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Play the Internet Marketing Video Game and Win $1000 a
Here's the thing.
I've been playing computer games since the very beginning. I'm talkin' Pac-man, Pong, Asteroids...I'm sure this was before some of you were born. My wife says she thinks now that we had children just so I could have an excuse to keep playing video games.
The thing about computer games is that your opponent is always available whenever you feel like playing, it never teases you when it kicks your butt and doesn't make excuses when you kick it's.
You know how all the self help writers are always going on about doing what you love and the money will follow? Yeah right...if you know anyone willing to pay a grown man for going to movies, eating pizza, or playing video games...please...email me.
But like so many of us these days I do love the Internet. Isn't this like a computer game? Yes and no.
Some Differences
When you sit down to play a game, any game, you expect certain things. Mostly you expect to have fun. Although some aspects of Internet marketing can be considered fun maybe even most, some things can become drudgery. But that's OK because there can be long stretches of drudgery, frustration, and even boredom in some computer games so this isn't what makes the difference.
Of course with computer gaming you expect to feel safe. This is such an expectation that you don't even think about it. You don't expect to lose money ( not counting the $55 you paid for the game ). There is a risk of emotional hurt with Internet marketing. You could possibly be accused of spamming or told you don't know what your talking about. Of course you could be unsuccessful and feel hurt.
That is a negative that would never happen in a computer game. Emotional pain however slight. As far as losing money...well money can be an emotional issue in almost any circumstance. The issue of money can be easily controlled while playing the Internet Marketing Computer Game ( IMCG ), but there is always the fear of losing money investing in programs, tools, hosting, advertising, training and such.
Also with a video or computer game you don't really think it's all that important. Of course you naturally want to win, but more importantly you want to have fun. But with Internet Marketing (IM ) winning ( making money ) can be or at least seem very important.
After all we think, "I hate my job. I've got to make this Internet thing work and soon!" There's no pressure like this in playing games or we wouldn't play!
Another characteristic that video/computer games have that Internet Marketing doesn't is :
Clearly Identifiable Enemies And instant rewards on killing monsters
Whether you're playing a battle hardened warrior in a fantasy role playing game fighting against monsters from another dimension or a street thug running from the law it's easy to know who is trying to sabotage your plans. IT'S WHOEVER OR WHATEVER IS TRYING TO KILL YOU!
Now if you 're thinking that you don't have any enemies in the IMCG then keep reading. They may not be trying to kill you but they are certainly trying to sabotage your plans. No I'm not talking about your competition. Your competition has the same enemies. You will beat your competition in direct proportion to how well you recognize and defeat your enemies.
Monsters to watch out for
I've identified several enemies that you need to recognize if you intend to win the Internet marketing computer game. Though not completely identified and studied, I can tell you that these monsters definitely use magic against you. Most of the time they use spells to take over your mind and pretend to be YOU!
I'll call them :
The Overwhelm Monster The Fear Monster The Doubt Monster and The Procrastination Monster
Here are some characteristics of each and some of the tricks they play.
The Overwhelm Monster specializes in confusion, indecision and overwhelm.
This monster loves the Internet as much as you do. It knows that to keep you off balance and not focusing on one thing long enough to succeed it just needs to give you too many choices. No sooner than you get going on something you'll soon here it's voice in your head pretending to be you.
It'll say things like, "Wow, I could make even more money faster with..." "What if I could've picked a better program?" "I just need to get XYZ and I'll be ready." "I better change programs now before I get too involved in this one."
If you listen carefully you'll easily learn to recognize this monster.
The Fear Monster
This ruthless creature loves pretending to be you and saying things like:
"I don't like posting to forums everyone there seems to have more experience than me." "What if I do a lot of work and don't make any sales?" "What if I don't even make my investment back" "What if people steal my affiliate commissions?" "If I put my idea in a free book or report someone might write an ebook before me using my idea."
Again just listen and you'll see this dude is very active.
The Doubt Monster
No doubt you've heard the doubt monster:
"I don't have enough experience" "Everyone will know I'm a fake" "I can't compare or compete with those gurus" "What if my ads suck?" "Everyone in the forums seems to know more than me." "I won't be able to fill a whole book on that subject." I can't organize my thoughts on paper."
The Procrastination Monster is especially devious
It promises something that doesn't exist. It says that you can put off until later what you know you should do today. But unfortunately the rest of the world does not stop just because you do. The ezine publisher may be doing something else tomorrow. The opportunity seeker may have a doctors appointment tomorrow and not see your ad.
And what about those things that you already had planned for the time slot you call
tomorrow? Now you'll have to yet push them further into the future.. Before you know it this behavior has been pushing things on top of each other for years and there isn't enough lifetime to do all the things that this monster has tricked and lied to get you to put off.
Tomorrow’s time slot is already full of tomorrow’s things. A decision to procrastinate is in fact a decision to NOT do what you know is important! And you thought you didn't have any enemies!
Some Other Important Gameplay Hints And Tactics
Where monsters hang out:
You' ll find that there are certain places where you are likely to be attacked. Your inbox is notorious for creature attacks. Any hyperlink is as likely as not to lead to a monsters lair.
Look for monster attacks whenever you read ads, listen to seminars or any time you are "pitched" a monster may try to get you to change your plans. Realize that if you change your plan, you have been successfully attacked!
In computer games we get immediate rewards throughout. When we defeat an enemy, solve a puzzle, complete a task we get immediate positive feedback. We may get rewarded with money, gold, gems, treasure, armor, weapons and so on. We also get immediately stronger, smarter, faster etc through a system of levels and points.
With marketing rewards are often in the distance and many times we don't even last long enough to ever receive them so we are always frustrated. We need to build some rewards into our marketing so that we get immediate positive feedback.
For those of you that have never played video or computer games, ( you should probably seek help :-) ) there are particularly difficult enemies at strategic locations know as "bosses". These confrontations can take a looooong time and many tries to win.
Beating these guys is usually accompanied by positive feelings like power, relief, triumph, victory, success, and generally "I finally got you, you *&^%)#@$!% ". It helps to remember to pat yourself on the back when you beat marketing monsters.
You can design a point system for tasks that you do so that you can see just how much progress you' re making even before you start going to the bank. For instance a good Game Point System is as follows:
These can be done in any order:
Create your own website...100pts. Create an original content ezine...100pts. Write 50+ articles...5pts per article. Write 1 or more ebooks...400pts each. Submit your ezine to 100+ ezine directories...2pt each. Create 200+ links back to your site...2pts each. Submit your articles to 25+ directories...4pts each. Frequent 3-5 discussion boards 3-5 times a week...5pts each. Learn and practice ad tracking...10pts per ad. Determine a budget for ezine and ppc ads...10pts per ad.
This is just to get you thinking, there are many more activities that I haven 't listed and the values that I have given are surely not written in stone.
Like with a good computer Role Playing Game, you ALWAYS WIN UNLESS YOU QUIT! Aim for a couple hundred points and feel the success. When you get to 1000-1200 or more you'll begin to feel great because you' ll have the experience, knowledge, a growing optin list and income.
You won't always be able to stop a monster attack just because you recognize it. It may last for a few minutes, hours, days, or months. But when you look back on it and see that you have been under it's evil spell you will gain power and mastery. While under it's influence you 'll swear that changing your plans is the right thing to do and it makes perfect sense, but when you recover you'll think, WOW I'm finally getting it!
Monster Hunting
Step one: Write down your plans for marketing both immediate for today and tommorrow and for the next weeks and months.
Step Two: Notice whenever you change your plans. Why did you change when you knew so strongly when you wrote your plans that it was the right thing to do. It's likely that you have been successfully attacked.
Learning and Automation
Finally, some major differences in computer marketing and computer gaming exist in the areas of learning and automation.
There are few video games that take longer than an hour or so to be able to play well enough to have fun and win. Yet it can take many hours over weeks and months to reach this level of expertise in the marketing game.
Of course video games have repetitive actions that involve mostly pointing and clicking with the mouse where as marketing tends to involve more keyboarding. There are probably equal amounts of problem solving and marketing can be somewhat easier in this respect because rarely is one required to do it without a complete roadmap. This roadmap is typically known in the gaming world as a "walkthrough".
Using a "walkthrough" is considered cheating by some die hard gamers but it is expected and reasonable with internet marketing. Fortunately there are some very good "walkthroughs" available for new marketers designed by experienced "adventurers" who have been there and done that.
The absolute best internet marketing "walkthrough" is by a guy you've probably heard of named Marlon Sanders. He's very well known on the net.
What it is, is a Marketing Dashboard. The concept is you point, click and follow the steps. So it's literally "point and click marketing".
The Marketing Dashboard is divided into 6 steps, with 6 steps each, which makes it a 6 week program with actions you take -- 6 days per week. The best thing is to see a screen capture of the marketing dashboard, and you'll instantly understand how it will help you.
About the Author
(c) 2004 by David McCammon
Click here for a picture and to read more: http://www.freetrainingcenter.com/walthru.html
Website: http://www.freetrainingcenter.com/ Best Wishes, David McCammon
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