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Web Marketing Strategies For Home Business Promotion
Thur 13th Apr.'00
WIN $10,000! http://www.nowsell.com/I-can-win.html
In this issue (Part 2):
1. VOTING BOOTH
==>This week's quick poll and last week's results.
2. TOOLS AT NOW SELL!
==>Useful tools to make your life easier from Now Sell!
3. FEATURE ARTICLE
==>"SERVICE SELLS!"
by Jennifer Johnson.
Subscription details can be found at the end.
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X VOTING BOOTH X
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This is the place where we take a quick poll for a snapshot of
the Biz Bits family's position on a given topic.
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This week:
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Do you design and build your own web site(s) or do you get
someone to do it for you?
YES! >>>> mailto:yes+nowsell.com
I do it myself !
NO! >>>> mailto:no+nowsell.com
I get someone to do it for me!
ERR? >>>> mailto:err+nowsell.com
I'm not sure... depends... I don't have a web site?
*** Add any additional comments in the body of your vote mail ***
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Last week:
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Do you agree with Judge Thomas Penfield Jackson's ruling against
Microsoft?
YES! >>>> 15%
I agree!
NO! >>>> 70%
I think it's unfair!
ERR? >>>> 15%
I'm not sure... depends...?
[Azam: I wasn't expecting that! However, the unusual absence of
voter comments this week (not even one!!) leads me to suspect
that many are perhaps not very clear on the details of the case.
I personally agree with the decision, and (sticking my neck out
here ) think it unlikely to be overturned at appeal.
Knowing I'm a Mac user, you're probably thinking "Yeah but you're
one of those fanatical Microsoft haters." Whilst it's true that
in my eyes Windows is little more than a poor imitation of the
Mac OS, I don't hate Microsoft. I was a Windows user for several
years before switching to the Mac and currently use IE as my
default browser.
I agree with the decision because I feel Microsoft broke the law;
we ALL lost out as a result of its tactics. Sure, free web
browsers were a side-effect, something that may or may not have
happened. However, we lost out in terms of innovative software
development, cross-platform compatibility and freedom of choice.
Probably in pricing too.
Though Microsoft deny it, we all know it has a de facto monopoly
in the PC operating system market. The court also ruled this to
be the case. That not only gives it an awful lot of power, but
the lack of competition also allows Bill to charge more-or-less
what he wants (and still get away with shipping buggy software!).
More importantly however, compatibility issues mean that PC users
would find it costly and problematic to switch to any new PC
operating system. This 'applications barrier' makes it extremely
difficult for manufacturers of competing operating systems to
gain a foothold in the PC market, even if their product is better
and cheaper than Windows.
Understandably, Microsoft take a serious view of anything that
might jeopardize this enviable position. Netscape's Navigator
technology and Sun Microsystems' Java posed a real threat because
they are essentially platform independent.
Microsoft's fear was that if they became popular with users,
software developers would favor the technology because it enabled
them write applications that would run on multiple platforms.
This would lead to the availability of many applications that
were no-longer dependant on Windows, making it far easier for
Windows users to switch to any new, alternative OS.
"Microsoft early on recognized middleware as the Trojan horse
that, once having, in effect, infiltrated the applications
barrier, could enable rival operating systems to enter the market
for Intel-compatible PC operating systems unimpeded. Simply put,
middleware threatened to demolish Microsoft's coveted monopoly
power....
When Netscape refused to abandon its efforts to develop Navigator
into a substantial platform for applications development,
Microsoft focused its efforts on minimizing the extent to which
developers would avail themselves of interfaces exposed by that
nascent platform."
Microsoft set out to induce PC manufacturers and ISPs to withdraw
support for Netscape's browser, and not offer it to users. Whilst
I can appreciate a "you scratch my back and I'll scratch yours"
arrangement, Microsoft went too far, especially considering their
monopoly position.
Microsoft spent millions and lost millions more in potential
revenues in order to get manufacturers and ISPs to tow the line.
It also threatened manufacturers with the withdrawal of licences
to ship Windows with their systems, and ISPs with removal from
the Windows environment.
As a result of Microsoft investing in Apple, Netscape Navigator
ceased to be bundled with the Mac OS. The Technology Agreement
prohibited Apple from promoting any non-Microsoft browsing
software in any way or from pre-installing a browser other than
Internet Explorer.
The problem with all this is that Microsoft have been unable to
provide any legitimate business reasons for its actions and
expenditure. The obvious conclusion therefor is that it was
solely an attempt to stifle competition in order to preserve its
monopoly, which is illegal.
The question of whether Explorer is an integral part of Windows
is to my mind irrelevant (though we all know that it's an
application, just like Word or any other). If Microsoft want to
force Windows users to take Explorer, that's up to them.
Microsoft used various tactics to prevent Sun's Java from
becoming the platform independent language it was intended to be,
including creating its own, incompatible version. Can't really
blame them for that I suppose. The problem lies in Microsoft's
methods of pressuring developers to use it over the original, and
the negative impact on end users.
"Microsoft then induced developers to use its implementation of
Java ... by means of subterfuge and barter, and indirectly,
through its campaign to minimize Navigator's usage share.
In a separate effort to prevent the development of easily
portable Java applications, Microsoft used its monopoly power to
prevent firms such as Intel from aiding in the creation of
cross-platform interfaces.
Microsoft's tactics induced many Java developers to write their
applications using Microsoft's developer tools and to refrain
from distributing Sun-compliant JVMs to Windows users. This
stratagem has effectively resulted in fewer applications that are
easily portable. What is more, Microsoft's actions interfered
with the development of new cross-platform Java interfaces.
Microsoft also deliberately designed its Java development tools
so that developers who were opting for portability over
performance would nevertheless unwittingly write Java
applications that would run only on Windows."
This has become far longer than I intended, but perhaps will shed
some light on the major points of the trial. Microsoft isn't the
the devil some would have us believe, and does create some great
products (IE version 5 for the Mac is currently the most
sophisticated and compliant browser on ANY platform, sporting
several great features unavailable on the Windows version. Of
course that could change when the final version of Netscape 6 is
released). However, in my opinion at least, Microsoft clearly
overstepped the mark here.
The punishment? I don't know. The damage has been done, and I
can't see that breaking Microsoft up would achieve much. On the
other hand, having the government routinely sticking their noses
into everything is probably not very desirable either.
Quoted passages excerpted from the document:
Civil Action No. 98-1232 (TPJ) Conclusions of Law. United States
District Court for the district of Columbia http://usvms.gpo.gov
]
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Voter Feedback:
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None at all this week!
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X TOOLS AT NOW SELL! X
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*** Promotion Tools ***
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
* Keyword Research Tool
* Meta Tag Maker
* Free Automatic Search Engine Submit
* Rapid Manual Search Engine Submit Tool
* Position Analyzer to check site rank in the SEs
* Link Generators
* Multi Search Tool
Visit Promotion: http://www.nowsell.com/BB/promotion.html
*** HTML Tools ***
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
* Multiple Pop-up window code generator
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Visit HTML: http://www.nowsell.com/BB/html.html
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~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
* Free Business Consulting:
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* Listings of the best paid to surf, read email, etc. programs:
http://www.nowsell.com/surfcash.html
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X FEATURE ARTICLE X
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SERVICE SELLS!
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by Jennifer Johnson
A slogan on someone's company truck caught my eye the other day.
"Home of Outrageous Service". Not "The World's Best Widgets" or
"You Won't Find a Lower Price Anywhere for Widgets", just "Home
of Outrageous Service". Why would someone advertise their service
instead of their superior product or affordable price?
Simple. As a general rule, customer service is so poor these days
that the company providing excellent service is at a distinct
advantage. I'll bet you can't think of more than a few times this
past month that you've received excellent service. I'll bet you
even more that you can think of many times you haven't.
Just a few days ago I was in a well-known store and, being a
first time mommy of a nine week old baby, I discovered that it
was relatively easy to get stroller, baby, and a few hundred
items to the checkout stand, but for some mysterious reason
getting the same stroller, baby, and few hundred items out the
door was impossible. The nice cashier asked me if I needed help
out and I said that I'd appreciate it. She then asked her manager
if she could quickly run out with me to help me carry my
purchases. Without so much as a glance, the little vest-clad
muskrat said "no" and went about his business. Yes, I was at
fault for getting too many items, but he missed a perfect
opportunity to cultivate customer satisfaction.
Opportunities like that present themselves to you every day. As a
business owner, you must do what you can to provide the best
customer service possible; it could be the deciding factor when
it comes to choosing between you and your competitor.
The question is what can you do to improve your service?
MAKE IT EASY FOR CUSTOMERS TO CONTACT YOU
Your contact information should be readily available from every
page of your site either by link or displayed on the page. People
want to know who they're doing business with. They want to know
you can be reached if they have a question about your product or
if they have problems.
A business site with no contact information throws up a red flag.
Contact information conveys credibility, a major factor in
becoming successful online. Your much coveted Pre-Raphaelite
painting "Gentle Weasel at Rest" may have the potential to fetch
a hefty fee, but without so much as your phone number accessible
to the potential customer, do you really think they'll send their
credit card information flitting through cyberspace?
At the very least, your customers should be able to contact you
by phone, email, and postal mail.
Don't want to be bombarded with questions? Then go ahead, make
yourself hard to find, but be prepared not to be bothered with
those pesky orders as well.
APPRECIATE THE VALUE OF YOUR EMAIL
Once you've made it easy for customers to contact you, you have
to actually answer your email. Your email "In" box is full of
opportunities. Not the "ONCE IN A LIFETIME OPPORTUNITY!!! MAKE
$3000 AN HOUR FOR STARING AT A WALL!! DON'T DELETE THIS!!"-type
opportunities; I'm referring to the opportunities present in your
business-related email.
Most business email presents the chance to either gain a new
customer or strengthen the relationship with an existing customer
- both of which can only help your bottom line. I've said this
many times, but it bears repeating: many businesses spend tons of
money to attract customers, yet ignore the person who COMES TO
THEM. Their competitors should send them a "Thank You" note.
Ignoring a potential customer's email is a surefire way to lose
that person to a company that *will* listen to and appreciate
them.
Let me be the first to say that I've been guilty of the same
mistake. After about the 1100th email I received with only one
line - "tell me how to make a web page" - I was sorely tempted to
respond with an equally frustrating generality such as, "use
html" or ignore the message altogether. It doesn't do any good,
however, to fail to respond to messages and sending back a surly
reply is like receiving an invitation to appear on the Jerry
Springer show - nothing good can come of it.
Most of you are familiar with Jim Daniels of BizWeb 2000
http://www.bizweb2000.com. He's one of the more famous, widely
published, Internet marketing gurus around, so it's safe to
assume that his email "In" box is stuffed. When I was first
starting out, I wrote him an email. I wasn't really expecting an
answer since I was accustomed to that being the case from other
online businesses, but I soon received a very friendly, helpful
reply. I imagine his success is due, in a large part, to making
people feel that their questions and concerns matter. That's how
you develop loyal customers.
As your business grows, you'll soon find that answering email can
become a full-time job if you aren't careful. You can use
autoresponders, a well-written FAQ page, and email "stationery"
to help cut down on time spent answering the same questions over
and over. One caution, though: don't go overboard. You don't want
to be perceived as cold and impersonal. Judicious use of
automation will ease your workload, but there are still many
things that are best done the "hard" way.
BELIEVE IN THE POWER OF EXTRAS
Another way to deliver superior customer service is through
"extras". Bonus gifts with purchases and similar rewards are an
example of extras, but I'm thinking more along the lines of what
you could do to set you apart from the competition and make your
customers feel like special, valuable, INDIVIDUALS.
One of my very good friends owns Americans in Scotland
http://www.americansinscotland.com. She offers escorted,
personalized tours of Scotland. I consider her the consummate
customer service specialist. Many of her clients are clients
because of *her* as much as because of the great service she
offers. Her "extra" is personalized service. She's made
screensavers for her clients from their trip photos, given them
personalized gifts, and more, and it's paid off - she's been
given rave reviews from her clients who don't hesitate to refer
their friends.
Can you deliver personalized service to thousands of customers?
Maybe not, but there are things you can do to enhance your
customers' experience with your company and show them they are
extremely valuable to you.
These are just a few general principles regarding customer
service. The great thing about these ideas (and many others
relating to delivering top-notch customer service) is they won't
cost you a wheelbarrow full of cash to implement; in fact, all
they'll cost you is a little time and effort.
Take a long, hard look at your current level of service or,
better yet, ask your customers what they think of your service.
If it's not where it should be, you're probably losing sales as a
result. It's time to gain the advantage on your competition by
delivering superior service!
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OK, that's it for part two! Below you'll find the INFO SECTION.
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Biz Bits is Copyright © 1999-2000 Azam Corry. All Rights
Reserved. No part of Biz Bits may be reproduced in whole or in
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Biz Bits is an internationally registered weekly publication.
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April 2000
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5th pt1 - , 911 Virus, New Cash, $15 Domains,
5th pt2 - , Vote, Be Smart - Learn From Your Business Mistakes,
13th pt1 - , 7 Tips For Killer Headlines, Credit Card Fraud, Netscape 6,
13th pt2 - , Vote, Service Sells!,
20th pt1 - New stuff, Hacker caught, Amazon sued, Retailer wipeout,
20th pt2 - Vote, Reasons People Don't Buy From You,
26th pt1 - Reminder, Keyword density,
26th pt2 - Vote, Get The Fundamentals Right,
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