[Web] Marketing startup. Helping businesses get it right.

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myusername

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#140957 25-Feb-2014 13:30

Hi all,

Have recently been doing some work for companies in need. I have approached them about their needs for their website and web marketing. Having looked at their sites, it is obvious they have problems in this aspect so I want to help them fix these and get them more leads, sales and income.

It basically involves improving basic marketing techniques to help generate leads and nurture them. Add to that some effective copywriting, testimonials, and other overlooked parts, their web presence goes from a pretty (or not) brochure-style website to a selling website.

It can be a battle to show people just how badly their website is performing and how much better it could be with some work. People really don't like hearing how bad their website is and I try to sugar-coat it as much as possible but still get some bad reactions. But hey, their loss, really.

Anyway my site is a work in progress (shouldn't all sites be?) and is changing every day as well as getting more blog posts. Check it out if you like at www.totalsellingsuccess.com and let me know what you think.

If you have any friends with businesses who you think might need some help, I will happily talk with them about their goals and see if they are a fit for me.

Thanks for reading,

PS. Any questions, fire away.
www.totalsellingsuccess.com

EDIT: Links and Subject.

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#1001346 8-Mar-2014 17:07

Kuddos on the attempt.

Personally I think that your homepage is quite bare. You are also asking two questions on the very first page prospective customers will land on.
I would cut out those questions, as it's a very old skool way of marketing to guess whatever people's questions will be. You have to give answers, on first contact. Show them what you can do.

mattwnz

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#1001371 8-Mar-2014 17:32

I would suggest hiring a designer to create a brand and logo so it looks more professional. Also think you need to use a .nz address, as currently you are compteting againest all the thousands of indian SEO that spam, so you don't look like you have any NZ presence. From your website you could from anywhere in the world.

LennonNZ

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#1001380 8-Mar-2014 18:14

Looking at the website it looks like 100's I've seen before which promise better SEO/Website Improvements etc.

Your Domain name is Anonymous and you have no details on who you actually are on your website or how to contact you apart from a contact form so would I trust your website and services which you advertise?

Your website does not look finished (and isn't) and if I was someone who needed help on my website I wouldn't as your website is really basic with a stock wordpress theme.

overkill

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#1001386 8-Mar-2014 18:37

LennonNZ: Looking at the website it looks like 100's I've seen before which promise better SEO/Website Improvements etc.

Your Domain name is Anonymous and you have no details on who you actually are on your website or how to contact you apart from a contact form so would I trust your website and services which you advertise?

Your website does not look finished (and isn't) and if I was someone who needed help on my website I wouldn't as your website is really basic with a stock wordpress theme.

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solidsantana

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#1001390 8-Mar-2014 19:00

LennonNZ:

Your Domain name is Anonymous and you have no details on who you actually are on your website or how to contact you apart from a contact form so would I trust your website and services which you advertise?

This is a bit uptight in my honest opinion. A contact form should be enough.

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#1001391 8-Mar-2014 19:14

solidsantana: This is a bit uptight in my honest opinion. A contact form should be enough.

Not saying its going to happen with the owner, but.. I've seen many startup websites which offer a lot,run for a while, people use them and then suddenly for whatever reason something goes wrong and they stop responding/service stop working and they basically disappear from the internet.

As websites offering a service which may concern $$ and may hold personal information about someone shouldn't a user know who is running the website? How to contact them outside the anonymous internet?

If he was using a .nz domain then its easy.. do a whois and it will tell you who the person is (As they are the rules for having a .nz) and how to contact them but it seems people use anonymous services (whatever reason they have) to hide.

Yes this may sound a little uptight but I have seen quite a few websites which have run.. people pay them money for services and the website disapears. How to contact the owner.. impossible.

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mattwnz

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#1001451 8-Mar-2014 21:22

Is the OP based in NZ? if they are it is odd they didn't get a nz domain, instead of a generic looking .com

solidsantana

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#1001515 8-Mar-2014 23:34

mattwnz: Is the OP based in NZ? if they are it is odd they didn't get a nz domain, instead of a generic looking .com

Why? I think any entrepreneur should always think big and prepare for success (you obviously need to prepare for failure as well).

NZ has the advantage of the English language and therefore worldwide reach; your products might get you some work overseas.

Since when is SEO and internet marketing limited to this particular spot in the South Pacific?

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#1001532 9-Mar-2014 00:36

solidsantana:
mattwnz: Is the OP based in NZ? if they are it is odd they didn't get a nz domain, instead of a generic looking .com

Why? I think any entrepreneur should always think big and prepare for success (you obviously need to prepare for failure as well).

NZ has the advantage of the English language and therefore worldwide reach; your products might get you some work overseas.

Since when is SEO and internet marketing limited to this particular spot in the South Pacific?

You missed my point entirely. If they want to target their services to a local market, which they have said they have tried to do unsuccessfully, then they need to look like they are a local company. Otherwise people may as well just use any of the Indian SEO and marketing companies that email NZ businesses everyday. They can have multiple websites if they want which can target global markets.But they have to start somewhere, you don't become a global company overnight.

jarledb

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#1001535 9-Mar-2014 00:56

solidsantana:
This is a bit uptight in my honest opinion. A contact form should be enough.

Why is that? Do you sell to people and refuse to tell them who you are when you do sales face to face?

Would you trust a pop-up store trying to sell you something for a lot of money?

There is a sucker born every day, and that kind of presentation might work for them, but for most people one of the first things you want to establish is trust.

For someone branding themselves as "Total Selling Success" and wanting to "help businesses get it right", they sure get it pretty wrong.

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solidsantana

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#1001615 9-Mar-2014 11:49

I think the last poster perfectly illustrated the reason why after 12 something years, there is still only TradeMe that Kiwi's trust online.

I have no issues with doing business with a faceless entity. Paypal and creditcards have perfect fraud protection. I personally don't understand why Kiwi's have such trust issues on the internet. I sincerely don't.

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myusername

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#1001622 9-Mar-2014 12:06

Wow. Thanks for all the feedback. It is all much appreciated. I agree with 95% of it and already understood most. Funds are scarce at the moment and when this improves (next month or so) I will probably hire a designer, get an Unbounce landing page, re-arrange copy, change selling proposition.

At the moment the website is just sitting in limbo and isnt trying to pull in a huge number of sales but I will soon re-design and sort it out properly. I will get branding and logos done by a friend, freelancer or 99designs soon.

Will get testimonials up soon to build trust and link to my LinkedIN (already is at top), google+ facebook etc for more credibility and trust.

I am NZ Based and decided to go with a .com domain. Ideally this would be a global thing and work remotely with clients (why not, right?).

The service I offer probably isnt as clear as it ought to be. It is not totally focused on SEO but the marketing funnel most small businesses use and how it isnt as effective as it could be. I re-write copy, autoresponders, change newsletters, add call to actions, assess target market/aim for that, and some other web marketing tools and techniques.

I will soon start advertising in local media as well, newspapers, magazines and the like targeting small business owners who feel their websites are underperforming.

Again, thanks for all the feedback. Things are on the move and I have several clients lined up for the next month.

The name also refers to the direction of the business. I hope to get right into selling, business consultation, improvement and training. This is something many business neglect (sales) and they could certainly use help with that.

I suppose it is always easier from the outside looking in to a business. I can understand the needs of a roofing company's customer and what they would like and why they would do it, yet my own business suffers from a lack of aim and/or direction, which everyone so helpfully pointed out. I will address these things in the next 1-2 months and post here again for you to see :)

mattwnz

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#1001687 9-Mar-2014 13:52

You get what you pay for with cheap designers, and you have to be careful that they aren't copying. An ugly looking website design and logo is an instant turn off, as is a slow loading website. You are competing against the thousands of other people doing that sort of thing so you need to explain why you are different in your marketing. As it is basically a job you don't need qualifications for, and has a low cost point of entry, there are a huge number of people competing against you in the same market. I literally get 10's of emails a day from people advertising the same services to me, and you know where those emails end up.

jarledb

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#1001706 9-Mar-2014 14:26

mattwnz:
I literally get 10's of emails a day from people advertising the same services to me, and you know where those emails end up.

I don't, and I guess I can thank the excellent spam filter of Google Mail for that :D

jarledb

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#1001710 9-Mar-2014 14:32

solidsantana: I think the last poster perfectly illustrated the reason why after 12 something years, there is still only TradeMe that Kiwi's trust online.

This has nothing to do with Kiwis as such. Building trust is very important if you want to have a successful business. And you can build trust even if you are not TradeMe.

I have no issues with doing business with a faceless entity. Paypal and creditcards have perfect fraud protection. I personally don't understand why Kiwi's have such trust issues on the internet. I sincerely don't.

Its tempting to send you off with a few links to sites that pretend they sell brand products for cheap and let you try out your theory in practise.

BTW: Do you have anything to do with totalsellingsuccess?

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