Blitz Ezine #262 July 10, 2006

3 Steps to selling more on your site, Reasonable Precautions

The Blitz-Promotions News Letter
Issue no. 262, July 10, 2006

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Blitz Comments
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If you are looking for a new product to purchase for retail - or just doing some research on finding out some options for new products then you want to check out one of our clients new sites - wholesale product finder.

Also if you enjoy country music or know someone that does you may be interested in listening to a local band we've been helping out some.

http://www.shannonmorganmusic.com/

We offer daily promotion items in our blog, which you can find at the following link -

http://smallbizpromo.blogspot.com

Our next issue will be on August 8.

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In this Issue
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- 3 Steps to selling More on your site
- Reasonable Precautions

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Food for thought
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"Strategy without tactics is the slowest route to victory.
Tactics without strategy is the noise before defeat."
- Sun Tzu

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3 STEPS TO SELLING MORE WITH YOUR WEB SITE by Charlie Cook
www.marketingforsuccess.com
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"

What's the most important function of your web site?"
Most small business owners will explain, "To tell people about
myself and my services." This sounds like the right answer, and
it's the one I hear most often.
But it's wrong!

Build a web site focused on yourself or your products and it is
doomed to fail from the start. No matter how hard you work to
promote it or make it look impressive, it won't pay for itself,
ever.

What is the primary purpose of a web site? Keep reading to find
out.

There are 3 key steps in the web marketing process.
Understand the purpose of each and you'll be able to bring in
more new business with your web site. You need to attract
prospects, convert them into qualified leads and then convert
leads into clients.

The problem for most people is that despite their best efforts
to collect thousands of leads, they only end up with a few
clients. Sound familiar?

Your marketing is like New York City's water system. In upstate
New York they use reservoirs to collect rain. This water is then
piped down to New York City and finally when apartment dwellers
turn on the tap, they've got clean drinkable water. The only
problem with this system is that for every ten gallons of rain
that falls into the reservoirs the city only receives eight to
nine gallons of water.

What happens to the missing gallon or two of water? It's lost
through an antiquated leaky piping system.

Is the same thing happening or worse with your marketing?
Are you losing the majority of your prospects due to an
antiquated marketing and follow-up system?

If you are, don't despair. There is a simple solution. You can
use the 3 key steps below to help you plug the leaks in your
marketing system and get new business pouring in.

The 3 key steps to improving your web marketing

1. Get More People to Your Site
Your first objective is to get the greatest number of people to
visit your site. If you use pay-per-c.lick ads such as Google
Ads, take a look at your clickthrough rate.
Are you getting at least 1.5 to 2% of the people who see these
ads to visit your site? The purpose of any and all of your web
advertising is to get people who might be interested in your
services to visit your web site.

If your ads don't prompt at least 1.5% of viewers to respond,
test alternative headlines and subheads. You'll have the most
success with headlines and subheads that focus on your
prospects' problems and concerns.

In my experience with my own sites and my clients' sites,
changes in the wording of headlines and subheads makes a huge
difference in response rates. You can double the number of
people who c.lick on your ads - and double the number of
potential clients visiting your web site - by changing a few
words in your ads.

2. Convert More Web Site Visitors to Leads Let's say a hundred
people a day visit your web site. How many leads do you
generate? With the right copy (headlines and text), s.ales
offer, and page layout, you could motivate 15 to 25% of the
people who visit your web site to contact you. Instead of a
handful of inquiries from site visitors each week, you could
have dozens.

At the beginning of this article, I asked my client John what
the main function of his web site is. This is it.

> The primary purpose of your web site is to get the greatest
number of visitors to email you or call you with their contact
information.

Your site may be the best looking site in the world, but if it
doesn't motivate your prospects to contact you, you've lost them
and won't get their business.

Few people buy products and services the first time they visit a
web site. Most look at dozens of options. Unless your site is as
well known as aol.com or amazon.com, your prospects won't
remember your site's URL ten seconds after they leave for
another site.

Before another prospect leaves your site and forgets your
business, start using your free offer and your site layout to
prompt at least 10-20% of all site visitors to contact you.

3. Convert More Qualified Leads to Clients If you've taken the
first two steps above, you'd have more people responding to your
ads and more people contacting you. You’ve probably guessed; the
next step is to follow up and convert the greatest number of
prospects to clients.

Depending on the type of business you're in, your follow up
process may include a phone call, a mailing, a series of emails,
or some combination of these. Whichever system you use, you want
to increase the percentage of people who buy your products and
services. It sounds obvious to both you and me, but this is
where 80% of new business is lost.

Is your web marketing system leaking more than New York City's
water system?

Take this Quick Quiz
1. Is the clickthrough rate for your pay-per-click ads 1.5% or
better?
Yes – No

2. Do 15 to 20% of all unique visitors to your site contact
you?
Yes – No

3. Do you have an automated system for following up with leads
generated from your web site that generates sales from 4% or
more of your prospects?
Yes – No

If you answered "No" to one or more of these, you're in the same
boat as most business people on the web. Your web marketing is
full of leaks and with a few changes you could be collecting a
lot more leads and converting more of them to clients. Discover
how to get a better response to your ads, get more people to
contact you.
Your sales could skyrocket within weeks.
-
2006 © In Mind Communications, LLC. All rights reserved.
-
The author, Charlie Cook, helps, small business owners and
marketing professionals attract more clients and be more
successful. Sign up to receive the Free Small Business Marketing
Ideas eBook, '7 Steps to get more clients and grow your
business' at http://www.marketingforsuccess.com


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Reasonable Precautions
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Most of us think of hype as exaggerated or extravagant claims,
made especially in advertising or promotional material.
Sometimes it is deceptive and deliberately misleading. While
we have become a bit immune to this through constant exposure,
it always seems that someone comes up with a fresh approach that
is not immediately recognized.

Con artists have been around since the beginning of time, and
are always willing to take advantage of another "hot prospect".
But every scam has "red flags" and a little common sense should
prevail so you do not fall prey to them. Let's examine a few we
get by email everyday.

How many emails do you get promising something free. Like a %500
Walmart Card, or a free lawnmower or computer, just to name a
few. They state right up front that they have no association
with, and are not endorsed, sponsored by or affiliated with
Walmart or other companies they happen to be promoting. The only
thing you will get from something like this, is phone calls from
solicitors. You’re on the “No-Call” list you say – not anymore,
when you filled out their form, you gave them permission to
contact you.

"Congratulations: You Won $1,000,000.00 in the Australian
Lottery." - they state. In this scam you normally send some
information, and either return it by email or fill out a form on
a web site. They require that you supply your telephone number
to be eligible. You will then be contacted by a telemarketer who
confirms that you have won; however, you must pay a processing
fee for handling, customs duties or taxes, and you must send a
check or money order to them by overnight mail.

Or, you might receive an e-mail informing you that your order
has been received and processed, and your credit card will be
billed for the charges. The trouble is, you haven't ordered
anything. They contacted you using bulk email, using inactive
return addresses which prevent you from refuting the orders by
email. They do provide a telephone number in the area code 767,
which is actually in the West Indies. They try to keep callers
on the line as long as possible, and you are reportedly billed
as much as $25 per minute. Be aware that your local telephone
company may bill for services provided by other companies, and
not be able to provide you relief.

Another current scam floating about the web offers you a cut of
stolen money from some Middle Eastern Country that was stolen
and they need your help getting the money out of the country.
They of course want a cut of the money that they claim will be
wired to your personal bank account. You of course are expected
to pay them their share up front. The money however never
arrives in your bank, and since you gave them your bank account
number, you are ripe for identity theft.

Send twenty dollars to each of five people listed in order for
you to get yourself placed at the top of the list of names. You
will make big bucks in less than 30 days. This is simply a
variation of the old fashioned chain letter. Actually, there are
a lot of chain letters floating about the web and all should be
avoided.

Another email promises guaranteed Credit Card approval! One
group offers Visa cards to the credit-challenged "to put you
back in the mainstream of financial life in high style" at an
interest rate of only 4.9%. How? Through the magic of using
offshore banks in tax haven countries. In the fine print
however, there is a $100 processing fee and $25 per month charge
regardless of use.

Some people really believe that they have been selected to be in
the Internet Version of "Who's Who". This one started years ago
and was sent to every company executive in the country - They
will include your listing at no charge - oh, would you like a
copy? "Send $98 to us and it will be delivered to your
doorstep."

There is no way to adequately cover all the scams that permeate
the web. Before jumping into any of these "make a million while
you sleep" plans, take some “reasonable precautions” and check
them out. The money you save will be your own.

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Did you know that subscribers to Bob Osgoodby's Free Ezine the
"Tip of the Day" get a Free Ad for their Business at his Web
Site? Great Business and Computer Tips – Monday. Wednesday. And
Friday. Instructions on how to place an ad are in the Newsletter.
Subscribe at: http://adv-marketing.com/business/subscribe2.htm

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Links you can use -
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A web based tool that helps clean up word documents that you created as .html.
http://www.textism.com/wordcleaner/

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Fun and Games
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If you like Nascar then you will enjoy this site.
http://www.nascarmoments.com/

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Useful links to our site
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Ezine Archives links to all our past issues (well most of them) in one place.

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Next Issues
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Our next issue will be August 8, 2006

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Final Thoughts
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Tim and Lisa Hamblin
Tisa Enterprises
PO Box 221
Hazard KY 41702
http://www.blitzpromotions.com
http://www.crochetnmore.com
http://www.webpageplanner.com
http://www.ineedlinks.com