3 NEW WAYS To Boost Your Sales Using Classified Ads


                       by Rick Mashburn

  Classified ads have always been one of the most productive
and cost-effective means of generating new business.  Once you
incorporate the AIDA formula (Attention, Interest, Desire, and
Action) into your classified ads, the success of your advertising
often becomes a "numbers game".  The advent of the Internet and
personal computers have made it easier to reach those numbers.

  Income Opportunity Magazine, Entrepreneur, Small Business
Opportunities, Income Plus and Spare Time Magazine have
traditionally been rated among the top magazines for classified
advertising.  The COMBINED READERSHIP of these 5 magazines is
approximately 3 million.  You can save advertising dollars on
the Internet and still reach an audience 10 times as large as
all of those magazines combined.

  Computerized classified ad's are one of the fastest growing
segments of direct-response advertising on the Internet today.
30 Million computer owners can read these ad's via their home
computers.  That's how large the market is and new networks are
joining the Internet at a rate of approximately 10 percent per
month.

                      WHAT IS THE INTERNET?


  The Internet is the network of ALL computer networks.  The
system is made up of interconnected networks of computers that
connect together other networks of computers via the telephone
system.  You will find commercial, educational, governmental,
military, organizational, and assorted independent networks on
the Internet.

  One of the fastest growing uses of the Internet today is as
an advertising medium. Three of the more popular advertising
strategies utilize Auto-Responder Email, the World Wide Web,
and Classified Auto-Responder Services.


                    AUTO-RESPONDER EMAIL


  The Internet allows you to send and receive messages to and
from people around the world.  You send these messages for free
and they are almost always delivered faster and more accurately
than regular mail.  You can send mail to the members of most
online services and to everyone who has an Internet address.

  Many businesses use the email system to enhance their marketing
campaigns and eliminate their postage and printing costs. Email
also reduces the amount of time needed to process your mail.

  Many businesses send unsolicited Email on the Internet.  The
main problem with this strategy is that the Internet was not
created for commercial purposes.  It was created for research
and educational purposes and Internet users were critical of
anyone looking to explore the Internet for financial gain.

  Computer users frequently receive email with offers that they
are not interested in and the email goes unread. It's somewhat
like receiving "junk mail" in your mailbox. How much of the
unsolicited (junk) mail that you receive in your mailbox do you
actually read?

  Sending unsolicited email is also similar to using a "shotgun
sales approach". You are bound to make some sales; however, you
waste a lot of ammunition (advertising dollars) in the meantime.
And you also make a lot of enemies on the Internet.

  In an effort to fine tune their sales approach, some
advertisers use a more polite type of email advertising utilizing
auto-responders.  Auto-responders are programs that send your
pre-written messages (via email) to ONLY those who request it.

  Once a Email auto-responder receives a request, it
automatically sends a response email that gives that person
information about your products.  Auto-responders receive and
send mail on their own, 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.

  In the past, the cost of using an auto-responder was a major
barrier.  Some companies charged as much as $1,000 per year to
rent auto-responders plus usage fees of 5 cents or more per
response. The cost of renting auto-responders today can be as
low as $25 per month.

  It is important to remember that auto-responders send pre-
written messages (via email) "ONLY" to those who request it.
Therefore, advertisers are responsible for marketing the auto-
responders email address. If your email address is not promoted
properly, no one will request your information.


                       THE WORLDWIDE WEB!


  You also have to make your classified ads available on the
World Wide Web (WWW) because it is the marketing area on the
Internet where computer owners go to shop for products, services,
and ideas.

  The World Wide Web is arranged in what are called "Web Pages".
David Letterman (http://www.cbs.com:80/lateshow/lateshow.html)
Time Magazine (http://www.timeinc.com), The White House
(http://www.whitehouse.gov),CompuServe(http://www.compuserve.com)
Pizza Hut (http://www.pizzahut.com), and many others have pages
on the Web.  The Pizza Hut site even allows people in the
Santa Cruz, California area to order pizzas online for local
delivery.

  The new Windows-based Web browsers let you jump from one page
to another just by using a mouse to click on the information that
you want to know more about.  The Netscape Navigator version 1.0
is one of the more popular browser software packages.

  If you have surfed the Web before, creating and setting up
your own web page may appear a little intimidating. There are
usually a number of advertisers in the Internet Magazines that
will do the work for you. Their fees and services vary, however
a $75 web page set-up fee plus a $25 monthly fee are not
uncommon.


                  COMBINING THE WEB AND E-MAIL


  Using a combination of Email and the World Wide Web will allow
you to take full advantage of the Internet's economic
opportunities.

  Creating a productive Web site and auto-responder service on
your own will require some Internet navigational skills.
However, there are services that provide web/auto-response
classified ad services.

  The web/auto-response services normally have several
classified ad pages on the web divided into different categories.
New classified ads are added to ads already in their web pages.
Anyone requesting ads dealing with a particular product or
service will also receive copies of all the other ads in the
same category.

  Classified ads are also programmed into email auto-responders.
Computer users receive copies of a web/auto-response service's
ad pages by sending a request email to their email address.

  Once a E-Mail auto-responder receives a request, it auto-
matically sends a response e-mail that gives that person a list
of all of the ads in a particular ad category.  An auto-responder
can receive and send mail on its own, 24 hours a day, 365 days
a year.

   Internet advertising will never replace print advertising;
however, every business should take advantage of what the
Internet has to offer.


     =================================================

  Infinite Research Inc. provides computerized classified
auto-response services.  You can view our classified auto-
response pages by e-mailing us at Infinite@uni.com . You
will receive an auto-response email within minutes.

  Enter the following information in your email message from
CompuServe: Name: INFO, Address: INTERNET:Infinite@uni.com,
Subject: INFO, Message: INFO .

     =================================================

Infinite Research Inc.         Phone:  (407) 496-1951
527 NW 46th Ave.               Email:  74457.2205@compuserve.com
Delray Beach, FL 33445




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Copyright 1995 by Infinite Research Inc. All rights reserved.