New Business Ideas: Online Copywriter

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A Home-Based Business Online
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December 30

Sent to 2,320 subscribers

    Editor: Elena Fawkner
Publisher: AHBBO Publishing

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   IN THIS ISSUE
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1.   Welcome and Update from the Editor
2.   Home-Based Business Idea of the Week -
   Online Copywriter
3.   AHBBO Subscribers Speak Out
4.   Guest Article - Is Your Online Business Sinking
   or Swimming?
5.   EBook Review - Learning the Ropes
6.   Freebies
8.   This Week's Web Site Pick
9.   Next Week
11. Subscription Management
13. Contact Information

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1. Welcome and Update from the Editor
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Hello again and a warm welcome to all new subscribers!

~*~*~*~

First of all, apologies for the delay in sending this
issue of the newsletter to you. My webhost's servers have
been down for three days and as a result I've been delayed
in putting the newsletter together. If you haven't been
able to access the AHBBO website at
over the past few days, that's why. I also haven't been
able to access email for a few days so if you've
contacted me but haven't received a response, please be
patient. All is now back to normal and I'll be able to
respond shortly.

~*~*~*~

I received emails from several of you in response to last
week's article, "Profit is Not a Dirty Word". The responses
were, I think, a good representation of the polarized
opinions this issue generates. (If you missed last week's
article, it's available by autoresponder at:
). Because the issue of solo
mailings is one about which many of you will have to make
a decision in your own businesses, I am printing the
comments received, with the permission of the respective
authors, in place of this week's feature article. The
article that was planned for this week, "Look Before You
Leap ... Is a Home Business REALLY For You?", will run
next week instead.

~*~*~*~

A couple of you have written to say that the links in
the newsletter aren't clickable. I'm trying to get an
idea of whether this is a widespread problem and would
appreciate your feedback. If the links are NOT clickable
for you, would you please let me know by sending a blank
email to ? I'd greatly appreciate it.
For those of you experiencing this problem I apologize and
will attempt to get to the bottom of it by next issue.

~*~*~*~

This is the last issue of AHBBO for 2017. Thank you for
being an AHBBO subscriber and for your support this year.
I look forward to bringing you AHBBO Vol. 2 in 2017. I
wish all of you a very safe and happy New Year.

~*~*~*~

Remember, this newsletter is for YOU! If you have comments
or suggestions for topics you would like to see addressed,
or would just like to share your experiences with other
subscribers, I want to hear from you! Please send comments,
questions and stories to: Contact By Email

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2. Home-Based Business Idea of the Week - Online Copywriter
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Here's a business idea for those of you out there who are
good at putting words together. Why not refine that skill
by learning what it takes to be a good copywriter in the
online environment and offering your services to those in
need of such a service (and there are PLENTY of them out
there)?

There are many, many resources for learning about
copywriting online, some free, some not.

When you start your research you will quickly learn the
common denominator - AIDA - Attention, Interest, Desire,
Action. Master the AIDA principle as it applies to online
copywriting and you will be well placed to offer a valuable
service to internet marketers without the time, ability or
inclination to master the skill of effective copywriting
for themselves.

You will find as you progress in your research that
copywriting for the online environment is a very different
proposition to what works in the offline world. One major
difference is that your copywriting has to be geared with
the search engines in mind. Anyone looking to you to
create copy for a home page will, even if they don't
express their needs in these terms, be expecting
that the copy you produce will be written not only to
grab and keep the attention of the reader and motivate
him or her to action, but also to optimize the page for
search engine purposes. This means understanding the
importance of keywords and how to write keyword-rich copy
without compromising the effectiveness of the message of
the copy. This can be tricky.

For this reason, your greatest investment in this business
will be the time you need to spend to equip yourself with
the necessary skills to be an effective online copywriter.
Once you have this skill mastered, however, it's simply a
matter of creating your own website (which, of course,
will be a shining example of the quality of your work)
and generating publicity.

In terms of what you can offer from your website, consider
in addition to copy for webpages, add-on services such as
drafting of sales letters for use by your clients in their
autoresponder marketing campaigns, preparation of press
releases and a classified ad service. You may then want to
extend your reach to more general site promotion areas such
as optimization of existing webpages for improvement in
search engine rankings to a fully-fledged promotion service.

Recommended sites (copy and paste the long URLs so they fit
in one line in your browser window):

-> Hodu Winning Documents

-> How to Write Million Dollar Ads, Sales Letters, And Web
Marketing Pieces

-> Effective Copywriting Techniques

Recommended books:

-> The Elements of Copywriting: The Essential Guide to
Creating Copy That Gets the Results You Want
By Gary Blake and Robert W. Bly

-> Copywriting for the Electronic Media: A Practical Guide
By Milan D. Meeske

-> Copywriting by Design (Bringing Ideas to Life by Words
and Images)
By David Herzbrun

You can purchase these titles online. Amazon at
http://www.amazon.com and Barnes & Noble at
http://www.barnesandnoble.com are two good sources.

-----

There are many more ideas like this in AHBBO's Home Business
Ideas page at and
Online Business Ideas page at
with more being added
all the time.

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3. AHBBO Subscribers Speak Out
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Seems last week's article "Profit is Not a Dirty Word"
struck a chord with many of you. With their permission, I'm
sharing with you the opinions I received from several
subscribers so you can consider this issue for yourself in
the context of your own online business.

Please bear in mind that the point of last week's article
and this week's segment is NOT that you, as subscribers to
this ezine, should be prepared to accept the occasional solo
mailing from me, but rather that this is an issue you need
to think about from a BUSINESS perspective insofar as it
relates to your OWN online business.

To clarify my personal position on this issue, I'd like to
preface the comments that follow with my response to Ellyn's
email which you will read below:

"Thank you for your comments. To clarify, I do NOT
characterize subscribers who would prefer not to receive
exclusive mailings as "freebie seeking tire kickers". Those
who unsubscribe to a newsletter they otherwise enjoy merely
because they receive one exclusive mailing do, however, in
my opinion, merit this label. You will recall my article
was describing my experience following one exclusive mailing.
My first. I wasn't sending out 4 or 5 a day (that is, I
agree, GROSSLY excessive). And the point of the article was
not that I was lecturing my subscribers that they should be
prepared to accept the occasional exclusive mailing, it was
that they shouldn't be apologetic about seeking to make a
profit from their OWN online businesses. After all, I was
speaking to those who DIDN'T unsubscribe.

"That aside though, I don't believe it is unreasonable to ask
subscribers to be prepared to accept, say, one exclusive
mailing a week PROVIDED the subscribers are receiving a
service they otherwise consider valuable. It is, after all,
something they are receiving for free. I, too, subscribe to
a considerable number of other newsletters and receive my
fair share of separate mailings. It's a price I'm usually
prepared to pay if the newsletter's any good. If not, I'll
just unsubscribe. But the unsub will be to do with the
quality of the newsletter, not the fact that I'm receiving
separate mailings. Mind you, if I was receiving 4 or 5 a
day I'd be unsubscribing no matter how good the newsletter
was.

"The response to this article has been surprising. I am not
used to subscribers taking the time or trouble to comment on
my articles! I have received five lengthy emails commenting
on it so far today, including yours. The other four were
supportive of the position I took in my article. This is
obviously an issue that divides opinion.

"Thank you for taking the time to give me your opinion."

~*~*~*~

Incidentally, I've tracked down the URL of the article that
I referred to in my article. If you're interested you can
read it at:

~*~*~*~

Now, here are the comments I received:

I read your article about "Profit" and applaud your
statement and send a "Good for You". As an on-line business
man, I get calls, e-mails and mail from people that ask me
to give, become a partner with them, cover the cost for them,
or several other requests. These people don't seem to
understand what it takes to make a profit on the net. I
always tell them I would be doing them a dis-service if I
gave it to them. How would they appreciate what it takes to
own, operate and grow a business, if it is just given to
them.

Now don't take me wrong, I do support a worthy cause or
give advice when needed or even just asked, but you have to
draw the line somewhere. Keep up the good work (I really
enjoy your e-zine) and have a Merry Christmas. May all your
endeavors turn profitable.

Ken Hylton
Hylton Enterprises

~*~*~*~

I just finished reading your article about profit not being
a dirty word and I am compelled to put in my "two cents." I
recently made a commitment to advertise in your wonderful
newsletter for at least the next 4 months. I would hate to
think that my ad is being read by "freebie seeking tire
kickers." (I just like that term.) I do offer free
information on my web site but that is not my main focus. I
would hope that after getting a few valuable ideas from the
free information, the reader would sign up for one of the
affiliate programs that I recommend. After all I am in this
for the money and the profits.

The weeding out process I believe is a terrific idea. It
gives your advertisers like myself some degree of hope that
I am targeting people who realize part of doing business is
spending for quality information.

Tony Lloyd

~*~*~*~

Ellyn wrote:

I am a person who has a full-time job, but also has a
homebased business. I have a great interest in trying to
utilize the technology of the internet to improve my
business. I am one who has subscribed to quite a few
newsletters in order to gain useful information and guidance.
Your newsletter is one of them. After reading the subject
article, I felt the need to respond. "Resent" might be too
strong a word, but I do question subscribers who don't like
exclusive mailings being characterized as "freebie-seeking
tire kickers." I understand you did not coin this phrase,
but from the tone of the article, you do agree with it. I
find it to be an unfair generalization.

I am one who personally dislikes these exclusive mailings.
This dislike is simple...if I didn't personally request to
have the information sent to me because of some relevance in
my life, I consider it to be spam that is doing nothing but
taking up space in my e-mailbox. I certainly understand
that your newsletter and website are profit-driven endeavors,
and I don't begrudge that effort at all. In fact, I don't
even mind the ads that are IN your newsletter, or any
newsletter for that matter. Paid advertising subsidizes the
endeavor, and allows us, the subscribers, to have the
opportunity to obtain the valuable information you make
available. What I have a problem with is a purely practical
matter: I can deal with having ads in a newsletter because
the entire document is in a SINGLE e-mail. Just like a
newspaper or magazine, you have to deal with the ads with the
content.

What I can't tolerate is SEPARATE e-mails coming to me,
unrequested. I subscribed to one newsletter that sent at
least 3-5 exclusive mailings A DAY! A few mailings I found
interesting, but for the most part, they were meaningless to
me. Hitting the delete key is easy enough, and that's what
I regularly do, but that misses the point....I shouldn't
have to be receiving (and deleting) e-mail I didn't request
in the first place. Needless to say, I unsubbed from this
newsletter, even though I found a lot of its content
informative and useful.

Now, does wanting to keep my e-mail "inbox" at a sane level
make me a "freebie-seeking tire kicker?" I would think not.
Sure, I like to find a good deal, and usually when I buy
something on impulse, I live to regret it. I value all the
information and knowledge I have gained from your newsletter
thus far. And I also EXPECT you to seek adequate
compensation for subscribers patronizing your service. But
if you're expecting me (or anyone else) to have to comply
with receiving unasked for, separate e-mails in order to
benefit from your newsletter, and to be negatively
characterized if we don't, I, for one, would have to
seriously reconsider the benefit TO ME of continuing to
receive this newsletter. I could probably find the
information elsewhere....and without the stereotype.

Just something for you to consider....

~*~*~*~

Thanks Elena!

I just finished reading my first issue of your ezine and
had to write and tell you I loved your article "Profit is
Not a Dirty Word." It's something that I, as an ezine
publisher, really needed to hear.

Lately I've been getting almost physically ill every time I
get an unsubscribe request, feeling like I'm doing something
terribly wrong even though out of 2017+ subs, I only ever
get 3-4 unsubs a week. Your article puts it all in
perspective.

Thanks again,

Ruth Farmer
editor, Classifieds Links n more...

FREE site submissions, software and e-books for all new
subscribers to Classifieds Links n more... the ezine
dedicated to free and low-cost site promotion tips and
tricks. Subscribe today!

or
Proud Member of the Ezine Advertising Network

~*~*~*~

Sam wrote:

Profit is definitely NOT a dirty word. Having just lost
my job and not too sure what Social Insecurity will provide
a sixty eight year old (going on thirty), I have begun
building a new career for myself. I surf a lot as a result
and subscribe to quite a number of newsletters. Those which
I find not germane to my goals (not PROFITABLE) I drop.
Mail which does not capture and hold my interest within
twenty lines I delete out of hand. Not profitable to go
further. I have little time to build .... cannot waste it
reading reams of hype and empty filler. Therefore: Go for
it girl! Keep your eye on your goal and follow the golden
rule. Sincerely, Sam I Am.

~*~*~*~

When I was watching a movie and a commercial came on, I
didn't throw the TV out the window! And I even pay for the
newspapers that run ads. You are 100% right. It's the
profits you make that buy us your free ezine. Good for you
and good for us. You don't need the crybabies that want a
free lunch without strings.

Keep up the good work!

Bob Sharpe

Free Report: How to Get the Government to Pay You to Start
a Business

The Home Business Career Center

~*~*~*~

So, there you have it. Make up your own mind about what's
best for YOUR business.

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Work from Home Now with Medical and Dental Benefits.
Connect to the source that has it all:

e-mail:

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4. Guest Article - Is Your Online Business Sinking or
Swimming?
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By Tony Lloyd

When I asked Phil about doing business online, I got a very
negative response. His view of online business was bleak
and gloomy. He told me "Oh, it's a bunch of hype. They told
me I could make lots of money. Instead I lost lots of
money."

When I asked Ron a similar question I received a much
better response. His view of online business was pleasant
and his forecast for the future was promising! He admits a
few rough spots and some disappointments. He recalls, "At
first it was very discouraging but I did not quit. I kept
looking for new and better ways to reach my goal. In the
end, all the time and effort paid off."

Phil and Ron both faced the same challenge-doing business
online. Apparently each did not take the same approach and
therefore experienced different results. Is your online
experience similar to Phil's or Ron's? Let's take a closer
look at each person's online experience and figure out why
one failed and the other succeeded.

Phil was lured to the web by the promise of "big money." He
did not have a product (or service) to market so he
searched the web to find the "right" product. His search
led him to a long list of affiliate programs. He joined a
few and started to promote them in free classified ads.
This was not very profitable for him so he tried a few paid
classifieds. He was not satisfied with the results and
impatience started to set in. After some more research he
found out that e-zine advertising was one of the most
effective forms of advertising. He checked out the cost of
advertising in e-zines and placed ads sporadically. Once
again he did not achieve the results he hoped for. The
promise of "big money" eluded him.

Phil realized that making money online is not as easy as
some made it sound. He also found out that a good amount of
effort was involved. He decided to get a web site from one
of the larger companies offering free web sites. His web
site listed the affiliate programs he joined and had a few
fancy graphics and links. He used a recommended software to
submit his site to hundreds of search engines, directories
and free classified ads. Still, weeks passed by and no "big
money." Finally, he gave up.

Ron started out just like Phil. He didn't have his own
product so he joined a few affiliate programs. He soon
discovered electronic newsletters (e-zines) and subscribed
to seven of them. He set aside time to read them as soon as
possible since he realized that there was a lot to be
learned. He even printed some of the articles he considered
very informative. From these articles he found out that
marketing his products involved writing effective ads.
These ads had to grab his readers attention and move him or
her to a desired action.

He also found out that the success of his ads depended
heavily on the headlines. So he spent about two weeks
searching for articles on "killer" headlines. What he
discovered was amazing. For example, changing the word
repair to fix in an ad featuring car maintenance almost
tripled the response from a particular ad. He diligently
studied headlines in all the ads he could find. He noticed
that the attention-grabbing ads used words like FREE, YOU,
SECRET, DISCOVER, REVEAL, AMAZING, NEW, HOW TO and DO YOU.
As he applied what he learned he saw an increase in the
response to his ads. The increased response was encouraging.
He felt like he was making progress!

Unlike Phil, he consistently placed ads in e-zines. He
eventually got his own domain name and listed his affiliate
programs on his web site. He also provided free useful
information on his site. His site was simple but effective.
Download time was kept to a minimum. There were no
unnecessary graphics or links on his site. He manually
submitted his site to the top seven search engines.

Besides using e-zine ads to market his products, Ron used
"pay-per-click" sites such as GoTo.com and Rocketlinks.com.
He got good results from direct e-mail marketing which is
not to be confused with SPAM or unsolicited e-mail
marketing. He developed his own mailing list through
extensive advertising and regularly targeted this group. He
always used a signature file at the end of his e-mails.
Offering advice in forums and discussion groups and
submitting articles to e-mail newsletters were on his list
of marketing techniques, which he would get involved with
in the future. These two methods were highly profitable for
some of the business men and women he admired.

Phil's online business sank while Ron's business is still
swimming among the fierce competition online. He keeps up
with the changes and new trends in online marketing and
uses them to his advantage. He often visits the web sites
of those who are successful to learn a few valuable ideas.
Ron is consistent with his marketing efforts and more
importantly, he is patient. His ultimate goal is to develop
his own product or products which would increase his profit
and give him a true sense of satisfaction.

I sincerely hope your online experience is similar to Ron's.

------

Thinking of starting an online business? Have you started
one recently? Here are proven tips, ideas, marketing
strategies and resources that will make your new business,
home business or small business successful. For more
details visit

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5. EBook Review - Learning the Ropes by Harmony Major
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A very thorough, yet succinct, journey to a successful home-
based online business. Written for the would-be online
entrepreneur starting from ground zero, this book covers
all the bases yet can be digested in little more than two
hours.

Comprising 10 substantive chapters (plus a couple of
additional chapters and works from contributing authors
to round out the resource), Harmony takes you through:

=> the home business pre-launch (to knock those rose-colored
glasses right off your face -- yes, Virginia, a home-based
business is REAL work and takes REAL time);

=> the pros and (mostly) cons of reselling other people's
products (not a bad place to start if you're a newbie but
if you want to make serious money, get your OWN product;
what to look for in a good reseller program);

=> products and payment options (creating/acquiring your
own products; accepting payment online and off);

=> creating a risk-free guarantee (with a unique twist --
the "refund appreciation" guarantee);

=> setting up your website (get your OWN domain name if
you plan to do this right; free v. paid web hosts);

=> designing a professional website (doing it yourself
-- and the free resources you need to do it -- v. using
professional designers -- maybe you just don't have the
time to do it yourself, so here's some low-cost
designers to check out);

=> mastering meta tags;

=> making sure your website is ready for the public;

=> getting publicity with your own ezine; and

=> creating a profitable reseller program of your own.

Very effective summary checklists follow each chapter as
a recap and a check on your understanding.

Harmony includes links throughout the book to great free
and low cost resources that are a real find. Resources
like a wonderful free HTML editor (Arachnophilia), an
outstanding free HTML guide and where to find a good free
webhost (if you really must).

Running your own business is no rose garden and Harmony
tells it like it is. Read chapter 1 and you'll have no
illusions. But get the mindset preparation right and you
have a good foundation for what follows. Harmony takes
you by the hand and leads you through the minefield in
one piece.

And no, I'm not a reseller of the book. I just liked it.

Order at .

Harmony's offering AHBBO subscribers 50% off until midnight
January 2. Also, she'll give you 10% off her Home-
Business-In-A-Box(tm) that was featured as AHBBO's Online
Business Idea of the Week back in October. Full details
are at . For
the October review of Home-Business-In-A-Box(tm), see
Consulting Services

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8. This Week's Web Site Pick - Search Engine Watch
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http://www.searchenginewatch.com

Nicely organized site that's widely regarded as THE
authority on search engine goings-on. A must if you have
an online business.

Here's a summary of the various sections of the site:

-> Search Engine Submission Tips
Learn how search engines find and rank web pages and what to
do to improve the ranking of your site.

-> Web Searching Tips
For tips on how to use search engines more effectively and to
learn how others search online (very useful for meta tag
construction).

-> Search Engine Listings
To find all the major search engines.

-> Reviews, Ratings & Tests
For a list of comparison reviews, which search engines are
the most popular and why.

-> Search Engine Resources
For a collection of links to search engine-related resources.

-> Search Engine News
To sign up for the site's free monthly newsletter.

Spending time seriously studying the information at this
site will definitely pay off in the form of increased
traffic to YOUR site.

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9. Next Issue
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That's it for this week, everyone. Here's what's in store
for the next issue:

-> Home-Based Business Idea of the Week: Gettin' Crafty
-> Feature Article: Look Before You Leap ... Is a Home-
   Based Business REALLY For You?
-> Guest Article: It could be yours! Please send original
   article submissions to

-> More great Freebies

Thanks for being with us and have a great week everyone.

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11. Subscription Management
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To SUBSCRIBE to this Newsletter:
http://www.ahbbo.com/ezine.html

To UNSUBSCRIBE or get removed from this Newsletter:

If you find this newsletter valuable, please forward it
in its entirety to your friends, family and associates!

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13. Contact Information
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Elena Fawkner, Editor
A Home-Based Business Online
Contact By Email

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