Archive for the ‘Ebook Info’ Category

The economy is having an effect on everyone right now, so I’m going to take advantage of the extra time to revamp my site. It’s been the same for several years now, and it’s time for a good housecleaning and revamping. Over the next few weeks, I’m going to be changing my site to using WordPress as a CMS. Right now my blog is making the change – soon it will be the entire site.

For those of you not familiar with the term “CMS” – it means “Content Management System”, which is a fancy way of saying “your whole website.” In other words, I’m switching from a site that was built on “stand-alone” pages in an HTML editor, to one that is created in WordPress using a series of templates and style sheets.

The reason is very simple. Maintenance and ease of use. Every time I wanted to change a page’s location or file name, I had to go through a stack of files making changes. I was spending a lot of time uploading files, replacing files, and trying to keep track of what *other* files were connected (images, etc) to the page I was changing. Plus, I want to simplify my site. A lot of pages just aren’t being looked at or used – they’re just there, so I want to get rid of the deadwood in here. I don’t feel like I have to have something for everyone anymore – it doesn’t have to be there just in case someone wants to look at it.

I have to say, though, that some pages will be a challenge to get laid out right in WordPress – it’s editing and formatting is somewhat limited compared to a regular HTML editor, but I think I can either work around the limitations, or adapt the pages themselves. You’ll be able to watch my progress as pages are converted.

Information Overload…

Every one here has come up against the “info-overload barrier” – and there’s only one way to handle it… the same way you would eat an elephant: One bite at a time!

Actually, the trick is to take a good look at what you want to accomplish – for example, maybe you want a passive income that keeps going no matter what you do. Maybe you want money to come in “bursts”. Maybe you want a complete “no-hands” approach. Maybe you just want to experiment – and play – with marketing. Maybe you want it to be a full-time job.

First, get pencil and paper – don’t even try to keep this in your head. (The best way is to create a mind map and, yes, there are free mind-mapping programs available…plug this phrase into Google “free mind mapping software” – this one is pretty good… http://www.thebrain.com/#-47)

Number 1 is to determine what you want from Internet Marketing.

Let’s say you are the mother of 3 toddlers under 4. You must stay home with them. You cannot take your eyes off them. You want an income from the internet that isn’t going to require that you spend a lot of time working on the project. OK – we’ll look at “passive income.”

Number 2 is to “quantify” those wants… how much do you want or need to have as that income? Our Mom above decides she needs $2000 a month. Now, you can break that down to weekly, daily or hourly income if you like – or if it will give you a clearer idea of how that will translate in terms of work.

Number 2 is “quantify” – put a number to it.

Our Mom now knows she’ll need to make $2000 a month from passive sources.

Number 3 is to determine “what methods” will get you there.

And this is where most people get bogged down. There are so many possible ways to do it! There are membership sites, niche sites, auction sites, individual product sites, service sites, affiliate sites, and on and on and on.

But there’s a little trick here, too! You are not restricted to using only one method – as a matter of fact, the more you use the better! Multiple streams of income. Little trickles from many sources flow together to make streams, streams flow together to make rivers, rivers flow into oceans. Start anywhere!

Any product (or groups of products) can be sold using any or all of the methods listed above Maybe our Mom really likes crafts. She can create a membership site for crafts, or for a specific craft. She can create a CD or DVD and sell it on eBay or other auction site, she can create a niche sales site and sell individual products. She can create a site that teaches. She can create an affiliate site using products from Commission Junction, etc. There are all kinds of things she can do.

You can also get very technical and check what search terms and keywords people are searching for and set up sites for those items, but I like the personal – “this is something I’m interested in” approach. People seem to realize when personal energy is invested into a site or product.

Number 4 is “sell it.”

Like the above, there are a myriad number of ways to sell and market – both free and paid. And, like above, you should employ as many of them as possible. There are articles, viral ebooks, audio files, video files, cross-linking, back-linking, recruiting affiliates, forums, and many, many more. You can create a “package” of sales techniques that you use on every site, with every “method’ above. Yes, like a cookie cutter.

Probably the most overlooked, or possibly ignored, aspect of this is persistence. Back in the old days of advertising, the phrase was “If you throw enough sh*t on the wall, some of it’s bound to stick.” Keep track of what sticks and do it again.

Within a short period of time, your many little trickles will become a stream. And then a river…

Of course, this is all very simplified, and there is so much more to know… (for example: how do I pay for hosting 10, or 20 or 100 sites??) but that’s all part of refining your techniques…

Payment processors.

Who are they, and what do they do????

In it’s simplest terms, payment processors are services you can use to process the payments you receive on your website. They may handle credit cards, debit cards, e-checks, etc. They save you from having to have a merchant account to process credit cards. Some will direct deposit into your bank account, some will send you checks. Some are instant (PayPal), some take a few weeks (ClickBank), some take longer. Be sure to check on all the variables from each processor…

There are lots of different processors, and fees are variable so it’s important to go to their websites and read about them. Find your best fit…

http://www.paypal.com/
http://www.propay.com/
http://www.clickbank.com/
http://www.stormpay.com/
http://www.authorizenet.com/
http://www.2checkout.com/
http://www.moneybookers.com/
http://www.ccnow.com/
http://www.verisign.com/
http://www.firepay.com/
http://www.ibill.com/
http://innovativegateway.com/
http://www.iongate.com/
http://www.linkpoint.com/
http://www.plugnpay.com/
http://www.skipjack.com/
http://www.worldpay.com/
http://www.auctionpay.com/
http://www.moneyzap.com/
http://www.nochex.com/
http://www.certapay.com/en/homepage.cfm
http://www.premierauthorize.com/mer…ccounts.html
http://www.paysystems.com/
http://www.regsoft.com/
http://www.kagi.com/
http://www.digibuy.com/cgi-bin/features.html
http://www.goemerchant.com/
http://www.regnow.com/client.html
http://www.swreg.org/
http://www.e-gold.com/
http://www.paystone.com/
http://www.ikobo.com/
http://www.multicards.com/
http://www.verotel.com/index-en.html
http://www.netbilling.com/
https://www.onlinedatacorp.com/
http://www.qenta.at/en/payment/index.html
http://www.earthport.com/earthport/index.jsp
http://www.egold.com/
http://www.intgold.com/
http://www.shareit.com
http://www.payzip.com
http://www.payzipmerchant.com
http://www.cachecard.net
http://www.process54.com
http://www.ccbill.com

The less work the better! I’m going to do several of these articles highlighting products and services that will minimize your work and help you get automated. And, I’m only going to show you products and services that I really use (usually on a daily basis)…

One of the most common things people email me about is what to do about their downloads. They don’t know whether to get a script, use a download program, or even how PayPal and ClickBank work. They search all over the net and get even more confused.

OK – deep breath and RELAX!

Let’s do a quick review of the sales process.

1. The buyer comes to your website and reads about your product.

2. They decide to buy it, and click the buy button.

3. They are sent to a payment page (PayPal, Clickbank, or other) where they make their payment.
(Note: PayPal, ClickBank, 2CheckOut, etc – are payment processors. They will handle getting the money for you. They will NOT, except as an minimal adjunct to their processing service, handle your downloads or the delivery of your product! They will, though, let you specify where the download is located – but, don’t do that!!!!!)

and here’s where all the questions start…

4. They are then sent to a download page where they can download their purchase.

or
they are sent to an autoresponder where they enter their email address and are sent the download instructions
or
they are sent to an autoresponder where they enter their email address and are sent to a download page
or
they are sent an email telling them how to get their purchase
or
they are sent an email telling them where to download
or
they are sent through a script to a limited download page
or…
or…
or…

You can see why people are getting confused – there are literally hundreds of ways to handle downloads.

I’ve tried a lot of them. I’ve tried scripts that hide your download in a secret place, I’ve tried the PayPal encryption buttons, I’ve tried programs that handle your downloads, and on and on… Every one of them required some kind of intervention along the way.

I finally stumbled on a solution, and now all my downloads are handled by it – I use E-Junkie.

Here’s what I said to someone who emailed me about her download confusion -

“You are making this much more difficult than it really is. E-Junkie is much, much more than just “timed-out links with x number of downloads.” First of all, it’s completely customizable, and each download link is unique to each purchaser (they don’t all get the same download link.) They check the buyer before sending the link – ie: the payment must have been completed. It will also add your buyer to a mailing list, send additional emails to them, and completely automate the buying process. Your ebook is on their server, so there’s no question about people finding it, and no question about bandwidth – if you get a lot of downloads, your bandwidth costs can be huge. E-Junkie takes care of all that. It also keeps sales records for you, and they have an affiliate program so other people can sell your ebook for you. And, your buyer’s payments can be processed through any processor you like – PayPal, Clickbank, etc. You get your money posted to your account immediately. People buying with an e-check don’t receive their ebook until the check has cleared. They can do a shopping cart, or an individual buy button. And, they so it all for $5 a month! No charges for each download – just a once a month fee. Good grief – it automates the *entire* buying process – why would you want to have to do all that yourself, or just get a part of it using somebody’s script????”

You really need to go to E-Junkie and wander around – read the FAQS, go to the forum, see what all they can do for you…

So, forget the scripts, forget the programs, and just sign up with E-Junkie – you’ll simplify your life…

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OK – I just re-read this and I can see that I’m going to have to break things down a little more simply… next post will be on payment processors

OK, so here’s the thing -

In their rush to get the newest and greatest thing for marketing, most internet marketers have a tendency to forget one very tiny, but very critical, element.

You reach the most people using the lowest common denominator.

So, what does that mean? Well, basically it means what is the one thing that the most people have in common? For example – at one time, the lowest common denominator for screen resolution was 600 by 480 pixels. Now it’s rapidly rising from 800 by 600 to about 1280 by 1024.

The latest problem is the big disparity in connection speed. I’m very, very conscious of this. I cannot get DSL where I’m located, and cable is not an option with the cable company here being what it is. That means my only choice is a very expensive satellite connection – and I consider that to be just too expensive to even be an option. I’m stuck with dialup. Yep – dialup! It does not make me happy, but that’s all I’ve got, so that’s what I use. (Maybe someday I’ll get over my disgust with the local cable company, and give in, but not right now…)

It has made me very aware of what mistakes some marketers are making. They are totally ignoring that segment of the Net that does not have a high speed connection.

Let’s look at it from the arrival at their website…

1. First thing – they have a video that automatically starts loading when you get to the page. You have no choice – you are going to see that video! Most of the time, there is no way to stop it, so if you’re on dialup, you either wait (and some of them take a looonnnngggg time to load!), shut down that page, shut down your browser, or turn off videos in the options of the browser (if available). Because it’s dialup, the rest of the page often won’t load until the video is completely loaded, or it loads very slowly. Great way to greet a customer!

2. Perhaps they have a product you want to buy. For example, there was a WordPress script that I bought. The script itself was a text file, but the instructions were in a video. A 17.6 MB video – that translates to at least an hour and a half download time. I sat and waited for it to load – a 3.5 minute video. The relevant instructions took about 15 seconds to describe (it was just a matter of which option to set.) Had this marketer thought about it for 1 minute, he could have come up with (a) a transcript of the video, or (b) a simple step 1, 2, 3 text file for those who either didn’t want to watch a video, or who didn’t have a high speed connection. But he didn’t care about that.

3. Too many marketers are like a kid with a new toy, or like a guy with only a hammer (and everything looks like a nail!) Now everything they do has to have a video attached to it – even if the video is a complete waste of time (like above!). There are tons of membership sites that are nothing but videos. That sure shuts out all the dialup users! (I’d like to join some of them, but I can’t.)

4. Another thing is file download size. I wanted another product this morning, but it was a 45MB file. On high-speed, a few minutes to download. On dialup, I can get about 10MB an hour – so i’m looking at about 4.5 hours to download it. Lost sale for them.

Don’t get me wrong – I am NOT against videos (I actually love them!), nor am I against large downloads. I am just against marketers who don’t consider what customers they are shutting out.

So, how can they regain that lost market of dialup users, or others without the latest and greatest speed demon connection? It’s really very simple… I’ve purchased several programs from Laughingbird. (They have graphic creation programs.) All of their programs are over 100 MB, but they do something very smart – along with their downloads, they also offer a CD of the program. It costs a few bucks more, but it’s worth it.

Membership sites, large download sites, video sites – offer your products on CD and charge me a few extra bucks. Or, break up your large download sizes to manageable bites – let me choose what to download. Hey, I won’t be the only new customer you’ll get!

Look for the lowest common denominator – it’s a bigger group of people than you think!

Last weekend my wife went grocery shopping. She bought all the usual things – all the brands that we always buy. We’ve been doing dishes by hand for a while since our dishwasher thinks it should take 4-6 hours to wash a normal load of dishes. We don’t agree with the dishwasher’s opinion (and didn’t want to buy another dishwasher right now), so it was back to washing dishes by hand.

Anyway, the brand of dishwashing detergent that we like had changed it’s packaging. Instead of the easy to hold hourglass type shape, now it was a pudgy bottle – like the Pillsbury dough boy. And wide – my wife can’t hold it comfortably. Not only that, they had added a little plastic cover over the pour spout that you had to flip back to get the liquid out. Both of these were major changes in the shape and use of the product, and became major issues. You could not easily grasp the new bottle shape, and when you did, the little plastic cap (attached on one side) was perfectly positioned to catch most of the liquid in it instead of squirting it into the sink! Just using it made a “liquid mess.” We hated using it.

This was not produced by a guy named Joe in his garage. Why didn’t the company see what was happening? From the size and awkwardness of the bottle, it’s obvious they didn’t test it with anyone – somebody just made a decision to go ahead and change it.

Who the heck thought this was better??? And has he been fired yet???

(BTW – Our solution to the “dishwashing dilemma” was to spend a day trying all the variables on our dishwasher to find a setting we could live with. We did – we found a “water miser” setting that works well and only takes an hour for the cycle. No more hand washing! Yay! Why didn’t we do this to begin with? Well, to be perfectly honest, it never occurred to me…maybe my MS was kicking up that day…)

So, how does this tie-in to ebooks? It doesn’t – directly. It does, though, in the sense of “usability.” For example – let’s say that you have forms in your ebook for the reader to fill out. You’d better think about how to handle them! If it’s a PDF file, once the “locks” are put on to prevent people from doing a “copy and paste” of your ebook’s guts, no one can fill out anything. Maybe the solution is to include a separate, small pdf of the forms that are set up for printing. Maybe you could allow annotating. There are a number of solutions. the point is – handle it, otherwise it limits your reader’s ability to use your ebook effectively.

Ask yourself – how is this going to work for my reader? Then get creative and find a way to solve the problem…

Now, there is one additional aspect of usability that I want to talk about, but I want it to have it’s own emphasis, so that will be the next post…

These are the two main types of files used for ebooks right now.

PDF
PDF stands for Portable Document Format, originally created by Adobe, and is currently used by anyone from corporate big boys to the smallest self-publisher.

PDF has a couple of things going for it that the other ebook formats can’t touch. For one thing, PDF is a universal format. A PDF ebook can be viewed on any computer running any operating system – doesn’t matter if it’s Windows, Mac, Linux, Unix, BeOS, Sun, or anything else. The ebook can be read, and will show up looking the same on all the operating systems. This is a huge advantage over .EXE ebooks, which can *only* be read on a computer running Windows.

Other advantages are the graphics, fonts, colors, etc that can be used in PDF files. Fonts are embedded into the PDF, so you are not restricted as you are in .EXE ebooks, colors are exact, graphics are a snap. In my opinion, you can create a much more professional ebook when you have the capapability of having the ebook look exactly the same on everyone’s computer. Also, although many people don’t realize it, you can also embed any other type of file into a PDF, use page transitions, add JavaScript, and pretty much do anything you want with the file. Some of the smaller ebooks I create are done in a type of Powerpoint format – full screen, dark background – like a slideshow, yet it’s still all PDF.

EXE (HTML)
Let’s face the facts here. The “.exe” ebooks are really nothing more than HTML pages compiled together. An HTML ebook is a glorified web page. Being a web page, it’s subject to all the problems web designers have to put up with.

First, there is the problem of fonts. HTML (which is dependent on the Internet Explorer engine) can only use the fonts that are on the *reader’s* machine. Yep. Forget about using those great fonts you picked up on the net. You are stuck with the reader’s fonts, and if his (or her) computer doesn’t have the fonts you specify, the Internet Explorer engine will actually substitute the fonts the reader *does* have. God only knows what your ebook will end up looking like! Your designs are restricted to the lowest common denominator.

Next we have the problem of screen resolution. Some of your readers will be using an 800 by 600 screen, some 640 by 480, some 1600 by 1200 – there’s no telling, and certainly no controlling it. If you are designing on a computer with 1024 by 768, you have to take into account that there will be a whole range of screen resolutions out there. You cannot specifiy a font size – you have to relative sizes to make it look somewhat the same on all computers.

Design is next. If you’ve ever designed a webpage, you know how difficult it is just to place a line where you want to using HTML, much less do a whole ebook design! You’re just asking for a huge headache. There are templates out there, though, that can ease this pain a bit. Still, it’s a nightmare. Add in the limitations of color, and your designing with your hands in handcuffs and a blindfold over your eyes.

The final, crushing blow – the one that puts the nails into the HTML coffin – is that HTML ebooks (yes, all the ones that have the “.exe” extension) can only be viewed by people running Windows. Why on earth would anyone want to restrict their market to a group that is becoming smaller by the day?? The trend is that as people grow out of the “newbie” stage with computers, they start looking for operating systems that are more stable, less prone to attack, and a whole lot less retsrictive to use. Windows may always be the “beginner’s” operating system, but the savvy user is looking for more… just keep that in mind.

There should be no question in your mind which format I prefer. As a matter of fact, I’ve even restricted my ebook designing to pdf format, and now refuse to design HTML ebooks anymore.

There are a few things, though, that HTML ebooks can do better than pdf, and they all have to do with security. HTML can use the powers of Windows to create some pretty strong security measures to protect your ebook from piracy, etc. If you are adamant about no one ever being able to read your ebook who hasn’t paid for it, then stick with HTML. Your paranoia will be eased, but remember – like birth control, nothing is 100% (except abstinence.) But, security is the topic of another chapter – and you may be surprised to learn that there are some things that can be done to protect pdf’s these days….

Chapter 1 – Getting started with eBooks…

There are probably as many reasons to write an ebook as there are people who want to write one.

Some will want to write and produce an ebook to sell on their websites…
Some to create a viral marketing item…
Some for their family…
Some for educational reasons…
Some because they are just bursting with things to say…
Some may just want to get independent of that scowling boss hanging over their shoulder…

It doesn’t matter what the reason – all reasons are valid, but you might take a different path if you’re producing a family history compared to a commercial ebook. We’re going to start by looking at things that all ebooks have in common, and then we’ll scoot off to the side for special circumstances.

Right off the bat, let’s define what an ebook is. OK, scoff if you like, but from the questions I get on a daily basis, there are an awful lot of people out there who really don’t know. So, if you’re a long-time ebook expert, just skip over the next paragraph or two.

An ebook is simply an “electronic book.” What this means is that the book exists as a file, NOT as paper and ink. It’s not “real” – you cannot hold an ebook in your hand. This is a tough concept for some people – they think an ebook is simply a printed book that is created on a computer. These are the people who will email an ebook author and want to know when she will be shipping their ‘ebook’ to them. These people aren’t stupid – they just don’t know that the language used for ebooks is a bit different from what they are used to. It takes only a little bit of education to get them pointed in the right direction. Be patient with them.

So, an ebook is a file – but what kind of file? Everyone who owns a computer knows that their computer is full of files. And, if they have turned off “Hide all extensions” in Windows, they should also know that there are literally hundreds of types of files. Now, I’m not going to go into detail here about file types and extensions, but I will mention that there are many, many programs that can create ebooks. For example, Microsoft Word can create a .doc file, and that can be distributed as an ebook. Powerpoint files can also be created as an ebook. Text files may be ebooks, or video and audio files can be ebooks. Microsoft has their own ebook reader, creator and file format (which has never taken over ebooks the way Microsoft wanted and expected it to! ) Several other companies have created their own formats as well.

But when you talk about ebooks, it actually comes down to 2 types of files – “.PDF” and “.EXE” files. A “.PDF” file is a file type created by Adobe it is used by Acrobat Reader. An “.EXE” file is actually an executable file – in short, a program file. When you run an “.exe” ebook, you are actually running a program.

These are the 2 formats that 99+% of all ebook authors use. Each format has pros and cons, and each format has it’s supporters and detractors. There is a lot to say about both types, so let’s pick it up there next time.

(Coming up next – “PDF vs EXE”)

So, here’s the deal…

I’ve been bashing my head up against the wall trying to figure out how to keep on top of this blog. I really don’t have any problems coming up with topics, or things to write about, but I do have trouble making posts consistently. (Gee, ya think???).

Well, I just may (repeat – MAY) have found a way to post regularly. I’ve been wanting to write another ebook – this one on the A’s to Z’s of ebooks. It’s basically an ebook covering everything about ebooks for newbies. Rather than write it in Word, and then create an ebook, I’m going to write it here in the blog with the help of a program called W.Bloggar, which lets you write offline and then post to your blog later.

OK – “The A’s to Z’s of eBooks” – (that’ll do for a working title, but we may change it later…) Shall we get started???

As you all well know, everything that happens to me is fodder for an article or a blog posting. This week something happened that makes a good teaching tool.

Ken Silver’s Home Publishing forum is one of my favorite places to visit. I’ve been active on his board for several years, and have thoroughly enjoyed the interaction and the people who frequent this particular forum. I also get a good number of clients from my postings on Ken’s board. This week we had a new, very obnoxious “visitor” there, and his appearance prompted this review of “forum netiquette.”

Many ebooks on internet marketing claim that forums are a good place to get new customers and clients. Unfortunately, a good percentage of these books don’t tell you the *proper* way to go about using forums to help promote yourself. So, what’s the proper way??

(1) Before anything else, do your homework! LURK for a while. Read the posts, get to know the frequent posters, get a feel for the personality of the forum. Check out the flow of the conversations, and the “culture” of the board. (The guy mentioned above posted a spam ad every time the word “ebook” was mentioned in a post. I counted 6 postings by him – all advertising a particular method of creating ebooks and all posted on his first visit to the board!)

(2) Get involved. A good way to get involved (or to make your first post) is to ask some questions. BUT, here again, you need to be familiar with the forum – don’t ask the same questions that have already been asked a hundred times before. Chances are, no one wants to take the time to repeat answers that have already been repeated ad infinitum. Read the archives. Jumping right into ongoing discussions without being familiar with the group is never a good idea.

(3) Establish credibility and familarity. Once you have “introduced yourself” to the group, so to speak, contribute to ongoing discussions. This does not mean that you jump in and advertise your product or services in every thread. It means that you add *value* to the discussions – give your thoughts and opinions, be a devil’s advocate, or help people whenever possible.

(4) Create a “signature” to use on your posts. Blatant advertising is banned from most forums – as well it should be! So, you don’t “advertise” – you “promote” through your signature. For those of you who don’t know what a signature is, here’s an example of the signature I use on Ken’s board.

Neil Tarvin

ebook designer

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FREE – eBook Librarian

http://www.ebookgraphics.com/wordpress/ebooklibrarian.html

Keep track of all the ebooks you download

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Word eBook Templates

http://www.ebookgraphics.com/wordpress/mytemplates1.html

Fast, easy ebook creation

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Different forums have different rules about signatures – on the Warrior forum, for example, you’re allowed 3 lines for your signature. On Tony Blake’s board, you can have images and a link as well as a signature inside your post. Know what is acceptable on each board, and don’t flaunt the rules! In this same vein, if a forum requires an email address – add one! If you don’t, it makes you look less than honorable and your motives questionable! (This fellow did not list an email address, even though Ken’s board requires one. Think there was a reason he didn’t list one?? Like maybe the site he was advertising was actually *his* site, even though he always referred to it “the guys at …” ??)

(5) NEVER, NEVER, NEVER denigrate forum members or their products and services! This is an extreme insult that will only make you look bad, and your products and services questionable. In this particular instance, I was told that my products and my services were “cheap and unprofessional” because I don’t use his product to create my ebooks and those of my clients. (This from someone who doesn’t know me from Adam!) Well, my clients know better, and Ken kindly deleted those nasty comments from his forum. Then earlier today, this guy said the same thing to another long-time poster on the board! This is not the way to win friends and influence people! (Does he really think that *anyone* is going to visit his site or use his services after that?? Do you think I’m *ever* going to refer anyone to him??)

Forums are made up of people – and while not everyone is going to get along (I’ve had some pretty good arguments with some people on Ken’s board, but they were arguments about techniques or methods, not personal insults), there is a right way and a wrong way to post and make yourself known. Do it the right way!

Neil