Category Archives: Stuff you need to know - Page 3

More on SEO versus PPC

Posted by on December 21, 2011 No comments

I’m really biased towards PPC traffic – but only at the start of projects.

Here’s a great example of why.

Look at this screenshot. It’s showing the traffic sources for a new site I’m promoting that is less than a month old. You’re looking at last Saturday and Sunday’s stats.

The goal is a sign up to the mailing list.

Now here’s the biggie. Notice anything?

Clearly, the PPC traffic is much hotter. It converts at 8.46% (not too shabby – but room for improvement).

The SEO traffic converts at 0.45%. Appalling.

To put it in to perspective, at these rates I’d need the SEO traffic to give me 13,702 visitors to give me the same number of signups as the 773 visits from the PPC traffic.

So it’s PPC all the way, right?

Nope.

SEO is a lumbering beast. But using the information from the PPC account, you can point your SEO efforts in the right direction.

Again, all the heavy lifting is at the start, but once the SEO is ranking with the converting keywords, you’re on your way, without the PPC costs.

Of course though, building a list with your sign ups is only half the battle.

You then need to seduce your list by sending them great content as often as possible.

Send them anything that isn’t relevant, interesting or helpful and you’re dead in the water.

And every mail needs to be sent automatically – in the background – so you don’t have to think about it or lift a finger (you do this with an auto-responder. I use Aweber – try it out here).

Marketing, or gambling?

Posted by on December 20, 2011 No comments

Here are two simple marketing gaffs I see all the time.

They irritate me beyond belief because they are easy to avoid.

They happen through laziness, not ignorance. That’s what drives me mad about them.

Here’s the first: not knowing your numbers.

I don’t care what you sell – whether it’s a low ticket item or one that costs thousands and thousands, you still need to know:

  • How many visits you need for a sign up or enquiry
  • How many sign ups or enquiries you need for a sale
  • How much the average sale is worth to you

And finally, in time:

  • The average life time value of a customer

Without these metrics you are just driving blind. You have no idea how much you can profitably pay for a lead. That’s gambling, not marketing.

The second marketing gaff that drives me insane is this:

Not having enough emails in your autoresponder list.

So here’s how an autoresponder works. A prospect enquires, and then gets your emails as and when you please.

You may have 12 emails plumbed in, and decide to send them once a week.

But after 12 weeks, what then? Your prospect will forget about you.

You need to make it your mission to add emails constantly to your auto-responder list.

If you find this a pain, don’t worry – live with it. All the heavy lifting is at the front. Once you have a 50 or so in the system you can start to relax.

And then it’s all automated. All your new prospects are taken care of.

If you’ve written your emails well, it’s like having your own sales team working 24/7 for you, without lifting a finger or paying any wages.

So don’t be lazy with your emails – they are worth the effort.

If you’re not using an auto-responder yet, try out this one.

Makes sense? More tips here: