New Uses for a Web Site

A couple weeks ago I wrote about the redo on my Monarch Tree Publishing Web site. I mentioned that the new site opened up new selling opportunities. One of those opportunities was to link to the site in e-mails. With the rising costs of mailing, I have increasingly been using my Web site in combination with an e-mail to give more information.

We just released a new book, Jesse and Cash and The Fool's Gold, which I am promoting to the stores or interpretive centers at national forests and national parks. I am sending them an e-mail with a link to the Web site. When they click on the link, they can see the book's cover, hear the author reading the first chapter of the book, and find out more about the book. If they want to see a review copy of the book before they buy, they can order one at that point.

In the past, I called businesses which might have an interest in a book, told them about the book, and offered to mail them a review copy. This was a time-consuming process. Assembling the mailing packages of the book along with a letter took me an enormous amount of time. Frustratingly, I suspect most of the books never were read. How do I know? I know from the comments that I received in my follow-up calls and also from the lack of orders from these mailings. I think that I gave them too much information before they were ready to receive it.

Disseminating information is the beauty of a Web site. A Web site allows you to pique interest in what you are offering and direct that interest to your site to find out more. I did that just this morning while talking to a bookstore. The lady at the bookstore, Leslie, said, "I'm online right now, what is your Web site?"

She clicked on the site, looked at the books that I had suggested, and asked me questions about them. This was a very quick and easy way for her to find out more. Additionally, I saved a great deal of time and money by not sending her books which would not have interested her. The Web site enabled me to create a circle of information. Whether by phone or e-mail, my initial contact could be more concise because I could direct the person to the Web site for more information. Those who are interested can find out more at the site and decide how they want to proceed.

I often see long letters, print ads that are jam-packed, and mailings with just too much printed on them. The sender is packing ten pounds of information into a five-pound bag. The sender appears to think that this is the one chance to talk to the receiver. Therefore, the sender throws everything possible into the message so that nothing important is missed.

With a Web site, that is no longer necessary.

Use your Web site as a place to get more information. Rather than packing too much into your e-mail, direct mail, or telephone conversation, pique interest with your message. Link your e-mail to your Web site. Direct the reader of a mailing to your Web site. Ask the person on the telephone to go to your Web site. Your Web site is a handy electronic brochure immediately available to all. Employ it wisely.

If you would like to see my e-mail to the interpretive centers, go here.

The Smart Approach to a Tough Situation

When your competitor the economy takes away 61% of your customers, you are in trouble. 61%. That's a lot. I heard this statistic on a newscast yesterday about dining out. The reporter stated that 61% of those who frequent restaurants are not dining out because of the economy. In other words, restaurants have lost 61% of their customers.

The story told how Sysco, a major restaurant supplier, is helping restaurants with suggestions of how to survive this situation. Three of Sysco's suggestions were cited. They included stretching the expense dollar for food by serving smaller portions, presenting menu items in a fashion that increases sales, and charging for items that were currently offered for free, such as bread and butter. I thought that these were all valid and excellent suggestions.

However, I was concerned about the implementation of the first and third suggestions, stretching the expense food dollar and charging for items that were offered for free. Realize that I am not disagreeing with the ideas. I am only concerned about their implementation. The Sysco guy who was presenting the ideas stated of the third one, "Each of these additional charges for bread and butter is two bucks. You get two bucks, two bucks, two bucks from each check."

Increasing each check is a smart way to grow your business. The way he presented the idea made me wonder at what point the customer had been notified of the charge for bread. If the customer was told upon ordering the bread or being encouraged to order the bread that there was now a charge for it, that is smart marketing. On the other hand, if the customer had been encouraged to order the bread and discovered that there now was a charge for the bread upon receipt of the bill, that is very unwise marketing.

His suggestion about the reducing the portion size took a similar turn. He mentioned serving a six-ounce steak instead of an eight-ounce steak as listed on the menu and having the vegetables on the plate make up the two ounce difference. That is deceitful. Deceit may work once with a customer, but deceit does not develop a customer. In fact, deceit may prompt a customer never to return.

When you have already lost 61% of your market, each customer becomes more precious than ever. You certainly do not want to deter a customer from returning to dine again. In fact, you want to do everything to encourage that customer to come back and do so soon.

What is the best way to handle this? Once the customer expresses an interest in ordering the bread, let the customer know that due to rising costs, there is now a small charge for the bread. At that point, if the customer wants to know the fee, he or she will ask it. If the customer doesn't care and wants the bread either way, he or she will not ask at all. Either way, you have been truthful with your customer and done so before the purchase. Will a few purchases be lost? Probably. However, those that are lost will only be for that "two bucks" of bread. You will not lose the customer. In fact, your upfront honesty will develop that customer further and prompt the customer's return.

When you are in a tough situation, the smart approach is to be as concerned about what the customer wants as about what you want. After all, giving customers what they want will ensure their return, which means revenue for your business.

Customers want the truth. Always tell it.

Trust

In the daily grind, we seldom appreciate the impact that our businesses have upon our customers' lives. The other night in the news, I heard a glaring example of this. Lori's Bridal Shop had suddenly, without explanation, closed its doors. Without any sort of notice to its customers, even those who had ordered bridal gowns, an "Out of Business" sign was hung on the door along with a number to call. Horrendously, the number was to a cell phone of a person totally unrelated to the shop. After several calls from distraught brides, the cell phone owner dropped the number. Then when the brides called the number, they received a "this number is not in service" announcement.

Some gowns had arrived and been left inside the building. Desperate brides wanted them. Unable to reach the owner by cell phone, a few brides walked up to the door and pulled on it forcefully, willing it to open. Several turned to the sheriff for help. "If it was my daughter, I know what I'd want done," said the sheriff. "I think this is important."

The sheriff got into the building and rescued thirty-seven gowns, bringing them to the station. Very relieved brides picked up their gowns from the sheriff.

The owner tearfully apologized. She said, "I didn't mean to hurt anyone. My house is in foreclosure, and the bank refused to give me a loan to keep my business open. I didn't know what else to do."

While the owner's reaction may seem to defy common sense, she is apparently quite wrapped up in her own problems. She is so wrapped up in the "me" of her business and her personal finances that she has completely forgotten the "me" of her customer.

The brides who placed their trust in this business to deliver gowns for their weddings never gave a thought as to which "me" was the first priority of the business. They expected the business to focus on their weddings and their gowns. They trusted the business to deliver what it promised.

Like me, you may be thinking, "Why didn't the owner just get those dresses directly to the brides?"

I don't know. The news story did not say how the owner left the building, if she was forced out or what. However, if the sheriff could enter the building, questions that come to my mind are, "Why didn't the owner request that the sheriff get the dresses for the brides? Why did it take the brides request of the sheriff to have that action taken?"

Whatever the particulars of the business's problems and actions, this situation is a reminder to all of us in business to put the "me" of the customer first. Fulfill your promises to your customers. If you cannot do so, tell the customer that you cannot and do what you can to help the customer get that promise fulfilled somewhere else. While revenues, expenses, and profits are important to the "me" of your business, your business's first priority is to the "me" of your customer.

Your customer places trust in your business. Your obligation is to merit that trust.

The Importance of a Piece of Pie

Yesterday I had lunch at a restaurant which is famous for its pies. As I was looking over the menu and while I was eating my lunch, I heard the wait staff over and over again ask customers who had finished their meals, "Would you like a piece of pie?"

Many customers declined, and several asked what flavors were available. As those in the restaurant business know, most customers don't order dessert. They focus on their meal and don't think of having dessert.

They don't think of it unless they are asked.

This asking is suggestive selling, which is a powerful marketing tool. When you suggest an additional purchase which is of benefit to the customer, you enhance that customer's experience. Suggesting a piece of pie caps off a meal in a delicious fashion. Yes, I know that it can also add to a waistline, but the customer always has the power to say no. However, by suggesting the piece of pie, you give your customer that choice. If you don't offer the piece of pie, your customer must think of the choice, and, as mentioned earlier, that is unlikely.

Some businesses view this as "pushy." If the wait person's question, tone of voice, and attitude when making the suggestion is aggressive, then, yes, this could be pushy. I have never seen that, nor have I ever felt "pushed" into having a piece of pie. Although I usually decline the offer, I have never been offended to have been asked.

What this small suggestion does for the business is enormous. One of the two most profitable ways to grow your business is to increase the amount that a customer spends with your business in each transaction. Adding a piece of pie to a customer's ticket does just that. Over a period of a week, a month, or a year, these extra pieces of pie add greatly not just to the restaurant's revenue but also to its profit.

While you may not be operating a restaurant, you have opportunities to sell suggestively in your business. Are you doing that? Can you do more of it? Take a look at the way you and your staff interact with your customers and see if more suggestive selling is feasible. You can do this verbally or nonverbally. Rather than verbally asking a question, you can suggestively sell a customer on paper or on your Web site. How you communicate the suggestive sale is open to your imagination.

As you consider this, do not be hindered by thinking you will offend your customer. Today more than ever, customers love to be informed. Suggestively selling them by giving them information about an additional product or service is appreciated by your customers. What offends them is not knowing about a product or service that you offer which they would like to have. When you share this information, you give them the opportunity to make a choice. Customers like opportunities. They also like choices. Most of all, they like the attention that they receive while a suggestive sale is being delivered. That attention will bring them back.

Suggestive selling not only increases the customer's transaction today, but it also develops your customer for future business.

Therein lies the importance of a piece of pie.

Use Every Opportunity to Communicate Your Message

The other day I walked by an older model car with lettering on it. Along the back and both sides, the message was the same:

• FREE loaner car
• Mark's Auto Body
• Phone number

I slowed my pace and absorbed the communication. My first thought was, "A loaner car. Hmm, you don't see those anymore." My second thought was, "It's good that a business still offers a loaner car." Then the marketer kicked in, and my third thought was, "What a smart way to market. I am making this the subject of my next Insight."

Mark's Auto Body was wisely offering loaner cars to people having work done at Mark's shop. Due primarily to insurance premiums, most auto body and car repair shops have curtailed this practice. That leaves the person who is having his or her car repaired searching for transportation, which is a problem. Mark's solved this problem by having the loaner car.

Then Mark's took the opportunity to tell this to others by writing it on three sides of the loaner car.

I was impressed.

Why?

First of all, Mark's offered a service that others did not, which was a free loaner car. That alone differentiated Mark's from its competition, creating a unique selling proposition for Mark's Auto Body. Knowing your unique selling proposition is critical to marketing profitably.

Second, Mark's used the car as a rolling billboard to communicate the message to all who walked, drove, or in anyway came within the vicinity of the car. Mark's only expense to do this was the cost of the paint and perhaps someone to do the painting. Since auto body shop personnel work with paint, that someone was very likely at Mark's.

Most importantly, Mark's actually wrote the unique selling proposition on the car. Of all the wording Mark's could have had, writing "FREE loaner car" along with the name and phone number was the best way to get attention and to communicate Mark's message in easy-to-understand wording. The importance of this marketing was not just that the car had a message but the content of the message.

Mark's Auto Body used the opportunity of the loaner car to communicate a unique selling proposition to its target market, which is anyone who owns a vehicle. Do you do this? Is your unique selling proposition on all your communications with your target market? Take a look at all your materials, your attire, your office, your vehicles, and even the door into your building. Do you use all these opportunities to communicate your message in easily understood wording?

If not, do it. Use every opportunity to clearly communicate your message.

How to Update a Web Site

When I started my publishing business, Monarch Tree Publishing, I had a bare bones Web site designed. The site was nothing fancy or stunning, but it was clean and easy-to-use. My purpose in having the site was to offer easily accessible information about the books available at Monarch Tree Publishing and give visitors the opportunity to order those books from the site.

At the time that the initial Monarch Tree site was uploaded, I had my first book, a couple of additional books, and Larry Heagle's two new CDs to offer. Since then, I have added several more books. A new Larry Heagle comedy CD, CDs of my books, and more books are on the way. Consequently, I felt an urgent desire to redo the site, adding attractiveness to it. I thought that I would keep the change simple and suggested to Jim and Dave at EZ New Media that we just change the front page. My idea was to graphically stack books up the left-hand side of the page and use the spines for linked listings to the books on the site.

Well, they shot down my idea, telling me that they had tried something similar, and the end result was not what they thought I would want. "I have a better idea," e-mailed Dave. "Take a look at this. I think that this design accomplishes the professional, attractive look that you want."

He was right. His design did just that. Using greens and purples, he had created a layered look which was beautiful. Even more, the design allowed me to create cross-selling opportunities though the sidebar on each page. Each sidebar could be customized to recommend other selections that the customer looking at a particular item might like.

The marketer in me was excited. I got much more than I had hoped. Dave helped me achieve my objective of updating the Web site for an attractive new look, and he also opened the door to new selling opportunities.

I'm sharing this with you today because I want to point out to you three notable lessons from this experience. First, start an update to your Web site knowing what you want to accomplish. I wanted to add attractiveness to my site. Second, be open to suggestions from your Web designers and others knowledgeable in marketing online as to how to achieve what you want to accomplish. Dave's suggestion created an attractive site and gave me more. Third, watch for new opportunities that may appear as you consider new designs. Taking advantage of those opportunities may net you more sales and add to your bottom line.

Actually, these three lessons can serve you well in any of your marketing efforts. They were pivotal for me in redoing the Monarch Tree Publishing Web site.

If you would like to see the end result, go to monarchtreepublishing.com.