Boys and girls, there was a time when calculators weren’t apps on smartphones – they were actually stand-alone hand-held electronic gizmos that did nothing but calculate numbers. (I’m dating myself…) Some of these calculators were even what you might call “desk sized” because they were so big you had to set them on something to use them.
One day a salesman found himself stuck with a gross of these large desk calculators. Nobody wanted to buy them, so here’s what he did…
He told his customers they were giant “ice scrapers” they could use to scrape ice off of windshields. The customers would object and say, “No, they’re calculators,” and he would reply, “Oh ya, I suppose you could use these as calculators, too, but they’re really great at removing ice!”
People would laugh and then buy one, and within days the calculators sold out.
Do you have a product that’s not selling?
Maybe you can find new positioning for your product, or a new and imaginative way to describe it.
For example, do you have a course on how to drive traffic via social media? Reposition it for one particular niche – dating, health, mmo, chiropractors – you get the idea. Do you sell a course on how to make art? Reposition it as art therapy so that it’s now about the process and not the outcome.
Almost any product can be targeted to a new audience or even rebranded as something entirely different.
Maybe we’re overthinking this whole video thing. It can take days to make a high-quality video, but even then there is no guarantee anyone will watch it. Or you can do what this guy did: Take one photograph, add music and a title and post it.
No script. No voice over. No nothing but a photo and generic elevator music. It’s called, “Gentle Understanding Cat” and as of this writing it has 86,000 views and 303 comments.
Even the creator is surprised, as he writes, “Damn this blew up. Please check out my other content with actual effort put into it.”
I did check them out, and his other videos have just 5 to 46 views each.
Then there’s YouTuber Charlotte Dobre. All she does is play social media posts of Bridezillas, Karen’s and other annoying people. As the clips play, you get to watch her reactions. Whoop-de-doo. It sounds stupid, right?
Nothing against Charlotte, but her videos contain essentially no original content other than her smirky remarks (which generally aren’t witty or funny). Even she appears surprised that so many people are watching her.
Charlotte has 570K subscribers, and here are a few of her viewership numbers:
• The Fake People of Instagram, Part 2 – 1.1M views
• Entitled People that are on Another Level – 881K views
• Entitled People that are on Another Level, Part 3 – 839K views
• Entitled Brides Getting Called Out on Social Media – 626K views
Essentially, she is earning a full-time income as a YouTube partner through advertising simply by reading OTHER PEOPLE’S social media posts and adding her own reactions to it.
When it comes to your own videos, you might take stock of what you’re trying to achieve with your videos and whether or not you’re on the best path to do that. If you’re making outstanding content that no one is watching, it might be time to recalibrate your video making methods.
If nothing else, here is a trick that works wonders for providing great ‘how-to’ content to viewers and still making the video entertaining and share-worthy on social media:
Use a polar-opposite partner.
For example, if you have strong views on a topic, your partner will play the part of the ‘dummy’ on the other side of the argument. The two of you bickering back and forth with you generally coming out on top while teaching something works wonders.
Your partner could also play the ignorant student who needs the super simple explanation to things. This makes the viewers feel smart and it’s an excellent way to come in under their resistance radar and bring them over to your way of thinking.
Don’t be afraid to be goofy, make mistakes and so forth. Today I discovered an animated series called “Suction Cup Man”.
The creator now sells a plushie Suction Cup Man doll at the end of video 4. To advertise it he uses video clips where the doll isn’t functioning as he wants it to, and it just adds to the appeal because it’s REAL.
You don’t need complicated videos. Simple is usually better. Entertaining is best. Combine the two – make it simple and entertaining, and you’ve got something.
That video you’re about to make outlining the 10 best things to know about your topic? Make it into 10 separate videos and find a way to be entertaining in each one.
The video you’re about to make to recruit affiliates to your launch? Please don’t read a script and try to look all stuffy and business-like. Be yourself. Speak from the heart about why your product rocks and how much you’re going to do for your affiliates. Be real. Make mistakes. Be goofy or silly. Leave your ego at the door, strive for the opposite of perfection and imagine you’re talking to friends… because you are.
Maybe the best analogy for creating videos is the old KISS method: Keep it Simple, Silly.
I couldn’t find the download anywhere. I checked my email, I clicked all the links and went to all the pages, I set up my new, free ‘membership’ and still the download wasn’t there. But they kept telling me to be sure to download it as soon as I watched the video. So I watched the video, but the download still did not appear.
Do you know what DID appear?
An email.
“We noticed you still have not downloaded the XYZ Document. If you need help, just click this button and someone will call you to assist.”
Ah-Ha!
Sneaky clever, don’t you think?
Here’s what they’re doing:
They’ve created an outstanding video that teaches a marketing technique. To get you to watch the video, they promise you a free download of one of their internal documents that’s made them millions.
But you can’t get to the document until you watch the video (it’s a long one) all the way to the end. You watch the video and… WHOOPSIE! Haha!
No download.
Next comes the super nice, super helpful sounding email. This is where they get you on the PHONE and sell you on their expensive program.
It’s a bit diabolical, but still I have to acknowledge their creativity.
What do most people like least about buying tangible goods online? I think it’s the shipping costs. Sure, you’re ready to pony up that $20 for the item you’re dying to have, but do you really want to pay the $7.99 shipping fee? Maybe not.
Then there’s another factor we might want to look at – remorse. Not the remorse that comes from buying something and then regretting it, but the remorse that comes from NOT adding something to your order.
Sure, you got the Super Duper Widget and the Super SUPER Duper Widget Accessory, but darn it, why didn’t you get the Super Duper Case to go with it? Blast it all, now you feel like you blew it. Except…
Except there is a company out there called Zulily that has an innovative solution for both of these obstacles. When you place an order with Zulily, you can order again anytime in the next 2-3 days and pay NO additional shipping costs.
This means you can go back and get the items you wish you’d purchased in the first place, and it won’t cost you a dime in additional shipping.
Zulily also offers to split your payment in half. You pay half now plus shipping and the other half in a month. They have your credit card on file, so the risk to them is extremely low. And I’ll bet the increase in business is substantial.
Is there a way you can apply these super consumer friendly practices to your business, and increase your bottom line in the process?
