Everyone who’s involved in writing Web pages for business sites should be “closing” on every page of the site. That means making an offer, asking the reader to take the next step, or asking for the sale. Here’s a good example. Check out Freshbooks, and notice how many times they encourage visitors to either “take the tour” or sign up for…read more →
I just got off a juicy conference call with a client and a partner. An interesting discussion came up. The client was describing a bunch of projects they have lined up. A batch of case studies, a white paper, a data sheet for an upcoming trade show. . the typical round-up of persuasion projects. They riffed for a bit on…read more →
Find ways to show off your benefits in instructions, invoices, estimates…in addition to the usual places like landing pages, brochures, trade show booths, scripts, white papers, case studies and so forth.
I’m posting a quote today that re-enforces an idea that often gets lost when you spend a lot of time analyzing marketing strategies, positioning products and thinking hard about how to sell. Here it is: “Buying is a profound pleasure.” – Simone de Beauvoir When selling (retail, online, persuading or otherwise), we often forget that half the battle is already…read more →
I’m a fan of Seth Godin’s books. I don’t get paid anything to promote them, but I just end up doing that because I read them and always find a few gems of wisdom within. The marketing/advertising/good-business books are light, airy and fast paced. They’re not chock full of compelling research or detailed justification, but that’s part of the reason…read more →
Blue Nile sells jewelry identical to Tiffany’s, but it’s half the price for obvious reasons (no retail space in NYC, for one). But Godin writes, “But if cheap is what you want, you can buy cheap cheaper somewhere else. Cheap is not marketing.”
The researchers also noted that when traffic to a listing was limited (due to something like a misspelled word in the item description), lower starting prices were less effective – thus bolstering their social proof observations.
File this under bizarre retail experiences: I went to Pavilions / Vons tonight to get balloons for my boy’s birthday morning. 10pm entry. Sign on the door says they’re open until midnight. Very few patrons in the place – two in line, maybe. This is the Newport Beach Pavilions by Bonita Canyon. 7+ workers, one on the cash register, one…read more →
Here’s one that I cooked up for a small business client of mine. (Popplet is very cool, btw). If you’re trying to generate leads – or just improve your conversion on existing customers/prospects – you need to have a strategy or process in place. This is just one simple approach. Are you doing this? Do you need help with any…read more →
The thing that *really* gets me. . in a recession. . is this. People go by the hoards to a place where the finest marketing minds in the world (from the most talented ad agencies known to man) are working their magic. Everything from the display windows and signage, to the cashier talk and uniforms, to the music and temperature, to the promos and tagging… is designed by the best of the best.
“Phil – part of your talent lies in your ability to work with a host of personalities and corporate cultures..not an easy thing to do. Global Crossing looks forward to continuing our relationship with you. The only way you could get a “10″ on Response Time would be to become a full-time Global Crossing employee – which doesn’t’ appear to be in the cards. I put a 9 down only to manage my own expectations that I may need to wait a few days for you to be available…. 
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Michelle Soltesz
Senior Marketing Communications Manager
Global Crossing
