This is why Seth Godin has sold 10 BestSellers!

[AfteraDream]

Give this video a watch, it's Seth explaining why he is so successful and how he did it. It is relevant to anyone who sells ebooks too I believe... they are dead as your primary income source (maybe not at the moment, but this will happen). While Seth doesn't talk about it, he just talks about simple books being just a souvenirs:

Seth Godin, "10 Bestsellers: Using New Media, New Marketing, and New Thinking to Create 10 Bestselli

Enjoy and learn!

[AfteraDream]

Originally Posted by Marc Rodill

Let me go ahead and play devils advocate, real quick...

"Ebooks" are not "dead."

As long as people have information that others can benefit from, information they WANT, a merchant account, and a way to get people to their sales page (ie. using the internet, or sumthin')...

...then "ebooks" will be sold.

Call me crazy.

Info is free on Google... and on Warrior forum... and on bodybuilding.com forums and etc... Everyone today is writing an ebook and selling it..

[Lateef Odumesi]

Originally Posted by AfteraDream

Info is free on Google... and on Warrior forum... and on bodybuilding.com forums and etc... Everyone today is writing an ebook and selling it..

In as much as the information is something needed and worthwhile then people will pay for it. Even if you can get it free somewhere a very good info is not free.

[Dan C. Rinnert]

Originally Posted by AfteraDream

Info is free on Google... and on Warrior forum... and on bodybuilding.com forums and etc... Everyone today is writing an ebook and selling it..

Info has been free at libraries for years. The first library in the U.S. goes back to the 1700's.

Despite that, people still buy books.

[Kevin Riley]

Originally Posted by AfteraDream

Info is free on Google... and on Warrior forum... and on bodybuilding.com forums and etc... Everyone today is writing an ebook and selling it..

Yes, info is freely available. But, as infopreneurs we package that info into a nice little bundle - easy to use without a lot of searching around and sifting wheat from chaff. That's why e-books are not dead.

[brchap]

When clients purchase a product, they will appreciate it more. They will justify the price in their own minds before they reach for their wallet. In their heads, they will think (either consciously of subconsciously) that it must be worth money, otherwise someone wouldn't be charging for it.

Surprisingly, the higher the price, the more people will appreciate the information inside (typically, but not always). The trick is that your e-book does have to create some real value for the reader... even if they never implement the strategies inside.

It brings to mind the study that was done a while back on the power of expectation. I'm recalling this from memory, so forgive me if this isn't entirely word-for-word... In the study, they took a number of test subjects (individually - not as a group) through a house that was moderately clean (not perfect, but clean). After the tour was over, they were asked to rank the cleanliness of the house on a scale of one to ten. Next, they sprayed some ammonia cleaner around the entryway of the door to the house, so the smell of cleaner hit the visitor in the face as they stepped in. They gave a different set of people a tour through the house, afterward giving them a chance to rate the cleanliness of the house. As you've probably guessed already, the second group ranked the house higher. It seems the ammonia cleaner smell in the entryway gave the second set of test subjects the EXPECTATION of a clean house, and from there, their expectation affected their perception.

Which is why you should always have a great sales letter. If the customer EXPECTS to get a phenomenal e-book after buy your book, it will certainly help. Combine that with a slightly higher price, and some really great content and you have yourself a masterpiece. This, of course, assumes that you are providing information that people are actually looking for, needing, wanting, solves a problem, etc.

[AfteraDream]

Originally Posted by Marc Rodill

I got curious, and saw you mention a high bounce rate on your blog.

Now, I'm no rocket scientist, or anything, but I think I know part of the reason why. It's part copywriting, and part too much going on. I know you didn't ask for a critique, but I'm a jerk.

Onward.

I would like to dissect your first post, and it's lead in. Let's begin:



BAM! Man, that's a blow to the ego. The "Rich Jerk" aside, insulting your potential audience/customers isn't a great angle. Plus, since this is a fitness/bodybuilding blog from what I gather, I don't think your target audience is "tiny weaklings" at all. People who buy this type of information are usually fanatics and love working out, and are looking for that "edge."



I'm sure they want some of these things, but this last sentence is a bit over the top. It's too much, too fast. You're promising the moon ...they will get all of that, just by reading your blog? That raises skepticism. Try a more humble approach.

EDIT: Or get PROOF. But still, humble + proof kills it.




There's nothing wrong with claiming to be high quality, but you need a reason why. Are you really the best? If you're not, don't try to be something your not. People will see right through it. Aside from that, you need a USP. The unique reason they should read your blog, aside from the others. Is it your knowledge, your personality, your experiences, your real-world point of view, your x number of years, etc?



"Get that body of your dreams." That statement has been killed because it's been used so many times. It's a big claim. It may be a bit too soon to offer this as a benefit to a first time visitor.

The second part: basics. No one wants to learn the basics, whether they will admit it or not. Frank Kern talked about this when dissecting his InfoMillionaire launch. He *did* in fact give out basic information. He even named the techniques and strategies he was going to teach in the product, and they were, in fact, very basic.

But, he called them "advanced" tactics/techniques/strategies. In every niche, people want to know the "advanced" stuff. And they want it broken down into easily digestible pieces, so they can "get it" and be "better than everyone else."

He discovered this after numerous split tests. What people WANT and what people NEED are two totally different things. Appeal to what they want, while giving them what they need, and you got a winning formula.

Just sayin'.



I think that's a nice way of saying, "if you're too lazy to do what I tell you, then you suck. So if you want to find out how much you'll suck when you don't listen to me, here's where you can find out:"

That's a bit over the top, but I'm dead serious.

Subconsciously, you're telling them that if they read your posts, they better be ready to take action on it, or they'll continue to be "spaghetti weaklings." It's not a pretty picture.

EDITI don't know if you saw how those two link together before, but as feedback, that's the first impression *I* got after reading it.)

What if they don't like you (for any reason?) Maybe they won't like your writing style, the words you use, the techniques you talk about, or maybe they'll be on a different level, physically and emotionally. You have to give them the benefit of the doubt.

...

Instead, you need to come from all of this as "it's not your fault, I did it, and so can you" type of thing. It'll lower that 70% bounce rate.

But you didn't ask for this critique, so I understand if you don't want to take action on it. It's not your fault that your copy is pushing people away, you just haven't learned the secrets to attracting people to your sales messages like bees to honey. Keep at it, and you'll learn that people do, in fact, buy information all the time.

PRESENTATION OF THAT INFORMATION IS KEY.

You just have to present it the right way, give away really good information, and talk to their emotions/desires/wants.

I think you would do well to learn how to build a list the right way. Auto-responder messages are really nothing more than blog posts, and it's obvious that you can write blog posts.

Anyway, just my two cents. Hope I didn't piss you off (too much) :-)

No you didn't. It is useful critique so thanx. My Bounce rate is normal for blogs which tend to have high bounce rates (its about 60 percent)...

Anyway, I might come off as a jerk in my posts.. well.. because I'm not afraid to offend someone to motivate them. If you are not ready to admit you have spaghetti legs you are not really ready to improve the situation.

I keep it real, it sounds harsh sometimes. I know. But I can't satisfy everyone and I won't try. I might water down the message eventually, I will give this a thought but still, my main goal is not to sell.

As far as comment on my writing about body parts and big words.. well, I'm just trying to pain a picture, a vision for them to strive for and I want to make it as detailed as possible.

As far as basics and advanced stuff goes.. I do have to agree here. But, I am into basics, because they work, they are the neccessary things and I learned through my own mistakes they are better than advanced fancy stuff... that's why I use this. This is not good from marketing point, but I'm just being transparent.

And I will remove part "if you follow advice given" part from that sentence.. While I'm being straight, I see how this comes across as arrogant...

Cheers


P.S. This post is not about the blog or ebooks... jesus christ...

[AfteraDream]

Selling system or method is better than just simple ebook. Even though it'sonly difference is the name of product..

[AfteraDream]

BTW, everyone should read Jeff Jarvis' What Would Google Do book... wonderful read. Might help you see why content on the web should be free and monetization will happen indirectly

[Matt Maiden]

Free information does not always mean "correct" or "factual". Nor does it mean that you have found "all" the information needed.

If I want to know how to eat right for a thyroid condition I can take my chances on finding the information myself or I can by a book by a well known doctor.

The chances are, that if I knew where to look among all of the medical journals posted online I probably could have found the information the doctor sold me.

However, I still would not be confident that I have in deed found all of what I needed.
Then there is the time factor for researching the information. I would think the $19.95 I paid the doctor was a very inexpensive price to pay for "research".

Also, don't sell ebooks.

I've never sold an ebook.

I provide solutions for immediate download.

Matt

[AfteraDream]

Originally Posted by Matt M

I provide solutions for immediate download.

Matt

Liking this!

[brucekaushik]

ok it all comes down to this for me ...

its all about new creative way of presenting things ... and finding more efficient ways to present it before people!