Waiting For Your Cat to Bark is now a #1 best seller!

Today we hit #1 on the overall book best seller’s list on Amazon.com

Wow! 

Thanks for the support.  Oh and if you don’t have a copy or three, what’r you waiting for?

  Waiting for Your Cat to Bark? : Persuading Customers When They Ignore Marketing
" ‘Waiting for Your Cat to Bark’ makes in interesting argument that simply tracking marketing measures to a Web site is not actually effective — it doesn’t take into consideration the reasons driving the behavior of consumers. The book conveys an important message: The consumer is in charge and must be engaged on his/her own terms, and merely measuring Website visits isn’t enough to make an informed decision."

  Call to Action: Secret Formulas to Improve Online Results
"As the Internet changes the way marketers do business, learning how to optimize Web sites in order to motivate consumers to make a purchase is crucial. ‘Call to Action’ explains the steps of successful persuasion and is a must read for any marketer, with practical information on how to convert Website traffic into sales and ultimately, profits."

You can read the other books he recommends at http://online.wsj.com/article/SB115211863976798531 .html?mod=googlenews_wsj (registration required – sorry).

Not too shabby.

Of course selling the book and making all these best sellers lists is exciting, but the really exciting thing for us in the company is to see folks read and use the advice and examples in the book.  We are still hearing great reader success storys from our last best seller Call to Action.

Do you have a copy of the new book yet?  We will be waiting to hear your success story next.

Of course it begins with a succint and positive review of our new book, but the discussion that follows is a fascinating one.

What are your thoughts?

It keeps going down, down, down.

What?

The average conversion rate for online retailing.

In 2002 it was 3.2%, in 2003 it was 2.4%, 2004 it was 2.6%, and last year down to 2.4%

All this according to the Shop.org State of Online Retailing 2006 report.

Think about 2002, ages ago in internet years right? Now think about 2005. Today sites are better, better technology. Faster sites. Better usability. Better web analytics. Majors sites have been redesigned since 2002. More users have broadband, and visitors are more comfortable buying online.

So what is going on?

Lot of folks still waiting for their cats to bark. Are you?

Answer: Have fun.

I’ve been watching the new A&E reality show "King of Cars" featuring a loudmouth rapper type car dealer named Chop who runs Towbin Dodge in Las Vegas. 80% of their business is a direct result of a weekly informmercial Chop produces himself. The TV informmercial is one of the single best persuasion scenario driving points I have ever seen, it drives offline traffic like crazy. (Yeah yeah, the website needs work but that’s another post)

Be warned, the infommercial is obnoxious, juvenile, blue, and a general train wreck.  But, it is FUN, magnetic, and hugely successful.

Towbin Dodge is the #1 single point dealership in the nation. 

Instead of trying to market credibility, or change the public’s perception of car salesmen, Chop just decided to make everything fun. To be himself.

Turns out people love him. Turns out people love having fun. Who woulda thunk?

I have to wonder how many companys can benefit from unclenching their rear ends and being a bit real. Or are you gonna make me and the public endure yet another cloned, canned, polished, boring and safe message that no one is gonna believe anyway?

Whatever your website, I think you want better traffic, not more traffic.

You want to figure out why the right people will come, not build a sideshow that attracts exactly the wrong people.

At trade shows, there’s always a few booths with magicians, fire-eaters or bikini-clad models. And post-show, there’s no evidence at all to indicate that the noisy attractions did very much to improve the actual metrics of the booth.

So, maybe it doesn’t matter how your site does compared to a site in a different category. What matters, I think, is how your site does compared to last week or last month, and what’s happening to your conversion.  Read Seth’s entire post.

Agreed. We’ve been talking about his for quite a while.

Assuming your site’s conversion rate is on par with the industry average(around 2%) be careful not to come to the conclusion that 98-97% of the traffic is the wrong people just because they don’t convert.  Don’t  run out  willy nilly and try to find the ‘right traffic’.  Most of that good traffic might be right beneath your sniffer now.  No matter how much of the ‘right traffic’ you have, your sight has to be just as right to make sure that ‘quality’ traffic gets the information they need, the way they need it.

It’s not just quality of traffic, and like Seth points out,  it’s the quality of their experience with you and your brand.  The quality of your persuasion scenario planning is what bridges the gap between you and your traffic’s potential. 

We’ve spent a few words in some recent ClickZ articles talking about persuasion scenarios.  Start with this article, then read this, and finally this.

Our GrokDotCom newsletter is also out.  The martian writes about the maturity (or immaturity) of the online channel.  Are you settling for poor conversion rate increases because you think this is as good as the online channel gets?  Find out.  The newsletter also features an article from one of our newest staff additions, Robert Gorell, who generously spills some help about online copywriting.

You can subscribe to the GrokDotCom newsletter podcast. All the refreshing goodness of our newsletter poured right into your iPod or mp3 device.

-and/or-

you can catch a podcast of our weekly radio show "Wizards of Web" on Webmaster Radio. Bryan and Jeffrey Eisenberg dishin’ out weekly critques and Persuasion Architecture education and rants. Neato.

The book is being printed, videos are being recorded(for the DVD insert that will come with each book of course), promotion plans are being cemented up, and we are all preparing for the big release in June.

We’ve shared bit and peices and sometimes full drafts of the book with trusted friends and respected colleques, each one of them telling us to expect this book to be a runaway smash.

Still, we wanted to extend our ‘inner circle’, and meet a few more mareting and selling pioneers.

So right now Bryan and Jeffrey Eisenberg are banging out a new series of PPT files. They are creating a one time presentation, an abbreviated and  super fiery special edition of their Wizards Of Web Seminar( you know the one that is usually sold-out months in advance).

Here is the situation. There is a limited number of seats available for this one time only event to be held at on the new Campus of Wizard Academy in Austin, TX on May 9-10. The cost is $1800 per person. (The 3 day course costs $3000, so that is a significant savings)

Not only will you get a cranium full of potent mojo to help you start thinking about Persuasion Architecture and what it could mean to your business online and off, you will also get a new preview copy of the book signed by the authors.  We’ll also give you 100 copies of the book when released to indoctrinate your friends, family and cats.

Basically you are buying 100 books and getting the seminar virtually free. Sweet offer, huh?

We can put your name on one of those limited seats, but get it booked now, the seats never seem to last long.

Automakers spend big bucks building their car brands and promoting offer after incentive to get prospects onto car lots to take test drives.

In this GrokCast we dissect and compare two different marketing campaigns.

Are these automakers getting their marketing money’s worth?  You tell us.

Watch the new GrokCast (21mb Flash movie, 19 minutes)

As they made the move they unvealed a new mutimedia ad campaign utilizing TV, print, billboards, and of course, online ads.

At the center of the online campaign is a so called ‘viral’ site chock full of over produced video ’snippets’ of life. These video snippets while cute and occasionally entertaining are not the stuff of viral marketing, the reasons why are topic for an entirely different discussion. Needless to say, if they were viral, Visa did a horrific job of planning this viral online campaign, so many aspects of it simply fail.

In my most recent Grokcast, or video critique, I show you where and why their persuasive scenario falls apart.

Watch our Grockcast “Life Takes Better Planning” (Flash Move, 12mg, 13 minute)

I immediately subscribed. 

Today’s post, entitled Direct Marketing: A Science of Stupidities stole my little marketing heart.  Here is just one tasty morsel.

It’s time to stop talking about relevance and start practicing it.
Time to stop intruding and start attracting. Time to spell out a clear
value proposition. Stop patting yourselves on the back that your
unwanted communication got maybe a 5% clickthrough rate. FIVE PERCENT.
And consider, just for a moment, the 95% that want you to go to hell.

Maybe direct marketers don’t get the whole relationship thing because they don’t really know what that word means. Read the whole post.

Warning:  if you can’t handle raw, in your face, no holdin’ back truth then please don’t read the above post. It is not for the weak of mind and heart.

Our very own Chief Persuasion Officer Bryan Eisenberg is an advisor as well. 

We expect big things.

From a media perspective; great strategy, contextually-relevant
placements and low CPMs are not enough. A great media strategy is only
half the battle. Understanding how different online creative units
directly affect the consumer, and how they react to the exposure, is
just as important. Read the entire article at iMedia

What is an online creative unit anyway?  Apparently an online creative unit consists of everything BUT the ad copy.  And if it does include the copy, then if we were to read this article, then you might conclude copy doesn’t matter.

The article alludes to 7 different principles, that if followed, will bring you online ad success.  Woooohooooooooo!

And if you believe that….well then I’ve got this suspension bridge thingy that holds moving cars and stuff that hangs over a river in Brooklyn that I am hiring a ‘creative’ graphic designer to help me sell.

Do me a favor, read the article, and as you read the principles and enjoy the STRONGER vs. WEAKER ad comparisons for each, just try to imagine these ads WITHOUT graphics ONLY the copy.

You will begin to see instantly why most of those ads are STRONGER, and with maybe one exception, it has very little to do with the eye candy principles touted.

Wanna get peoples attention online? 

Relevant words first, pretty picture second.

If you serve big clients or desire to sell to bigger clients, this book is a have-to read. It is stuffed with practical advice, and it will have you taking action and making a difference in no time. 

Steve has offered our blog readers a special time limited offer.

Get the book at a discount for $13.97, plus 3 bucks shipping. That is a savings of $6 bucks. Plus if you get the book right now, Steve is gonna give our readers a free subsciption to his paid newsletter, the Weekly Business Vitamin. People usually pay $99 bucks for this comprehensive newsletter that gives business owners and managers weekly and actionable advice.

Do yourself, your business a favor and take advantage. The freebie will go away soon.

> Date: Wed Sep 07 18:18:27 UTC 2005
> Subject; Other questions and comments
> To:  guest.service@Target.com
> From: Brandon
> —————
> 09/07/05 11:18:13
> Comments: I work in the ecommerce marketing/conversion industry
and I expected that you guys would have a pretty decent checkout.
Boy was I wrong. The issues I had trying to purchase a $100 stereo
were so numerous that I can’t elaborate on all of them because I now
need to find another store that sells it. Who gives an error message
at registration that says "Please try another password for your
Target.com

account"? Why would I try another, I already tried
one? Shall I type it with one finger, shall I chant while I type,
shall I close my eyes when I hit the submit button? What are you
asking of me? I don’t get it? A longer password? One with numbers?
One without letters? Maybe you don’t like the letter ‘h’? It could
be anything! Once I got past that issue, I entered a  shipping
address, then later changed my mind on where to ship it. You mean
once I enter data, you won’t let me edit it during checkout? Wow,
I’ve wasted enough time. I’m going somewhere else.
> First Name: Brandon
> Email Address:
> Phone:
> Subject; Other questions and comments
> Order #: ya right
> estar: ~Brandon~Other
questions and comments~

And here is the response…

———- Forwarded message ———-
From: Target.com

  Guest Services guest.no-response@target.com

Date: 7 Sep 2005 20:10:00 -0700
Subject: Your Target.com

Inquiry
To: Brandon

Greetings from Target.com

I’ve reviewed your account and I’m sorry that your first experience
ordering from our Web site was not a positive one.

We pride ourselves in convenience and efficiency at Target.com, but
this time we fell short of our goal.  Please accept my sincere
apology for the events which led up to your most recent e-mail.

I sincerely hope you’ll give us another chance to prove the quality
of our service.  I assure you that we’ll do everything we can to
help make your next experience a better one.

How Did We Do?
Please let us know if this e-mail resolved your question:

If yes, click here:
http://www.target.com/rsvp-y?comm_id=ryreaqer3274181853
If not, click here:
http://www.target.com/rsvp-n?comm_id=ryreaqer3274181853

Please note: this e-mail was sent from an address that cannot accept
incoming e-mail.  Please use the appropriate link above if you need
to contact us again about this matter.

Best regards,

Jon B

Target.com

  Guest Service
http://www.target.com

ref_id:=tbdwaqer1126714783

How helpful.

I really love the line in this canned email "I sincerely hope you’ll give us another chance to prove the quality of our service. I assure you that we’ll do everything we can to help make your next experience a better one"

LOL

Yeah, you did such a great job doing ‘everything’ this time around, I am sure to come around again.  NOT!

I suppose the only thing worse than a canned email response is not sending your customers any response at all. And in light of a response like this, I am not sure how much worse it actually is.

Your thoughts?

Coming from an OFFLINE marketing background this article has got me scratching my skull.

Only one in five respondents indicated they have a complete handle on their conversion, marketing ROI, and revenue metrics. Twenty-three percent reported they don’t currently have any metrics, and 29 percent rely on clickthrough rates alone. Read the entire article at ClickZ Stats.

When I worked in the offline marketing world, every business I consulted was obsessed with marketing effeciency and measuring and optimizing their advertising efforts for ROI. 

With web analytics, we now have access to better and more relevant customer data that many offline marketers could  only dream of as little as 5 years ago.  So why are so many lax, and ill equipped to milk their  site metrics for better conversion, ROI, etc…?

Is it ignorance? 

Are companies afraid of what they will learn?

If you just don’t know what do with your web analytics, well, that is an easy problem to fix.

Reading.

What are you reading? 

Words

Reading is the primary activity people perform on the web, so why do so many folks spend so much time on design and so little time crafting the words on their site?

In our Persuasive Online Copywriting Seminar you will learn how to maximize results from persuasive copy and how to save your customers time, satisfy their needs and increase their pleasure by writing persuasively and laying out content in a way that works best for the Web.

Our two day workshop, led by Lisa T. Davis (aka The Grok and co-author of Persuasive Online Copywriting) and Holly Buchanan (VP for Client Services), gives you the foundational and advanced concepts you need to get the most out of your copy and offers hands-on experience.

Attendance for both days is US $795.

Plan to join us – the first day or both – in our colorful offices September 15-16, 2005.

What makes this resource a bit of a standout is the unique and useful way it is written.  This is not just some step by step manual or numbered list of ‘things to do’.  The folks at Wordtracker created a fictional Vegitarian Dog Food company and then asked Marketing and SEO experts to give this company some specfic advice on using Wordtracker.

Of course, I would be remiss to mention that there is a contribution from our own Bryan Eisenberg.

Download a Free PDF of Wordtracker’s Keyword Reseach Guide

"Hey John, did you see our conversion rate is 1.71%!"

"Woooooohoooooooo, I just saw on the Fireclick index that everyone dropped to an average conversion rate of 1.50%"

"Those poor suckers"

"Let’s break out the Dom and celebrate!"

When setting goals for your site’s conversion rate I suppose you could look at the collective metrics of your online peers, use these conversion rates as a benchmark, and celebrate if you happen to be doing better.  But what if you are doing worse? Then you should look at these metrics as something you should aspire to,  right?  You could do that.  Sure you could, but why would you?  Here are the conversations most should be having…

"Hey John, did you see our conversion rate is 1.71%, we are losing 98.29% of our visitors!"

"Boooooohoooooooo, I just saw on the Fireclick index that everyone dropped to an average of 1.50%"

"We all suck"

"Let’s roll up our sleeves"

I know that is harsh, but someone has to be.

Celebrating this offensively low benchmark is like celebrating when your Corvette tops out at the 15 mph mark.

There are several reaons why online conversion rate apathy abounds. First, many sites are making boxes of money, big boxes. Second, some of the money in those boxes is labeled PROFIT.  Third, it is hard to miss something you never had, that being the 98.50% of visitors that never converted. Also consider that those 98.50% of people don’t LOOK like people, they usually just show up as bar or a pie slice on metrics software.

But still that 98.50% worth of missed opportunities has got to be bothering someone.  Anyone?

I know it bothers all of us at Future Now.

When we take on a new client we often calculate what their conversion rate should be. Some sites should be converting at 50% or more, others in the 20-40%, almost all should be converting in the low double digits.

So next time you set conversion rate goals, do me solid.Set your bar a wee bit higher than the online benchmark.  And if your are still chicken to set it for a 20-50% conversion rate, then you can even set it at a less intimidating number.

How about aspiring to lose only 90% of your visitors?

Future Now’s very own VP of Client Services, Holly Buchanan,  has officially entered the blogosphere.  You’ll find plenty of examples and  practical nuggets that you can implement in your online efforts to sell and market to women.  Holly knows her stuff, but please don’t take my word for it, just take some of her advice and your improved conversion rate will convince ya.

Check it out!

Marketing To Women Online – How To Shatter Stereotypes and Understand what She Really Wants

Here is what they are looking for…

Helper-Group (7 people)

• Intermediate to good computer expertise
• Possible experience with PC-Sharing-Systems
• Web-Experience
• Feel comfortable helping other people

Victim-Group (7 people)

• Novice to intermediate computer experience
• Some Web-Experience

If you fit into one of the above categories and are interested inparticipating, please send an email to Betsy Weber at TechSmith to apply: b.weber@techsmith.com