Archive | February, 2020

Even small changes can sometimes improve your new subscriber opt-in rate dramatically, resulting in thousands more opt-ins that you would have otherwise gotten. Here’s how…

• People photos – Response tends to increase if there is a photo of a person. And since both women and men respond better to a picture of a pretty woman, that’s what you’ll want to use.

• They eyes have it – Have the woman looking directly at the action you want them to take. In this case, you want them to click the button to opt-in, so this is where she should be looking.

• Tools rule. For your incentive, try offering a tool instead of a technique. People believe if they have to tools pros use, they’ll perform like pros. Just look at all of the terrible golfers with high end clubs and you’ll see this is true. Your tool might be a piece of software, a comprehensive guide, a secret website and so forth.

• Lists of tools are even better. For example, the 5 best resources for losing weight or the 3 best resources for doubling your opt-in rate. A list of tools has actually been proven to convert higher than some things of much greater value, such as a free coaching session.

• Video isn’t the incentive powerhouse it once was. Know that the perceived value of videos has gone down considerably. Offering free videos for their opt-in does not work like it used to. Offering tools or a list of resources tends to work better these days.

• Curiosity lights a fire. In your headline offering your free incentive to join your list, use curiosity. For example: “The only 3 pieces of exercise equipment you need in your home. Hint: they all weigh less than 5 pounds.” Obviously what you’re going to reveal is unexpected, and thus they become curious enough to find out.

• Use a two step opt-in. On the opt-in page, have a button to get the free list, report, etc. Then have a new box open that asks where you should send it and a box for their email. This two step opt-in works better than the old method of having the opt-in form right there on the squeeze page.

If you’re not already doing these things, try all seven and you might easily see your opt-in rate double.

Here’s an experiment for you to try. If you don’t already, get a year’s worth of issues of any one magazine. If possible, make it a business magazine such as Entrepreneur. Now go through each issue of the magazine and see which full page and half page ads repeat month after month, and which ads are only there for one month before they disappear.

Notice the difference between the two types of ads. The ones that appear once and never appear again tend to be feature based and devoid of emotion. The ones that appear month after month are benefit and emotion based.

Why is that? Because ads that run month after month are working. Those that run once and never run again aren’t working. And ads that only highlight features without benefits or emotions do not work.

Now then, there are hundreds of different emotions and you can’t hit every one of them in your ad. So which are the very best to target? According to author Robert Imbriale, you can’t go wrong when you include as many of these 5 motivators as possible into your sales process:

Fear. Fear of missing out, fear of making a mistake, fear of loss, fear of failure – all of these things can work in your favor to get the sale. Show your prospect what will happen to them if they don’t buy your product. A life can completely change and take an entirely different course simply by making the right decision at the right time. Let them know how your product can make that difference, and then show them how awful it would be if they didn’t take that next step.

Every market has a set of fears that is shared by a large percentage of your prospects. If you have the solutions to those fears, or even to just one of those fears, you simply need to tap into the fear and use it to market your product.

For example, use news stories to tie your product in as the solution to a fear. You might use the story of a man who once had everything, got laid off and is now homeless. “Don’t let this be you. Buy our course on how to start your own business today and never worry about your future again.”

Love. Are you surprised? Real, genuine social contact is at an all-time low. Most people don’t even know who their neighbors are. Families are no longer living close to each other. Television and the Internet has become a poor substitute for human contact.

More than ever people need a sense of connection, and you can provide that connection in a myriad of ways. Have a video blog (vlog) where you speak directly to your audience. Host calls and interviews. Create a community around each product, through a Facebook page or forum. Do live calls where people can ask you questions. Become the expert in your niche that your prospects feel they KNOW, and you will get their business.

Example phrases to use:

• Join us
• Meet people just like you
• Be a part of
• Connect with others

Want to take it even further? You’ve heard it a million times – sex sells – and it does. Incorporate a sexy message into your marketing and sales will go up.

Words to use:

• Join us
• Meet people just like you
• Be a part of
• Connect with others

Free Things and Hot Sales. This one needs very little explanation – everyone loves to get a great deal. So for example, if you can offer your latest product on sale with an older product thrown in for free, you’re probably going to make a lot of sales.

Give something away to build your list. Give something else away to get referrals. Give away tidbits of good info. But don’t give away the store. Offer special deals that are time limited – if they snooze, they lose. Your customers will learn to buy quickly or miss out – a good way to combine hot sales with the #1 motivator above – fear.

And one of the most potent of all freebies – the free (or nearly free) trial. Let them try your $197 product for just $10, and then 3 easy payments of $67. Or your monthly membership for just $1, and then $39.99 a month starting in 30 days. Yes, you’ll get cancellations, but you’ll also get a great many sales, too, as more people get to experience your product and decide they want to keep it.

Easy Money. You’d think this powerful motivator couldn’t be applied to every business, but if you try, it’s nearly always possible. For example, if you’re selling a dating book for guys, you might talk about how much more confidence they’ll have when they’re able to date beautiful women – confidence that will greatly enhance all aspects of their lives, including their ability to make money, get a promotion, etc.

If you’re selling an organic gardening guide, you might mention that with their greatly increased yields they’ll have tons of produce to sell beyond what they need for themselves. And of course organic produce is in high demand, so it’s a money maker. If you’re selling a weight loss product, you might talk about how much more energy and confidence they’ll have, leading to more productivity and better opportunities, and so forth.

Be their fairy godmother and make wishes come true. Everyone has dreams. Everyone wants something. Show your prospects – better yet, prove to them that you can grant their wish when they purchase your product, and you’ve got the sale.

Don’t believe it? Think of the one thing you want more than anything else. Now imagine I can prove to you that you can have that very thing, and the way to get it is to simply purchase and use my product. What’s it worth to you to make your dream come true? Probably just about every cent you have.

Here’s your task: Find a way to incorporate four or all five of these motivators into your next sales piece, and watch your response soar!

Quickly now – why do people buy from you? “Find a need and fill it, and you’ll be rich,” right? Probably not. People rush to buy what they want, they often delay to buy what they need. Think about it…

Look at food – does anyone need spicy nacho corn chips? No. They need fruit, vegetables, grains and meats. They don’t need corn chips or snack cakes or cookies or candy. But what do they buy? Junk food. LOTS of junk food.

No one needs fast food, either. 5 minutes of planning in the morning and you can pack a nutritious lunch that’s actually GOOD for you. But what do millions of people do? They stand in line or sit in a drive-thru to buy a meal that is likely to make them feel bad, both after they eat it and again when they step on the scale, all because they WANTED the fast food. They didn’t need it. They would be better off without it. But that doesn’t stop them from going out of their way to get it because they WANT it.

Now then – are you selling to people’s wants, or their needs?

They need to brush their teeth, they want to have a sexy smile. They need to add gas to their car, they want to get to work without being stranded by the side of the road. They need to make money, they want to be rich without working. They need to lose 50 pounds, they want to have the energy to keep up with their kids during the day and still connect enthusiastically with their partner at night.

Are you in the Internet Marketing niche? Marketers need to get traffic, have products to sell and maintain an outstanding reputation online. But marketers WANT to make more money, have more time, worry less, work less, stress less, and be the envy of their ex-coworkers and a hero to their family.

See the difference?

Success is found when you sell what people WANT, not what they need.