The Truth About E-Commerce to Close – The Truth About Guns to Open
Feb 17th
Crazy, right? Well, the thing of it is, I need to make a living. While I love e-commerce a LOT more than the next guy, this site was, is and would have always been a niche endeavor. And so it’s proven. The Truth About E-Commerce is struggling to attract 100 viewers per day. That was supposed to be OK. The site was, is and was going to be a business card for my collective consultancy services, based on my sales experience and the undeniable genius of my e-buddies. And that plan would have worked. Eventually. But I don’t have eventually. I have a family to feed. (I had a Ferrari to feed, but that was another lifetime ago.) I need a site that can attract a wider audience and sell my books. Yes, I’ve also come to realize that I’m a better writer than, well, anything else. Not to put too fine a point on it, I don’t play well with others. Well, corporate others. I can no more kiss ass schmooze corporate types than I can sing with the Metropolitan Opera. So I’m going back to what I do best: riling people. And I’m doing it with a website about guns. The Truth About Guns will explore the politics of guns and the economics of gun making and selling. It will review weapons and encourage debate. It will NOT allow flaming. It will be the world’s best gun site (so to speak). For those of you in e-commerce, I leave you my GUTS theory and observations on the biz. If you want to call me to discuss possible consultancy, don’t. I’m an all or nothing kind of guy. Off I go.
The Advantage of Buying Superbike Fairing Bolts Online
Feb 16th
I never met a PR person I didn’t like. Seriously. If we accept that Michael Phelps evolved for the business of swimming like a dolphin and bonging bad ass weed, public relations professionals are genetically predisposed towards personal likability and covert psychological manipulation. Even though spinmeisters have the morals of a fence post (i.e. none) and conform to the old saw about moving lips indicating abject untruth, I end-up making excuses for them. “He’s full of shit, but it’s not his fault his company lies like a rug.” When it comes to the literary PR, I’m not so forgiving. Corporate lackeys write cringe-worthy crap; combining candy-ass euphemisms and pretentious jargon. In other words, their writing sucks. I came across an e-commerce example from a mob called prminds.com today which I’d like to deconstruct for your dining and dancing pleasure. “The Advantage of Buying Superbike Fairing Bolts Online” is highly instructive, even in its awfulness. Allow me . . .
The Grand Unified Theory of Sales – Catching The Wave
Feb 15th
There are at least seventeen different ways to contact a customer. A retailer can reach out and “touch” someone through print, TV, web, radio, direct mail, website, podcast, YouTube video (or channel), mobile app, Facebook page (or four), email (or a hundred), Twitter tweet (or a thousand), text message, phone call, streaming video, group meeting or one-to-one encounter. That list doesn’t include some of the newer or more obscure communication channels (e.g., Google Buzz or a USB drive). In a previous post, I categorized media based on their intimacy and introduced a meta goal: gradually funnel consumers from the least to the most intimate medium. The process increases trust, lowers fear and closes the deal. Originally, I reckoned consumer feedback should determine the pace of trans-media transportation. And then I spoke with one of our regular readers looking to revive his annual annual report competition. The conversation triggered a major rethink of the media maelstrom.
Confessions of a Not-So-Reluctant Shotgun Buyer
Feb 12th
I’m not quite sure how I decided to buy a shotgun. One too many sleepless nights, perhaps. It’s certainly true that my father’s terminal illness has left me feeling psychologically unprotected. Or maybe it was an off-hand comment by one of my Truth About E-Commerce cohorts, who responded to my latest scheme with a terse recommendation: “Get a hobby.” And what better past-time than shooting at things with a finely-machined tool capable of lethal force? Of course, it’s my right as an American to own a gun or twelve, from a diminutive Kahr KP3833 to a Barrett M95 rifle that can fire a projectile as big as a bud vase (and a lot more destructive) a mile away. My name is Robert Farago and I’m not a gun nut. Not yet. But I’m working on it. No thanks to the Internet.
Why Facebook Should Offer E-Commerce for All
Feb 11th
They’re at it again. Facebook, I mean. For a company that’s experienced the kind of user loyalty, passion and explosive growth that makes the Mormon church look like a needlepoint club, you’d think Facebook could do something—anything really—without alienating a vast majority of their users. But noooooooooo. Facebook recently launching a completely revamped design for their home page. Within hours, a new Facebook group sprung up called “CHANGE FACEBOOK BACK TO NORMAL.” Membershipis growing faster than teenage mutant ninja kudzu. I get it. I understand why Facebook wants to change, evolve and grow. They are in between a rock and a hard place; trying to stay au currant without ticking off their loyal minions to the point where they bolt for the Next Cool Thing. But that’s only one of their problems. Their biggest problem: how to make a buck off social networking.
