Content is king. Not so if you have no reason to deliver content. If you’re selling one item it’s difficult to provide a flow of content that is relevant to your product and of value to the recipient. Most likely impossible over a period of time.
So what strategy do you use to sell your one item? Or, even a few?
Price?
Unless you have an absolute, US government guaranteed and certified exclusivity on an item that has absolutely no competition, the odds are you’re up against competition. You lower your price. They lower theirs. Soon the margins are so small, the effort isn’t worth it. Or, as often happens you both slowly strangle from poor cash flow and go out of business.
No one ever wins a price war.
So, what’s a smart alternative strategy?
From where I sit you have only one goal with your Ecommerce web site: selling. Nodding your head? Okay, the best course of action then is to learn from those whose strategies created remarkable success stories.
How about a sunglass that have been around since the sixties with over 25 million having been sold? And still selling.
Ever hear of Blublockers?
Ever hear of Joe Sugarman?
Okay, let’s step back a moment. You’re in the Ecommerce business. To succeed you have absorb and continue to absorb, smart, helpful information from people who know a bit about Ecommerce success. Hopefully this blog is on top of your list.
But when you cut to the chase, you’re not as much in the Ecommerce business, as you are in the selling business. When you think that way, you realize you can learn from experts who proved their worth outside of the Ecommerce business.
An expert like Jay Sugarman, whose fame and fortune, to the tune of hundreds of millions of dollars in sales, came through direct response. Direct response in print, and direct response on TV. And, after all, aren’t you in the direct response business? You’re selling directly to your targeted customer. No middle man. You carry the load, you do all the work.
Sugarmen is a master of direct marketing. Let’s see how he went about creating the monster sales of BluBlocker.
Ultraviolet rays in space are far more powerful, and hence far more dangerous to eyes than ultraviolet rays on earth. Standard sunglass material would not do. For its astronaut program, NASA came up with space age sunglasses that protected the astronaut’s eyes from ultraviolet rays in space.
Joe Sugarman was driving with a NASA exec in the passenger seat. For his own use, the NASA executive always carried a pair of those NASA space age glasses with him. Noticing Sugarman was squinting in the bright sunlight as he drove, the executive offered Sugarman use of the glasses. Slipping it on, the effect was immediately noticeable, the glasses immediately filtering out the harmful rays. Sugarman stopped squinting. Instinct told Sugarman a huge potential was sitting right there in front of him – well, perched on his nose.
He gained permission from NASA o sell the glasses to the public and developed a low-cost manufacturing process. He named the glasses Blublockers, referring to the fact that they block out the dangerous blue ultraviolet rays. In his advertising, he demonstrated the value of blocking all the UV and blue light. In the summer at the beaches in the winter on the snow slopes he would hand the glasses to ordinary folks and let them try it. Their honest expressions of awe as to how superior Blublockers were compared to their typical sunglasses put Blublocker on the road to a becoming an extraordinary success story, with sales well over one hundred million world-wide.
An intriguing story, but what does it have to do with you?
Well, let’s stay focused for a moment on “intriguing story”. Astronauts. Space. It seizes our imagination. There’s a story there, and we humans are wired for stories. The fastest input and the clearest comprehension in our brains is derived from stories. Our minds are rich with imagination.
“Neuroscientists have proven that we are captivated by stories. We seek stories immerse ourselves in stories, are energized by stories.”
Do you simply say to the kids let’s go to the ballgame? Or do you already see the players on the field, the smile on your kids’ faces, hear the screams of the crowd, see the ball arch high over the centerfield wall. Are you simply going shopping, or is your mind already seeing yourself checking out the most fashionable apparel?
Neuroscientists have proven that we are captivated by stories. We seek stories immerse ourselves in stories, are energized by stories
Brilliant marketer that he is, Sugarman, immersed everyone in the intriguing, imaginative story of astronauts in space, whose precious sight is guarded by Blublockers.
And, this is only the beginning. Sugarman understood the principle that when it comes to sales more is better. Pile on those benefits.
Ever drop your sunglasses?
Most likely yes. And, often they’ll shatter or get scratches on the lenses. Result, worthless.
Blublockers are made from a shatterproof, scratch resistant material. Strong enough to have survived accidents they can be relied upon to be used for years and years. And, the metal frames are so flexible even if they bend out of shape, they can immediately be bent back into shape
Intriguing story. NASA credibility. Testimonials. Practically impervious to damage. Flexible.
Enough you’d say.
But not for Sugarman.
How about the nasty thing that squinting does to your skin? Like creating wrinkles. For many the mere thought of wrinkles is even scarier than the through of a tax audit. Sugarman promoted the no-squinting, no forming wrinkles benefit along with all the other benefits.
No flow of content to promote your product? No reason to panic.
“Share your excitement, your passion, Build the intrigue, the romance.”
Just find the story within your product.
- How you came across it
- How it solved a personal problem you had for years
- Its origin
- The craftsmanship in its manufacturing
- The unique materials
- And, of course the many benefits
Find the story within your product.
Share your excitement, your passion, Build the intrigue, the romance.
Sharing the story gets your visitors involved. You experience and the product benefits become palpable.
We humans are wired for stories. Books, Tv, film we gorge ourselves on stories. We are captivated by them. Captivate your audience by telling your story and your product’s story and you’ll capture them as customers.
Add the benefits and you have a story that could be a mega-blockbuster.
Like Blublockers.
End of story.
You’ve done everything by the book. Your Kickstarter campaign is almost ready to launch.
You made a great product. Built an audience. Set up a campaign page.
But how do you ship it?
We put this checklist together to help you get started. It's free.
