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I’m taking today off to spend time with my parents. It’s my birthday–and there are no two people I’d rather spend time with then my parents. I don’t get to see them enough.
We’ll pick up tomorrow with an activity on how to write if you don’t know how to get started. So, get ready to work!
Happy Halloween to you all!
Robin
What does this picture say to you?
It says creativity . . . of course.
But it also says that anything is possible. After all, what dog could possibly get a cat into a cage? And who on earth could get a CAT into a costume??!!
Here’s what I want you to do.
If you have a brightly colored index card, use it. If not, use a white index card or any piece of paper.
Any the top of the page, write IMPOSSIBLE in large, black letters.
Cut a “window” out in the center of the card underneath the word.
Take a marker and cross out the “IM.”
This is your window into the world. Everything is possible if you’re willing to work hard and try.
Tape your window on a bulletin board, your window, your computer, your desk, your bookshelf, or wherever you can easily see it.
Everytime you look at it, remember that EVERYTHING is possible if you try. Will it come easily? No. Was it easy to form Google’s or Walt Disney’s empire? Of course not. Walt Disney had his share of problems. I’m sure if we asked Sergey Brin or Larry Page, they would tell us that the road to success had a few bumps along the way. Your road will contains bumps (or boulders or mountains) too. My path in life has contained a few mountain ranges!
Will everything work? No. But you must keep on trying, because everything is possible. That’s the key.
The author who wrote Flags of our Fathers was rejected by 27 book publishers before he sold the book. His dad is one of the guys in the famous picture of the flag on the cover of the book. Now it has been made into a movie directed by Clint Eastwood. James Bradley never gave up. Tom Clancy and John Grisham have similar stories.
They worked hard and they didn’t give up. You shouldn’t either.
Robin
Take a look at this graphic. Think about it for a few minutes.
What Web sites could you use this graphic on for Halloween?
You could write content around this graphic. How?
Get creative here and let me know.
Robin
Someone sent me some of the cutest and most creative pictures of animals dressed up for Halloween as well as pumpkin designs. I’m going to post a few of the pictures here between now and Halloween, and even one or two of the pumpkin pictures afterward. (I don’t know who to attribute the pictures to or I would. If anyone knows who took these delightful pictures, let me know and I’ll ask permission to use them.)
So, going back to our discussion of yesterday, let’s say that you sell costumes online. It’s the Halloween season. What makes your site different from all of the other costume sites out there? What is your Unique Selling Proposition?
If you had a costume site, what could you do with pictures like this? What other content could you create to distinguish yourself from the competition?
What could you do to make me want to buy from YOU rather than your competitors?
THINK about it and put your creative minds to work.
Remember: as you’re creating for the examples I give here, always keep your own site in the back of your mind. How can the ideas you create here translate into your ideas for your own site. Write those ideas in your idea journal.
Robin
P.S. Check out the Vampire Dog’s teeth as he leans over to bite the defenseless little dog in the RIP casket. How hilarious! Now how creative is THAT?!
The past two days, we’ve been working on an idea list for our Web sites. Please read back over those posts if you are just now joining us.
You’ve created an idea list and you’ve categorized the ideas. Today, I want you to look back over your list. Think about your current business model, then think about your competitors.
What makes you different from your competitors? What is your Unique Selling Proposition–your USP? If you don’t have one, start thinking about it. Every business, whether on the Web or brick and mortar, needs a USP.
In other words, why should I buy from YOU rather than your competitors?
Study your own list carefully. Is there anything on the list that your competitors aren’t doing? Anything that you could do first?
Tell me why I should buy from your store instead of from another store online. Price is not always the main factor in a decision-making process. Do you ALWAYS buy from the store with the best deal? Or, do you buy from the store that has the best return policy? Or from the store that features a free members’ area where you can access an abundance of how-to information and interaction with customer support staff as well as other users?
Do you buy from the store where you can get EVERYTHING you want at one time and save on shipping, or do you buy one thing from this store and another thing from another store? Do you buy from a store that has a “personalized” approach to shopping?
When you step foot in an online store, if it confuses you with too much MESS, do you automatically leave or do you try to figure it out? If the graphics don’t load or there’s not a secure ordering page, do you still order?
For big ticket items, do you want to talk to someone first? What if that person isn’t available? Do you still order?
What if the item isn’t described in detail? A 5″ candleholder, when the picture shows a candle in the holder, isn’t enough of a description. Would you order with a skimpy amount of information like that?
Do you go online with the purpose of BUYING, or do you go online looking for information and end up buying in the process? If that’s the case, don’t you imagine that if you were to put up INFORMATION on your site, you’d capture some potential information seekers just like yourself? Think about it.
Study your list of ideas, which should give you some great ideas for content to create for your site.
Once you’ve created even 1/6 of the ideas you added to your list (if you did your homework!), you can bet your customers will be buying from YOU rather than your competitors. When you implement your ideas, invite me to your site on this blog. I want to be sure to visit.
Robin
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