The number one concern for Internet sales is your marketing list -- in other words, your audience.
But...but...but...you're saying, products for sales is a must too, however, if your list is nonexistent, small or loosely targeted, having a product isn't going to help much. There just will not be any success.
Yes, I know this is confusing. You need a product to attract. By the way, I am using product interchangeably to mean services too.
This almost feels like the chicken and the egg story - which came first. So, what do you do first?
You can't create or increase a mailing list without a "what's in it for them to be attracted to you for."
Now I'm not talking about buying lists but about opt-in focused lists.
Step 1: Know what your target market (audience same thing) wants and they already have their wallet open and ready to buy.
Step 2: Create a product to answer that want and match their wallet. Create a product that contains 100% they can know everything about as a small segment of that want.
Step 3: Now that you have 100% of that pie. Cut off a small piece of pie -- about 10%. Make that 10% into a 100% everything of information for that piece. Create a 100% product of this 10% that you broke off.
Step 4: Cut 25% of that 100% of that 10% (say this out loud if you didn't get it) and designate that as freebie information. Then designate 50% for a product to sell and the other 25% for consulting or a service that costs them a higher price. An alternative is to create a product with the total 75% and charge them a higher price.
This strategy is one that is not wide spread and a well-kept secret by the InfoGurus. It is even a guarded secret, and guess what, I've just broken their secret. I am an InfoGuru and I don't mind sharing this model. It is the missing aerial view that no one seems to want to write about -- unless, of course, it's in a product that sells for big dollars.
Catherine Franz, a Certified Professional Marketing & Writing Coach, specializes in product development, Internet writing and marketing, nonfiction, training. Newsletters and articles available at: http://www.abundancecenter.com blog: http://abundance.blogs.com
Wednesday, October 7, 2009
Monday, October 5, 2009
If you Sell a Product, Use Online Marketing, Part 1
When you offer your products via an email campaign to get people to visit your Web site, you reap many rewards-you create more profit, spend a lot less time promoting and marketing, and get to be known as the leader in your field.
1. Get a Low-Cost Web Site
If you don't have a Web site yet, put it at the top of your goal list. You don't need a lot of Web pages. You need a home page with benefit-driven links to your product sales letter.
From your sales letter, you need a link to a secure place to order such as ClickBank.com or PayPal.com. That's only three sections of possibly 10 pages. Most Web people would charge about $600 for this service. (Be sure to write your home page and sales pages first before you contact a Web master)
2. Enhance your Online and Brand Presence
To discover your own "brand" brainstorm with friends and associates. Answer these questions:
-Why is my product or service the right choice?
-Why am I the preferred expert over my competition?
-What is unique about my product or service?
Think what you can offer that's different and better than your competition. If you said, "I'm the one who can help you make your book dream a reality--faster, cheaper, and easier." That would set you off from your competitors.
To these top benefits, add features.
-Design each part of your book to sell more copies before you write a single chapter with the essential "Seven Hot-Selling Points."
-Write each chapter fast, more focused, clear, compelling, and with less edits with the "Fast-Forward Technique."
3. Enhance product awareness.
When your targeted visitors come to you site to see your free articles and tips, they will become aware of the products you offer, because at the end of each article will be a link straight to your products sales message and order page.
They may not buy the first time, the second or even third time, but if you keep your site updated with new information every few weeks and mark your site that you have done so, your visitors will keep coming. Up to fifty percent will buy.
4. Boost your leads fast.
Email promotion is by far the easiest and most successful of all promotion. When you entice your different email groups with a testimonial or a free bonus report, they will gladly leave their email address. Then, you will be able to continue to stay in touch with them, month after month, year after year. Allow them to download by autoresponder a free article related to your product.
5. Reach new targeted customers worldwide.
Once you get your Web site up, you must learn and apply the many non-techie ways to get people to visit you. After collecting email addresses from the people you meet online or offline, send periodic messages to them, including free articles.
You will attract thousands, even hundreds of thousands of your targeted audience from all over the world. Your ezine or teleclasses can connect with people outside your area because your subscribers or participants think so much of you that they forward the good news to their friends and associates.
Because your Web site attracts only targeted buyers this translates to a much higher rate of sales.
6. Make it easy to buy
Maybe people know you or your products offline through networking groups or other business ventures. A Web site makes you even more respected. Business people expect you to have a Web site because 1) your Web site represents you, your service and products. 2) they love the convenience and speed of Online information and ordering.
In addition to your Web site, increase your sales channels to include office promotion such as post cards, talks, teleclasses, or radio interviews. Offer a free 800-telephone number for orders. For your site, include a "How to Contact Us" section. Put it at the top of your ezine. One disappointed reader of my ezine wanted my local telephone number listed beside my free 800 one. Include contact information in your signature file at the bottom of all emails you send out. Include it in your order pages your sales letters connect to. Always make it easy for people to connect, and eventually buy.
If you are like me, you will enjoy keeping track of your increasing sales each month. You will enjoy staying in touch with your potential buyers. People Online are hungry for your information and product. Take the easy promotion road and use Online today.
Judy Cullins, 20-year book and Internet Marketing Coach, Author of 10 eBooks including "Write your eBook Fast," and "How to Market your Business on the Internet," she offers free help through her 2 monthly ezines, The Book Coach Says...and Business Tip of the Month at http://www.bookcoaching.com/opt-in.shtml and over 140 free articles. Email her at mailto:Judy@bookcoaching.com
1. Get a Low-Cost Web Site
If you don't have a Web site yet, put it at the top of your goal list. You don't need a lot of Web pages. You need a home page with benefit-driven links to your product sales letter.
From your sales letter, you need a link to a secure place to order such as ClickBank.com or PayPal.com. That's only three sections of possibly 10 pages. Most Web people would charge about $600 for this service. (Be sure to write your home page and sales pages first before you contact a Web master)
2. Enhance your Online and Brand Presence
To discover your own "brand" brainstorm with friends and associates. Answer these questions:
-Why is my product or service the right choice?
-Why am I the preferred expert over my competition?
-What is unique about my product or service?
Think what you can offer that's different and better than your competition. If you said, "I'm the one who can help you make your book dream a reality--faster, cheaper, and easier." That would set you off from your competitors.
To these top benefits, add features.
-Design each part of your book to sell more copies before you write a single chapter with the essential "Seven Hot-Selling Points."
-Write each chapter fast, more focused, clear, compelling, and with less edits with the "Fast-Forward Technique."
3. Enhance product awareness.
When your targeted visitors come to you site to see your free articles and tips, they will become aware of the products you offer, because at the end of each article will be a link straight to your products sales message and order page.
They may not buy the first time, the second or even third time, but if you keep your site updated with new information every few weeks and mark your site that you have done so, your visitors will keep coming. Up to fifty percent will buy.
4. Boost your leads fast.
Email promotion is by far the easiest and most successful of all promotion. When you entice your different email groups with a testimonial or a free bonus report, they will gladly leave their email address. Then, you will be able to continue to stay in touch with them, month after month, year after year. Allow them to download by autoresponder a free article related to your product.
5. Reach new targeted customers worldwide.
Once you get your Web site up, you must learn and apply the many non-techie ways to get people to visit you. After collecting email addresses from the people you meet online or offline, send periodic messages to them, including free articles.
You will attract thousands, even hundreds of thousands of your targeted audience from all over the world. Your ezine or teleclasses can connect with people outside your area because your subscribers or participants think so much of you that they forward the good news to their friends and associates.
Because your Web site attracts only targeted buyers this translates to a much higher rate of sales.
6. Make it easy to buy
Maybe people know you or your products offline through networking groups or other business ventures. A Web site makes you even more respected. Business people expect you to have a Web site because 1) your Web site represents you, your service and products. 2) they love the convenience and speed of Online information and ordering.
In addition to your Web site, increase your sales channels to include office promotion such as post cards, talks, teleclasses, or radio interviews. Offer a free 800-telephone number for orders. For your site, include a "How to Contact Us" section. Put it at the top of your ezine. One disappointed reader of my ezine wanted my local telephone number listed beside my free 800 one. Include contact information in your signature file at the bottom of all emails you send out. Include it in your order pages your sales letters connect to. Always make it easy for people to connect, and eventually buy.
If you are like me, you will enjoy keeping track of your increasing sales each month. You will enjoy staying in touch with your potential buyers. People Online are hungry for your information and product. Take the easy promotion road and use Online today.
Judy Cullins, 20-year book and Internet Marketing Coach, Author of 10 eBooks including "Write your eBook Fast," and "How to Market your Business on the Internet," she offers free help through her 2 monthly ezines, The Book Coach Says...and Business Tip of the Month at http://www.bookcoaching.com/opt-in.shtml and over 140 free articles. Email her at mailto:Judy@bookcoaching.com
Friday, October 2, 2009
If you Sell a Product, Use Online Marketing, Part 2
When you offer your products via an email campaign to get people to visit your Web site, or sell direct through email, you reap many rewards--you create more profit, spend a lot less time promoting and marketing, and get to be known as the leader in your field.
1. Offer improved customer service and support.
All new subscribers to my ezine get 2 free special bonus reports. I receive their email address. I keep these in a file and follow up every few months with an email "thank you" gifting them with a free special report or free email answer to one question. Customers love a freebie, and they will connect my name with any future purchase they need to make.
For coaching services, I send out a note periodically that includes all the extras I offer. My clients give me the testimonials that remind me of those extras, making it easy to relate.
2. Reduce support costs.
Your online home office costs a fraction of what a brick and mortar storefront would. Think of the rent, the gas you save! Online services cost just a little: Web hosting, Web maintenance, and an email server are a few. Since online marketing is far easier, you'll need only a part time computer or virtual assistant. Reduced costs = less business expenses. And, you will spend less time and money to reap bigger profits because your target market is all online business people.
3. Reduce your time in the office.
It's far easier and faster to use email than phones or faxes. You don't have to have expensive and time-costing lunches with associates, because you can email at your convenience. And, it's all in writing. My promotion time is now only 6-9 hours a week after one year of foundation set up.
4. Reduce the cost of doing business.
In your home-based virtual office, you will have much less overhead. When you self-publish eBooks or other information products you won't have to spend time or money on postage, packaging, or mailing. You don't spend money on printing yielding much more profit as well as reduced expenses.
When you apply online promotion such as submitting free articles to ePublishers who are crying for them, you spend around an hour or so on each article that can be recycled many times. The actual time of sending it out is a few minutes.
Even if you need to mail your product, you still will have to spend less time and money.
Using email to offer and sell your products reduces your dependence on other sales channels such as the brick and mortar stores, traveling to give talks, and writing "round file" press releases.
When you market Online, you eliminate the middleman who can take a hefty percentage of your profit--up to 90%.
My motto is: If someone else who takes a commission can't sell at least 10 times as many products as I can, I don't need them."
5. Reduce your marketing time because email communication is short, fast, and gets to the point quickly.
You don't have to spend time buying stamps, logos, special envelopes and stationery. You do need to keep track of every customer, subscriber and Web visitor. Be alert to collect every person's email address when you meet and greet. Place each one in a categorized file, so you can laser target messages to one audience at a time.
If you sell books on your Web site, you can look like Barnes and Noble reaching thousands, even tens of thousands each day. Your visitor will have an easier time to find your product because you offer only a few on your site.
If you are like me, you will enjoy keeping track of your increasing sales each month. You will enjoy staying in touch with your potential buyers. People Online are hungry for your information and product. Put your effort into online marketing and win!
Judy Cullins, 20-year book and Internet Marketing Coach, Author of 10 eBooks including "Write your eBook Fast," and "How to Market your Business on the Internet," she offers free help through her 2 monthly ezines, The Book Coach Says...and Business Tip of the Month at http://www.bookcoaching.com/opt-in.shtml and over 140 free articles. Email her at mailto:Judy@bookcoaching.com
1. Offer improved customer service and support.
All new subscribers to my ezine get 2 free special bonus reports. I receive their email address. I keep these in a file and follow up every few months with an email "thank you" gifting them with a free special report or free email answer to one question. Customers love a freebie, and they will connect my name with any future purchase they need to make.
For coaching services, I send out a note periodically that includes all the extras I offer. My clients give me the testimonials that remind me of those extras, making it easy to relate.
2. Reduce support costs.
Your online home office costs a fraction of what a brick and mortar storefront would. Think of the rent, the gas you save! Online services cost just a little: Web hosting, Web maintenance, and an email server are a few. Since online marketing is far easier, you'll need only a part time computer or virtual assistant. Reduced costs = less business expenses. And, you will spend less time and money to reap bigger profits because your target market is all online business people.
3. Reduce your time in the office.
It's far easier and faster to use email than phones or faxes. You don't have to have expensive and time-costing lunches with associates, because you can email at your convenience. And, it's all in writing. My promotion time is now only 6-9 hours a week after one year of foundation set up.
4. Reduce the cost of doing business.
In your home-based virtual office, you will have much less overhead. When you self-publish eBooks or other information products you won't have to spend time or money on postage, packaging, or mailing. You don't spend money on printing yielding much more profit as well as reduced expenses.
When you apply online promotion such as submitting free articles to ePublishers who are crying for them, you spend around an hour or so on each article that can be recycled many times. The actual time of sending it out is a few minutes.
Even if you need to mail your product, you still will have to spend less time and money.
Using email to offer and sell your products reduces your dependence on other sales channels such as the brick and mortar stores, traveling to give talks, and writing "round file" press releases.
When you market Online, you eliminate the middleman who can take a hefty percentage of your profit--up to 90%.
My motto is: If someone else who takes a commission can't sell at least 10 times as many products as I can, I don't need them."
5. Reduce your marketing time because email communication is short, fast, and gets to the point quickly.
You don't have to spend time buying stamps, logos, special envelopes and stationery. You do need to keep track of every customer, subscriber and Web visitor. Be alert to collect every person's email address when you meet and greet. Place each one in a categorized file, so you can laser target messages to one audience at a time.
If you sell books on your Web site, you can look like Barnes and Noble reaching thousands, even tens of thousands each day. Your visitor will have an easier time to find your product because you offer only a few on your site.
If you are like me, you will enjoy keeping track of your increasing sales each month. You will enjoy staying in touch with your potential buyers. People Online are hungry for your information and product. Put your effort into online marketing and win!
Judy Cullins, 20-year book and Internet Marketing Coach, Author of 10 eBooks including "Write your eBook Fast," and "How to Market your Business on the Internet," she offers free help through her 2 monthly ezines, The Book Coach Says...and Business Tip of the Month at http://www.bookcoaching.com/opt-in.shtml and over 140 free articles. Email her at mailto:Judy@bookcoaching.com
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