If you are after more of a mass market, or one that is harder to quantify, then I love using almost any offline media to promote a text offer. Whether you’ re running TV ads, print ads in a small community paper, or ads above urinals, extending a text offer can be pretty effective. A local Italian restaurant could run ads with the message, text“ pasta” to 000000 to receive a free appetizer on your next visit.
There’ s nothing like getting people to take action immediately. This would likely drive a herd of people to a text program which would later be a great tool for method number three to big profits – repeat sales and referrals.
customer who saw their listing on Yelp. This was just a few days after we created it too.
After you’ ve gotten some reviews, the next thing to do is to start aggressively optimizing your website. We won’ t get into SEO for your website here, but there are plenty of archived articles from the DotComSecrets Journal that cover SEO that you can reference. Also, the Darkside of DotComSecrets is a great resource. Having well-optimized local listings and a well-optimized site will give you the best chance to show up high in the search engines.
Offline to Online:
I’ m a huge believer in combining online and offline marketing efforts. If your target market is one that’ s easy to quantify, then I like the option of using direct mail to drive people to a website. For example if you are selling products to daycare owners, that’ s a market that is easy to quantify. In fact, you can get a list from a local mail house of all the daycares in your area. Then send them a compelling postcard or lumpy mail piece( mail piece that has something in it that gives it dimension or makes it lumpy) that drives them to your website for an offer of some kind.
Email Traffic:
Ask yourself this question. Who do you know, or who should you know that has an email list of ideal prospects for you? Once you know the answer to that question, then contact that company and work out a deal with them. Maybe you can have them email their list for you in exchange for you mailing to your list on their behalf. Or maybe it’ s worth paying to advertise in their email.
The key here is you must have a compelling offer. You need some kind of call to action that will get someone to click from the email to your site.
It’ s amazing the problems you can solve simply by having more opportunities to sell. Really, that’ s what targeted traffic is all about – giving you the opportunity to sell. So go out there and start driving some traffic!
In next month’ s article we’ ll take a closer look at conversions and repeat sales. If you don’ t focus a lot of energy on these two areas, then you’ ll likely be wasting much of the traffic you are driving. Until next month, here’ s to big profits. DCS
By Brett Curry, the Small Business Maestro
Brett Curry is the president of Curry Marketing, Inc. and is the DCS Local Chapter leader in the Springfield and St. Louis Missouri markets. Brett can be reached at brett @ currymarketing. com
12 | September 2011 www. DotComSecrets. com