Imagine looking at the above picture, and then thinking: “Oh wow, that’s what I want to be! I need to get me a spray tan.”

You wouldn’t think that, because it’s painfully obvious to you that the muscles are what matter, not the spray tan.

In fact, this guy would look better without a spray tan than most of us would with the best spray tan in the world. Because he put in the effort to build the muscles. This is something so obvious to us, that we take it for granted as common knowledge.

We don’t, however, carry this insight easily into our personal and professional lives.

(The evolution of Apple’s logo over the years.)

Now imagine looking at a beautiful brand, and then thinking, “Oh wow, that’s what I want to be! I need to get me some designers, and a marketing team.”

“I need to get a spray tan.”

Here’s what you’d be doing:

Now, successful businesses use every trick in the book.
They don’t stop at spray tan- they also use oil, lighting, professional photographers, take posing classes.

But underneath all of that, beyond all that, they have great muscles. That’s the foundation on which everything else is built.

Spray Tan: The iPhone is sleek and sexy as hell.
Muscle: It puts the internet in your pocket.

If you want to be like Apple, or whatever brand you admire, focus on your value proposition. Fulfill a need, and fulfill it masterfully. Work towards having the biggest, strongest damn muscles around.

The next time somebody suggests some equivalent of a spray tan, or you think about it yourself, remember: Muscles before spray tan.

This can be especially hard to do because we live in a world that spends a disproportionate amount of time talking about spray tan. We get bombarded with snake oil salesmen everyday, too, telling us that we’ll look or perform a lot better if we just use the right tools for marketing, advertising, the right gimmick..

Ignore them. There’s so many of them simply because it’s easier to spray something on your skin than it is to build muscle, and we’re biased towards “quick-and-easy solutions”.

You already know that spray tan won’t make you a bodybuilder. The challenge is to extend that to your personal work, to your business, to everything. There’s nothing quick-and-easy about building something that matters. Muscles before spray tan.

(Image Credit: Way2Tan, Edge Creative Solutions.)

P.S: I sacrificed some precision in an attempt to improve communicability. In bodybuilding, the highest order bit is having big, striated muscles. Posing well comes second, and spray tans probably come third.

This isn’t the case in every single industry. Coke, for example, makes great sugary drinks, but their highest order bit is their powerful marketing. In some industries, the spray tan can be more important than the muscle. What’s important is that you figure out what the most important thing is- and it isn’t always what’s most talked about.

I started by trawling the list of retailers using our service, hitting every URL, as well as every store’s Facebook and Twitter. Over the past few weeks I’ve literally checked out over a thousand stores. It’s been an eye-opening experience. I think I’ve learnt something along the way about what makes eCommerce stores tick, and I’d like to share that with you. (Sharing is learning.)

Let me start by sharing specific stores that have caught my eye and lingered in my mind:

1: Designious sells vector art, Photoshop brushes and t-shirt designs. The team is based in Bucharest, Romania. I got mixed up over the name- I first thought it read disingenuous. Boom, the name is stuck in my head forever. (Thanks, guys.) They use a strong, bold typeface for their navigation. Their artwork is modern and severe in a positive sense. Very stylish. Also, they give away free stuff!

2: The Stiff Collar is based in Mumbai, India and they sell “Somewhat Snooty English Shirts.” I was sold, instantly. While not conventionally flashy or elegant, the whole site just oozes personality. (If you look carefully, there’s a link at the bottom right that says “Comic”, and it’s a 12 page long detective story. Why? I’m guessing the answer to that was “Why not?!”)

It’s interesting to me that I was so quickly won over by the site, because I have high standards for visual design, and am always quick to point out imperfections. The quality of the images aren’t optimal, and the colour scheme could surely be tweaked to convey maximum snootiness.

Despite those minor issues, the passion of the retailers comes through in spades. “On balance it is a good thing we all know so little about our business,” they joke. “It keeps life entertaining.”  Who wouldn’t want to buy a shirt from these guys?

3: Gravity Anomaly promises to sell “the most advanced technical mountain bike riding garments on the market, manufactured in the USA”. The site is a visual treat and an absolute pleasure to navigate. These guys are very, very clear about what they’re passionate about and what they stand for. The “About Us” is used to great effect, communicating their team’s passions and convictions. The on-site blog reveals a clear passion and dedication

If you think our clothing might look like it’s more suited for a work site than a leisurely ride to the park,” they declare, “you’re starting to get us.”

I’m not a mountain biker, but if I ever befriend one, I know what I’d get them for Christmas.

Undz.org is based in Montreal, Canada and might just be my favourite site on the internet at the moment. They technically sell underwear (over 1,000,000 pieces sold!), but what they’re really selling is a point-of-view. I have landed on their site multiple times, and I burst out laughing every single. The above picture does not do it justice; you have to go there.

It’s interesting to sit back and analyze the site’s success. It breaks every ‘rule’ in the book. The navigation is unintuitive- you’ll probably take quite a while to actually get to the shop. But it’s such a fantastic journey. Undz have created an experience that’s hard to replicate. They’re like a surreal inverse-Disney, put through the lens of some sort of drug-addled 90′s kid. And yet we can’t stop staring. And feeling, oddly, like we ought to buy some underwear.

While the site looks haphazard and randomly thrown together, the effect achieved is deliberate. Undz follows others like The Best Page In The Universe and Old Spice’s Mr. Wolfdog- the chaos and poor design are intended. To avoid a lengthy discussion on the philosophy of communication (which I would enjoy, to be honest), let’s leave it at this- you can’t replicate Undz.org’s successful marketing unless you know exactly why you’re doing it.

5: Punchdrunk Panda is based in The Phillipines, and has possibly the catchiest, most memorable name I’ve ever heard of. (The mental image is absolutely hilarious, too. Just think about it for a little while. Two pandas, in a boxing ring…) They make iPhone cases, camera straps, shoes and other paraphernalia. There’s a bright, positive energy that’s cutesy, cheery and fun, and it’s something that’s very infectious.

Hey, isn’t your iPhone case getting kind of old, anyway?

6: Cocaine Cowboys are based in Berlin, Germany, and the best thing you can say about them is that they are well and truly irreverent. They clearly give a Damn about giving no damns. Their Facebook feed is saturated with pictures of attractive ladies in, um, various states of undress. Also, cigars, fast cars and other indulgences associated with the “high life”. They hold nothing back with their pedal-to-the-metal approach, which results in an unapologetically abrasive, devil-may-care brand. It’s definitely going to offend a few people, but that’s precisely what they’re going for.

I would totally wear this stuff to a Rammstein concert, or under a leather jacket while racing across the Autobahn on a BMW motorbike. Ich Will!

7:Serious Pig is based in London, England. These guys are mighty serious about their salami. Snacking salami, to be precise. Serious snacking salami. The “Our Tail” page describes the founder’s serious obsession with all things pork. Turns out that ‘charcuterie’ (a unique process of preparing meat) is in its infancy in Britain, and that the key to good salami is to have the right amount of fat. It sounds both complicated and delicious.

8: Kurgo is based in Massachusetts, USA. The coolest thing about them is how you can immediately know what they’re selling just by glancing at the logo. It’s immediately apparent what sort of need their products fulfill. The “About Us” page tells a clear story about dog owners who built products to solve problems that they faced themselves. The Lifetime Warranty is a nice touch, and it’s easy to see that the products are a labour of love.

9: ANTA is based in Scotland and sells tartan products. Their designs are incredibly elegant, classy and tasteful. They’ve apparently been in the business for over 25 years now, and everything about their products are made locally in Scotland. I’m tempted to bulk order a whole bunch of things, and I’m not even really huge on home decoration. Their stoneware looks especially beautiful and Zen.

To me, ANTA is an example of a successful product that sells itself. The job of marketing is to just get out of the product’s way. The site is ultra-minimalist, drawing attention to the craftsmanship of the pieces.

10: Honizukle Press is a one-woman operation based in New Jersey, USA. She (Kimberly) sells stationery and paper goods, such as greeting cards. The site’s design was refreshingly light and clearly (to me) put together with great precision and care. The same can be said of all her products-  She has impeccable taste and is clearly passionate about her work. (A visit to her on-site blog confirms this. She loves what she does.)

—

What do these stores have in common? What makes them so sticky in a marketplace saturated with unmemorable, nondescript wares?

They all have strong value propositions. These stores are ruthlessly clear about what they’re delivering to their customers. It could be a promise of technical engineering (Gravity Anomaly), or a devil-may-care attitude (Cocaine Cowboys). It could be a promise of artistic quality (ANTA, Honizukle), fun (Punchdrunk Panda) or even slight snootiness (The Stiff Collar).

Whatever it is, the promise is always clear. This is of utmost importance, because a clear promise can be passed on. The customer knows what she’s getting. Even if it’s something she doesn’t want for herself, it’s something that she could share with her friends, who might just want it instead. (Sharing such information is socially advantageous and rewarding. I’m sure you can think of somebody in your social circle who’d love to receive something from each of these stores.)

I’ve also noticed that a lot of these retailers set out to resolve issues that they were personally afflicted with or passionate about. Which means that they didn’t get involved just to make money, they got involved because  they give a damn about what they do. They communicate their personal conviction, and conviction inspires trust.

Above all, perhaps, all of these sites also have a lot of personality, which helps to diminish customer anxiety. We’re dealing with people who love what they do. Who doesn’t want to do that?

I’ve got a whole bunch of other retailers I’d love to share with you, if you’re interested! Let us know at @referralcandy or on our Facebook Page.

A friend of ours asked recently, “What’s the point of spending time on eCommerce forums? What are you after? Why do you do it?”

A quick bit of context: We spend quite a bit of time literally just hanging out with retailers on forums. (You’re likely to catch us at Shopify forums, BigCommerce, WarriorForum, Quora… be sure to say hi if you do!).

We do it because it’s fun.
Really. We could make up convincing arguments about how it helps our brand and our customer acquisition efforts (and sure, it does!), or how there’s a potentially significant return on investment – and they’re technically, rationally sound, and… *YAWN*.

Here’s the truth-bomb: We don’t hang out with retailers just because we’re in the business of customer referral programs. We’re in the business of referrals because we love hanging out with retailers. Really! We think it’s cool to help build a sweeter marketplace for everybody, even in small ways like giving retailers feedback about their stores. We get energized and excited by the knowledge that we’re helping to create real value in the marketplace that we participate in ourselves.

If you don’t give a Damn, you’re gonna be eating the dust of those who do.
We honestly believe it. All else held constant, if you start an eCommerce store just because you want to make money (which is a very valid reason), you’re probably going to get steamrollered by the people who do it for love. Cheesy, but true. They will put in more hours than you. They will go above and beyond the call of duty, which is something we won’t ever completely be able to monetize, incentivize, leverage, insert-your-favourite-buzzword-here.

People ultimately pay for the Damns that we give.
In a goods-abundant, trust-scarce marketplace, there is no resource more precious than the Damn. Think about it! If you could pay someone to give a damn about something, wouldn’t you? Take a moment to imagine what the world would look like if you could. There would be no unhappy relationships, no disappointed customers, no bloated institutions…

But you can’t actually buy Damns. You can’t buy friends, you can’t buy love, you can’t buy sincerity, you can’t buy trust, and you most certainly can’t buy Damns. You can buy the illusion of it. But you can never pay someone to actually care. Genuine concern is priceless. We believe that people know it when they see it. They are drawn to it.

To be clear: This doesn’t mean that Damn-givers can’t fail. They fail spectacularly, and often. But they’re also the people who most often dust themselves off and try again. (Angry Birds was Rovio’s 52nd game. Surely, there were some Damn-givers in that office!)

It’s never crowded along the extra mile.
You’ll often hear that <insert market> is saturated with retailers. But that’s not actually true. The market is saturated with average retailers. There’s always room in the market for people who truly give a damn. Consumers will recognize quality and effort. A retailer has to believe that if she’s going to dive into a “saturated” market.

Sustainably speaking, “making money” is about creating value, and value is almost exclusively created through the giving of Damns. Consider Paul Graham’s example of creating wealth by restoring your beat-up old car. When you give a Damn, you create value, and when you create value, people will consider paying you for it.

So, what do you give a damn about?
And just as importantly, what do you not give a damn about? That’s a train of thought worth pursuing, and it can lead you to some pretty interesting insights about how you ought to run your business.

If your business is a reflection of your personal principles (Think Steve Jobs, Richard Branson, Warren Buffett, Howard Schultz) it’s far likelier to be robust because you will keep it alive with the sheer force of the Damns that you give. If you can’t figure out what you care about, then you’ve got some homework to do.

You can figure it out along the way.
What matters is that you dare to face yourself. If you’ve already got a store up and running, ask yourself what it’s about. Why exactly did you get into the business? What were you hoping to achieve, aside from money? Who are you giving value to? How do you want people to feel? (“Good” is not an answer!)

Find out. Put yourself out there. Ask for perspectives and input from others who give a damn too. Refine. Adapt. Figure out what really matters to you. Figure out who really matters to you, and reach out to them. In our case, it’s retailers. (For the retailers we’ve met, it might be anybody from people who are sleep deprived, to people who want to take flight simulation to the next level.)

There are ultimately no secrets in business. It’s just pure, hard work.
The challenge is to find something that you give enough of a Damn about that the hard work involved doesn’t feel like hard work – and that’s where you’ll earn your competitive advantage.

What do you give a damn about? And how can that guide your business or career? If we all spent some time thinking about that and allowed it to show in our work, we’d have a sweeter marketplace for all.

EDIT: A short while after publishing this, we got to reading this article by KISSMetrics, where they discuss Mark Zuckerberg – and how he’s communicated clearly, multiple times, that Facebook was never meant to be a company - it was a company only because it helps to accomplish it’s mission of a more connected world.

The people there give a Damn.

If you read nothing else:

Here’s the best infographic we’ve found that explains what SEO is, courtesy of pointblankSEO.com. It’s the best starting point we can think of for any SEO newbie. (For the old-timers- it’s still useful to see the information presented so clearly!)

For Beginners:

Understanding Search Engine Optimization (SEO) for beginners.
SEO is about “pleasing” search engines so that they rank your page higher on their lists. (That means more views, more hits, and ultimately more sales.) How do you do that? First, you’ve got to understand what search engines do, and how they do it.

First SEO Checks (Non-Technical)
Your store is up and running; what should you do about SEO? Before getting technical, you have two chief concerns- clarity and navigation.

Getting started on SEO for eCommerce:

Simple eCommerce SEO checklist
Use Friendly URLs, product titles, Meta description.

Basic SEO for eCommerce Sites
Common issues and the best ways to handle them. Get your file-names right, avoid duplicate content, keep things clear and intuitive.

Intermediate SEO for eCommerce Sites
Image Optimization, XML Markup, Internal Anchor Text, Rapid Indexing, Department and Category pages.

Enterprise Level SEO for eCommerce Sites
URL Structure. Writing for people vs. Writing for search engines. Accessible content. IP delivery & language specific content. Redesigns & redirections.

eCommerce-specific SEO issues:

Rich Snippets From Reviews
How to add product reviews that show up in Google. (Important!)

eCommerce SEO for Mobile Websites and Apps
Use subdomains such as m.example.com. If you’re going to use mobile apps, make sure they’re good.

eCommerce SEO for new or seasonal products
Choose your URLs carefully so that you don’t need to change them. Take “placeholder” pages seriously, using as much real, non-duplicate information as possible.

eCommerce SEO for Category Pages
URL, Editorial Photos, Text, Products & Thumbnails, Internal Links, Page & Filesize.

eCommerce SEO for Product Pages
URL, Product Titles, Product Descriptions, Product Images, Internal Links, Social Media.

Universal SEO Issues:

Duplicate Content
Search Engines don’t like duplicate content, and will punish you for it. Either replace it (which can be tedious or costly), or hide it from search engines using approved methods (noindex tags).

How to Optimize Your Images for SEO
File names, file types, file sizes, ALT tags.

How To Use XML Sitemaps to boost SEO
When should you use them? How should you use them? What are the mistakes people make?

Use a Crawling Path to get your product listed in Google
What is a crawling path? How does it work? How does it benefit you?

Be Mindful Of Google Updates.
You need to adjust accordingly so you don’t take a hit when things get shaken up.

Dealing with Google Panda 
Avoid duplicate content. Have it re-written if it’s worth the cost, otherwise use ‘noindex’ meta tags to avoid problems.

Creating eCommerce content that earns inbound-links
Start a blog, use informational linkbait, resource guides, useful statistics and surveys…
 

CandyDrips remind your customers to make referrals.
Forgetting things you need to do is a real issue for everybody in these chaotic times. There’s too much going on these days to remember everything, and we’re guilty of forgetting stuff too.

That’s why we have a nifty reminder system in place, to make sure that forgetfulness doesn’t stop your customers from making referrals!

How does it work? It’s simple: We send emails called CandyDrips to your customers reminding them that they (or their friends, or both) will be rewarded if they refer your store to their friends. (Remember, you get to decide precisely how these rewards are structured!)

You get to decide how we do it.
How often do we send these emails? It’s up to you- you set it when you first sign up, and you’re totally free to change it at any time.

You decide during the signup process, and can modify it in your settings page.

We keep it classy.
This reminder email is the same as the original Referral Email, which is customizable. The email has your voice and your brand, which is important because you definitely don’t want it to come across as ‘spammy’ or unsolicited.

We do it so you don’t have to.
What do you have to do about all this? Absolutely nothing! Just set it and forget it. We remind your customers that they can make referrals- so that you don’t have to.

Sweet.

1. Write great referral emails.
When a customer buys a product from your online store, she receives an email from you (powered by us), with a coupon link for her to share with her friends. You can customize this email however you like.

Keep this email succinct.

After you’ve written it, read it from the perspective of your customer. Better yet, ask a friend (or ten) to read it. Ask them what they found confusing or tedious – they know better, because they don’t know your product as well as you do. (You know your product too well to know what throws people off.)

The clearer the email and the call-to-action (“Share this link now to earn ______!”), the better your conversion rates will be. Here’s how you do it.

2. Structure your rewards well.
Rewards are better than no rewards. But who should you reward more, the customer or the friend she makes the referral to? How much should you reward them, exactly? (Ideally, you’ll want to reward them as much as possible, but you’ve got a business to run, too. Otherwise it’s free goodies for everyone!)

Most specifically, how should you distribute the reward that you’re willing to give?

As it turns out: If your brand is new, you should reward the customer making the referral. If your brand is more established, split the reward between the customer and the friend she refers to you. Here’s why.

3. Make it more visible.
We often overlook this because it seems so obvious, but a customer can’t make a referral if he’s unaware that he has option to do so. Not everybody checks their email. It’s worth reminding your customers (through social media, or on your site itself) that they do have that option, and that it benefits them.

The keyword is “benefit”. Why should he do it? You have to tell him! (Remember, you get to choose how the benefits are structured.) Are you rewarding him directly, or his friends, or both? Make it loud, make it clear. Here’s how.

4. Tweak constantly.
There’s no magic pill, or we’d all be using it already. Every business, market and customer base is different. You can’t know what works best until you evaluate the results that you get.

So don’t be afraid to experiment. Do your customers respond better to cash incentives or to discounts? You can’t know in advance! Try one, then try the other, and check your stats to see if your referrals go up or down. You might even find that your customers respond better to lengthy, heartfelt emails. Who knows? Go find out.

5: Don’t forget your fundamentals.
Referral programs don’t magically create customers out of thin air or summon them from a mystical alternate reality. They simply accelerate the natural, organic process of sharing information (“Wow, this is great, I gotta tell everyone!”) by rewarding people for doing it.

Your customer must still like your product enough to want to refer it to his friends. Few people will refer a lousy product to their friends even if rewarded, because doing so would diminish their “social currency”.

So make sure you’ve got a great product to begin with, and that you focus on making your customer’s retail experience a great one- and then you can reap some truly delectable  returns from your referral program.

Still not seeing results?
Relax! It can take time for your customers to get around to using your program, and it can take even longer for their friends to use their coupons. You may experience a sudden spike in referral sales after a lull period. Tweet or Email us if you have any questions, concerns, anything!

First, everybody was a consumer.
And we still are. This was once a straightforward role to play, when there were only a few things to barter or pay for. If you saw something you liked – a goat, maybe, or a sweet chainmail suit – you got it, period. There were no complicated catalogs to analyze, no payment processing to worry about. Here, I trade you my leather boots for your sweet chainmail suit, we shake on it, done deal.

(On the flip side, there wasn’t much to choose from. Also, there was a chance you might catch the bubonic plague while hanging out with your fellow peasants. Not cool.)

(Everybody needs a sweet chainmail suit. Unfortunately, chainmail won’t protect you from plagues.) 

Being a consumer has gotten a lot harder.
Here’s the challenge: How do we make good decisions in today’s increasingly complex marketplace? Our marketplaces are saturated with glitzy advertising and sleazy-sounding schemes designed to literally exploit our subconscious impulses. The function of an ad, said David Foster Wallace, is to “create an anxiety relievable by purchase.”

“Nobody will love you if your breath stinks, so buy our mouthwash!” “Drink our beer! Because boobs.”

There are just too many choices to make, too many options to wrap our heads around. It’s cripplingly chaotic. (Relevant TEDTalks: Economist Tim Harford explains how human hubris in the face of overwhelming market complexity has led to bad decision-making, and psychologist Barry Schwartz describes how the overabundance of choices create consumer anxiety.)

It’s a problem that our ancestors were blissfully exempt from: In a world of anonymous strangers and legalese-spouting bureaucracy, how do we know who we can trust?

How do we make decisions when we’re overwhelmed with more data than we can process?

(Dilbert’s comical anxiety is a very real phenomenon we all face in today’s marketplaces, explored and studied by earlier-mentioned psychologist Barry Schwartz)

Ants seem to have got it figured out pretty well.
We often wreck our brains trying to figure out how to make better decisions. Ants don’t have that worry at all – they naturally make optimal decisions…all the time!

Ant colonies aren’t dependent on the intelligence of ants for their continued survival. They rely instead on a simple process that builds on information gleaned from past decisions. (So a “stupid” ant that makes a “bad” decision still contributes to the collective wisdom of the colony.)

(From Wikipedia: Ants try every possible path through trial and error, and leave behind “good reviews” in the form of pheromone trails for other ants to pick up. The stronger the trail, the better the path. Quickly, the best-fit path emerges- which is optimal for all ants, and the colony.)

Sharing is caring learning.
We might not be able to make sense of the big scary marketplace on our own, but we can reasonably negotiate it by learning from the decisions of others – by sharing our experiences with one another. We all already do this:

“Don’t lend Steve anything, he borrowed my vacuum cleaner months ago and still hasn’t returned it. The hotdog stand that just opened up down the street? Best. Frankfurters. Ever. If you’re taking Algebra 101, you should totally sign up for Mr. Flitwick’s class, because he explains things in the clearest way.”

(The existence of the Scumbag Steve meme is proof that we like to share our misery with others. See: PsychologyToday’s article on why and how gossip is essential to socializing.)

Even without any extrinsic incentives, people talk to others about their experiences. We can’t help it. We’re social creatures, both naturally predisposed and culturally socialized to do this. The stories we tell each other function like the pheromone trails that ants lay down for other ants. We learn from each other’s experiences and emerge collectively better off.

A better marketplace for all.
Here’s a thought: As consumers, when we refer our friends to good products, we drive more customers to the merchants that sell them. By rewarding those merchants, we create an incentive for them (and other merchants) to continue selling more good products. A smarter and more enlightened marketplace for all.

So I’d like to think that the work we do here at ReferralCandy is not just challenging but meaningful, because it contributes (in its own little way) to the refinement of the online marketplace. Smarter consumers (because sharing is learning), more business for the folk who make great products, and a marketplace we can all be proud of!

Image credit: Raisons Brass Band, Dilbert, Wikipedia

“What’s that?” I asked, thinking that it would be something obscure about HTML tags.

“Well, we are using this new method called Responsive Design to make our ReferralCorner pages more mobile and iPad friendly for our customers. Basically, the page layout automatically optimizes itself to fit the size of the browser window you are viewing it in.”

The ReferralCorner page is where your customers go to share coupon links with their friends and get rewarded for each successful referral.

Here’s how your ReferralCorner looks like on a smaller screen before the Responsive Design.

No Responsive Design, no good.

Here’s how it looks like with the new Responsive Design:

Responsive Design. It’s just Sweeter.

It’s much neater than before, and fits great for mobile and small tablet browsing: the way of the future. The words fit right into the window, like water filling up a container. Sweet.

The price of such elegance? About 50 hardworking developer hours. Well done guys!

Honing in on your distinct ecommerce marketing style is just as important as an actor signing on for the perfect role that will earn a Golden Globe.

For some, finding this perfect fit means going for what you know you’re good at and capitalizing on those strengths.  For others it can mean stepping outside of the box to stir up curiosity.  Either way, locking down a specific angle of attack will help you maintain consistency and leverage the most results from your efforts.

This year’s Golden Globe winners are a mixed batch of seasoned veterans, rookie all-stars and surprise selections.  From Wolverine belting it to earn a Best Actor award to the easily predicted win for Daniel Day-Lewis, the way these actors climbed to the top tier of film recognition can be duplicated in a marketing strategy.

Discover which winner’s technique fulfills your marketing needs and release the potential profit awards that could be pouring into your business.

Do Something That’s Out There

For Quentin Tarantino, “out there” is all he does.  This winning screenplay writer has unleashed twisted (and often uncomfortable) films on captive audiences for three decades.  He prods political correctness, exploits sensitive topics, re-imagines history and sometimes does all three at once like in the case of his latest winner Django: Unchained.

He’s proven nonconformity can be a powerful tool even when it’s contentious, but there are distinct skill sets needed to get this strategy right.

The key to making it work, as Tarantino reaffirmed, is commitment to your crazy cause.  Had Tarantino been a mediocre story-teller, and danced around the prickly boundaries that existed in Django, the movie may have been viewed as little more than a racially tactless flop.

3 Tarantino Techniques

• Everything is for a reason.  Tarantino isn’t weird just for the sake of freaking people out.  Odd is an art form to him. Every awkward transition, every line of painful dialogue and every head-scratching character has meaning.
• Don’t pull punches.  With Django, you get the most raw and unattractive interpretation of our country’s most shameful past and Tarantino doesn’t waste a moment sugar coating that.
• Make no apologies. Even after heavy criticism and scoring the Golden Globe despite it, Tarantino wouldn’t conceit that he’d exploited anything or abused a racial slur once.  In the wake of a win, he commits to the good and the bad.

The infamous writer and director displayed his notorious ability for forming unforgettable characters and a peculiar plot, but without his unwavering dedication to quirk the strange slavery-era flick may have been skipped during the awards season.

For marketers interested in spicing up their messaging, there is nothing wrong with taking a sharp left turn and stirring up some controversy.  There needs to be strict attention to detail, however, and a firm understanding that this move may not be for everyone.

Dr. Pepper Ten’s abrasive and gender-taunting ads branding its product with a “men-only” label was certainly a testament to disregarding the norm.  Unlike the popular method of casting a wide net over audiences, the soda company decided it banish half the population from purchasing.

According to MediaPost, this tactic worked, initially scoring above the average ad for similar products, but it was also a huge risk for the company.  And headlines showed there were certainly some who disagreed with it:

Why Dr. Pepper 10 is Everything Wrong with Advertising

Dr Pepper Ten: Because Men Don’t Drink Diet Soda?

Dr. Pepper 10: Ten good Reasons to Never buy Dr. pepper Again

Being “out there” doesn’t necessarily mean amassing piles-full of new fans.  It’s about taking risks and hoping some people – preferably your target sales audience – understands and accepts your edgy message.  If you’re not prepared to field some questions (and possibly some backlash) think twice before trying to score by hitting one into left field.

Be Funny, That’s It

There is no denying that making someone smile or bust out laughing is incredibly successful in the marketing arena.  It’s contagious, it’s shareable and it demonstrates a likeable trait in almost any setting.  For Golden Globe hosts, Tina Fey and Amy Poehler, funny is a gold mine.

Though they didn’t walk away with a win, these ladies stole the show with clever banter and perfect timing.  Both also have a long line of humorous work that speaks for itself.

The SNL alumni and first female hosting pair are the stars of hit shows, revered writers and both were in the running for best actress in a comedy television series.

Neither has delved much into anything other than comedy.  Funny works for them.  And funny can work really well for your business too.

3 Funny Factors

• Self-sacrifice is comedic gold. Poehler and Fey didn’t get where they are by always presenting themselves as prom queens.  They make weird faces and put on strange outfits. Funny works for them because they never hesitate to forgo pride for a chuckle.
• It’s funny because it’s true.  There’s Adult Swim-style funny that gets a laugh because it’s eccentric.  Then there’s classic funny that gets roaring laughs because it’s hilariously honest.  Like this jab that Fey took:

“Anne Hathaway, you gave a stunning performance in Les Miserables. I have not seen someone so totally alone and abandoned like that since you were on stage with James Franco at the Oscars.”

• Choose your jokes carefully.  Poehler and Fey are extremely tasteful in their comedy.  They find the funny without being hurtful.  They don’t have to do that, but it’s much easier for them to continue to grow their audience when they avoid insulting or belittling people.

In your humorous marketing scheme, try to expose the goofy side of your product or your customers’ pain points while avoiding stepping over a comedic line on sensitive subjects.

Take the DollarShaveClub.com video from last year for example.  The marketers behind this found a way to make an otherwise boring product – razors – hilarious.  Much like how Poehler makes a government job at the Parks and Recreation department seem like the best place on earth to work.

You don’t have to run a three-ring circus or a comedy club to find humor.  You don’t even have to keep it clean all the time(as the videos F-bomb bleep implies).  You just have to find a combination of true and goofy without crossing into offensive and thoughtless, like this Tweet did:

Not everyone was born with the blessing of poignant comedic timing, but if you’re going to take a stab at being humorous, be conscientious about your jokes’ meaning.

Class Counts for Something

Anne Hathaway entered the scene awkward as a nerdy goofball in The Princess Diaries, but as she’s grown into her career she has become sophisticated and refined.

She is becoming a classic.

Her abilities and her role choses are leaning towards timeless and it’s clear from her role in Les Miserables that she’s taking this acting thing pretty seriously.

For her, and possibly for your business, it works to just commit to an elegant, clean style.

3 Classy Moves

• Smart is attractive.  Unlike many actresses her age, Hathaway does her best to present herself as an educated, poised woman.  In interviews she speaks with the complexity of a scholar twice her age and people love that about her.
• Recover gracefully from slip-ups.  During the debut of the classic musical, the young actress experienced an unfortunate wardrobe malfunction.  Though the “slip” was less than glamorous, she held her head high and moved on quickly.
• Keep it clean.  Hardly a day goes by without seeing a starlet splashed across tabloids for some crazy club catastrophe, but that starlet is never Hathaway. She prefers to lay low on the party scene and maintain her professional respectable profile.

Not every brand works with comedy and a lot of brands can’t afford the risk of a failed attempt to do something different.  But that’s okay.  There is nothing wrong with class being your marketing style.

Burt’s Bees, for example, is a renowned name in lip balms these days, but they came from humble beginnings selling their homemade products at craft fairs.  And even with all of today’s technology and opportunity, they still feel as simplistic and natural as their humble beginnings would imply.

The language used in their advertisements, on their social media accounts and in the pages of their website just oozes class and simplicity.

There isn’t anything exaggerated or overworked.  Burt’s Bees is just a classic, reliable product that people trust to deliver quality.

Like with comedy and unconventionality, marketers can go wrong with classy if they push too hard.  Brad Pitt’s commercial for Chanel demonstrates how easy it is to take yourself a little too seriously.

There is nothing wrong with wanting your company and your brand to be represented by clean and graceful marketing, just avoid the common pitfall of getting too pretentious.

Regardless of Style

There are a lot of methods to choose from when it comes to marketing style.  Barak Kassar, founding partner of Rassak Experience, explains that marketing styles can fall on a large spectrum.

“Ecommerce marketing styles can be anywhere from Gangnam Style to Geek Style,” says Kassar.  “Gangnam would be focusing on fun, catchy, brand-oriented advertising […] Geek would be starting from a philosophy that brand is irrelevant and it’s all about what combination of elements (colors, words, photos) gets the most sales.”

Ultimately, it doesn’t matter where you fall on this wide range.  Every marketer is entitled to their own directional ideas.  But whether you’re the class clown or the classic sophisticate, every marketer must remember that your target audience – customers and consumers – are top priority.

You may think you’re being hilarious, but if the crowd you’re trying to attract isn’t laughing, move in another direction.  And while fresh and simple can sound chic, if your viewers are bored, class is useless.

At the Golden Globes there are more losers than winners.  Though all of the “Best Actors” are brilliant, only one could win.  When you’re choosing or perfecting your style, remember that even a method done well can struggle.  The key is to focus in on what your angle will be and shape it as best as you can to meet your audiences needs.  And whether it takes off or falls flat, know that there is always room for improving and perfecting the style.

There are six traits all successful e-commerce site owner have. Over the years, I’ve met many of them at conferences and through friends. After countless conversations, dinners and phone calls, I could see that all of them were very similar in their way of thinking, how they managed their business and their approach to growing their online store.

I’ve identified all the commonalities and I boiled them down into six (not seven!) habits. Let’s start with the first one.

1. They are passionate about the customer experience.

The most successful e-commerce websites deliver the best customer experience and their owners are really passionate about this. Unlike brick-and-mortar business owners, e-commerce store owners cannot directly interact with their customers. They can’t directly guide and assist you along the way as you’re shopping. At least, not physically.

That’s where e-commerce site owners differ from traditional business owners. They have to focus on delivering the best customer service experience possible through their website and other online channels. In other words, the quality and passion has to shine through in every part of the shopping experience. This means having:

• a beautiful and user-friendly website
• an easy and secure checkout system
• a return policy with no hassle
• useful follow-up emails that people want to read
• responsive customer service emails and calls
• and much more…

When you can’t showcase your passion face-to-face, showcase it in every aspect of your online business so your customers do notice. Every successful e-commerce store owner does this and they want to share that passion not only through their online store, but also through their stories that they tell. Which brings me to the next habit.

2. They are storytellers.

People love reading and listening to stories. When you are passionate about your business and delivering the best customer experience, you will naturally share stories about it that people can relate to.

There are many ways e-commerce site owners can share their stories. While they can’t do it directly face-to-face, video is one the best mediums for delivering stories and for people to relate to your brand. Think of ways how can you use videos on your e-commerce website. In a traditional retail store, you have people who can answer all your questions and give you more insight into a particular product. Well, you can deliver almost the same experience by using videos. Here are some ideas:

• As the founder, share how and why you started your business and how you want to help others
• Talk about your product, how it will benefit the customer and put this on the product page
• Have a video version that will address all commonly asked questions (think of it as a “FAQ video”)
• Product educational videos that teach customers how to get more value out of your products and show them ways to use your product.

As an example, for software it’s very common to have screencasts that show exactly how you can use a particular function of the program. If you’re selling physical goods then that doesn’t work but the same idea still applies. Let’s say you sell blenders. You can produce videos that show customers how to make certain smoothies using your blender. Or, in a funny and extreme case, you can showoff how powerful they are by blending electronics like Blendtec did with its videos on “Will it blend?”.

Not only will videos help your business, it will also build your brand that people can relate to. The most successful e-commerce stores have a brand and people buy from brands they like. How do you get people to like your brand? By you sharing your stories.

It doesn’t have to be just over videos. You can start a blog, write fantastic newsletters, release a book, talk at conferences or even have a podcast. The main purpose of storytelling around your online business is that you want to build an emotional connection with your prospects and customers. That’s how you get people to buy from you without any price barriers and loyal customers that will buy from you many times over.

Look at Zappos. Aside from their great customer service and products, they have built their online business using storytelling. They released a book that shows how the company works. They give free tours around the office. They are transparent in all their communication. They have shared their stories countless times and many people have fallen in love with their brand.

Building a brand takes time and effort. Start today and share your stories. Communicate how you want to help them. Express your values to your prospects and customers. Let them fall in love with your brand and they will buy from you. Again, and again, and again.

3. They are obsessed with metrics.

You might have heard of the old adage “if you cannot measure it, you cannot improve it.” This especially applies to e-commerce stores.

Every effective webmaster knows this. In order to grow your online business, you have to know your metrics. These are key indicators of how healthy your business is and they give you the foundation to grow.

While there are many metrics you can track, here are some you want to be aware of:

• Cost per acquisition
• Average daily / monthly sales
• Average order value
• Conversation rate
• Refund rate
• Shopping cart abandonment rate
• Average number of visit before purchase
• Customer lifetime value
• Repeat purchase rate
• Revenue per visit

How do you know what success looks like when you don’t know your numbers? If you made $12,943 in revenue this month, is that a success or a failure? What about if your revenue per visit went up $0.01? Is that a success or failure?

When you don’t know your metrics, you simply can’t grow your business in a competent way and enjoy its success.

When you know your numbers, you can also make better decisions. The great thing about online business today is that it’s very easy to gather all the numbers you need before you make a final decision.

A common example is deciding whether you should up-sell customers before or after their purchase. You can guess which approach is better, but you’ll never know for certain if you’re making the right decision.

You’re making a leap of faith that could be costly and you will miss out on potentially doubling or even tripling your profit.

It’s totally unnecessary. It’s better to test this assumption on a small scale and let the numbers drive your decision.

4. They are experimenters.

Every successful e-commerce website owner is always testing different parts of their website to improve conversions and to generate more sales.

Once you get into the habit of testing ideas and assumptions, this will become a lifelong process in your business. There are many things you can test, but here are some suggestions that can affect your bottom line right away:

• Category and Product page templates – try different templates and see which converts the best.
• Checkout page template – same idea as mentioned above.
• Up-selling before or after purchase – could triple your profit if you find out the right sequence and products.
• Prices of your most popular products – test a wide range of prices to see which brings the most profit.
• Testimonials – where to put them and which to include.
• Social sharing buttons – some products benefit from this, others don’t.

There are a lot of experiments you can run with an e-commerce store, but the list above is a good starting point. If you are new to split testing, I suggest you look into tools such as Google Analytics Experiments, Visual Website Optimizer or Optimizely. They are very easy to use and one of the best tools available today.

Get in the habit of experimenting and your bank account will love you for it.

5. They proactively seek feedback from their customers.

The best way to find out what’s successful about your online business and what’s not working is by talking to your customers. Talk to the ones who spent their hard earned money on one of your products. They are the people who will give you the best feedback because they want you to succeed. After all, they trusted you with their money.

Calling them is more effective than sending them an email. It’s more personal and you can build a connection with your customers. Don’t know what to ask them? Simply think of questions of how you can improve your business. But if you need some suggestions, here you go:

• What is one thing we can do better?
• Are you happy with your purchase? Is there anything we can do to make you even happier?
• How did you find out about us?
• How was your experience shopping on our website? Is there anything that stood out positively or negatively?
• What made you ultimately decide to buy from us?
• What is the one thing we should never stop doing?

Get social with your customers. They are the best people to talk to and to spend time with. The more you do it, the more you will improve your online business in the shortest amount of time.

6. They are obsessed about making customer’s lives better.

Your customers are the lifeblood of your business and you want to treat them the best you can. From analyzing many e-commerce websites, I’ve noticed that the top ones are always giving; they add value to peoples’ lives whenever they can and profit from that.

Think win-win. How can you improve your customers’ lives? Think of ways to make them happier. How you can make them a better people?

Here are some actions you can take to inspire your customers and add value to their lives:

• Write a killer newsletter for free that they will want to read every time.
• Show them different products and accessories that complement their recent purchase (up-selling) and show them how it improves their lives.
• Send follow up emails on how they can use your products more effectively and how they can get the most out of it. You get bonus points if you use videos.
• Give them a call and suggest different products that they might enjoy based on their past purchases (cross-selling).
• As a sign of appreciation, only give existing customers a discount for a future purchase.

Start adding value to existing customers and I have no doubt that you and your online store will succeed.

Time for Action

There you have it. The seven habits of highly effective e-commerce site owners. Now it’s your turn to incorporate these into your life that will help you grow your online business.

Let us know in the comments below how you are going to do it!

Images credit: JD Hancock, Ansik and Makelessnoise.