Pay-per-click Is Not Enough to Get You Sales

Pay-per-click is not enough to get you sales. The reason why I say this is because it's not promising that the customer will make a purchase or even stay on your website long enough to make a purchase. If you don't have anything on your website that will grab their attention, they will leave your site and go on to another website. The harsh reality is that you will end up not seeing your return on investment when it comes to pay-per-click ads.

Why? Because they’re going to look for a sale for starters. Consumers will compare prices before they make a purchase. This is why it's best to do marketing research. You must see what your competitors are doing in your market. If your competitor is having a sale, you should also be having a sale. The rule of thumb is if they're selling the same product as yours, lower your price or mark your price as the same amount as their product.

Branding is not going to get your business sales either. It takes more than just branding to get you sales. Nowadays it's best to get a social media influencer to promote your products. This is the best option because word of mouth create sales. Yes, social media is highly recommended for your business marketing. Sure, you want to create a logo that has your company brand on it so that customers will be able to identify your company. That's all fine and dandy. As stated before, you need to do more than this for your company to succeed. You need to be innovative in your business. Something that is hard to imitate will be best. Basically, create your own designs/products.

Don't just stop at getting a social media influencer to get the word out about your business. I am not saying don't place ads. You have to know what ads are best for your business. Which ads will give you a return on investment? Sometimes, you have to go old school when getting the word out about your business. I am talking about posting signs throughout your neighborhood. Place cards on car windows, buy a car magnet with your business information on it and place it on your car. Pay an advertising company to post signs for you or post them yourself to save money. Saving money is recommended when you're a business owner. You should always have a cushion when you own your own business for unexpected business expenses. Let's not forget, paying your employees. This is another topic that I will discuss in another post. As some of you may know that I have a degree in Accounting & Finance as well. 

Plan on spending most of your time on marketing. Getting your product out to the right customers is also key to your business success. You need to know your target market. You need to know the demographics, (i.e., age, gender, location, income, etc.).

Important Questions to Ask Yourself Are?

1. Do you want to target low-income, median-income or high-income?

2. What age group would buy your products? (Millennial's, Gen Y, Gen-X, Baby Boomers, etc.). Here's a fun fact! Baby Boomers and Gen X's don't shop online. Your best bet is to target the Millennial's. Unless you're selling products that cater to the elderly. Like orthopedic shoes for example. If this is your market, you better take orders by telephone or have a store location where they can shop in person. It's because they're not good with technology. They prefer to shop the old school way.

3. What separates your product(s) from your competitors? In other words, what's the differentiation between the two. 

4. Are your products affordable for your target market?

5. What's the economic impact your business will have on consumers?

6. What's new in technology?