It must be some sort of status symbol. Why else would ... the best part of $300 to get (a chance of being) listed?I can here them now, sat ... in a wine bar.“Of course, one simply MUST be
There's a certain prestige associated with being listed on a platform like Yahoo. It's not uncommon to hear business owners boasting about their listings in upscale settings, with others nodding in agreement. However, for the average internet entrepreneur, this investment may not be as beneficial as it seems.
The main reason why these listings may not be worth the investment is the intense competition. For instance, a search for submission services on Yahoo yields hundreds of results. The potential customer, aware of the plethora of options, is likely to skim through the offerings rather than thoroughly reading each one.
Search engine experts often emphasize the importance of being in the top 30 results to get a hit. However, a hit doesn't necessarily translate into a sale. A reasonably priced service listed around the 20 to 30 mark may have a better chance of making a sale than those in the top 10. By the time a potential customer reaches the 20s, they're likely to have grown tired of skimming and may settle for a service within their budget.
Internet entrepreneurs often rely on impulse buying, but search engines can hinder this by presenting customers with a multitude of options. As webmasters, we're often asked about our traffic before our earnings. However, the focus should be on making sales rather than attracting hits.
A while back, I came across a small ad for a software that creates customizable e-books. Despite the poorly designed webpage, I was intrigued and ended up purchasing the software. This experience made me realize the power of targeted advertising and impulse buying.
This realization led me to shift my focus from striving for more hits to making more sales. I stopped worrying about my rankings and started focusing on reaching my target audience with direct, one-page sales pitches.
Instead of waiting for my target audience to find me, I went to them. I used start page programs like StartBlaze to reach webmasters looking to improve their traffic. I experimented with different pages until I found one that yielded results.
My sales letter webpage may not be listed on any search engine or have a good ranking, but it's making more sales than my main websites. I found my audience and offered them something they didn't know they wanted until I told them differently, and they acted on impulse.
In conclusion, high-priced listings may not be the best investment for internet entrepreneurs. Instead, focusing on targeted advertising and reaching your audience directly may yield better results.
