Simple Secrets to Hooking the Local Market

If your have a local business — like a service or a store — you know you MUST have a website.

But how do you get to the top of the search results when you have to compete with every similar business on the Internet?

YOU DON’T!

You only have to compete with similar businesses in your AREA.

Think about this… Erin lives in SoHo and needs to make some color prints during her lunch break.

She hops on the Internet, does a search for "color printing SoHo," and Google Maps shows a bunch of businesses in her neighborhood.

It even shows her where they’re located.

She prints out the map and heads off to get her copies done.

Erin uses the location name in her search because if she just Googled "color printing" she’d get millions of useless results.

So if you depend on local business, use those same location-specific keywords throughout your site.

You’ll get to the top of the search results for the specific market you’re aiming at. Easily!

Because most of your competitors won’t know how to "optimize" their websites to snag those local searches.

In fact, a letter I received recently from a chiropractor based in LA is the perfect example. He commented that he’s "getting terrible placement" for his clinic site.

Well, he doesn’t need to compete for his keywords with chiropractors all around the world, since he can’t treat patients everywhere. If he adds a geographic location to his website keywords, he’s only going to face competition from the other chiropractors in his area.

With a site targeted directly at his local market, this is one chiropractor who won’t be suffering from injured rankings!

 

3 easy ways to optimize your site for local search

So, what’s involved in getting top search engine rankings for the region you want?

 

1. Use "geo-keywords"

First, decide on how specific to be with your location. The smaller the geographic location, the more targeted your customers will be… although of course you will appeal to a smaller audience.

The chiropractor in Los Angeles would want to include "Los Angeles" and "LA." But he’ll also have to say exactly where he is — the city, the neighborhood… even the street. People will use all those terms when they perform their searches.

And here’s a tip: When you’re deciding on the location keyword, think about how locals would search for it.

For example, Southern California is often referred to as "SoCal;" while residents of Port Coquitlam in British Columbia call it "Poco." If you’re targeting locals, you definitely have to speak their language and use those keywords on your site.

Make sure you work your location keywords into your copy and code wherever possible. Use them in your headlines and subheads. And throughout your copy for extra impact.

One of the pages on your website should be a directions page, complete with a Google map.

By using location keywords often you’ll tell the search engines that your site is relevant for those words.

 

2. Display your address and phone number

Have your full street address on the footer at the bottom of each page and on the side navigation bar.

Include a phone number with a local area code. This will give the search engines all the information they need to nail your location.

 

3. Get inbound local links

Search engines reward you for having links pointing to your website from other reputable sites and organizations.

Local directories give you an easy way to build up your inbound links… and get your site seen by highly targeted groups of local buyers!

You can submit your site to:

• Goog411 — http://www.google.com/goog411
• Yahoo Local Business — http://listings.local.yahoo.com/signup/create_1.php
• TrueLocal.com — http://www.truelocal.com/listabusiness.aspx
• Switchboard.com Yellow Pages — http://www.switchboard.com
• Ask Local — http://city.ask.com/city
• MSN Local/Live Maps/InfoUSA — https://ssl.search.live.com/listings/ListingCenter.aspx
• CitySearch — https://selfenroll.citysearch.com
• SuperPages — http://advertising.superpages.com/spportal
• Internet Yellow Pages — http://www.yellow.com/advertise
• Better Business Bureau — http://www.bbb.org/membership/index.asp
• Chambers of Commerce — http://www.chamberofcommerce.com/public/index.cfm
• Yelp.com — http://www.yelp.com

Most of these directories offer both free and paid listings. Test out the free service before upgrading to paid to see if it works for you without having to pay any further fees.

Don’t forget to look for other local directories and networks too. Search on "location name + directories" and see what comes up. More and more are appearing every day!

Here is a great resource for more information: http://www.locallytype.com/pages/submit.htm

Be search engine savvy when you’re filling out your listings. Whenever possible mention keywords, area names and product names so you can be found!

If your business is local, follow these 3 tips and watch your site blow away your local competition.

Facebooking with eBay

You can now list your eBay auctions on Facebook.

If you haven’t already signed up to Facebook and have been wondering what all the fuss is about, it’s one of the most popular social networking sites on the Internet today.

Facebook members post information about what they’re doing or thinking, news, photos, their interests… just about anything really. You can also become "friends" with people you know, or people you meet through the website.

Your friends are automatically updated when you add information to your profile, which allows them keep an eye on what you’re up to.

If you’re already a Facebook user, you’ll be familiar with the News Feed that shows up on your Home page — this is where your friend updates appear. It looks a bit like this…

 

 

You can see that all sorts of information is posted in the News Feed, including advertisements. Most Facebook members check their Home page regularly, so they know what their friends are up to.

The News Feed is also interactive. If you notice a friend joining a group that appeals to you, for example, you can click the link and check it out for yourself. (The linked text is blue.)

 

So, what does this all have to do with eBay?

Well… now you can show your eBay listings in the Facebook News Feeds. That means all your Facebook friends will see your auctions when they appear… which instantly gives you a much larger audience.

 

Here’s how it works…

Go to your selling preferences in My eBay to link your Facebook profile to your eBay account, or use the link on the "Congratulations" page after you’ve listed an item through the Sell Your Item form.

After that, whenever you list a new item, it will automatically be included in Facebook News Feed.

If you’ve never shared a listing with Facebook before, you’ll get an invitation whenever you successfully list an item.

Once you start sharing, all the items you list for sale on eBay will continue to be sent to Facebook, until you turn off sharing in My eBay.

If you don’t want to share, click Cancel on the confirmation page rather than Confirm.

To stop or re-start sharing, you can go to My eBay and edit your sharing preferences whenever you want.

 

However…

There are a couple of things you need to remember, though. eBay’s shill bidding policy doesn’t allow bids from anyone who has more access to your item information than the general eBay Community.

This means your friends aren’t allowed to bid on an auction-style listing.

But if you want your Facebook friends to be able to buy your items, simply list them as Buy It Now or for a Fixed Price.

It’s still okay to offer auction-style bidding on your items, but your Facebook friends just won’t be able to bid. eBay recommends that you block bids from their eBay accounts.

 

Will this turn into more sales for you?

Well, as always we suggest you make sure all the basics are in place for your listings before you try anything else.

We’re talking about descriptive and vibrant item descriptions, great pictures, the right keywords in your title, and good Detailed Service Ratings at the very least! But it’s always good to remember that social networking sites like Facebook continue to rise in popularity… and that’s a market you can’t ignore forever.

In fact, Facebook’s members in the US alone increased by 98% from 2007 to 24.9 million unique users by the end of March. So in all likelihood, you already have a bunch of friends on Facebook, even if you haven’t used it yourself.

It looks like eBay will allow listings to be displayed on other social networking sites if the Facebook venture is successful, so this is definitely a strategy to keep an eye on for the future.

For more info, check out eBay’s Help page.

 

If you’re looking to start an Internet business… WITHOUT a website WITHOUT a ton of start-up capital WITHOUT being a computer techie, and WITHOUT a ton of business experience! … eBay is the perfect place for you! PLUS — if you have an EXISTING Internet business — you’ll learn how to boost your sales by expanding into eBay’s giant online auctionplace of 2,000,000 shoppers a day, with over $1 Billion in purchases made in 2006! So if you’re keen to earn life-changing wealth in the world’s largest marketplace (I’m talking 241,000,000 registered users who are PSYCHED to spend money online), then check out my new Insider Secrets to Selling on eBay!

 

Overhaul your FAQ

Hands up if you’ve given your FAQ page even a second thought since you originally wrote it — which was probably waaaaay back when you launched your site.

Your FAQ is of those "admin" pages that just sit there, quietly chugging along. Right?

Nope!

Your FAQ page can actively attract traffic to your site, establish your credibility, and make sales for you. Not bad for a "functional" admin page!

 

Here’s 3 money-making reasons to overhaul your FAQ page:

 

1: Lure traffic to your site.

Optimized your FAQ page with keywords.

Think about it. This is the perfect place.

You can use long-tail keyword questions about your product — questions people actually type in to the search engines when they have a problem that your item can solve. In fact, you can use those "problem statements" in both the questions AND the answers to make the search engines really sit up and take notice!

Your FAQ page is also a great place for product names and other specifics that people search on when they’re ready to buy.

And the more frequently you update your FAQ with your best-performing keywords, the more often the spiders will crawl all over it and boost your search rankings.

 

2: Make visitors trust you so they’ll stick around to buy

Have you ever gone into a store, ready to part with your cash for a product you want… but you couldn’t get a salesperson’s attention so you decided to take your money elsewhere?

It’s the same with visitors who come to your site and can’t find any information that will help them with their buying decision.

When you run an online store you can’t talk to all the people who stop by your site, but you can show them you understand that everyone has questions and that you can answer them all.

To do this, your FAQ needs to be comprehensive. Don’t just slap out a few careless questions and answers. That makes you look as though you’re uninterested in the concerns your customer might have… just like that bored salesperson who made you want to leave the store as fast as you could!

High-quality information in your FAQs will show your customers that you’re helpful and knowledgeable as well. This is your chance to really sell how well you know your product, so add questions and answers that show off your specialized knowledge.

And it’s easy to let your enthusiasm for your product show through with phrases like:

"We’re really excited about…"

"I’m thrilled to say…"

"One of the best parts of my job is being able to give customers…"

"We take great pride in…"

And so on!

Take the time to explain your answers, like you would if you were talking to someone in person and visitors will think, "They seem to know about this stuff, so I trust their opinion."

 

3: Get more sales by overcoming common sticking points

Use your FAQ the way you’d use a salesletter. Show how your product out-performs the competition. Explain why your product would be a good deal at twice the price. Introduce a complementary product.

Ask your own questions — the ones you WISH people would ask — and then answer them in the same helpful, informative way you’ve answered all the others.

The trick is to make the questions sound as if they came from someone else.

NOT: "How superior is your model FQ154 mini-blender to the Waring model BX20?"

INSTEAD: "Why should I buy your mini-blender instead of the Waring one?"

In your answers, quote legitimate product reviews wherever possible. Show quantifiable results. And most important, explain the benefits of each feature you talk about.

And don’t forget to include those keywords!

And of course…

A well written FAQ will also save you countless hours answering individual questions!

Isn’t it time you took another look at your FAQ?

 

 

First Things First

You’ve got your site up. NOW what?

"Derek, there’s so many things I need to do to my website… I don’t know where to start! What should I focus on?"

I agree — the list seems ENDLESS!

You need to drive traffic… grow your opt-in list… make sales… improve work on your SEO…

Okay, step back for a minute and realize it’s just NOT POSSIBLE to do everything at once!

So once you’ve built your website, here’s the FIRST THING you should do:

Make your sales process watertight!

There’s no point spending cash on pay-per-click ads to drive targeted traffic to your site if none of those visitors buy anything.

 

Here are the top 3 ways to make your site a sales machine — BEFORE you spend a bundle on attracting visitors.

 

1: Get your salescopy in top shape

You’ve got under five seconds to convince people to stay on your website… so your headline has to grab them by the eyeballs and compel them to read on!

The best headlines tell visitors they’ll find exactly what they’re searching for, and intrigue them enough to keep reading.

Don’t let your readers slip through your fingers once you’ve grabbed their attention with a hot headline.

Salescopy is the most important part of your website — because it turns visitors into customers!

So make sure it smoothly guides people through a streamlined process that:

• Identifies with their problem and builds your credibility
  
• Engages them — and explains why you can help
  
• Tells them how they’ll benefit from your product
  
• Overcomes any objections they may have
  
• Compels them to take action — and tells them what to do!

Give people a clear call to action that motivates them by re-stating the biggest benefit they’ll get from buying now.

Instead of saying, "Click here to buy now!" go for something like, "Click here for instant access and start changing your life for the better in the next 30 minutes!"

Funnel your readers through a tight sales process — and don’t give them a reason to click away. If you do, they probably won’t come back!

 

2: Collect testimonials

What’s more trustworthy than a personal recommendation?

A good testimonial can persuade even the most skeptical potential customer to buy from you.

Testimonials prove that your product really works — it DOES do exactly what you promise. And if you run a small business and haven’t built your reputation, testimonials are absolutely indispensable

You NEED testimonials when you’re getting started.

Here’s how to gather quality testimonials and benefit from them immediately:

• If you don’t have any customers yet, give your product away to a group of people in your target market, in exchange for their feedback.
• If you have some positive feedback from customers,
  ask permission to use their comments on your site.

• Don’t be afraid to ask for testimonials! Invite customers to give you their vote of confidence with an email link that says: "Click here to tell us what you think!"
• Email your buyers after they’ve purchased your product to ask them how they’re enjoying it.

Make sure each testimonial has a first name, last name, and location to prove they’re from real people.

Aim to get testimonials that are packed full of concrete benefits telling your customers exactly what they can expect to gain from buying your product.

Use them on your homepage, within your salescopy, and on a special testimonial page, and on relevant product pages.

 

3: Make it easy to buy!

I’m always amazed how many sites make it difficult for you to buy from them.

According to market research from the Gartner Group, more than 50% of web sales are LOST because visitors can’t find what they’re looking for!

Don’t make that mistake.

• Name your navigation buttons clearly so it’s obvious what people will find when they click on them.
• Keep your site’s navigation simple and consistent throughout your site, so people don’t have to click any more than necessary. Ideally, it someone should be able to buy from you in two clicks at most.
• Use "Buy Now" buttons that link to your shopping cart or order page every time a product is shown– especially if you have a catalog site.

And when people click to your sales page, make things easy for them!

• Provide a range of payment options — PayPal is a great place to start because it gives you an easy way to accept credit cards — an absolute MUST.
• On your order form, ask ONLY for the information you need. For example, if you sell an eBook, it’s unlikely you’ll need a home address.
• And here’s an extra tip… don’t underestimate the power of including a phone number people can call if they have any questions.

As you work on your sales process, feel free to use our monitoring and testing tips to see which changes are most effective, so every element you add is an improvement.

If you DON’T test your site, you can be sure your visitors will be testing it anyway! So make sure there aren’t any leaks in your sales process for them to find.

Build a solid sales process first, and then prioritize more advanced business-building strategies.

Once you’ve got these three crucial parts of your sales process shipshape, you can drive targeted traffic to your site — and ramp up your sales even more.

6 Quick Marketing Tips

Tip #1: Add a benefit to your headline

If the headline on your web site isn’t grabbing your visitors’ attention as soon as they read it, you’re losing sales. That’s a fact. And nothing grabs a visitor’s attention like a compelling headline with a clear benefit.

Here’s a great example from our SecretsToTheirSuccess.com archive:

Tammie Bowser’s site, www.mosaicquilt.com, sells packages, tools, and lessons on how to make quilts from photographs — an unusual holiday gift! In the past, when visitors first arrived at her site, they saw a headline that read:

 

What Is Quilted Photography?

While her visitors are likely to be interested in what quilted photography is, this isn’t a headline that really grabs their attention. In fact, it’s not even really a headline — it’s more of a sub-headline that would go inside the sales copy. We did a detailed site review for Tammie, and one of the first suggestions we made was that she use the following headline:

"Learn How to Turn Your Favorite Photograph into a Beautiful Handmade Quilt — and Create a Family Heirloom That Will Be Treasured for Generations!"

 

You’ll notice that this headline clearly states a couple of the main benefits of the product — that people can use their own photos to make a unique quilt, and that it’s something that will last for a long, long time. Try jotting down a few key benefits that YOUR product or service offers, and then working those benefits into an eye-catching headline.

NOTE: A message placed at the top of your page that reads something like "Welcome to Mysite.com" is NOT a headline. Your headline MUST emphasize a clear benefit of your product. If you don’t have a headline on your site, make this your holiday gift to yourself! A well-written headline has the power to literally double — or even triple — your sales overnight!

Tip #2: Feature specials in the first fold of your homepage

It’s important that your special be featured on the first fold of your homepage. (The first fold is the first screen of your homepage that is visible without scrolling.) Remember, you want to make it EASY for your visitors to find and buy your products. The best way to do this is by making sure that every single visitor to your site sees your featured specials.

And be sure to chose a product for your special that is a proven best-seller.

Tip #3: Send out an e-mail promotion

If you have a list of customers and/or subscribers, you’ve already got an incredibly powerful database of people who are just waiting to make purchases from you!

The reason they can’t wait to buy from you? It’s the 80/20 Rule: 80 percent of your sales will come from 20 percent of your customers. People who have already bought from you are much more likely than anyone else to buy from you again, because you’ve already earned their trust.

Whenever possible, you’ll want to send out two different promotions — one to your existing customers and one to your subscribers. This allows you to approach each group from a slightly different angle.

Your existing customers, who have already bought from you, will want to be rewarded for their loyalty. What better way to thank them than by giving them a great deal on one of your most popular products? They’ll appreciate the fact that your offer is being sent to them and them alone, because we all like to feel special!

Your subscribers should be sent a slightly different offer. Tell them that this is a special promotion being offered only to your newsletter subscribers. Again, you’ll want to make sure that you’re offering a special on one of your proven best-sellers.

This little touch of personalization can go a really long way. It’s been proven over and over that people like to be offered a deal that they don’t think other people are going to get. By making your customers and subscribers feel special, you can dramatically increase the number of sales that your e-mail promotions generate.

Tip #4: Consider replacing third-party ads

Take a moment and think about whether or not your site is using the first fold of your web site effectively, especially if you’re hosting advertising for other companies.

Figure out approximately how much money you’ll receive from hosting third-party advertising. Include all revenue from any banners ads, skyscraper ads, text ads, etc. that are located within the first fold of your site.

Now, ask yourself whether you could make more by replacing these third-party ads with ads for your OWN products. For many businesses, even one sale would be worth more money than their banner ads generate for them in a whole month!

If it turns out that you could make more money advertising your own products in place of the paid advertising, drop those banner ads NOW and replace them with ads for your own products or services. This way, visitors who click on them will be taken to a product page somewhere on YOUR site, not someone else’s!

Tip #5: Offer fast, flexible shipping

If you use a major nationwide delivery service such as UPS or FedEx, you’ll want to feature this information prominently on your web site and ordering pages. People will feel much more comfortable ordering from a site that uses one of these services than one that ships through the mail.

Tip #6: Offer to ship gifts directly to recipients

If possible, offer to ship your customers’ purchases directly to the gift recipients. This saves your customers the hassle of waiting to receive the package from you and then sending it out to someone else. This is a great way to add value to your service without any additional cost to you!

If you do offer to ship gifts directly to the recipient, I can guarantee that you will have people asking if you offer gift wrapping. This is another way to give your customers a little extra attention without much additional cost to you. Of course, if you are expecting thousands of orders and you work by yourself, this may not be a practical option!

You can also offer your customers the option of adding a card to the package that you send out. Simply ask them what they want written in the card, and then include it with the package. You can charge an additional fee for this or offer it as a free service.

 

The  tips I’ve just given you can be implemented quickly and easily. Most of these should only take you an hour or two to set up on your site, and the results will make you wish you had started much sooner.

 

 

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