Building a Tangible eCommerce Business

[Skint]

Hi

I understand list building can be very lucrative when executed well, by simply selling affiliate products (digital information) as well as your own perhaps too, once you have some capital (or time) to create them.

However, if I perfect my craft of building lists, how can I use my skills to build out a tangible eCommerce business? I mean essentially a website that sells physical products, a real asset that I can build up as a company (with office space, employees, a brand, etc.)

Opt-in incentives that are basically eBooks work just fine when your sales messages later on relate to paid-for eBooks and such. However, how would the list building process differ if I were, for example, selling watches through an online watch store? I'm not sure if an eBook opt-in incentive who translate well into physical goods sales... I also don't know what kind of opt-in incentive would be good (how to spot good watches, how watches work, what makes a quality watch..?)

Perhaps the opt-in incentive would be a mere discount package or something. But that's not very original and people see discounts all over the place. I wonder if anyone here has any experience building a long-term eCommerce business?

Thanks.

 

[retraCC]

You are coming at it with the wrong mentality. People that already bought from you and had a great experience are the best type of repeat customers. So a loyalty program can go a long way. Also a loyalty program which they can send off to their friends and colleagues so they can get discounts can get you in the door of people they will be bragging about their brand new shiny watch. I wouldn't call it a loyalty program though, I'd call it a "VIP Program", you see the difference. Now they are part of an exclusive group that gets not 'discounts' but 'inside deals'.

You can send them news about the latest luxury watches on the market, I had a client that sends out a monthly magazine, over 200 pages thick, to over 100,000 members. Nothing but his latest watches in the magazine, it's just literally a catalog like you get in the mail, but he goes the extra step of getting it to magazine quality paper, and making it look like they are in an exclusive 'membership' club. He entices them with upcoming watches for sale, that haven't hit the showroom floor yet. Fact is his magazine is the biggest overhead, but he's making a killing cause of his location and his combined loyalty program. I came in to consult on the online business portion.

For watches an ebook offer is useless the way you are angling it. You can include entertainment (celebrities wearing X watches), news (New TourBillion coming out), or just information (How to wind a watch), and start out small. Get feedback from your customers, and expand it there. The whole time keeping in mind that you are up-selling your brand, and pushing your own watches upon them.

Before I evolved pass the need for a physical form, I wrote this http://www.wickedfire.com/enlightened-members/165991-my-1000th-post-permission-based-marketing.html, it should help you out.

 

[golan]

I wrote this http://www.wickedfire.com/enlightened-members/165991-my-1000th-post-permission-based-marketing.html, it should help you out.

No you didn't. CCarter wrote that piece.

:liebe028:

 

[retraCC]

No you didn't. CCarter wrote that piece.

:liebe028:

... not sure if you are serious... :eek7:

 

[Skint]

Sorry, I "liked" your post earlier. Just checked this thread again and wanted to say thanks. I just dropped in earlier to post this thread; I haven't had much time on my hands recently but I've bookmarked your past thread and will read that through when I can. It was interesting to hear about the actual watch-related scenario you gave. All the best.