If there’s a hard and fast rule of successful marketing, it’s this: List building.

Just as a talent scout is always on the lookout for potential recruits, your business needs a constant flow of new people coming into it to be an ongoing success. People are your life force.

We’ve discussed various free methods of generating leads for your business, let’s get a little adventurous and explore a paid advertising medium that can change the course of your business almost immediately.

The solo ad …

I would be the first to admit that the solo ad is completely different from all other forms of marketing and advertising.

What is a Solo Ad?

A “Solo ad” is when you pay someone to send an ad to THEIR email subscriber list on your behalf. The solo ad will have a link to your lead capture page that contains the free opt-in offer.

A solo ad is a stand-alone ad where an email, ezine or newsletter is sent out to email lists. It’s called a “solo” ad because the email only contains your ad – solo. This way your ad gets the reader’s undivided attention, prompting to take action if the ad is good. Many providers allow you to make the ad the way you want it, including the subject line. There are others who handle everything for you.

What are ad swaps?

Solo ads and ad swaps can sometimes go hand in hand. An “Ad Swap” is when two people do solo ads for each other. It’s an exchange format, where both marketers have lists and each of them sends an email on behalf of the other. There’s usually no payment involved in ad swaps as it’s an exchange offer.

The Idea Behind Using a Solo Ad Strategy

Solo ads are used to grow your business email list. Let’s say you have a list of 1000 people – a result of your SEO efforts. Now you’ve decided to expand your list to 10,000 by using paid solo ads.

You would pay someone to send an email to a list of people related to your niche, resulting in a heavy flow of traffic to your lead capture page.

The benefits of running a solo ad are twofold:

1)  Access to instant highly targeted niche traffic to build your email list. You can gain access to enormous lists in a matter of minutes.

2)  With thousands on your list, your sales multiply.

It’s almost like turning on a tap!

Of course, you’ll have to pay the right price for good traffic, but you can reap the rewards with just one click of your mouse.

This form of advertising is huge because it has the potential of reaching thousands of leads. That’s the difference between free and paid advertising. While I always suggest new marketers concentrate on the SEO aspect of the business, as you start getting a hang of the whole online lead generation scene, paid advertising can be a great idea.

What Is The Cost Of A Solo Ad?

There are many providers and the cost differs based on the size of the list and how targeted it is. Highly targeted lists cost more and are the most effective. Start with small lists that offer about 100 clicks. You may have to pay anywhere between $10 and $50 or more.

You could spend money on one solo ad at a time and track the leads generated. Do it for four weeks and see how it’s working for you. If it’s from a reputed publisher, for every 500 visitors, you may end up generating at least 150 leads. This is the least and some lists can convert at far higher rates. If you’ve spent $50 with no results, leave that and try another.

That’s the cost factor, what about the profit? How about earning $1.75 for every dollar you spend? How many dollars would you spend to earn that kind of ROI? Yes, there’s real good money in solo ads.

Where Are The Solo Ad Suppliers?

Okay, I want to bite the bullet, but where do I look?

Forums

I find forums like the Warrior forum the best places to research and find good publishers. You’ll find many in the “Classified ads” section. Those in the “Joint Ventures” section may be looking for ad swaps, but with an option of getting paid, they may help you. Forums are a good idea because customers leave honest feedback for everyone to see. And the discussions in a forum help you understand what to expect before you actually spend money. You can even ask the others to suggest.

Directory of Ezines (DOE)

This enables you to buy solo ads in Ezine Newsletters listed in DOE. I like this site because it keeps its list and rates updated at all times. You’ll also find a lot of material that teaches how to run a solo ad. If you have great ad copy, you can get plenty of clicks and conversions. But you must make sure you understand the terms of the ezine before using them.

Find highly targeted newsletter and ezines. If you come across small ezines, you can also write directly to the ezine owner and find out how big their list is and the rates. Subscribe to the list yourself to see what they’re sending and how they’re doing it. If you’re satisfied then you may want to check them out for your solo ad.

Solo Ad Providers

There are many solo ad providers that are known to have highly responsive mailing lists. Igor Kheifets, Anthony Tilley are just a couple of good vendors. You may want to check them out, even if it’s just to get an idea. Google, find a name and look for feedback in forums and social networking sites. You can’t go wrong this way.

Is There Anything Else?

When looking for a solo ad, keep in mind that not all solo ads are solo, there are also “semi solo ads” where your ad runs along with two or other ads. I wouldn’t go with that sort of promotion as I want the complete attention of the reader. Don’t get tempted with the cheaper rates of semi solos. Make sure you’re paying for a solo and not a semi solo.

Most of the time the publishers guarantees a certain amount of clicks, this is called “guaranteed clicks solo ads.” Some of them promise guaranteed clicks and then outsource the clicks to some PPC campaign, and those clicks turn out to be useless for you. Keep this in mind when researching.

Another thing is to ensure the ezines or newsletters are on the same topic as your ad. If you’re using an ezine on jokes to promote your network marketing, you’re wasting your money.

You may also want to check out some good solo ad templates, if you’re not used to creating ads.

Last But Not The Least….

What good will finding the best solo ad publishers do, if your squeeze page or lead capture page turns them off?

The first step is to create a perfect sales funnel that’ll do the job when your visitor arrives at your web page.

* A great high-converting sales page >>> an opt-in form to build your list >>> a useful free offer for subscribers

How to Create a High Converting Lead Capture Page

When you have at least 1000 members on your list, you can look at ad swaps. Well, that’s another story, let’s stick to solo ads for now.

A Solo ad can be very profitable or a total waste of money. Learn what to look for and find the genuine publishers. Don’t just believe what people say. Do your research and ask around.

Final tip: If you buy a solo ad and the conversion rate is very high then be wary. Whilst there are many reputable vendors, some may not be.The very best lead capture pages convert at around 50% give or take. If you are getting opt ins higher than this its possible that the opt-ins are not genuine. To test this, segment these opt-ins in your auto-responder account and send a promotional email to test if these opt-ins click on your link. If they don’t they are zombie leads that are not genuine. Don’t be put off by this though, solo ads are a great way to build your list if you are sensible and do your due diligence.

Have you tried a solo ad yet? All suggestions to our “solo ad newbie” readers are highly appreciated. As always, do get in touch if you have any questions or need help with your solo ad.