Attention Mr. Merchant! If You’re Not Using Coupons, it’s Time You Reconsider Your Position :)

As I eased into my day today, I came accross a short article published on Internet Retailer that read “Consumers `clipped` 92% more coupons from the web last year, study says”.

When I first read the article I wasn’t very surprised to hear the stats. In fact, if you live on planet earth, you know we are going through one of the toughest recessions in recent history and that people have, for better or worse, been forced to “save”. Old timers like my father in-law chuckle at the notion that economic distress and recessions have pushed consumers like generation X’rs to become more price conscious and thrifty in their spending. I can see why this would amuse him. Here you have a gentlemen well into his 70's, who's weathered all types of economic conditions; where in my case, my generation got to experience and weather what I like to call; “a period of wretched excess and abundance”. Needless to say, a recession has forced my generation to start looking at things differently and this recent report only adds to the validity that a new breed of thrifty consumers and buyers are on the horizon. Merchants who don’t adequately prepare for this type of consumer may miss the boat.

As a managing director of business and affiliate program management at Andy Rodriguez Consulting, it’s my job to ensure that we not only manage our merchant’s accounts adequately but that we stay vigilant on new trends and markets to better support our merchants in their online endeavors. One area that merchants should not ignore is the reality that this is not the time to dismiss or avoid using coupons or coupon affiliates on their programs. I’ve had countless conversations and strategic debates with merchants on whether or not they should use coupons and I’ve heard every reason why they shouldn’t, from:

-Damaging their brand and how they will be perceived in the market place
-Accustoming users to only buy their product when coupons are offered
-Fearful that the coupons will seriously hurt their margins

I can keep adding to the list of “top coupon woes and worries” expressed by my merchant but I’d rather offer a basic perspective on how coupons can actually help a merchant and not hurt an online business.

If you happen to be an electronics merchant reading this article or do business in a very competitive vertical, you too can benefit from coupons. The fact is we don’t need to read an Internet Retailer report on the growing trend of coupon usage to validate the reality that consumer buying habits are changing and that their buying habits are even more targeted than ever before. Online retailers that don’t accept or adapt to this fact are going to get creamed in the New Year!

Now please note that I am not insinuating that all online retailers need to give into the coupon path without giving it much thought. I don’t expect for online retailers to “give away the house” or lose money on transactions because coupon usage is on the rise, however what I am suggesting is that online retailers need to face the fact that most consumers are looking for deals and anyone who offers them a value driven offer/coupon is going to attract more sales, period. So here are just a few facts that you may want to consider and apply in your marketing plans for 2010:

1. Use coupons or offers on the slowest day of the week. Sporadically offer coupons on some of your slowest days and help boost your sales.

2. If you are doing business in a highly competitive, low margin vertical like electronics, use targeted coupons on products with higher margins.

3. Coupons don’t have to be considered loss leaders, they can actually increase the amount spent by your site visitors, therefore increasing the average price per sale.

4. Most consumers using coupons online generally pick up a few extra items if the online merchant positions the up sells correctly and adequately throughout the site and during the checkout process. If you don’t know what I am referring too, call me directly at our firm at 305 412 3512 and I explain it to you.

5. Coupons that are strategically positioned and offered during slow times of the year can offer a nice push in revenue where otherwise you would have incurred potential losses.

6.If your online e-commerce business has an affiliate program, consider offering affiliates an exclusive coupon only available to affiliates on the program, similar to the affiliate program we manage BoatShoes.com. The value behind this idea is that any traffic an affiliate sends will receive the coupon or offer, allowing you to acquire potentially a new customer that otherwise would have been far beyond your reach.

7. Offer coupons privately to your customers and make them feel special! There’s nothing I like more than to get exclusive offers or deals. Coupons and offers go a long way with customers and add juice to your brand loyalty strategy over the long run.

8. Use coupons to entice old customers to come back. Make this exclusive and consider it as part of your marketing budget to retain and keep good customers.

9. Use coupons and offers on discounted products or excess inventory. As my father used to say: “One man’s junk, is another man’s treasure”.

10. Offer a dollar off and not a percentage off on a product. For example, instead of using 5% off, use $5.00 off.

A new breed of thrifty consumers are slowly taking shape and determining the direction of where the market place is going. What once was “un-cool to do”, is now being considered “chic and smart”. If you’re marketing plan and budget doesn’t include the implementation and positioning of coupons to better service these savvy buyers, you are going to lose out big-time!

Tell your friends about us!

Emilio Yepez
E: emilio@arcmediaconsultants.com
E: emilio@andyrodriguez.com
P: 305 412 3512
C: 305 389 8955

Bold Move by New York Times to Monetize Content

Hello Reader,

This morning I woke up to the news that the New York Times will soon be charging for content in 2011. That’s right, you read it right, the Guardian.co.uk reported: http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2010/jan/20/new-york-times-charging-content-online, that the New York Times will try to undertake, what I think is one of the boldest moves on the web in quite some time.

Now you might be asking, “hey, what’s so surprising about this news, we’ve heard talk concerning this idea for quite some time?”

Well what’s so surprising about this news is that The New York Times is considered one of the most influential news papers in the country, with only the Wall Street Journal coming in second. If there was someone who could pull off the idea of charging for content, it would be the New York Times. With the decline in newspaper sales and traditional print new sources going out of business, they may be the leader rescuing their failing business model and execute the famed idea of charging for content. You could have a load of other worthy news outlets soon follow and we could be seeing the next revolution on the web, or will we?

The biggest challenge they face is whether their readers will support their move or move on to reading free content on other sources like independent news papers and Blogs. Which brings up the next set of questions: If the New York Times is successful in charging for content, will this breed a whole new channel for Bloggers to monetize on their content via their readers? I don’t know, it seems like a farfetched idea, but is it really?

Of course all of this is just speculation and we really don’t know where this headed, but one thing is for sure, this news is definitely news worthy and the promise of what could happen should the New York Times succeed could change the internet, how content is monetized and our industry as a whole.

Tell your friends about us!

Emilio Yepez

Buy This Book: Internet Marketing From the Real Experts

Hello Reader,

I thought I would share with you a new and exciting book just released by Missy Ward and Shawn Collins titled: Internet Marketing From the Real Experts

Now, I am not simply promoting this book because I happen to have writen a chapter on page 263 :)! J/k. I am writing about this book today becuase it contains a wealth of information on Internet Marketing by some of the top people in Affiliate Marketing. If your interested you can buy this book at Amazon on this link!

If your not familiar with the term Affiliate Marketing and you are a business owner that sells product and services, you should be. Affiliate Marketing is a performance based business that can do wonders for your company and expand your brand and customer base. If you think your business can benefit from an Affiliate Program, please feel free to give me a call at 305 412 3512 or 305 389 8955 and I'll tell you all about it!


Tell your friends about us!


Emilio Yepez
Andy Rodriguez Consulting
http://www.andyrodriguez.com/
E: emilio@andyrodriguez.com
P: 305 412 3512
C: 305 389 8955
AIM: affiliateagle1


Remember: You can buy this book at Amazon on this link!

Introduction to My NEW BLOG!

Hello Reader,

Thank you for visiting my new Blog on: Doing Internet Marketing by the Book

Many, many years ago, my business partner and mentor Andy Rodriguez, from Andy Rodriguez Consulting told me on the onset of my career that if I wanted to make it in the online business, I needed to put ethics and integrity at the forefront of my practice and boy was he right! Many moons have come and gone and I can say with all certainty that his advice has been the cornerstone to how we run Andy Rodriguez Consulting and ARC Media Consultants. I am happy to say that many years later since that conversation, both me and Andy run our firms with the upmost integrity and never remorse over advice and information given to top Internet Retailer 500 companies and small to medium businesses in the South Florida market.

As an Internet Marketing consultant and Vice President of ARC Media Consultants, I find that most business owners, marketers, and sales professionals have a distorted view on how to properly and ethically conduct business online. Please pay close attention to the latter portion of my last sentence because it sums up why I've decided to create this Internet Marketing Blog.

In the “Virtual World” that I conduct business in, regulations and rules don’t always apply. The internet doesn’t have the advantages of regulatory bodies and associations to help prevent fraud and other illegal practices, it’s truly the Wild, Wild West and that’s why I am so passionate about developing this Blog. I want to help business owners and sales professionals with unique and insightful advice on how to properly and ethically market their business online. Business owners and professionals that want to hear in-depth, sound advice on how to build a strong business or practice the “right way” need to look no further! I plan on offering links and information from other well known sources in Affiliate Marketing, Internet Marketing and other Search Engine experts. I think you’ll find this information meaningful and that it will offer great insight, so be sure check out us every week.

In today's world, ethics and integrity have become less important to people who conduct business, especially those who conduct business behind the "virtual curtain of a website". Don’t sell out, you don’t have to. There enough money to go around and getting solid Internet Marketing advice isn’t really hard, if you know where to look!

I hope you enjoy the topics and information we decide to discuss on this Blog and that you leave this Blog with a wealth of knowledge.

Tell your friends about us!

Emilio Yepez

ARC Media Consultants
http://www.arcmediaconsultants.com/
P: 305 412 3512
C: 305 389 8955
E:emilio@arcmediaconsultants.com
AIM: affiliateagle1