“Traffic + conversions = profits”
This is a formula I coined in 2002 to help business owners focus on what matters in Internet marketing.
In those days – and it’s still as true today as it was 13 years ago – the fad-driven nature of the Internet causes entrepreneurs to scurry around like crazy chasing one “sure fire” idea after another, while at the same time neglecting the things that really matter.
If the Internet is your business (vs. your hobby) you need traffic and you need a system (or systems) for converting that traffic so that it yields commercial value.
That’s the story…but it’s not the whole story.
In my mind – and it’s reflected in how I’ve run my businesses for over 20 years – conversion extends to after the sale.
After the sale is where all the money is made
When I talk about “after the sale” I’m not talking about up-sells, or cross-sells or forced continuity. Those are mechanical details.
I’m talking about how you treat your customer after he or she has shown enough faith in you to give you some of their hard-earned money.
Think for a moment..
How often does this topic come up in Internet marketing? How many “gurus” can you name who ever discuss this issue at all?
Even though it goes to the core or marketing, tt’s a very, very small list and if you want to figure out who is for real and who isn’t, this is a very simple criteria to use.
The real secret of making money
Business is not about “making the sale.” It’s about making the sale and all the other things that need to happen for:
1) the customer to win
2) the customer to come back
3) the customer to have good things to say about you
When you hear a “guru” tell you that the product doesn’t matter, you know you’re dealing with a charleton, which is a fancy French way for saying a crook.
This is a pretty black and white issue.
Either you care about your customers or you don’t. If you’re starting with the philosophy that it’s “all marketing” and the product doesn’t matter, you’re profoundly lost.
There’s nothing sanctimonious about this
Thanks to shows like “Shark Tank” and “The Profit” people without years of business experience are finally able to see what matters when it comes to making money.
First, of all you need a business, not just a product or a promotion or a BS “launch.”
A business is a set of systems that creates and/or sources great products, creates great advertising and marketing and takes great care of its customers.
That’s where money comes from and the hard-headed, hard-hearted and uber-successful “Sharks” of the Shark Tank know that.
Can you imagine one of the Sharks funding an Internet scammer whose philosophy is “the product doesn’t matter, only the marketing matters.”?
Of course not.
He’d be kicked out on his ass and rightly so. (If you’ve watched enough episodes, you’ve seen this happen. I always cheer.)
Yes, people do make money scamming other people, but that’s not business. It’s a form of criminality and no one with any business sense wants to have anything to do with such people.
Why “guru” BS sells so well
The “gurus” prey on people who are naive, are in a big rush, and want magic results.
The truth is there are things you can do to dramatically accelerate your progress and there are methods that work like magic in comparison to inferior approaches.
But here’s the key: No one person, no one program, no one course can ever by itself get you from A to Z.
At best, you’re getting a useful piece of the puzzle, a puzzle which ultimately YOU must assemble.
By all means, invest in your education. It’s the only path to progress.
But if you find yourself idolizing someone or some group, check yourself. Hero worship is not a money-making activity for the worshippers.
If you find yourself about to pull the trigger on a massive, out-sized investment in education or training because it promises (or you believe) it will solve all your problems, check yourself.
You and I don’t have infinite time and infinite money. No one does.
People who succeed are discriminating. They research things. They demand value. They refuse to be stampeded by pressure.
There are a virtual infinite number of ways to succeed financially in this world, but the game is not easy.
If you’re going to win, develop some of the same hard-nosed, “show me the proof” attitude that the Sharks display when they’re listening to pitches.
The ability to be skeptical and remain clear headed when being pitched is an essential money making skill.
P.S. If you need to get rich in 30 days, I can’t help you.
But if want to build a business on a strong foundation that will generate money year in and year out, I can help you with that.
The vehicle I use is the System Club and all the details you need to get involved are here.
– Ken McCarthy
P.S. For over 25 years I’ve been sharing the simple but powerful things that matter in business with my clients.
If you’d like direction for your business that will work today, tomorrow and twenty years from now, visit us at the System Club.
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