Learn To Sell
Every Owner of a Digital Business Needs This!
You’re well along the journey to learning about how to start a digital business online. In earlier sections, you’ve heard about how to lay a strong foundation for your future success.
All of it, however, is subject to one thing…
You must learn how to sell!
And that’s what we’re going to cover in this report.
HOW TO START A DIGITAL BUSINESS : TABLE OF CONTENTS
This report is part of a collection that covers all aspects of how to start a digital business online. To see others in the series, explore the links below:
So this might sound obvious to anyone who wants to build a digital business in 2024 and beyond.
But it has to be said.
You must learn how to sell!
Around 25 years ago when I was just getting started, it took a wise man to drive this powerful lesson firmly into my head.
Let me begin this section with the story of how it happened.
I had just created my first information product - an ebook titled 'Ezine Launch' which was about how to launch an email newsletter and use it to promote your website.
Now, I knew my strength was that I could write well.
But not knowing the A-B-C about how to sell, I thought of a short cut. So I sent out an email to Allan Gardyne, who at the time was the world's best-known affiliate marketing specialist.
I offered him the chance to "do nothing at all" - just sell my ebook to his 25,000+ audience, and pocket 50% of the profits!
Naively, I believed he'd jump on the deal... and was mighty upset when he schooled me on reality.
Looking back, in hindsight that was the most precious 'No' I've heard - because it forced me to learn how to sell my ebook.
From there, I went on to sell so much more. Including expensive products and programs, ideas and dreams, and my non-profit work with 'heart kids' from under-privileged families in India.
These hard-earned skills helped me stay on my own feet, work on ambitious plans and achieve challenging goals... all by learning how to sell.
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When you learn how to sell, you too will experience this sense of freedom and possibility - which will lift you towards your goals.
Ready to begin?
Let's go.
THREE KEY PILLARS OF SELLING ONLINE
To even attempt to decode the tricky and nuanced art of how to sell in a brief essay is ridiculous.
So I won't even try.
Instead, we're going to focus on 3 key pillars of online selling.
Copywriting
Advertising
Email marketing
In the next section, we'll talk about other ways to sell more.
COPYWRITING
Copywriting has been called "selling in print".
That's because it does the heavy lifting that a door-to-door salesperson might do in person... convince a hesitant or indifferent prospect to buy what you're selling.
As you might well imagine, that's a big ask!
Imagine what your sales copy is expected to do...
Stop a 'cold' prospect in his or her tracks
Draw their attention to a bold promise or offer
Build up desire for whatever you're selling
Overcome objections in their mind that hold them back
Close the sale and ensure a transaction happens
If you pause to think about it, this is almost magical!
Because it literally seems to conjure money out of thin air.
And yet, day after day, minute after minute, there's a sales page for a digital business online that's pulling in sales... through the power of copywriting.
Now, this will not be a primer to effective sales copywriting.
It's more an attempt to convince you that it is worth learning how to write compelling copy that sells.
So let's take a look at first principles.
Bonus Cheatsheet: Click Here to Download "Learn to Sell" (PDF Version)
1. Your Audience
The key to great, effective copywriting isn't about all the technical tricks and tips... but a heartfelt message that conveys the value of your product or service to the right audience.
This means you should first identify WHO will benefit from buying your product or service.
Remember what we discussed early on in this course? Everyone is NOT your ideal prospect. Your business will never be able to serve all needs or solve every problem.
You should focus narrowly on the sliver of the population that will find your offer valuable.
That critical aspect of copywriting is often ignored. Good copywriting will always single out the most likely prospects - and speak directly to their needs... while ignoring the rest.
Weak and ineffective copywriting will attempt to engage everyone who sees the sales page or letter or banner or ad. As a result, it will only convey a dilute message that fails to convince or compel anybody to act.
2. Your Offer
Once your message is in front of the ideal person who is likely to buy, you must make them an irresistible offer.
This might be an incredible bargain price.
Or an offer of overwhelming value.
Or a timely intervention that comes at the perfect moment.
Or anything else the viewer simply cannot afford to ignore.
A powerful headline to your sales message will stop casually curious browsers in their track - and make them pay attention to the rest of your message.
A well crafted sales letter will then relentlessly progress them along a journey of exploration and understanding about your product or service.
A carefully planned 'close' will overcome any objections, make a convincing value proposition, and facilitate the prompt exchange of money for value.
3. Your Attitude
A subtle yet vital element of good copywriting is how it makes you sound!
Some sales pitches reek of desperation and urgency. While it is indeed an effective way to push a hesitant prospect off the fence, when you overuse urgency and scarcity to peddle your goods, you don't seem like a confident, value-adding business owner... you come across as a hustler!
So pay attention to the spirit of your copywriting.
Don't hold back so much that you hesitate to ask for the sale. At the same time, don't push so hard that you force a prospect away - just because they feel rushed or coerced into doing something they might regret.
When your copywriting is powered by the right attitude - of wanting to help your prospects by offering them something useful at an attractive and affordable price - then your sales pitch will resonate with this same feeling... and convey itself to the prospect.
This is why copywriting is called 'selling in print'.
The principles are the same.
Only the medium is different.
To help you master the fundamental 'rules and guidelines' of writing effective sales copy, I'd like to gift you a copy of my short guide called '21 Killer Copywriting Tips To Make You VERY Rich'.
You can collect it after subscribing to my email list here: click.
Or if you'd rather buy the guide, visit this sales page and take a look. It's also a good example of the same copywriting principles in action.
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ADVERTISING
Advertising has been called the 'tax for being unremarkable'.
In other words, if whatever you're doing with your digital business is remarkable and noteworthy, people will talk about it - on their own!
So you won't have to advertise your business.
Unfortunately, though, in a cluttered and crowded attention-starved world, it is growing incredibly hard to win such 'word of mouth' buzz. People are simply too busy. And too many businesses are doing amazing stuff.
The solution you have access to as the owner of a digital business online is to advertise.
The avenues and channels you have available for advertising are limitless.
You can run ads on social media.
Or sponsor email newsletters.
Or host banners on busy websites.
Or send bulk text SMS messages.
Or mail out postcards.
Or buy ad space in newspapers or magazines.
Or rent a billboard.
The big question is: Should you?
If yes, then should you do it all?
Well, no.
Even with deep pockets and an unlimited budget, it wouldn't be a good idea to try and blanket your ads over a range of options. Not until you've gained traction, built up a solid base, and are ready for rapid warp-speed growth.
So in the beginning, you're better off when you focus on a few (or even one) advertising channel or medium.
Just as we discussed in the earlier section, it pays to master your craft. Yes, even as an advertiser.
When you focus your advertising in one area - for example, Facebook ads, or email newsletter sponsorships, or banner ads on niche blogs - you'll be able to test, track and tweak your ads for better efficiency.
You should be able to tell:
which ads and messages resonate with your audience
what call to action gets people to respond
how many respondents end up buying from your business
what you're paying for each click, client and customer
Armed with this data, you can then get to work tweaking your ads for better efficiency.
You might improve your ad's click through rate (CTR) - and double the number of visitors to your website, for the same cost.
You might target people better - and close twice as many sales for the same number of clicks, doubling your return on investment.
You might negotiate better rates on ad purchases - which leaves you with more profit even if you make the same number of sales.
Gradually, step by step your advertising gathers momentum. Your client base grows. Your sales revenue and profits rise. This leaves you with a bigger budget to buy more ads in more places. Everything spirals upwards beautifully.
But this takes time.
And effort.
Sadly, many entrepreneurs are in a hurry. They expect to throw an ad budget at one or few avenues - and see profits roll in instantly.
That's a pipe-dream.
Any form of advertising will take some testing to refine and hone into a cash-pulling magnet.
Be ready and willing to invest it.
The pay-off is rich - and worthwhile.
EMAIL MARKETING
You'll recall that among the basic tools and resources needed to build a digital business in 2024 and beyond we listed an email management service.
There are several options available. I have used Aweber.com for 20+ years and find them ideal for my needs as an information product entrepreneur. You can read my full Aweber review here: click
As early as possible, you should sign up with an email list management service - and start collecting email addresses from your website.
Each time a prospect arrives at your digital business website, you have the opportunity to sign them up to your contact database.
They have indicated a potential interest in your offer by visiting your site. When you
communicate with them,
educate them about your business,
show them how you help solve problems like theirs,
introduce them to your products and service, and even
run special deals and offers for them periodically
... you will gradually build up trust, and convert them into clients for your digital information business.
That is the most compelling reason to begin with email marketing very early on.
Now, if you thought that email marketing is all about those ALL CAPS spam/junk messages that clutter up your inbox, pitching ridiculous financial claims and body-part enhancement offers...
No.
That's NOT what email marketing should be.
Effective, intelligent and strategic email marketing takes your prospective buyer along on a journey of exploration and adventure.
It tells them a story about you and your business.
It explains what moved you to launch a digital business, why you create the products and services you now offer.
It educates subscribers about the realities and intricacies of the problems and worries they're facing, or struggle to cope with.
It inspires them by pointing out that viable solutions exist, and showing how you'll be able to transform their life for the better.
It introduces readers to your range of products and services that are designed to help ease their difficulties.
It gently and persuasively convinces them of the wisdom in buying these solutions, in their own best interests.
All of this takes time.
You'll need to repeat the message over and over before it gets through.
Sometimes, people are just too busy or distracted to notice. At other times, they may not be in the right place or frame of mind to take advantage of your offer.
By being able to follow up through email marketing, you boost the chances of eventually converting them into a client of your business.
The nice part of using an email management service for your email marketing is that the tasks of follow up can all be automated.
That's right. It all runs hands-free after you've set it up once!
So you could draft a set of emails to go out in a sequence, each at an interval of a few days or even weeks... and every new email subscriber who signs up to your mailing list will receive the same sequence of emails - without you even lifting a finger!
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Pause for a moment and imagine the sheer power of harnessing such a system into your digital business.
It's incredible.
That's why email marketing should come high on your priorities while you build a digital business in 2024 and beyond.
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So there you have it.
Your 3 key pillars of how to sell online:
Copywriting
Advertising
Email marketing
Master them and you'll soon be able to sell anything to anyone.
In the next section, you'll learn about some more advanced selling techniques and strategies that will let you sell even more products and services in your digital information business.