|
|
|
Credit Traps Snag Consumers
Nearly 20 years ago I worked for a small consumer advocacy organization in Washington, DC. Each week we received sacks full of mail from consumers across the country requesting our list of credit cards with low interest rates and no annual fees....
Got Some L.A.F.S.?
Could you use some laughs? I’ll bet you could, especially if they increased your online sales. And, no, I’m not talking about jokes, cartoons, and riddles.
L.A.F.S. stands for Little Ads For Success - specifically, business...
How to Get Your Procedures Project Done
Wouldn't it be nice for business owners and executives to be finished with their policies and procedures project already? They know they need to get it done, but maybe it's taking too long. Or perhaps their people are staring at a blank piece of...
Silicon Valley
Silicon Valley: a parable
We have all heard about the “Silicon Valley” miracle. Not long ago, Silicon Valley found itself at the centre of the world, a job- and money-making machine fueled by the popularity of the Internet and technological...
Why A Collection Agency Is Your Small Business’s Best Friend
Does the term “collection agency” put you on edge? If you’re like many small business owners, the mountain of debt you accumulated during startup might have been enough to make you worry about collection agencies every time you answered the phone....
|
|
| |
|
|
|
|
|
|
12 Ways to Increase Traffic and Sales (for FREE)
1. Clone your advertisements all over the Internet by allowing your visitors to give your online freebies away. Just include your ad somewhere inside them. You could also start an affiliate program and pay people commissions to run your ads. You could also give your affiliates viral marketing tools to use like e-books or articles.
2. Build a professional looking web site even if you have a small budget. You could use free graphics, designs, list servers and other tools offered online. Just go to your search engine or web directory of choice and type in "free (what you want)" and you will usually find it.
3. Test your web site regularly for ordering glitches, bad links, broken graphics, etc. Those types of errors will make your business look unprofessional. If your visitors can't order, navigate to where they want to go or see pictures of your product, they likely won't revisit or order.
4. Test different web site color themes to see which combination will sell your product better. You can also test the size and style of your web site text. For example, red usually signals: stop, anger, excitement, love, sex, fun, etc. Another example, blue usually signals: relaxation, authority, coolness, etc.
5. When you offer a freebie from your site, submit it to freebie sites. They provide target categories which mean targeted traffic. So if you're submitting software, you could submit it to the "free software" section. Just remember, some freebie sites want you to link to their web site before they will list your freebie submission.
6. Create a free e-zine directory. You'll attract a lot of traffic from e-zine publishers and people who want to subscribe to the e-zines. Your listings could include name, subscription instructions, publisher’s name, etc. Of course you could put your own e-zine listing at the top of your directory to get extra exposure.
7. Create an alliance with 3 or 4 web sites. Include each of your ads or banners on the other web sites. You will all share targeted traffic with each other. For example, you would instantly have 3 web sites selling for you without paying them an affiliate income. You
would just be giving them ad space on your web site.
8. Persuade e-zine publishers or webmasters to run your ad for free. Just allow them to join your affiliate program and earn commission on the sales. You could also offer them a freebie, such as the product you’re selling for free, an advertisement in your e-zine in return, etc. It also helps to compliment the publishers as well as praising their e-zines.
9. Turn your banner ad into a trivia question. Post the question on the banner and tell readers they can win a prize if they answer the question at your site. People love trivia because it makes them feel smart when they get the right answer. The prize is just an extra incentive for them to click on your banner.
10. Use free advertising as much as possible. Test a wide variety of free advertising options like banner and link exchanges, classifieds, newsgroups, ad swaps, joint venturing, viral marketing, web rings, message boards, trading content, etc. Don't be afraid to try something new.
11. Keep your loyal customers happy because they are your future profits. Give them discounts and free gifts as often as possible. If you are thoughtful and loyal to your customers, most of them will be your customers forever. They will make up about 80% of your business and profits.
12. Use a "P.S." at the end of your ad copy. This is where you either want to repeat a strong benefit or use a strong close, like a free bonus. For example, "P.S. You can get (product), worth over ($), for the low price of ($)!" Another example, "P.S. I can not guarantee the (No.) bonuses will be here tomorrow!"
One last comment, educate yourself with new strategies to increase your sales. You could take classes, subscribe to e-zines and magazines, read books or e-books, etc. Internet business and technology move at lightning speed. You need to keep up so you don't get left behind.
E.D. Zuck is the owner of Capt EZ's World, (www.captez.com), a unique provider of content, software, and ebooks for your website; as well as 10 Dollar Specials, (www.10dollarspecials.com),where quality software and ebooks are provided on a weekly basis for $10!
|
|
|
|
|
| United States Small Business Administration |
| An electronic gateway of procurement information for and about small businesses. Search engine for contracting officers, marketing tool for small firms, ... |
| www.sba.gov |
|
| SBA |
| The Small Business Planner includes information and resources that will help you at any stage of the business lifecycle. ... |
| www.sba.gov |
|
| Main Page - SmallBusiness.com - Small Business Resources |
| Find Small Business plans, advice, tutorials about organization, corporations, entrepreneurship, and smallbusiness. |
| www.smallbusiness.com |
|
| Yahoo! Small Business: Domain Names, Web Hosting, E-commerce ... |
| Yahoo! Small Business provides products and services that enable you to establish and grow your business on the Internet. Services include domain name ... |
| smallbusiness.yahoo.com |
|
| Small business advice business start up small business finance ... |
| business start up small business finance start up advice. |
| www.smallbusiness.co.uk |
|
| Smallbusiness.gov.au redirect to business.gov.au |
| Business Entry Point - Helping small business in big ways. An Australian Government initiative. The content from this website has now been consolidated into ... |
| www.smallbusiness.gov.au |
|
| Business & Small Business |
| Online and print small business publication. Information to help start, grow or manage a small business. |
| www.entrepreneur.com |
|
| Microsoft Small Business Center |
| Your home for information about Microsoft's small-business products and services, tailored business advice, technology tools, and more. |
| www.microsoft.com |
|
| The Small Business Advisor - advice for starting and operating a ... |
| Advice and assistance for starting and operating a small or home based business. |
| www.isquare.com |
|
| SCORE "Counselors to America's Small Business" |
| A nonprofit association dedicated to encouraging the formation, growth, and success of small business nationwide through counseling and mentor programs. |
| www.score.org |
|
| Small Business and Self-Employed One-Stop Resource |
| IR-2006-2, January 3, 2006 - Temporary and proposed regulations will significantly reduce tax filing burden for nearly 950000 small business owners. ... |
| www.irs.gov |
|
| Welcome to Small Business BC your business resource in British ... |
| BC Business Services offers assistance and resources for those running or starting a business in British Columbia and Vancouver. |
| www.smallbusinessbc.ca |
|
| Small Business Service | Home |
| Provides information and advice to help small businesses realise their potential. |
| www.sbs.gov.uk |
|
| NSW Small Business |
| A site developed by the NSW Department of State and Regional Development for small businesses. Topics include management, resources, current issues and ... |
| www.smallbiz.nsw.gov.au |
|
| Business Management & Advice: Small Business Resources & Information |
| Looking for business management and advice? Our website includes small business resources and information that can help you. Visit the small business ... |
| www.businessweek.com |
|
| Small Business Lawyer, Attorney, Law, Legal Help - FindLaw for ... |
| Information and legal sites relevant to small business. |
| smallbusiness.findlaw.com |
|
| Small Business Funding Opportunities (SBIR and STTR) |
| Links to Small Business Funding Opportunities and SBIR / STTR Applications. |
| grants.nih.gov |
|
| Microsoft bCentral Small Business Directory |
| Directory categorized by industry with company business card feature. |
| sbd.bcentral.com |
|
| Our site has moved! Please update your bookmarks! |
| Facilitates the sharing and exchange of information among small business development centers, the small business administration and other business-oriented ... |
| sbdcnet.utsa.edu |
|
| Small Business Development Corporation |
| Our business information services provides guidance to improve business skills and knowledge on advice on starting, buying, selling and expanding a small ... |
| www.sbdc.com.au |
|
|