Archive | Blog

So you’ve got a fantastic looking squeeze page that still isn’t converting worth a darn – now what? Sometimes doing the opposite of what everyone else on the Internet is telling you to do really pays off, especially when it comes to capturing email addresses.

Split test these and see if your subscribe rates don’t increase dramatically…

Forget the name. There was a time – a long time ago – when inserting a person’s name in an email increased the open rate. Those days are all but gone.

Worse yet, asking for their name decreases your response rate nearly every time. The only time to ask for their name is when they BUY from you – not when you’re merely asking them to subscribe to your list. So remove that box from your opt-in form, along with any other box besides their email address. The easier you make it for them to subscribe, and the less information you ask for, the higher you’re conversions are likely to be.

Remove the spam sentence. You know that great little sentence you have beneath the opt-in box that says you hate spam and will never ever ever ever share their info with anyone? Remove it completely. Don’t change it, don’t tweak it – just strip it right out of there. Repeated testing shows that having it there actually decreases your sign-up rate. Ironic, since it was originally intended to increase it by providing a sense of security.

Besides – if you ever want to sell your website and associated lists, you won’t be able to if you’ve told them you will never share their info. So you’re shooting your future prosperity in the foot while reducing your current sign-ups, all because you were doing what every other marketer on the planet is doing.

Tell them who you are. First, people hesitate to sign onto a list unless they have some idea of WHO is behind the list. They want to know not only what they get for joining your list, but also who you are – so tell them your name, use a photo of your face, or do something that makes it clear you are in fact a real live person.

Second, by having your identity on your squeeze page you will drastically reduce the number of people who check their email an hour or two later and wonder who in the world you are and why you’re sending them mail. The more memorable of an impression you make on the squeeze page, the more likely they are to remember you when they read their email. This is turn decreases the likelihood they will cry “SPAM!” and increases the likelihood they will open your email and actually read it. Remember, when people check their email they look at the “from” line first. Be memorable and your email will enjoy a much warmer reception.

Try split testing these three changes on your squeeze page and see what happens – I suspect your sign-ups will increase by several percent.

Scott Anthony of the Harvard Business Review did a piece on “3 Ways to Prioritize a Long List of Ideas, which you can read here…

It’s all about how to choose what it is that you should do next, which product to run with, which decision to make and so forth. Of course it’s written with large companies in mind, but the essence applies just as well to the Online Marketer. For example…

When choosing which product to create next, don’t always trust what people say they will do.

Rather, trust what they do. When I survey my readers to find out what they want to buy next, I also take into consideration that they may not know their own minds.

For example, if you ask someone what they want to eat tomorrow, they’re likely to say they want something healthy like a salad. But when tomorrow comes, more often than not they will order the pizza or pasta instead. It’s not that they weren’t telling you the truth; it’s just that people tend to think about the future in one way and act in the present in a different way. They’re certain tomorrow is the day they buckle down and do their work, or go on a diet, or begin exercising. Today? Let’s watch TV and eat chocolate cake.

So when you survey your customers asking what they want to buy, realize that what they say isn’t necessarily so.

Limit studying and planning. Prioritize action.

If all you’re doing is studying and planning so that you can make the right decision, then you’re not acting. And without action, there can be no reward. As Anthony states, visualize success and then figure out what you need to do to get there. For example, if you visualize your next success as selling a thousand copies of your new training program, figure out what you need to do to make it happen, and then do it. If you get stuck on the planning, you’ll never get anywhere.

Look for ideas and solutions outside of the box.

Whatever your niche of choice might be, don’t confine your explorations and learning to just your niche. Explore other avenues outside of your realm to see how they solve problems and how that might be applicable to your niche. Becoming myopic to your own area of expertise to the exclusion of all others can mean you’re missing out on stellar ideas to increase your bottom line.

Here’s a simple example: Angie has her own line of make-up products targeted to woman over 50 that she sells exclusively online, and she’s been struggling with lead generation. The other day she received her order of vitamins from a well know health company with millions of customers, and it hit her: What if she asked this company to place a postcard promoting her website in every box that contained one or more products designed exclusively for this target market?

Most online marketers would never even think of this – yet it’s an excellent way to get her website in front of her exact target market. And all it will cost her is the printing, since the health company is taking a percentage of sales as her affiliate rather than a flat fee for inserting the postcards.

Sometimes we find ourselves bogged down while trying to decide what to do next or how to do it – when really all we need are simple systems to keep us moving, and our business growing.

If you’re using Paypal to take payments, here’s a neat little trick to increase your sales…

When someone adds your product to the shopping cart, it takes them to the Paypal checkout page. The problem is, some people will back out of the purchase at this point. However, what most marketers don’t seem to know is that Paypal allows you to place a banner at the top of this checkout page. Moreover, what you choose to place in this banner can reduce shopping cart abandonment by allaying your customer’s fear.

For example, recently when I purchased a product I saw a banner at the top of the Paypal checkout page that actually asked me to visit another website to sign up for a different product launch! This is obviously NOT the way to use this banner space.

Instead, do what I saw one enterprising entrepreneur do the other day – create a simple banner with a short TESTIMONIAL in it for the product they are about to purchase.

It can be something as brief as:

I Can’t Believe This is Available for Such a Low Price.

– Customer Name

or

ABC Product Saved Me $xxxx in Just The First 3 Months.

– Customer Name

Be sure to use quotes and the person’s full name – and if applicable, their company name. This provides third party validation that the buyer is in fact making a smart decision by purchasing your offer, and thus reduce your Paypal shopping cart abandonment rate.

Of course, this same tip can be applied to any shopping cart or online checkout experience really. Using social proof to re-inforce your buyers confidence just before checkout will boost your sales.

Now just make sure you are giving your customers experiences WORTH writing you glowing reviews and testimonials for and you’ll be all set!