|
|
|
|
|
Introduction:
My name is Mike French. I own Virginia Decking & Remodeling
and quite a few years ago I established the nation's first deck-porch-gazebo
website at http://www.vadeck.com (though
I used a different url back then). Since then our website has developed
into what many consider to be the premier Deck-Porch-Gazebo and outdoor
structure website in the world. Our huge daily traffic and flattering
daily comments from visitors repeatedly reinforce this claim. As
our website traffic has grown, I have paid careful attention to the questions
and needs of my visitors. Daily I receive an ever increasing deluge
of emails, many of which are inquiries where to buy outdoor structure or
backyard leisure related items.
Traffic:
I currently receive 22,000+ visitors monthly to my site from all over the country. Many of these visitors are what the log analyzer calls "unique" meaning they have never been to my site before. In some months we've had as many as 15,000 unique visitors. The vast majority of these unique monthly visitors are about to spend an average of $3500 for deck, porch or gazebo materials alone. That represents a potential market of $50 million of materials purchases every month, or $600 million potential materials market annually. That's a lot of money. But take it another step. How much will these 15,000 visitors spend on labor to construct their outdoor structure? My firm's numbers tell us an average of $5500 per customer labor only. Let's do the numbers: $3500 average materials + $5500 average labor = $9000 average cost of average deck/porch. $9000 x 15,000 visitors x 12 months = $1.6 billion. In other words, the visitors to my website represent a potential market spending up to $1.6 billion annually for labor and materials on their deck/porch. How much are these visitors about to spend on deck furniture, deck sealers, carpentry tools, awnings, landscaping, spas, swimming pools, fences, gas grills, playsets, sheds, stone patios, retaining walls, and anything else backyard leisure related? Conservatively we could estimate $5,600 per visitor. Work the numbers: $5,600 x 15,000 visitors x 12 months = $1 billion annually on backyard leisure related (non deck/porch/gazebo) items. My web site has the visitors and the customer loyalty to promote, educate and sell your deck or deck related items to a potential multi billion dollar annual market. Let's work together.
Marketing Philosophy:
Online advertisers reach audiences through endorsement and recommendation.
Placing an ad to interrupt a Web Page, like a banner ad, simply does not
yield performance in terms of sales or traffic. But if the article favorably
recommends
a product, and there's a link, the sales will increase. Here's what
I mean:
We also encourage believable testimonials. If I stretch the
truth or exaggerate on behalf of you the Merchant, it does not bode well
for your/our offer. It is better to be believable and credible, than
to try and impress someone. If your offer is not believable, they
will not buy it.
It is for all of these above reasons that this website only sponsors, supports, promotes and sells products and services (deck or non deck related) that the owner personally has knowledge of and can believe in. Before we can promote something, we must know that it has great value to our website visitors. After all, my very first loyalty is to my website visitors. These are the folks who keep a roof over my head, food on my table, and Dreamcast games on my TV (when I'd rather be watching ZDTV). My first loyalty is to them and my first priority is to insure that my website visitors have access to only the best products and services that I can find. But once I have personal knowledge of a product or service, tried it, proved it, studied it, and convinced myself that it's genuine... once we believe in it, we can sell it!
Examples:
Let me give you an example of what I mean. When I first started entering Home Shows, I designed and built a Display Deck that I thought was pretty cool. But it lacked something. It had the look of pressure treated wood (greenish) and it just didn't grab your eyeballs like I wanted it to. Then I discovered a product called Sikkens. I researched it, studied it, tried it, and became a real believer. It turns pressure treated wood into something that looks like fine furniture. This is why I promote it. Click here for my personal recommendation of this fine product.
Another example is the fine composite decking and railing from GeoDeck™. Take a look. It beats Trex™ and TimberTech™ because it actually looks like wood... and the wood tone version actually stays looking like wood, forever. The wood tone version never turns gray. And it doesn't fade like the other guys do. How do they do that?
Where Do You Fit?:
In which category does your company fit?
|
|
Bottom Line:
I can put your product directly in front of eyeballs about to spend
a great deal of money for their outdoor project... and many of them have
not yet decided what materials they will buy, or who will build it.
Many of them have not decided yet what deck accessories they will buy.
Many of them are still making up their minds about what additional backyard
leisure projects to buy and install. Let's face facts: These
good folks are on my web site to begin with because they have not made
up their minds. They are investigating, learning, exploring, shopping
to find what will suit them the best. But they have money... lots
of it... and they are about to spend it. My goal is to put the very
best products and services in front of them and let them buy from you and
I.
Trust & Customer Loyalty:
And my visitors trust my opinions (otherwise 15,000 unique visitors
wouldn't keep coming back and register 50,000 visits in a month).
What You Can Do Now:
My recommendation is this: Let's talk on the phone. Send me as much information about your product as you can (any press releases and a media kit if available), references in Virginia, samples, testimonial letters, etc. so I can familiarize myself with your product. I must be totally satisfied that your product is first rate before I consider promoting it.
Next, you and I and my Marketing Department work up a marketing plan that fits your budget and that seamlessly integrates my website with your's in such a way that I promote your materials without my visitors even knowing that it's advertising... because in reality... it won't be. If I am sold on your product, I will promote it effortlessly and convincingly through personal recommendation. I like to call it an "advertorial". It's actually an editorial comment, my opinion, about your product that also gives my visitor a way to order your product. And you will sell a lot more of your product because of it.
Please feel free to call me at 540 786-3534 M, W, F 10am-4pm ET.
Very best regards,
Mike French/owner
|
|
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Mike
uncovers Travel Industry secret: