Pin It

Give People What They Want Not What You Think They Want

thewordofrob | Sep 8, 2010 |

0 Comments | Rating: 0

Over the last few months I have completely changed my approach to online marketing.

Let me explain.

For years I have been operating a string of websites and blogs. Writing content and trying to appease the search engines. Guess what? It is a waste of time.

Why? - Because the search engines change constantly and MOST people online are simply recreational surfers. Occasionally, very occasionally they buy something.

I started thinking about things and then it hit me, and call me slow because maybe this is obvious to many, but I started talking to people about how they use the internet.

A common pattern began to emerge.

* The use the net for communicating email, Facebook etc.
* The search online for hard goods ie a new electric kettle
* They search online for information ie How to I get my dog to stop peeing in the kitchen.
* They BUY as a result of something they find OR something they are sent to.

Over the years people said to me "The Money is in the list" and "Promote,write supply niche products and ideas about which you have knowledge or interest"

That's where I faced problems. I could not see myself writing 200 hundred articles about "Back pain" I have a few online but frankly the idea is so boring that I just did not have the determination to succeed.

I read over my notes and an idea began to dawn on me.

What if I could supply information and news about the things that interest me and introduce them to new ideas?

I found most people online, as in real life respond to humour and the absurd. The love to see others making a fool of themselves or appear absurd, I suspect, although I am no psychologist that it makes them feel better, perhaps even vindicate their view of the world.

So after a lot of research I decided to write a news letter containing humour,satire and news together with "niche" mini articles outlining interesting products which I have tried and containing links to affiliate offers relating to these products.

I then set up a an auto responder and placed the sign up code on every site I owned and every "free site" that allowed html code.

That's when things began to take off.

Consider what happens when you build a site and get it indexed.

* People find your site via the search engines or Social sites like Twitter.
* They visit
* You have a few seconds to get them to read and react.
* You MAY get a sale but more likely the click off. So thousands of visitors a month wasted.

I now have people come to my site, I make them curios, I offer them the chance to receive my news letter by signing up and in return give them a free report, which contains more links to affiliate offers

I then have a list of people to whom I can send a newsletter...which the asked for...a few times a month. By making the news letter interesting I get people to OPEN the email and read.. The consensus of opinion is that a person needs to visit your site seven times before making a purchase.

So instead of needing massive traffic with my list I simply include a resources section at the end of each newsletter pointing to the offer I am promoting.

That way I can drive traffic to my sites, no reliance on the search engines and gradually, over time I become a respected source of information because I do not bombard them with offers, consequently when my readers are looking of specific offers the buy from me.

So a simple twist on an old idea. Build a general list not a niched list.

You have no idea what a relief it is to not have to write about stuff that has no appeal whatsoever and not have to worry about traffic!

BONUS TIP- Make use of Google Trends, Amazon Top Sellers and an RSS feed reader to have an instant source of ideas for sections to include in a news letter.