ClickBankSuccessForum.com

[justme123]

In reference to another post http://clickbanksuccessforum.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=5976 of mine where I am venting about people who do not understand that I am not selling a hard cover book, I will ask this question.

Last night, ANOTHER customer emailed me saying "I have not yet received my book". (I am hoping he doesn't understand the term "downloadable eBook! )

So, I ran and put two BIG warning statements above the "purchase now" links stating I am NOT selling a hard cover book!!

However, I do not like how it looks on my sales page, and honestly I am not aware of other sellers going to this length to "warn" customers. It also looks tacky to me, but is a temporary solution. I DO NOT want unnecessary/unwarranted refunds! CB doesn't know why I am refunding and I don't want affiliates to think it's because my eBook stinks! It's because people DON'T READ or don't understand the term "eBook"!

A possible solution: what if I place a web page before the ClickBank payment form, that simply states words to this effect: "THIS IS NOT A HARD COVER BOOK", etc . And then a polite statement that if they KNOW they are purchasing an eBook...then click on the link to go to the payment screen, otherwise....back out now!!

In other words:
1) pitch-page "purchase now link" takes you to the "warning page";
2) warning page has the "go to payment form" hyperlink.

Is this a good or bad solution to stopping the people who clearly are NOT understanding "eBook"..."ZIP file"...."Instant download"...."PDF format"?

Thanks. Claudia
The Hypertufa How-To Manual

[Damian Pang]

That will be a pre-order page.
It's a good idea and a good way to remind customers what they will be getting (product, bonuses etc), how their payment will be processed and is secure, and any other important details you might want to add.(and also some more subtle buying triggers of course )

Very often customers back out upon reaching the order page (we shall not try to speculate the reasons for now), and a pre-order page is a good way to give reassurance and further seal the deal.

Here's 2 very good live examples of pre-order pages being utilized:
http://www.forexenterprise.com
http://www.webcopywritinguniversity.com

Cheers
Damian
---------------------
Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness, that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented and fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small doesn't serve the world. We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It's not just in some of us; it's in everyone. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.
Marianne Williamson

[justme123]

Hi Damian:
Thanks for the reassurance & info that I'm on the right track with this issue Off to write another page I go...
Claudia

[paul65]

Justmw123,

Maybe instead of a warnning page, you could in your order now button, or above or below it put.

"Download your copy now" "Click here to download your book"
"To Download click here" etc...

Maybe something like that would help more than half to know that they are downloading the book when the click the order button.

Hope this helps,

Paul
_________________
My Secret ArticleMarketing Weapon This tool does every thing you need for article marketing on Auto!

[Damian Pang]

I worked out some strategies for you:

Besides using a well written pre-order page:-

Another safeguard is to offer proper download instructions within. Even if they had misunderstood earlier, professionalism might put them in a more receptive frame of mind. I am sure if they gave your ebook a fair chance and read it as a digital product, they will realise that it's value for money.

Writing download instructions:
http://clickbanksuccessforum.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=5112

Secondly, you can also add a short P.S. at the end of your ebook asking your customers to email you for more info about buying a hardcopy version. You should a specific email address for this purpose rather than your support email, helps save time for your backend operations.
Sounds like an uphill task to offer a hardcopy version???
Think again:
http://www.lulu.com

Cheers
Damian
--------------------------
This is the “Marketplace for Ideas”, where the best knowledge, ideas and information are shared for FREE:
FreeIQ.com

[hometutor]

The other thing I would suggest is as opposed to a warning give an advantage

This is Not a Hard Cover Book you'd have to wait weeks for instead You Will Received Your Book INSTANTLY by Downloading

Rick
_________________
Pays $45 TweetNSleep Twitter Automation Software Affiliate Program

[fireboat]

Oh fer crips sakes... why does everyone in this market use pictures of hard cover books in their ads?

The average American has never downloaded and eBook and has no idea what an ebook is. Unless you're selling ebooks about adsense, affiliate marketing, or other computer/internet/business topics, chances are your niche audience doesn't have a clue.

example: I sell an ebook for teachers. I know that 99% teachers have never downloaded an ebook before. So, on my page, I say "Download your copy today. No waiting for the mail. No going to the store. Since this is an ebook, you can download it instantly 24/7.... and sice this is an ebook, you're not paying for publisher printing costs or retail markup."

Also, I don't have pictures of hard cover books on my page. I was talking to another user about this before. I realize that pictures of hard cover books are the clickbank industry standard, but if you're an average joe who has never downloaded an ebook, of course you'll expect a real book. The concept of a digital copy is foreign to most people.

I know a lot of people will argue my opinion on this, but I believe that if you're selling to a non-technology/non-business niche, you should not use pictures of hard copy books.... and you need to spell out what an ebook is on your sales page.... and make it sound like ebooks have an advantage over regular books.

Just my two cents...
- Tim

[Damian Pang]

Here's an experience related to this topic I would like to share.

=============================================
I have actually had this same debate with a client of mine about a year ago. She is also selling an ebook that is "non-technology/non-business niche" (beauty tips for the Asian woman).
Since both of us share a common goal - i.e. to maximize profits (and everyone here too, I assume).
We decided to deploy 2 simple strategies to find the solution:

1) Split Testing
We set up 2 separate landing pages that are identical except for the graphical images of the product. One with a flat cover image of the ebook and the other with a 3D representation. We split tested the landing pages for a period of 1 month.

2) Polling
We create a survey that requested visitors to vote for which image they prefer and sent it out to my client's list and also to her friends and collegues (which is relevant as she is an editor of a local beauty magazine).

In both cases, the results are in favour of the 3D graphical representation of the ebook. In fact, the split test results showed that the page with the 3D image has a whooping 78% more conversions during the same period of time.
=============================================

You can deploy the same methods to find out what works best for you. As for people being confused about the product being a digital one, just make sure it is clearly stated as such within your sales page and/or pre-order page.
Even so, there are some that will still make that mistake. If you do encounter such cases in the future, why not offer them the hardcopy version and only charge for shipping since they have already paid for the digital version.

Cheers
Damian

[justme123]

Great responses and ideas here. Thank you all. If I may comment:

Paul65: I know we are all busy and that you probably have not taken a moment to go to www.hypertufabooks.com to see if I am "doing things" right. You comments about spelling out instant download, etc. by the order button...I HAVE that under each "order" hyperlink!! A few people evidently just don't read....and if you saw my T-Y page...well that is why my mind is boggled that they STILL DONT GET IT!!


Rick: You are right...make it an advantage that it is an eBook. Thanks for bringing this up. I need to look at the positives, yes.


Tim: You know, I have been wondering about the fact that quite possibly my target group is: a) Not savvy to digital downloaded books; and b) that the 3D cover shot made them believe it was a real hard cover book....even though "Instant Download" is in numerous places on my sales page AND the Thank-You page starts out with bold RED TEXT that is also HIGHLIGHTED in yellow stating how to download the eBook AND, I repeat AND I have step by step instructions on what a ZIP file is; a hyperlink to where to get a free unzipper if they do not have one; more step by step instructions.....I STILL have the random person who emails me "I still have not received my book!!"

Now....Damian THANK YOU so much for sharing the split testing information. This is exactly what I needed to hear this morning, as I was starting to wonder if I would stop any future unnecesaary refunds because the customer "thought" it was a hard cover book, by changing the 3D image on my web page.

Based on what you've just shared, I won't.

I admit I got sidetracked and never got to writing and uploading the pre-order page which I think will truly stop the few people who think my eBook is a hard cover.

If I ignore the "hard cover" refunds....I believe I am doing wonderfully as far as customer satisfaction. I bugs me that those refunds affect my CB stats, and since I've not sold a ton of eBooks...it skews the true "dissatisfied customer return rate".

Again...great info in this thread. Thanks everyone for helping me on this most interesting journey of internet marketing!

Claudia
www.HypertufaBooks.com
Earn 50% as an Affiliate

[Damian Pang]

No prob Claudia, always glad to be of assistance.
I am happy that you aren't changing your images, especially not after the efforts you have put in to create such a beautiful 3D ebook cover all on your own.

Another experience I would like to share concerning certain customers that claim that they should be receiving a hardcopy book.
But first let me state that the percentage of people that does so is small and this matter is not of grave proportions.
Most customers are usually understanding and are happy to accept the shipping charges for the hardcopy - especially if you clear up the misunderstanding nicely and state that they can still keep the digital ebook and get the hardcopy version free (as long as they are willing to bear the shipping costs).

============================================
Now at this point there are some valuable tactics that can be deployed:-
1) Customer rapport
Send them a nice thank you card within the hardcopy package
2) Educate them
Include a nicely formatted pamphlet style set of instructions (that can be easily done with MS Word) on how to get the best out of digital ebooks. Focus on things like the ease of implementing and using the necessary software (Adobe Reader), how to adjust font sizes and screen resolutions for better reading, printing their ebooks for reading away from their computers etc.
3) Creating customer loyalty
You can include a catalogue of your other products (both hard and digital versions) and your contact info. Maybe even offer a small discount - especially on the digital ebooks if you want to convert them away from ordering the physical versions.
4) Communications
Offer them a chance to receive your ezine/newsletter by giving them the URL where they can sign up.
============================================

And then there is the very small group of people who abuses the digital delivery system by acting ignorant and asking for a refund whilst keeping your ebook. If your business is thriving and you would like to prevent such unethical clients from taking advantage of you, you should then look into ways of adding security features to your ebook. Features such as making the ebook unaccessible after a refund is made.

Here are some services available to help you achieve this:
http://www.cbprotect.com/
http://www.clicklocker.com/
http://www.quicklockpro.com/

Cheers
Damian

[justme123]

[Damian Pang]

[justme123]

Damian:
Ok, Ok....I know the RAIDERS are certainly out there....but geez....I swear....the lengths we've got to go to, to protect ourselves!

Thanks for more info....I will definitely be checking out those links.

Thanks! Claudia

[Damian Pang]