# How do I get people to buy?



## Bee Line Wear (Sep 29, 2007)

I am getting hits to my site but no one has bought or sent questions or comments? How to I create more sales?


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## Rodney (Nov 3, 2004)

What kind of "hits" are you getting to your site?

How many unique visitors per month?

How long has your site been open?

Where are the visitors coming from?

My first tips to you would be to:


Improve the shopping experience by using better product photos and better thumbnails that show the design much clearer.
Make navigation easier by putting all your designs on your homepage (since you don't have that many)
Add "what the shirts are about" on every product page so you can also "sell" the customer while they are at that critical buying decision page.
Lose the "Shop at Amazon" link since you could be sending your buyers there where they may get lost and distracted at amazon.com and never finish their purchase with you.
After you fix those things, then I would take a hard look at "where" your visitors are coming from and how you are spending your marketing and advertising dollars (you are marketing and advertising your products, right?)


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## T-BOT (Jul 24, 2006)

one way is to give them what they want. 
study your clients.

I learned today that a $ 400 order come in 1 hrs after a test market was done based on just that, what the client wants.

like if you sell a product in a certain way, they may want it available in another way. Sometimes it's that simple.

But what you are asking is the million dollar question.


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## monkeylantern (Oct 16, 2005)

Are you using a good robust analytic suit to examine your traffic? Google Analytics is free, and as good as much commercial software.

Conversion rates are a whole industry in themselves.


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## T-BOT (Jul 24, 2006)

monkeylantern said:


> Are you using a good robust analytic suit to examine your traffic? Google Analytics is free, and as good as much commercial software.
> 
> Conversion rates are a whole industry in themselves.


...that too. 

there are sooooo many things that are Google Free that can really help. 

like they say, *"some of the best things in life are free".*


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## Bee Line Wear (Sep 29, 2007)

Thanks,
This whole thing is new to me so it is all helpful.


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## sonambulo (Sep 22, 2007)

i would say that from looking at your web site(home page) it doesn't seem very eye catching, positive like what your shirts are about. The white is too doll, there's too much of it. Maybe think of changing the colors so they are "happier" or "exiciting". As we were told in art class, colors indicate moods. Cause the idea is nice but it is slightly disappointing once at the site. 

Just trying to help.

oh yeah the font could be a cursive or something that gets the eyes moving (in a good way)


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## Bee Line Wear (Sep 29, 2007)

I feel like a thief, I'm getting all of this great information for free. Thanks for the comments.


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## mothertongues (Aug 8, 2005)

I'd like to see more information on the kind of t-shirts and what the printing method is. I don't like to buy stuff without a good description of what I'm buying!


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## TripleT (Apr 29, 2007)

Hi, Bee Line - Put pictures of happy, smiling people on your site - people who match the message on your shirts


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## howrdstern (May 7, 2007)

Bee Patient


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## Bee Line Wear (Sep 29, 2007)

Good one.


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## Rodney (Nov 3, 2004)

Bee Line Wear said:


> Good one.


You didn't answer the questions I posted above that might help us help you even further (like how many visitors and where the traffic is coming from)


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## Brianjseven (Sep 22, 2007)

My suggestion would be to post on church and Christian link sites, there are a ton of them out there, seems like your shirts would be targeted to a very specific market. Email or call churches and offer to sell your shirts at a wholesale rate as a fund raiser for their churches. Or even just put your flyer up on the church bulletin board.
Good luck.


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## Bee Line Wear (Sep 29, 2007)

Well, I was able to figure out how to track my page views and track where they were being linked from.

I was able to figure out that because I went online and signed up for every forum, such as this, and blog site I could find (including my space) it is primarily those people that I invited. I have recently signed up for adwords, does this work? I was also invited to set up at several local flea markets. 

This forum is great. I get so much constructive information that It takes me a little time to catch up.


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## jsanqunetti (Apr 4, 2007)

I would suggest getting statcounter too for your site, its lets you see lots of useful statistics, like keywords they searched where they came from etc.

Also squidoo is free, its similar to a blog, a good way to market.


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## esentuals (Sep 4, 2007)

Well for one you could have a news letter. If you look online about how sites make money. They will tell you that the money is in the list. One suggestion would be to provide a positive message of the month that is related to one of your shirts.

In summary its easier to sell a product to individuals who are familiar with your product then people just visiting.


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## MONEY40 (Oct 9, 2007)

Hi My Name Is Terry, And I Took A Look At Your Site And Its Very Nice. Im Just Sarting Out Myself, I Would Love To Have Your Problem. I Mean You Have Your Site, Your Product And All Things People Need To Buy From You. Maybe I Didnt Answer Your Question, But Its Nice To Know That Im Not The Only One That Wants To Produce Tees With A Message. Keep Trying And Maybe Send Out Some Flyers To The World! Bee Good! Terry.


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## Bee Line Wear (Sep 29, 2007)

You're absolutely right,

I am currently in the process of creating a news letter and a blog. I need people to understand that it is truly the message that is important. The t-shirts are just a wonderful tool to spread the message. I think everyone not just specific people could use more positivity and support. I am working on some changes based on all of this information so that I can do a better job explaining that.

I understand that it takes time.


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## kingtee (May 6, 2007)

The internet is a wonderful thing and we all use it one way or the other to further our financial dreams! What you should do in my very humble opinion is get back to selling person to person, Awebsite is great, but the satisfaction of selling to a person face to face is incredible, you can make a customer for life! We as entreprenaurs need to focus more on our selling skills to a live human being and not just on the net


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## tim3560 (Jan 7, 2007)

howrdstern said:


> Bee Patient


awww man, you stole mine. I also think that you are on a good path. I think that done right, this could be a great thing.


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## Bee Line Wear (Sep 29, 2007)

Exactly,

I don't intend to put all of my eggs in the "net" basket, but in today's day and age it is a necessary tool. I will spread the word through local fairs, flea markets, business partnerships, etc. I do agree, thinking as a consumer, sometimes people do want to know "who" they are buying from.


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## Bee Line Wear (Sep 29, 2007)

tim3560 said:


> awww man, you stole mine. I also think that you are on a good path. I think that done right, this could be a great thing.


Thank you for your inspiring comment.


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## thefantasyman (Oct 9, 2007)

Your getting a lot of great advice here, and I hope I can add to that. But, I am going to be the brutally honest guy here. Hopefully you can take these ideas with some openess and hopefully everyone wont want to rip my head off but if you take a few minutes to think about some of the things I am about to tell you, you might be much better off in the long run. By the way, I do love the simplicity of your designs. Your message sticks out despite the simple design....excellent. Anyway.....

1. The Website - Needs a "once over". First, you need a complete 'About Us" type of page. What, when, where, why, how you came up with the idea. I would use that white Beeline Wear logo as the header for your website pages, since that seems to be your main logo. The font you are using makes the website look amateur-ish. Plain Arial or Times Roman fonts a tad smaller than what you have will do the trick. I know Arial and Times have "boring" written all over them, but they present a more professional look. Plus, its your t-shirt thumbnails and graphics that will make the site or the pages "pop"...and not the lettering. Its most likely the design that is keeping people from paying.

2. Take each slogan and write a short story about each. For example, "Bee Nice."...since you are sending a positive message, tell a story maybe about yourself that is motivating and uplifting, maybe a story about something you did where someone else had to tell you to "be nice" as if it was a life lesson...thus the slogan. Do the same for each. Make your messages seem personal. Post a special page like that for each along with a link on the main page for each. Or, put it all on the main page along with a scrolling photo box with thumbnails for each shirt (if you can do that). You already mention you will include the inspirational card, why not take photos of the inspirational cards and post them on the website too (or type them out)....or connect those inspirational thoughts with a story of your own for each. This will give your shirts and your website more substance and more of a reason for people to buy. In the event that your story coincides with someone else's who is checking out your site....CHA CHING!!!...you have yourself a sale! Point here is, the website is getting hits. Take your site and make it pretty to the eye. Give people a chance to roam the website by having updated content to read, which in turn will keep them on the website longer. More time spent on the site, the more chances of nailing down a sale.

3. Feel free to design a section that describes the t-shirt creation process. Some people like to know that hard work goes into making these shirts and also like the feeling that they are getting a quality product.

4. When you start your blog, be sure to add all of the same information to it on separate pages and create links. Most of the time, once your blog is listed in the search engines, you will get different people coming to the blog than the people coming to the website. The hard thing about a blog for a t-shirt supplier is that there is not much new content and things to talk about. Selling a t-shirt is selling a t-shirt. Be creative and come up with interesting stories or use stories you hear from people like friends, family, co-workers. Post a new story everyday to keep the blog fresh and relate each story to one or two of your specific t-shirts and create a link directly to that specific t-shirts page. Better yet, add a photo for that tee accompanied by a link on every post. The blog is just a compliment to the actual website and is basically used to drive traffic to the site, so try not to have too many links to outside websites.

5. Another option is that you could abandon the website all together and use the blog as your website. The blog has a format already done for you, so all you need to do is add the information and press submit. You can customize it all you want and they make it easy to add photos, add organized pages and tables with each specific tee. You can add a chatboard, start your own forum (u can do this on the website as well) where people can share their inspirational stories. Better than that, you can take your blog and switch the domain to your BeelineWear domain name that you use now. 

6. You can start your own podcast and post your podcasts on the website. You podcast can consist of inspirational stories told through your voice and you can advertise the tees at the same time.

I know this is a lot, but I have done it with my websites and I have created an immense amount of traffic in a short period of time. I have a baseball website. I incorporate the podcast, the forum, the chatboard, and loads of content. I know my design is not great and there is a lot of noise on the site, but the point is that I employ all of these things I preach. Despite the lack of design, this work alone has brought in over 150,000 page hits since January 1st, 90,000 of which are uniques, and the site is only two years old. I haven't spent a dime on advertising. If you have any questions, feel free to email me. Good Luck!

Mike


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## Solmu (Aug 15, 2005)

thefantasyman said:


> this work alone has brought in over 150,000 page hits since January 1st, 90,000 of which are uniques,


So a lot of people hit your front page and bounce, and very few come back? Surely this isn't a good thing?


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## thefantasyman (Oct 9, 2007)

Actually, its a great thing!!! If you have a comment about my website specifically, you can certainly email me directly since my original post is not about me and my website and my unique page hits. But since you asked, I get new uniques everyday. People don't necessarily need to come back to my site because I feed them all of the info they need through my podcast, email and other related ways. The website is there for additional content, a presence if you will, to draw in new listeners, not really to sell anything but my credibility...which has already been established. For the most part, once people latch onto my podcasts and get the feed, they don't need to come back to the site. All of the info on the site you can get on the podcasts. 

Point I was trying to make is that this stuff alone that I mentioned is 100% responsible for the traffic I get. 150,000 hits may not be a lot to some people, but to someone who hasnt spent a dime on advertising, its great....not to mention the $10,000+ I have made in advertising alone off of this website just this year. I'm not trying to gloat about the small success I had, but to establish that strategies like this do actually work...which was the point of the ridiculously long post I wrote. 

You can question me all you like by emailing me personally and I will explain it further to you. I just spend 45 minutes typing suggestions for the original poster and I hope this un-needed clarification proves that the ideas I have mentioned are for real and they work....as I have found through my own personal experiences.

Mike


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## element88 (Aug 28, 2007)

Hey Mike. I appreciate the advice that you have given. I'm trying not go off topic(I know your page hits aren't the topic here)...but I checked out your site & your credability of 90,000 unique hits seems believable. You have a decent page rank through google which isn't the easiest to do. I would be happy if I recieved as many hits as you are. Thanks for taking the time to post your insights and suggestions! Seems they are working for you.


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## afterlife (Aug 29, 2007)

we made a small video and put it on our website and you tube
and our myspace profile 
Its worked really well for us


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## Solmu (Aug 15, 2005)

thefantasyman said:


> If you have a comment about my website specifically, you can certainly email me directly since my original post is not about me and my website and my unique page hits.


You're right, and I apologise.


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## TripleT (Apr 29, 2007)

Great post, Mike, for Bee Line and for everyone else. Good, practical advise.


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## Bee Line Wear (Sep 29, 2007)

Thanks for your helpful information.

Though some of your ideas aren't in line with the type of feeling I want for my site. Some of the things you have suggested are already in process but again, I am taking my time to do it right and and in a way that I can track the effects each change has. 

1. I have posted many stories on other sites with a link to my site. So when I do finally post a "My Story" page on my site I will already have a forum. This has worked well and is actually already been requested. I wanted to create demand first.

2. Even though my sales aren't were I want them, I am getting great responses from customers. I figured what better way to find out what customers want or like than to ask them directly in person and on the net.

I am not just trying to inundate people with an object that they will impulsively buy because it looks cool. I am truly trying to create a brand and send a definite message which may be a little different than what you are doing?

I know this takes time and some trial and error, but it all is for the greater good. Again, thanks for your comments. They have confirmed some of the ideas I already had and I am definitely working to put them in motion.


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## thefantasyman (Oct 9, 2007)

Sounds good. 


> I am not just trying to inundate people with an object that they will impulsively buy because it looks cool. I am truly trying to create a brand and send a definite message which may be a little different than what you are doing?


Your actual shirts send a great message but would be tough to sell just on their own. What I am saying is that the more you promote inspirational stories that you can make your own, the more people will relate to your messages....especially if the stories relate to their lives individually....thats how you create a unique brand and make people want to buy. Any joe shmoe can create shirts with inspirational words like yours, but if you find a better way to personalize your products, you'll be more successful. You realistically have to slam the inspirational stuff down people's throats....you have to be in it to win it....and if you take an easy modest approach, you'll only get modest sales. I know you have your plan and a look and feel in your mind, but your marketing strategy should be...."Inspiration" and making people feel "inspirational"....in my opinion, thats the way your shirts will blow off the shelves.... You have to take your idea, take the ideas of other people such as us and other t-shirt sellers and take it one step further.

As for my site, I have a totally different product. I offer free advice. I dont really have a product. I depend on the traffic to get me advertising deals...which has been getting better every year for the two years the site has been in existence. First year (2006) I accumulated 25,000 total main page hits. This year I am already over 125,000.total page hits and expecting this to at the very least, triple by this time next year because of the new things I will be doing for next season. The point was that the forum, the chatboard, the podcasts, the emails is what draws people to my site specifically. For you, the more people you draw to your website, the more sales you will make and the more profit you would accumulate.

I dont want to beat a dead horse in the ground but you can make your product so unique, its ridiculous. You'd have to be crazy not to produce a podcast telling inspirational stories that tie into your tees. Most of the people that find my site, find the podcast first. There is a ridiculous amount of people listening to podcasts.

But anyway, the best of luck to you. I hope I have been at least a little bit helpful.

By the way, if you go to google and type in :"free fantasy baseball advice", I'm all over the first few pages...website and podcasts...

Mike


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## tshirtypo (Aug 19, 2006)

1. Fonts too big (dont go bigger than 12px for your general font size), thumbnails too small. 

2. It looks a little childish if you use comic sans in everything, and that doesnt inspire much trust to the customers. Change the long texts to verdana, or arial, and use comic sans only for headers and categories names.

3. Put all your thumbs in the homepage, its hard to find a "whole view" of all your tshirts.

I like your header


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## bbode (Aug 22, 2007)

Hi, I think it's great you are focusing on positivity. 

If you want an honest answer from a professional digital artist. I feel you need to completely rework your website. I would highly recommend hiring a professional web designer to give it a dynamic, sharp look. I recently heard a statistic, "Shoppers only take 8 seconds before they decide to buy or not when they visit a site."

Take a look at this site. Wire & Twine

It is very similar to your concept, however you can see that they put a major emphasis on design. 

Please don't take this critism personaly, I wrote it because I want to see you succeed.

Bryan







Bee Line Wear said:


> I am getting hits to my site but no one has bought or sent questions or comments? How to I create more sales?


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## esentuals (Sep 4, 2007)

bbode its a nice design but looking at the page its not search engine friendly. 

My opinon design is only 1 part of the element as far as people buying into what your selling. But from a search engine stand point you have to focus on keywords that are in your niche. I would suggest using a free tool that google offers. Go to google and do a search on google analytics. Its free and you can see where the traffic is coming from and what pages people are clicking on. Its helped me even though my site is not that appealing to the eye.


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## EnMartian (Feb 14, 2008)

I just tried opening the page in Firefox and I couldn't. Have you tested the site in different browsers. It may be that your server was down, but I tried a few times and never got through so I thought I would mention it.


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## xbrandon408x (Jan 24, 2008)

yea same for me the website doesn't seem to work on firefox you should check that out as well


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## martinwoods (Jul 20, 2006)

I know this is an old thread and myabe she no longer has a site but it didn't open in IE either.


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## Rodney (Nov 3, 2004)

Closing this thread. It is an old topic and the original poster doesn't seem to be around anymore.

If you have a related question, please feel free to start a new topic.


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