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Whats the best method to help boost sales?

by JoeyJoe
18 replies
my sister has an online shop selling baby gifts. We use google adwords and it works well,

Im convinced if we invest in some local radio adverts, paper ads, or leafletting with 5% off voucher codes, this would boost sales. Shes not convinced it would be worth the money.

Whos right?
#boost #method #sales
  • Profile picture of the author rarnold
    I think she is.

    If Google adwords is working well than increase your daily limit.
    Also make sure you have your on page SEO done and promote to the search engines.

    You can than do other online advertising like email to lists of people with like interests.
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    • Profile picture of the author JoeyJoe
      We used to be the top result for "nappy cakes", but since we changed the site to zen cart, we have been all over the place, even on the 2nd page. Thats why we had to put the advertising on. We spend about £500 a month on google advertising.

      purenappycakes.com - any tips on the SEO of the page? I added SEO URLS plugin which helps, but my brother in law insists on cramming in as many keywords as possible.
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      • Profile picture of the author rarnold
        Originally Posted by JoeyJoe View Post

        We used to be the top result for "nappy cakes", but since we changed the site to zen cart, we have been all over the place, even on the 2nd page. Thats why we had to put the advertising on. We spend about £500 a month on google advertising.

        purenappycakes.com - any tips on the SEO of the page? I added SEO URLS plugin which helps, but my brother in law insists on cramming in as many keywords as possible.
        I think the problem is too many of the same keyword and Google doesn't like it. Read it outloud and see if you agree. When you read it the keyword is almost in every sentence, Google takes a dim view on this. You should be in the 3% range of keyword penetration, which is 3 keywords per 100 words, the site is way over.
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        • Profile picture of the author RobbieT
          Originally Posted by rarnold View Post

          I think the problem is too many of the same keyword and Google doesn't like it. Read it outloud and see if you agree. When you read it the keyword is almost in every sentence, Google takes a dim view on this. You should be in the 3% range of keyword penetration, which is 3 keywords per 100 words, the site is way over.
          Hey Joeyjoe, here's a couple of suggestions.

          1/ reduce the number of key words so that they fall within the ratio shown above and Google will love you.

          2/ get a new web site designed if your sister can afford it. This one is very ordinary

          3/ talk to your Bank and get a Card Swipe machine ASAP. The wifi ones are great and can be with you if you are on the move, so check them out. You will be losing heaps of business by not having credit card facilities.

          I hope the above helps.

          Take good care of those that you love.

          Robbie T
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          • Profile picture of the author somacorellc
            Do this yesterday. Paypal sucks.

            On another note, I've developed several Zen Cart sites (because I hate myself, apparently) and it's never been a problem ranking them for competitive terms. Up until a few months ago I was on page one for "outdoor furniture" and also "vance kitira plates" which is some "high-end" company that dropships. The only reason I'm not still ranked is that my client decided to stop paying her hosting bill and the site has been dropped form the SERPs entirely. (oops)

            So my suggestion, in the end would be:

            1. Find an SEO person that won't rip you off to help you rank for the stuff you used to rank for, and also figure out the best stuff to rank for now.

            2. Put a blog on the site and write about the cute stuff you sell every week or so. Include long tail keywords.

            3. I agree with the above guy that said to increase your adwords spend. Figure out what works and do more of it, you know? Makes sense. However I would get your SEO guy to consult with you on how to best increase your ad spend for more product specific searches. That way you're not spending a ton but you're pulling in those long tails like clockwork.


            Originally Posted by RobbieT View Post

            You will be losing heaps of business by not having credit card facilities.
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            • Profile picture of the author ScouterGuy
              If you already have a good customer base, I would suggest that you use your current list to sell more. Perhaps a 10% discount card for their next purchase included in the package with their ordered products?

              The other thing to consider is that moms tend to bond with other parents, especially when they get their first child. They meet other new mothers and I bet you that every customer you have knows at least one other "new" mom. Do a promotion where you give new customers a discount they can pass on to their friends. A few business card flyer with every delivery with a unique code that they can give their friends.

              It would be great if you could combine the two. If your friend uses this card they get a $10 discount on an order of XX dollars, where the referrer also gets a $10 thank you
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  • Profile picture of the author dogstar
    I would tend to agree with sister...its an interesting situation...a general internet sales proposition with a desire to do local promotion...usually, its the other way round. I would suggest you not do the radio and newspaper stuff (expensive) and run a locally identified web campaign for baby gifts, like "Miami Baby Gifts" or wherever you are, if you want to do a limited audience effort for some reason.
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    • Profile picture of the author JoeyJoe
      Originally Posted by dogstar View Post

      I would tend to agree with sister...its an interesting situation...a general internet sales proposition with a desire to do local promotion...usually, its the other way round. I would suggest you not do the radio and newspaper stuff (expensive) and run a locally identified web campaign for baby gifts, like "Miami Baby Gifts" or wherever you are, if you want to do a limited audience effort for some reason.
      The target market is mums. And we get alot of calls from them not knowing how to place orders or how to use paypal. They call us to place the order over the phone which we dont yet have the facilities to.

      We sponsered some newspaper event to do with children, and we got alot of calls from people wanting to place orders who dont even have the internet. I think it would be a good idea to branch out and do a sort of telephone sales line. would this be worth doing?
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  • Profile picture of the author iAmNameLess
    Why zencart? Should have went with magento, much better platform and good for SEO. Even SEF urls in zen, aren't SEF. LOL.

    Your on page is kind of bad, it's obvious you're trying too hard. Keyword density is too high for important keywords, you also have too much going on with the linking and the bolding of all the keywords. No point in doing it that much. If I were doing a manual review for google, I would look at your site and immediately penalize you for trying to build for the search engines and not people.
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  • Profile picture of the author prostarprofitsdotcom
    There is no way to know without testing.

    I find offline I get better results because less people are marketing there. Are you using branding or direct response advertising?

    If you use direct response this will increase your results in itself.

    Respectfully,
    Chris Brown
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  • Profile picture of the author iAmNameLess
    I would also like to add that if you have success with adwords, scale it up.
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  • Profile picture of the author vndnbrgj
    Why are those the only things your considering?
    Why not have an autoresponder setup on the site?
    For example: The coupon you were mentioning or Baby shower party ideas....
    Something like that. And also building on the Twitter presence and FB presence.
    You can integrate an autoresponder in that too.
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  • Profile picture of the author 100bucksaday
    Very interesting situation...! she is right.. I have some suggestion, you can offer these types of offers to customers like:
    Offer a limited-time price discount where visitors must buy before a certain date in order to qualify for the discount.
    Offer only a limited quantity of your products or services.
    Offer additional bonuses for free if visitors buy within a certain time frame.
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  • Profile picture of the author ilovemedia
    In a way, youre right, because as of right now there is great potential in traditional and print advertising that you arent able to tap into. If you do choose to incorporate these into your marketing strategy, don’t do it half-heartedly or without the right preparation because then your sister will be right and it wont turn in enough profit to be worth the money you are paying for. Why dont you try starting out with the discount vouchers and leaflets, and as you get the hang of those and make a smooth transition you can then continue expanding and adding onto your marketing scheme. Slow and steady wins the race.
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  • Profile picture of the author Jason Kanigan
    Check out this successful example of a baby store:

    https://www.facebook.com/ababy.com

    Baby Furniture | Nursery Cribs | Baby Furniture Bedding | ABaby.Com

    They were looking for a fanpage/social media helper on elance last year and that's where I ran across them. Prices aren't bargain basement, either.
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  • Profile picture of the author RentItNow
    Adwords has by far the cheapest cost per impression and likely the highest action rate so I would say ramp up that. If it is working, why go towards something that is not. You may also try a bit of facebook ads or youtube (display network?) with your best ads. Also continue to test new versions of your adwords and keywords. Get more localized and see if that helps conversions a bit.
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    I have no agenda but to help those in the same situation. This I feel will pay the bills.
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  • Profile picture of the author alina75
    Their is No other way without testing it you have to test it first....
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  • Profile picture of the author KingOfContentMarketing
    If you feel your current sales base is relatively stable online, start to use offline strategies to broaden your mission and create a deeper bond with your brand. For example, what local charities can you partner with to help raise money for them and create awareness for you? Perhaps a baby or child-related cause. Pick one and get involved. Write press releases on your site and on press release distribution sites. Customers will support you and spread your goodwill message to their social media networks.
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