Getting your product placed in the media is terrific. It’s even better when it results in some great new sales for you.
Here are some simple ways to help convert your great press into sales.
Put the new press front and center on your website
And by “front and center” I mean on your Home page, not just on a Press page. If a potential customer saw one of your products in the media, they want to be able to find it fast. Don’t make them search for your site for it or you risk them giving up and clicking off.
Tell them what to do next
For instance, you can add to your site… “Did you see this dress in InStyle? Want to get it delivered straight to your door? CLICK HERE!” While this may seem obvious at first, there are so many websites that don’t do it! And the customer gets confused, isn’t sure where to go so they just leave and think, “well that was a nice website”. Nice website does not pay the electricity bill.
Post a phone number on your site
Many sales are lost simply because the potential buyer has a question but doesn’t get it answered.
I recently read an article in the New York Times Business section that confirmed what I already suspected. While the business was not fashion related, it explained, “People are really not going to fill out a form. They want to call and talk to somebody who’s knowledgeable.”
The business owner redesigned their site with a prominent phone number and had a 20% increase in the number of qualified leads.
People don’t always buy the first time but that doesn’t mean they won’t buy later
Keep this in mind if you don’t get an immediate boost in sales after some great publicity. The key here is to engage the customer the first time they come to your site.
This means asking them to join your mailing list, give them a good reason to sign up (even a discount for first time buyers), and keep in touch with them.
Make sure these are your target customers
Take a look at where you received the press and consider if the target customer they have is your ideal customer.
For instance, one of the designers I work with got excellent placement with a Mommy blogger that has a huge following. She got a ton of new visitors to her site but almost no sales. Conclusion? These moms were looking for “Mom-related” items and she sells a true high end gift product. Wrong crowd – so she’s going after gift and home blogs next time.