Do you remember when John Reese launched Traffic Secrets package last August? Already by this time last year you were starting to hear the buzz. This continued on until that buzz was deafening and the anticipation was nearly killing prospective buyers. When Reese opened his virtual doors, people stampeded in and bought up a million bucks worth in under 24 hours.
Does this remind you of someone who's been in the news lately? Yep, J.K. Rowling and her masterful use of anticipation and buzz. She sold millions of copies of her latest Harry Potter book in the first 24 hours. She had booksellers open at odd hours and put on special events. The media spurred the entire campaign by giving the release a ton of free publicity.
Now there are many, many components that went into both of these campaigns -- many behind-the-scenes activities that we'll never know about, plus so many parts of this "formula" that it would take a book to discuss. However, there are a few things used by both the Potter and Traffic Secrets campaigns that helped make them successful:
1. Name recognition and solid reputation.
Rowling's first book didn't create an avalanche of overnight sales. Why? No one had heard of her or this "Harry Potter" kid. Rowling had to prove herself first and develop a reputation as an engaging writer.
Likewise John Reese didn't jump into the Internet Marketing scene and start selling "how to" books. Instead, he spent years building his reputation and credibility at other people's workshops, through his newsletter, even through private emails (and to some extent, forums).
2. Merchants eager to help make sales.
Rowling's reputation didn't just help customers get on board, it helped booksellers become her best friends. These sellers don't just sell her book, they compete with one another. They offer fun events for the kids, they open at midnight (the appointed launch) to accommodate buyers and more.
Likewise Reese nurtured relationships for years. When he launched, his friends became his JV partners. And yes, they did compete with one another in the form of who could provide the best bonuses.
3. Anticipation that reached the boiling point: the countdown...
All the various factors whet prospective buyer's appetite for the latest Rowling book. But Rowling's publisher created even more excitement by announcing the release date far in advance, and then allowing the media to film the boxes of books being delivered. What was so special about the boxes? The fact that they were all boldly labeled with banners that said, "Do not open until July 16th."
Similarly, Reese created anticipation of the launch date by having a countdown script on his future sales page. Simple, but highly effective!
4. Anticipation that reached the boiling point: free publicity
The merchants, the reputation, the countdown...the media gobbled this up during the Harry Potter release. The marketing team couldn't have paid for better publicity then they received from all the major media outlets in the weeks leading up to release. And still it continues as the media continues to report on sales figures and more. When you hear that 250,000 books were being sold an hour, it kind of makes you want to run out and buy one just to see what all the fuss is about!
Yep, John Reese got free publicity too. There were many rumblings on the forums and in newsletters prior to his launch. People were getting curious and excited about the fact that John Reese was FINALLY going to release an IM product...and yeah, they were talking about it!
But when John surpassed a million bucks in a day, his free publicity skyrocketed. Some were talking good, some were talking bad...but EVERYONE was talking about it.
I'll stop there for now, as you can see for yourself that they used similar formula's for their releases. Sometimes the biggest education we can get is free, if we just stop to examine the processes and components of others' successful business activities.
Until next time...keep selling!
Cheers,
Rebecca "Becky" Hagel
Becky's Site: http://www.marketingauction.com/