“Who is the ‘Tour-Guide’ in Your Business?”

Posted by: Socrates Socratous on: Mar 27th, 2007

Does your online business have a tour guide?

I am not talking about the travel industry
I am not talking about putting on your safari boots

If you are doing any type of online business
pay close attention to this article.

If you are doing Adwords, eBay, Affiliate marketing
or anything else, then understanding today’s
concept can be the key to your success.

There are 2 ways to find a hidden city in the jungle.

1. By chance. Meaning that you wonder around the
jungle long enough that you found the hidden city.
Lucky you. Chances of finding the city are slim
to none

2. Get a tour guide. Meaning that someone will show
you the EXACT PATH to the hidden city. Your chances
of NOT  finding it are slim to none.

The same goes for your website as well.

Your Goal is to take your customer by the hand,
through your selling adventure, and make sure
he arrives at the destination on YOUR TERMS.

In other words, become the tour-guide for your customer
and show them the way.

Lets take a look at the following picture
(Told you I was a top notch designer 🙂 )

(Click for full image)

map.gif
As soon as your visitor lands on your website
his journey begins. You can either let them
wonder around or take them by the hand and get
them to do EXACTLY what you want.

Your sales letter is part of your virtual tour guide.
Your sales letter is what is going to help your
customer make a positive desicion at every decision point.

Your journey map must be well designed before
you even create your website. Your website
must be build with the map in mind.

Some keypointers:

1. Eliminate any links on your page that are not
part of the map. You dont want people clicking away
and leaving your process

2. Your sales letter should be constructed to
help the customer make specific action(s)
which
will take them to the next step in the path. If you
fail to do this, you are a bad tour-guide and your
visitors will leave

3. Make the transition between pages uniform.
you want the customer to feel they are in the same
path (website)

4. Carefully test every decision point to know
the exact conversions numbers (how many people
went to the next step out of all people). This is
Extremely important. Keep in mind, without a map,
you wouldnt know what to test, and what effect
it has on your bottom line

5. Make it as easy as possible to go through
the journey
.  The easiest it is to go to the next step,
the more people will do it

6. Take the customer to the next step in the path
as fast as possible.
For example, when paying for
product A, redirect to product B upsell immediately.
People are “hot” when they buy. Dont wait for them to
cool off

7. Make sure you bring “lost” customers back into
the path (get an autoresponder series to keep
bringing people back)

Having a map like this one, and knowing your
numbers at every decision point is the key to
a successful online business.

Lets give a figurative example:

lets say 1000 people go to your page and 50%
optin
(that is decision 1, conv = 50%)
That is a total of 500 people that went to
the next step

from the people that opted in lets say 2%
purchase product A
for $97. so we made 10 sales from
those 500 people. or a total of $970

Say from those 10 people, 20% buy product B
for $197. so 2 people bought for a total of $394

Total Profit: 394+970 = $1364.

Since you tracked all your numbers, lets try
and see what happens if we increased the conversion
of the Decision 2 point to 3%.

We make 15 sales of Prod A
We make 3 sales of Prod B

for a total of 1455+591 = $2046

That is almost $700 more just by working on a
specific part of our process to make it better.
(A small change)

Note: This was done with the same number of visitors.
and not counting the people returning from the autoresponder

If we better other sections of our system, the numbers
go up signifigantly.

You wouldnt be able to do this if you didnt know
your numbers and if you didnt have a map to work
with.
So todays lesson:

Make a Map, take your customer through the journey
and test and track all conversions at desicion points.

Dont forget to look out for my email on thursday 9AM PST

 Please post your comments below.

Best Regards.
-Socrates Socratous

P.S. The lucky commentator from this past week’s comments
was BusyBee. Congratulations Busy Bee, you won a seat at my
upcoming Telecoaching Class.

Please post your comments below.

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20 Comments

  1. stnetworkon 27 Mar 2007 at 2:03 pm

    As usual down to earth solutions to internet marketeers problems. The internet is full of information and I like many people I have found it difficult to recognise what is useful information and what is just hype with filling.
    This blog is like a breath of fresh air.

  2. SunStar Digitalon 27 Mar 2007 at 6:33 pm

    Socrates You take the cake!
    Conversion is everything!
    I used to think 40% of my customers coming back was awful. Now, I know it’s great as they have told their friends and so on. Now, my conversion rate is about 45% in the last month!
    I can’t wait for the telecast!

  3. John Reedon 28 Mar 2007 at 1:03 pm

    Obvious isn’t it – but so often overlooked.
    Thank you for the pointer, as a newbie I really need it.
    John

  4. Sally Neillon 28 Mar 2007 at 1:09 pm

    Hey Socrates, this is my first visit to your blog and boy was I impressed.

    I immediately added your blog to my favourites and I will be checking back regularly for more juice pieces of info from you.

    Thanks for sharing all this helpful advice.

    Sally 🙂

  5. Holgeron 28 Mar 2007 at 1:24 pm

    Socrates, your map is more like a treasure map. Follow if and our treasure is called “success”. I’m already changing a few things around and it will be exciting seeing the “success” $$$ coming in.
    thanks
    Holger

  6. Melbourne Web Designon 28 Mar 2007 at 1:32 pm

    Hi Socrates,

    I am really looking forward to the release of
    the telecoaching program.

    Great blog!

    Regards

    Darryl Remnant

  7. Gezoneon 28 Mar 2007 at 1:43 pm

    Hi Socrates,

    Very useful info for newbies and as a refresher for those who’ve been on line a while. It should realy drum home to everyone the importance of one of the “key tools” of internet marketing the humble “autoresponder” as a way of keeping prospects following the path you would like then to take.

    Have a good day

    Gez
    (gezone)

  8. Brian Garvinon 28 Mar 2007 at 1:58 pm

    Hi Socrates,

    Just like the philosopher, nice info and approach.

    Brian Garvin

  9. Rolando Lucioon 28 Mar 2007 at 2:07 pm

    nice post , just the true with the keypointers and not only for online business, but i just have a simple question.

    Prod A and B have to be of the same kind , or it could be releated or totally diferent products ?

  10. Keithon 28 Mar 2007 at 2:11 pm

    Great information Socrates! Thanks!

    Keith

  11. SunStar Digitalon 28 Mar 2007 at 6:24 pm

    Just wanted to say Holger yes! It is a treasure map for sure!

  12. Reynold Tanon 28 Mar 2007 at 8:13 pm

    Hi Socrate I am looking forward to your release of Telecom-marketing coaching either live or recorded to earn money in this busines.
    I am sorry to say I am not alway at pc workdesk to attend this seminar in the daytime in singapore.
    I need more coaching to know how to earn fast money internet marketing in a shorter period.
    Thank you,
    Reynold
    (ps:I need your team of mentor to train me how to use wed-site page etc to invite internet’s buyer who like to open my wed-page and buy my-product only after I am fully training and coach by your team mentor.

  13. Daveon 28 Mar 2007 at 10:39 pm

    Hi,
    I am afraid i am lost, my luck must be coming arounds the corner because for the last year my small internet business has been pants.
    I hope you are the star of hope i have been looking for.
    You skills and experience will i am sure change my life.
    Ufortunately unless i can understand the coaching i dont stand much chance.
    The way you have shown me so far is excellent, i just hope i can get to the end.
    My goal has always been to give my family a better life, i am currently spending 10 hours a day on the net and acheiveing nothing.
    So there is your challenge, HELP!!!!!!
    Thankyou
    Dave

  14. John Reedon 28 Mar 2007 at 11:51 pm

    Dear Socrates,

    here is an email I tried to send you last night, it was returned undeliverable.
    Can’t think how else to tell you this – just off to my day job!!

    Your autoresponder is going haywire old mate – I’ve been getting repeat
    messages through today and tonight (it’s 1.30 am here in UK). Also, they
    repeat messages that I already got several days ago. It doesn’t leave the
    sort of impression you would want – so get back from the beach and get it
    sorted – haha.

    Yours John

  15. Daveon 29 Mar 2007 at 4:31 am

    Ive read somemore of your stuff today, pretty impressive.
    I think you should give me a free seat to your show extavaganza.
    You ask why, well what can i say, if anyone needs your help i do.
    Happy Days
    Dave

  16. Valdaon 02 Feb 2008 at 3:22 am

    I have to admit I haven’t read every article on your blog.
    I’ve started reading the whole of your blog today. Obviously I can’t read the whole blog in one day. Far too much information to sqeeze in at once.
    Yes it’s your information that is jam packed with common sense and is easily implemented into everyone’s business.
    Thank you for sharing all this wonderful information.
    Take care
    Valda

  17. Tikion 02 Feb 2008 at 7:45 am

    Good info. Thanks!

  18. andrew gouldingon 02 Feb 2008 at 2:11 pm

    Internet marketers frequently forget that site visitors aren’t there to buy, they’re there to find out info.

    The best way to get them to actually purchase from you is to engage them in a thought process that they can relate to.

    To do that, you need to be able to write engagingly.

    ADG

  19. Lee Joneson 03 Feb 2008 at 12:49 am

    You make some very good points, and as usual a clear path to follow.

  20. Paulon 04 Feb 2008 at 6:50 am

    Great information and content, as always. Nice touch, to think of our sites with the map in mind. Sometimes we get too narrowly focused on our business side, and tend not to think like a customer, trying to negotiate their way around.
    Thanks for the great tips!

    Paul

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