I need to get more people to my site!!!! [Archive]

jali

6th July 2007, 17:01

Hello

We recently launched our website www.thefurnitureseller.co.uk (http://www.thefurnitureseller.co.uk) - I have linked our competition to a few comp websites and we now have over 400 email ad's but we need more visits that actually convert into sales.

We have had a good response about our site but there are a few things (which i learnt on here) that need to be addressed.

How do i get more people onto our site and then get them to buy, our products are good, the price is very competitive (i know cos i did my research) and we offer free delivery - the email ad's are great though but we need more sales via visits.

eternally grateful

Mandy

p.s tips on marketing emails would also be grand x xxxx

Little Nut Tree

6th July 2007, 17:31

Hi,

I have been down that road and the answer is.... a lot of critical analysis of your website and high quality traffic obtained by targetted web marketing. People who enter competitions rarely buy anything whilst they are there - very poor quality traffic!

Good Adwords campaign is a good place to start and learn about your market.

SteveGibson

6th July 2007, 19:18

a lot of critical analysis of your website and high quality traffic obtained by targetted web marketing. People who enter competitions rarely buy anything whilst they are there - very poor quality traffic!

Very good point.

Sometimes people get so hung up on "traffic", they forget that traffic is only worthwhile if it's relevant to what's being sold.

Good Adwords campaign is a good place to start and learn about your market.

I agree.

Plus it gives you the opportunity to test your site and your business model.

You need to quickly find out if targetted traffic will buy from you site.

Adwords is the best way to do this (which is why top marketers like John Reese test drive all their ideas with PPC, before doing any free marketing).

If you bring targetted traffic to your site and they don't buy, you've got a problem that needs to be fixed.

With untargetted traffic, if they don't buy, you've learned nothing.

Hope this helps,

Steve

Little Nut Tree

6th July 2007, 19:58

Yes, its all about quality. You must drive down the bounce rate, drive up the page per visit, drive up the conversions. According to the books i read you do this by;

1. Having a business strategy that would work in the offline world, or at most is complemented by the internet.
2. Differentiate yourself from your competitors, but not on price, as this is not sustainable. Dont play the me-too game - charge more than your competitiors and give customers a reason to pay for it.
3. Have your website reflect your strategy and reinforce it.
4. identify your target market by 3 word key words and pull them into your website using SEO and PPC at the very least.
5. See whats working and reinforce it, increase your differentiation.
6. avoid anything that dilutes strategy, and aligns you with competitiors.

all very vague i know, but it does work.

sirearl

6th July 2007, 20:46

[quote=Little Nut Tree;265902]
2. Differentiate yourself from your competitors, but not on price, as this is not sustainable. Dont play the me-too game - charge more than your competitiors and give customers a reason to pay for it.
quote]

Ignore price at your peril 70% of online shopping is about price

unless you have a totaly unique product and no competition ;)

Earl

kevgibbo

6th July 2007, 22:35

Would have to agree that PPC is the best option for targeted traffic and it's great short-term as you can get results straight away.

welshandy

6th July 2007, 22:41

>>
Ignore price at your peril 70% of online shopping is about price
<<

I disagree to some extent. Price maybe relevant for some types of purchases but in my experience people live busier and busier lifestyles and they just want to get on the internet and find what they are looking for quickly and purchase it.

The price has to be reasonable in the first place and not out of the ball park but I wouldn't say that people just look for the cheapest website out there to make their purchase.

The first goal to getting greater conversion rates is to remove the element of doubt from your visitors mindset. Use good customer feedback throughout your website to enhance and promote trust.

I have heard from customers who say they decided to purchase because they read the comments on my website. Engage your visitors and promote trust throughout your site and you will see your conversion increase.

Is it all about price? No, I don't think it is but you do need to be competitive.

SteveGibson

6th July 2007, 23:38

Ignore price at your peril 70% of online shopping is about price

unless you have a totaly unique product and no competition

"Totally unique"??

It's either unique or it isn't.

Price is the main factor if your offer is - or appears to be - identical in every other way.

i.e. when price = value.

Otherwise, it's usually not the primary factor in people's choices.

Steve

kimmrunner

6th July 2007, 23:51

You stand a chance of good SE rankings for such as "coffee table" or "glass coffee table" if you look at the competition, but to do it you are going to need to put a lote more descriptive text on the site:
and also start looking for backlinks.

sirearl

7th July 2007, 08:40

"Totally unique"??

It's either unique or it isn't.

Price is the main factor if your offer is - or appears to be - identical in every other way.

i.e. when price = value.

Otherwise, it's usually not the primary factor in people's choices.

Steve

most products are being sold on many sites.

I think there is a post somewhere saying that "price compare" sites are one of the most visited .

I would maintain that if you want to buy a Hoover washing machine xyz.

then the public google "cheapest hoover washing machine xyz" and all things being equal,they buy from the cheapest site.

The exception to this rule is products that are not commonly available or service industries.

I base this on many years of selling a wide variety of products,and the times a customer has said "your much cheaper than " and various other comment of similar vein.

Earl

SteveGibson

7th July 2007, 10:08

I would maintain that if you want to buy a Hoover washing machine xyz.

As I said:

"Price is the main factor if your offer is - or appears to be - identical in every other way."

The hoover is the same if I buy it from company X or company Y.

So, there are only a few ways to differentiate

e.g. price, speed of delivery, warranty terms, guarantees, bonuses, add-ons

And, price is probably the main one.

However, as Little Nut tree said:

"Differentiate yourself from your competitors, but not on price, as this is not sustainable. Dont play the me-too game - charge more than your competitiors and give customers a reason to pay for it."

If you do differentiate on something other than price - and you explain it well in your marketing - you can create an apples v oranges comparison.

(ie one where price is only a small factor in working out value)

Steve

jali

7th July 2007, 10:17

Well thanx everybody for all your advice and tips, I certainly have a lot to get through -i'll let you know how i get on.

xxx

sirearl

7th July 2007, 10:55

:

"Differentiate yourself from your competitors, but not on price, as this is not sustainable. Dont play the me-too game - charge more than your competitiors and give customers a reason to pay for it."

If you do differentiate on something other than price - and you explain it well in your marketing - you can create an apples v oranges comparison.

(ie one where price is only a small factor in working out value)

Steve

I think we basical agree ,but I am refering to main stream selling where I think you are going for more specialized products?

I am not sure that clever marketing can overcome a price difference as a rule?;)

Earl

Little Nut Tree

7th July 2007, 11:33

Hi again,

I am going into town this afternoon to buy a car seat for my baby (I do not yet know which brand) from John Lewis where is is probably a good £5-10% more expensive than a cheap website. Why? Because they will discuss my car model with me, walk through all the safety aspects, show me how to fit it and give me at least 30mins of their time. I see that as good value.

When we buy baby stuff online, we nearly always buy from Glasgow Pram Centre online. Why? Because they always call up to confirm orders, they have brilliant videos on their website demonstrating products and they have successfully built a brand image that parents trust.

I think the ability to differentiate standardised products is only limited by the imagination. Even toothpaste is differentiated!

SteveGibson

7th July 2007, 13:04

I think we basical agree ,but I am refering to main stream selling where I think you are going for more specialized products?

I don't see it as "main stream" v "specialised".

Instead, I see it as "identical" v "differentiated".

For example, most people buy bread, but how many of us buy the cheapo, styrofoam tasting white loaves?

And how many of us pay a bit more for something that tastes better?

I am not sure that clever marketing can overcome a price difference as a rule?

If the only difference between what you offer and what someone else offers is that you charge more, then you shouldn't even be in business.

Because you're not bringing anything worthwhile to the market ... and there's no reason for anyone to buy from you.

That's why I always say you should start with a good offer.

However, once you've got that offer, you need to be able to present it in a way that helps people understand why they should buy from you.

Many businesses do this part really poorly and find themselves in the situation where they get lots of prospects shopping for price.

If that happens a lot ... and you're not competing on price ... it's almost always a sign that there's something wrong with your marketing.

Steve

sirearl

7th July 2007, 14:22

sirearl

7th July 2007, 14:26

I don't see it as "main stream" v "specialised".

Instead, I see it as "identical" v "differentiated".

For example, most people buy bread, but how many of us buy the cheapo, styrofoam tasting white loaves?

And how many of us pay a bit more for something that tastes better?

If the only difference between what you offer and what someone else offers is that you charge more, then you shouldn't even be in business.

Because you're not bringing anything worthwhile to the market ... and there's no reason for anyone to buy from you.

That's why I always say you should start with a good offer.

However, once you've got that offer, you need to be able to present it in a way that helps people understand why they should buy from you.

Many businesses do this part really poorly and find themselves in the situation where they get lots of prospects shopping for price.

If that happens a lot ... and you're not competing on price ... it's almost always a sign that there's something wrong with your marketing.

Steve

cor blimey how many of us lick our washing machines before we buy them:D

Rhyl Lightworks

7th July 2007, 15:51

I would maintain that if you want to buy a Hoover washing machine xyz.

then the public google "cheapest hoover washing machine xyz" and all things being equal,they buy from the cheapest site.

I would maintain that exactly the opposite applies here. Customers may go for price alone on such things as small electronic items, but selling washing machines, for example, gives the retailer opportunities for 'added value'. Some people will accept delivery within a 12 hour window (if you're lucky) and see to installing it themselves and getting rid of their old machine. These will buy on price alone. Most though will want it all done for them. If you can offer a timed delivery, install the machine and demonstrate how to use it, and then get rid of the old machine for them, they will pay extra.

Also, I feel good communication is important. When making a major purchase over the internet, I always either email or phone the company first. If my email is replied to (not an automated response) within 24 hours, or if I can speak to an actual person, without going round and round on one of these infernal automated answering systems, I will buy. Otherwise, I will drop them like a hot potato.
Barrie

Words of Magic

7th July 2007, 19:54

Google Adwords is a very effective marketing vehicle for testing out new product ideas and services which I reccommend, especially if your trying to generate brand awareness or more sales for your new business.If the results obtained from this strategy is successful you are then in a poisiton to apply a similar message to other online and offline marketing vehicles.

Wishing you all the success in the world,

rossmc

7th July 2007, 21:14

Are you using any kind of email autoresponder/newsletter tool like Aweber?

rss

7th July 2007, 21:30

Have you thought about adding interesting and relevant content to your site that will be picked up by the search engines? You can also submit these articles to article sites that could drive more traffic to your site.

Getting these articles posted on relevant blogs is also a great way of generating targeted traffic.

We're offering reduced prices on content production at the moment before we officially launch so let me know if this is something you'd be interested in.

Thanks.

Rob.

Little Nut Tree

7th July 2007, 22:20

hi again

i just had a quick look at your site jali and before you get bogged down in SEO etc, I would start to consider a bit of good old fashioned POO.

Yes, People Oriented Optimisation. think hard about your customer and their shopping behaviour.

In my shoes, in less than 30 seconds I found two reasons I would not buy from your site;

1. you have empty categories - makes you look unprofessional
2. your pictures are too small and very uniformative, there is no way I would spend that money with such little feel for a product. Here you have opportunity for differntiation - try and emulate the texture and size feel of your products in the pictures. get some good close ups, get the texture in there, and put something on the table! Make it look relaxed, inviting, sexy, whatever. Dont give just the measurements, that means nothing to a lot of people, stickk a copy of Conde Nast Traveller on top!

jali

9th July 2007, 09:15

1. you have empty categories - makes you look unprofessional
2. your pictures are too small and very uniformative, there is no way I would spend that money with such little feel for a product. Here you have opportunity for differntiation - try and emulate the texture and size feel of your products in the pictures. get some good close ups, get the texture in there, and put something on the table! Make it look relaxed, inviting, sexy, whatever. Dont give just the measurements, that means nothing to a lot of people, stickk a copy of Conde Nast Traveller on top!

thelittlenuttree.co.uk

We do have empty categories thats right but we are still loading up products, there is nothing i can do about the pic's they are from our supplier, there is no way we can photograph everything as we cannot possibly stock all our products on our site, we have a small shop with hardly any stockroom. Once we sell a product we photograph it just before we send it out. This will obviously take a while depending on our success rate, but we do not have a choice.

Unlike most other furniture retail sites we have given an informative write up on each product - not just the size.

http://www.thefurnitureseller.co.uk/prods/298.html - did you actually click on any thumbnails - How much bigger should these pics be?

Despite all this your comments are very welcome - constructive criticism and all that!!!

Little Nut Tree

9th July 2007, 19:44

Hi jali

Yes, do that, take some good photos of teh product in a natural setting that shows the benefits the products can bring to the user. I think it will make a lot of difference to your conversion rates.

I personally would have bigger pictures, and more of them, showing detail etc. In that link you post I can barely make out the handles.

SEO can only bring you targeted traffic, not help you sell products. There are two ways to boost sales - up the conversion rate and up the traffic. The former will definately work, the latter only works if the former works. At least in my experience.

MaxDiCapua

10th July 2007, 19:56

Hi Jali,

Me and my business partner have just set up an online directory at www{dot}premiumwholesaleuk{dot}com (sorry not allowed links yet :() it has been growing since launch date just a few days ago, with new links being added everyday.

And although you may not want to sell wholesale, it is free and only takes a few seconds to add your link, we are aiming to have 1000+ links by the end of October, we check each site that is placed on the directory to try and ensure all are legitemate, if you don't want to use it for your own website hopefully it will become and invaluable resource for many business'

Regards,

Max Di Capua

richardcook

13th July 2007, 13:17

Also a free site below if your interested. Use the promo code when advertising.

marka

14th July 2007, 00:14

Hi,
This is Mark with OptinBuilders.We would be able to roll out an email campaign to your target audince and can advertise so that they can come n visit your links It is possible to track all the information like the click throughs, responses.leads, etc. If you could help me with your contact number i would be able to explain you how our email tracking campaign works We would be able to roll out an email campaign and can provide you with all in formations like click throughs, responses, leads, etc help you. we are an online marketing firm. and. Let me know if you require any additional information contact me Ph 832-932-8721

jali

20th July 2007, 15:21

rss

20th July 2007, 17:41

Hi Mandy,

What I meant is, have you thought about making your site not just a shop, but also a resource?

Portray yourself as an expert in your field and people will begin to trust you. Begin to come to you for advice and suggestions.

By writing relevant content (geared toward furniture- materials, interior design etc) that is keyword heavy, your site will have an improved search engine ranking, and people will be driven to your site when they are searching for something like 'furniture material advice'.

Your site could become a resource where people are sent from forums and other websites. Ie. 'To find out more about it, why don't you have a look at this page at The Furniture Seller?'.

You can also submit this content to article sites. These are sites where writers can submit 'free' content for publishers to pick and choose from. If your content is of a high enough quality, and is what the publishers are looking for, they will copy and paste this and put it on their site or blog for their readers to view- but they can't claim this work as their own. They have to also include your own small 'profile' beneath the article, along with links to your site- it is this profile that is your billboard- your space to market your business, and it is because of the ability to add links to this section of your article that you are in a great position to increase your number of incoming links, thus improve your search engine ranking- especially if you keep adding content to these article sites- AND to your own site.

Keep your site fresh with useful and unique content and visitors will bookmark your page and keep checking for updates and further tips and advice.

If you need someone to produce this content for you, please feel free to give me a shout for a great price!