Network with Others
If there’s one skill you need to make time for, it’s networking. That saying, “No man is an island” has never been truer. In any niche online, regardless of how many competitors you have, it’s always best to work to support one another.
But you rarely want to just reach out to promote someone without getting to know them first – and let them get to know you. There’s a way you can streamline your networking process so that implementation is easy and effective.
First, designate three tiers of competitors in your niche – the newbies, the moderately successful, and the super sellers. You want to start networking with all three – don’t skip over the two lower-level producers.
You’ll have a harder time getting someone to network with you, the higher up on the ladder of success. For example, you might easily get a newcomer or a six-figure marketer to partner up with you in a joint venture promo for success in marketing, but getting a well-known name like Tony Robbins might be a bit harder for you to secure.
Don’t let that stop you, though. You can begin cultivating relationships with better-known marketers who have a larger following, and as your own success soars, those relationships will be cemented by the time you’re nearing the same level, positioning you for some wonderful opportunities.
Don’t forget about befriending marketers whose niches complement your own. So, if you’re planning to be a diet expert, make sure you start networking with exercise marketers, stress relief marketers, and more.
This will work in your favor because you can bring them in to your fold, such as conducting an interview for your readers, and they may want to do the same – make you the in-house diet expert to help guide their exercise clients.
Look online in affiliate platforms to see who is out there branding themselves in similar niches. Also go through Amazon Kindle and other digital book platforms to see which independent marketers are selling info products in the niche.
Most of the time they’ll be branding their website links along with the content, so you’ll be able to reach out, compliment their efforts, and propose a cross promotion or invite them to get in front of your audience.
In most cases, it’s best if you tone down the requests initially. Just look for ways to interact. Share insight, thank them for their advice that they release publicly, and let them know you’ve bought and enjoyed their content.
It’s also great if the marketer is transparent with some of their personal life, too. F you see things you have in common, or find the opportunity to comment, do it. So for example, if you both own Great Danes, mention that – swap pictures whenever they post one of their pet, etc.
What often happens with this kind of networking is that true, trustworthy friends are built, and that’s where genuine promotions occur – assuming both of you have quality content and similar goals and ethics.
Make sure you target super affiliates in your niche. There are some people who don’t produce things, but promote instead. You want these super affiliates supporting you whenever you have a launch.
How do you find super affiliates? On leaderboards, of course. Look at the top affiliate boards for a certain launch if there’s a contest involved. There, you’ll see who is out performing others.
So for example, look in JVZoo and go through the launch lists where someone is holding a contest. See who is leading those contests and you might be able to pinpoint who is a super affiliate.
Then go connect with them online – on Facebook, Twitter, Google Plus, and their blog. Sign up to their list and become a follower of them who interacts and engages with them the same way you would other product creators.
When the time comes, you can present them with the opportunity to promote your product, offering increased commissions, early bird promotion access, special bonuses for their list, and of course, review access!
You can also get on the lists of people with sites or blogs in that niche and see what they promote. If it seems like people are responding well to the offers (the blog posts, or comments in their forums, if they run one), then it’s safe to say they might be someone you want to get to know.
Serve the audience you build freely. The best way to get followers is to show up and serve. That means giving away some of your advice free. And by free, that means not charging for it at all.
That doesn’t mean giving away a little sneak peek and then making people pay for the remaining information. Before you build a business, you want to make a list of topics you plan to sell and those you plan to discuss freely.
Now of course your blog and social media content will be free. But you can also develop reports and full eBooks or courses that you give away freely – kind of like an opt in report, only for this, people don’t even have to opt in.
If you recall, one of the most successful free courses ever launched in the Internet Marketing niche was Bum Marketing by Travis Sago. It was a brilliant branding maneuver, because he created a course that people would have gladly paid for – only they didn’t have to.
Bum Marketing was (and still is) free. Travis set this up as a lead generating magnet. He even paid to advertise it. But it costs members who signed up nothing more than their email address where they could receive lessons.
This is a great strategy for you to use because then you build a list of thankful, loyal subscribers – and you can bet that when the time comes for you to recommend something to them that they will have to pay for, your conversion numbers will be out of this world!
Secure your expert Interviews when you’re starting the networking process. People love to be interviewed by others. It gives them increased exposure and helps them build their business.
What it does for you is allows your readers to see you going out there and getting valuable information to bring back to them. They love it when you bring someone to them who might have new or different insight.
But how do you go about getting someone to say yes to an interview – and how is that interview conducted? You’ll find the people the same way you did when looking for digital product creators or super affiliates.
Another thing you want to do is ask your readers who else they follow, or look for mentions whenever you discuss the niche as a whole. Sometimes, they’ll tell you they love one of your competitors.
It doesn’t mean they don’t love you, too – but it does mean this would be the perfect opportunity for you to contact that other person and ask for an interview so that they can showcase their knowledge to your list.
How is an interview conducted? Part of it depends on what you’re comfortable with, but other parts rely on the information you get back from the other person. They may have a schedule that makes live interviews impossible.
You can conduct an interview…
- Using a live webinar approach
- By doing an audio podcast
- On a video that you produce together using Camtasia where both of you are seen on the screen
- Through a blog post in text format, secured through a list of questions you present to them that they then answer and return to you
There are many ways you can do things – in fact, some even travel to meet up with each other and record an in-person interview – nothing’s off limits except what you and the interviewee decide.
Even though you may be shy or feel like you don’t have enough experience right now in your niche, don’t let that stop you from networking your way to success. You need these people to achieve substantial income, and every single one of them has been in your shoes before – so that makes it a bit easier.