OK. So you took the leap and started your online store. But, oops, there are no customers and your store is lost in the crowd. All is not lost. You just need to be very creative in how you market your site. The key thing to remember as you market your site is People buy from people, not companies.
To make money online: 1) You must get traffic to your site. 2) You must convert that traffic to paying customers. To begin simply create a T-chart. Label one column “Traffic” and the other “Conversion.” Then brainstorm what methods you will use to to make those happen and turn them into an action plan.
Traffic suggestions for you:
* Pay per click
* Offline advertising
* Article marketing
* Newsletter
* Autoresponders
* Word of mouth
* Joint ventures / strategic partnerships
* Talks to groups
* Participation in online forums / discussion groups
Most online stores are extremely competitive (what’s not these days?) and they compete on price – one of the worst ways to compete. What you need to do is find a way to take the focus off the money, find your unique value and promote it from there.
So how do you do that? First you have to know who your prospect is so you can speak to them directly. Hint: Your market is not everyone or anyone. Once you know who your prospect is, you can implement tactics that will convert them into customers.
Here are some ideas that will help your conversion rate:
* Bundled products
* Free gift with purchase
* Regular newsletter
* Autoresponder course
* Helpful content on your website
* Companion blog for your website
These should get you thinking about where you need to go. This is not by any means a complete, comprehensive list — just a start. Begin by putting all of your ideas together in an action plan. Use your action plan to drive what you do every day. Spend at least one hour on these tasks per day. In no time you’ll find you’ve made a lot of progress.
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Disclosure: I love providing tips, tactics and tools to small business owners and entrepreneurs like you who take the time to stop by looking for help. The information I provide on this site is free, but is often supported by external products. Please be aware that some links you click on from this site could result in me being paid a commission. Also know that I will never steer you toward anything I do not believe in. Thank you for your support. :-)
A small business owner since 1996,
September 7th, 2008 at 8:21 am
Don’t forget 3 more things that will higher your conversion rate:
-A good search box on your website that helps the customer find what they want as quickly as possible.
-Offer alternative product suggestions on your product page to encourage customers to buy more.
-Offer Customer reviews and ratings since shoppers are more likely to trust the product feedback of previous customers.
Twitter: deniseoberry
Says:
September 7th, 2008 at 10:42 am
Good suggestions Casey. Thank you for taking the time to add your thoughts.