Archive for 'strategy'
Top Ten Lists + Forbes = Business Love
March 7th, 2007 by John Herman, under Uncategorized, operations, small business, strategy, trends. No Comments
Are you a business owner? Are you thinking of starting a business?
If you’re still in the planning phases, you may need to do some rethinking if you have one of The 10 Riskiest Businesses to Start. From Travel Agency to Retail Store, there are pitfalls and problems listed that would make any budding entrepreneur cringe with fright!
There is something…though…that we noticed. Something that made us really, really excited. Excited enough that we called our friends and had them look at the article…exciting enough that we couldn’t help but blog about it.
Business consultants aren’t on the list.
Niche businesses aren’t on the list.
Our clients aren’t on the list.
This was like three strikes for the team you can’t stand. While we have all the respect in the world for people trying to start any business, no matter what the odds, we couldn’t help but giggle maniacally as we realized that globalization and the changing landscape of business was not scary at all for those who’ve already embraced the challenge of living in a world that’s become, well, a little flat.
How is your business faring in the new economy? Are you faltering? Looking for a new image? From medium sized businesses to niche market startups, Succeeding Steps really has their eye on the prize. The prize? Your success. You can find a company that is cooler, you can find a company that can do the electric slide better, but when it comes to branding and business strategy, we blow the competition out of the water.
Are you a Zoomer?
January 31st, 2007 by John Herman, under change, operations, planning, strategy. 2 Comments
In a recent Fireside Chat with 37signals, Seth Godin shares the definition of a zoomer.
Matt:
Seth, what are zoomers and why are they important?Seth:
A zoomer is someone who changes without stress.Human beings evolved to resist big changes. So, change triggers stress.
But we built a world that keeps changing faster and faster
SO, how to win?
Easy, teach yourself to view changes as little things, not big ones.
If you change faster than the competition, you will, by definition, be more ‘fit’ for
the new environment.
Sometimes it comes from the top, of course, but more often, it’s an individual’s choice.
and if you work with non-zoomers, get out!
Are you and your business able to change without stress?
Read Part 1 of 2 of the chat with Seth Godin and Mark Hurst
Read Part 2 of 2 of the chat with Seth Godin and Mark Hurst
12 Steps to Creating Your First Info Product
January 18th, 2007 by John Herman, under information products, products, sales, strategy. No Comments
Business Coach Donna Gunter shares her 12 tips to creating your first information product.
The creation of your first info product is a huge first step toward implementing multiple streams of income in your business. It means that you have something to sell prospective customers to "size you up" as they consider purchasing your services. It means that you can sell something 24-7 from your website that demonstrates your expertise. It means that you’re well on your way to creating a passive revenue stream for your business.
Unfortunately, for many, this notion of creating an info product comes with a "fix it and forget it" mentality. Granted, the creation process requires a great deal more work than the maintenance phase, but at no time can you just leave it to the Internet gods that people will find your product and purchase it. You’ll be constantly tweaking your sales page and your marketing strategies, especially if you’re using pay-per click as your primary marketing method. So, while an info product is considered passive revenue because it doesn’t directly involve the selling of your time, that doesn’t mean that you can passively stand by and hope it sells.
Your process doesn’t have to be as detailed as I’ve outlined here, but if you want to do a thorough job in the creation process, I suggest that you embark on all the steps.
1. Solution to a Problem. The best-selling information products provide a direct solution to a major problem of your target market. If you’re a professional organizer, the problem might be how to clean and store and organize holiday decorations so that they can be easily found and used from year to year. If you’re a weight loss coach, the problem might be how to stay motivated when you’ve hit a weight loss plateau. Jot down some of the primary problems of your target market and the process by which you help your clients resolve these issues.
2. Determine Your Offering. Info products come in all types of formats, from ebooks to ecourses to recorded teleseminars to podcasts to special reports to CD and DVD sets. Take stock of your target market and determine what format would best fit their lifestyle. Are they virtual business owners who work from home at their computers for most of the day? Then an ebook or ecourse would probably work well for this group. Are they busy executives who travel frequently? Then you might consider a portable audio format. You can also combine formats to appeal to a variety of learning styles or lifestyles.
And, of course, cost is a major consideration. Do you want to create a physical product that has to be shipped, or would an electronic download work? There are much greater costs on your end to produce a physical product than an electronic one, and you also have to deal with product fulfillment as well if you choose to sell a physical product. I tell my clients to start with an electronic version and test it out, and if it’s successful, move to a physical product, which has greater perceived value in the eyes of consumers.
3. Pricing. Pricing of info products is all over the map. Check out your competition (yes, there will be competing products on the same topic aimed at the same target market) and see what they’re charging. You also need to take a look at your contact database and make some assessments of the value of your information to them as well as what you think they will pay. You can survey your database to determine this info, or base it on comparable offerings in the marketplace. Many times my clients get hung up on the notion of comparing pricing for their info product to what they can find in the local bookstore. Generally, pricing for info products is higher than retail bookstores because the info being sold online is specialized for a target market and is delivered immediately upon order (if it’s an electronic download.
The pricing strategy that also seems to sell better online is ending your price with a 7, like in $17, $47, etc. If you offer a high-priced product, consider offering payment via an installment plan, where you charge a bit more each month for the product than if someone were to pay for the product in full at time of purchase.
4. Technology. Do you have the technology in place to create and deliver your offering? If it’s an ebook, you’ll need either a PDF writer program or ebook compiler software. For an audio program you’ll need a microphone and audio recording and editing capabilities. For an ecourse you’ll need either autoresponder software or a direct to desktop solution. For delivery you’ll need a shopping cart that can deliver electronic products or take shipping info for physical products as well as some type of merchant account to take credit and process credit cards. You’ll also want a sequential autoresponder service to follow up with your buyers.
5. Create the Product. This is typically the most labor intensive part of the process, as you’re actively recording or writing or videotaping your information for the product. Some products are easier to create than others, especially if you’re recycling other content that you have into a new product. If you’re starting from scratch, however, give yourself a full 3-6 weeks of steady work time for product creation. After creating the product you may want to have it proofread and/or edited in some fashion by a proofreader or an audio/video expert.
6. Graphics. A picture tells a thousand words, and more importantly, info products sell better when the visitor has a graphic representation of this intangible info product item. If graphic design isn’t your specialty, find someone to design an ebook cover or podcast album art for you. You may want to have the designer also create a website header banner for the product that you can use on your sales page. You can generally have both of these done for around $200. The more professional your image, the better perceived value your product has.
7. Domain, Hosting, and Website. I believe that each info product should have its own domain name and sales page to be most effective. Domain names are pretty inexpensive, so you could actually buy several for each product — one that reflects the product name, for example, and one that reflects the result someone will receive after using your product. You can use the various domain names and websites for a variety of testing purposes as you go to sell your product. If your plan to create multiple info products, you’ll probably want to obtain a website hosting account that will enable you to host multiple domains from the same account. Another option is to forward your product’s domain name to a "hidden" page of your primary site.
8. Copywriting. There is a specific formula to copywriting for one-pages sales letter websites. The best way to get ideas for your sales letter is to create a Marketing Swipe file of other sales copy that you like. From your swipe file take a look at the headlines, the introduction, the subheadlines, the listing of benefits, the product description, the outline of the features, the call to action (request to buy), the closing, and the postscripts. You’ll begin to see a pattern emerge when you look at 4-5 sample sales pages.
9. Shopping Cart. Once your product is complete, you need to upload the product into your shopping cart and set up the cart for purchases. This may mean that you also need to set up shipping and handling charges for physical products and integrate your shopping with your shipper of choice. If your state requires the collection of state sales taxes, you’ll need to integrate that as well.
10. Follow-up Autoresponders. Creating a series of autoresponders to follow-up with a customer after purchase enables you to stay in front of the customer and reminder her about your other product/service offerings. Design a series of 3-5 autoresponders that will be sent out after a purchase to check in with your customer and tell her the next step she needs to take after her purchase. This might mean referring her to another info product, asking her to join some type of subscription service, or experiencing your service with a free trial.
11. Capturing Contact Info. Sadly, not everyone who visits your website will buy what you’re selling. However, you can still capture their contact info by creating a free giveaway for those who may not be ready to buy. This might be a special report or free ecourse, and you follow the same steps outlined previously for creating this giveaway. You’ll also need to create 3-5 followup autoresponders here as well that will ultimately offer them your product once again.
12. Publish and Promote. Now, you’re ready to sell. Publish your website and begin to promote your offering to your own database. You can create a buzz about your product by writing a press release, offering a free teleclass, buying ads on other websites or in other newsletters, publishing articles, creating podcasts, purchasing pay-per-click advertising, requesting colleagues to send out notices to their contact lists, and creating an affiliate program in which others can sell your product for a commission.
Creating your first info product can be a time-consuming process. However, once it’s created, you stand to earn income from it for years to come. Start to expand your business offerings today with information products.
Online Business Resource Queen (TM) and Business Coach Donna Gunter helps self-employed service professionals learn how to automate their businesses, leverage their expertise on the Internet, and get more clients online. To sign up for more FREE tips like these and claim your FREE gift, TurboCharge Your Online Marketing Toolkit, visit her site at http://www.GetMoreClientsOnline.com. Read about running an online biz at our blog, http://www.getmoreclientsonlineblog.com
Most Websites Are Designed Backwards
January 9th, 2007 by John Herman, under internet marketing, strategy, website design. 3 Comments
Todd Follansbee of WebMarketingResources.net gives some great tips on the real steps involved in designing your website.
1. Extensive interviews. Begin the design process with an extensive client interview to understand the business, its goals and the prospective customer groups. Don’t start at the home page. Rather focus on identifying the final site objective.
2. Brainstorm a list of everything a customer would want to know to be comfortable making a purchase. It may not end up on the final site, but if selling a house for example, include everything from school details to landscape plans.
3. Information groups. Next organize this information into logical groups — utilities, town, house design, etc. These “information groups” will become pages.
4. Sales ladders. Look at the sales process, and visualize how customers proceed to the objective. Ask: When is each information group likely to arise? Sequence the information groups in a “ladder” which mimics this. Confirm with either experts or prospects. Now expand the ladder and begin organizing pages from the information groups.
5. Storyboard. No text yet, just information outlines. Start the page layout as a rough storyboard. Spend no more then 10 to 15 minutes per page and hand draw each page including spots for relevant images. Mark obvious links to other relevant groups. Insure that each page directly relates to the objective.
6. Review and test. Now review your understanding of the typical prospect. Can you make assumptions about preferred communication style, interests, motivations or focus? Which is more important: the investment value or neighborhood schools? Test your assumptions with some typical buyers or experts. We often end up building multiple sales paths based upon several customer persona groups, but for now build one path using this information. (Multiple paths are a topic for another article but are a key part of Conversion Point Architecture.)
7. Navigation. With the path architected from beginning to end; we build out the architecture or navigation map with standard site elements that users expect like About Us, FAQs etc.
8. Hire designers. Designers are called only when content is set and architectural elements are clearly laid out. Discuss the look and feel, content delivery, and explain how to place the graphics to utilize eye tracking to support key messages.
9. Build the site. Designers deliver best when provided with detailed content and site plans and can focus on visuals. With the right look and feel in place, the “beta” is tested on several prospective clients for navigational confusion, sales blocks, functional problems like browser compatibility, and finally, content problems or unanswered product questions.
10. Launch, monitor, refine. Launch the site, note your metrics. Continually monitor and refine site elements. Set conversion goals and explore new presentations and elements.
Planning
December 8th, 2006 by John Herman, under planning, strategy. No Comments
Planning is one of the most important things you can do to make sure your business succeeds. Everybody’s got an angle when it comes to planning and everybody’s get a different plan for every angle. People will tell you that you need a marketing plan, a business plan, a financial plan, a personnel plan, a growth plan, a succession plan, and on and on. Basically you need a plan to figure out how to do the plan. It doesn’t need to be that difficult. Planning can be as simple as sitting down with a piece of paper and pencil and listing where you are now, where you’d like to go, and where you’ve been. Those three areas tell the story of your business. Where you’ve been is how you started. It includes your goals, your dreams, your mission, your vision, and your objectives – your reason for being in business. Next, look at where you are now. Maybe you’ve got several clients and business is booming. Maybe your business has hit a wall and you’re not sure what to do next. Maybe you’re growing too fast and aren’t sure where to turn. Planning will help in all of these situations. For instance, if business is booming and you’re successfully signing clients, take some time to look at what has worked for you – why are you as successful as you are at this point – and then plan to do more of that! If you’re business has hit a wall, a plan can help you get back on track. If you’ve documented successful approaches, you already have a place to start. If not, well you really need to start planning. Now if your business is growing out of control that requires a totally different plan – but a plan none-the-less. Finally, always remember where you’ve been. Only then will you be sure to get where you are going. So often business owners become so overwhelmed in the day-to-day operations of their business that they lose sight of what is and isn’t working when in comes to advertising and marketing. Tracking successes and failures provides important information for future campaigns, but unless it’s utilized, it’s useless! So as corny as it sounds, it’s really true – you don’t plan to fail, you fail to plan. Learn from your mistakes and capitalize on your successes and you’ll be taking steps to make sure your business is succeeding.