YOUR SALES PACKAGE
Your Most Important Page!

   You can write the best ebook in the world, and wrap in the most beautiful, stunning cover imaginable, but if you can't sell it - what have you accomplished?

   There are literally tons of printed books and ebooks out there on how to write buyer-grabbing sales copy. I'm not going to try to reinvent the wheel ... heck, I'm still a student myself!

   But I will point out some critical components you need to pay attention to.

BENEFITS - NOT FEATURES!!

   First, you have to look at it - not from your point of view - but from that of the potential buyer. You have sweated and labored and feel your product is perfect. You already know how good it is. Your buyer doesn't! You have to convince him/her.

   This means you have to give the visitor to your web site a reason to buy - not just one, but many!

   It also means you have to stress BENEFITS not FEATURES!

   If I'm surfing the Internet and I come across your site, by accident or through, say, a Google search - I want to know "What's in it for me?" I've attended several chiropractic seminars in one of my various roles as office manager for a chiropractor (now my wife). One of the main things you will see in chiropractic advertising is the repeated reference to PAIN! Why?

   If you're not in PAIN you're probably not looking for a chiropractor. Many of these seminars stress that. Some actually encourage the doctor to "ruiin the patient" - to make them see how much worse they will be if they don't get chiropractic treatment. This "ruination" approach made me uncomfortable simply because it seemed manipulative. It feeds on DESPAIR. HOPE seems secondary (maybe because no doctor in their right mind would promise a cure to anyone for anything).

   If you're not SICK, you're probably not looking for a doctor.

   The doctors mentioned above are filling a NEED! And that's what you must do!

   BOTTOM LINE: Why should I buy your ebook and not someone else's?

ARE YOU SELLING AN E-BOOK OR PREACHING TO THE CHOIR?

   Your potential buyer isn't buying your ebook to make your ego bloat or to make you feel better or to enrich you financially. He/she could care less about your ego, your financial situation, etc. The BUYER is thinking only about the BUYER!

   So, in the case of this particular ebook (Iridology) who is the customer and what is/are their need(s)?

   They are either sick or suspect they may be, and they aren't happy with the same-old-same-old approach of drugs and surgery. Maybe they're hip to the whole concept of wholistic (some call it "holistic") health ... in which case they're most likely better educated and have a higher income than average. I don't want to sound greedy here, or to motivate you toward greed, but I have to say: Think of your bottom line. You're going to sell more to people with money than those without.

   On the other hand, you don't want to price yourself so high that only the wealthy can afford your product. There aren't that many wealthy people out there these days. We're all working stiffs trying to make ends meet and pay the bills and keep ourselves from falling apart until the kids get through college and the mortgage is paid ... unless you are one of those fortunate few who inherited millions and don't have to work. But you know what? Even the wealthy seek information. Health is the one thing money alone cannot buy.

A REAL-LIFE EXAMPLE

   I'll give you an example from another industry - heating & air conditioning repair. I have a web design client in that business, Energy-Masters Heating & Air Conditioning. Check out their site.

   When I first started creating their web site I looked at their competition. Everyone was selling themselves. Not a single one of them attempted - really attempted - to answer their customer's needs. What is that need? What if my furnace breaks down in the middle of the night in January and it's 20 below outside? What in the hell am I gonna do!

   Their web site is the only one I know of that answers that question. On that site you can find an extensive help section that will walk you through an emergency do-it-yourself furnace checkup. Heck, you could even fix it yourself in a matter of minutes - without even calling a repair man. Now - how much is that worth?

   The customer's first reaction (I think, they never actually voiced it) was - well, won't this hurt our business instead of help it? Won't it encourage people to fix their own problems and leave us with no customers? In reality, because they were the only ones who cared enough about their customer's needs to provide this free information, it brought them more business!

   Sure, Joe Blow could maybe fix his own furnace in the middle of a freezing night, but when it comes time for maintenance or for a new central heating unit ... who is he going to remember? The people whose website helped him when he was desperate, that's who?

  And, yes, that section of their website is now being made into a free ebook for anyone who wants it! And it's loaded with references to "the computer experts" who "are there for you." And you know who that's gonna be! Energy-Masters!

   Before we proceed, I want you to take a look at a professionally-designed sales page that was very successful for the creator of Web Impact Audio. I want you to take a good look at it and maybe even print it out ... then make a list of the key components that make this a powerful sales page. I found 19 - how many can you find? No cheating! Make your list before you go any further! After all, the more you learn, the more you earn.

THIS PRINTING TIP CAN SAVE YOU MONEY!

   Before you print out the sales page above (it's 13 pages long) go to your printer's PROPERTIES as shown here.

   Depending on your printer, you should - or may - see a screen like this or something similar. Click the FINISHING tab.

   To save paper, set printing at 2 Pages per sheet (lower left) and Print All Text as Black (check this - lower right). You may also choose to select Economode (Save Toner) .

   If you'd like to save this setting for future use (it would work in virtually any program), just give it a name of its own under QUICK SETS (upper right) . That's all there is to it - and it can cut your paper use in half!

   Now, back to the task at hand - what makes the Impact Web Audio sales page so powerful?

  1. It has a strong visual header at the top.

  2. It has a compelling (even though it is a bit too long) headline.

  3. It has a subhead that spells out exactly what the buyer will be getting. Even better, it's set apart from the rest of the copy by being in a box.

  4. It begins with a personal touch - like a letter from me to you (even though most people won't be too badly suckered in by that trick).

  5. The writer/designer uses bold-face type to break up that "gray blob" of words.

  6. For the most part, the paragraphs are short - making them easier to read (although I personally think that 13 pages is a bit long for a sales letter, but a lot of pros would disagree with me on this one).

  7. There is plenty of white space so it doesn't look like a big gray blob of words.

  8. Notice how additional subheads are boxed and placed in bold-face type and separated by even more white space.

  9. The designer sets off important points with bullets (I use numbers in what you are now reading to actually count the strong points).

  10. Notice the liberal but not over-done use of artwork - especially product and screen shots. All are directly relevant to the product and the screenshots reinforce the seller's point that the product is easy to use.

  11. The product name is always in bold-face type, making it stand out.

  12. The sales page doubles as a 7-point instructional manual, again reinforcing how easy it is to use.

  13. The seller compares the product (quite favorably) to the competition and tells you why his product is better.

  14. The letter offers a solid no-questions-asked 90-day guarantee.

  15. The sales letter offers the main benefit - in bold type: "Here's How You Can Start Using Impact Web Audio Immediately, And Watch Your Profits Shoot Through the Roof!"

  16. The letter takes the "price issue" by the horns; by the time the reader gets through all these words, he/she is indeed wondering "You're probably going to charge me an arm and a leg ... " While the "expected price" of $100 is a bit hyped, the $47 sounds a lot better, doesn't it. And, it's reinforced by the guarantee above (#14).

  17. The order form is right there at the point where the "buy climax" should be at its height. And it's easy to order by credit card.

  18. The guarantee is again mentioned, as reinforcement.

  19. A sense of urgency is injected with the statement that "we can't guarantee this low price will be here tomorrow (though it usually is) ... the time to take action is now."

   Now, take a look at the page you're reading. It's not a sales page - it's a tutorial page - but I still used some of the same techniques (boxes, bold-face type, numbered lists, photos, screenshots, subheads, short easy-to-read paragraphs that you don't get lost in ... because they help make the page more readable and highlight key points. You should use the same approach in the actual content of your own ebook content.

   Keeping in mind all that you have learned on this page, take a look at our sales page for the Iridology ebook ... but remember - I'm not as experienced nor as expensive as the pros who probably made $1,000 or more to write the Web Impact Audio sales page.  ;-)


SPECIAL OFFER! LIMITED TIME! SAVE $30