The Economy is Going South
But There Are Great Opportunities
According to eMarketer reports, this year, online sales in the US alone will jump from $136.8 BILLION to $142.4 BILLION. That's an increase of over 4% in online spending in spite of the slumping economy.
Nielsen Consumer Insight reports that in 2009, consumers will spend 17% more time visiting eCommerce websites every day!
So in 2009 more people shopping online, and spending a whole lot more time exploring opportunities on the Internet, resulting in many more opportunities for all of us to earn a good income online this year - whether you've already got an Internet business going or just getting started.
Here are some of the trends that will influence online earning potential in 2009.
(1) Consumers Are Increasingly Turning to the Internet As a Way to Save Money
80% of the new online shoppers say they started shopping online in order to save money. According to eMarketers, 95% of these people say that they're motivated to buy by offers of free shipping. 83% are motivated to buy when offered special prices.
Give people what they want and you will greatly increase your odds of doing well in a slumping economy.
Don't be shy - get your offers out there where they can be seen. Make it easy for your visitors to find them instantly. Don't make them to dig around your site and end up leaving without even being exposed to your great offer.
If you offer free shipping, don't hide that fact away on your order form. Announce it as soon as your visitors arrive. It could well be the deciding factor that will push your visitors to make that crucial buying decision.
Something else that you need to know is that the same survey reports that 88% of people are shopping online in order to save time, while 83% said that they do it because it's less hassle than visiting the shopping centers.
Online visitors want to save money, but they also want everything to be easy and convenient. So make sure you're giving them what they want by offering the best shopping experience possible. The websites that offer the best combination of pricing and great customer service will continue to do well this year.
(2) Internet Users Are Spending 20% More Time Reading Blogs
Nielsen Consumer Insight reported in December that people are now spending 20% more time on the average reading blogs. So my question is, do YOU have a blog yet? Are you adding new posts to your blog on a regular basis?
If you haven't started a blog yet, or if you haven't been giving yours the attention that it deserves, you need to rethink your business strategy.
If you simply do not have time, you should consider outsourcing the task. Contact Joe Congo Internet Solutions and find out how inexpensive this great traffic tool can be.
Blogging is great for establishing your reputation online, for building relationships within your market and can even help you get a top ranking in the search engines if done correctly.
And you don't need to be a "natural-born writer" to create your own blog, nor do you need to be a technical wizard! The biggest stumbling block for most business owners is limited time.
For tips about starting your blog, visit Joe Congo Marketing Academy.
(3) Shoppers Are Making More Purchases Based on Recommendations Received Through Social Media Sites
49% of Web users now make a purchase based on a recommendation they received through a social media site, such as MySpace, Facebook and BOOMj.
So why do only about 25% of online retailers have a Facebook page? It does not make sense. Marketers have generally been very slow in utilizing social networking. Those that have been taking advantage of the opportunities have generally been rewarded.
It's time to test the social media waters.
Social networking is the perfect way to develop your online presence and continue to cultivate lasting relationships with your potential customers, while generating extra income.
You also need to learn about social bookmarking sites, for like Digg, Delicious, and StumbleUpon. Most business owners have never even heard about them, but they are great marketing tools and, best of all, they are free.
Currently, 52% of online visitors are using these sites as they search for information online and 81% of the users are paying attention to the links marked as "most popular" or "most emailed."
What does this mean for you? You need to create lots of quality content, with the right keywords and get it to appear on these sites. You need to write articles that are relevant and useful to the readers so that your readers will want to pass along to their friends and family and then recommend them on the social bookmarking sites.
You will then continue to increase your online presence, establish yourself as an expert in your field and you will build those important relationships with your potential customers or clients.
(4) Consumers Are Making More and More Repeat Purchases Based on Automated Recommendations
In 2008, 65% of online buyers made additional purchases from a website based on automated recommendations the site gave them.
That's more than 6 out of 10 of your customers making additional purchases based on your suggestions for other products they might like.
Believe me, email marketing is still alive and well. The businesses that will thrive in 2009 will be those who spend a lot of time using email marketing to improve the relationships they have with their customers.
Remember that in most cases the shorter, more concise promotional messages are much more effective than the long, drawn-out emails that gives the readers way too much information.
Only about 40% of marketers do any testing of their marketing efforts at all, which is a really bad mistake. Those who do test are twice as likely to get high email marketing conversions.
You should test different kinds of offers, different graphics, different subject lines, different times of day and week for mailing, etc. in order to make sure you're really getting the most out of your email promotions.
(5) Online Visitors Are Spending 46% More Time Watching Videos
Finally, this is a trend that will continue to have a tremendous impact on Internet marketers everywhere. The growing popularity of online videos will continue to change the way we sell online.
Check this out: 94% of Internet users now watch online video with some level of frequency, and people now spend a whopping 46% more time each DAY watching videos as compared to last year.
So start taping!
You can use video in your sales copy in order to more effectively sell your product and you can use video for search engine optimization purposes. You will generate more traffic because Google loves video. Create informative and educational videos for your niche and use them to spread the word about your business.
Best of all, you don't need to have a lot of complicated equipment or technical expertise to produce your own quality videos.
If you'd like to learn how to create your own simple videos, and get them up on sites like YouTube, visit Joe Congo Marketing Academy. We will explain all of the basics for you and if you still need help, Joe Congo Internet Solutions may be your solution.
