, and younger. More than 50% Americans between 18 and 44 years of age favored riches to smartness.

Overall, 21% wants to be thinner, 14% smarter, and 12% said they want to be younger, whereas, 9% did not show any interest in any of them.

On the upside, people between 18 and 34 years of age said they want to be smarter (16%), and respondents between 35 and 44 years of age said they want to be thinner. 19% of 55+ people want to be richer, and 53% between 35 and 54 want to be richer. (See image for complete result).

The finding is strange in more than one respect. Despite the fetish for remaining young (at least assumed fetish), very few want to be young. And not many Americans want to be smart, which is sad.

Freelance writing is not easy

It indeed is not tough, but it is not easy. To succeed in this, you will have to put in hours and hours of labor every single day, without failing. Then only you will see any result. This is not a field in which you will enter, rake in moola, and leave. This is not a get-rich-quick industry. You have to struggle here, burn midnight oil, and learn continuously. People who fail in this industry, come here with a make-money-quick scheme, and get frustrated when faced with the reality. Writing is not easy, but it will become easier, eventually.

Lack of perseverance

You have to invest so many hours before you get hang of things around here. When you are new, the well may look dark, and the road may look narrower, but there is a wide clearing on the other side that awaits only those who persist. Persistence is the key. Keep fighting. Say this to yourself:

If any one person can do this then be that ME!

Lack of determination is the thing that pushes people away from this writing.

No devotion to learning

If you thought learning stopped the day you got the job, or the day you got the gig then you are in the wrong field. Rather, there is no such field out there in which you will not require to read. Learning is not an event, it is a process which never stops. People who fail are those who do not want to invest time for learning.

I do not believe it is the lack of talent which creates hindrance in the road to the high hills of success. It is the attitude that stops us from that.

If you want to have faith in one thing, have faith on your selection. This will solve half of the problems.

Well, the answer to the above question is big NO with big N and Big O. Freelance writing gives you a stable source of income—I know they told you it is not stable—leaving it will not be a good idea. You should rather continue working for your clients.

Then how you can increase your income?

I wish, you would have waited before asking this question. Anyway, I was saying you should continue working for your clients, but you should also put a project or two in place. Start something on your own.

Can I do it?

Of course, you can do it. You have been doing it for your clients, why cannot you do it for yourself? I understand PPC, SEO, marketing, and everything else is very, very important for web, but none of them (or all of them even if combined together) is as important as the content. And this is what you have been doing for your clients—creating great content. So why not for yourself?

Find a niche that you would like to work into and roll out your own project. You can create a niche website, an information product, or if you are experienced enough you can become consultant or give coaching. There are many avenues that you can explore.

But when to do it?

Yeah, I know this is a big IF & BUT questions (though without if). You can do it on weekends. Start working on weekends if you do not already do, and work on your projects on weekends. I know this is a lot of trouble, but trouble is what you have to take if you want to make it big. They lied to you when they said that it was going to be no sweat.

Creating your own product or starting your own project is a hard work. That is why not many people are doing so, but the reward is enormous. There is not just light at the end of the tunnel, but there is a huge spotlight and a big stage waiting for you at the end of the tunnel.

Start working on weekends, and make it big. Best of luck for your journey! Do write in how it was.

Question 1: How performance is measured

You need to ask your interviewer about the criteria on which you will be judged when taken for the job. It will give you a target to match in order to get promoted or rewarded. A good company will have a set practice for employee evaluation, and HR people will not shy away from telling you that.

Question 2: Why previous employee left the job

This is a tricky question, but you need to know why the place became vacant. There could be a genuine reason for the previous employee to leave, and office politics or unfair boos could also be a reason, which you can only find by asking about it. The answer to this question will give you good idea about the existence and complicacy if office politics.

Question 3: Remuneration

You need to know about your salary, perks, performance bonus, etc. After all, it is the money that you are working for. You also need to ask about the salary date, deductions, etc. You will not want surprises here, so do not hesitate in talking about your remuneration. If you find the package offered below your expectation then tell the interviewer what you were expecting. Interview is the best place to talk about your salary and other benefits.

Answers to these questions will help you understand whether your personal goals will be met in the company or not. This will help you weigh the job opportunity properly.

I had only this to say, what else do you think should one ask during an interview?

Mistake number 1: Data, data, and data

Yes, no one is interested in your long boring bar graphs, or your endless number of slides. No one cares about them, not even your clients. You should not excessively indulge in churning numbers and discharging them on slides to show your clients. They are bored of all these things. If you want sales to happen, avoid doing that. And start connecting with your clients.

Mistake number 2: Words, words, and words

Do not rattle off the speech you memorized yesterday. Do not even try to make it sound like an extempore. No one cares what you have to say, especially not your clients. Your words don’t mean anything to him. What matters to him are his own words and his alone. Listen to him intently and try to figure his needs from his own words. Be mum, if need be. Your goal is not to talk, but to sell.

Mistake number 3: Sell, sell, and oversell

I have seen many sales person who will start selling the moment they enters the room, and keep on selling until they are either metaphorically kicked out, or their battery get discharged. Do not do so. You should not oversell yourself. Draw a line and never cross it. Do not speak even a single word related to the product, until asked to, once your client agrees to your point. Overselling backfires!

Keep these mistakes away from your organization, and you will see a difference in the inflow of orders as well as in customer satisfaction.

-Using too many keywords is one of the number one mistakes that many Adwords users make.  You want to stay away from generic keywords, and stick only to keywords that directly pertain to your ad.  Otherwise you’ll have a lot of clicks from readers that were misled, that don’t amount to anything.

-Remember to use your relevant keywords in your ad title and description.  A big mistake is forgetting to do this, and then you have an ad that doesn’t seem to pertain to what a reader is currently surfing.  The whole point of Adwords is to hitch onto keywords on other sites for your ads.  Leaving those keywords out means that your ad is less likely to be noticed.

-Walk that fine line between clarity and keyword density.  Your keyword should be prevalent so that any searchers have no trouble running into your ad, but don’t overload your statements so that the keyword is senselessly repeated too many times.

-Always track your results, if one keyword set up isn’t working switch to a different one.  There’s no sense in continuing a campaign that hasn’t been fruitful.  That’s just beating a dead horse.  Instead, try different things if you’re not seeing the results you want.

Well for starters, carry a notebook with you wherever you go.  Of course in the modern age of technology, a smart phone or a PDA can serve the same purpose.  Anything that enables you to quickly jot down an idea while you’re on the run.  Frequently ideas hit us whey you’d least expect, and you have to be ready to write down that idea so that you can save it for use when you have the time.  That’s one of the best ways to stay fresh and full of new concepts.

Make sure that you read as often as possible.  For a writer, reading is a great weapon because gaining knowledge influences you to think.  With that thinking about a certain piece you’ve read, comes new ideas or concepts you’ll be motivated to write about.

Try having a running dialogue with someone else in the industry, or even the audience of where you write.  See what their feelings are on your writing, or what’s going on in the common culture that relates to what you write.  That can give you plenty of ideas because you’ll see how someone else thinks.  That may influence you to write a new topic, or an old topic rewritten from a different point of view.

Always keep up on the news as much as possible.  Current events are what get the most reads, because the majority of internet searchers are looking for information regarding news.  Keeping current, and relevant to where the world is in this instant is key.  Plus all the different news stories are bound to influence something that you’ll want to write about.

Argue with your client

Argue with your clients, and do it fiercely, if you want them to go out with all their money. This will save you from all the chasings that you do every month. It will help you stay at home for the whole week, months, and years. Arguing with client over big or small issues is a surefire way to agonize them.

Tell them [heck] you are right

You know their business better than they themselves do. After all, you are a sales person than why the goddamn client should say you are not right. You are hell right, and you know that. This meeting is now your opportunity to tell them how write you are and how hopelessly wrong your client is. Teach them a lesson or tom if you want him to go away from you for rest of his life.

Talk, talk, and talk

Listening is a bad thing. Who said you should listen to your client? And why should you do that Listening is for those who do not research their client. ? Does not your client know how much time you have invested in researching his need? Is there any way on this planet in which he could possibly know more about himself they you now do after hours and hours of research?
You are not here to listen to him, but to tell him how great your product is and how it can help him solve his problems. He should better listen to you. This attitude will surely push off your client sooner than you would have expected.

Afterthought

I know you would not like to push your customers off then why do you adopt one or all three of the above written steps? No presentation works. Try to engage your client in discussion.

Pre-sales

Pre-sales is the phase in which a salesperson make a list of the probable buyers, qualify them, fix a meeting, and study about the prospects. This phase is important as it gives the salesperson idea about who client is, what he does, and what approach to take during the meeting.

Sales

This is the second phase where actual sales happen. A salesman meets the client, know client’s problem deliver the sales pitch presentation, tell the client about his company, offer the solution to client’s problem, ask questions, and handle objection. This phase is very important as this is the phase in which you meet the client and talk to him in person about his problems, and tell the client how the product you are offering is going to solve his problem. Do not over promise. Over delivery (delivering the solution that exceeds expectation) is great, but over promise is bad. This phase culminates with asking for order and making a sale.

Post-sales

This is the third and final phase of a sales process. This is a “follow-up and thank you” phase in which you, the salesperson, need to call up or write an e-mail saying thank you for his time, and if you have not yet got the order than mention that you are looking forward to serve him. And if the product was sold then you should ask the client if he or she is facing any problem with the product you sold. This is very important step and it helps you build rapport with your client.

Each step in the sales process has a role to play. Missing any of the steps is risking business.

Lie Number 1: Do not have time

This is the most common lie people tell themselves. I often hear people say that after a work it is hard to take time out for writing. This lie is preceded and supported by the fact that they cannot leave their job because the family needs food on the table. Indeed, your family needs your support, so you should not quit your day job, but it has nothing to do with the lie of “not having enough time” that you fool yourself in believing.

Dare to ask people and you will be amazed to find how many people are taking 2 hours each day from their life for part-time freelance writing. This is worth the effort. If you cannot do it daily or on alternate days than stick to weekend-only routine, but do it. Start now and soon you will see the difference.

Lie Number 2: Words, empty words

Well words are important for we freelancers, but words not backed by action ends up being empty words. And empty words do no good to anyone. I know many people who speak volume, but when it comes to taking action, they are just not there. Start writing, do not just speak about starting to write.

Lie Number 3: Excuses, colorful excuses

From not having time, to not having money to not having enough space at home to make it a workstation, there are many lies that people tell themselves. These lies are colorful, and at times have vivid details, nevertheless, it’s a lie.

The time to start freelance writing is now. There will not be any other good time, nor will you ever have more money than you have today to start freelancing, nor will you have enough space to do that. For those who sell themselves lie, there will not be any opportunity.

Well, realize that most people who feel underemployed are generally dissatisfied with their jobs.  Usually this stems from either a salary that is below your standards, the lack of opportunities to express your skills, or just not enough work for you to complete.  In any situation you can find yourself feeling unhappy at the workplace.  Which is exactly why you should take this opportunity to resolve that situation.

Try making yourself more of an asset to the company.  If you find yourself not getting enough work, try asking for more.  If you’re not happy with your salary, make yourself stand out so that the company has no choice but to recognize you for your accomplishments.  Try asking your boss for more assignments, or ways that you can help out by taking on workload from other sources.  Gives you something to do, and helps you become more of an asset.

If you’re unhappy with the position in general, you can use the extra time to network.  Hit the break room, or the cafeteria and make friends with the people around you from other departments, or other companies.  Find out what opportunities are around you that you didn’t know about.  You could end up finding the job of your dreams, you just have to put in the effort to search.  If the company you’re at now isn’t meeting your standards, networking can help you find a new opportunity that will.  Anything is better than staying underemployed and unhappy.

Should you leave your freelance writing that you enjoy so much and take some regular and more paying job? Or should you look for alternative source of income?

What you will choose from the given options depends on what is your priority. For me, the choice is simple. I would go for developing the alternative source of income. And I believe most of the readers of this post will want to do the same. Therefore, I will be talking about alternative source of income that you could develop to increase your income.

1. You can start an AdSense or any advertisement supported website.
2. You can write an e-book.
3. You can start a coaching program.
4. Become a corporate blogging consultant.
5. Create a team of writer and get bulk content done.
6. Become a content consultant

Your options are not limited to these. You can do many more things while continuing your freelance writing.

Look around you for starters.  Try to find helpful books at your local bookstore.  Even look to the colleges in the area and see if anybody teaches a course related to your field.  Anything that helps you become a better seller is a plus.  This career is dependant upon your ability, so it only makes sense that you would strive to have all the education that you can muster.

Of course a path such as college or career coaching will require an investment of money and time on your part, but having the info is much better than the alternative.  An education is never a bad thing.  The accolades might not guarantee a good job, but the knowledge will.  You’ll still have to work hard at what you do, but you’ll know where to put your efforts.  That information is invaluable.

Finally, try to find an entry level job that affords you the chance to work with a real industry professional.  Whether the job doesn’t pay well, or even just an unpaid internship, take advantage of either.  As long as there’s room for advancement, or a good training manager, either will be beneficial.  Remember, it’s okay to give a job a shot, if you aren’t offered the salary you want.  Take advantage of the quick experience, the knowledge you can gain, and the opportunity for advancement.  As long as you work hard to sell, you are guaranteed to be successful.

Taking those thoughts into account, you are better prepared to make your case.  Start out by making an appointment with your boss for a personal meeting.  Springing a situation like this on your superior is never a good idea.  Talking money is not a great surprise conversation for anyone, and your boss won’t appreciate being sprung with that at all.  So ensure you avoid that confrontation, and set up an appointment to meet with them, but don’t tell them the situation just yet.

Try to have the meeting take place in a different area than the boss’ office.  In their office they are the master of the domain, and will act as such, creating a power shift from your arguments to theirs.  So try some neutral territory, like a working lunch.  Take your boss out and have the meeting at a restaurant, that gives you a good level playing field, and if you offer to pay for the meal, a happy boss to start out with.  Otherwise you can always try a neutral meeting room around the office, or an empty break room.  Anywhere but the boss’ office is good for making your case.

Practice your argument for why you feel you deserve a raise.  This way you know the points you want to make, and will appear prepared and knowledgeable about the situation at hand.  Also it gives you an opportunity to answer any arguments your boss may have, through your understanding of the facts.  But remember to always be courteous, this isn’t a “give me a raise or I’ll leave scenario“.  This is just an opportunity to outline your worth to the company, and your hardworking nature which makes you feel worthy of a raise.

Finally, just be cautious to not cross a line that your boss wouldn’t appreciate you crossing.  Stay courteous and professional, and overall positive even if the meeting doesn’t go the way you want.  Your boss already knows whether or not they want to give you a raise before you’re even having the meeting, this is just a chance to take some initiative.  If your boss doesn’t want to pay you more, you’re not going to get it, so don’t take that personally.Feeling that you deserve a raise for your hard work is all well and good, but bringing about the fact is a fine art.  You have to time your approach perfectly and ensure that you are well prepared to make your point in outstanding fashion.  Anything less can lead to an uncomfortable confrontation the likes of which you’d want to forget.  Or worse, could lead your boss to think it may be time to look for a different employee happy to work at your pay level.

Taking those thoughts into account, you are better prepared to make your case.  Start out by making an appointment with your boss for a personal meeting.  Springing a situation like this on your superior is never a good idea.  Talking money is not a great surprise conversation for anyone, and your boss won’t appreciate being sprung with that at all.  So ensure you avoid that confrontation, and set up an appointment to meet with them, but don’t tell them the situation just yet.

Try to have the meeting take place in a different area than the boss’ office.  In their office they are the master of the domain, and will act as such, creating a power shift from your arguments to theirs.  So try some neutral territory, like a working lunch.  Take your boss out and have the meeting at a restaurant, that gives you a good level playing field, and if you offer to pay for the meal, a happy boss to start out with.  Otherwise you can always try a neutral meeting room around the office, or an empty break room.  Anywhere but the boss’ office is good for making your case.

Practice your argument for why you feel you deserve a raise.  This way you know the points you want to make, and will appear prepared and knowledgeable about the situation at hand.  Also it gives you an opportunity to answer any arguments your boss may have, through your understanding of the facts.  But remember to always be courteous, this isn’t a “give me a raise or I’ll leave scenario“.  This is just an opportunity to outline your worth to the company, and your hardworking nature which makes you feel worthy of a raise.

Finally, just be cautious to not cross a line that your boss wouldn’t appreciate you crossing.  Stay courteous and professional, and overall positive even if the meeting doesn’t go the way you want.  Your boss already knows whether or not they want to give you a raise before you’re even having the meeting, this is just a chance to take some initiative.  If your boss doesn’t want to pay you more, you’re not going to get it, so don’t take that personally.

First off it’s important to know how to maintain an appropriate work demeanor.  Remember that your customers are the basis of your business, and treat them as such.  Without their money you don’t have a job, so part of your task is to ensure that they are happy with what their money is doing for them.  Keep everything professional but be courteous, and always take someone’s mood into account.  At times you have to relay information that can anger a customer, and work through it with the customer.  Don’t give up or let their bad mood control yours.

Don’t bring your stress to the customers.  If you’ve had a bad day, or feel that something just didn’t go your way, don’t take it out on your customers.  Keep your personal feelings personal.  This way you can maintain a professional atmosphere that people will want to participate within.  Always keep professional and courteous, that’s pretty much the name of the game.

You basically need to have the patience of a saint sometimes.  So just remember, you’re being paid to do a job, and part of that job is waiting for customers to work through their own frustrations.  Whether it’s you having to explain the same points over and over again, or if they just seem to have an angry disposition, work through it.  Don’t let their mood or inability to quickly understand you affect your mood.  You’re there to help, and are being paid to do so, so jut take everything in your stride and have the patience to deal with customers effectively.  So just don’t take anything personally, and get the job done remaining professional and courteous.

Well, if your boss is the one who with his nagging behavior pushed in here then you should thank him, but if you have come here with a dream of finding procrastinator’s paradise then I will suggest you to look elsewhere because someone has given you the wrong address. But, as you have come here, though erroneously, I must tell you that to become successful as a freelance professional, you not only need to have some kind of expertise that can be offered as a service to the buyer sitting in different city, state or country, but you also need to have a rigorous  self-control. Time management, scheduling, organization, and a well thought to-do lists are important tools that will help you in preparing for the big task.

Indeed, you will be free of nagging boss, upon choosing freelancing as a career, but there is no escape from rules, regulations, and discipline; rather these things – you may call it evil monsters, if you prefer it that way – will hit hard with all of their combined force.

Freelancing is not for those who need external pushing to meet deadline because there is no one outside you to push you. No one is there to threaten you to stop your promotion or paycheck, or to fire you outright. You have to act on your own. You have to take charge. You need to be disciplined enough to do everything that is required of you, and that too on time, every time. Along with giving you the entire bucket of rewards for the work you do, freelancing also puts a burden of a sack-full of responsibility on you.

Freelancers falling in the first group never have any problem with these. It is the freelancers falling into the second group who find it hard to come to terms with the demands posed by the freelance profession. For them it is a paradise lost.

Firstly you want to find out what the most common wage from opposing companies stands at, and match that pay level, so that you can remain competitive.  The most qualified applicants aren’t going to waste their time on a job that would pay them less than if they applied to an opposing company, to do the same job for more money.

Try to find some creative perks that you can offer your new employee hopefuls.  If you’re not a large company, obviously you’re probably going to have to get a bit more creative with what you can offer, but anything that you can manage will only be more positive for the job opening.  Anything that makes your company look better, no matter what you can offer, is always helpful for getting those more desirable applicants.

Make sure to show that there is plenty of room for growth within the company, and that if you work hard you can climb the ladder fairly quickly.  Employees need incentive to take a job and do well at that job, nobody wants to hit a glass ceiling shortly after taking a job, so make sure to outline the benefits your company offers through promotion opportunities.

Have some form of employee incentive program in place to encourage hard work even more.  By offering opportunities for employees to earn more money, or receive some sort of privileges you increase the team morale.  By increasing morale your team is going to work harder.  Showing potential applicants that these opportunities are available will entice them to apply to your company, opposed to a rival corporation.