It’s Monday! It’s fun day! Sorry, that was just corny. But yes, it’s Monday and it’s your friendly neighborhood traffic exchange owner here with some very cool news.
You are really going to want to watch for I Love Hits updates, because this is a guarantee. Each and every email that gets sent to the membership will always include at least ONE link to win an ILH Coffee Mug.
You see, coffee is the traffic exchange surfers best friend. I drink a lot of it, and I know other surfers do as well. So what better way to help your caffeine needs than to have it in a brand new ILH Coffee Mug.
Imagine, HENry looking at you at every sip LOL
This is on top of all the credits, text ads, banner impressions that you could win and of course other great prizes like a copy of Hits, Clicks & Misses.
Be sure to watch your inbox for your chance to win!!
And yes, it’s Monday to be sure to get your ‘click on’ today at one of the internet’s largest and most active traffic exchanges!
So this week I had the honor of co-launching Traffic Witch to a very warm market in the traffic exchange industry. I have to laugh because time and time again, we hear that the industry cannot support a new traffic exchange, and that there are too many of them.
Yet again, 24 hours into launch over 1400 members have joined and surfing is absolutely through the roof. So it got me thinking, is a successful traffic exchange launch because an industry that is thriving, will support new stuff? Is it the ultimate form of capitalism? Or are we digging our own grave with so many of these programs out there?
I think a healthy industry, supports quality programs. So while there will be dozens of these programs launched in the future, the quality programs will thrive, while the hobbies will fold. I also think while there are many choices out there for where a surfer will spend their time and money, they will gravitate towards these quality programs at a much higher rate than before.
Surfers are tired of getting the bum deal. They are fed up with fly by night traffic exchanges, they want something that will be there in a year, two years, etc. I have made sure my traffic exchanges fit that bill and it looks like Traffic Witch is following the plan as well.
It’s Monday! It’s the beginning of the week! And today we are going to talk about something ‘old’ that isn’t the latest, greatest hyped up program. We are not going to talk about joining something, just for 5$ sign up bonus…
In fact, we are going to talk about something completely different, something we should always talk about in this business and that is RESULTS!
Downline Builder Direct has been the NUMBER ONE list building program at Affiliate Funnel for the past few months. It is NOT something that just got released this week, it’s a few months old and it’s been breaking records for us at A.F.
But why else would I recommend that you take a peak at this program? Of course the results are the biggest reason, but here are a few others:
1. It’s free to join! (Can’t beat that…)
2. The upgrade that is offered has massive conversion rates.
3. You DO get $1 per new referral.
4. It’s owned by two great guys, Bill and Mike.
5. It has been performing better than ANY other list building program online for MONTHS!
This is again, the best performing list builder on the net right now and something you should check out.
I know I will be using it a LOT more in the next few weeks, and with the effort, I know you can potentially see big results from it as well.
- Treat your mailings with respect. Remember, the majority of these messages you send are NOT going to junk folders. They are very high quality mailings, so write appropriate e-mails.
- Try not to ‘pitch’ people right away, get them into your circle of influence first. Maybe a giveaway page with your email capture form on it.
- Short sells! Remember, the quicker you can get your point across in the email, the better. No need for long sales copy in your emails here.
You are going to want to keep your eyes peeled for any update from I Love Hits in the future. We have just installed our new script which we living call ‘The Email Prize Links’…I know, it’s not very creative, but the script is…here’s how it works..
Every update to the I Love Hits membership will now include these ‘Prize Links’ embedded in each update. When you click on the link you can win a variety of prizes. From free upgrades to coffee mugs, to t-shirts to copies of Hits Clicks and Misses, text impressions to cash…The possibilities are endless and you never know what you will will win.
How do you get started?
Simple, be sure you have your BEST email address in your Profile at I Love Hits and be sure to read every update from the system. You never know what you will win…
Today is a very special day for our American friends at I Love Hits, a lot of you are going to the polls and will chose your next president. I’m very excited as someone looking from the outside in, who will be next in line to lead your country.
No matter who you vote for, be sure to get out and cast your ballot!
I guess it’s not a surprise, but we had a little ‘vote’ of our own here in the traffic exchange industry. Yesterday, my good friend Paul Kinder and I re-launched the traffic exchange ranker (Surfer’s Choice) at Affiliate Funnel.
For the first time in the history of traffic exchanges, the top ranked site are voted on by YOU, the surfer and now we have the numbers to back it up!
You see, numbers are very important in the traffic exchange ranking game however we focused on one number often over looked in this business…
The members joining per week!
The power of traffic exchanges is that they cater to a new marketing niche and the more new members a traffic exchange generates, the better traffic and results you will get.
Combine this with the best and more in depth stats around, sprinkle in YOUR opinion and YOUR vote and presto, you have Surfer’s Choice v2.0!
Be sure to cast your vote for your favorite traffic exchanges (oh yes, I Love Hits is included and ranked Number 6 right now) and join Affiliate Funnel. to be part of history!
P.S. If you have ever read a One Time Offer for any traffic exchange, you will know you get some of the best value in the business. Affiliate Funnel’s new offer is the absolute BEST traffic exchange and marketing offer ever. Let’s put it this way, it could save you over $4,500…
I’ve been fooled for years and today I was finally set straight. There’s a popular internet marketing myth that the money is in the list…
I know, I know, you’ve heard that one before. Heck, I’ve said it in countless e-mails, blog posts and various training seminars in my years of being online.
So if it’s a myth, what’s the truth?
The money is in the buyers!
I just purchased and ’soaked’ up Michael Rasmussen’s brand new home study course called ‘Get More Buyers’ and I wanted to share with you my thoughts about it. You know, I got quite a few e-mails about it today and even though I will be putting my affiliate link in this email, I do want to give an honest review of the product and let you decide whether or not this is for you.
So does it help your business? In one simple word, yes! Why?
Simple, because we have focused (x that, I HAVE focused) on building ‘big’ lists for years. Sure, I have thousands of people on Hit Exchange News and I just hit 100,000 members at I Love Hits. I never thought for a second, I should be building lists of buyers, rather than pretty stats that said I was a ‘big list owner’.
Was it a mistake to focus on the size of this list? Maybe, but I think it had more to do with the fact that I should have paid more attention to what Michael outlines in ‘Get More Buyers’. He makes the argument that you should focus your efforts on specific buying lists. It’s a wonderful ‘how to’ for anyone looking to make money from their mailing list and a great refresher course for anyone looking to improve results.
The course itself is one of the easiest to digest. Michael has one of the most unique and well presented ways of delivering his content. His videos are top quality, easy to follow and have wonderful graphics that compliment his tutorial video. The real bonus is how he presents his information. In short, 4-7 minute chunks. Easy to follow and easy to implement. Also, if you are trying to look for a specific topic in the presentation, no problem you can jump right to it at anytime.
This thing is jam packed and such a wonderful resource for any professional or beginner list builder. I do recommend it highly and it will help your list building, excuse me, list of buyers.
Get More Buyers is one of those massive launches that will be talked about and promoted a lot. But it’s for good reason, this is a wonderful addition to anyone’s internet marketing training.
What is the biggest challenge facing traffic exchange surfers?
I have read forum posts, heard discussions in the seminar room, read support tickets and the majority of the feedback I have seen is that people want results. This is what is important for surfers and rightfully so. But let’s look at ‘results’ and what that means for different people.
You know, when I got started online, I was absolutely thrilled with the prospect of making 30 bucks extra a month. Sometimes I think some of the professionals in this business forget that ’success’ does not mean a full time income online.
It might mean a referral here and there. It might mean some extra credits for surfing. It might mean a few extra bucks every month to help with household bills. And it might mean developing a full time income with their online business.
So what’s your measure of success?
This is a very important question to ask yourself BEFORE you start to invest time and money in your online business. You see, to get to the level of success you desire, I really feel that people need a game plan. A road map for success, some thing they can turn to every day and remind themselves why they are in the business for the first place.
I use multiple ‘measuring sticks’ but something that has worked very well for me is a plan dry erase white board. Yup, I hang this thing in my office…I write down 3 things I want to accomplish every week…And every time I achieve a goal that I wrote on the white board, it gets erased.
At the end of the week, I can look at those three new tasks and know that I’m three steps closer to my goals. Seems kind of corny at times, I know, and this is not the ’sexy’ internet marketing talk you may be used to but it works.
Try this action plan…Go to your local Staples, or business supply shop. grab yourself a white board. Stick it up in your home office or near your computer and write 3 things you want to tackle this week. Make sure it’s in plain view to that you HAVE to see it and remind yourself everyday you wrote them down for a reason.
Do the first one, erase it. Second one, erase that one too. And finally once you have finished the third task, wipe the slate clean and start again. Simple, almost seems corny, but you know what, it works. The power though, comes from your desire to actually take that action and complete the tasks. Good luck and happy planning!
——————–
The Book That 95% of ‘Online Marketers’ Won’t Read…
Don’t Be An ‘Online Marketer’….Be An Action Taker and Get Results!
——————–
* We have some brand new features that will be released very soon at I Love Hits. Mr. Purcell is putting the finishing touches on three new benefits that no other traffic exchange has. These should get people talking about I Love Hits and continue our quest to be your ultimate traffic exchange experience.
* A quick note about our new toll free customer support line. If you have any questions about your account at I Love Hits (or SWAT Traffic) please do not hesitate to contact us directly at 1-888-277-7657 ext. 0363. We will be more than happy to help you out with anything you need.
* We continue to grow by leaps and bounds. Over 400 new members have joined the traffic exchange this past week and we are now well over the 100,000 member mark. Remember, these are BRAND NEW marketers and traffic exchange surfers. You can be their first contact, so make sure you advertise to them directly. This is powerful traffic exchange advertising, if done properly.
I was hanging out in the SWAT Traffic conference room today with my good friend Soren Jordansen. He’s got something up his sleeve and while there is no release date yet for his new web site, it really got me thinking about how to promote properly on the traffic exchanges.
You see, the story remains a constant…New person comes online, finds the traffic exchanges, promotes their affiliate link in them for a month or so, doesn’t get any results, and then runs away screaming that traffic exchanges don’t work…
Using these programs is not rocket science, the problem most people face though is they do not build their list and brand their name. Yes, it’s that simple…
1. Build your mailing list
2. Brand your name / business
That’s all you should be trying to do with anything you do in the traffic exchanges. The people that get the best results are the ones who follow these simple two steps…Nothing complicated, nothing too dramatic, very simple!
So the next question would be, how do you do this?
Simple…
To build your mailing list you should be using a lead capture form of some kind. I use and HIGHLY recommend the powerhouse list builder aWeber.
But here’s the best part, I combine it with a splash / squeeze page to brand my name and business as well. This is how to kill two birds with one stone. An example of this would be my squeeze page for Hit Exchange News.
This site has my logo on the top left corner, my name everywhere and then presto, my lead capture form that builds my list.
That’s all I do and I get great results from it.
Want to increase your results with I Love Hits and all the traffic exchanges? It’s simple, here’s your two step process;
Sure it’s a little bit of effort, but it’s a must if you are not only getting involved with traffic exchanges, but internet business as a whole. Do these two steps, and you will be ahead of 97% of the rest of the internet world!
We are about 24 hours away from the biggest milestone I Love Hits has had in it’s 7 year history. History, I thought it would be very cool to look over the past 7 years and chronicle some of the failures and other milestones I Love Hits has endured. If nothing else, it’ll be in this blog for years to come and will provide people with some insight on how ILH became ILH…
I Love Hits was started in the summer of 2001. Around that time, there was only a handful of traffic exchanges online, with some of the more popular ones being Hit Harvester, EZ Hits 4U, No More Hits and I Love Clicks….Ahhh the challenge it was to separate I Love Hits from I Love Clicks still goes on to this day.
The script was managed by a gentleman by the name of Bob. You see, I am technically the 4th owner of I Love Hits and have been since 2004. The original owner had the script placed on something called the PHP HomeXchange traffic exchange script, programmed by a teenager named Tim Linden. This was the first commercial TE script out there and it was a very exciting time for the traffic exchanges.
Bob sold I Love Hits to two of the leaders of a program called MPAM. They were Micheal Russell and Rich Taylor. I was heavily involved in MPAM at the time and had become real good friends with both guys. So in 2004, I was asked if I would like to take control of Rich’s share of the program to turn it around.
You see, I Love Hits was garbage back then. It was an absolute disaster and had very little activity and the active surfers that it did have, had frame breaking sites in rotation every second page you viewed. It was pretty bad. But I saw it as a challenge and having just started Hit Exchange News the previous year, traffic exchanges were much more than my passion, they became my life.
Michael was so busy with MPAM that one day he basically said ‘Jon I don’t want this anymore, do you want full control of it?’ I was thrilled. I was ‘handed’ a 30,000 member traffic exchange and even though there was no activity and abuse was rampant, I saw massive potential. The fact that I Love Hits was a gift to me has a lot to do with hanging out in live seminar rooms, meeting people of influence and being around positive successful people.
70,000 members later…I Love Hits has become one of the most popular and active traffic exchanges on the net. I have always billed it as the ‘no frills’ traffic exchange because of two reasons…One, I like simple stuff. I think a T.E. should be VERY easy to use and the less complicated it is, the better surf experience you can have. And two…Well, I’m about as skilled of a programmer as a toad. Even though I had great ideas for the program, I never could put them into action.
We now have a wonderful team in place, Cat Heiter is our support admin and one of the most dedicated individuals on the net. She is a blessing for ILH and I’m so thankful to have her. And Robert Purcell, our resident programming genius. Robert has had to translate my ‘ideas’ into reallity for years now and his patience and talents are very much appreciated.
And then there is you, the member of I Love Hits. The lifeblood of any traffic exchange is it’s members and I have met the absolute best people on planet earth through I Love Hits. Thank you so much for all your kind words, support and business throughout the years. 100,000 members in a program may not be much to some areas of the internet, but I know the struggles traffic exchanges have had to endure to get respect in this business. I’m so proud of the traffic exchanges and every single one of you that have created the most exciting industry on the internet today.
Here’s to 100,000 more…
——————–
The Book That 95% of ‘Online Marketers’ Won’t Read…
Don’t Be An ‘Online Marketer’….Be An Action Taker and Get Results!
——————–
* I’m on the road again and will be in Las Vegas for the next week and a half. Please allow 24 hours or so if you are contacting me directly, or get in touch with Cat if you need any help with your I Love Hits account.
We don’t offer commissions, we don’t have fancy dancy team surfing or clock hunting, we don’t do massive surf giveaways every week, we are just…A traffic exchange.
Even though this has been the mainstay for I Love Hits, it seems that surfers want more ‘fancy dancy’ and less ’straight up surfing’. It’s not that I have tried to fight it off, or even that I don’t think it would be a good idea to implement some new features…But here’s my problem.
I will invest a lot of time into something like the Profile Pages, something that could really help members network with other surfers and build their business properly. But it’s not the magic button, it means effort and elbow grease.
I invest a lot of time into new features like tell-a-friend scripts, ‘Send To Your Friend’ scripts, site of the week pages and many other tools and services to enhance the overall system…Still, is that sexy enough? I say yes!
Why?
Because these are tools are developed to get you results! And that’s what we are after is it not? I’m a fan of a lot of the new features being brought out by traffic exchanges across the net, I love some of the new features in fact. However something always seem to be lacking in all these new things and that is emphasis on results, rather than how many points your team gets in a week.
I used to called I Love Hits the ‘no frills traffic exchange’ because for years it was simple enough…Surf the site, get the traffic. I mean, that’s what these things are right? Web 2.0 and community based before there was even such thing as 2.0 *lol* But I digress…That’s another rant.
So is I Love Hits sexy enough for today’s market? I think it is. But it’s not what i think, it’s what the members do. So if you feel like this program needs a shake up, a new tweak, a new feature, a new direction…Let me know. When I took control of ILH , I insisted that it had an open door policy and it’s no different now.
What are your thoughts on the program? Can the old work horse keep up to task, or do you feel like we need a change. Let me know =)
——————–
The Book That 95% of ‘Online Marketers’ Won’t Read…
Don’t Be An ‘Online Marketer’….Be An Action Taker and Get Results!
——————–
* Dynamic surfing was a little concept my good friend Jack Schafer came up with a few years ago at Hit Pirate. I loved the idea and I loved to reward active surfers in my programs. As many of you know, I Love Hits and SWAT Traffic both have dynamic surf ratios. I have changed things up a bit to added increases at shorter intervals now. This means, if you do not like the 3:1 surf ratio you won’t need to surf 1000 pages to reach 2:1. Enjoy!
* The mailing system went ‘kaput’ and then it was fixed. And then it went ‘kaput’ and it was fixed again. We are crossing our fingers and hoping for the best, and I would like to thank John Merrick and Robert Purcell for helping me through this. All systems should be go.
* Well, it looks like we are going to hit the magic 100,000 member mark either late this week or early next week. Heh, imagine that. Online since 2001, averaging around 14,000 new members a year. Special note because I know this will cause a ruckus in the next week or so…THIS DOES NOT MEAN WE HAVE 100,000 ACTIVE MEMBERS. This means that 100,000 member accounts have been created since the program was launched. Still, not too shabby for a ‘no frills traffic exchange’.
