30Mar

Writing Powerful Ads for Your Direct Sales Opportunity

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When it comes to writing your ads, there are words and sentences that you can use to assist you to make your ad more powerful.  Here are some things to consider.

Title – It needs to capture the attention of your audience and make them want to read more about what you offering.  It does not have to be long but something that gets attention.  “Join my team” is likely not going to encourage people to read but “Join my Million Dollar team!” may get more interest as they see the word “Million” and want it.

Value of the Offer – The body should make sure it answers whatever is promised in the title.  For instance, if you saying “Join me and earn a car” the body should say something about how they are going to earn this car.  You also do not want to discount other important factors such as it is a selling job and whatever else you feel is relevant.

Unique – Why is your offer unique from those other ones out there?  Is your company the only direct sales company that allows their consultants to earn a car?  If you make this claim, it is important that you know it is true as if there is another company has this same incentive, you can be sure someone will let you know about it.   And depending on who they are, they may want to make sure the rest of the world knows that you screwed up.

Power Words – There are words out there that are powerful and therefore, you also need to use them sparingly.  For instance, “Free” is a power word, but if people use it too much it loses that power and people tend to ignore it.

This is just a bit of information to help you write your direct sales advertisements more effectively.  To do a really awesome job, take a bit of time to do more research and soon your ads will be converting like crazy.

Make sure you check the posts – Advertising Part 1 and Advertising Part 2 -  on how to write an effective direct sales opportunity advertisement.

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28Mar

Advertising your Direct Sales Business – Part 2

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Did you read part 1?  Did it make sense?  Let us continue on how to write our advertisement to get people interested in our direct sales opportunity.

Advertising advertising

Advertising advertising (Photo credit: Toban Black)

Graphics – Graphics are great to get people’s attention, but do not overwhelm them.  If you have 100 words of text, you should not be using three different graphics.  One is likely the maximum for that amount of words.  Use too many and your ad will get lost with the pictures and the person will move to the next ad they see.

Be Prepared to Answer Questions – This is a big one when it comes to placing ads.  It does not matter how much information you put in the ad, you are going to get questions.  But questions are good as you can give out more information and personalize it based on what the person is asking you.   Depending on their interest level, this can go back and forth for a while.

Do not Overhype – A big turn off when it comes to ads is reading an ad that promises the moon if you join that direct sales company. There is nothing wrong with putting things in the ad such as earn a cruise, earn a car, if these are incentives that your company offers.  But putting in something such as join this company for financial freedom can be a bit of an over-promise and may cause some people to believe you are offering some sort of scam and run far away.

Length – It is important that your ad is the right length.  But what length is that?  Well, less than two pages but more than two lines.  Keep in mind people do not have very long attention spans so the more they have to read, the less likely they are going to quit and move on.  Bullets and bolding can be very helpful to get your points across.

Proof the Ad – Ask a friend to read your ad and tell you if it complete or if it needs more.  Ask them to be honest with you.  See if the ad has enough information to entice them to ask for more information or if it seems to be over-promising to the point of being a turn off.  It may be helpful to ask more than one person to check the ad over if possible.

Come back on Friday where we talk about power words and other wording to use to help attract people to your direct sales opportunity.

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26Mar

Advertising your Direct Sales Business – Part 1

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Chances are, you are looking to increase your business with advertising.  But are you doing yourself a favour by writing effective ads or are you just tossing your money out the window by not knowing what you are doing?  If you aren’t sure, here are some tips to assist you with writing an effective recruit ad.  You can use these tips to help you write a good sales lead ad too.

Name your Company – How often do you see an ad where they discuss the benefits of the company but do not state who they are?  I know I have.  I don’t want to contact them for more information as maybe I have had a bad experience somewhere or because I want to research before I make contact.  There goes a lead down the drain.

Start Up Costs – This one is a bit trickier.  One of the most common questions I get in response to an ad is how much it costs to start.  With my company, there are two different price points as well as a way to earn your kit free.  For this reason, I do not state that it costs X amount to join.  But I do state that there are two different kits to start with or that they can earn their kit for free.  Usually that gets enough interest for them to ask me more.

Quotas – Many companies have a quota of some sort.  Whether it is placing one order every three months for Y retail value or it is Z value every six months.  It helps to be up front about it by staying that there is a monthly/yearly quota involved.  If they are interested, they will ask about.  If it is something simple like submitting one order of any value every 6 months, you likely will want to say that right in the ad as people will like to know that and may put your company in the running when it wasn’t previously.

Slang – Like any industry, there is slang that those in direct sales uses.  Keep that out of your ad.  There is a good chance that the people who are reading your ad are not familiar with the industry jargon and it is just going to confuse them.  Use plain English.  If you aren’t sure if you are, ask a friend to read the ad over for you.

Come back on Wednesday to read about more elements of making a good advertisement for your direct sales business.

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27Feb

Tax Information – Advertising Write Offs

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One big tax issue is what all you can write off for your business.  And a bit one of these is what counts as advertising.  I’m going to go over some ideas in this article about what you can and cannot use for your direct sales business.  Please remember that i am not a tax accountant and that I am located in Canada.  Please talk to your tax accountant for the most accurate advice.

The general rule of thumb when it comes to advertising is that you have to be able to attribute it to the business.  If you cannot say that it is for the business, or directly related, it can be difficult to justify it.

For instance, let’s say you buy some new clothing for your business.  Typically, you cannot write it of… but… if it is logo clothing with the name of your company on it, or has some saying on it like “talk to me about earning free product” or “girls night in – ask me more”, that can be written off.  That would qualify as it is directly related to your business.  If you buy clothing, non-logo’d, and only use it for your business; it can be a bit trickier and I likely wouldn’t use it as a write off.

Another type of advertising is doing trade shows/vendor events.  These are a write off which is pretty obvious.  Do your best to get a receipt so that you have something stating what you paid and that you can put in with your tax time papers.

If you put in ads anywhere that cost you money, this is advertising.  Again, this is pretty obvious but as this article is about types of advertising you can write off, I am including it.

If you give away any type of product for people to try, or for a door prize, you can also write this off as an advertising expense.  And don’t forget to make sure that your label is on it somewhere so you can get repeat business!

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01Feb

Advertising your Direct Sales business by Guest Posting?

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There are many blogs out there that are looking for content as it can be a lot of work coming up with posts all the time.  You will find guest posts on the smallest blogs right on up to the experts in the industry.  Do not limit yourself to direct sales blogs – look for blogs about working from home, stay at home parents, making ends meet, reputable jobs or anything else that you think would fit.

Guidelines – See if they have a section on their site about guest posts and what their requirements are.   These typically will tell you how many words, if there are specific topics they are looking for and what you get in return such as a biography and a link.  If not, see if there is a contact us page that you can use to contact them and see if they would consider a guest post.

Pitch – It may be helpful to include a bit of information about the type of post you want to include and how it relates to their blog.  For instance, if you wanted to guest post on this blog but were writing about how to get the best results with your camera, I wouldn’t permit it as its not relevant.  But if you wanted to write about how to keep a guests attention during your presentation, I would welcome it.   In return, you typically get a paragraph included about yourself and a link which you provide.  (By the way, I am always looking for guest posts for this blog, contact me!)

Information about you – Depending on the type of blog and the article you want to write, it may be helpful to include some information as to why you are qualified to write this article.  For instance, you could tell me that you want to write about how to keep your guests attention and that your party average is well above the company average due to these techniques.

Proof it! – Before you submit your article, please proof it!  I have had a few posts I had to reject after they were written due to poor grammar, spelling or just not being on topic.  If you are not sure that it works, then it likely doesn’t.  The blog owner does not have time to re-write your article for you.

Once your post is posted, the blog owner likely will send you the link so that you can see it as well as help to promote it.  Do not be surprised if you see some small edits such as adding of keywords or text being turned into hyperlinks.  Looking for other free advertising ideas – check out my articles about free online advertising and offline free advertising!

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30Jan

Can’t do paid internet advertising for your direct sales business?

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My company doesn’t allowed paid Internet advertising – is it still possible to get advertising on the Internet without paying?

Yes, absolutely!  My company does not allow this either but I have still found many different methods.  In fact, you can read my post here about Free Internet Advertising.  But I also have some other ideas for you.

Guest Posts – One popular method is to write guest posts on different blogs.  This will benefit you as it helps to establish you as an expert as well as reaching out to people that you may not encounter otherwise.  It helps the blog owner as they get free content.   In return for your post, you will get a few sentences of a biography as well as a link or two to whatever site you choose.  Check your favorite blog sites to see if they accept guest articles or contact them if they have no information on the site about it.

Article Directories – Another method to get free advertising is to write for article directories.  While this is similar to a blog you do not need to contact them to get your content published.  Create an account and then publish your article.  But, article directories still have guidelines for content and formatting, so do not think you can just put up whatever you want.  You will need to check into what is acceptable on their sites.  A benefit to this is that article directories tend to rank well so articles on them may come up higher on the search results than your own blog or website.

Keywords – If you feel like doing some investigative work, you can learn about keywords and how to optimize your sites to help people find you easier.  This does not tend to work so well on a replicated website that you have through your company but there are ways to do this if you have a separate site such as a blog, a Facebook page or other places that you post about your business.

Social Media Sites – Depending on the sites you use, there may be places where other direct sales congregate.  Join these and post about your business (but be careful not to spam).  You never know when another consultant is looking for someone with your business for themselves or a customer.  These can also be a great source of finding trade shows or other events.

Do you have a favourite method of advertising which is not mentioned here?  Please share in the comments!

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25Nov

12 Clever Ways to Boost Your Traffic

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A Minneapolis Police Department Traffic Office...

Image via Wikipedia

Guest post by Terri Seymour

Traffic is essential to anyone who owns a website and/or blog.  Without traffic we have no customers or sales.  Unfortunately traffic does not just come to us, we have to work at it and we have to be consistent and persistent.

Sales conversion rates normally average less than 5%.  What this means is that only 5% of the people who visit your site will become a paid customer.  So, to increase your sales, you need to increase your traffic and/or your conversion rates.  Below are twelve things you can do right now to start increasing your traffic to get those sales.

1.  Launch an Article Marketing Campaign – Writing articles is not as hard as you might think and it can do wonders for your traffic!  Write about something you know and just pretend you are telling a friend all about it.  There is no need to use big, fancy words because people just want basic, straightforward information.  Submit your articles to some of the more prominent article directories such as Ezine Articles.

2.  Guest Posting and/or Commenting on Blogs – Do a search to find quality blogs in your niche and ask if they accept guest posts.  Write helpful comments on existing posts and leave your link.  Get involved and start building your reputation!  A good place to find blogs that need guest posts is BloggerLinkUp.

3.  Write Website Reviews – Review websites on Alexa and get more traffic and improve your Alexa rating.  Go to Alexa, register an account and start reviewing and getting that traffic.

4.  Relevant Keywords – There are a lot of free keyword suggestion tools you can use to find the top keyword searches for your niche.  For example: if you own a pet care site, you would enter the words pet care and the tool would find the most relevant keywords for you to use on your site.

5.  Yahoo Answers – Visit Yahoo Answers regularly and post as many answers as you can but be sure to follow their policies. You cannot try to directly lead people to your purchasing pages or leave low quality answers with your website link.

6.  Interactive Site – Make your site interactive with forums, polls, surveys, etc.  If your visitors feel more involved with your site you will get repeat visits and longer stays.  Add a little fun as well with contests, games, etc.  Have a weekly or monthly scavenger hunt, trivia game, etc.  Running a contest for a month can increase your traffic by thousands.

7.  Business Cards – Produce an effective business card and hand them out wherever you go.  Be sure to make it unique.  Offer a discount on a first order.  Add a personal message.  Offer a freebie.  Make your business card more than just your name and address.

8.  Podcasting – A podcast is an audio or video broadcast which people can listen to and/or watch on many devices.   Make your podcast informative but interesting.  Talk about how your site can help the people listening and let them know about any contests or other interactive activities you offer.  All you need to make a podcast is a working microphone and a voice editor such as Audacity.  Once you have made your podcast, promote it in podcast forums and podcast directories such as PodcastBlaster.

9.  Moving Billboard – Turn your vehicle into a moving billboard to advertise your website wherever you go.  Use affordable vinyl coverings such as Car Wraps or magnetic signs from Esigns.  A day of fun can bring you a lot of traffic from your mobile billboard!

10.  Social Media – These days social media is a must for more traffic.  Join Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and more.  Visit message boards and forums and really get involved.  Answer people’s questions, offer helpful advice and information.  Becoming an active participant in social media can do wonders for your traffic.

11.  Offer a Freebie – Write an informative report or ebook and offer it for free.  Put in your website link and other biz info.  Let people know they can give it away on their sites as well.  Add it to your email signature.  Post it on your social media pages.  Before you know it, your report could be all over the web bringing you new traffic every day.

12.  Sitemap – Create an XML sitemap for your site and submit it to Google.  A sitemap will allow more accessibility to your pages by the search engines, thus making your pages easier to find by people doing searches.   You can easily create up to a 500 page sitemap with XML-Sitemaps.  There are other options as well such as XSitemap.  Do a search and find alternative options to choose from.

There are numerous ways to get more traffic to your site.  Some will work for you and some will not.  Try the ideas in this article and add to them, or mold them to work even better for you.  Traffic does not come easily but by working hard, trying new ideas and finding out what works best for you will be very effective in boosting your traffic.

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Terri Seymour has over twelve years of online experience and has helped many people start their own business.  Visit her site for free articles, resources, information, resell ebooks and more.  Sign up for the RSS Feed for a free business ebook with MRR. http://www.SeymourProducts.com

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11Nov

Direct Sales Target Audience

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Do you know who your target is?  I think the majority of those in direct sales would tend to say that their ideal customer is in their late 20’s to early 40’s, female with disposable income.  But is this truly accurate?  My thoughts would be for the majority of companies; it likely is, but what about the direct sales companies which sell products with a different demographic?

Food – Do you think a direct sales company only targets these individuals?  My guess is no.  The food companies are going to target anyone who cooks or maybe those that do not like cooking by telling them that food will be much easier to make with their products.  The products that food companies sell (at least the ones I have bought from) have a lot of products that are under $10 making them affordable from the student right on up to the senior with a limited income.  Some of the other products that they may offer, such as cookware or other home supplies may be more targeted, but I cannot think of too many people that might not like to add some spice to their food.

Clothing – Recently I have heard of some new clothing companies.  I am not sure if they are new to my area or to the direct sales arena in general, but again, their target consumer is likely different. For instance, the one company makes children’s clothing.  Of course, they need to target mom to buy the clothing but if the kid doesn’t like it, nothing mom says will make the kid wear it.  So the true target here is the child as they are brought to the event, they try on the clothes and decisions are made.

Vitamins/Supplements – With our population aging, there are more companies getting on the bandwagon in selling products to the aging market.  As a result, companies that make vitamins or beauty products may be changing their ideal demographic a bit.  They likely are still targeting the main female market but they will be expanding their age groups right up until retirement with vitamins that help you with energy, menopause or other health issues.  Right up there are beauty products that would help with wrinkles or age spots.

While the target audience and the majority of your direct sales target audience, may be the typical one, chances are you likely have some markets you have not considered based on your product mix.  You may have 75% of your product that hits this group but the rest could be marketed elsewhere.  What can you do to reach out to these buyers?

 

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07Nov

Communicating with Your Direct Sales Target Market

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Something that I learned in a Marketing course I have been taking is the importance of identifying the unique attributes of different generations.  Knowing and understanding what makes each generation different will aid in communicating with your customers, making your direct sales business move forward.

Baby Boomers – I know you have heard this term before, everyone has.  This generation is older – in their 50’s and 60’s.  They are looking for products that have to do with anti-aging and making them feel/look younger.  They prefer communication to be via phone or even through the mail, depending on what it is.

Generation X – These people have grown up in a repressed economy so they tend to be more cautious.  But they are also environmentally conscious and look to support companies that care for the environment.  Due to the large buying power of this age group, many companies are looking for products that they can market to this group now and as they continue to get older.  Communication is still using the telephone but they are adapting to email so you may have some luck with technology such as email or Facebook.

Millennials – The millennial is the current generation, born after 1985.  They are likely in university or just finishing up and heading into their first jobs.  They grew up with technology so much of it doesn’t faze them and they prefer communication be electronic whether it is email/texting/social media.  Your best bet to get a hold of a Millennial customer is to send them an email/text as they likely have a cell phone  or smart phone that does not leave their side.

For me, I am between Gen-X and the Millennial (due to my birth year) but I know that I tend to lean towards the Millennial traits.  If I had my way, no one would ever call me and I would not even need the phone aspect of my Smartphone.  But my dad is a Baby Boomer, and he loves his telephone and has a love-hate relationship with his computer.  For the most part, he prefers not to use it.  He tends to reply to emails saying, I will call you, if he can even find the reply button.  As you can see, the best way to communicate with the two of us is very different.

Knowing the best way to communicate with your customers can help you when it comes to follow up as well as getting repeat business.  If you use their preferred method of communication, you are more likely to get a response from them and move your business forward.

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29Aug

Where all should I put my contact information?

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Short answer, everywhere you can!

Catalogues – I have a sticker that I put on the back of my catalogues with my name, phone number, email address and website.  I want people to contact me in whatever method they are most comfortable with.  I buy these through my company store but you can also purchase them at Vistaprint.com .  You do pay separate shipping for them.

Products – I put a small re-order label on all my products.  It has my name, phone number and email.  There isn’t much more room.  They are return address labels that I buy from Staples and they come 80 to a page.

Business Cards – This is a no brainer, all of the above information is on my cards as well.  I always put a few into each customer’s bag, just in case.  You never know when they might pass your card onto someone else.  I get mine through Vistaprint but there are many different options for business cards.

Care Instructions – With my business, I give my customers care instructions for their product.  My contact information is on there as well.  I use one of the same stickers I use for my catalogues.

Invoices – I have a stamp with my name and phone number on it that I will stamp onto the customers copy.  I have also been known to just staple a business card on instead as that has more complete information on it.  Either method works but it’s about getting the information on there.

As you can see, you can put your information everywhere, and I fully advise you to.  I bought some product from a rep a while ago and I want to buy more, but she did not put her contact information on the products nor did she give me a business card so I have not been able to find her.

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