Written by Dennis Sims, Internet Marketing Specialist with Active Web Group
If you read my most recent article, you should have learned that I am all about the call to action messages and that your website is your best salesperson. This week I thought I’d do a little simple education for those of you who are in the business of selling anything on the Internet. Whether you are starting a website from scratch or you’ve been on the “on-line” (as some of the old timers still call it) for awhile, I’m betting dollars to doughnuts that’ll you will be able to use at least one of my suggestions below.
Abandoned Carts
No, I’m not talking about the shopping cart that you crash into in the parking lot at the supermarket, I’m specifically referring to someone going to your website and adds something to their shopping cart, and never completes the purchase. Do you track this? Do you know this is happening? Does your website send out automatic emails with a special offer on that item to that person to try to complete the sale. If the answer to any of these questions is no, I would start researching a list of features from your current eCommerce site and start thinking about making changes that will affect your ROI over time.
Something For Nothing
I still see people at the supermarket increasing your wait time, because they’re scrambling with coupons. People love free stuff. Everyone loves something for nothing. How can you use this to your advantage? Why not offer Free Shipping on all orders over a certain amount? Shipping prices are a very large reason for abandoned shopping carts. Shipping and Shopping go hand in hand online. How about a free something with a $25 purchase. If you start to offer some incentive and think of a call to action message, as something that should be included in the sale, take a step back – give your prospective purchaser a very specific reason to complete the sale!
A.B.C. – Always Be Closing
Last week’s article got me thinking about coffee breaks. (God knows I take more than one a day, and I’m pretty sure some of the people who sit near me keep count!) For those of you movie aficionados out there who have seen Glengarry Glen Ross you should remember the scene where Alec Baldwin’s character yelled at Jack Lemmon’s character, “Put the coffee down! Coffee is for Closers only!” Having a website designed to sell, you should remember a very important thing. You only have a visitors attention for a few seconds, if that. America is Land of the Free, yes that’s 100% true, but if you’re marketing to people online you should remember unfortunately, people are Lazy. They want their information and they want it now! Scatter your call-to-action messages and make sure you’re making some type of offer to your prospective visitors at all times. In our case – let’s call it, “Always Be Calling to Action”.
K.I.S.S.
I feel bad, but I just have to tell this story. It’s too funny. I was born in this country, but my mother wasn’t. When I was 6 years old I went to school with a K.I.S.S. (The Band) lunchbox – I had told my mother I wanted a lunchbox with clowns on it. I guess the credit should go to Mr. Gene Simmons, the self proclaimed merchandising king of the Universe. The K.I.S.S. I am referring to here, is a sales acronym. It stands for Keep It Simple Stupid. Check your Bounce Rate. This refers to how many people come to your site, and do nothing but leave immediately. Make sure your website is designed to sell, and sell well, but also that it’s not overly cluttered.
The moral to the story here is, if paying your mortgage and employees on time is something that you want to continue to do, then you always need to be on the lookout for creative marketing ideas and concepts. I’d say, most likely, I’d be able to find at least 5 things wrong with your website within 60 seconds, or I’ll pay your next car payment. Unless you’re willing to take that bet, then do some research on improving your conversion ratio. Unless you are flying around on a private jet that you own, chances are you could be doing it better! How much are you spending on Internet Marketing? If the answer is Zero – then you know you have to Up that budget. Content Development Services are a great way to start getting traffic to your site. J. Paul Getty once said “Rise Early, Work Hard, Strike Oil”. Your website will work 24 hours a day, and striking oil is about getting your name out there. Make sure you make it count. If you fail, it’s only your fault.
