Yesterday Mo talked about Breaking Into Internet Marketing – Private Label Rights - but one thing he missed, as was mentioned by a visitor is just what the heck are private label rights.

Bad Mo!  Bad Mo!

OK so just what the hell… er, heck are Private Label Rights?

Think about ghostwriters that work for the rich and famous.  Do you think everyone of them has the time, and energy to write a book on their own?  NOPE!  Most will hire a ghostwriters to write the book for them.  It’s not an uncommon practice.

Let me give you one more example – suppose a soup company makes… well, soup.  They make their own brand of soup called SOUPER SOUP which is a national hit because they have cornered the market in soup.  New entrants just can’t make it becaue SOUPER SOUP owns the market.  But they can’t grow because they own the market, so they offer to make soup for other companies and allow those companies to use their own labels on the soup cans.  So while they introduce more competition into the market, even if THE NEW SOUP COMPANY sells 10,000 cans per month – SOUPER SOUP company is getting a cut by offering PRIVATE LABEL RIGHTS to their product.

That’s more of an extreme example of how private label products are sold in the “real world” in retail outlets.  Againt, it’s not as uncommon as you may think.

PLR or Private Label Rights are very similar to both of these examples.

Essentially you, or someone else who has the money to bankroll one or several products goes out and hires a professional writer who may charge between $500 – $5,000 on developing a particular product.  This person needs to be a professional writer, someone who can articulate well and at the same time is an expert researcher – since they may need to conduct a significant amount of research in order to fully develop the product for you.

It’s this reason that many gurus use the same writers over and over again – they did an excellent job the first time and every time.  Conistent.  That’s the name of the game.

What kinds of products?

Here are a few ideas:

• How To Stop Smoking
• How To Attract Women
• How To Attract Men
• How To Have Great Sex
• How To Boost Your Metabolism
• How To Lose Weight For Teenagers
• How To Save Your Marriage
• How To Improve Your Credit Score

Hope you get the idea.

So basically a PLR product is something that someone else has developed (at their cost) and they are now making that product available to hundreds or thousands of people – but don’t fret, because for every 1,000 people that sign-up to these types of sites you may get 10% of the people (probably less – like maybe 1%) that actually do anything with them – some will sell the products as-is.  Others will turn around and sell the PLR product to their list with full-rights and so on…

Those that decide to take the product and do something else with it, some may just package and sell as-is though I don’t recommend this.  Instead you should take the PLR and re-work it.

So how can you make money with PLR?  Simple…

1. Sell them directly.
2. Change the format – create audio/video course out of the content.
3. Create an entirely NEW product from the PLR.
4. Take the content and use it on your website.
5. Use the content to create special reports.
6. Use the content to create your own ezine or newsletter.
7. Use the content to create multi-part e-mail training.

Really you need to think out of the box and see how you can use the content to YOUR advantage.

Now suppose you don’t have the money to develop your own private label rights product – what do you do next?  Simple, look around to see if you an purchase private label rights product from one of the many hundreds (if not thousands) of people out there that sell private label rights products (can we use PLR now?).

There are many out there, some good, some bad and A WHOLE LOTTA CRAPOLA.

Most PLR products will come complete with all the graphics, PDF versions of the e-book, licensing information, in addition to the source for the e-book.

Here are some images of a PLR product on my drive:

This first image shows two sub-directories – one that contains the images and another that contains the source files for the content.  The licene file is also included

Here are the graphics included… 

And finally here is a image of the rights for this particular product:

 Now it doesn’t stop at the product.  You need graphics, sales letter, copywriting… but we’re getting waaaaay ahead of ourselves now.

So do you now understand what PLR products are all about?  If not, please comment on this post and I’ll help you out.

Technorati Tags: create your own information product, plr, plr products, private label rights products, product creation, what are private label rights, what is plr

One of the goals I had with this site is to present as much information FOR FREE as I can to help newbies become internet marketers. I hope that someone that is more experienced may also get some information out of the site and posts.

Why free? Well, I spent around $10,000.00 over the years on false promises. I don’t blame “them” – but myself. So today, I spend money here and there (not a lot, trust me) to buy PLR and MRR products where I can give them away and when possible, I do give it away.

But todays topic is not PLR or MRR stuff… it’s to show you (maybe a newbie) how to “get into” or “break into” internet marketing.

Just by the definition of internet marketing you need to have something to sell. So how do you get something to sell?

Well you could use private label content. There is a lot available out there. You just have to find the right stuff. Private Label Content or PLR is the easiest way to get into internet marketing and start your first steps. Now at this point, I’m not going to even talk about promoting yourself, your product or site – that’s an entirely different set of posts – not something that I can accomplish in a few words.

Now when post people think of PLR content they think e-book. Think OUTSIDE the box – what ever happened to breaking the content down into auto-responder e-mails? Or how about taking the content, adding to it and releasing it as an audio or video product? Most PLR can be re-packaged, you just need to check the terms of service.

PLR is the easiest and fastest way to get your own product quickly.

But don’t take the PLR as it is. Most PLR that I’ve seen contain a lot of errors – spelling, grammar etc., So you should always look at the PLR and edit, edit, edit until it says “you”.

How do you tweak the product? Simple. Most people own Microsoft Office or at a minimum Microsoft Word. If not, not to worry you can download Open Office and use that. Open Office also has the ability to generate PDF files – something you will need. Download Open Office at http://www.openoffice.org.

Do you already have some PLR material on your hard drive? Yes? No? There is TONS of PLR material on the web. I don’t want to promote any marketers out there so won’t list any URLs.

Edit the PLR content. Edit, edit, edit. Make it look good. Make good use of images. If you can afford to, have some custom graphics made up – it shouldn’t cost you more than a few hundred dollars.

Finally when all is done – convert your document into a PDF.

There it is. Your first product.

Of course the next step is promoting your product. We’ll talk about that in an upcoming post.

Technorati Tags: create your own information product, plr products, private label rights products, product creation

Well if this isn’t a DOH moment, I don’t know what is.

So I have the software installed on the hard drive, I stuck with Windows XP – it’s all ready to go but I’ve run into one MAJOR FOOBAR.  The CPU over-friggin-heats BIG TIME.

So I throw on the heat sink – but it jacks up the PC quite a bit.  But it still heats-up.  So I can’t really keep the heat sink towards the backing as it will probably cause a fire and the opposite way might also cause a fire (you know, the wall).  So I have to tinker A LOT MORE to get it working.

Luckily I’ve got all the parts – like the fan and other stuff so now I’ll probably end up having to spend more to see if I can throw a heat sink with CPU fan.  But that also means I need some way to power the laptop on/off…

So this just went from a weekend job to something which is much more complicated.

Sigh.  I guess I’m not a geek after all.

Technorati Tags: build your own digital picture frame, digital picture frame, diy digital picture frame, how to make a digital picture frame

One of the hardest things for anyone to do, myself included, has been to give live presentations.  They are a pain to do, however over the years I’ve found that as much as I’m nervous (I start to talk too fast, my knees shake and sometimes my voice cracks) I’ve been told over and over again that I don’t show any signs that I am nervous.

In fact, in situations where I’ve been in an interview position and the requirement was to prepare a presentation — I’ve been offered the job or consulting stint.  I’ve found it more difficult to participate in traditional interviews — though again, I’ve always been offered a job or consulting work after coming out of them.

The one key area that will help you is your communication skills.  By this I mean, how well do you use words.  How to you express your thoughts and ideas, can you pass along your ideas to the other people?  How well do you handle visual cueues from your audience?

The one way to increase your vocabulary and learn how to use words is to read.  I read a lot of professional magazines, in particular those aimed at my current career path (Operations Director/Customer Service Manager) and in general interest areas such as IT (software management and development), Business, and Parenting.

But in addition to reading magazines, I do read science fiction as well and from time-to-time some general fiction.

Any type of reading will help you enhance your speaking skills.

Most recently I was asked to give a 20 minute presentation on “Best Practices for Employee Retention” to a group of 4 people for a consulting position that I could do on my own time.

I was asked only the night before to prepare.  Believe me, it was difficult.  In preparing the presentation to a group of individuals that are involved in the industry, I had to ensure that I answered several questions.  Now I wasn’t told that I had to, but when you are giving a presentation on any topic — your mindset has to be that you must answer the question of the presentation.  In my case the topic was “Best Practices for Employee Retention”.

Can you guess what question I had to answer?  There are several, but the main one was this “What is considered Best Practice” – not an easy question to answer but if you do a little research, the answer will amaze you.

Want the answer?  What works.

Seriously – that is the answer.  I’ll let you think about why that’s the answer.

So how do you go about preparing for a killer presentation? 

The first thing is that you must know the topic you intend to speak about, or be willing to do A LOT of research to understand it and know it inside and out.  You may need to “fake it” if you’re asked questions — but if you have done your homework then you won’t have a problem, even if you do have to “fake it”.

Rehearse

When I prepare for a presentation, I rehearse.  Sometimes I’ll rehearse out-loud, with all the actions that go with it as if I’m presenting at that moment and other times, I lay back and rehearse in my mind.

I’ve tried tricks with cards – but find them distracting, so have never used cards.  However I will use visual cueues, especially if my presentation involves using PowerPoint or something similar.  That’s when I’ll use keywords to trigger points that I would like to make.

Eye Contact

Another key element in giving presentations is eye contact.  Admittedly when you are presenting in front of a small crowd, it’s easy to maintain eye contact with everyone.  You just ensure you make the rounds – as you speak look at the individuals that are listening - you can bet that they will be looking at you, so return the favor.

Even in large crowds, you can still skim the crowd and try and make eye contact with a few people.

Communicate Clearly

Next up – speak clearly.  Don’t mumble, and sound out your words correctly.  If the crowd you are speaking to knows the subject and slang used – you might get away with using it, but generally you should not.  For example at least the first time, you may want to use the whole word or phrase then shorten it for future uses.  Using “Key Performance Indicators” might be OK the first time, but not 15 times in a presentation.  You can shorten it to KPI.  When you’re making a particularly important point then you may want to use the full word again to stress the point.

Posture Does Make A Difference

Stand tall, don’t slouch.  Should be common sense.  Standing straight will help you breathe better and will help you  maintain eye contact with the crowd.

Water… Water… Water…

Now BEFORE your presentation, don’t drink a lot of liquids.  Last thing you want (or need) is an accident on-stage or to be excused in the middle of a presentation.  If you feel your mouth is getting dry, suck on a candy before your presentation starts – and please NO GUM while speaking!  Nobody wants to see a cow on stage.

Dress For Success

Regardless of the type of presentation, ensure you are dressed for it.  Most business presentations will require suit and tie – but if you are not sure – ASK!  You could opt for business casual that borderlines a more formal attire.  If you must wear shirt and tie, make sure that the clothes are comfortable and that you can move around in them.  NOTHING tight, but just right.

I’ve also got to mention this because I see “newbies” break this rule all the time.  DARK SOCKS!  Please, no white socks.  I’ve gone to dozens of presentations over the years and while most participants are dressed well (including the socks) I still see so many business folks that insist on wearing white socks on dark pants.  Even on jeans, you should be wearing dark socks.

Make sure your shoes are shined and polished, and look good!  Just because you may only give one presentation per year doesn’t mean you look like a slouch. 

Oh keep a hanky in your pocket.  Nice CLEAN white one folded into a 3″ or 4″ square.  That’s to wipe your brow should you start to sweat.

The Biological Stuff…

Go to the washroom before your presentation starts.  Wipe off any sweat building on your forehead, loosen yourself up.  Ensure your shirt is tucked into your pants and that the zipper is up.  Ladies do much better as they are more aware of these things than guys are… so I don’t need to give them any tips (don’t believe me – ask my wife, she runs through a list with me before I leave for any presentation).

Check your face, and eyes.  Make sure they are clean!  Check your teeth also.  It would be pretty embaressing if you’ve got something stuck in your teeth all through your presentation.  I usually keep toothbrush, toothpaste and floss in my pack along with any items I need for the presentation.

In short ensure you are in TIP TOP physical appearance!

The Presentation

If you are prone to overheating (aka sweating) well before the presentation see if a fan can be placed on stage and set to the lowest setting.  You could even ask for ice water – but make sure the ice is crushed otherwise a sip of water could end up all over you.

It is OK to keep a glass of water handy, but don’t over do it – you are only using the water to moisten your mouth.

Now as you start presenting – try not to get nervous.  As you get nervous, you will start to sweat – you don’t want to look like you’ve just taken a shower and you don’t want to be wiping your brow every 5 minutes.

Remember to breathe!  If you breathe regularly it will keep you calm and relaxed and minimize how much you sweat.

Work through your presentation – ENJOY it!  The more you enjoy what you are doing, the easier it will be.  The first few minutes will probably be the worst, then as you get into it and your audience also loosens up the time will go by so quickly that you won’t even realize it!

Presentations are easy to give, with a little practice you will be able to give them without any difficulty.  Although I hate giving presentations, every time I’ve given one I’ve had great reviews of how it went.

Do you have some tips that you’ve used that have worked for you?  Please, share them with us!

Technorati Tags: effective business presentations, how to give a killer presentation, picture perfect presentations, presentation skills

So where am I with my digital picture frame?  Not where I expected to be.  I took me a little longer to get the mat made.  I thought I’d try it myself – but it’s about $30.00 for the mat.  If I mess it up – it’s garbage.

Oh here is the link to the first part of this post – That’s Soooo Geek! Making My Own Digital Picture Frame!

So I headed over to Michaels (Arts & Crafts Store) and had them create a custom mat for me.  It will take about 5-7 days before I get it then (and only then) will I start cutting the backing where the LCD will be held along with the motherboard and other stuff.

The cost of the mat with all taxes is about $40.00 — twice as much as the frame!!!  So this better come out good.

So total cost so far has been $23.00 for the frame, and around $38.00 for the mat for a total of $61.00.  I have to spend a little more on plastic (or wood) risers so that I can mount the laptop and probably some additional stuff to ensure that the LCD stays in place.  I figure another $20.00 – $50.00 (max) on the additional items.

The image to the just above is a mock-up of what it will look like when it’s done.  The LCD is 12×9 so the frame is MUCH bigger than that, so what I decided is was to keep about 3″ from the top, left and right and center it there.  I’ll put some random black and whites along the bottom as I’ve shown.  This will keep things in balance, and hopefully look good.

The mat is white, can’t remember the exact color though but it is slightly off-white.  Although I’ve shown color pictures along the bottom, they will probably be black and whites that I’ve taken of my son (those pictures are of my son).

I’m going to start loading software onto the hard drive this week, but first need to dig up my copy of Windows 2000 – it’s somewhere in a box as that is what I used on my old desktop.

I tried some sample placements of the frame, and found that I may need to create some flat cables for the LCD because of how everything fits together.  I’m not using a heat sink, so I hope that the sucker doesn’t overheat… it shouldn’t.

I will also need to purchase a longer IDE cable because there will not be enough room for the HD otherwise.  So while it won’t be as simple as I expected it to be – it’s slowly starting to come together!

Technorati Tags: build your own digital picture frame, digital picture frame, diy digital picture frame, how to make a digital picture frame, make your own digital picture frame from an old laptop, wireless digital picture frame

Welcome to Edition 23 of the Internet Business Blog Carnival – the We’re On Time Edition. We visit all the sites in every edition, and find that there are a few that really stand out.

Now without further delay, here are our Blog Carnival Picks along with the rest of the submissions for this Edition of the Internet Business Blog Carnival.

Mo ‘n Robs Blog Carnival Picks

Christopher Johnson presents 10 Ways To Earn Money In Your Spare Time posted at CoffeeBreakEarnings.com, saying, “10 Ways To Earn Money In Your Spare Time”

The 23 Enigma – The “23 Enigma” refers to the belief that all incidents and events are directly connected to the number 23, some permutation of the number 23, or a number related to the number 23, given enough ingenuity on the part of the interpreter.

There is an interesting article on The Fortean Times about the number 23.

The rest of the submissions for Edition 23 (the Hey – We’re On Time!) of the Internet Business Blog Carnival…

• Brian Terry presents Copywriting – 5 Steps To Prepare posted at Big Selling Website Design.
• Carol Bentley presents Marketing genius, Jay Abraham, gives it all away – almost posted at Carol Bentley.
• Christopher Johnson presents Domain Flipping posted at CoffeeBreakEarnings.com, saying, “Domain Flipping – Virtual Real Estate”
• Christopher Johnson presents Making Money Reading Emails posted at CoffeeBreakEarnings.com, saying, “Legitimate Sites That Pay You To Read Emails.”
• Christopher Johnson presents Making Money With Amazon.com posted at CoffeeBreakEarnings.com, saying, “Making Money With Amazon.com Affiliate Sales”
• Ordanv presents What is constituent empowerment? posted at Connection Cafe.
• Matthew Paulson presents 5 Benefits of Opening a Franchise Business posted at American Entrepreneurship.
• Matthew Paulson presents Does the Applicant Really Want to Work for My Company? posted at American Entrepreneurship.
• Robert Phillips presents How to Create an Audio Product Practically for Free posted at CYBERCA$HOLOGY.
• Tammy Powell presents Making Money Online: It May Not Be That Simple posted at Majestic Tech by an Enlightened Wealth Institute student.
• The Shark Investor presents Don’t Make Money Blogging posted at The Shark Investor.

Technorati Tags: Blog Carnival, blog carnivals, internet business blog, internet business blog carnival