"Take Away" selling suggestions

acurry · **"Take Away" selling suggestions -** 04-27-2005, 04:38 PM

Hey All,

I'm about two weeks away from introducing an ebook on my site.

I'm brain storming ideas for my copy in the "buy it while you can" paragraph.

I'm looking for a few ways to create the urgency of buying.

Aside from "this is a price test and the price will increase by X date"...what else can I use...what else am I overlooking?

Andy

John_S · **Re: "Take Away" selling suggestions -** 04-27-2005, 05:37 PM

Scarcity pitches are tough to get right. Try...

"The only reason you're getting this price is I need to fill just three open slots for long term clients. Once I get those people in my pipeline, this offer will end."

Selling Power did a course where they "proved" a limited print run by affixing sequentially numbered dollar bills to a product as serial numbers. A print run is, I suggest, inherently more credible for scarcity than an e-book.

Simply end the offer after X days and never offer the product again. Period.

Scarcity offers must be credible -- and many are not.

Michel Fortin · **Re: "Take Away" selling suggestions -** 04-27-2005, 05:45 PM

Andy,

Did you happen to read my article/blog post about scarcity?

http://michelfortin.com/archives/200...rcity_to_1.htm

Also, here's a comment I made at a forum regarding someone who didn't know how to use scarcity with "ebooks." Here's the original question:

Quote:

This is a positioning/copywriting question:

How do you impose urgency thru scarcity (limited time offer, limited supply, etc) in your sales copy when you for dam sure are leaving your product up for sale 24/7?

For reference, hit up Michel Fortin's excellent Blog post on Scarcity.

I'm scratching my head, trying to come up with something. Michel is dead set against the rolling date scripts you see so often, but his other options don't seem to fit 'ebooks', do they?

Here's my answer, reprinted:

Quote:

You can use a date script as long as you justify your deadline and give a reasonable explanation. I'm not against date scripts -- if you read my blog, I meant deadlines that "magically bump up" when you revisit.

With the proper use of cookies and/or IP tracking, and with something like what (other poster) mentioned (i.e., "I can only guarantee this price until [x] date, and reserve to increase this price at any time"), to me sounds logical. And even if you use date scripts, as long as you give a good, justifiable explanation, you're OK.

But the best I've seen are real, tangible, and very specific limitations.

Suggestion: If you have an 'ebook' site, and want to avoid "touching it," why not have a script that changes the bonuses around every other week or so?

I've never done this, but essentially it's the same as split-testing two or more series of bonuses. The copy and the associated order page alternate.

The lazier way would be to make the order page the same for all and offer the bonuses you left out and add them as "surprise" or "mystery" bonuses. (But this is where I get a little "iffy" about it. Because it becomes like that magical-bumping javascript.)

The best case scenario is apply vague limitations -- applying something like what (other poster) suggested (and I elaborated above), or using the "mystery" bonus, or applying an indirect limitation -- such as, you're not increasing the price after a certain date but only "guarantee" the low price until that date and give a stern warning that you will revisit your pricing structure... thus, they must act fast.

Heck, if you can back that up with a good, compelling story of why you need to revisit the price, your takeaway is more believable. And believability is realy my whole point. Plus, keep in mind, being in a highly targeted niche and offering something that's unique, exclusive, private, "closely guarded," etc, is a takeaway in itself.

(That "other poster," by the way, is Dr. Mike Woo-Ming. An excellent marketer.)

acurry · **Re: "Take Away" selling suggestions -** 04-29-2005, 03:35 PM

I appreciate your input.

I researched my swipe file and came up with another good idea I'm gonna try. I'll let ya'll know how it worked.

The idea is something like: Order by XXX date and I'll include this valuable bonus...blah blah blah

I'm going to make two bonuses available if they order by the date and use a cookie'd , automatic date code that'll give 'em 3 days to order.