Name of your website?Trim For Life 3
Your name?
marcia
Your Location (city, etc)
Red Bank, NJ
When did you start your website and why?
Well, this is our 2nd go at a website. Our first, about 2 yrs ago, we found out wasn't properly optimized, too graphic heavy, and was unable to be detected by search engines, bots, or the genral public. Since then, we enlisted the professionals at Singlethrow Internet to help establish a professional, informative, and appropriatley optimized site so our site can rank better, educate the visitor, and actually be found by the spiders and bots of the internet. And, most importantly, be our online storefront.
Please give us a short summary of your website, business model, etc
Trim For Life 3 website offers the visitor substantial product information about both our all natural appetite control and energy formula to feel comfortable about the product and the company. Visitors can find health and fitness articles as well as healthy recipes for their diet needs. In addition, a safe and secure shopping cart helps to process orders quickly. The goal is to have the site become our full time retail store where we can add products and easily communicate with our customers.
What has been the most difficult part of creating and running your website?
Time and belief. When finally deciding who was going to handle our website, (for the second time), the project time frame seemed long, but that was due to our own navity. After speaking with the web team, they helped us understand all the details that needed to be addressed before the site could be launched. The running of the site had been difficult prior because if we wanted to make a price change, we had to contact the webmaster and it would involve time and money. THe new site design has a built in admin section where we can easily make adjustments to price, articles, and pictures.
What has been the easist part of operating your website?
As mentioned, the admin area and the features that allow us to make prices changes, add producrs, testimonials, recipes, without having to involve the webmaster.
What was your biggest mistake?
Our mistake was the first choice for the website design group, though they were recommended, they were not capable of handling the type of site we needed nor were they staffed properly to handle our needs. A costly mistake, but a valuable lesson to prepare us when looking for a new web group.
Who maintains your website and why?
Our site is handled by Single Throw Internet Marketing, NJ who were chosen based on their web and internet know-how. A real group of professionals who keep their finger on the pulse in internet marketing and good practices.
Tell us how your business has benefitted from your website?
Our website has given our company a place amongst the hundreds and hundreds of dietary supplements on the market. It's a very competitive marketplace, however, our website (i.e. company)can compete head to head with any one of them. We do not have to spend a ton of money trying to get on every retail shelf, our shelf is on the web amongst the tops in the industry. The website being optimized correctly, filled with keywords and phrases helps bring the prospective customer who is looking for our type of product (appetite control, energy formula) to our front door (i.e. home page.) It gives our company the ability to speak directly to the prospective customer, on their time, when they are looking for us ( a solution to their weight problem), as opposed to us spending money adversting to the great masses who may not be ready for our product yet.
What are your views on ecommerce and the future of the internet?
If a company does not have a presence on the internet, it's like not having a phone number or fax machine. The public continues to get more comfortable buying and selling merchandise online, finding and selecting businesses for various services, as well as staying connected to friends and family. The future of the internet is limitless, ecommerce will only continue to great stronger, as long as retailers can provide a safe and secure shopping environment. As for the internet, it's still developing and growing. It gives the smallest to the largest international companies a playground, however, there are hoodlums that lerk (i.e. fly by nights) who are just waiting for the right "victim" to come along and get taken. The internet, though we don't want heavy regulation, still needs to be watched and buyers, searchers, sellers, and rest still need to be mindful, when dealing with "faceless" and no "brick and motar" businesses.
What are your views on Search Engine Optimization (SEO)?
The web gurus tell us for the site to be found and ranked properly that it needs to be optimized correctly or it will not be found by the search engines and bots. I do belive somewhat of this, being that the previous site, was never found or listed organically. Our new site is starting to appear in organic rankings, though a slow process, it is happening so I have to say it is important and does help the website.
What are your views on Search Engines? Have they helped or hindered your website?
Still finding the search engine area a bit of mystery, our site is being picked up and listed organically, but I cannot say how much "human" traffic has resulted from their activity.
What method has been most successful for promoting your website?
We've tried email blasts, marketed the web address via our direct mail and tv spots, paid search, and currently considering an affiliate program. Most successful for visits, the optimization of the site. THe most successful for sales (so far) direct mail/tv
What method has been least successful for promoting your website?
There are 2 methods, 1 is the paid search programs. It eats up a lot of budget fast without any results (orders). The PCP (pay per click) is the worst type of program that there is, a company pays for a click without a guarantee order. Paying for a possible order is as foolish as thinking there is such a thing as a money tree in the backyard. There is such hype from the Yahoo's of the world that lead you to believe that if you're not paying for the right keyword, you're missing out on making tons of money. Still not believing it..Have yet to track 1 order from a paid keyword program. The other least successful program was an email campaign to 1 million, targeted subscribers, with a unique offer. The results were low open rates and very minimum click throughs, it's an area to be reevaulated.
What would you like to see change with respect to the internet?
Less clutter. It's to clean up the internet and get rid of old, the non-funtional, the basic cyber junk and garbage.
What is your website address?
Trim For Life 3
No trackbacks.
Comments
