Glide Design

Make Your Content More Engaging Using Emotions

Travis McAshan — Mon, 09 Jan 2012 21:48:36 +0000

This isn’t exactly manipulation, but it is taking a principle that is fairly consistant among consumers and using it to your advantage.

There are 3 common ways people process information given to them. This is known as the Trifect Neuro-Affective Principle, and it’s a fancy way to say that people often make judgments based on an emotion. As a copywriter or marketer, it is your job to understand this principle and use one or all three to reach your target audience and make a sale.

Resonance

How does a consumer relate to you and your products? Resonance, in marketing, means to relate to consumers and their needs or situations. When you find a way to connect on a personal level with people, they are able to find similarities between themselves and you, the seller of a product or service. If you are selling, say, a coffee maker, create an image of a simple, perfect morning, pouring coffee while reading a book next to a fresh vase of flowers- you get the idea. Once they begin to view you as more than an intangible vapor in the Internet World, they can identify themselves with you. This is where you begin to explore the extent to which you can understand and create a solution for their problems, pains or needs. The more engaging your copy is, the easier it will be to install a belief for a need for your company.

Redefinition

How strongly is a consumer committed to their beliefs? Consumers are often committed to their existing beliefs. If they think a product will not work or a problem is unable to be solved, they may just learn to live with it. They may believe there is nothing wrong with their coffee maker’s a dirty filter that has to be changed every day. You have to show them that a coffee maker can be designed without the need of a filter, and not only that, they need to have one! This is part of your job as a marketer- to be a game changer. Redefine what your consumers have already defined. Show them there is something better and why they must have the product you sell. Make your business significant.

Resistance

How unwilling is a consumer to listen to you? You can explain through page after page of provable quantifiable evidence that your product is the best of the best. Going back to our coffee filter example, you could give your consumer all the reasons you feel your machine could improve his morning routine, his clean up time or his quality of life! Ok maybe that is a stretch, but some people meet all change with resistance. Your consumer may be unwilling to change his opinion about his coffee filters that he has used for 20 years. He may be comfortable with his routine and see no need to give up a habit or a product that he has had for so long. It is and always will be your job to change his mind if you want the sale. However, this consumer may need to sit on this new overwhelmingly amazing product of yours and think about it for awhile. But if you presented your facts and your products well, he will be back.

25 Great New Year Quotes

Travis McAshan — Mon, 02 Jan 2012 18:21:09 +0000

In a nutshell… here’s a collection of classic New Year’s quotes.

While these are mostly floating around on the net in other places I wanted to collect them all and have them for reference. There’s some great wisdom, humor, and wry wit in the quotes below, enjoy!

I made no resolutions for the New Year. The habit of making plans, of criticizing, sanctioning and molding my life, is too much of a daily event for me.”
– Anaïs Nin,
French-Cuban Author

Good resolutions are simply checks that men draw on a bank where they have no account.”
– Oscar Wilde,
Irish Writer & Poet

From New Year’s on the outlook brightens; good humor lost in a mood of failure returns. I resolve to stop complaining.”
– Leonard Bernstein,
American Conductor, Composer, Author

An optimist stays up until midnight to see the New Year in. A pessimist stays up to make sure the old year leaves.”
– Bill Vaughn,
American Columnist & Author

New Year’s Day… now is the accepted time to make your regular annual good resolutions. Next week you can begin paving hell with them as usual.”
– Mark Twain,
American Author & Humorist

Drop the last year into the silent limbo of the past. Let it go, for it was imperfect, and thank God that it can go.”
– Brooks Atkinson,
American Theatre Critic

For last year’s words belong to last year’s language and next year’s words await another voice.”
– T.S. Eliot,
American Playwright & Literary Critic

The object of a new year is not that we should have a new year. It is that we should have a new soul.”
– G.K. Chesterton,
English Writer

Be always at war with your vices, at peace with your neighbors, and let each new year find you a better man.”
– Benjamin Franklin,
Author, Inventor & Diplomat

Many years ago I resolved never to bother with New Year’s resolutions, and I’ve stuck with it ever since.”
– Dave Beard,
Baseball Player

Learn from yesterday, live for today, hope for tomorrow.”
– Albert Einstein,
Theoretical Physicist

Cheers to a new year and another chance for us to get it right.”
– Oprah Winfrey,
American Media Proprietor

It is difficult to live in the present, ridiculous to live in the future, and impossible to live in the past. Nothing is as far away as one minute ago.”
– Jim Bishop,
American Journalist & Author

One resolution I have made, and try always to keep, is this — To rise above the little things.”
– John Burroughs,
American Naturalist & Essayist

Write it on your heart that every day is the best day in the year.”
– Ralph Waldo Emerson,
American Essayist, Lecturer & Poet

The bad news is time flies. The good news is you’re the pilot.”
– Michael Altshuler,
Speaker & Trainer

Never tell your resolution beforehand, or it’s twice as onerous a duty.”
– John Selden,
English Jurist

Year’s end is neither an end nor a beginning but a going on, with all the wisdom that experience can instill in us.”
– Hal Borland,
American Author & Journalist

He who breaks a resolution is a weakling; He who makes one is a fool.”
– F.M. Knowles,
American Artist

I think in terms of the day’s resolutions, not the year’s.”
– Henry Moore,
English Sculptor & Artist

May all your troubles last as long as your New Year’s resolutions!”
– Joey Adams,
American Comedian

This bright new year is given me
To live each day with zest
To daily grow and try to be
My highest and my best!
– William Arthur Ward,
American Writer & Author

The proper behavior all through the holiday season is to be drunk. This drunkenness culminates on New Year’s Eve, when you get so drunk you kiss the person you’re married to.
– P.J. O’Rourke,
American Political Satirist

We will open the book. Its pages are blank. We are going to put words on them ourselves. The book is called Opportunity and its first chapter is New Year’s Day.”
– Edith Lovejoy Pierce,
American Poet & Pacifist

We spend January 1 walking through our lives, room by room, drawing up a list of work to be done, cracks to be patched. Maybe this year, to balance the list, we ought to walk through the rooms of our lives…not looking for flaws, but for potential.”
– Ellen Goodman,
American Journalist

3 Steps to Amp Your Website Content

Autumn Morgan — Mon, 05 Dec 2011 19:56:21 +0000

If you have 60-120 seconds to catch a visitor’s attention and leave them wanting to know more, here are three tips.

Writing content for a website requires very calculated methods of grabbing others’ attention. People who visit your site are on the fast track to finding out exactly what they need to know in the shortest amount of time as possible. Unless you happen to be Facebook, for which people will waste countless hours scouring information that is less than necessary.

#1. Set quantifiable goals.

Before you begin to create web content, it is important to identify your goals. This not only gives you something to aim for, but it also helps you in determining what steps need to follow. For example, if you set a goal to increase your organic baby food website traffic by 25%, you can either add more product, increase your SEO, find out what page of your site is the most visited and increase its visual appeal, etc. Shape a plan to help you achieve your goal.

#2. Identify and study target audience

You may notice a recurring theme in most articles you read, regarding target audience: we are always encouraged to identify ours and we are always prompted to study it deeper! Find out what your target audience likes, what they are talking about, where they are spending their time and money, what products they are buzzing about, what they are looking for as a solution to a problem and what questions they are seeking answers to. Then go back to your content ideas and update any key messages you may have. Subtly incorporate them into your content without sounding like a car salesman (unless you are a car salesman!). Create trust with your visitors though educating them and giving them what they want- not by using traditional sales strategies.

#3. Determine if it works!

There may be a testing period when you first incorporate your web content. Though, to be honest, you should always be evaluating the effectiveness of your content. By measuring its value, you can determine whether or not your plan needs to be changed, reevaluated, tweaked, etc. Pay attention to the number of hits your overall site receives, and how many hits you receive per page. Track shares, tags, pingbacks, orders and time spent on each page. If something isn’t working, or getting the time or attention you want, change it up. Pay attention to results, and then use them to your advantage.

Doing these three things will help you build connections with your target audience and improve their product loyalty.

Importance of Testimonials

Autumn Morgan — Fri, 02 Dec 2011 17:53:27 +0000

Who Needs approval?

I would like to think that I don’t need other people’s seal of approval before making my decisions. I would like to think that I can choose a product or service that will be perfect for me without hearing other people’s opinions on the subject. But in all reality, it is a psychological fact that we all rely on other people’s opinions to make our at least some of our choices, especially in choosing goods and services.

When it comes to areas in which we do not have a lot of experience or knowledge, we tend to approach someone who does. That’s why there are specialists in so many areas. Think about this. If you want to build a house, you hire a builder. The builder may know a lot about building houses, but even he won’t complete the job alone- he will hire electricians, framers, plumbers, painters, etc. He trusts people who are more experienced in specialized areas than he is. He probably even hires his contractors based on recommendations and referrals. (I used to work for a builder, so I know!)

Does it really work?

Let’s apply this principle to selling online. Words are very powerful. When someone is marketing their own product or service, it is easy for them to “talk it up” or make it sounds like it’s the greatest thing since sliced bread (which we can all agree is a pretty convenient product). It is often more important to consumers to find out what their peers or previous consumers think of a product- how did it work? How pleased are they? Did it solve the problem it promised to solve? Did it achieve its intended goal?

Combined Insurance Company of America founder, W. Clement Stone, very successfully sold life insurance, an intangible product, to his customers by using this simple technique: He sent his salesmen out to speak to potential customers with only a binder of over 200 testimonials from previous satisfied customers. Salesmen would flip through the binder, read a few testimonials, and attempt to close the sale. If a customer was not sold, the salesman would flip through a few more testimonials, and attempt to close the sale once more. The rate at which customers signed up for his insurance was astounding! Usually before 25 testimonials, a sale was made.

Here is another example. A software developer created software and during its test phase, he gave it away to his target audience for free in exchange for their feedback. He received dozens of responses to his new program. Before he had content for his website, and while the website was under construction, he simply posted the feedback responses and testimonials. The only other information he gave was his email address, so prospective customers could contact him for more information. Needless to say, his tactic was proven to be quite successful, receiving hundreds of pre-orders!

What can I do?

In the internet world, where online marketing techniques are highly questionable, consumers often refer to forums, blogs, reviews and networking sites to find out whether a product or service is worth spending money on. It is always interesting to me that websites insert testimonials as an afterthought or an additional “content filler” if you will. But placed strategically, a testimonial within web copy or as a headline can help sell a product or service faster than a marketer selling his own product.

Now how can you get consumers to write a testimonial? This is actually pretty simple. Send clients or customers a brief request with a few short questions and ask them to complete this at their earliest convenience. These should be specific and quantifiable, such as “I received 5X more traffic after using this software,” or “I lost 10 pounds after using this product”, etc. If you cannot coax your customers to respond, then consider giving your product or services away for free in exchange for feedback. Never underestimate the power of social proof, acceptance and satisfaction.

Make Your Content More Engaging Using Emotions

50 Great Entrepreneurial Quotes

Travis McAshan — Wed, 16 Nov 2011 16:46:35 +0000

In a nutshell… here’s a collection of quotes on entrepreneurship for those times when you need some inspiration.

If you’re anything like me, you need to remember why you’re working so hard every day. Sometimes if you haven’t looked up from the grindstone long enough, your vision can get cloudy. These quotes are to remind you that there’s a purpose and a reason for your dedication, discipline and hard work. While there are hundreds, if not thousands of great quotes, these are some of my all time favorites.

I have not failed. I’ve just found 10,000 ways that won’t work”
– Thomas Edison,
Inventor and Scientist

Entrepreneurship is living a few years of your life like most people won’t, so that you can spend the rest of your life like most people can’t.”
– Anonymous

The best reason to start an organization is to make meaning – to create a product or service to make the world a better place.”
– Guy Kawasaki,
Entrepreneur, Investor, Author

Twenty years from now, you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn’t do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.”
– Mark Twain,
Author

Genius is 1% inspiration, and 99% perspiration.”
– Thomas Edison,
Inventor and Scientist

What would you attempt to do if you knew you would not fail?”
– Robert Schuller,
Televangelist and Pastor

You must fall in love with what you do, because being an entrepreneur is a lot of hard work, and overcoming a lot of adversity. From that love will come the dedication that will get you out of bed at 4 a.m. because of a great idea you just had and get you to work till 11 p.m. and not feel tired.”
– Ken Field,
Real Estate Magnate

Far better it is to dare mighty things, to win glorious triumphs, even though checkered by failure, than to take rank with those poor spirits who neither enjoy much nor suffer much because they live in the gray twilight that knows neither victory nor defeat.” – Theodore Roosevelt,
26th President of the United States

The secret to creativity is knowing how to hide your sources.”
– Albert Einstein,
Theoretical Physicist

Success is not the key to happiness. Happiness is the key to success. If you love what you are doing, you will be successful.”
– Albert Schweitzer,
Theologian, Organist, Philosopher

A pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity; an optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty.”
– Winston Churchill,
British Politician

Whether you think you can or you can’t, you’re right.”
– Henry Ford,
American Industrialist

What the mind of man can conceive and believe, it can achieve.”
– Napoleon Hill,
Author

The only place success comes before work is in the dictionary.”
– Vince Lombardi,
NFL Coach

Sow a thought, reap an action; sow an action, reap a habit; sow a habit, reap a character; sow a character, reap a destiny.”
– Chinese Proverb

If I had eight hours to chop down a tree I would spend six hours sharpening my axe.”
– Abraham Lincoln,
16th President of the United States

Try not. Do or do not. There is no try.”
– Yoda,
Jedi Master

Always treat your employees exactly as you want them to treat your best customers.”
– Stephen R. Covey,
Author

Choose a job that you like, and you will never have to work a day in your life.”
– Confucius ,
Thinker and Philosopher

An ounce of action is worth a ton of theory”
– Ralph Waldo Emerson,
Writer and Poet

Motivation is what gets you started. Habit is what keeps you going.”
– Jim Rohn,
Entrepreneur, Author, Speaker

Business opportunities are like buses, there’s always another one coming.”
– Richard Branson,
British Industrialist

Action is the foundational key to all success.”
– Pablo Picasso,
Spanish Painter

Every worthwhile accomplishment, big or little, has its stages of drudgery and triumph: a beginning, a struggle and a victory.”
– Mahatma Gandhi,
Political and Spiritual Leader

Once you say you’re going to settle for second, that’s what happens to you in life.”
– John F. Kennedy,
35th President of the United States

Some people dream of great accomplishments, while others stay awake and do them.”
– Anonymous

Experience taught me a few things. One is to listen to your gut, no matter how good something sounds on paper. The second is that you’re generally better off sticking with what you know. And the third is that sometimes your best investments are the ones you don’t make.”
– Donald Trump,
Real Estate and Entertainment Mogul

The entrepreneur in us sees opportunities everywhere we look, but many people see only problems everywhere they look. The entrepreneur in us is more concerned with discriminating between opportunities than he or she is with failing to see the opportunities.”
– Michael Gerber,
Author and Entrepreneur

An entrepreneur tends to bite off a little more than he can chew hoping he’ll quickly learn how to chew it.”
– Roy Ash,
California State Senator

The most valuable thing you can make is a mistake – you can’t learn anything from being perfect.”
– Adam Osborne,
American Author

A man must be big enough to admit his mistakes, smart enough to profit from them, and strong enough to correct them.”
– John C. Maxwell,
Author and Speaker

Logic will get you from A to B. Imagination will take you everywhere.”
– Albert Einstein,
Theoretical Physicist

As long as you’re going to be thinking anyway, think big.”
– Donald Trump,
Real Estate and Entertainment Mogul

Don’t make friends who are comfortable to be with. Make friends who will force you to lever yourself up.”
– Thomas J. Watson,
President of IBM

Success is walking from failure to failure with no loss of enthusiasm.”
– Winston Churchill,
British Politician

In order to succeed, your desire for success should be greater than your fear of failure.”
– Bill Cosby,
Comedian, Actor, Author

A leader is one who knows the way, goes the way, and shows the way.”
– John C. Maxwell,
Author and Speaker

You were born to win, but to be a winner, you must plan to win, prepare to win, and expect to win.”
– Zig Ziglar,
Author and Speaker

Discipline is the bridge between goals and accomplishment.”
– Jim Rohn,
Entrepreneur, Author, Speaker

A goal is a dream with a deadline.”
– Napoleon Hill,
Author

Vision without action is daydreaming and action without vision is a nightmare.”
– Chinese Proverb

The way to get started is to quit talking and begin doing.”
– Walt Disney,
Director, Writer, Producer, Animator, Entrepreneur

Your most unhappy customers are your greatest source of learning.”
– Bill Gates,
American Business Magnate and Philanthropist

I’ve always worked very, very hard, and the harder I worked, the luckier I got.”
– Alan Bond,
Australian Businessman

Success is how high you bounce after you hit bottom.”
– General George Patton,
US War Commander

I can accept failure, everyone fails at something. But I can’t accept not trying.”
– Michael Jordan,
Professional Basketball Player

Money won’t make you happy… but everybody wants to find out for themselves.”
– Zig Ziglar,
Author and Speaker

I studied the lives of great men and famous women, and I found that the men and women who got to the top were those who did the jobs they had in hand, with everything they had of energy and enthusiasm and hard work.”
– Harry Truman,
33rd President of the United States

If you think you are beaten, you are. If you think you dare not, you don’t! If you want to win, but think you can’t, It’s almost a cinch you won’t. If you think you’ll lose, you’re lost; For out in the world, we find success begins with a fellow’s will; it’s all in the state of the mind. Life’s battles don’t always go to the stronger and faster man, but sooner or later, the man who wins is the man who thinks he can.”
– Walter D. Wintle,
American Poet

Inbound marketing is the “new hotness”

Travis McAshan — Sun, 28 Aug 2011 04:47:11 +0000

Outbound marketing is DEAD!

It used to be true that when most small businesses had a yellow pages ad and great word of mouth marketing, things were rosy. In fact many businesses are still using true “outbound” marketing techniques such as trade shows, print advertising, call centers, radio & television advertising, billboards and even infomercials. The whole idea is to PUSH/HAMMER out the marketing message, getting in front of as many people as possible with the hope of reaching a few quality leads. As we progress, we see that these traditional forms of marketing are becoming less and less effective for two important reasons.

Reason 1: People HATE interruption-based marketing

Think about it… when was the last time you stopped to talk to a telemarketer during a busy work day? That is if they even made it past the call blocker or caller ID. What about the last time you actually read a single piece of junk mail. Or perhaps you skip right past the commercials on your TIVO or maybe get all your music online without ever listening to the radio? And do we even need to mention email spam?

Reason 2: The internet is RICH with free information

In the example above, you may not have spoken to a telemarketer in years but I bet you have ”googled” information about potential purchases and products multiple times in the last 24 hours alone. Why fly across the country to a trade show when you can get all the information you need right off a company websites? And who needs TV with 13 minutes of commercials for every hour when you can download your shows online?

What is “Inbound Marketing”?

So if you’ve stuck with me so far you’ll quickly find yourself asking the million dollar question, “What is inbound marketing?” It’s actually pretty easy to understand and not all that hard to begin applying; however, true success lies in wait for those who are willing to stay in it for the long run.

(1) Content – Content is the substance of any Inbound Marketing campaign. It is the information or tool that attracts potential customers to your site or your business.

(2) Search Engine Optimization – SEO makes it easier for potential customers to find your content. It is the practice of building your site and inbound links to your site to maximize your ranking in search engines, where most of your customers begin their buying process.

(3) Social Media – Social media amplifies the impact of your content. When your content is distributed across and discussed on networks of personal relationships, it becomes more authentic and nuanced and is more likely to draw qualified customers to your site.

Content, SEO, PPC, Blogging and Social Media… ???

If you’re an overworked business owner, don’t fret too much; many of the services needed to accomplish the basics of inbound marketing are not as hard or complicated as they sound. For example, “blogging” is really just about YOU, the business owner, committing to writing about your business every so often, about the things that you normally do on a day to day basis. Typically, if done consistently, you would have fresh original content that’s automatically industry and keyword optimized, is engaging and shows your business has an online pulse. All that and you just threw up a few articles about your thoughts on the flower industry or how to save money on your taxes, or how to properly insulate your home.

Your website is your MOST CRITICAL marketing asset!

Do you think this is bold, presumptuous, cocky and just a little too confident? You might be right, but let’s talk again in 5 or 10 years. Show me the local plumbers or lawyers or builders who found a way to generate their leads online, and I’ll show you a company that is healthy and growing. My personal opinion is that there is simply not enough leads for word of mouth marketing to go around. I work with hundreds of businesses a year, and the ones that have a quality website that generate quality leads, are growing. The businesses that don’t, are failed, failing or are showing serious signs of trouble.

How do I get started?

So you might say, “I’m sold, how do I get started?” That’s a great question, and my first answer is call GLIDE… ha. OK, I might be jumping the gun here, but I’ll have to be honest that the first step is to find someone, anyone, that knows more about inbound marketing than you, and learn from them. When you feel like you have gleaned all you can from them, move on and up and find someone even more knowledgeable. Odds are anyone that has taken the time to learn a fare share of internet expertise would be more than willing to impart that with a humble request. Go ahead… try us to start with.

Quotable Quote…

“Set higher standards for you own performance than anyone around you, and it won’t matter whether you have a tough boss or an easy one. It won’t matter whether the competition is pushing you hard, because you’ll be competing with yourself.”
– Rick Pitino

The Yoga of a Successful Homepage

Autumn Morgan — Mon, 20 Jun 2011 22:52:24 +0000

In a nutshell… without having to study a ridiculous number of books, let me give you the four “yogas” that bring “unity” to your home page.

There are hundreds of books written to explain the detailed study of yoga and how to make it benefit you. Likewise, there are hundreds of books written to teach you how to put together the most successful website possible. I guess the difference between the two is that one may cause a headache while the other can get rid of one. A nice team, I’d say.

A Little Background…

The word “yoga” is related to the English word “yolk” and originates from the word “yuj”. Simply translated, it means “unity, connection or contact”. When practicing yoga, there are many different types of yoga. You can choose to focus on one thought, one muscle group to relieve, one part of your bran to still or one type of stretch. You can also practice one of the four main forms of yoga (Bhatki, Gyan, Karma and Raga), and believe me, there are volumes of books on each of these. The point when practicing yoga is to know that there are different type, different points of focus and different outcomes depending on your need. See where I’m going with this? When creating your home page (ah, there it is!) you have to decide what type of website you are creating. You have to choose your focus, your direction, your audience and your flow. Find your center! Sorry, I had to throw that in.

1. Welcome your visitors

They came to your website for a reason, and that reason needs to be addressed pretty quickly. People don’t have a very long attention span, so it is important that you catch their interest; let them know that you understand their problem and that you can solve it for them. Make sure your message is concise and to the point without a lot of extra fluff. Otherwise, they won’t spend the time to wade through all the “wordiness” and not even find out that you can save them thousands of dollars a year or increase their business sales.

2. Make sure the page is scan-able

Readers should be able to take a few seconds to glance over your home page and have a good, general idea of what the site is about. Use headlines, use bullet points, use sub-headings and make quick points. If you choose to have a couple of paragraphs about your business and how it can help potential clients and customers, convey these ideas in short, catchy paragraphs that make them want to click on other pages; you can have more details within those pages.

3. Make site navigation simple

This is two-fold. For one, the page tabs should be easily recognizable. Most websites have tabs across the top of a webpage, and often on the sidebar on other pages within your website. The key is to keep them consistent. Use the same titles for each tab. If you call one page “About Us”, then this same title needs to be used any time you are referring to this page; don’t call it “The History of our Company” on another tab title within your site. The second thing to remember is that some people get lost on websites and are unsure of where to go from the home page. Make it easy for your readers by inviting them to “learn more about us here”, or “if you have questions, feel free to visit this page”, or “see the services we offer here”.

4. Talk directly to your reader

In using the word “you” frequently, it is as though you are speaking directly to that one person, and it seems more personal. Think about this- if a website said, “We can save our clients hundreds on insurance each month,” well, good for all those clients! But what if it said, “We save you hundreds of dollars on your insurance each month”? That sounds good to me! They are talking specifically to me! I could use an extra few hundred bucks a month.

Begin studying and practicing these four forms of “home-page yoga” and see if your site becomes more unified and focused. Find your center! (Sorry, I had to one last time.)

4 Ways to Get Customers Attention

Autumn Morgan — Tue, 10 May 2011 22:37:29 +0000

What do customers want to hear? That they are heard. And what do customers want you to say? That you are listening.

I’m going to use a really girly example, hair bows. For one, I am a girl; two, I have a little girl; and three, this girly topic inspired this post. Bear with me; if you need a manlier subject, just insert the words “fishing pole” when I say “hair bow”.

1.) Look professional.

I don’t mean with your physical appearance, though that can help. But your web-site presence and your shop or store front should look like you know what you’re doing. Professional (or well-edited) photos, clean lines and white backgrounds do wonders. Your web content, product descriptions and taglines should be attention-grabbing, concise and thorough. I ordered a hair bow online a few months ago from a boutique that was having a pretty big sale. The pictures weren’t great, and nothing about the website was particularly appealing, but the colors matched the outfit I wanted it for, so I bought it. After 8 long weeks of trying to get this boutique-owner to respond to me about me order, and after countless promises that she sent it, I finally filed for a refund and I’ll never purchase from them again. Had she been more serious about her business, her site would have reflected that.

2.) Prove you are the expert.

Customers come to you because they believe you are the expert in the field in which you work. Experts are the ones who can answer any question in record time, know their competition, research their field and products so that they always have the best to offer, communicate well with their customers and never compromise their quality. Most of the time, even if you “sound” like an expert, and its half-way believable, you can probably get away with it, as long as you continue to grow and educate yourself in your field. I often order hair bows from an online boutique which is considered the best of the best. (Did you know there was such a thing?) The owner uses thick ribbon instead of the floppy stuff. She assembles them in a way that even the most destructive toddler couldn’t destroy them. She secures the ends so they don’t fray. Her designs are unique, un-matched, original and always with extra flair. She can answer and question about any ribbon, centerpiece, assembly-technique and clip. Her packaging is beautiful, her turn-around time is fast and a lot of people trust that she is “The Expert Bow Maker”.

3.) Ask them what they want.

When working with clients and customers, it is always most important to find out what their need is and to meet it. This is especially true if you fill custom orders or services. In order to create a plan, product or service specifically tailored to a customer’s needs, you will be expected to listen very carefully, so that you will be able to give them exactly what they want. And don’t just stop there- make sure you give them what they ask for. This shows customers that you are willing to take the time to listen to their needs and that you value their business. It’s a sure way to get repeat business and referrals.

4.) Follow up with a thank you.

You want your customers to remember you above all the other competition. Thanking customers for their purchase makes them feel appreciated and valued by you. Ways to show appreciation could include an email, a coupon, a promotional code, a gift bag, or even a small, inexpensive gift, perhaps with your logo or brand on it. These things could include bottle openers, pens, magnets, etc. The frequency with which you send these can also vary- after each purchase, quarterly or at Christmas. When I order a handmade hair bow online, I love receiving the package with a small clippie or something cute as a “thank you”. In my own business, I send out Christmas cards with a thank you note and a promo-code for future transactions.

25 Great Quotes on Passion

Travis McAshan — Mon, 11 Apr 2011 17:01:48 +0000

In a nutshell… here’s a collection of quotes on passion and enthusiasm to keep your fire burning bright.

At the end of the day we all need to remember to keep going. However, just making it another day doesn’t get us where we truly want to be. We must move with vigor, passion, and fixed determination to achieve our goals.

Never, never, never give up.”
– Winston Churchill,
British Statesman

A person can succeed at almost anything for which they have unlimited enthusiasm.”
– Charles M. Schwab,
American Steel Magnate

The only people for me are the mad ones, the ones who are mad to live, mad to talk, mad to be saved, desirous of everything at the same time, the ones who never yawn or say a commonplace thing, but burn, burn, burn, like fabulous yellow roman candles exploding like spiders across the stars and in the middle you see the blue centerlight pop and everybody goes “Awww!””
– Jack Kerouac,
Author

I have no special talents. I am only passionately curious.”
– Albert Einstein,
Theoretical Physicist

Passion, it lies in all of us, sleeping… waiting… and though unwanted… unbidden… it will stir… open its jaws and howl. It speaks to us… guides us… passion rules us all, and we obey. What other choice do we have? Passion is the source of our finest moments. The joy of love… the clarity of hatred… and the ecstasy of grief. It hurts sometimes more than we can bear. If we could live without passion maybe we’d know some kind of peace… but we would be hollow… Empty rooms shuttered and dank. Without passion we’d be truly dead.”
– Joss Whedon,
Screenwriter and Director

A great leader’s courage to fulfill his vision comes from passion, not position.”
– John Maxwell,
Author and Speaker

Courage is going from failure to failure without losing enthusiasm.”
– Winston Churchill,
British Politician

There is no end. There is no beginning. There is only the passion of life.”
– Federico Fellini,
Italian Film Director

Nothing great in the world has been accomplished without passion.”
– Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel,
German Philosopher

Rest in reason; move in passion.”
– Khalil Gibran,
Artist, Poet and Writer

Passion is the genesis of genius.”
– Anthony Robbins,
Speaker and Author

If passion drives you, let reason hold the reins.”
– Benjamin Franklin,
American Statesman

Don’t ask yourself what the world needs; ask yourself what makes you come alive. And then go and do that. Because what the world needs is people who have come alive.”
– Howard Thurman,
Author and Philosopher

Renew your passions daily.”
– Terri Guillemets,
Quotation Anthologist

The most powerful weapon on earth is the human soul on fire.”
– Ferdinand Foch,
French Military Strategist

There is no greatness without a passion to be great, whether it’s the aspiration of an athlete or an artist, a scientist, a parent, or a businessperson.”
– Anthony Robbins,
Speaker and Author

Enthusiasm is one of the most powerful engines of success. When you do a thing, do it with all your might. Put your whole soul into it. Stamp it with your own personality. Be active, be energetic and faithful, and you will accomplish your object. Nothing great was ever achieved without enthusiasm.”
– Ralph Waldo Emerson,
American Philosopher

If there is no passion in your life, then have you really lived? Find your passion, whatever it may be. Become it, and let it become you and you will find great things happen FOR you, TO you and BECAUSE of you.”
– T. Alan Armstrong,
Author and Writer

Passion and purpose go hand in hand. When you discover your purpose, you will normally find it’s something you’re tremendously passionate about.”
– Steve Pavlina,
Blogger and Author

Never underestimate the power of passion.”
– Eve Sawyer,
Author and Writer

Only passions, great passions, can elevate the soul to great things.”
– Denis Diderot,
French Philosopher

When you set yourself on fire, people love to come and see you burn.”
– John Wesley,
Christian Theologian

One person with passion is better than forty people merely interested.”
– E. M. Forster,
English Novelist

Purpose may point you in the right direction but it’s passion propels you.”
– Travis McAshan,
Entrepreneur and Web Strategist

Enthusiasm is nothing more or less than faith in action.”
– Henry Chester,
Australian Politician

Three Simple E-Commerce Solutions

Travis McAshan — Thu, 07 Apr 2011 06:19:26 +0000

This is another email I sent a customer not too long ago. After reviewing it I realized it’s got some really useful information and I thought it couldn’t hurt to share this with the world. There are a couple of options I’ve featured and I’ve listed them below in regard to pros and cons.

1. Interspire Shopping Cart ($995 for professional)

PRO: I would recommend getting the professional version and hosting the site yourself (or with us). It has the best set of features and they are continually updating as you can see… it’s on version 6. This shopping cart is outstanding and jam-packed with the most features you’ll probably find on a shopping cart (while still being easy to use). Overall, we have a number of happy clients on this platform, it’s mostly well supported, and we know it forward and back (minus keeping up with all the version feature upgrades).
CON: The designs are mostly very “blah” and bland in my opinion. They all look like those cheap templates and it’s next to impossible to create a custom design around these sites as we have spent QUITE a bit of time trying to do this. The big problem is that everytime you modify the designs you have to update all the code when a new version of the software comes out. It’s simply not worth the cost. So if you can stand your site looking MOSTLY like one of these templates (http://www.interspire.com/shoppingcart/storedesigns.php) this is a good solution. Overall, I would say that your brand suffers a bit from the lack of style.

2. WordPress + Cart66

PRO: Very clean and easy to use
CON: Lacks advanced features that my limit you as you grow

3. WordPress + Shopper Press ($79)

PRO: I like all the built in features and also like the style of the overall administration and front end features.
CON: We have actually never used this product but I still think that it’s worth considering. Also, it might not be industrial strength e-commerce.

Overall Thoughts

My personal opinion is that your ecommerce sales is what pays the bills. But it’s your marketing that drives the traffic that get’s that done. Right now it might be past customers and warm lead referrals but as you realize it’s important to start cracking into inbound online traffic. I believe that most people are usually looking for the best deal when searching for a product online but if you can become a via source of reliable and trustworthy information in addition to great products you’ll create a more sustainable company that will weather the “cheapest” product available online storm. With all that being said, I think a site like interspires shopping cart conveys… we are just an ecommerce site like all the rest and we want your money. My personal opinion is that a great ecommerce website is just like a great marketing website. It embodies five key principles.

1. Design
2. Usability
3. Content
4. Traffic
5. Conversion

The Bigger Picture…

However, you need an even bigger picture than this. You need what you’re going to do after you get the website. The plan of action and scope to take your site traffic to the next level. It looks something like this at the most basic.

1. Website
2. Search Engine Optimization
3. Blog
4. Mailing List
5. Social Media
6. Link Buiding
7. Paid Advertising
8. Traditional (offline)

In Conclusion

I’m not trying to overwhelm you (sorry if so) but whatever decision you make should take into account partnering with a web firm that can not only make the site for (or under) the budget you’re looking for but also help you actually achieve success with your website. This is my passion and I look for new ways everyday to help my clients get there. If you feel one of the above solutions is right for your needs then we should setup an in-person meeting to discuss your project more and then I’ll be happy to deliver a final time/cost estimate shortly after. Thanks in advance and have a great day!