How to Turn Your Web Site Into A 24 hour Sales
Machine!
by Joe Bellshaw
Would you like to turn your web site into a 24 hour a day Sales Machine?
Of course you would. In this article, I'm going to share with you some of my successful formulas.
Before I tell you about some of my "formulas", I want to touch on a few major topics about having a profitable web site. In order to make your web site "unstoppable", you must first have these factors in place:
1. You must provide valuable content for your visitors. How many web sites do you see that are just one big ad? (Answer: Way too many.) The solution is to put helpful, useful information in your web site. To spark an idea or concept that perhaps the reader is unfamiliar with.
2. You must capture the names, mailing addresses, and email addresses of your visitors. When someone stops by your web site, that is NOT the end--it's the beginning of a relationship. To make that relationship happen, you must capture information so you can begin a dialogue with your potential customer.
For example, offer the prospect a free weekly or monthly email newsletter in exchange for filling out a brief survey. This keeps you in the mind of your customer and allows you to drop in sales pitches form time to time. You have to realize, the offer of valuable information is the "Cyber Key" that sneaks you inside the mental sales barrier of the consumer. The sales pitch is what pops out once you're inside.
Likewise, by capturing a physical mailing address, you can send traditional direct mail to your prospects. Many people have success with direct mail that offers valuable information while also making a presentation for a product or service. If mailing costs are a concern, consider starting a low cost newsletter people can subscribe to.
3. You must present a complete, compelling case for buying your product or service. Most people make the mistake of trying to sell too many products in a web site. They often feature big pictures and sparse text. It takes a lot of information to convince someone to order from you. Don't be afraid of writing a letter that's too long. Your letter can never be too long, only too boring.
4. You must present your offer in a clear, concise manner. Far too often I visit web sites that are cluttered beyond comprehension. Take control ! Lead your prospect through your complete offer, and continue leading straight to the order form.
Pick two or three of your hottest products/services and write individual sales letters for each one. Each letter should have a headline, an opening that grabs you, a clear presentation of features and benefits, a price and a compelling reason to act now.
The 12-Step CyberKey Formula
Headline + Opening Hook + Features and Benefits + Unique Selling Proposition + Credibility + Bullets + Price and Bargain Appeal + Guarantee + Don't Decide Now + Bonuses or Price Discount + You Can't Lose + P.S. = Money
This is the formula for writing a sales site that will rocket your sales by a minimum of 25%. It's based on my knowledge of psychology of human behavior as well as my last few years of experience writing direct response advertising and direct mail.
Think of it like this: Most people have psychological BUTTONS that stimulate them to do certain things. When you know WHAT button so push, HOW, WHEN and in WHAT order to push them, you maximize your chances of a sale. Just because you push the buttons doesn't guarantee a sale. But it does put the odds in your favor.
Each prospect may have a different "view point", of the product or service you offer. Be sure to present each and every one of those " view points ".
These buttons do not force people to do anything. But they do provide the mental stimulation that leads them to act.
If you examine a random sampling of web sites, you'll discover that 99% do NOT push even half the buttons in the formula. Which is good news for you! Because that gives you a huge competitive advantage.
Step One: The Headline
Imagine the biggest result you can create or a problem you solve into a clear, compelling headline.
Your headline determines 80% of the response to your sales letter. To be effective, your headline needs to convey clearly and specifically how your product or service will benefit the reader or solve a pressing problem.
If you're selling over the phone or in person, the equivalent of your headline is your introduction or greeting. Just as a headline grabs the attention of a reader, your opening statement grabs the attention of a prospect.
A good way to get headline ideas is to:
A) Visit the 1000 Hot Headlines on this site.
B) Skim through a magazine for article titles that grab your attention. You'll notice that certain words and combinations of words grab your attention.
Here are the 3 most important words to use in your headlines:
You, New, How
In addition, a Yale University Study ranked the following 12 words as the most persuasive in the English language:
You, money, save, new, results, easy, health, safety,
love, discovery, proven, guarantee. Also included were
the words: include free, discover, secrets, reveal or
reveals and proven.
Obviously, you don't want to use all 12 words in a headline! But one or two will make a definite impact.
There are several headline formulas that are classic in direct response advertising.
How to
Begin your headline with the words "how to." For example, How to write potent online advertising copy that will practically force your customers to give you money!
If you're in a pinch, use a "how to" headline. The formula is simple:
How to get X benefit or How to avoid X problem
Make certain your benefit statement is specific. For example, "how to save money on your phone bill" is not nearly as powerful as "how to save at least $36 a week on your phone bill by dialing 4 extra numbers."
A variation of the "how to" headline that also works well is the "how I" headline. For example, "how I saved $36 on my phone bill last month." People love reading stories. This headline has the appeal of offering a specific benefit plus a story with human interest.
News + Major Benefit
Begin your headline with words such as announcing, new, now, at last, introducing,. For example,
At last, a proven way to use your computer to make money -- even if you've never took a computer class and you can barely type.
We live in a news-starved society. We have 24-hour news on the radio and TV. We have newspapers, newsletters and news magazines. When you offers news you capture attention. Then all you do is tie that news into a benefit of your product or service.
How, Why, Which, Who else ?
These words have also been proven as powerful words to begin headlines with. For example, How I make $1,000 a week in the stock market or Why men crack or Who else wants to make money writing at home? or Which of these mistakes do you make in marketing?
Before you settle on a headline, you'll want to write out at least 20. This may sound like a lot but it goes fast once you get started.
Test your headlines with this quiz to make sure each it delivers at least some of the master formula.
Does the headline talk about your company, your products and what you want to sell or about your customers, their wants, their needs and what they want to buy? Does the headline create a vivid picture of an end result highly desired by your target market? Does the headline rely on curiosity alone? (Curiosity alone isn't enough. Your headline should convey a clear benefit.) Does the headline use one or more proven words? Does the headline compel you to read more?
Test your headlines online. Run them as classified ads on http://www.classifieds2000.com or America Online. The ones that generate the most inquiries are the winners - and they don't cost you a penny!
Headline Examples
The following examples illustrate the essential elements of writing good headlines. A good headline makes a promise of a specific benefit desired by the reader. It often paints a picture or demonstrates a specific end result. It shows you how to get pleasure and avoid pain. It explains what a product or service does for the reader and not just how great it is.
Free information kit shows you how to xxxx
Free newsletter reveals proven secrets of xxxx
Hot new report reveals 12 secrets of xxxx
New report shows you how to xxxx
How I made $142,392 in one year by placing classified ads on the Internet
Do you make these mistakes in xxxx?
What your xxxx doesn't want you to know about xxxx
"My web home page brings me 1,000 leads a day -- imagine!" says famous businessman Joe Bellshaw
How I improved my memory in one evening The amazing experience of Victor Jones (Famous ad for David Roth memory course written by Wilbur Ruthrauff.)
Imagine Harry and me advertising our pears in Fortune! (Legendary ad that started a new industry -- selling fruit by mail)
How to collect from social security at any age
Why some people almost always win at xxxx
The ultimate tax shelter (Famous ad written by Ted Nicholas)
Only way left for little guy to get rich Here is the uncensored message my wife asked me not to write (Another famous ad by Ted Nicholas)
How I raised myself from failure to success in selling
How to make money writing short paragraphs
Create your own web page in 60 minutes -- or your money back
How to win friends and influence people
Step Two: The Opening Hook
Use an if-you -- then opening paragraph to ease your reader into your letter or sales presentation.
Your headline presents your biggest benefit or problem you solve. Your first paragraph has to further hook the reader and pull them into the letter.
One easy way to do this is with an IF YOU-THEN statement. "If you want this benefit, this benefit and this benefit, then this might be the most important letter you'll ever read."
Or, if you're approaching your prospect through the problem-solving approach, you can say, "If you want to solve, this problem, this problem and this problem, then I urge you to read this letter -- immediately."
Here's an example of what it might sound like, "If you'd like to obtain a steady stream of new customers for your business, slash customer service costs, and boost your advertising response, then this might be the most important letter on Internet marketing you'll ever read. Here's why..."
Here are a few other examples:
"If you're sick and tired of getting screwed on your insurance premiums and paying out the nose for other people's bad driving habits, then here's good news--"
"If you want to feel an immediate surge of energy within 60 seconds -- without the up and down roller coaster high of caffeine -- then please accept my free sample gift"
Now, the IF YOU--THEN method is only one way of starting sales letters.
Step Three: Tell A Story
Use a Story To Pull Your Prospects Into Your Letter or Sales Presentation.
People love stories. Newspapers, news shows, TV talk shows and talk radio stations all succeed because people have an insatiable desire to hear stories about other people.
By telling a story you paint a picture of a successful end result and seduce your reader into reading the rest of your sales letter.
Here's an example of how you might use a story to begin a sales letter...
I've never written you a letter like this before. But I have something weighing heavily on my mind I've got to tell you about . . .
I'm mad as hell... my husband did this... and my kids are doing that.. and this is what I did ...
Exaggeration? Maybe. Realistic? Yes.
In my opinion, colleges and universities do an excellent job teaching biology, algebra and great literature. But they do a lousy (if not deplorable) job of preparing young adults for a career and helping them find a niche in the work world.
Like it or not, colleges and universities don't get paid to place graduates in jobs. They get paid to issue diplomas. Plain and simple.
Your young adult can't rely on their college placement office to find them a job. And they aren't going to find a good one in the newspaper either. (Have you scanned the ads lately?).
That's an example of a story that illustrates a problem. Want to know how to tell good stories? Just peruse articles in Reader's Digest. They almost always begin with a story.
Now, beginning with a story is not essential. But it is one powerful way to pull people into the balance of your copy.
Step Four: Features and Benefits
Focus on giving people what they want and solving their problems.
People do not buy products and services. They buy an end result....what a product or service will do for them. They buy solutions to problems. They buy to avoid pain and gain pleasure.
People don't buy drills, they buy holes. They don't buy hammers. They buy the doghouse the hammer will help them build. They don't buy homes. They buy a feeling of security for their family. They don't buy novels. They buy escape from reality. They don't buy advertising. They buy increased sales at a lower cost.
Most companies advertising on the web spend all their time talking about the features of their products and services and not about how those features will produce a desirable result or benefit for their customers. They focus on how great their newest widget is instead of how their newest widget solves annoying problems for their customers.
Here are several ways you can make sure you talk in terms of benefits to your customers instead of features.
Ask your customers why they purchased from you instead of your competition.
Do not assume you understand why your customers buy from you. Instead, ask a lot of questions and listen for the " hot buttons". Look for key advantages you have compared to your competition.
Don't assume your readers understand the benefits of your product or service.
Picture all the ways your prospects will benefit when they buy from you. Spell out the benefits so they are crystal clear. Leave nothing to the imagination. Answer all the questions UP FRONT. This practice alone will generate an increased amount of sales, and reduce the time and efforts you take to write, or phone them.
Benefit chain
Benefits have layers like onions. Your job is to peel through the layers to reach the deepest, most meaningful advantages of your product or service. In order to do that, take each of your benefits and ask, "why do I care about that?" Or ask, "what will that do for me that's even more important?" Keep asking questions until the answer is self evident. The process looks something like this:
Benefit------> what's important about that? ------> which
means that ------>Benefit
When you write your sales letter, be sure to point out all the benefits that surface from your benefit chains because any one of them could be the hot button that causes a prospect to order from you.
Step Five: Unique Selling Proposition
Pre-empt your prospect's desire to shop around by explaining the advantages they'll get only if they buy from you. This method DOES NOT include listing a bunch of "links" on your web site, and sending your prospects away from your offer.
How can you package a big picture solution no one else offers that delivers more of what your prospects want and less of what they don't? The answer to that question is commonly referred to as your own Unique Selling Ability !
In other words, why should someone buy a product or service from you instead of anyone else in the world? Answers such as "quality" or "service" are cop-outs. When you say quality, what does that mean? How does your quality differ from anyone else's? And more importantly, what difference does it make to the customer? How does your quality provide a benefit?
Quality is only a benefit if it provides me with some advantage. Does the product last longer? How much longer on average? Does it require less maintenance? And if so, how much savings does that translate into?
When you state your benefits, be as specific as possible. If you say your product or service saves a customer time, how much time on average? Over a period of five years, how many hours, days or weeks could you save a customer?
The same theme applies to the idea of better service. When you say you offer better service, what does that mean specifically? Does it mean you fix problems faster? How much faster on average? Does it mean you respond to telephone calls within 3 hours? What does it mean? Denominate as completely and specifically as possible what better service means and the advantage or benefit your customers will receive as a result.
One other important point about the Unique Selling Ability: It's more important to be first in the mind of the consumer than to be better. Modern-day marketers call this idea "Positioning." How can you position your product or service so your customers perceive you as being the first in a category.
Step Six: Credibility
Show people why they should believe you will deliver the benefits you promise.
The most powerful way to create credibility is by using testimonials. You can't have too many strong testimonials in your sales letter or sales presentation.
Give powerful testimonials.
State specific results. "I used X product and I solved these problems or I got these results."
Target common objections. Let someone else answer common objections for you through a testimonial.
Avoid "egotistical" quotes. People don't care about you. People care about results and benefits, not how great the creator of the product is.
Provide your full name, city, state, occupation, and even a photo on your web site (photo optional).
To obtain good testimonials, you can interview your customers, record the conversation, transcribe it, boil it down to a testimonial, then obtain written permission to use it.
Other important techniques for building credibility include:
Tell why prospects should believe you are a credible source. Support statements with logic and proof.
Give reasons why you offer price reductions or special offers. "Clearance sale" and "blowout sale" have no credibility. If you have a price reduction, explain why you're able to sell the merchandise for less money.
Use specifics. People believe specifics. Say that you increased your profits 22.6% in 6 months as soon as you started selling xyz widget. That is far more powerful than saying, "Make more profits by selling xyz widgets." Instead of saying, "save money by making your own wine at home," say, "you can get all the $50 bottles of win you want for $9.53 each." Instead of a real estate agent saying, "I can help you sell your home faster," he/she could say, "My average listing sells 3 months faster than the average property in the Multiple Listing Service."
Avoid statements that stretch believability, even if they're true.
Show popularity and approval by experts. This is called social proof. People tend to believe premises accepted by a large number of others.
Give a phone number where a "live" person can answer. If you can't have a live answer all the time, a professionally produced answering machine or voice mail message will boost credibility. A poor quality answering machine message can hurt your business.
Use quality printing and graphics in your print materials and brochures. If you send out a sales letter that looks like it was done on a cheap photocopier, it hurts your credibility. Amateur graphics and cheap-looking clip art put a dent in your believability. You don't need to spend a fortune but you do need to look professional.
Above all ! Blend In ! Integrate these points into your sales materials. Most people are now quite familiar with slick sales letters, and polished web sites. Use and include these points in your web site, but if you over due it, it won't take long before you bore your prospect and they move on.
Step Seven: Bullets
Encapsulate your benefits into tantalizing bullet statements
Here's why bullets are important online: People scan information quickly. Bullets are mini-headlines that scream, "look at this now, you need this information!"
As much as half of your letter should be bullets. Bullets are very important psychologically. They condition people for the price, which is what you're going to give them in the next step of the formula. And they create the emotion for the sale.
Bullets build value. You can use bullets to summarize all the results your product or service will create for your customers or to summarize all the problems your product or service will solve.
Spell out the complete thought in your bullets. At times use a whole second sentence in parenthesis. Paint a clear picture of the benefit. Arouse strong curiosity. For example, "How anyone selling a product, idea or service can generate a constant, never-ending stream of prospective customers. No more cold calling!
I'm testing a new concept in bullets right now. If you look at my web site, you'll notice the last page (on my advertising site) includes a summary of all the benefits my customers will receive. I developed a set of "graphical logo's", which clearly identifies each product offering.
You'll also notice I used the same graphic from each of the individual pages at the end of my product tour. I use the same graphic because those graphical logo's are already stored in my visitors "cache" or (computer memory). When my visitors arrive at the summary page, the graphics load immediately because they already "cached" in the users browser.
Sample Bullets
Why normal networking wastes your time and what to do instead. How John Doe started a billion dollar business from home on a shoestring and you can too. The amazing, little-known secret of direct mail that doubles or triples response. How to know any likely objections to an idea, product, service or proposal BEFORE you even meet with your contact. Have all the time you need to prepare your answer in advance, complete with support information, charts or other resources. How to use a board of directors to become a major power broker (for personal or business benefit), who to put on your board, how to recruit them, how to use them. Trade show Bliss! -- How to be THE big hit at any trade show. Turn this normally mediocre activity into a wildly profitable money maker -- and avoid the profit-killing mistakes most people make. Secrets of gaining endorsements by celebrities and major business figures. Why this can send you soaring into the big leagues. Referral breakthrough: How to obtain massive amounts of referrals. Competition squeeze? Jump out miles ahead with this covert (but entirely legal) strategy. How to transform a business, career or fund raising effort from small potatoes into the big leagues.
Step Eight: Price and Bargain Appeal
Now that the bullets have psychologically conditioned your prospects, you're ready to give your price. But you want to soften the blow. You do that by comparing your price and showing that it's a bargain. You can compare your price to what you used to sell your product for, what you plan to sell it for or what your competition sells it for.
In addition, you can create a bargain appeal by showing the prospective customer how your price is only a fraction of the cost of NOT owning the product. You can remind him or her how much time, money, inconvenience, pain, hassle or trouble your product will save.
Even luxury purchases can be sold on a bargain appeal. For example, a friend may justify the purchase of a Mercedes (or other luxury car) to you by explaining how that it's really a bargain when you take into account the resell value. If a car retains a great deal of its resell value, it can look like a bargain compared to a cheaper car that loses its value quickly.
A luxury car purchase could further be justified by talking about the greater reliability, reduced time off the job due to breakdowns, better gas mileage and lower maintenance costs. These factors may or may not in reality justify the purchase of the car. But they certainly provide a logical justification for an emotional purchase, which is what you want to do.
Step Nine: Guarantee
Provide a guarantee that denominates the required performance. If you don't get this result, if it doesn't do this, if that doesn't happen...then just send it back for a complete, 100%, no-hassle refund.
Also try out different guarantee lengths. In many cases, 1 or 2 years is better than 30 days. Give people every opportunity to procrastinate. If your guarantee is only for 30 days, people will be up nights worried they aren't going to get the product back in time to receive their refund. Test a guarantee that is twice the length of your competitors. This can be a strong selling point.
When you offer an unusual guarantee, explain why you're offering it. Explain that you can offer such a guarantee only because you are so confident your product will perform to meet or exceed the customer's expectations.
Even if you can't guarantee your full transaction with a customer, you can usually guarantee the very first purchase or the initial step. Your goal is to get someone to do business with you one time knowing that your profits will come from your repeat business.
Step Ten: Don't Decide Now
Use the puppy dog close
This is called the puppy dog close: "Don't decide now if little scruffy is for you. Just take little Scruffy home and let Johnny and Sara play with Scruffy all weekend. If you aren't happy, bring him back on Monday." (You'll never see little Scruffy again!)
Here's how you adapt the concept to a product: "Don't decide now if this product is for you. Just check it out, try it out, give it a whirl. At worst you'll get your money back."
Why does this close work? Because people associate pain to making decisions. And you don't want people to be in pain when they give you money. You want them to be ecstatic. So don't ask them to make a decision. Of course, you still get their money. But let them try your product on a trial basis. This method does not apply to all products and services. But when appropriate, it's very powerful.
Step Eleven: Bonus or Discount
Get your prospects to take immediate action by offering a free bonus or a discount
Most people procrastinate. So you have to give them reasons to NOT procrastinate. You can do this by offering a free bonus or a price discount for acting within a limited time frame. A ten day deadline works well for many products.
Another important factor in your bonus is scarcity....a limited supply. Regardless of how many bonuses you have on hand, isn't your supply still limited? So tell the customer, "We have a limited supply of these bonuses. We can only guarantee you'll receive them if you respond within the next 10 days."
Multiple free bonuses often work better than single ones. Many marketers have found that information products such as reports and cassette tapes make good free bonuses. The bigger the problem, the bigger price tag for the solution. So information products that help solve big problems can have very high perceived value to the customer.
In a market that is very price sensitive, you may find that price discounts work better than free bonuses. But in most cases, you'll probably get better results with multiple free bonuses for taking immediate action.
One powerful technique is to make the free bonuses actually worth more than the product itself. For example, the product sells for $50 and the free bonuses are worth $300. You have to test this method carefully because it can cause a problem with refunds.
Step Twelve: You Can't Lose
Prove to the customer he/she can't lose by responding to your offer Explain to your customer why they can't lose by buying from you. The worst case scenario is they get their money back and get to keep some valuable free bonuses.
What this means to the customer is they don't have to worry about screwing up, making a mistake and being embarrassed in front of their friends, family or co-workers. It's a risk-free transaction from their viewpoint. In fact, they can ONLY come out ahead because of the free bonuses.
Step Thirteen: The P.S.
Remind your customers of the time deadline and the limited supply of bonuses. Urge them to pick up the phone and call or order immediately. Your P.S. is often read first by customers. So entice them to read the letter by mentioning the free bonuses and the limited time offer.
The Super-Fast Shortcut Method For Writing A Powerful Letter To Sell Web Sites
Let's say you've used endorsements, postcards, ads or other methods to obtain interested prospects. Now you need to sell them. How? One way is to write a sales letter using THE FORMULA you just learned. But, you say, writing a letter is to much work for me. What do I do?
Here's a shortcut. Arrange your letter as a series of questions and answers. Here are sample questions. You can customize them to fit your business. Notice how these questions walk the prospect through the psychology of buying.
What is the big benefit you can give me? What is the number one problem I have that you can solve for businesses like mine? What other problems can you help solve? Can you give me a success story? Exactly what can you do for my business?
(Note: present your features and benefits here.) What can you do for me no one else can? (Note: this is your Unique Selling Ability.) Can you prove what you're saying will work for me? (Quote success stories or give testimonials.) Can you summarize for me what you'll do for me, exactly what I get and everything I'll gain by working with you?
(Present a summary of your services and summarize the results they'll achieve and the problems they'll solve by working with you. Stack up your value.) How much will this cost me and how does that compare to what others charge? (Give your price and explain why it is a bargain.) Do you offer a guarantee? Are there any advantages to acting now instead of waiting? (Offer free bonuses or a price discount.)
You may NOT want to use the entire FORMULA in your letter.. Your chances of making the sale are a lot better if you talk to people over the phone or in person. It's a judgment call. If you're a good writer, and you have a daytime job, (or you have no sales experience and you're scared of talking to people), then try the full-blown letter. If you have sales ability and time to spend, then break the letter off before you give the price and bargain appeal.
If you aren't making sales from your web site, there are a few basic reasons:
You are NOT making a specific offer and using THE FORMULA to sell it. When people go to your site, they have no idea what specific advantages you give, what problems you solve, what you do for them no one else does, what proof you have that you can deliver the results you promise, why your price is a bargain, all the multitudinous ways they'll benefit by buying from you, what your guarantee is, why they don't need to decide now and how they'll benefit if they act today instead of tomorrow.
Solution: Fix this immediately by using THE FORMULA to write a sales letter. You are NOT pro-actively driving traffic (i.e. warm bodies) to your web site.
Solution: Do NOT rely exclusively on any one traffic generation method. Obtain free publicity in offline publications and reference your web site. And use the multitude of other strategies available for you. You have a product or service that must be direct sold over the phone, over the net, or in person.
Solution: Use your web site to generate leads. Motivate people to request a free report or some other item by sending an email or calling a 24-hour phone number. You're talking very generically and non-emotionally about what people want and what their problems are. People buy to solve painful problems.
Solution: Get specific. When you're targeting a specific market like I teach, you can do this easily. Your prospects should feel like you've been listening in on their conversations. People buy based on emotion. Appeal to the pain you know they have. Stir it up. Get them to feel it. Then offer to get rid of it for them. You're selling to everyone in general and no one in specific. This relates back to number four: If you try to sell to everyone, you'll sell no one.
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Copyright (c)1998 The Classified Club tm all rights reserved. Publishers are given permission to re-publish this article as long as it is done so in it's entirety with no changes whatsoever, and the publisher gives appropriate credit to the author, and his web site at:
http://www.classifiedclub.com
---------------------------------------------------------------------
