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Entrepreneur Advice:
John Jantsch
www.ducttapemarketing.com
   
About John Jantsch

John Jantsch is a veteran marketing coach, award winning blogger and author of Duct Tape Marketing - The World's Most Practical Small Business Marketing Guide (foreword by Michael Gerber, author of The E-Myth) published by Thomas Nelson - due out in the fall of 2006 He is the creator of the Duct Tape Marketing small business marketing system and Duct Tape Marketing Authorized Coach Network. His Duct Tape Marketing Blog was chosen as a Forbes favorite for small business and marketing and is a Harvard Business School featured marketing site. His blog was also chosen as "Best Small Business Marketing Blog" in 2004, 2005 and 2006 by the readers of Marketing Sherpa.



Recent Article:

A lesson in marketing from my dear sweet wife - For more on John Jantsch visit www.ducttapemarketing.com

I was reminded today of a running joke I have with my wife. Occasionally, she will ask me to do some odd job or another and then immediately proceed to tell me just how to do it.

My reply is to generally remind her that she gets to - 1) tell me what to do, or 2) how to do it - but not both. Sometimes she thinks this is funny, most times she ignores me.

The interesting thing about this lesson (assuming you didn’t think my personal story was riveting) is that as marketers, particularly online, you must do both - you must tell your readers and visitors what to do and then tell them how to do it.

Don’t assume that since you have a lovely picture of your widget on your homepage that they know you want them to buy one. Tell them, ask for the order. Also don’t assume that since you have this shiny “Order Here” button at the bottom of your page or a big honking 800# in your ad that they will know how to order - explain the process - tell them scroll down to the bottom of the page and click on the order here button and they will be magically transported to your secure shopping cart.

Even if you feel like you are going overboard with instruction, you must understand that people scan, so you can’t give too much instruction. One of the primary reasons people abandon shopping carts or don’t convert is tiny little seeds of confusion that place doubt.

And, while you’re at it, put some urgency in the message. (Yes, dear, I’m on it!)

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