Sorry for the scruffy looking website.
We’re currently relaunching for a 1st Sept launch with a swanky new magazine-style web design. We think you’ll like the new changes.
This is the real deal (this time) and we’re in it for the long haul.
We have special reports, features, interviews and a swag of resources lined up and raring to go.
So watch this space…
Best regards,
Martin Neumann
Publisher
ePublishingDaily
I’m back from my mini hiatus and raring to go. And let me say that’s it’s been a real interesting time in the information products world these last few months.
We all in the industry saw it coming … and here it is.
The long and winding (and dull) 200, 300 page eBook is on its death bed.
In it’s place is a swath of multimedia offerings.
The information products industry is changing and maturing. Today’s e-products are a mash up of screencasts, audio files, short pdf files and whatever else one can package together.
Bite-sized information is what the market wants, and with ever increasing broadband penetration, the market wants to see, hear and read.
My suggestion if you’re currently writing a 200 page eBook is … to stop!
Spend some time online and see what internet marketers are up to lately.
Screencasts are the in thing - both in marketing a product and as part of one.
Audio has also taken a strong hold in the industry. The perceived value of such simple to produce media is extremely high and much more importantly, the market is willing to pay for it.
Now that’s not to say that the eBook is completely dead and buried. I believe they can be used in short, bite-sized packages to complement your multimedia offerings - but the core of your products should be the different types of multimedia.
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I started ePublishingDaily with a focus on eBooks - I’m very happy to say that that focus has expanded.
It doesn’t happen very often but there are times when you appreciate the little things in blogging.
Smart things that bloggers do to their blogs that make life easier for their readers.
Case in point: Yaro’s recent Membership Site opus - a 9-part series.
Now if you know Yaro, you’ll know full well for his love of long, involving posts, so when he does a 9-parter you know you’re gonna be in for some reading!
Now lately I’ve had a bit of eye trouble - too much time in front of the monitor is my diagnosis. It’s either that or a nasty and ongoing battle with hayfever, with hayfever clearly leading the battle.
And that’s where this little WordPress plugin comes in handy - WP-Print. And Yaro uses - and so should all of us. In fact, after I post this I’m heading off to all my blogs and adding this plugin.
The plugin is at number ten in the long list of very simple, but extremely useful plugins developed by Lester Chan.
It’s a breeze to install and you get a few options to play with under the options tab in your WordPress Admin.
I only wish I could develop plugins - but one thing I ain’t is a programmer. So when Lester adds…
I spent most of my free time creating, updating, maintaining and supporting these plugins, if you really love my plugins and could spare me a couple of bucks as my school allowance, I will really appericiate it. If not feel free to use it without any obligations. Thank You. My Paypal account is [email protected].
I’m putting my hand into my PayPal wallet and giving him a twenty.
My last post was at the end of August - whatever happened to September and October??? :-)
Rest assured this blog is back on track and raring to go.
For those wanting to know and constantly emailing - No, ePublishingDaily is not for sale. I had a moment there of wanting to be rid of it and I must admit that being offered a high 4-figure amount for it was extremely tempting - but I came to my senses and realized that I haven’t even scratched the surface with what I could do with this joint.
I can tell you that November is going to be a big month here at ePublishingDaily - I’ve got something special planned. Something that I have been watching very closely over recent months, a trend that’s on the rise and sure to excite those in the information producing business.
Keep watching this space.
Yaro Starak has been producing a wonderful series of in-depth posts titled: How to Launch a Membership Site.
What caught my attention was Part 5 in the series where Yaro talks a little bit about the ‘triggers” internet marketers use to get prospects to sign up.
… the major triggers you are attempting to elicit in people. It’s these triggers that create the right conditions for people to feel comfortable making the decision to join your membership site - in fact they should feel an overwhelming compulsion to join if you use these triggers well.
Note that many of these elements are going to feel like you are “tricking” people, that you are attempting to force them into a decision that isn’t necessarily in their best interest by manipulating their emotions. Guess what - it’s true!
I sense a certain unease in Yaro discussing this because internet marketing has a poor reputation amongst many people … and often times, it’s justified.
Yaro continues …
The problem is - and this is where the agitation many people feel towards marketing arises from - that we use our understanding of human behavior to manipulate people into making purchasing decisions for things they don’t need, purely in the interest of profit.
Sobering thoughts for a internet marketer to speak and that’s what sets Yaro apart from the rest in my opinion.
Obviously, the guy has a conscience and you can sense he’s dealing with it while writing the post. I just hope that when the real money comes rolling in (and with information products, 6 and 7 figures are quite common) he doesn’t become jaded and just another “internet marketer” using all the trick in the book without much of a conscience.
Somehow, I doubt he’ll end up that way (fingers crossed).
I wonder how many other well-known internet marketers take the time to think through their actions in amassing customers in such a way?
Hence, that the triggers that can be used in internet marketing are powerful tools, tools that play heavily on the emotions of a prospective buyer. These tools (triggers) are finely-tuned devices that can be easily abused to the unsuspecting.
No wonder internet marketing has a bad name in many circles.
Mike Sigers, the super salesman himself, over at Simplenomics asks a simple question that most people probably couldn’t answer: Why Do People Really Buy?
Knowing what they buy will make you a living. Knowing why they buy will make you rich.
Think about that quote for a minute. If you can get to understand the why then basically it should be a breeze to keep on producing based of the “whys” and get your customers to buy from you again and again.
The saying goes that customers buy on emotions and rationalize it later with logic. If you can tap into that emotion you’re well on your way to ultimate success.
As Mike says: If you’ve got the guts simply ask one of your customers why they buy from you.
I know that’s my plan of action for every product I produce in the future - there’s nothing more truthful than the true words of a paying customer.
An interesting post by Aaron Wall, famous for his SEOBook and blog where he discusses some of the pitfalls he has encountered through his successful ebook and blog that promotes it.
6 Reasons I Shouldn’t Blog (and Sell an ebook) really offers an amazing insight into some of the dredges of society - stealing, expecting to resell his ebook, doing the old chargeback thing.
Number two made me laugh…
My sales letter states clearly that my ebook is an ebook. And my mini sales letter says available for your immediate download. Yet daily I get asked when it will ship.
When you enter the information publishing business these are just some of the many things you have to deal with. Gladly, it’s only a small percentage of society that makes life crap. The vast majority makes it all worth while.
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Note: I have a copy of Aaron’s SEOBook which I am reviewing more for it’s layout and design rather than it’s content (although I must say it’s an intriguing read … and it’s not all about SEO)
Boy! You think from my most recent few posts I was ready to take this blog and venture to another level. Well that bubble has certainly popped. :-)
I’ve had a change of heart after some serious thinking about my future direction and I’ve come to some certain conclusions.
I love the information products business … if done right! I loved it so much that I created this blog to cover the industry. But over time it has been dragging me down as much as I want to be up and passionate about it.
To be honest with you all, I just see so much crap and hype in the industry - it’s more prevalent than I thought and it far outshines the good products.
These following two quotes pretty much speaks for me…
a large part of the bad reputation the internet marketing field gets is due to marketers working harder at marketing than at creating a relevant useful products in the changing marketplace and following through with quality customer service. - Aaron Wall
and another quote that hit home…
The line between an emotionally compelling offer and misleading people with hype can be a fine one at times - Yaro Starak
I receive so much rubbish emails and requests and offers (and even bribes) that it has slowly mentally dragged me down - and not that I’m a generally down guy but this was just too much.
I’m still in the information products business but my model is a little bit different: it’s a about quality. It’s about producing the best product, taking the time to design it with some thought as to the reader. I’ll also stay away from the marketing hype and tricks being used - once again, it’s that fine line thing.
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The new direction for me (and that will include producing quality information products) is SmallOfficeAustralia.
Update 27/5: The link above should now take you to the right blog … thank you Des for letting me know of my ’sophisticated’ mix up … errr , yeah I’m sticking to that sophisticated bit. :-)
Over at my other blog, TheBlogColumnist, I explain it in more passionate terms.
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Further to that this blog is now officially for sale. No fancy announcement or hype and if it sells it sells, if it doesn’t then it’s no skin of my bones. I don’t necessarily need the money thus the no fuss sale.
It’ll be a private sale with no time limit. I’ll provide some specs to the sale for those interested.
If you’re interested drop me a line at: [email protected].
Thank you for your time and patience and keep on producing quality infoproducts that the industry an be proud of.
Cheers,
Martin Neumann
Another week has come and gone and I can easily say it’s been the most productive week here at ePublishingDaily.
I’ve finally got my act together, I’m laser focused and it’s only going to get better (and bigger).
So enjoy your weekend and here are some choice readings I’ve come across that you might enjoy…
PS. All the best to Liz and friends with their SOBcon07 being held this weekend in the Windy City.
Getting into the spirit of another group writing project is an awesome way to meet news people and blogs - and no one does a group writing project better that fellow Aussie, Darren Rowse over at ProBlogger.
His latest group writing project is simple. Top 5. Top 5 anything! I like it. The submissions for Day One were so varied I just didn’t know where to begin. :-)
And so joining in I give you … the Top 5 Reasons Why Information Products is the Ultimate Business: