eCommerce websites are supposed to sell products, not just take orders. Often, site owners don’t understand this key concept. As a result, the website looks as if it was designed with the understanding that the customer already knows what he or she wants to buy, and is just there to buy based on price. As the site owner, you are supposed to be the expert on the products being offered. Since you can’t be there in person to make a sale, your site has to do the selling for you.
Of course, a great way to do this is to have comprehensive product descriptions. I’ve discussed this in several past articles. Putting in specifications and detailed information can help a customer make a buying decision. But even that is not really selling, it’s just presenting facts. How can you sell? Customers expect you to be an expert on what you are selling, so don’t be afraid to make recommendations.
A method that has seen increased popularity is a walk-on video, where you (or another salesman) appears for a minute or two over the top of the other content on your website and make a simple sales pitch. This works great and can really help increase conversions. A more economical way might be to simply create a YouTube video and embed it on your product pages, again making a sales presentation about the product.
Allow your customers to interact with your site by including 360 degree product views so they can examine an item on all sides, a Flash application that allows them to try things on, such as jewelry, clothes, glasses, etc. or a “preview” feature so they can see how their personalized shirt or hat will actually look.
Customer-generated product reviews and ratings allow your customers to become your sales force for you. After implementing this on their site, Zales Jewelers increased their conversions by 50%, causing them to say “Our customers are better sales people than we are!” Take advantage of this feature. If your shopping cart software doesn’t have this capability, upgrade to WebStoresLtd.com. Don’t remove negative comments – make this real for your visitors. Put your phone number on every page of your website or include a “Chat with a salesperson now” button, so you can really sell your product.
Cross-selling (or up-selling) can be used in multiple ways. This is similar to “would you like fries with that hamburger?” Amazon does a great job of this by saying, “Customers who bought this item also liked these items…” Vista Print puts in additional pages between the “Proceed to Checkout” button and the order confirmation page, asking the customer to consider other additional items.
The goal of your eCommerce website should be to turn visitors into customers. Just like personal sales presentations, you should ask for the order. That is why “squeeze pages” or single page websites designed solely to sell a specific product work so well. Virtual rejections are easier to take than personal rejections, so don’t be afraid to sell.
Tuesday, November 17, 2009
Wednesday, November 11, 2009
Is the Internet destroying small businesses?
Given that the Internet is no longer new and almost everyone uses it on a daily basis, it’s amazing how much misinformation there is out there. Buyer’s perceptions are significantly different than that of sellers. This fact became obvious to me at a recent party I attended, and the conversation revolved around the Internet.
It seems that my friends believe that people shop offline in physical stores to get the information they need, then they go online to buy the product on the internet because they can get it cheaper. As a result, retail stores are suffering and will soon be put out of business! Wow, I never realized people thought this was the case. In reality, the opposite is often true – people go online to research a product, find out what they want, then go to a physical store to make their purchase. If they do purchase online, they often buy from a mom-and-pop shop anyways, thus helping the small retailer, rather than putting them out of business.
The sad truth is that retail stores have always struggled. The overhead costs of leasing a building, investing in inventory, and hiring help so that you can stay open during peak times puts an incredible strain on small stores. Malls tend to make matters worse, because they often take a percentage of your overall sales. An online presence call help mitigate this and is often the reason why a small retail shop can survive, rather than being the reason for going out of business.
At the same time, the Internet does invite price comparison. Because your overhead is lower than a physical store, prices do tend to be less. But the number one reason people buy online is convenience – not price. As a retailer, you simply need to find ways to add value so that you can keep your margins high enough to make a profit.
Another huge misconception is that Google will drive traffic to a website, and the best way to get noticed online is to be number one on Google. This is like the Field of Dreams thought, “If you build it, they will come.” Anyone who has been managing a website for over 6 months soon realizes this simply isn’t the case. The way to get people to visit your website is to do lots and lots of creative marketing to generate word-of-mouth. YouTube videos that become viral, emails that get forwarded, press releases that get picked up and blogged about, social networking links, newsletters and other marketing efforts that provide links back to your site all help to drive traffic. Using coupon sites, your own blogs, and marketplaces like Amazon, eBay (and soon Walmart) help you to establish your own presence. Then, once you have already become popular, Google and the other search engines start to notice you, and your position begins to move up. You don’t get to be popular by being number one on Google – you get to be number one by being popular in the first place!
In other words, an Internet business is still a business and you are going to have to work at it to be successful. The good news is that small businesses can still compete with large business on the Internet. If you own a small retail store and are not selling on the Internet, or you want to improve your online sales, visit WebStores Ltd. today!
It seems that my friends believe that people shop offline in physical stores to get the information they need, then they go online to buy the product on the internet because they can get it cheaper. As a result, retail stores are suffering and will soon be put out of business! Wow, I never realized people thought this was the case. In reality, the opposite is often true – people go online to research a product, find out what they want, then go to a physical store to make their purchase. If they do purchase online, they often buy from a mom-and-pop shop anyways, thus helping the small retailer, rather than putting them out of business.
The sad truth is that retail stores have always struggled. The overhead costs of leasing a building, investing in inventory, and hiring help so that you can stay open during peak times puts an incredible strain on small stores. Malls tend to make matters worse, because they often take a percentage of your overall sales. An online presence call help mitigate this and is often the reason why a small retail shop can survive, rather than being the reason for going out of business.
At the same time, the Internet does invite price comparison. Because your overhead is lower than a physical store, prices do tend to be less. But the number one reason people buy online is convenience – not price. As a retailer, you simply need to find ways to add value so that you can keep your margins high enough to make a profit.
Another huge misconception is that Google will drive traffic to a website, and the best way to get noticed online is to be number one on Google. This is like the Field of Dreams thought, “If you build it, they will come.” Anyone who has been managing a website for over 6 months soon realizes this simply isn’t the case. The way to get people to visit your website is to do lots and lots of creative marketing to generate word-of-mouth. YouTube videos that become viral, emails that get forwarded, press releases that get picked up and blogged about, social networking links, newsletters and other marketing efforts that provide links back to your site all help to drive traffic. Using coupon sites, your own blogs, and marketplaces like Amazon, eBay (and soon Walmart) help you to establish your own presence. Then, once you have already become popular, Google and the other search engines start to notice you, and your position begins to move up. You don’t get to be popular by being number one on Google – you get to be number one by being popular in the first place!
In other words, an Internet business is still a business and you are going to have to work at it to be successful. The good news is that small businesses can still compete with large business on the Internet. If you own a small retail store and are not selling on the Internet, or you want to improve your online sales, visit WebStores Ltd. today!
Tuesday, October 27, 2009
Using Facebook to Promote Your Business
Earlier this year, two important things happened. Social networking overtook email as the number one activity that people spend time on while using their computers. And Facebook started allowing businesses to create their own page. Let that sink in – if you aren’t promoting your business on Facebook, you are missing out on the most popular trend on the Internet. Unless you choose to support your efforts with advertising, all it costs is a little time. Because you must have a personal account inn order to create a business page, this move was clearly targeted at small business owners. But 65% of the top 500 e-tailers on the Internet already have a Facebook page. Here’s how to get the most out of your Facebook presence:
1. Create a page. Busiesses don’t have profiles like people do, they have pages. Instead of friends, they have fans. It costs nothing to have a page for your business. To create a page, you must be legitimate representative of the brand. Once your page is up, you can use the feature to “suggest to friends” so they can become a fan. If you are already on Facebook, I’d like to invite you to become a fan of the WebStores Ltd. page.
2. Host an event. These are actual time-sensitive physical events. For example, I use Facebook to promote the seminars that WebStores Ltd holds. If you are launching a new product or holding a sale at your shop, don’t miss the opportunity to promote these with Facebook. You can even use Facebook to send invitations to your event. Each event invitation that you send requires an RSVP so if you want to, you can control numbers if space is limited. The events page also lets you send out waves of invitations so that you can add to your guest list at any time. You can invite your friends, fans and group members. From within Facebook events, you can send your invited guests additional information about the event to build enthusiasm for it.
3. Build a Group. Facebook is all about networking. Groups provide an excellent opportunity to tap into the social networks of your group's members. Groups are simply Facebook pages where group members can interact with one another, post pictures and videos, and carry on discussions. Having a group page for your business can go a long way to creating a community of interest for your organization or brand. For example, if you own a garden center, a group would be a great way to build a community of gardeners discussing their common interest.
4. Let people know about your Facebook presence. Use other marketing tools to let you customers and potential customers know about your Facebook page. Add a link to your Facebook page from your web site. Be sure to include a notice on your e-mail marketing about your Facebook pages. You can even link your page to your Twitter account (if you have one).
1. Create a page. Busiesses don’t have profiles like people do, they have pages. Instead of friends, they have fans. It costs nothing to have a page for your business. To create a page, you must be legitimate representative of the brand. Once your page is up, you can use the feature to “suggest to friends” so they can become a fan. If you are already on Facebook, I’d like to invite you to become a fan of the WebStores Ltd. page.
2. Host an event. These are actual time-sensitive physical events. For example, I use Facebook to promote the seminars that WebStores Ltd holds. If you are launching a new product or holding a sale at your shop, don’t miss the opportunity to promote these with Facebook. You can even use Facebook to send invitations to your event. Each event invitation that you send requires an RSVP so if you want to, you can control numbers if space is limited. The events page also lets you send out waves of invitations so that you can add to your guest list at any time. You can invite your friends, fans and group members. From within Facebook events, you can send your invited guests additional information about the event to build enthusiasm for it.
3. Build a Group. Facebook is all about networking. Groups provide an excellent opportunity to tap into the social networks of your group's members. Groups are simply Facebook pages where group members can interact with one another, post pictures and videos, and carry on discussions. Having a group page for your business can go a long way to creating a community of interest for your organization or brand. For example, if you own a garden center, a group would be a great way to build a community of gardeners discussing their common interest.
4. Let people know about your Facebook presence. Use other marketing tools to let you customers and potential customers know about your Facebook page. Add a link to your Facebook page from your web site. Be sure to include a notice on your e-mail marketing about your Facebook pages. You can even link your page to your Twitter account (if you have one).
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