Where have all my sales gone?

I'm pretty sure I've been to your website. And I almost bought your ebook, too.

You probably already know about it, but a LOT of information about the Federal Prison system can be found for free on the message boards at prisontalk.com/forums. I know about them because I researched the federal prison system when Edna, the lady I helped the Secret Service put away, got arrested and sentenced to Federal Prison.

What's funny is that site has decent page rank, too...but up to now I didn't use any "identifying" information about myself because I didn't want Edna to find my posts there. Now that she's, er...not around right now, maybe I can see if the site is Do Follow and can take links.

LOL ... geez your visitors would NEVER steal
your ebook would they?? :rolleyes: Just a thought

Most likely it`s simply due to the fact people
are broke!! Do a split test, setup the product
at a cheaper price and see what results tell
you ... here is software that split tests from
headlines to full pages ...

Split Test Software


The way the US dollar suddenly "found some
value" again means most other currencies go
down the shit chute.

I was paying for example less than AU$70 for
one membership 3 months ago ... it`s OVER
$100 Australian now.

So basically for me, it`s costing me 30%+ more
than it was 3 months ago and has been that way
Oct/Nov/Dec ... your timeframe.

Christopher J.

Another thing to consider is how your sales are on a month by month basis compared to last year. I guess as you said over 6 months that perhaps yuu weren't selling this ebook a year ago. It may just be a quieter time for people purchasing this type of ebook.

Wendy

i'm trying to grasp the idea of your product, it's a guide to how to survive prison? haha, some of the people on here might just need it!

I've just read the sales letter. Looks like an interesting read even for those people not planning to spend time inside.

One thing I notices is that early on the page you say it's a "92 page guide", later on it's a "180 page guide". As a buyer that kind of thing automatically puts me off as you don't know exactly what you're getting.

I actually think that you may be more profitable selling a hard copy of the book at a much cheaper price. That way you can get the casual Amazon browsers who just have a general interest in the subject (I guess I'd certainly consider picking a paperbook copy up), plus there is a chance of getting printed copies to people inside a prison, which is another market (I'm assuming this is plausible not knowing the full workings of the US prison system).

Running adwords? Google seems to have some fairly decent search volume for this sort of thing. I wouldn't expect it to be something that would sell a high volume though, and especially not at $67. To me this is a $17 to $27 ebook at best.

Maybe some explicit photographs of what might be waiting for these folks at prison if they don't buy your book would help? Just kidding.... sort of.

Angela: Don't you fear what this gal might do when she gets out? I had a deal where I identified a hit and run DUI driver a few years ago. Turns out he was a bad dude being a member of a gang and already on parole. I still wonder every once in a while if this guy will be back for revenge when he is released.

Thanks for all the replies.

The best selling federal prison survival guide book sells at $49 a copy (paperback only) and has sold 20,000 copies in the past 6-7 years. Other competitors sell in the $60-$70 range. My goal is 500 books a year. I think it's reasonable.

The target market is people who have just been indicted/sentenced to federal prison. There are 70,000 people involved in federal criminal cases each year. Most spend tens of thousands on lawyers who help with the legal proceedings, but the lawyers have no idea about prison survival skills. They represent you until you are sentenced and then say "good luck" and that's that. No one then comes out to explain what you are facing, what is expected of you, how to act, what your life is about to become. People gladly pay for this info and I get lots of thank you emails.

The target market is not incarcerated inmates. Trust me, you don't want to be seen reading a prison survival book, while in prison! (That's a free tip for fellow Warriors!)

I am about to redesign the site and offer the ebook and paperback together for $97. Bad idea? They get instant access (can't print) and then 5 days later they get the paperback.

I may quietly offer the paperback alone on Amazon at $49-$67 and see what happens. How much would you pay just to read it out curiosity, (without having been sentenced to federal prison)?

Thanks for the heads up on the page typo. It's 180 with the bonuses. I will update that now.

I have the main adwords words covered. "Federal Prison" gets huge traffic, but whenever I taregt this keyword, it doesn't result in conversions. Just lots of page views. The other related keywords don't get so much traffic and I rank well organically anyway.

I think my best bet is working with prison consultants and lawyers who refer the book to their clients... Now, the best way to get in touch with these people. Would an email with an activation code for the ebook be enough or would you mail a free paperback with cover letter?

Jonathon, have you considered diversifying a little bit? Like how to survive "Federal White Collar Resort Prison" and "Federal Pound Me In The Ass Prison". The product is great, if I had spare money laying around I'd buy a copy just to keep reading your story, you sell it well. Has your traffic remained constant with no conversions?

Thanks! I'll check out crazy egg. And maybe I'll try a few different pitch pages. Because the potential customers are limited, I'm weary of dropping the price too low. I think people are facing prison though find $67 a drop in the bucket. Remember, they usually spend thousands on lawyers.

If for $67 you also receive a paperback in addition to the ebook, would you still view it as pricey?

Hi Jonathon

Maybe your sales are down due to the market being
overwhelmed with the same kind of books or topic
after so may years.

Even though you have consistant visitor traffic, it
seems like it is a case of "I come, I see and I leave".

You should find other ways of promoting your book,
if not it is time to start promoting a new book or start
another type of online business.

To your success !