A very interesting post from MailChimp discussing research from Harvard about how coupons cause a “small windfall” effect, reducing sales resistance.
Sunday, October 21, 2007
Preparing your cart for Christmas
A interesting post from Palmer Web Marketing.
I really like idea 1 (emphasis mine):
Offer Bounce Back Discounts: Think about how much traffic your site will receive during the holidays. How can you harness that traffic to create year long business? Consider offering a good discount incentive for customers to come back and shop in January. You can automatically email them a coupon after each order, or send one along with the package. Make sure that this coupon is not valid until after the holidays.
Idea 7 is a great trust-builder:
Prominent “No Hassle” Return Policy: our return policy should be easy to find. Consider re-packaging it as a ”no hassle” policy in order to calm the fears of first time buyers.
And idea 25 … well, That Software Guy is all about upsells disguised as discounts. 
Bundle Products: Gift selection is much easier when related items are grouped together in some sort of gift basket or bundle.
Email Tips
I found a handful of interesting articles last week about managing your email lists:
- Eight Email Marketing Tips from Destination CRM
- Building Your Email List from Entrepreneur magazine
- Three Words to Avoid in Emails from MailChimp
- Seven Dirty Words to Avoid in Email Marketing from BizReport
Finally, a great example of a powerful marketing email is provided by Varien, quoting an email from ToolPrice.com.
Cultural trends that change business
Here’s a great post from Nametag Guy Scott Ginsburg called “35 cultural trends that (should) change the way you do business.” My favorite? Number 18, which I thought really should have been called, “Trust is a must.” Checklist for online vendors:
- SSL certificate not just for checkout, but for account creation and login?
- Contact information (esp. telephone number) all during checkout?
- Physical address at the bottom of the page?
- Following up on emails within 24 hours?
