Let me give an example from my own experience. Back before I took my first business online, I advertised my book, ?Secrets of Buying and Building Your Specialty Car on a Small Budget,? in ?kit car? magazines (there were only two) for three years, and made a full-time income doing so. After a while, the ad rates jumped too high and the market was getting saturated with my product, (I was the only person writing a book on such a subject) so it just wasn't worth running the ads anymore.
I put the same book on a simple web page, did a few reciprocal links with related kit car sites, and announced my presence on the two kit car e-mail discussion lists. The result? It still brings in over $1,000 per month automatically. I don't do anything to maintain it (I haven't touched it or even paid attention to it in over 2 years), and it still generates $1,000 in profit every month. It's not much, but I don't do any real work for it.
It is an old book that was not profitable, and not being advertised anymore offline, but because I put it on the Net, it now earns me $1,000 on autopilot each and every month. It's not a lot of money, but it is icing on the cake. If you can get a few products like this, you can generate a full-time income very easily.
Be prepared to change your advertising concept a little and adapt it to the Internet. For example, in the kit car business, the customers are what marketers call ?picture people.? In magazines, using pictures in your ads increases the cost of the advertising. On the Internet, though, because there is basically unlimited space, you can really take advantage of images.
In fact, when I advertise in newsgroups, I let everyone know that there are a ton of pictures on my site. Just having images at your site is a way of getting traffic. This pitch enticed kit car enthusiasts to come and check my site out. The philosophy is to give the target market what they want.
To sell your product, you need to become a storyteller. In your personal life you apply this principle everyday. You tell friends and loved ones the story of your day and the funny or tragic things that occurred. You need to take that power of storytelling and use it to sell your products. You already have this skill, make it work for you.
Here are five things you can do right away to generate excitement for your products:
1. Understand the NEED your customer has to buy your product.
This sounds deceptively simple. Every marketer makes a long list of features and benefits about their products. But think about the need your customer would satisfy by buying your product. Would they feel smart, innovative, trendy? Would they feel that they had improved their plan for the future or proved themselves a good parent? These are the needs that really drive sales. Carefully think about which ones apply to your product.
2. Develop a one-to-one story based on that need Once you are satisfied that you have identified those needs, create a story about your product for each one. The key is to create the story in the style you would tell a friend. This is difficult work, so don't be discouraged if it takes time. If it were easy, the world wouldn't need advertising agencies. And many of their campaigns don't hit the mark either. For example, if I am selling a software product, I need to tell you why using this product will make you better liked at your job or encourage your boss to notice you. This doesn't eliminate the need for features and benefits. It allows your customer to imagine herself as a success after buying your product.
3. Find different ways to tell the same story The web is a medium that allows you to sell products in a variety of formats, video, audio, text, graphics. Not everyone responds to the same format. If you tell your story in a variety of ways you will capture more of your audience. The mistake most people make is to choose the format they like best. Try to accommodate as many buying styles as your budget allows.
4. Build trust and credibility
This is obviously the cornerstone of selling online. The need is heightened because the customer never meets you face to face. Don't bother with slick, bombastic language. It doesn't work for very long and it will generate mistrust, not excitement. Words like ?fastest? and ?best? can be substituted by ?faster? and ?better.? Hold to the truth, it's always the better choice.
5. Test reality? often
I recommend to my clients that they revisit their sales ?stories? on a monthly basis. This may sound excessive, but we live in a society where the world turns on a dime. One day your ideas are cutting edge and the next they seem stale and outdated. Not only do you need to understand what your competitors are doing, you need to evaluate how your customers are reacting to your ?stories.? Revise and refine as often as necessary.
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Both Ken Charnley & Stephanie Diamond are contributors for EditorialToday. The above articles have been edited for relevancy and timeliness. All write-ups, reviews, tips and guides published by EditorialToday.com and its partners or affiliates are for informational purposes only. They should not be used for any legal or any other type of advice. We do not endorse any author, contributor, writer or article posted by our team.
Ken Charnley has sinced written about articles on various topics from Chapter 13 Bankruptcy, Cooking Tips and Bankruptcy Law. Ken Charnley is a personal finance enthusiast with dedicated to qual. Ken Charnley's top article generates over 1000000 views. to your Favourites.
Stephanie Diamond has sinced written about articles on various topics from Internet Marketing, Franchise and Internet Marketing. Digital Media Works, Inc.( ) is an Internet marketing and design firm. A seasoned 25+ year management/marketing professional, founder Stepha. Stephanie Diamond's top article generates over 3600 views. to your Favourites.