I'm sure by now you've at least heard about DesktopLightning, a new tool to add to our ever-growing arsenal of affiliate marketing tools.
 DesktopLightning screen - click for larger view |
Many people are saying really good things about the site, but are they true?
I signed up as a member a couple of weeks ago and decided to write up an honest review of the site, covering what I believe to be its strengths and its weaknesses, just to clear it up once and for all...
DesktopLightning - Strengths and Weaknesses
In A Nutshell
DesktopLightning is a new free viral marketing tool, capable of broadcasting messages direct to people's desktops. It's easy to use, and caters primarily for those who have something they want to promote and are looking for a better way to do it.
Read on for why I didn't give it 5 stars...
Initial Impressions
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I signed up anyway, since I usually give things a chance to play out and ascertain if they're worth sticking with or dumping - that's how I have found the several sites I do really trust and rely on.
The signup process took about 60 seconds, as advertised, and their software program downloaded and installed in about 30 seconds (on my broadband connection). The software installs in just a few seconds. If you use a firewall (you should be), you'll need to tell it to let DesktopLightning access then internet.
Right after installing the software, it ran immediately, and I was quickly presented with a tool to invite my friends. (I never use these tools as none of my friends are interested in internet marketing but I after I check tools like this out anf if they are genuinely useful, I do email my list about them).
My Inbox was just one click away as were the tools to send broadcasts, view my statistics, and what's become my favorite: the "Build Your Network" page.
I'll get more into why that's my favorite page later.
Viral Growth
In my opinion, this is where the site really shines. It's certainly not the only tool to use viral techniques, but that technique is not one to be overlooked as it can get you a huge number of people in your downline. The purpose of a viral marketing site is that you should be able to sign up just a few people, and then it will start growing on its own.
Direct-To-Desktop BroadcastsSo, once you have the people in your network from the direct invitations and the viral growth, then it really get's cool. Now is when you get to broadcast whatever message you want directly to their desktops.
[You can also join as a Platinum member which allows you to personalise emails, use HTML in your messages and send out to a random number of people who aren't part of your actual downline].
Gone are the days of sending out emails and wondering if they were received due to spam filters and crowded inboxes. Of course, people still need to open and read the messages you send but you can at least be sure that the message will be delivered.
[If you upgrade to Platinum Membership, then you can even get exact statistics on the percentage of your broadcasts that were opened].
Everyone in your network who is online will receive a notification on their desktop that they can click to read your message.
Anyone who isn't online at the time will receive it when they next log on.
[A very powerful features of the Platinum Membership is that you can do things like embed video and sound right into the broadcast].
Building Your Network
Most sites out there nowadays don't really help you build a network of people below you. They just throw you a URL and tell you to run with it.
While this works for most advanced people, it's not something that's very easy for people who are just starting out.
DesktopLightning went really far this time to make sure that everyone has a way to bring people into their network, regardless of skill level.
When you click on the "Build Your Network" link from within their application, you'll be presented with a wide range of tools to help you build your downline...everything from banners, to popups, to text ads, to
invitation tools, to emails to send out, etc.
Then, they continue to offer something which I haven't seen on any Internet Marketing site yet - they have a "Starting From Scratch" section, designed specifically for people who have no list and no website with traffic.
If you're in that position, then you'll love this section, since they provide specific strategies you can use to promote DesktopLightning (or anything for that matter, so the strategies are of great general use), even if you don't have anything to start with.
Not For Everyone
With all that said, the only downside to DesktopLightning is that it's not for everyone (fer, if any, tools are).
Of course, some might see that as an upside, since it's a more targetted opportunity.
The bottom line is that DesktopLightning is a purely and simply a promotional tool. You need to have something you want to promote or advertise before you can really make use of it.
This is all down to building a viral network of people, and then broadcasting something to it.
But, this "something" is whatever you want, whether that's telling people about your website, a product you've created or your selling products through affiliate marketing.
But, even if you don't have something to promote yet, you will at some time in the future, so you could start building your network first, and then once you find that special something to promote, you'll be ready to launch it immediately.
Conclusion
I would recommend DesktopLightning to anyone who has something to promote or advertise (after all it's free to join). And, as marketers, we all need to get the word out to as many people as possible about the products we promote.
It definitely works, and your downline will grow extremely fast if you put some energy into getting it started. But don't just think of it as a tool for pushing your message out. Read the messages you will also receive (you'll only ever get 2 messages a day, at most). This is how I came across the pre-launch announcement for Squeeze Videos which I signed up for on the spot. I haven't seen announcements for this product anywhere else and my low membership number confirms that I'm one of those who got in early. And I think Squeeze Videos is going to be huge when it officially launches on Nov. 1st, 2006. Here's a page I created to use it: Sign Up For My Newsletter
Amyway, back to DesktopLightning. The direct-to-desktop broadcasts is the killer feature in today's online climate, where emails barely even get through anymore.
The only reason I didn't give it 5 stars is that it has nothing to offer for people who don't have anything to promote or advertise yet and readers don't always read their messages. They are prompted to though, several times a day. However, that may become annoying for the lazy reader and I think such people might uninstall DesktopLightning just to get rid of the annoyance. Those people wouldn't be much of a loss anyway since, if they're not going to read their messages, they shouldn't have signed up in the first place!
At any rate, my advice is that since DesktopLightning is so quick to set up and try, if you have something you want to promote you might as well go check it out.
You can always remove it later if you decide you don't like it.
Here's the link where you can sign up: DesktopLightning
