Automate Your Online Business in Five Easy Steps

A good friend of mine used to have this saying ... "You've heard that the goal is to work smarter, not harder, right? Well I say the goal is to work LESS!"

Jeff was a wise individual indeed. He saw the Internet as a tool that offers the ability to set up a business that runs, as the gurus love to say, on autopilot.

And Jeff achieved his dream, seeing his online business earn over $250,000 almost completely on autopilot.

So let's take up Jeff's words and see how that looks in the real world.

Here are five ways that you can create an automated business - one that earns 24 hours a day without your continuing involvement.

1. PAY PER CLICK AUTOMATES YOUR PAID TRAFFIC

The beauty of pay per click advertising is that you can set it and forget it.

The key is to create an account with your preferred provider (these days it's usually Google or Yahoo) and establish a fair bid price (what you will pay for every visitor they send you).

Once you have done that, you can tell your pay per click provider how much you will spend and they will keep sending traffic to your site until they reach *your* budget amount.

What could be better than that?

Now you are getting the traffic you need for a price you choose and at the rate you choose.

All you need do now is log in to your pay per click account once a month and make sure things are going well, and make any adjustments you want.

Super easy traffic control. Profitable too!

2. AUTORESPONDERS AUTOMATE YOUR FOLLOW UP

If your site is *wildly* successful, you will convince about 5% of first time buyers to buy now.

But what about the 95% - the ones that don't buy today?

You've got to remind them to return and buy.

And the way to do that is by using an autoresponder.

Email marketing is still the most powerful form of online advertising, and it can begin working for you today!

Just make a list of the top ten reasons why someone should buy from you. Then make each reason into a short email message. Then set up a form on your site (your autoresponder company - like Aweber or SendFree will show you how) and invite people to learn more.

Those who do want to learn more - your best prospects by the way - will get your ten messages over time and be prompted to return and buy.

This is TRUE marketing automation.

If you aren't doing this now, you ARE losing money.

3. RSS AUTOMATES YOUR CONTENT

IF you want a site that is always fresh and new (which the search engines love) and don't want to spend hours creating new content, then you need to know about RSS.

RSS is simply a way to display content from other sites on your site automatically.

My suggestion is to find a good book or article on RSS and learn more if you think that showing fresh content on your site is important.

4. CLICKBANK AUTOMATES YOUR AFFILIATE PROGRAM

Clickbank is a company through which you can sell your product and have affiliates too. Selling through Clickbank is easy and fast.

The best part of working with Clickbank by far is how they manage your affiliate program FOR you. They literally do all the work.

* They provide the form you need to sign up affiliates. * They track clicks and sales. * Best of all ... THEY pay your affiliates for you.

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HOT TIP: If you have a brisk affiliate program, you can forget about fresh content, struggling to get traffic, and more. Motivated affiliates will send you all the traffic you need to succeed.
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5. VIRTUAL ASSISTANTS AUTOMATE YOUR SUPPORT

Today there is a trend that is gaining steam called 'virtual assistants'.

In the old days, we had answering services that would answer our phones and take messages. This was a win-win because your phone was answered by a live person and the message got through.

Now fast forward to the 21st century and discover the power of virtual assistants.

These well-trained individuals work at home and, thanks to the power of the Internet, can do almost any task you need done.

They can ...

* Answer your phone * Answer emails * Maintain your website * Run a forum for you * Do light programming * Run a support center for you * And more

You *will* lose some personal touch by using assistants, but if your goal is to work less, it is a very cost effective way to go.

Should you automate your business to the point where you no longer have to work every day?

Only you can decide how much automation is right for you, and how much you want to personally interact with clients and others.

But a very high degree of automation is possible if you structure your business correctly.

By using these methods you can work alone, make a full time income, and have the free time you want to enjoy life to its fullest.

And THAT is a beautiful thing indeed!