WHY WE SHOULD ALL BE IN THE INFORMATION DELIVERY BUSINESS
by: Cary Christian

Those of you who are reading this article are involved in many different types of businesses. You sell software, books, art, hardware, services of all types, telecommunications, web hosting, ISP services, reference guides, and much more. But I believe there should one one common thread to all of our businesses. We should all be in the information delivery business.

I do not mean to imply that we should all write ebooks and special reports and stop selling what it is we sell. Not at all. I'm suggesting that you can increase sales of your regular products dramatically if you shift your FOCUS to information delivery as opposed to advertising.

Many people view their website as a billboard where they can advertise their products. They market and advertise to get people to visit their website where more targeted advertising and a hard-sell sales pitch can take place. The entire process consists of one overt sales effort after another.

If the overt sales effort is replaced with valuable information about the subject matter of your products, I believe your sales efforts will be more successful in that you will have higher conversion rates and you will attract more visitors to your site. Let's take a look at why I make this statement.

Let's assume that you sell severe weather clothing. You put lots of information on your site about the benefits of wool and polypropylene clothing, how they allow moisture to be wicked away from your body keeping you warmer, and how they will continue to provide effective warmth even when wet.

You provide informative articles and tips like this for every major type of product you sell. You also include selection guides that help people determine the products that are best for them based on their outdoor activity preferences and the climate they live in.

Within these articles and tips, you explain the benefits of your particular products, highlighting any advantages they have over your competition. This is advertising, of course, but you can state these benefits in such a way as to teach while you're advertising.

Your site has just become a clearinghouse of solid, useful information on how people can protect themselves from the elements. What does that do for you?

First of all, your site has become a resource that should fare very well with the search engines. The targeted content you've added will be rich in the keywords that describe your products and that people are using to find your products. Your content will also be original and useful which will greatly assist you in landing a listing in the Open Directory. From this, your traffic should drastically improve, and it will be very targeted traffic as well.

Second, you've turned the sales process into a learning experience rather than a sales letter. People who visit your site will be interested in reading what you have written and will likely bookmark your site and come back any time they need additional information. And while they're learning and enjoying all the information you provide, they will be subtly learning about your products and probably be developing a preference for your brand. Favorable feelings about the information you provide will translate into favorable feelings about your products, and they won't feel like they're being sold.

Third, you'll find other companies in complementary businesses will want to link to you. For example, a company that sells climbing equipment will want to provide your information as a resource to their visitors. This will help improve your search engine rankings even more and will generate more visitors for you as a result of people following the links to your site.

Fourth, you'll set your site apart from your competitors. People will enjoy your format and appreciate the information so much compared to the same old sales pitches and marketing techniques your competitors will still be using.

Fifth, you will be establishing your company's expertise in your business. People like buying from, and are far more comfortable with, companies that know their industry and their products.

The old saying "Content is king" has never been more true. You just need to understand that content can be tailored to your advantage and can represent a powerful sales message that emphasizes the benefits of your products in a most direct and easily understood manner. Keep these concepts in mind and put them into practice as you continue to expand, build and maintain your site. I know you will be pleased with the results.


Copyright (c) 2003