One thing I’ve learned in marketing web sites over the years is often times what you think will be your biggest selling product, may not sell well online. In addition, often times I have clients who have this product they sell that they think wont sell and it ends up being their hotest online product and opens up a line of business they never expected.
When I do an intial meeting with a client to review a marketing plan and kick things off, there is some digging to be done. Generally when I get a site from our production team, all products are added, but sometimes clients don’t add all their products and you have to figure out where those gaps are. You may here something like this….
“I also sell a thingamajig but I’m not going to sell it online because it just doesn’t sell, or I don’t think people will buy them online.”
I always challenge that because what harm is there in putting all your products online. You may find that the ones you thought would never sell end up being your top selling items, which can then lead to add-on purchases of the items you expected to sell.
I encountered this situation with a client selling a customized gourmet items for which they are getting quote requests. This item, we did not think would be a hot seller, but as a result of the interest, we are rebuilding their online approach to enhance the user experience and make this product easier to buy.
Each product type you offer gives you new avenues to drive traffic to your site through separate groups of keyterms and unique ways to optimize your web site.
Another way to approach this is to take a look at your product offerings and see where your competition is. Your main product offering may have huge competition online, making it difficult to gain organic ranking, and challenging for people to find your product. In this situation, focus on your niche products that are easier to get ranking on. Start there and then continue working the marketing channels on your main product lines. As your niche products begin to rank, and subsequently sell, chances are your main product offerings will gain popularity and ranking as well.
Embrace those surprises when they happen, they can open doors to new markets and new customers you never thought you’d develop relationships with online! That’s the beauty of the internet. Everyone is on the market for something, and someone is looking for your thingamajig!
{ 4 comments… read them below or add one }
Great post! I have this problem all of the time with my products. I will make something and absolutely ADORE it, but not everyone on the WWW does. I take them to craft shows, and they do pretty well. It’s a big gamble, but I will remember to add all of my products to my site and hope for the best!
Cales
http://www.marielynnboutique.blogspot.com
Cales – thanks for the comment – just be sure when you add your products that you use the keyterms in your descriptions that people will searching on!
Good luck!
Hi, cool post. I have been wondering about this topic,so thanks for writing.
It’s a pity that people don’t realize the importance of this information. Thanks for posing it.