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Saturday, December 29, 2007

5 Ways To Encourage Impulse Purchases With Online Marketing

I just bought six square pieces of spongy fabric for $20 and walked away happy - "victim" of an impulse purchase.

I was at one of those big show events and walked past a demonstration booth. I even knew it was coming. About 50% of the people walking out were carrying two bright yellow cylinder-things.

As we walked toward the convention center, I told Tim (my other half), "There's one of those guys with a microphone in there, doing a demonstration. He gets people so excited they think they have to buy those things. They over-pay then never use them." I said this a bit smugly. I know of such things, so I wouldn't succumb.

Yeah, right. This guy was good. So good, I came away with five ideas for increasing sales from impulse purchases and ideas on how they might be applied online.

Next time you evaluate short-term sales and online marketing strategies, think about and apply these five impulse purchase lessons...

Online Impulse Purchase Lesson #1:

Demonstrate an impressive, relevant feature.
If the product is chocolate, sold at a retail checkout stand, you have no need for this one. Human nature takes over. When you are selling unrecognizable cylinder things - or sold on the Internet - people need some encouragement.
You would never know it to look at them, but these things were super absorbent shammies.

They can suck 8 - 10 ounces of soda out of your carpet in nothing flat AND it makes for an impressive demonstration. When the demonstrator mentioned they could dry a sweater in three hours, I was hooked. Never mind we have about two spills a year in my house and I don't own any "lay flat to dry" sweaters.

This ability to get people to "live in the moment" is one key to a successful impulse purchase demonstration. The salesperson has a lot to do with it, of course. Repetition of an incredible, attractive feature, however, is key as well.

Think of any infomercial or "Billy Mays" product. There is always an "AMAZING!" feature - cooks in minutes, instantly removes stains, easily pulls dings from your car, etc. This technique doesn't have to be only live or on television to work. Who in the U.S. hasn't walked past a display playing a recorded product demonstration.

Take this concept and extend it online by inserting a streaming, play-on-demand video or audio clip* next to key products on your site. You could also include the clip (or a link to a demo page) in your newsletter.

* For more information on streaming media, read "Turn Benefits into Sales with Streaming Media" here: http://www.webmarketingarticles.com/SalesStreaming.htm

#2: Try to "time it right".

Quite coincidentally, one of those semiannual spills in my house happened the day before I bumped into the yellow cylinder guy. I was thinking "If I'd had these yesterday, right now we wouldn't have books stacked in the middle of the living room floor." Quite by accident, he had related to something that was top-of-mind for me.

Fortunately, you do not have to rely on coincidence. At any one time, there are usually six or eight generally popular "themes" you could tie into. Better yet, your target audience is likely to have it's own unique interests.

On the Internet, you can "time it right" by associating complementary products or services. If someone is researching monitors, for example, perhaps they need an ink cartridge for their printer.

Showing or highlighting ink cartridges on the screen along with the monitors may incite an impulse purchase. Better yet - and this is impossible unless you have order histories or detailed profiles - show them the exact cartridge they need.

#3 Make it easy.

It turns out the cylinder things costs a flat $20. There was no change to mess with, no stopping to fill in order forms, and no multiple pieces of currency. As people pulled $20's out of their pockets, the demonstrator took them and handed over the shammies in a single motion.

On the Internet, you can make it easy in two ways - ordering and delivery.

Make the order process as simple as possible. Amazon's "Quick-Click" links are a good example of making ordering easy. Impulse purchasers simply click on the "Buy from Amazon" button and order straight off a pop-up window. You can see how it works here, in the left column (look for "Amazon 'Quick-Click' Example"):
http://www.webmarketingarticles.com

Easy delivery is another way to encourage impulse purchases on the Internet. Immediately downloadable digital items are an example. For physical items, quick delivery - overnight, same day, or local store pick-up - can increase sales.

#4 Give an enticingly presented discount.

A roll of three shammies was $21 something, but the guy was taking care of the sales tax, which made it an even $20 (But wait, there's more!). Because it was early he would throw in another 3-roll for no additional charge. Caught up in the moment, we nodded agreement. We were getting a deal - no sales tax plus three free.

The way a discount is presented can make a deal sound either appealing or "not such a deal". Which sounds better?...

a) "Buy One, Get One Half Off." OR "Buy Two and Get a 25% Discount."

cool.gif "3 for $5.00" OR "$1.67 each."

c) "40% Off Sale" OR "On Sale, $12.00 each." (Assuming $20 item.)

Another way to encourage impulse purchases is to give a discount by bundling. Offer to reduce the price on a second, related item (Like in example "a", above.).

Before the holidays or other major events, you can encourage higher online order size with discounts. One way is to offer a discount on one item when your customer purchases a different item. Another way to raise order size with a discount is to give your customers lower (or free) shipping if they purchase a certain dollar amount or higher.

#5 "Keeping up with the Joneses."

Instead of putting the shammies in a bag, the demonstrator rolled them up into a cylinder. This way, people at the show would see others carrying them around and wonder what they were missing.

The same concept can be applied to the Internet. I have seen messages like: "Others who bought 'x' also bought 'y'" on order forms, at check out, and on product screens.

So there they are - five tactics the yellow cylinder guy used to convince me (and nearly everyone around me) to happily walk away with six shammies. By correctly applying these same techniques, your sales can soar as well.

Sunday, December 16, 2007

Buffalo Club waiter receives 10,000$ tip from Donald Trump!

Do you make money online? How long do/did u take to generate a revenue of 10,000$? You probably didnt even make 100$ usd dollar per month.





Have a look at the image above, the Buffalo Club waiter receives 10K usd from a 82$ meal! Looks ridiculous...but is it for real...I wonder if there's anymore millionaire giving so much on tips?

Thursday, December 13, 2007

5 Reasons Why Blogging Is The Best Internet Marketing Tool

Blogging has evolved into pages and pages, blog after blog of personal opinions on just about anything and everything under the sun. As it became more and more popular, online advertising tapped into the tremendous potential and ever growing audience. Here are 5 reasons why blogging is the best Internet marketing tool, today, for doing business online.

Blogging arrived on the Internet marketing scene in the late 90s. It originated as a way to Blogging and Internet Marketing comment on an existing webpage, an opportunity for visitors and readers to react or voice their opinions. It opened the door for real-time, 2-way conversations, even highly charged debates, among bloggers and blog visitors. Blogging has evolved into pages and pages, blog after blog of personal opinions on just about anything and everything under the sun. As it became more and more popular, online advertising tapped into the tremendous potential and ever growing audience. Here are 5 reasons why blogging is , today, for doing business online.

1. Blogging is easy.

The simplest way to get your information, your products, and your services on the Internet is through blogging. No special skills are required… an average adult can read and type, or at least click a mouse. Think of a blog as a virtual tablet of paper and you simply write your ideas, experiences, new products, and service descriptions down and if well written, the truth behind your articles will entice your readers, or blog visitors, to want to know more about you and what you have to offer. So basically, if you have a computer and an Internet connection (who doesn’t?) then you can blog and advertise.

2. Blogging is authentic.


In this day and age where advertising saturates our lives, we question the credibility of most advertising claims. However, in the , your blog content will represent a Blogging and Internet Marketingmore personal aspect of who you are and what you have to offer, establishing your credibility up-front. Reading blogs about first-hand product use is like talking to people about their first-hand experience. Consumers definitely want to buy a tried and tested product. Your potential customers will “get to know you” first, then naturally want to buy from you once you earn their trust.

3. Blogging is free.

There are many reliable and respectable companies offering services which include hosting and blog (CMS). With a free blogging service you can create a professional and profitable blog at no cost. Any opportunity for free Internet marketing tools is definitely a bonus especially for a start-up business. Needless to say, there are also and they too have their advantages. These services may warrant your considerations either once you get your free blog generating revenue, or if you know up-front your blog will require advanced functionality.

4. Blogging builds credibility.

As you write your experiences on a particular product or industry, more frequently, your readers come to realize that they can depend on your blog posts for credible information, answers to their questions and solutions to their problems. As such, you become an expert that they routinely turn to; the benefit is that more readers visit your site and more bloggers link to your blog. As companies and professional organizations notice the growth of your readership base, they may soon get in touch with you for advertising on your blog page, or make you an affiliate, which pays for every referral generated from your blog site.

5. Blogging builds your market share.

Unless you are already famous, chances are, only your Mom and close friends are reading your blog. Mom has a lot of friends, and your friends have friends, and they let them know how interesting your blog site is, but you can’t depend on this circle of blog visitors to sustain your profit base for long. You should be using the following to build your market:

E-mail - Today, is rapidly surpassing the popularity and effectiveness of email to quickly and effectively reach your target market. In this age of speed and quick access, logging in and downloading email is simply taking longer than clicking into a blog. Long gone are the days where we email pages and pages of information. You can now, simply shoot a very short email with a link to your blog where they can find the information in its’ entirety. Also be sure to include a signature in every email you send, to anyone, with a link to your blog.

Blogging and Internet Marketing-Subscriptions - An easy way to build your blogging audience, which in turn increases your market share, is to offer readers a . As a subscriber, they can receive email notifications when you update your blog, or when you have “special” offerings for subscribers only. It is very important though, to be responsible with your subscribers email addresses. The last thing you want is a comment on your blog that you are a spammer.

Understand your readers - It’s important to be knowledgeable and constantly monitor your readers needs and wants. A simple survey, every few months will aid you in keeping your finger on the pulse of what your readers will benefit from the most. Additionally, you’ll be able to gather profile information and advertising preferences. By asking your readers to give you feedback on a post, an ad link, or a trial that you shared, it’s like interviewing your readers without the commitment and intrusion of a face-to-face interview. Your readers will also appreciate the fact that you care, and you are willing to listen to them, especially when you implement things on your blog specific to their feedback.

Join a blog network – Be active and productively participate in a that share the same industry, interest, readership base, payment mode, etc. Consumers find credibility and convenience in clicking one link to several real bloggers about a single subject. The links back from these relative blogs will improve your search engine optimization and at the same time, help build even stronger credibility for you with your blogging audience.

Use RSS Feeds - RSS feeds are the fastest growing technology on the Internet today. As such, having to your blog is definitely another means of generating awareness for your readership base. Having a variety of feeds can add interest to your blog site and offer your readers the ability to zero in on the exact information that is of most interest to them.

Give your business a boost by effectively using blogging as an Internet marketing tool.

Put your blog readers needs first, build a strong, credible base and become the authority in your niche and the profits will naturally follow.

Monday, December 10, 2007

Agloco is DEAD!?

So Agloco is in their way down to the dead pool. Since last year, agloco was promoted everywhere as being thought as one profitable program around. Sites and blogs were made to get referrals.

John Chow have got an explaination from the developement team:

Dear John,

We would like to update you on the status of AGLOCO’s operations. We continue to believe in the AGLOCO concept, but our revenue is currently not sufficient to give Members a meaningful distribution. And though there are increases in membership, the resulting revenue is not enough to support operating costs. As a development team we are unable to continue to use our savings to fund the operations. If any Member would like to pursue continuing the operations of AGLOCO, you may contact us at agloco1@live.com.

We would like to thank every Member for supporting our effort to bring a piece of the Internet directly to the user. We hope that we can find a way to keep the operations going.

AGLOCO Development Team


Source: http://www.johnchow.com/agloco-joins-the-dead-pool/

Sunday, December 2, 2007

It's December...Last Month of the year... John Chow Is Rocking!

So is December going to be best month of the year? Well, for the month of November which is last month, John Chow's Blog Income Report showed that he made a record of over $27,240.83 usd income. Awesome isn't it?

This is where the income came from:

* Private Ad Sales: $12,854.84
* Affiliate Commissions: $6,579.67
* ReviewMe: $4,400.00
* Text Link Ads: $2,012.66
* Kontera: $1,000.00
* TTZ Media: $348.50
* Subscription: $40.00
* ShoppingAds: $5.16
* Grand Total: $27,240.83

W00t...that's an inspiration for bloggers out there....You will probably take a year to earn that much money for being a graduate holder.

Sorry for not being updating for a long time...I'll try my best do update more often.

Stay tune :)