Influence - It is a strange, mysteriously powerful word. It is defined as the capacity or power of persons or things to be a compelling force on or produce effects on the actions, behavior and opinions of others.

And that’s why ‘influence’ goes far beyond words like ’successful’, ‘rich’ or ‘popular’ - or even ‘notorious’.

It has a connotation that’s deeper, more invasive and… well… INFLUENTIAL.

That’s why the list I put together of the 36 Most Influential Internet Marketers took more time and effort and thought than simply doing a quick ‘copy and paste’ from an index like GuruDAQ or a cherry-picking exercise from Google search results.

Here’s my short list of folks who can INFLUENCE the Internet marketing arena like few others can. The people who are followed, tracked and mimicked by huge crowds of people - and who can shape opinion, trends and tactics.

In no particular order or sequence, this is my list of 36 Most Influential Internet Marketers…

John Reese

Founder of Income.com and creator of BlogRush, the blog widget that’s recently taken the Net by storm.

John Reese has been an influential figure in the Internet marketing field ever since he exploded upon it like a neutron bomb after years of silent ‘under the radar’ success. His ‘million dollar day’ made him famous, and he’s gone from strength to strength ever since.

Visit John Reese’s blog

Andy Jenkins

Co-founder of the high-powered mentoring course for Internet marketers, StomperNET, Andy Jenkins has risen rapidly from his first big launch of ‘Stompin’ the Search Engines’ to become one of the most influential Internet marketers today.

Of all the people in this list, Andy probably keeps the lowest profile in front of the general public, reserving his powerful coaching and expertise for the students in his closed-doors programs, though he has authored several excellent reports about SEO and ecommerce (mainly Yahoo Stores).

Visit Andy Jenkin’s blog

Brad Fallon

The other co-founder of StomperNET, Brad Fallon is widely known for his popular Wedding Favors website that has reportedly earned millions of dollars for his business. Brad is extremely influential in his expertise area of SEO where he is widely acknowledged as a top specialist.

Brad is founder of FreeIQ, a resource of premium media products online.

Visit Brad Fallon’s blog

Mike Filsaime

The genius behind a phenomenon called “Butterfly Marketing“, Mike Filsaime is every Internet marketer’s dream role model. Mike left a day job at a car dealership to build a massively successful Internet business with a wide and growing portfolio of products and services.

Through his hard work and richly deserved success, the secrets of which he shared willingly with students, Mike Filsaime has inspired and influenced many young and aspiring enthusiasts to follow in his footsteps.

Visit Mike Filsaime’s blog

Yanik Silver

Yanik Silver brought direct marketing experience to the world of Internet marketing and built SureFire Marketing into a huge success. More importantly, he shared the fruits of his knowledge, wisdom and testing through a series of information products, courses, homestudy programs and seminars, ranging in price from $9.95 to $15,000.

In the process, Yanik Silver touched thousands of Internet marketers’ lives and helped many achieve breakthroughs. Yanik is one of a very small group of marketing teachers who can influence thousands of people to take action on whatever he recommends, because he has built up high levels of the most precious commodity - TRUST.

Visit Yanik Silver’s blog

Allen Says

If I were to show an image of this ‘Mystery Man’ of Internet marketing, it would have to come from his profile on the Warrior forum, the World’s #1 meeting place for Internet marketers - and that one isn’t very flattering!

What Allen Says has created in the form of that forum is however not just flattering, but mind-boggling. It’s a HUGE collection of Internet marketing wisdom, a meeting place with over 40,000 registered users frequented by many of the top names in the industry. It’s also why Allen is among the most influential Internet marketers.

Visit Allen Says’s forum

Paul Myers

Publisher of TalkBiz News, one of the longest running Internet marketing newsletters with a loyal, even rabidly passionate readership, Paul Myers influences the way thousands of online business owners think and run their business through his writing.

His scathing wit and razor sharp insights in business and copywriting make Paul Myers a person whom every student of Internet marketing follows and learns from at every opportunity.

Visit Paul Myers’ blog

Stephen Pierce

Inspirational speaker, motivator and mentor to hundreds of online business owners, Stephen Pierce rose from humble beginnings to become an influencer of Internet marketers by sheer hard work, smart strategizing and enterprising entrepreneurship.

Through his extensive online publishing empire, Stephen Pierce reaches a vast audience - and influences them in many differnt ways, all of them positive. His latest efforts included a fundraiser to help feed a million kids.

Visit Stephen Pierce’s blog

Mark Joyner

Mark Joyner is the man affectionately labelled ‘The Godfather of Internet Marketing’. And that’s because he has ‘influenced’ THOUSANDS of people through his pioneering efforts at Aesop.com - before he suddenly retired from Internet marketing in a move that sent shockwaves through the industry.

Fortunately, Mark Joyner is now back - and having even greater influence by moving into a field a little different from Internet marketing - with a new program called ‘SIMPLE.OLOGY‘. And through it, Mark Joyner has a more profound effect on the niche… as well as far beyond.

Visit Mark Joyner’s blog

Willie Crawford

Willie Crawford leveraged success in an online niche market into being recognized as one of the top names in Internet marketing, until today he is a highly respected expert in various aspects of building and growing an online business.

Willie Crawford is also author of a popular autobiography of his inspirational rise to success from very humble roots. Having experienced the heady feeling of success, he has gone out of his way to lend a helping hand up to his peers, making him one of the most influential Internet marketers to his wide group of loyal fans. His latest venture is the ‘Internet Marketing Inner Circle‘, a group mentoring program.

Visit Willie Crawford’s blog

Part 2 of this list (and then Part 3 and Part 4) of my pick of “36 Most Influential Internet Marketers” will follow soon

Can YOU guess who else is going to be on it?

Leave a comment, or post a note on the forum!