Saturday, May 06, 2006
New Way to Find Products to Sell on eBay
Sometimes I feel like I neglect those readers whose business is focused more on auctions than on websites. Well, auction sellers, today's blog entry is for you! (Well, actually, it will also work for website businesses, too. You just have to use eBay to do your research.)
I've talked in the past about eBay's vastly underused tool, Want It Now. Want It Now gives buyers a chance to post items that they're looking for but haven't been able to find. Talk about a great way to find out exactly what buyers want!
It's always been possible for enterprising sellers to research categories on Want It Now. Those sellers look for products that turn up repeatedly in these postings but show few to no responses. But, for the most part, that kind of research has been time-consuming and tedious.
Dave Guindon, whose powerful Hot Item Finder has already helped hundreds of sellers find profitable products to sell, has come up with another way to identify products that eBay buyers want. His new tool, Auction Yen, lets you search and analyze Want It Now postings by entire category or by individual keywords to find products and niches that buyers are begging for but that nobody is providing.
You can check out more information on Auction Yen or watch a nine-minute video Dave has created to show exactly how he finds hungry eBay buyers to provide products to.
It's a great tool for finding and dominating promising product lines. After all, you know what high demand plus no competition adds up to!
Jeff
Sometimes I feel like I neglect those readers whose business is focused more on auctions than on websites. Well, auction sellers, today's blog entry is for you! (Well, actually, it will also work for website businesses, too. You just have to use eBay to do your research.)
I've talked in the past about eBay's vastly underused tool, Want It Now. Want It Now gives buyers a chance to post items that they're looking for but haven't been able to find. Talk about a great way to find out exactly what buyers want!
It's always been possible for enterprising sellers to research categories on Want It Now. Those sellers look for products that turn up repeatedly in these postings but show few to no responses. But, for the most part, that kind of research has been time-consuming and tedious.
Dave Guindon, whose powerful Hot Item Finder has already helped hundreds of sellers find profitable products to sell, has come up with another way to identify products that eBay buyers want. His new tool, Auction Yen, lets you search and analyze Want It Now postings by entire category or by individual keywords to find products and niches that buyers are begging for but that nobody is providing.
You can check out more information on Auction Yen or watch a nine-minute video Dave has created to show exactly how he finds hungry eBay buyers to provide products to.
It's a great tool for finding and dominating promising product lines. After all, you know what high demand plus no competition adds up to!
Jeff
Friday, May 05, 2006
The Power of Finding Your Niche
I talked the other day about discovering that my client's business was not really what I had always thought it was (May 3, 2006 blog entry). But I didn't get into the power that that discover brings.
We had always approached the business, MasterVisions Etched Glass Home Decor, as a site that sold home decor and furniture. As such, it was a weak entry in those broad categories.
As a home decor site, it was weak because it sells only mirrors, coat racks and clocks. As a furniture site, it was weak because it sells only coffee tables and end tables.
What sets the business apart is the fact that all the products include high definition etchings (the mirrors, coat racks, and clocks contain etched mirrors, the tables contain etched glass tops) that are far more detailed than is possible with any traditional type of etching.
We've always felt somewhat lacking as a home decor and furniture site because we couldn't offer a wider selection of products. Hey, you can't very well put etched glass in a sofa.
But the research I talked about in the previous post showed us that people didn't come to us looking for sofas and vases and candles. They came to us because we were the ONLY SITE that gave them an opportunity to own high-definition etchings of popular paintings -- or even their own photos. They came to us for a home accent that they could connect with more than anything they could find on any site of mass-produced products.
So we no longer have to try -- ineffectively -- to compete in a broader category. By discovering what the business really is -- a specialized niche -- we are free to reposition the site as a unique experience where shoppers can find accent pieces that reflect their unique personalities. And we can offer them a personalized experience that the big home decor and furniture sites could never begin to approach.
Planning is still underway on repositioning the site. I'll keep you informed as I make progress on it. But I expect it to free us to focus visitors on the advantage that our niche gives us over the general purpose sites instead of leaving us hoping that people wouldn't notice the areas in which we fall short.
And I expect that change in focus will result in a decided boost in sales. Yes, there is value to finding your niche!
Jeff
I talked the other day about discovering that my client's business was not really what I had always thought it was (May 3, 2006 blog entry). But I didn't get into the power that that discover brings.
We had always approached the business, MasterVisions Etched Glass Home Decor, as a site that sold home decor and furniture. As such, it was a weak entry in those broad categories.
As a home decor site, it was weak because it sells only mirrors, coat racks and clocks. As a furniture site, it was weak because it sells only coffee tables and end tables.
What sets the business apart is the fact that all the products include high definition etchings (the mirrors, coat racks, and clocks contain etched mirrors, the tables contain etched glass tops) that are far more detailed than is possible with any traditional type of etching.
We've always felt somewhat lacking as a home decor and furniture site because we couldn't offer a wider selection of products. Hey, you can't very well put etched glass in a sofa.
But the research I talked about in the previous post showed us that people didn't come to us looking for sofas and vases and candles. They came to us because we were the ONLY SITE that gave them an opportunity to own high-definition etchings of popular paintings -- or even their own photos. They came to us for a home accent that they could connect with more than anything they could find on any site of mass-produced products.
So we no longer have to try -- ineffectively -- to compete in a broader category. By discovering what the business really is -- a specialized niche -- we are free to reposition the site as a unique experience where shoppers can find accent pieces that reflect their unique personalities. And we can offer them a personalized experience that the big home decor and furniture sites could never begin to approach.
Planning is still underway on repositioning the site. I'll keep you informed as I make progress on it. But I expect it to free us to focus visitors on the advantage that our niche gives us over the general purpose sites instead of leaving us hoping that people wouldn't notice the areas in which we fall short.
And I expect that change in focus will result in a decided boost in sales. Yes, there is value to finding your niche!
Jeff
Wednesday, May 03, 2006
Do You REALLY Know What Your Business Does?
I've been working hard lately on a project for a client and discovered something amazing. I'll tell you what it is in a moment, but first a little background.
I've worked for that client for over four years. I didn't know much when I started his site and I learned as I went. Since I was so green at Internet marketing back then, I never went through some of the steps I now would.
The site still has a lot of beginner errors embedded deeply in its structure and its copywriting that could stand a fresh look. So we decided to go back and look at the site as if we were starting from scratch.
We started reminiscing about customer reactions. We studied sales and log files to glean exactly what customers are turning to us for. And, lo and behold, suddenly it hit us that we've been approaching our customers from the wrong direction.
And the more I've studied what competitors are doing, the more convinced I've become that our competitors aren't competitors after all. While customers have been turning to those companies for far more general needs, they've been turning to us for far more focused, niche needs.
After four years, I suddenly discover that I really didn't fully understand what draws customers to us. Incredible!
It just goes to prove that there's no substitute for really getting to know your target audience and what they want. You can bet that this project will result in a site that is much more focused on appealing to those needs that we now find are central to customers' needs. And that should result in far higher conversion rates and greater sales.
Like I say, there's no substitute for understanding your customers. How well do you know yours?
Jeff
I've been working hard lately on a project for a client and discovered something amazing. I'll tell you what it is in a moment, but first a little background.
I've worked for that client for over four years. I didn't know much when I started his site and I learned as I went. Since I was so green at Internet marketing back then, I never went through some of the steps I now would.
The site still has a lot of beginner errors embedded deeply in its structure and its copywriting that could stand a fresh look. So we decided to go back and look at the site as if we were starting from scratch.
We started reminiscing about customer reactions. We studied sales and log files to glean exactly what customers are turning to us for. And, lo and behold, suddenly it hit us that we've been approaching our customers from the wrong direction.
And the more I've studied what competitors are doing, the more convinced I've become that our competitors aren't competitors after all. While customers have been turning to those companies for far more general needs, they've been turning to us for far more focused, niche needs.
After four years, I suddenly discover that I really didn't fully understand what draws customers to us. Incredible!
It just goes to prove that there's no substitute for really getting to know your target audience and what they want. You can bet that this project will result in a site that is much more focused on appealing to those needs that we now find are central to customers' needs. And that should result in far higher conversion rates and greater sales.
Like I say, there's no substitute for understanding your customers. How well do you know yours?
Jeff
Tuesday, May 02, 2006
Effective Copywriting Turns Your Products From Museum Relics Into Sellers
Ever been to a museum? I mean the old, traditional museums where you walk past displays that are neatly labeled so you know what each one is. Ever seen anyone stop at that kind of labeled display and just have to take it home with them?
Nah, you don't see that. The items on display are usually interesting enough to get your attention briefly (at least if the subject matter is something we're interested in). But it never leaps into your heart or mind as something you just have to have.
A lot of business owners treat their products like museum displays. There sits the picture of the product. And next to it sits a nice label that explains, very factually, what the product is.
You can go through entire web stores that are set up like museums with products all lined up with dull, lifeless descriptions invoking about as much passion as...
... a walk through some old museum.
Your products are not relics. They are not meant to be set out for mere observation. You want them to fly into your visitors shopping carts and get packaged up for shipping to their homes.
So you don't want to merely label them like museum displays. You want to write copy that causes your visitor to feel a connection between them and your product.
Ask yourself a few questions before writing:
Think about how it solves the problem better than its competitors. Is it softer? Does it come in bigger rolls?
One toilet paper commercial lately proclaims their toilet paper to be more absorbent. They demonstrate its absorbency by pouring a spoonful of water into a sheet of the advertised toilet paper and a nearby sheet of a competitor. Someone then picks up both sheets showing a drawing of two hands beneath where the sheets had been.
The hand beneath the advertised brand is dry. The hand beneath the competitor is wet. I love the little pictures of the hands and what that image does. Without saying it, the advertiser has engraved a picture in the viewer's mind that says, "See, you can use our toilet paper, or you can use another brand and get your hand wet EVERY TIME you use it."
That "Ewww" factor is a strong emotional attractor that leads people to buy the advertised brand.
And that emotional attraction is what you want your copywriting to do. With the toilet paper, they looked beyond the surface and found a problem deeper than the obvious one of what you use toilet paper for.
They didn't just attach a generic label of "Toilet Paper" to it and expect that to be enough to attract sales. They found a way in which they could portray their toilet paper as a better solution. And they did that using only one of the questions I mentioned above.
But if you dig beneath the surface, you'll find that you actually can answer more than just the first question, even if what you're selling is toilet paper. For example, consider the question, "What self-image does my product let the buyer enjoy?"
There are actually several self-images that you can appeal to -- even for toilet paper. Does your target audience like to pamper themselves? Then focus on how luxurious your toilet paper is. Do they aspire to be cost-conscious? Then focus on how your toilet paper has the lowest cost.
Can you claim every possible advantage for your product? No. You'll need to determine which kinds of people your product is best suited to please and focus on selling to them.
"But what about the rest? Won't I lose a lot of potential customers by focusing on benefits that only certain personality types find attractive?"
Yes. You will. And you'll be better off for it. If the copywriting that accompanies your product focuses on benefits that don't appeal to some, they likely won't buy. But those for whom those benefits are critical...
Wow! You've got their alarm bells ringing double speed! You've moved them beyond the casual interest of a visitor to a museum into a full-fledged "Gotta have that!" reaction. In other words, you've got a likely buyer.
The visitors who don't really fit your product's appeal aren't going to buy whether you present them with a dull, dry label or with effective copywriting that basically tells them, "This product is designed for someone else." But you don't want those for whom your product is a perfect fit viewing your product as an untouchable museum relic.
That product was made for them! Let them know see how it fits them. Let them connect with it emotionally. And you can be sure they won't just walk on past.
Jeff
Ever been to a museum? I mean the old, traditional museums where you walk past displays that are neatly labeled so you know what each one is. Ever seen anyone stop at that kind of labeled display and just have to take it home with them?
Nah, you don't see that. The items on display are usually interesting enough to get your attention briefly (at least if the subject matter is something we're interested in). But it never leaps into your heart or mind as something you just have to have.
A lot of business owners treat their products like museum displays. There sits the picture of the product. And next to it sits a nice label that explains, very factually, what the product is.
You can go through entire web stores that are set up like museums with products all lined up with dull, lifeless descriptions invoking about as much passion as...
... a walk through some old museum.
Your products are not relics. They are not meant to be set out for mere observation. You want them to fly into your visitors shopping carts and get packaged up for shipping to their homes.
So you don't want to merely label them like museum displays. You want to write copy that causes your visitor to feel a connection between them and your product.
Ask yourself a few questions before writing:
- What problem does this product solve for my visitors?
- What dreams does it let them live?
- What self-image does it let them enjoy?
Think about how it solves the problem better than its competitors. Is it softer? Does it come in bigger rolls?
One toilet paper commercial lately proclaims their toilet paper to be more absorbent. They demonstrate its absorbency by pouring a spoonful of water into a sheet of the advertised toilet paper and a nearby sheet of a competitor. Someone then picks up both sheets showing a drawing of two hands beneath where the sheets had been.
The hand beneath the advertised brand is dry. The hand beneath the competitor is wet. I love the little pictures of the hands and what that image does. Without saying it, the advertiser has engraved a picture in the viewer's mind that says, "See, you can use our toilet paper, or you can use another brand and get your hand wet EVERY TIME you use it."
That "Ewww" factor is a strong emotional attractor that leads people to buy the advertised brand.
And that emotional attraction is what you want your copywriting to do. With the toilet paper, they looked beyond the surface and found a problem deeper than the obvious one of what you use toilet paper for.
They didn't just attach a generic label of "Toilet Paper" to it and expect that to be enough to attract sales. They found a way in which they could portray their toilet paper as a better solution. And they did that using only one of the questions I mentioned above.
But if you dig beneath the surface, you'll find that you actually can answer more than just the first question, even if what you're selling is toilet paper. For example, consider the question, "What self-image does my product let the buyer enjoy?"
There are actually several self-images that you can appeal to -- even for toilet paper. Does your target audience like to pamper themselves? Then focus on how luxurious your toilet paper is. Do they aspire to be cost-conscious? Then focus on how your toilet paper has the lowest cost.
Can you claim every possible advantage for your product? No. You'll need to determine which kinds of people your product is best suited to please and focus on selling to them.
"But what about the rest? Won't I lose a lot of potential customers by focusing on benefits that only certain personality types find attractive?"
Yes. You will. And you'll be better off for it. If the copywriting that accompanies your product focuses on benefits that don't appeal to some, they likely won't buy. But those for whom those benefits are critical...
Wow! You've got their alarm bells ringing double speed! You've moved them beyond the casual interest of a visitor to a museum into a full-fledged "Gotta have that!" reaction. In other words, you've got a likely buyer.
The visitors who don't really fit your product's appeal aren't going to buy whether you present them with a dull, dry label or with effective copywriting that basically tells them, "This product is designed for someone else." But you don't want those for whom your product is a perfect fit viewing your product as an untouchable museum relic.
That product was made for them! Let them know see how it fits them. Let them connect with it emotionally. And you can be sure they won't just walk on past.
Jeff
© 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010 Jeff Baas, One Stop Web Support
