The Tao of Web Marketing

A few months ago I was watching a stream meandering back and forth across a flat plain in a high mountain valley. The stream reached it's destination - a small lake - but only after dozens of loops and curves. It occurred to me that Water and clever Web Marketing have something in common - they both follow the path of least resistance.

Let me explain.

Your first contact with a future customer usually starts with an email. It could be an Ad in an Ezine, it could be your Resource Box at the end of one of your Articles, or it could be your Signature File in your correspondence.

But in the chain of events that leads to a web sale, an email is the point of greatest resistance.

Why is that?

Firstly, your future customer is reading your message offline. She or he has to fire up their modem before they can buy your product. And that requires effort (and expense).

Secondly, if your message is in an Ezine, it's probably one of a dozen other messages all clamoring for attention.

Thirdly, whether your message is an Ezine Ad, a Resource Box, or a Signature File, you've probably had only a few lines to explain why your widgets are so good.

So if an email is the point of greatest resistance, what is the solution?

The ancient Chinese philosophy of Taoism (pronounced 'Dowism') - also known as 'The Watercourse Way' - gives us the answer. Taoism tells us to be like Water and follow the path of least resistance. Water flows. It is soft and moves easily around obstacles in its path, instead of attempting to go through them.

Nothing in the world is as soft and yielding as water. Yet for dissolving the hard and inflexible, nothing can surpass it.

The soft overcomes the hard; the gentle overcomes the rigid. Everyone knows this is true, but few can put it into practice. (Tao Te Ching, ch. 78)

"What is the path of least resistance in an email?", I hear you ask. Offer something free!

Successful web marketers know this already. I recently did a survey of the Resource Boxes of fifty well known Ezine Writers. Over 90% of them were not trying to sell anything from their Resource Box. In fact, an overwhelming majority were not even trying to get a click-thru to their website - they were simply offering a free subscription to their Newsletter. In other words, they were more interested in building a long-term relationship than they were in making a quick sale.

When I started out on the Internet, I was pretty impatient. I certainly didn't want to the follow the path of least resistance. The path I had in mind was more like the flight of an arrow - straight to it's target.

But the statistics suggest that most web sales are not made like that; on average your customer will have to see your message seven times before he or she buys your product.

So next time you plan your marketing strategy, why not take a lesson from Water and follow the path of least resistance?

------------------------------------------------------------
Michael Southon has been writing for the Internet for over 3
years. He has shown hundreds of webmasters how to use this
simple technique to build a successful online business. Click
here to find out more: http://ezine-writer.com/
------------------------------------------------------------

---

Cheap & Easy Online Marketing

A successful online business takes more than a website?a lot... Read More

Niche Marketing, Niching Niches for the Ultimate Payoff

Niche Marketing, in simple terms is all about targeting hot... Read More

Anatomy of an Online Marketing Failure

Wife: "I'm getting sick of these harrassing bill collectors who... Read More

So What If You Dont Have A Website?

Gasp! Choke! Gag! That's how people react when you tell... Read More

Visibility Equates to Higher Profits

One of the greatest challenges businesses face is how to... Read More

The Best Kept Secret on the Internet

What is the Best Kept Secret on the Internet?This is... Read More

The Psychology of Online Selling

Why do we buy things? Well, some thing are out... Read More

What The Home Shopping Networks Can Teach Us About Online Marketing

Who would have thought that a TV network dedicated to... Read More

Local Search by Internet Search Engines is as Essential to Your Business Survival as Your Telephone

Your Enterprise Won't Survive Unless People Find ItWhether you're a... Read More

I Was at the Point of Giving Up With My Website - Then Something Wonderful Happened!

This wasn't meant to sound like one of those "rags... Read More

How to Communicate with Prospects All Over the World Who Speak a Different Language

I discovered a free service online, that allows me to... Read More

The Power Of Cross Promoting

Cross promotion is, without doubt, a powerful technique used by... Read More

Seven Ways to Keep Earning After Youve Completed the Sale

So you've just sold another digital product; things are going... Read More

3 Link Exchange Methods

Link exchange is one of the many Internet marketing strategies... Read More

Internet Profits the Smart Way: Let Your Business Fund Itself

Although many Internet marketers spend thousands of dollars on Internet... Read More

4 Simple Secrets for Net Marketing Success

Starting an internet based business when you have zero marketing... Read More

Competitor Analysis - How Writing Rubbish Can Give You an Edge

The Gobbledygook Competitor Analysis TipWhen typing cap can tell you... Read More

A Day in the Life of an Internet Marketer

I have been working on the Internet since 1998 and... Read More

The Facts You Should Know About Internet Marketing

I wakeup this morning and see my lovely wife. She... Read More

Writing Your Own Entrepreneur Success Story

The world of entrepreneurship is a difficult one full of... Read More

Online Sales: 10 Magical Online Sales Tactics To Sell Your Products Faster

There are certain magical tactics that work so well that... Read More

Silver Surfers: Successful Online Marketing to Seniors

If you are marketing to an older audience, don't discount... Read More

The Numbers Dont Lie!

It's true. They don't.That's why you should look at the... Read More

To All Internet Marketers - How To Get My Business

More and more people are realizing that the Internet offers... Read More

Automated Selling and Recruiting - A Simple System

Some years ago, on the recommendation of a friend, I... Read More

Your E-Business Strategy: Is It Love ... Or Fear?

I read recently that every human thought originates from either... Read More

Using Ad Boards in Your Marketing Campaigns

Are free advertising boards a waste of time?Not if you... Read More

Web Coach Tip: 3 Quick & Easy Ways to Identify Your Target Market

#1 ~Look at your past customers~Notice trends in the type... Read More

Internet Marketing: 10 Killer Internet Marketing Tips To Multiply Your Sales

Hello, do you feel low because sales at your website... Read More

Marketing to Today?s ?Distracted? Consumer

The average person today is exposed to a never-ending deluge... Read More

The Internet and Network Marketing

After years of gut wrenching work and stress the home... Read More

Benefit By Helping Others Plus How To Create Urgency So People Buy Now

Many people don't have the time or skills to write... Read More

Milk Your Winners, Drop Your Losers

In my previous article How To Be 100% Sure That... Read More