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September 29, 2006
Definition For Marketing? BOA & Nixon Flunk!
If you want a definition for marketing, then do the opposite of Bank Of America ... and Richard Nixon. Two powerhouses with contempt for the public and their customers. And they pay a price for this neglect. Here's the story ...
Here in Atlanta we have a local radio personality named Clark Howard who is a "consumer expert". He advises listeners about how to buy wisely and use good judgment in financial matters. He also sometimes gets involved in "righting wrongs" when ordinary people have been mistreated by large companies. His listener audience is said to be 3.5 million.
In the last week, Howard has become incensed over treatment that Bank Of America (BOA) doled out to a guy named Matthew Shinnick. It all started when Shinnick posted two bicycles for sale on Cragislist.com and received a check from a man for more than the cost of the bicycles. He went into his bank, BOA, to see if the check was legitimate and verify that there was money in the person’s account. He was told it was a valid account and so he cashed the check. At that point, BOA employees called the police and Shinnick was arrested on fraud charges because the check was actually a phony. He had no idea that the real criminal had used the name of a legitimate company to fake a check. So, Matthew sat in the bank branch for hours while police figured out what to do and then spent the night in jail. Once he got out, he wanted to clear his name legally so the arrest would not come back to haunt him. He had to hire attorneys to do this and it cost him nearly $14,000. He then went to Bank of America and asked that the bank cover his fees because it was the bank’s error but so far BOA has refused.
Clark Howard is so indignant over this treatment that he has started a national campaign against BOA. He is asking all folks who bank at BOA (like me) to withdraw their money, accounts and credit cards as a protest against bank actions. He posts a "BOA Money Loss Meter" that shows over 16 million in lost funds thus far. In addition, a senior vice president of an unnamed Fortune 500 company called in last week. He informed the audience that his company had been planning on depositing $250 million into BOA but has decided not to do so.
Howard also has numerous ties to consumer advocate groups who are now joining in his efforts.
To make matters worse, two BOA officials were on the radio this week.
* One of them stated that if a bank depositor wants to verify the funds for a check it is their responsibility to make a long distance call to a certain department and they will be informed over the phone. Clark Howard claims they are the only bank to have such a policy.
* Secondly, they informed Howard that if he didn't cease talking about them, BOA would sue him.
The lessons from this situation ...
#1. Everybody loves the David & Goliath-type story and we have all felt helpless in the clutches of an indifferent corporation. So any time the average citizen has a chance to strike back at an arrogant giant, we all cheer.
As the arrogant giant in this situation, BOA is creating an incredible amount of dreadful publicity. Apparently, there isn't a single marketing person on their payroll. Howard says that BOA earned 57 BILLION dollars in profits last year. If they had simply apologized for this error, even paid the $14,000 attorney fees and assured everyone that this wouldn't happen again, the story would have died on the spot. Instead, they're cast as the cold, heartless corporation that everyone loves to hate.
#2. The threat to sue Clark Howard is a colossal mistake! Howard works for Cox Broadcasting, no tiny little company itself. Cox has the resources to fight a long legal battle and would undoubtedly love to do so. There's no way they could possibly buy the favorable publicity they will receive as a staunch defender of the 'little guy', abused by the arrogant corporation. If BOA sues over this matter, they will simply make the entire situation worse.
#3. Other banks are missing a giant opportunity! If one of them had stepped forward and paid the $14,000 because "they care about their customers", the good will would have been awesome! For banks who make billions of dollars, $14,000 would have been so trivial they wouldn't notice. In fact, they couldn't possibly get such great publicity for such a small sum.
However, bankers aren't marketers and they don't think this way. For BOA's sake, I hope some sane person over there puts a stop to this soon. Even presidents are brought down by such small incidents. Ask the family of Richard Nixon.
Posted by SydneyJohnston at 10:43 AM | TrackBack
September 26, 2006
Rich Jerk Stomped By Sydney Johnston
I've had a great time this week with the so-called Rich Jerk. He wrote a very rude - and crude - commentary about my success with Andy Jenkins & Brad Fallon's SEO classes. I replied via video. The best explanation is from my bud, Andy ...
I respect your time, and want you to know that this new video is NOT purely about Natural Search Engine Optimization...
But it's hysterical!
http://www.convertlinks.com/smackdown.html
Have you ever heard of "The Rich Jerk"? I must have been living in a cave for the past year, because I had no idea who he was until someone forwarded me his newsletter.
In his (I assume it's a "He") newsletter, he basically took credit for teaching Brad and I SEO. That's fine. I don't have an ego about that stuff. Everyone has his or her own challenges with reality...
But the mistake he made was picking on Sydney Johnston from auction-genius-course.com
Sydney and I go way back - she's a Brilliant Lady that's forgotten more about auctions than most people will ever know.
About 2 years ago, she became a Stomper, joined our Original StomperNet group, and she's now on the first page of Google for all kinds of eBay terms. In some places, she actually BEATS eBay.
Well, Sydney is a soft-spoken southern belle or a woman, but she is not to be trifled with.
She made a video that positively tears up The Rich Jerk! It's such a good laugh that I wanted to share it with you.
http://www.convertlinks.com/smackdown.html
Sydney also talks about her search positions and how she was ranked for "eBay Selling" in 3 days. Nice trick, eh?
Take a look at the video for a laugh."
Posted by SydneyJohnston at 11:08 AM | TrackBack
September 22, 2006
Review: The Death Of AdSense
Every month a product or two sweeps the Net marketing circles, creating hysteria and cointroversy. The most recent is The Death Of AdSense. The author, Scott Boulch, is clearly a clever marketer - and good for him!
A lot of Scott's bad press is unjustified. For instance, he is criticized for writing his two free reports because he has some hidden plot to sell something in the future. Well of course he's going to sell something!!! Those who criticize him for that are simply showing their ignorance of marketing. A lot of work went into his two reports and I can guarantee that it took him quite a chunk of time to put them together. Why should he spend this time unless he can profit from it? All those who criticize him are reading his work for what reason? Oh, yeah, it's because THEY want to make money. Apparently it's OK for them, but not Scott himself. How silly.
His premise is that AdSense died when Google introduced the 'content' concept to advertisers. That is - one price for advertising on Google but another (cheaper) one for advertising on your site or mine. Yeah, it hurts. And yeah, I don't like it. But the fact is that the rules of any game change over time. Grownups accept that.
But going on and on about how "the gurus" are frantic and desperate to keep this so-called death a secret is pretty silly. I have been referred to as one of those dastardly gurus - and I couldn't care less about whether anyone thinks AdSense is dead or not.
As for the premise of his second report, it's certainly valid but there is absolutely NOTHING new about what he's said. The best response I've read is from Michael Campbell who has an excellent newsletter that everyone should read if they're interested in Net marketing.
Title: "Gee... Cost Per Action... Again"
- - -
Question: I feel like I'm spinning my wheels and can't get any traction. I've read so many opinions from so many
marketers and I keep buying stuff that I don't use. But the truth is, that I'm afraid that I'm going to make a mistake.
Now I just heard that AdSense is dead and that's what I was planning to do. What should I do now, should I try cost per action? I'm worried about what the next thing will be. I'm feeling totally overwhelmed with too many emails. Can you help me?
- - -
Answer: Gee... lets see now... SEO is dead... so are article sites, so is RSS, so are article directories and press
releases, PPC, hub sites, Mininets... yep, all toast. Now AdSense has been declared dead and "cost per action" is
all the rage.
Dude! Save yourself from getting on yet another list. Cost per action is nothing more than a fancy way of saying,
"affiliate program."
Every six months or so, some industry expert or newbie starts touting cost per action as the wave of the future.
Guess what?
If you've been following the advice in Clickin it Rich and Revenge of the Mininet, you ARE doing cost per action.
As an affiliate, you don't get paid until the action or transaction has taken place.
You can buy all the clicks you want. You can capture SEO traffic. You can persuade the visitor all you want... but
you don't get a commission if they don't buy anything. That is a true cost per action.
Another example of cost per action, is simply getting your visitors to fill out a form. It's called CPL or cost per lead.
It's a model used by insurance companies, real estate agencies and others, where they pay you per action. And
that action is getting leads for them.
Yea... you can tell I'm a little miffed. Every week someone touts something else as dead and their "new" way as the only way. But you know what? It's the same old stuff going round and round. Just like fashion... if you didn't see it first time round, it all looks new.
I just want you to consider your information sources. Do you really need to be distracted by the next "big" thing,
especially when it's just a rehashed old thing? Pick your mentors and gurus, and stick with them. If something is truly important, you'll hear it from them.
There is another lesson here ... if the gentleman who wrote to Michael doesn't get over his fear of making a mistake, he's history. You WILL make mistakes. We all do. Get over it.
Posted by SydneyJohnston at 11:47 AM | TrackBack
September 20, 2006
Free Web Content: How To Find An Article
If you want to find free web content, you should consider a piece of software that costs nothing ... it's called "Orwell" and it locates articles for us. Why would you want to find articles online? My reasons are:
1. Personal information
2. I am searching for appropriate articles to build a website or webstore on a particular subject
All you need to do is type in a keyword or keyword phrase and it locates articles and press releases (which aren't as helpful) from seven major online sources. Not only does it make finding information simple but it also opens the articles in your browser, rather than forcing you to read them online.
If you want to add the articles to a website, it even formats them for you in HTML. All you need do is copy them directly from Orwell and put them on a webpage. Very cool.
Orwell is simple to use and I've put together a very short video on it here:
If you have any use for this cool tool, (and the price is right! :-), check it out here:
Posted by SydneyJohnston at 12:38 PM | TrackBack
September 18, 2006
Guaranteed Top Search Engine Ranking?
This entry might be about guaranteed top search engine ranking, but it should or could be titled "Why I'm No Longer A Chicken-Hearted Wimp!"
It's no secret that I abandoned the search engine game years ago as being to difficult, too confusing and just too darned much trouble for too little results. Then about a year and a half ago, my good friends Andy Jenkins & Brad Fallon basically told me I was a chicken-hearted wimp and that they could teach me how to successfully play the SEO (search engine optimization) game. I grudgingly decided to give it One Last Shot ... and am I ever glad. Our web traffic and income have skyrocketed since that point and I'm very comfortable with search engines now. In fact, I (mostly) enjoy them. It's fun to match wits with Google, Yahoo and MSN. And if you think that's a nutty statement {fun? playing the Google game? Is she nuts?} I certainly understand - there was a time I would have thought such a statement was preposterous, myself.
Andy and Brad have a new site opening next week - on Monday the 26th, as a matter of fact. It's going to be the most awesome event on the Net because not only are Brad & Andy involved, but some of the biggest names on the net. I don't want to steal their fire and I don't know if I'm supposed to talk about that part, so I'll shut up about the others. I will also candidly tell you that it's quite expensive.
BUT ... even if you never intend to join you should take advantage of some of the freebies they're giving away. There are three awesome videos with more information than most of the paid courses I've ever bought. And yesterday they came out with a $0 downloadable pdf. It has several case studies in it - one of which is mine.
What They Didn't Tell You (Because They Didn't Know)
In this case study they mention a couple of keyword phrases on Google in which our Auction Genius Course site has high placement. But they didn't know about the most amazing change ...
That is for the keyword phrase "ebay selling". For some weird reason, I had completely overlooked that one because according to my keyword research, it receives approximately 466 searches every 24 hours. That's an amazing number of searches, and obviously I want to be on the first page of Google for that one.
But the problem was, I was nowhere to be found! I went through page after page of results and couldn't find us anywhere. The best tools I have only go down 500 places on Google and it couldn't find us either. What to do?
About three weeks ago I was having dinner with Brad Fallon and a few other folks and Brad made a comment about a simple change that we could make. It wasn't directed to me in particular but I started thinking about it and decided to do what he said. It took me less than five minutes and then I decided to check back in a week or so to see what had happened.
To my astonishment, I was on the front page - number 9, to be exact. I don't know how long I'd been there but it was amazingly easy. This morning on Google, our site was #5 - but notice the competition ahead of me:
#1: about.com
#2: allbusiness.com
#3 & #4: ebay
These are all massive, giant sites and will be tough to beat - although you never know. As Andy & Brad point out in their case study, there are keywords where I absolutely do beat eBay itself, although I wonder how that can possibly be. Still it happens. For instance, on the very important keyword phrase "what to sell on ebay", I am beating eBay, Amazon, microsoft and about.com.
A few search engine observations:
* You might do well in one search engine and not in others. For instance, I'm not anywhere on the first two page of Yahoo or MSN for "ebay selling".
* The SEs change: just because I'm not on Yahoo or MSN now doesn't mean I won't be in the future.
* Some SEs provide better traffic than others. Yes, I'm sometimes annoyed with Google but our testing shows it's the best search engine for our kind of business. We get more business from Google than all the others put together.
* SEO is about numbers. Right now Google is showing that it's indexed 849 pages of our Auction Genius Course site. With that many pages, we have lots of chances for top positions on keyword phrases.
* Studies show that consumers & buyers are 3 1/2 times more likely to click on the organic searches than they are Pay Per Clicks (PPC). I'm assuming that there is more credibility. As the case study says, "Sydney's niche is one of those deadly niches where PPC traffic costs about as much as a small island in the Caribbean." That's for sure.
If you have the faintest interest in search engines, take advantage of the knowledge offered by these two multi-millionaire SEO experts:
And if you're one of the select people who joins next week, I'll see you on the inside since I'm one of their forum moderators.
And by the way ... no one, NO ONE, can "guarantee" you top search engine ranking - unless your keyword phrase is "extra tall purple people eater". If they do - run.
Posted by SydneyJohnston at 12:09 PM | TrackBack
September 16, 2006
Discount Broadway Tickets & Discount Disney World Tickets
Tickets really and truly are a great thing to sell on eBay. Discount Broadway tickets and discount Disney World tickets are two of the strongest sellers - and we can see why. Disney & Broadway are two of the most popular places in the USA.
Just be aware that there are eBay rules that govern ticket sales. And beyond that, some states have rules, too. For instance, according to New York law, tickets are not supposed to be sold for more than twice their face value. Still, that's pretty cool ... double your momey. And best of all , shipping is a breeze!
Posted by SydneyJohnston at 12:13 PM | TrackBack
September 13, 2006
Construction Equipment Auctions Rival eBay Motors Prices
I've been writing a lot about eBay motors lately. It's the largest online car seller and is quite impressive. But vehicles and real estate are not the only big money area on eBay. Construction equipment auctions are biggies, too. Take a look at this Caterpillar D399:
Quite honestly, I don't even recognize this machine and surely don't know what it does. But I know that I've sold equipment I didn't understand. My first big sale that way was on eBay in approximately 1997 (can't remember exactly). At the time I was writing an info product for restaurant owners and thus was on the mailing lists of a lot of restaurant industry publications. One of them had a classified section available to its members and someone was attempting to sell some restaurant equipment. At the time, eBay wasn't the household word that it is now and so I contacted this owner and asked if he would pay me if I would sell his equipment. He quoted a bottom line price and I could have any amount over this.
The result: I made almost $3,000 off the sale. I didn't know anything at the time - not even enough to get a contract from the owner. So it worked by accident but I was pleased about it. No reason it won't work in 2006.
Posted by SydneyJohnston at 11:13 AM | TrackBack
September 11, 2006
Do You Love eBay Selling - But HATE Shipping?
Do you love eBay selling - but HATE shipping? I don't blame you! I hate it, too. After mailing out a hundred zillion boxes in my life, I feel outraged when I have to mail anything these days. I can't really complain, though, since I haven't mailed any auction goodies in years. That's because we have this marvelous, wonderful FULFILLMENT HOUSE that does everything for us! It works like this:
1. Order comes in
2. Somehow (magic?) the order goes directly to the database of our fulfillment house
3. They package it up, mail it and send the tracking info to our customer
4. The money appears in our business bank account within 24-48 business hours
What does it cost for this service?
Not much, really. We pay $2.00 for our eight CD Auction Genius Course. We pay another 25 cents for them to include a flyer. They supply the box, too.
My only responsibility is to keep an eye on inventory and when products are almost sold out, I order more.
It's incredibly cool. But I really don't have any idea how it works. My brilliant tech partner Jeremy has set it up and manages the entire thing - not that there's much management to do.
There have been many requests for Jeremy to teach how he does this - because it isn't easy. Our order system has to somehow talk to their database. Even though I don't have a clue about how it's done, Jeremy does and he's finally going to put together the "how-to" for anyone who's interested.
If you want to know about this when it's ready, you can sign a notification list here:
Posted by SydneyJohnston at 12:28 PM | TrackBack
September 8, 2006
eBay Selling: Finding Non-Competitive Niches
eBay selling isn't easy and part of the reason is because I see would-be eBay success stories talking about what THEY want to sell and it's always the exciting, glamourous, sexy stuff:
* "As Seen On TV" products
* Cell phones
* mP3 players & iPods
But the truth about those kinds of wildly popular niches is that they are:
1. Extremely competitive
2. Because they're so "hot" it's tough to find products that can be resold at a profit
Part of the reason I've been so successful on eBay is that I haven't looked for the obvious niches. In fact, unless someone called me up and offered me a fabulous deal I wouldn't even consider the 'hot' products above.
* So, if we're going to look for obscure items, how about this one ... concrete floor finishes. Huh? Why in the world would I want to do that?
Well, first there is no competition. I mean that almost literally. For instance, my market research tools show no results at all. Nada. "Not enough data".
Yet, there are quite a respectable number of searches, according to my keyword tools:
* concrete floor: 129 per day
* concrete floors: 57 per day
* concrete floor paint: 72 per day
* painting concrete floors: 54 per day
* concrete floor coating: 49 per day
* concrete floor coatings: 40 per day
* concrete floor repair: 39 per day
* concrete floor finishes: 32 per day
* basement concrete floor paint: 29 per day
Here are the eBay auction numbers: {results may vary depending on the day you read this}
* concrete floor: 26 auctions
* concrete floors: 1 auction
* concrete floor paint: 4 auctions
* painting concrete floors: 0
* concrete floor coating: 0
* concrete floor coatings: 1 auction
* concrete floor repair: 0
* concrete floor finishes: 0
* basement concrete floor paint: 0
This is clearly a niche where the demand far exceeds the competition!
What about the profits in this niche? Well, one of the reasons for my interest is that we recently used a concrete floor finishing compound in our basement. It cost $67 a bucket at Home Depot and they didn't have any for approximately three weeks. According to one of the clerks, they can't keep it on the shelf! He told us that whenever they got in an order of this particular brand, it was usually gone within about 3-5 days.
Can I find a source for this product? I took a quick look (about 10 minutes) and didn't locate the product I found at Home Depot, although perhaps I could find it if I spent some time. But I did find two other brands, both from famous companies. In addition, there are many other products that can be sold in this niche besides just the basic covering compound.
As you can see by this picture, concrete is more than just an ugly old floor. In fact, I was astonished by the beauty of this floor. Apparently this stuff is wildly popular in lofts. I don't personally want concrete floors anywhere in my home except the basement and garage. But that isn't the point, is it? It's not about what I want. It's about making money in my business.
Am I suggesting that you rush out and immediately start a concrete floor finishing business? Not at all. This example is much more about a new way of thinking. Forget what everybody else is doing and find smaller niches that aren't so competitive. You will find it much easier to succeed.
Posted by SydneyJohnston at 12:15 PM | TrackBack
September 5, 2006
eBay + Google + Yahoo ... Whew!
Earlier this summer, eBay announced an alliance with Yahoo that was heralded as possibly THE most important Internet deal of the year.
On eBay:
* Yahoo will provide graphic ads and search results for eBay USA
* PayPal will be the exclusive payment provide for many Yahoo services, including the Yahoo Publisher Network
Yet in a later deal announced this summer, eBay has also formed an alliance with Google. This surprised many as Google and eBay have been ... well, less than friendly. Their deal specifies:
* Google will be the exclusive provider of text advertising outside the US
* And, in an intriguing new plan, eBay and Google plan to launch a "click-to-call" program. Details are unclear but eBay-owned Skype and Google's message service, called Google Talk, will combine to allow buyers to click on auctions and ads to talk with the seller.
This is an ironic deal since most analysts agree that eBay only acquired Skype to prevent Google from obtaining it.
Apparently, the way it will work is that if you are a participant in the program, you will have an icon or button on your auction. If a potential buyer has a question, she can click on this symbol and talk with you in person. Calls would be made either through your computer or through a handheld device like a cell phone or blackberry.
"The click-to-call capability will allow a user to click on a link or icon within a product or service advertisement to initiate an Internet voice call to participating eBay merchants or Google advertisers directly from either company's respective sites". eBay and Google described the approach as an "emerging e-commerce model" that would bring buyers and sellers together via the Web, and added that plan already are afoot to integrate Skype into Google's toolbar and its Google Talk system.
What a deal for eBay: Yahoo promotes Paypal and Google promotes Skype.
How It Will Affect eBay Sellers
Many of the terms of these deals aren't available to us yet, so any speculation on its effects on us eBay sellers is only that - speculation. However, I am willing to make a few wild guesses ...
1) I see the appearance of ads on eBay pages as only bad for us sellers. It will take buyers away from eBay - and our auctions. Text ads (Yahoo in the US, Google outside the US) can only benefit eBay and not us sellers although eBay has promised to only provide these ads when there are no relevant auctions. So far, they seem to be keeping their word.
2) Certain eBay ads will appear on Yahoo and Google. Which ads? Currently, featured ads are all over Google, which is the engine I use for search. I rarely use Yahoo so just checked out their results and don't see eBay anywhere. This might be a big plus for some sellers.
3) The phone contact is quite intriguing. Google Talk and Skype are free phone services and it might certainly increase sales to talk with prospective buyers. I can't see spending time on the phone for a $5 profit might personal contact certainly might be worthwhile with more expensive items. Personal contact seems to be a major importance these days.
Recently we reported on software and a course that allows us to make video auctions
and soon we will introduct a product that makes it cheap and simple to include audio on your auctions. One thing is for sure ... those folks who neglect technology are going to suffer from reduced sales in the future.
Posted by SydneyJohnston at 11:57 AM | TrackBack
September 2, 2006
eBay Auto Auctions = Explosive Profits
eBay motors is, amazingly, the largest online seller of cars, trucks and other vehicles in the world. eBay claims to have sold over 2 MILLION and so their eBay auto auctions are definitely worthy of study.
Most of the vehicle auctions are individuals selling an extra personal car. But there are sellers on there who are Titanium power sellers ... that's $150,000 a month! Of course, sell a few cars and it's easy to reach this status. However, over the next few days/weeks, I plan on learning more about this fascinating subject. Stay tuned for more details.
Posted by SydneyJohnston at 2:17 PM | Comments (1) | TrackBack
