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Smart Marketing Means Giving First

DaleKingDaleKing subscriber Posts: 141
edited December 2007 in Marketing
What`s the first thing visitors see when they arrive at your website? Is it a landing page asking them for their contact information? Is it a salesletter asking them for money? Or are you giving them something of value first?
 
Look, competition is fierce on the Internet. Consumers have more choices than ever before. Therefore, you need to do something to stand out from the crowd. If your website doesn`t naturally have valuable content that will entice visitors to return, giving your website visitor a free report or something before asking for anything will go a long way toward building goodwill and enticing that visitor to return.
 
For example, I give my visitors over 1,000 marketing articles to peruse, and over 100 different blogs. No matter how you slice it, that`s plenty of value.
 
So what are you giving your visitors?
 
Dale King
 
 
DKing12/28/2007 4:22 PM
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Comments

  • NuevolutionNuevolution subscriber Posts: 30 Bronze Level Member
    Im giving them free consultation with no commitment to do business with me. I`ve also done lots of free web site evaluations as well as helping the customer come up with new ideas on how to market their web site.
    I understand where you`re coming from. Now days, you have to give out trials in order for customers to do business with you. But here is what I`ve learned, Never use the word "free", or you`ll get alot of free-loaders and cheap customers. If a customer is doing research and comes across your web site,  it means he`s anxious to purchase something, it means he`s ready to give you his money.
  • DaleKingDaleKing subscriber Posts: 141
    I understand where you`re coming from. Now days, you have to give out trials in order for customers to do business with you. If a customer is doing research and comes across your web site,  it means he`s anxious to purchase something, it means he`s ready to give you his money.
     
     
     
    I don`t believe you have to offer FREE trials to obtain customers. Unless I`m mistaken,  you`re talking about selling products using incentives.  I`m talking about giving value first through content, in the form of free information like reports, newsletters, articles, e-books, videos, ect., before you ask visitors for their money or contact information.If you do that in a prolific manner, the sales will come and no incentives will be necessary. Yahoo - the most popular website in the world is a perfect example of what I`m talking about.
    The reason that it`s so popular is because of its great content. Visitors return again and again to check their e-mail, read the news headlines and to see what`s new. Eventually they buy something. Obviously, purely retail oriented sites like Amazon, Walmart or 1-800 Flowers are going to approach things from an incentives aspect. In my post, I wasn`t referring to purely retail oriented sites. In hindsight, I should have stated that. That being said, I guess some people  would view value and incentives as being one and the same.
     
    In addition, if someone is doing research and comes across your website, it DOES NOT necessarily mean that he or she is anxious to do business with you. It simply means that they were doing research and came across your site. Nothing more. In fact, 95 to 98% of visitors don`t purchase the first time they visit a new site.
     
    The fact of the matter is, most people using the Internet are searching for information - not looking to purchase anything.
     

    http://www.digitalstrategy.govt.nz/P...Connection/73/


     
    That`s not to say information seekers don`t buy, because they obviously do. However, they`re looking for information first and foremost.
     
    Dale King
    DKing12/30/2007 8:53 AM
  • vwebworldvwebworld subscriber Posts: 40

    Look, competition is fierce on the Internet. Consumers have more choices than ever before. Therefore, you need to do something to stand out from the crowd. If your website doesn`t naturally have valuable content that will entice visitors to return, giving your website visitor a free report or something before asking for anything will go a long way toward building goodwill and enticing that visitor to return.Dale King  While I agree providing valuable content, like articles, consults, etc offer a reason for people to return, what is successful varies depending upon the site`s purpose. For example, an ecommerce site selling wigets, or jerky, or golf lessons needs to make a connection between their product and the viewer quickly. If a viewer is searching for a product or service they need to land on a web page that provides that product or service. The viewer is not immediately interested in how the jerky is made or where the golf instructor resides. For ecommerce sites... building a relationship with the viewer/buyer is important for repeat business (returns to the website). That relationship might be based upon price (like the lowest) or product value or followup emails/marketing from the ecommerce site to the customer announcing new products, special pricing, or a friendly hello.  ~Rolandvwebworld12/30/2007 9:02 AM
  • DaleKingDaleKing subscriber Posts: 141
    While I agree providing valuable content, like articles, consults, etc offer a reason for people to return, what is successful varies depending upon the site`s purpose.
     ~Roland    You`re right, Roland. As I already stated to Nuevolution, I should have better qualified my post. Dale KingDKing12/30/2007 10:08 AM
  • vwebworldvwebworld subscriber Posts: 40
    Sorry, I noticed your 8:53AM post AFTER I made mine
     
    ~Roland
  • NuevolutionNuevolution subscriber Posts: 30 Bronze Level Member
    Dale,
    Feeding people information is good, but you have to be careful on how much information you want to feed them. Just how educating someone is in your best interest [you build credibility]. Over educating a customer too much can also have a reverse effect on your business, this is called "confidence gap", where the customer has done toooooooooooo much research (in this case, you over feed them with information), overwhelmed himself, and due to the "I am overwhelmed" cluttered, and confused scenario, might end up making a wrong decision, and going to your competition. But the whole time, he wanted to do business with you. Lets call this an "unintentional mistake"..that has now cost you time, effort, and most of all you lost a customer.
    I supply my customers, with just enough information to get them out of the dark, and educate them as we go along, after-all in order for you to have customer loyalty and to have them come back time after time I have to save the "best for last"Nuevolution12/30/2007 11:08 PM
  • NuevolutionNuevolution subscriber Posts: 30 Bronze Level Member

    I don`t believe you have to offer FREE trials to obtain customers. Unless I`m mistaken,  you`re talking about selling products using incentives.  I`m talking about giving value first through content, in the form of free information like reports, newsletters, articles, e-books, videos, ect., before you ask visitors for their money or contact information.If you do that in a prolific manner, the sales will come and no incentives will be necessary. Yahoo - the most popular website in the world is a perfect example of what I`m talking about.

    No-No Dale, That`s what I said, don`t use the word free... or have to clutter your web server with 100`s of free trials and in the end 2 stay with you.
    What I was trying to tell you is that, you know how when you go shopping to the super market you have people offering you samples of cookies, cheese, and stuff like that. Well take the same concept and, like in my case... I am a small web hosting / web design company, that wants to attract customers, and since I don`t have the resources, Go-daddy and these huge companies have, I need to have people test out my services, and to be honest, in the past two years only 1 customer has left.. and I get compliments like" Superb service" WOW over 365 days with no down time...
    So Yes... Trials Do Work... You just have to know how to offer them.. Nuevolution12/30/2007 11:21 PM
  • DaleKingDaleKing subscriber Posts: 141
    Dale,
    Feeding people information is good, but you have to be careful on how much information you want to feed them. Just how educating someone is in your best interest [you build credibility]. Over educating a customer too much can also have a reverse effect on your business, this is called "confidence gap", where the customer has done toooooooooooo much research (in this case, you over feed them with information), overwhelmed himself, and due to the "I am overwhelmed" cluttered, and confused scenario, might end up making a wrong decision, and going to your competition. But the whole time, he wanted to do business with you. Lets call this an "unintentional mistake"..that has now cost you time, effort, and most of all you lost a customer.
    I supply my customers, with just enough information to get them out of the dark, and educate them as we go along, after-all in order for you to have customer loyalty and to have them come back time after time I have to save the "best for last"
     
     
     
    Edgar, it depends on whom you`re targeting. I own an article directory, so the majority of my vistors come to my website to read first and foremost. Since they`re avid readers, they`re intelligent enough to decide for themselves how much information is too much. My conversions are high, so my technique is obviously working. It`s all about knowing your target audience.
     
    Dale King
    DKing12/31/2007 9:05 AM
  • DaleKingDaleKing subscriber Posts: 141
    Trials Do Work... You just have to know how to offer them..

     
     
     
    Edgar, I never said that FREE trials didn`t work. Of course they do. What I said was, I don`t believe it`s necessary to offer FREE trials to acquire new clients. Perhaps in your industry you feel pressured to do so, because everybody else is doing it. That`s not to say that FREE trials don`t have their place, because they clearly do. But it`s been my experience that FREE trials are not always necessary. It`s easy to give stuff away for free. It doesn`t require any imagination at all to do that. I believe your product or service should be able to stand on its own merit without gimmicks. If you`re doing the exact same thing that everybody else is doing, that means you haven`t developed a USP, which is critical in marketing.
     
    Dale King
    DKing12/31/2007 9:27 AM
  • NuevolutionNuevolution subscriber Posts: 30 Bronze Level Member
    Dale,
    If you read closely I said... I do not use the word "free" it is simply a 30 day trial, that if the customer is not happy I will return their money back. So its a 30 day money back... Nothing is free, and using gimmick to attract customers is not a good strategy "You are correct"...
  • DaleKingDaleKing subscriber Posts: 141
    C`mon, Edgar! We`re talking semantics. Whether or not you actually use the word FREE is irrelevant. It`s still a 30 day FREE trial. They don`t have to pay for 30 days, right? Well that`s a 30 day FREE trial. If you honestly think your customers don`t know that, you`re insulting their intelligence. Why not call it what it is? But at least were in agreement about using gimmicks. I think.
     
    Dale King
    DKing12/31/2007 4:11 PM
  • NuevolutionNuevolution subscriber Posts: 30 Bronze Level Member
    Dale,
    You missed the point... It`s a trial... they pay me up front, and if they don`t like it after the 30Days they get their money back..
  • DaleKingDaleKing subscriber Posts: 141
    Okay, Edgar. Why don`t you tell me the difference between your so-called "trial" offer and other trial offers like the ones that are described in this FTC alert:
     

    http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/edu/pubs/consume ... pro16.shtm

     
    Dale King
    DKing1/1/2008 11:24 AM
  • NuevolutionNuevolution subscriber Posts: 30 Bronze Level Member
    Ok, sorry for the delay Dale,
    There are two reasons why we stand out from our competition. When we give you a 30 day trial and we so call bill your credit card, I do not take your money I simply put a hold on your $5.99 for the 30 day period. I also, put a time limit on your account "30 days". 5 days prior the end of your trial, I send you a warning email, telling you that your trial will be coming to an end in 5 days. which they have to reply back, giving me authorization to continue with the hosting.
    If within the 5 days they do not respond, the server automatically shuts off the account. I send them a trial period has ended email. If they disregard it, then I know we`re not going to do busines.
    But if they respond and say "yes, please continue my hosting", then I release the funds into our account I remove the timer, and it becomes a recurring payment account.
    What other companies do is they take your $5.99 up front, hope that you forget, and charge your  credit card every  month, the worse part of it is, some don`t even give you a 30 day money back, they bill you for the bandwidth usage.
  • DaleKingDaleKing subscriber Posts: 141
    Okay. Thanks for explaining that, Edgar.
     
    Dale King
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