This will be the repository of content to reference to during the six-month mentoring block. Check back here for weekly updates.
Q&A Webinar – May 14, 2014
1. Don’t bypass “The Framework” that is pinned in the Facebook Group. This is your foundation in business and also your personal life. If you skip it thinking that you don’t have time to slow down to read these books, you will end up frustrated. You don’t have to read every work, skim them. If you still end up frustrated read them again and again. Overcoming your fears is key to being successful. Trust me.
2. When picking a product, focus on one that has good traction. A solid BSR (Best Sellers Rank) is what you are looking for. Follow the system in ASM. Never go after a product that “has potential”. Potential is a French word which means, “you aren’t worth a damn yet.” Focus on what is working now and don’t get caught up with what may work in the future.
3. Should you just sell someone else’s product or should you private label? Always private label. The reason you got into this business is to build a business for you, not the elevate someone else’s business. That is why I got out of affiliate marketing. Building your own brand is your chief aim.
4. If you are having a hard time picking a product and you don’t want to make a mistake as you want to hit a “home run” with your first product, we have news for you, it won’t happen. You will be stuck in an endless loop of analysis. You have to just get a product out there and realize you are going to make mistakes. Experience is not anything that we can teach you, you have to earn that for yourself. With experience comes knowledge and power.
5. No one knows (including me) exactly how Amazon’s algorithm works for ranking pages inside their search. However, there are some things that definitely go into it that you should be aware of:
- Sales is the biggest factor
- Conversion is a big factor too (Amazon wants to make more money so they will reward the product that converts the best)
- Reviews are big too, but you don’t want to use fake reviews
- A mix of Verified and non-verified reviews is fine, but lean heavier on the Verified Reviews
- Refund rate is speculated to be the same as conversion, but in reverse
- Seller Feedback plays a role too, so be mindful of your Seller Feedback and keep that at 100
- Your price does have an affect, as the higher your price, the more Amazon makes
6. Another group stated that since reviews were so important, the best way to get high ranking is to buying reviews from Fiverr. This is a bad idea on so many levels. You want to have complete integrity to what the customer sees. Don’t lie, cheat or steal. If you are dishonest with your reviews, there will be other areas of your business you will be dishonest also. This will lead you down a path that you won’t be proud of. Keep high integrity. The Bristers have over 800 reviews and all of them are legit…and that is just since October. You can build great reviews without resorting to using fake ones.
7. Where should we source from, China or the US? Can you still find good margins using a US supplier? Neither myself or the Bristers are currently using our first supplier when we started this process. Don’t get lost in the process or look for the “perfect” supplier. They don’t exist. There are pluses and minuses with China. Of course, the biggest plus is the lower price. The negatives are you probably don’t speak the language or have contacts over there, so you will be starting from the ground up. Shipping takes a lot of time and can get pricey. Quality is not always up to standard.
8. We will be putting together a summary of the best ways to source items from China.
9. What about packaging companies? If you have a product that needs a cardboard hanger for display, how do you go about it? Best method is to buy your competitor’s product, send it to your supplier and say “I want this quality or better” and see what they can come up with. Don’t try and reinvent the wheel. Get to Point A to Point B as quickly as you can. Remember, this is a learning process and you will make mistakes…just far fewer if you were doing this on your own.
10. Press Releases: How do you write a press release after writing sales copy all day? The simple answer is, you don’t. You are better off keeping your “sales hat” on and keep those highly converting pages cranking out. Leave writing press releases to the experts. The person I use, and have used for every single press release I have made since 1998 is Dr. Kevin Nunley. He has a “golden keyboard” and you will love how he makes your product and business sound.
Late Questions (not on the video)
– Can you recommend a lawyer and suggestion for company setup, especially for the cases if we promote weight loss products. Any suggestion would be very much appreciated.
For an attorney, I have a great one, but she is very expensive. You are looking at about a $40k minimum investment. I would wait until you are rocking the house to invest in this type of setup. I only recommend attorneys I have used, so I cannot recommend one that would be lower on the pay scale. For weight loss products, the supplier carries the insurance.
– Should I throw the 50th Garcinia into the market with other labels and compete with the big names or start to come up with my own Garcinia and tweak it and make a slightly different version from the other ones?
Garcinia Cambogia is losing steam steadily. In my view, it isn’t worth putting out your own formula as the public just doesn’t care. It has received some negative publicity from Dr. Oz as he had a program where he confronted a company selling it and using his name and likeness without his permission. Producing your own blend of the product may sound like a great idea, but we tested it and people really don’t care, they are just attracted to the name because of Dr. Oz gave it his endorsement.
– Should I take one product at a time or build the portfolio from the beginning?
Just start with one product. Get it out there and start learning all the promotion techniques and the process. Then, once you have it down, and you feel comfortable with the process, you can launch more products and start to turn them out like a machine.
– On Amazon product page, should we use color or large font on our product description? Will it do us good or harm on the conversion? For example, makes “90-day money back guarantee. No questions asked!” red and bigger font.
Yes, we have done this with great success. Testing is always welcomed. Remember, everyone will have different audiences and it is up to you to figure out what appeals most to them as what appeals to my market won’t necessarily appeal to your market. But posting a large money back guarantee is always a good thing.
– In an upcoming promotion we are going to use Facebook event and press release to promo our product. Is it better to use $1 coupon or X% off coupon?
Percentage sounds sexy, only if it is a number like 50% or more. Try and use real dollars as much as possible. It is more tangible to the customer.
September 9, 2014
This is a breakdown and update of the training that was given in January 2014 live in Austin. This will cover why it is important for you to have your story told and also a complete breakdown of creating landers, how to test them and how to ensure you get the most conversion out of them. Running time: 55 minutes.