Use PLR to boost your business – by Tiffany DOW
Quickly, let me tell you what PLR is – it’s content or tools that you buy (it can be text, video, audio or even software) where you can usually put your name on it as the author/owner and then sell it to others, give it away, etc. It all depends on the rules that the seller has created for their PLR products.
I often get asked about duplicate penalties in using PLR. What I’ve learned after doing a bunch of research and listening to SEO experts is that the duplicate penalty arises if you use the same content on your own domain more than once. For instance, having the same article on two pages. Otherwise, it’s fine. This is why those who buy PLR often try to be the first to submit it to EzineArticles – because it’s only going to be allowed to be published there one time.
What can you do with PLR content? Well like I said, it depends on what they allow – but here are some things I let my customers do with it when they buy from the PLR Mini Mart:
1. Alter it
2. Put their name on it
3. Submit it to article directories
4. Break it up (if it’s an eBook) and use it online
5. Use it in autoresponder emails
6. Compile it for reports
7. Give it away
8. Sell it at their chosen price point (some don’t let you do this)
9. Use it as web content
10. Use it on web 2.0 sites like Squidoo lenses, Hub Pages, Google Knols, etc.
11. Use it as content for site flipping
There are a ton of uses for it and here’s what’s so cool. Let’s say you’ve been working on an eBook for your niche. You’re done, it’s compiled, and it’s set up via ClickBank and PayDotCom.
You can then use some PLR content to drive traffic to your site while you focus on creating your next info product! Look for packs that suit your needs. For instance, I created these Mega packs that info product creators or affiliate marketers often buy that have one 5-page report (you give this away to build a list) plus 52 autoresponder emails so that you stay in touch with your list once a week for a whole year.
Let’s say you don’t have a product yet. You can find affiliate product reviews in the form of PLR to promote other people’s stuff and make money off of it. You can use generic content and then insert your product recommendations or find affiliate product reviews based on a specific product like I make, based on actual ClickBank products so all you do is cut and paste with your ClickBank link.
You could logically set up an entire business using PLR. Here’s how you would do it:
1.) Go to GoDaddy or elsewhere to buy a domain for about $10 or less.
2.) Get a baby hosting plan somewhere like HostGator for under $10 a month.
3.) Install a free WordPress theme on your domain.
4.) Use a free tool to create an ecover or outsource it for about $40.
5.) Buy a PLR eBook for your niche ($20-40 or so)
6.) Buy a set of autoresponder emails for your niche ($52 for a year)
7.) Buy an opt in report to build your list ($5)
8.) Buy articles to set up online as web content and on web 2.0 for traffic ($5 for 5 articles)
The whole thing could cost you under $150 if you felt like you didn’t want to do a lick of work writing. Now if you want to write a portion of it, you can cut costs by just using PLR for traffic and SEO purposes.
Shopping for the right PLR is just as important as actually putting it to use and not letting it gather dust on your hard drive. The reason why is because there’s a ton of crappy PLR floating around out there.
If you just look at cost and go for cheap, without checking quality, then you’re spinning your wheels. You’ll spend so much time rewriting your PLR that it won’t have been worth it – and even if it’s just 5 bucks, would you take a $5 bill and drop it on the ground on purpose? Probably not. And if you use crappy PLR as is, well then you ruin your reputation as a trustworthy leader in your niche.
There are two routes you can go with PLR purchases – membership sites – or not. When I started the PLR Mini Mart, and had the “grab n go” mindset for it without having to make people get a membership it was solely because I heard so many complaints from my subscribers who were paying $47 a month for PLR memberships that was useless to them. This is because most membership sites have a variety of niches, so one month you might get dog training and the next you get cooking.
Who can focus on a niche business and build it when they’re pulling you all over the map? I can also tell you that many membership sites promise such high volume of PLR because they’re outsourcing the content to low quality writers. And they rely on you to forget that you have an automated monthly subscription coming out of your PayPal account. (This is literally what some gurus told me – SO shady and unethical, isn’t it?)
But not all membership sites are bad. If you do go with one, go with a niche specific one (so you always get something relevant to your business) and check out their content samples first. Then, make sure that EACH month the quality is up to par. Here’s why – some will put really good samples up online, knowing that you’ll simply save your downloads to a folder and not get to them for months – and they’ve got your money in THEIR pockets by the time you realize the rest of the PLR was low quality.
More on cost – don’t solely judge PLR on cost. I have a reputation as one of the top ghostwriters online, and yet my PLR is priced at just $1 per page. That’s as low as it gets in most circumstances, yet there’s a reason I did it. I was ghostwriting and continually got helpless emails from people wanting to hire me, but they couldn’t afford it.
The PLR Mini Mart was launched to allow shoestring marketers to get the same top quality as a guru got, but at a price they could afford. Then what happened was I started hearing from some old guru clients, glad they could still my writing (since I quit ghostwriting) in the form of PLR. So it’s a win-win for everyone.
Once you get your PLR, whether it’s from me or someone else, don’t stick it in a folder! I hear so many great success stories from people who download, stick it online and start making sales. If you buy PLR, make sure your time is scheduled to set it up. Otherwise, it’s a waste of money – like dropping cash on the ground in public on purpose.
Here’s what I personally would do with my PLR:
1.) Alter the title, even if it’s just a tiny bit. So for instance, let’s say I have an article that is titled, “Is the Verizon Droid the Best New Cell Phone on the Market?” You can alter that to say, “Why the Verizon Droid Beats Out Competitor Smart Phones Sold Today.”
2.) I would add or alter the introduction. Remember, you’re just changing sentences a little bit. So let’s look at how this is done – I’ll show you an actual introduction from one of my PLR articles and then how I would rewrite it to be unique:
Original introduction from an article on belly fat:
Are you frustrated when you put on a bathing suit and see the belly fat around your middle? Do you see a lumpy, bumpy silhouette when you put on a new dress? When you look in the mirror, do you see a spare tire hanging over your belt? If this sounds familiar, you may be ready to lose belly fat.
Rewrite:
Does it almost make you want to cry when swimsuit season comes along and you see belly fat sticking out over your bathing suit? When you put on a new dress, does your silhouette have a speed bump in the mid-section? Does a spare tire haunt you every time you put on a belt with your pants and glance in the mirror at your reflection? If this describes your life, then it’s time to do something about your belly fat.
I rewrote each sentence. Just think to yourself, “What’s another way I can put that?” Then alter the conclusion and anything else you have time for or want to change. The more alteration, the better – but feel free to use my PLR as is, too! Some PLR providers force you to alter the content, and some won’t let you at all. Very strange. I like to give people choices.
I truly believe that every marketer can benefit from the use of PLR. Even those who have ample money for a unique ghostwriter. PLR can be put online quickly and easily and drive more traffic to your sites. And we all know constant content creation is the best way to grow your authority within Google. Use PLR for backlinks, if that’s your goal. Use it to build your reputation as an expert.
But use it. Don’t hide it for later.
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Tiffany Dow started her career ghostwriting for some of the top marketers on the ‘net. After five years of amassing inside information, she left ghostwriting behind and morphed into a full-time Internet marketer herself. She lives in her hometown of the Dallas/Fort Worth metroplex with her husband and three children.
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3 Responses to “Use PLR to boost your business – by Tiffany DOW”
Aidan Jones says:
March 6, 2010 at 8:08 am
Refreshing website and useful contribution. I’ve marked it to come back later. Imagination is more important than knowledge-Einstein
Buy Gourmet Online says:
March 12, 2010 at 7:22 pm
thanks for that
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