Instead, information marketing millionaires first build strong foundations for success by focusing on developing an effective business model that allows fast growth.

There are five key components this business model must include. All of them are equally important for long term success, stability, and profitability of your business.

Once you have a specific business model mapped out you can identify the specific strategies you want to focus on. This in turn will dictate what specific tactics you need to employ, and what action steps to take to reach your objective of building a million dollar information marketing business.

So let’s explore those five key components of an effective business model.

Component 1 - Generate Traffic
The first step on this model is to generate traffic. You’ve got to have “duplicate-able”, repeatable, sustainable ways to generate traffic.

You can get your traffic for free - but it will take a bit longer to get it. Or you can buy it and have people visiting your website in a matter of minutes.

Some of the free traffic generation strategies include article submissions, blogging, social media presence, like video and audio podcasts and accounts with popular online networking sites including LinkedIn, MySpace, Facebook, or Twitter.

And let’s not forget something as simple as a “Tell a friend” button somewhere on each page of your website.

The fastest way to get traffic to your website is to buy it. Bying PPC (pay per click) like Google’s Adwords is probably one of the most known paid traffic strategy, but there are many others.

You can also buy text links, banner advertising, display ads on other people’s sites and blogs. You can also buy classified ads in other people’s ezines and even solo-mailings to other people’s lists of subscribers.

A lot of savvy marketers also use strategic alliances or JVs (Joined Ventured) to quickly drive massive traffic to their websites. While it’s a very effective strategy, it’s not free. Your JV partners will typically want to get a hefty percentage of the sales they generate with their promotions of your site. But - it will be quick!

Component 2 - Lead Generation
One of the biggest mistakes most people make is they try to get a sale too soon! Instead, a much better approach is to generate a lead first, then convert that lead into a paid first-time customer.

Let’s take this one step at a time - converting visitors into subscribers of some sort - a.k.a. “leads”! This is a critical step because it will allow you to continue communicating with people interested in your products or services.

You’ve probably heard that in any business your money and success are in your list, in your database of subscribers and your relationship with them. It’s very important to learn how to get people to come to your site and then entice them to want to give you their name and email.

It used to be enough to just say something like “subscribe to my newsletter,” or “get updates about my business,” somewhere on your website to get people to opt-in to your database. But those days are long gone.

Today you must be really good at presenting great value fast and making irresistible first offers to your visitors to persuade them to give up their contact information. Strategies that still work great include giving your web visitors access to special reports, audio downloads, or informative video and audio presentations.

Obviously the better the quality of your “carrot” and the better your presentation of it, the better your conversion will be. (Conversion is the comparison of the number of people that take you up on your offer and subscribe to your list to the total number of people that visit your website.)

Component 3 - Lead Conversion
Now that you have a list of subscribers - a.k.a. database of leads - how do you convert them into paid customers, someone who would actually gives you a few dollars? Generating that first sale is your lead conversion.

Just like lead generation, lead conversion strategies will vary from business to business, depending on what you are selling and who your customers are. But the key to your success is to systemize and automate this process as much as possible. Let me give you an example.

Think of a service business, for example some like a professional life coach.

Most likely they have no systems in place. Every new client is gained a different way. A conversation with each new prospect is different from others. Every lead is generated a different way. Every lead is converted differently. It’s no wonder their businesses are overwhelming them and generating very little money. There are no systems in place.

Now let’s look at a different professional and scenario; someone like an orthodontist.

Everything is systemized. From the same lead generation mechanisms to how patients get introduced to the doctor’s office to the first experience when they come in, to how they get to meet the doctor, how their initial evaluation is presented and delivered, how the price is quoted and how the treatment is initiated.

Everything is identical for each new patient! Everything is done the same way over and over and over. Everything is a system. And that’s what you are looking for in successful information marketing business model - systemized and automated lead conversion strategies.

Component 4 - Profit Multipliers
Once you generate the first sale, you will sell more products or services to your new customer. It’s important for two reasons. First, you probably have more products and services that can help that client much more beyond what they initially received from you. And second, that’s the way to maximize the success and profitability of your business!

Here are few examples of profit multipliers.

First there is down-selling. Basically what it means is that if someone comes to your website and says, “I don’t think I’m willing to pay $97you’re your multi-media course - and I’m leaving your website,” you present them with another opportunity to purchase a similar product that sells for $47 or even less and say, “Maybe $97 is too much for your budget right now. Can I interest you in getting a similar highly quality course that costs only $20?”

A different down-sale would be to offer a payment plan. You’d say something like this, “If $97 is too much right now, can I make it more affordable for you by letting you pay in three payments of $33?”

Next, there is a cross-sale. If they pay $97 for your first program, maybe they like to add another program that will help them get more value out of their initial purchase, especially if it’s priced attractively. It’s an effective way to immediately increase the size of each initial transaction.

Then there are continuity programs. For instance, if you are a coach you can have a system in place where after the initial first sale of some type of a home study course the customer receives an invitation to join a group coaching and support program for which they would then pay monthly.

And these are just a few simple ideas of what you can do to multiply your sales and profits.

Component 5 -Scalability
Your ultimate goal is to systemize and automate your business so that its growth can be expended beyond your own efforts.

Once you have all of the key components in place, focus on simplifying, systemizing, automating, delegating - in short, you want to optimize your business for maximum performance with minimum efforts.

Then simply start driving more traffic through this “profit machine”, and, if you designed it well, it will work like a charm and continue making you more money. It’s like of like turn the faucet knob on full blast.

So to have an effective business model first you need to generate traffic to your website, then you need a way to convert that traffic into leads, then convert leads into first-time customers, and then use profit multipliers to maximize your sales and profits.

The focus of the third and final series of Turbo-Charge Your Marketing calls will be “Getting the Word Out and Building Strong Relationships with Your Clients.” So, some of my featured guests will be discussing social networking and how leveraging this online tool can help you build your business. A few weeks ago, Ryan Deiss shared this video that think really puts the whole social networking thing into perspective. Watch it, take notes, and be prepared to party!

PS: If you’ve been reading my Women’s Business Gallery blog, then you’ve probably already seen this.

In fact, David Ogilvy, famous ad man and author of Confessions of an Advertising Man, has said that four out of five people only read headlines. Nothing more.

And if people DO choose to read the rest of the ad, they make that decision based on the headline.

That’s a big job to put on the shoulders for what amounts to a few words.

But before you start despairing over your headline-writing skills, take heart. There are several “headline types” that have proven to sell products and services over and over again. Below are four of the most powerful and the easiest to implement.

1. How to.
Everyone loves a how to headline. How To Quit Smoking in 30 Days Or Your Money Back. How to Write a Novel in 30 Days. How to Lose Weight Fast.

Why do these headlines work so well? Because they promise a solution to your customers’ problems. Why else do so many nonfiction books have how to in the title? If the how to is addressing a need, you feel almost compelled to pick the book up and look at it. Or, in the case of marketing materials or articles, this same natural curiosity can entice you to keep reading to discover the answer.

Keep in mind the better the benefit, the more likely you’ll catch your customers’ attention. (The benefits in the above headlines are quitting smoking, writing a novel in a month and losing weight. All of these can be powerful benefits.)

2. Question.
These headlines ask a question (obviously). If you want this headline type to work, it better ask a question that your customers want an answer to. Are you spending too much on your car insurance? Will your marriage fail? Will you know what to do if you’re in an accident?

Whatever you do, don’t ask a question that only your business cares about. Something like: Do you know what our company has been up to lately? Again, focus on the benefit for the customer.

3. Top ten reasons.
Okay, it doesn’t have to be ten reasons or even the top reasons. But just as everyone loves how to headlines, they also love top ten reasons.

Four headlines that work. Five ways to fix a broken toilet. Seven warning signs that your house may be making you sick.

Again, the customers see the benefits immediately. Plus, they know exactly what they’re getting — so many reasons for something.

4. Testimonial.
This headline uses your customers’ words to sell your products or services. This works because people see proof up front that your product or service does what it’s supposed to do. If used correctly (meaning people believe it really is a testimonial from a real customer and not something fabricated) then this can be a very effective strategy.

If you choose this headline, put it in quotes so it’s obvious it’s a testimonial. And use the customers’ words as much as you can to make it sound authentic. Whenever possible, get permission from your customer to use his/her name. You may even want to consider adding a photo as well.

(For more headline and copywriting tips, see Robert Bly’s book The Copywriter’s Handbook.)

Creativity Exercises — Write those headlines

1. Get a stack of paper, find a couple of pens (I’m partial to gel colored pens) and let’s start brainstorming.
2. Start by making a list of all the benefits of your product, service or business. (Benefits, not features. Benefits are what your customers will get out of your product.)
3. Put that sheet of paper aside. Now pick a headline type and write it on top of the paper. For instance, Question headlines. Underneath start writing as many different types of question headlines you can think of. They don’t have to be pretty, they just have to be a question.
4. Come up with at least 50 of them. Don’t let your brain or pen stop until you do. No matter how painful. If you get stuck, go back and look at your benefits list and pick a different benefit.

I practically guarantee by the time you reach headline number 50, you’ll have written at the very least one pretty darn good headline. You might have even uncovered a brilliant one.

Try this same exercise with all the headline types and see what new ad concepts you uncover.

Who are the top dogs in your field?
Being the astute business owner you are, you know who the top dogs in your niche are. In fact, you might be one of them! But it can be hard to keep up with what’s going on if you don’t automate your monitoring. Go to the top dogs’ blogs and subscribe to the RSS feed. You’ll get a notification every time something new is published. If no blog is available, see if they are contributing to an article directory like eZineArticles.com. There are lots of directories that offer the ability to subscribe to the author-specific RSS feeds. You get information every time a new article is added.

Keep tabs on what is going on in your niche news.
Oftentimes, you can subscribe to an RSS feed of press releases. Find a reputable press release directory, such as PRWeb, and subscribe to the RSS feed that makes the most sense for you. This way, you ensure that you are on top of every breaking news story in whatever topic, niche or industry you choose.

Using Google News, you can make your own RSS feeds.
I have to say, this is certainly my fave technique. Type news.google.com into your browser. After the page loads, the “News Alerts” link can be found in the navigation bar at the left. This will take you to a “Google Alert” page, allowing you to search for the terms you are most interested in. Generate alerts for all your intended keywords and you will get am email every time Google finds something on the web posted with that particular keyword. You may use it to explore only news, blogs, web, groups or video, but I generally opt for “comprehensive.” This provides a wider range of alerts and is a more robust way of keeping track of what is happening to your keywords around the Internet.

Use these suggestions and you will never fall short of ideas!