Online Sales
Solving
the "I Get Tons of Traffic But No Sales" Mystery
by Karon Thackston © 2003
I
can’t even begin to tell you how many times I’ve heard
the statement, “I get tons of traffic, but no sales.”
It’s normally followed by comments like: “My site is
highly optimized for the engines and my rankings are great. I don’t
understand why no one is buying.” Let me shed some light on
this mystery.
Most
often, when site owners (or professional copywriters for that matter)
write “search engine optimized” copy, they develop tunnel
vision. They are so focused on the placement of keyphrases throughout
the copy that they neglect something very important… the customer!
Because
the immediate task at hand “seems” to be getting the
site ranked high, the writer neglects to take out his or her crystal
ball and gaze into the future. What should you be asking the crystal
ball? “What happens when the customer gets to my site?”
Oops!
Didn’t think of that? Don’t feel embarrassed. Many people
don’t. Developing SEO (search engine optimized) copy is like
creating a complete circle. You have to have good keyword saturation
in order to get ranked in those prime spots. You have to have keyword-rich
title and description tags (mostly the title tag) to land in the
top 10. Once you achieve that your site starts drawing in surfers.
Now that they’ve clicked to your site, what happens? The copy
has to give them what they want/need. That’s the missing piece
to the puzzle and the factor that causes so many people to scratch
their heads in disbelief.
When
writing SEO copy, you have to think of the beginning AND the end
of the process. You have to create copy that satisfies both the
engine and the customer. Once you do, you’ll not only have
boatloads of traffic, but you’ll have the sales that go along
with it. So, there… mystery solved! Or at least part of it.
We’ve
covered the “why,” now let’s look at the “how.”
1.
Know Your Target Audience
In
order to give someone what he/she wants, you have to know what that
want is. Take the time to research your target audience (also called
target customer, perfect customer, or ideal customer). Find out
as much as you can about them including who they are, what they
do, how they use your product/service, how old they are, what problems
they have, and how they prefer to receive information.
2.
Stop Selling and Start Solving
So
many people are pushing to get that almighty dollar (or euro or
pound) that they forget something. Customers don’t like to
be sold to. What they really want is someone to solve their problems.
Once you show that your product/service can, in fact, solve the
problems your customers face, sales will come on their own.
3.
Appeal To Emotions
Most
buying decisions are emotional so it makes sense that your copy
should be, too. While your customer’s need may be logical,
the actual buying decision is anything but. Think about it. When
you bought your last car, did you go for the “logical”
choice? Did you pick the ugly, shapeless, “no personality”
car that had the best gas mileage and the highest safety rating?
I doubt you did.
You
most likely took a look at all the options and – taking some
logic into account – bought the car that suited you best within
your price range. Emotion sells!
No,
I’m not talking about getting mushy. What I AM talking about
is touching the emotional chord that draws customers to your product
or service. Those problems you found out about when doing steps
#1 and #2 above… use them to add emotion to your copy.
With
these three vital elements in your forethoughts, you can sit down
and write your copy – with your keyphrases in mind –
for tremendous results. When you understand the entire process and
take the time to learn to write emotional, sales-oriented, SEO copy,
you will keep your traffic count high and your checkbook balance
higher.
Which
words make *your* customers buy? Let Karon show you.
Learn to write strategically created copy that hits a nerve
and makes the sale. Boost your search engine rankings, too!
Learn
more here |
Copy not getting results? Learn to write SEO
copy that impresses the engines and your visitors
with Karon Thackton's Step-by-Step
Copywriting Course. Be sure to also check out Karon’s
latest e-report “How To Increase Keyword Saturation (Without Destroying
the Flow of Your Copy)”.
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