In order to turn your visitors to customers, you will need to bear some things in mind.
Firstly, you should not sell them things based on the mind-set of making money out of them.
Secondly, ensure them to learn something that can benefit them.
Lastly, provide your best quality content with sufficient research and answer all their questions as fast as possible.
1) Building a Sustainable RelationshipÂ
The simple answer to building a sustainable relationship is to do one step at a time. You must make your visitors feel comfortable when they opted in to your list.
Do not start to send them offers in the beginning and instead, provide them with many free quality value first which will builds a rapport among you and them. Thus they will be confident that your offer is the best solution to their problem.
Let’s give one scenario; would you want to marry a person without spending time to understand each another?
Definitely no right!
Let’s give another more logical scenario.
A man and woman happened to encounter at a party. They notice each other and instantly decide that they are interested.
The man walks over to the woman and starts a casual conversation. Before leaving, he asked for her number and dates her out. She agrees.
First five dates: The couple goes out for dinner and start to know one another. They ask one another questions, share more about themselves and talk more about their interests and passions.
They start to go out for movies and dinner on weekends and spend a long relaxing weekend together for breakfast.
Date 6: They go out to dinner with her parents, who are visiting from out of town and the next day, he play golfs with her father.
Dates 7-10: She is at his place or he is at her place for four evenings a week.
Dates 11 through 60: Same as above only it is six days per week.
After the 60th date, they are no longer dating, they start to discuss on their future and having marriage plans.
You get my point?
Although a marriage proposal and sales are different in many ways, they are quite similar in that it requires time and commitment. Great relationships-be it personnel or professional- do not happen overnight.
2) Website conversion essentials
Let me provide you with the following three essential web site elements.
• Make it professional looking, eye-catching and well written
-Spend some money on graphics designer if you have the capital and your conversion rate will increase.
-Make sure your sales letter copy is compelling, well written and error free.
• Make it uncomplicated and easy to use
-Make sure that the navigation is simple and visitors understand exactly what to do by using easily located opt-in boxes, and sales buttons.
• Make it warm and welcome
-Welcome your guests with open arms and offer to lighten their load by giving them something of value.
3) Building a responsive online mailing list
Know what your target market wants badly enough to pay money for. This may seem obvious but many businesses try to promote what they want to sell instead of what the audience wants to buy.
You can get people to opt in to your list unless you truly offer them something they really want badly due to the high competitiveness in the online marketing space.
Make the opt in process simple. Your form should be one page without many words that will confuses visitors to divert their attention to other links.
Also, set your expectations up front. If you have a newsletter, tell your subscriber that is what they will get. If you only mail out once a week or a month, let them know too. Just make sure that you deliver what you promise.
Image Credit: Intersection Consulting
15 comments
To do the right research when one writes an article is very good advice.When i started affiliate marketing i would just not do much research.It showed.Now i am redoing all my articles,putting real information in them.And my site is doing a lot better in Google and Bing.
Nice article. It is fact that, In online sales, trust can be even more important—because a buyer isn’t touching a product, or looking a salesperson in the face. People go through a lot of stress when they buy online doing research, confirming with friends, etc. Especially as the price point of the item/services grows larger. So trust is what relieves the stress of purchasing decisions.
You’ve given a great example of how online trust is difficult compared to the offline business model. Online businesses need to be more trustworthy and honest in their approach
This article is really very important for me Mr.Wilson , because i’m planning to start a website for some blogging related services .Thanks for your suggestions 🙂 Trust is very important to get success in this field .
I like the analogy of the mating process for gaining a professional relationship. Thanks. Now, I will start to re-do my website to take into account what you mentioned.
What a well written article on effectively building trust online. This is a great article for new website owners, and also for old timers like myself! You remind us to not rush things, as trust needs patience, hard work and commitment!
You’re right, you can’t build trust overnight…it has to be a long term focus and commitment.
Trust online – so many places you need to win it now. From people visiting your site not just so they buy your products, but so they like it, tweet it, and don’t leave striaght away.
With google panda perhaps measuring time on site as a measure of trust… you need to find ways to get people to stick around.
Great dating analogy! My little problem is that some of my readers become a bit too involved and too “trusty”, and suggest to meet, or give them a tour in Toronto, show them around and whatnot. My website is my business, I am not doing it just for the fun of it, although it might look like it. I am physically unable to meet my readers, and there is really no point. I would actually like to learn how to keep distance and yet keep them coming back to my website?
It’s great when users get involved with a site, since you have great content about the city of Toronto on your site, people seems to trust you and believe you to be an expert about the city. You can guide them to a local tour operator or a travel firm for their travel needs.
Wilson,
It’s not easy to gain and build trust online especially that a lot of people are aware that the internet is a place of many variety of scams. The internet is home of those various lies, fake info and a lot more. So it’s not really an easy task to acquire the respect and reputation you want to gain. It takes time and effort and also courage to implement it.
Your point of view is very correct. I was also thinking of exactly the same points over few weeks before. Of course if you are in IM field you must have to presell first if you are new.
Where preselling is not important are brands like amazon. So if you are new then try o develop into a brand.
“Firstly, you should not sell them things based on the mind-set of making money out of them.”
^^ This a million times over.
Building trust is one way of being honest to your clients. We should build good rapport and delivered our services to them with time constraint.
yes, agreed with what you said in building trust online. And I think good and quality customer service also another point to tie your customers together with you.