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Make Money While You Sleep!!!

by Liz Folger

I used to see the above title screaming the beginning of an ad. These types of ads still make me a little nervous. Bells ring in my head that what I'm about to read is a downright scam.

However, in the last few months, I've realized something rather interesting. You can make money while you sleep.

Here's how...

Your Web Page

If you're selling something, it's a good idea to be selling your product or service on the web. Your site can be accessed in the middle of the day or night. My last page statistics for BizyMoms.com told me the following...

ACTIVITY LEVEL BY HOUR
-----------------------------------------
12:00 a.m. EST: 122
1:00 a.m. EST: 203
2:00 a.m. EST: 103
3:00 a.m. EST: 53
4:00 a.m. EST: 19
5:00 a.m. EST: 33
6:00 a.m. EST: 34
7:00 a.m. EST: 94

I can tell you this, if I had a normal store front, there's no way I would have been open at these times (I won't even go into how cheery I'd be during those hours). And look at all the customers I would have missed out on as I snoozed away.

Write Articles On Your Area Of Expertise

Say you sell herbal products. You would want to become some sort of health expert/coach. A wonderful way to let people know about your product or service is to write INFORMING articles. Once you've informed your reader, there is a nice byline at the bottom of your article where people will see your e-mail and web address so they can reach you. These articles can be placed on your site or other health-focused web pages. People can read these articles whenever they are on their Net while you are out running errands or taking your kids to the park.

Another way to get your articles out there is to place them on sites that house articles for editors of e-zines and websites. One such site where you can do this at is http://www.ideamarketers.com. Marnie Pehrson is the owner of IdeaMarketers and explains, "IdeaMarketers allows writers to create a showcase of their work. They can add/edit/remove their articles 24/7. We've just added a new feature to the site that allows editors/webmasters to simply click on a link at the bottom of any article to request permission to use the article." And IdeaMarketers is always open to showcase your articles.

Autoresponders

These are a great way to keep track of who is wanting what info. These great little cyber-gadgets work hard for you any time of day. You can use Autoresponders for your rate cards to offer information on a particular product or service you sell. When you're ready you can check your e-mail and read the letter from the person who asked for the information. You can then follow-up with your potential customer. Your web site provider may offer this service, or find more information on autoresponders at http://www.indolinks.com/support/em-autores.htm.

Message Boards

Message boards are always open. When you visit them you'll find people desperate for certain information. Using your marketing intuition, you are going to visit boards in your area of expertise. Once you have posted your helpful response include your signature file. Who knows how many more people, besides the original poster, will read your helpful answers.

Affiliate Programs

Thanks to all the affiliate programs available out there, you can have everything on your website from your own car dealership to your own flower shop. Your site can easily become an affiliate program junkyard with all the different options out there if you aren't careful.

When you decide to make a little extra money with ad placements, pick the programs that will complement your site. Let's say you have a photography business and your specialty is taking pictures of people's pets. You'd might want to hook up with sitstay.com and sell crates or maybe you'd want to become an affiliate of animalden.com and sell unique gift items for animal and pet lovers.

To help you figure out what some of the best affiliate programs out there are, check out http://www.AssociatePrograms.com and Adbility's Web Publishers' Advertising Guide http://www.wpag.com/.

Additional Resources For Making Money In Your Sleep

Books...

"Strikingitrich.com: Profiles of 23 Incredibly Successful Websites You've Probably Never Heard Of" by Jacklyn Easton

"Customers.Com: How to Create a Profitable Business Strategy for the Internet and Beyond" by Patricia B. Seybold

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