Direct Sales sites VS. Content sites - Get Articles by Misato Katsuragi |  |
> Get Articles > Web Site Design > Direct Sales sites VS. Content sites Direct Sales sites VS. Content sites Download as PDFMisato Katsuragi misatonet-biz-resources.com Plain Unadulterated Truth http://www.net-biz-resources.com/articles/dir-vs-cont.html Direct Sales sites VS. Content sites - by Misato Katsuragi If one of the reasons you are on the internet is to make money and you have been on any length of time, then you have no doubt seen many of the so called 'marketing gurus' tell you that direct sales websites are the way to go. You have also probably seen about an equal amount of them tell you that content sites are the way to do business online. The debate amoung the big names about which is the better method to run an online business seems to be split right about down the middle. "So what is the difference between direct sales and content sites?", you ask. A direct sales site is the simpler of the two. A direct sales site mainly consist of a sales webpage, an order webpage and either a download page and / or an order confirmation page also. The sales webpage is the webpage that tells you how great such and such a product or service is and why you should buy it. The order webpage is the webpage were you actually buy the product or service. The order confirmation page is the webpage that let's you know that your order was accepted and usually about when you can expect your purchase. If the purchase was something digital, then this page usually also has a download link that you can click on and get your purchase immediately. A content site is more complex, a lot of times way more complex. The emphasis on these types of sites is usually to sell the reputation of the individual or company rather than just a quick product sell, although they can and often do have order pages too within the website. These sites are geared more toward establishing a customer-business relationship at first contact rather than making a sale. The gurus who say that they favor the direct sales site will tell you that they do just as good a job of making sales for you as a content site does, so why bother with a content site? After all, the content sites are composed of many more webpages, links and require more maintenence than does the direct sales website. The gurus who favor the content sites will say that content websites are better because you give to your would be customers, where as a direct sales website just takes (like in takes the order). A content site does not just consist of a way to make the sale and take the order. A typical content site will also include links to other areas of the website were potential customers can also get things like: * free advice * tips * maybe a forum for visitors to read and post messages * maybe free software * sometimes links to other related websites etc, etc. I could go on and on with some of the other things you could find on a content website. I personally disagree with the theory that direct sales websites are better. To me, the theory why content sites are better makes more sense. It's always made more sense to me to help and give to your potential customers whenever you can if you want to build a solid, more stable business and be thought of in a more favorable light. There are always exceptions to the rule. There is also the point to be made for the direct sales websites, in that they do require a lot less time to both create and maintain, so for a lot of people, this is the more viable option and does work better for them than the content website would under their circumstances. If it were me, as long as I had the time, I would opt to run my internet business with a content site. Even before I started getting into running an internet business, my first website was an entertainment related website and it was a content website. I wasn't on the net to make an income back then, and that site got a lot more visitors than my business related websites do now that are direct sales websites. I may just revamp those into content sites later on. I guess I could go on to say that that's another reason why content sites do better than direct sales websites in a lot of ways. That is the fact that people log onto the internet for FREE information, they don't log on to buy something. If they come across a blatant sales pitch, they are less likely to do business with you (due to human nature, not because your website is bad or anything like that) than if they come across your website and it offers help and freebies first thing, rather than asking them for money. All in all, with everything else being equal, and you have tbe time and skills to spare for it, then the content site is the type of site I would set up my online business on. Having said that, I must also say this. Don't just go by what I recommend. You must also consider the way you prefer to do business and what your circumstances are and what that will allow and not allow. While I think content sites are the preferred type of sites to have to do business online, they do take a great deal of time to update and maintain, even after they are created (which also takes a considerable amount of time). Having a content site can be almost like having another full time job in many cases. So evaluate your options, consider what is do-able and what is not, and then choose the type of website that fits best into the structure of your business. Misato Katsuragi The PLAIN UNADULTERATED TRUTH Subscribe to the Plain Unadulterated Truth at: http://www.net-biz-resources.com/articles/dir-vs-cont.html or subscribe by sending a blank email to: mailto:misatonet-bit-resources.com Copyright © 2003 Katsuragi Publishing, All rights reserved worldwide. How useful did you find this article? This article can be downloaded freely from http://www.get-articles.com and used on your website or in your ezine so long as the author is credited and their resource box left intact. You should not change any links in the article, and where the article is used on a website it's links should be clickable. Please see our terms and conditions page for more information: http://www.get-articles.com/authors-publishers-terms.php |
|
Top Articles |
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
May 28, 2012 © www.Get-Articles.com. All Rights Reserved.