Four million veterans living in the United States are disabled, and many of those men and women need help in one way or another. So what can you do to donate your services to those in need?
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الجمعة، 9 نوفمبر 2018
How to Volunteer to Help Disabled Veterans
Four million veterans living in the United States are disabled, and many of those men and women need help in one way or another. So what can you do to donate your services to those in need?
Source Business & Money | HowStuffWorks https://ift.tt/2POR6qX
Source Business & Money | HowStuffWorks https://ift.tt/2POR6qX
Amazon Announces Free Shipping for Holidays — No Prime Membership Needed
Amazon typically offers free two-day shipping to Prime members, who pay $119 for the privilege. Otherwise, shoppers must hit a $25 purchase minimum to access free shipping.
“All Amazon customers can enjoy free shipping with no minimum purchase amount on orders that will arrive in time for the Christmas holiday,” the company announced on its website.
It also noted that eligible items typically ship in five to eight days.
The promotion started Nov. 5 and is available “for a limited time.”
Amazon’s offer is likely in response to increasing competition from other retailers that hope to lure customers to their e-commerce options.
Target announced Oct. 23 that it would offer free two-day shipping to all online shoppers without requiring a minimum order size. That promotion began Nov. 1 and will continue through Dec. 22. Target typically has a $35 minimum order requirement to access free shipping.
Meanwhile, Walmart announced the same day that it’s expanding its free two-day shipping option to Marketplace items sold by third parties.
“In the coming months, you will see millions of additional items with the two-day free shipping label,” the company announced. Walmart.com will still require a $35 minimum order for free two-day shipping.
Customers in search of the best shipping deal for their online holiday shopping should watch the fine print for deadlines and restrictions that could delay delivery of those gifts.
One Last Free-Shipping Hurrah?
These free shipping offers are enticing for customers, but retailers may not be so generous next holiday season.
The U.S. Postal Service has proposed a 9% to 12% increase for the parcel select shipping service used by Amazon for the last leg of delivery. FedEx also announced that ground and home delivery shipping rates will increase by an average of 4.9%.
These increases don’t go into effect until January 2019. But they surely have major e-commerce players preparing to adjust their shipping strategies or make up for the increase in other ways — potentially by increasing prices.
Lisa Rowan is a senior writer at The Penny Hoarder, where she covers the retail and grocery industries.
This was originally published on The Penny Hoarder, which helps millions of readers worldwide earn and save money by sharing unique job opportunities, personal stories, freebies and more. The Inc. 5000 ranked The Penny Hoarder as the fastest-growing private media company in the U.S. in 2017.
The Penny Hoarder Promise: We provide accurate, reliable information. Here’s why you can trust us and how we make money.
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47 Veterans Day Freebies and Deals for Veterans and Active Service Members
As nice as it is to hear those words, free goodies are also a nice token of appreciation.
And since this Sunday is Veterans Day, there’s plenty of tangible gratitude coming your way.
Free Food for Vets and Military Members This Veterans Day
The following restaurants have confirmed free eats and treats this Sunday.
1. Applebee’s
All veterans and active-duty military members are invited to enjoy a free meal at Applebee’s.
Just bring your proof of service to your neighborhood Applebee’s this Sunday and choose your free meal from eight delicious options!
2. Bar Louie
All veterans and military personnel can enjoy a free meal at Bar Louie this Sunday. Just bring your military ID to enjoy a free burger or flatbread, up to a $15 value.
Bar Louie is also hosting its “Mission for Vets” campaign this week. From now until Nov. 12, all guests can add a little something extra to their checks to be donated to Operation Homefront’s Critical Financial Assistance program to help veterans and their families in need.
3. BJ’s Brewhouse
BJ’s Brewhouse is celebrating Veterans Day with a free meal and Dr Pepper for all current and former military members with military ID this Sunday.
4. Bob Evans
Bob Evans will offer active military members and vets a free meal from a sumptuous-looking six-item menu that includes breakfast, lunch and dinner options. This freebie is available with proof of service and is for dine-in orders only all day this Sunday.
5. Buffalo Wild Wings
Craving hot, delicious wings? Who isn’t?
Head to your local B-Dubs for a complimentary small order of wings and a side of fries anytime on Sunday. The offer doesn’t include a drink, and you have to dine in.
6. California Pizza Kitchen
Whether it’s pasta, a salad or pizza you’re after, you’ll eat it for free at California Pizza Kitchen.
Veterans and active service members can get a free entree when they arrive in uniform or show their military ID this Sunday. Choose from a special menu that includes some of CPK’s favorites, like BBQ chicken pizza, Thai crunch salad and Bolognese spaghetti.
7. Chili’s
Bring your military ID and head over to your local Chili’s this Sunday to enjoy one of seven signature Chili’s dishes for free. Options include margarita grilled chicken, chicken bacon ranch quesadillas, cajun chicken pasta, a bowl of chili or soup and salad.
8. Chipotle
Chipotle is offering current and former military members a BOGO deal on burritos, bowls, salads and tacos. The offer is available all day this Sunday with valid military ID.
9. Coffee Beanery
This coffee chain is honoring all military personnel with a free tall coffee all day this Sunday and Monday. The freebie will be available at participating locations, so be sure to check with your nearest location and grab that military ID before you go.
10. Cracker Barrel
If you save room for dessert this Veterans Day, then stop by Cracker Barrel for a free slice of cake — Double Chocolate Fudge Coca-Cola Cake, that is — when you show proof of service.
If you’re not a fan of cake, you can opt for a free cup of coffee instead.
11. Denny’s
Denny’s is inviting all active, inactive and retired military personnel with proof of service to a free Build Your Own Grand Slam on Monday, Nov. 12, between 5 a.m. and noon.
The dish includes your choice of four breakfast items, from bacon and eggs to hash browns and pancakes.
12. Dunkin’
Since “America runs on Dunkin’” and you protect America, be sure to claim your free donut of choice this Sunday with proof of service.
And if you have any family or friends currently deployed, be sure to submit their names to the Dunkin’ Coffee for Our Troops program, which has been surprising troops with cases of coffee every week since 2003.
13. Famous Dave’s
Famous Dave’s is saluting all former and current military personnel with a free 2 Meat Salute — that means your choice of two meats, one side and cornbread for free.
The salute is available for dine-in only on Sunday, Nov. 11, and Monday, Nov. 12, with proof of service.
14. Fazoli’s
Ready for some carb-loading? Fazoli’s will offer active-duty, inactive and retired military members a free serving of spaghetti with marinara or meat sauce when you flash your military ID, present your discharge card or show up in uniform.
No purchase is necessary and the deal runs from Friday, Nov. 9, through Sunday, Nov. 11.
15. Friendly’s
This joint might be best known for its ice cream, but it also serves breakfast, lunch and dinner. You can get one of those meals for free if you show up at Friendly’s with your military ID this Sunday.
You can choose from two menu options: the customizable Big-Two-Do breakfast or an All-American burger, if lunch or dinner is more your style.
16. Golden Corral
If you don’t have dinner plans for Monday, Nov. 12, you do now! Golden Corral will host its Military Appreciation Night from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. and will give out free meals to all military service members with proof of service.
17. Hooters
Stop by Hooters this Sunday, Nov. 11, for a free entree from its special Veterans Day menu.
Participation and menu items may vary by location, and you need to purchase a beverage to get the freebie — but at least you can have whatever sauce you want!
18. IHOP
On Monday, Nov. 12, grab your military ID and head to IHOP to get free red, white and blue pancakes — those are buttermilk pancakes smothered with blueberry topping, scattered with glazed strawberries and finished with whipped cream.
Since IHOP restaurants are owned and operated by franchises, be sure to check with your local IHOP before heading out to make sure its participating.
19. Krystal
If you love those little square burgers, then bring your military ID to Krystal to receive 20% off your order. The offer is available all day Sunday for all active and retired military service members.
20. Little Caesars
If you’re in the mood for pizza this Sunday, stop by Little Caesars between 11 a.m. and 2 p.m. for a free $5 Hot-N-Ready lunch combo. All you have to do is mention this offer and show proof of service, and you’ll be on your way with four slices of deep dish pepperoni pizza and a 20-ounce Pepsi product.
21. Menchie’s Frozen Yogurt
If you’re in need of a little something sweet this Veterans Day, then head over to Menchie’s. All veterans and active duty military members can enjoy the first six ounces of any flavor frozen yogurt for free anytime this Sunday — just be sure to bring your military ID.
22. Mission BBQ
This Southern and Midwestern joint’s tagline is “The American Way,” so we weren’t surprised to find out it’ll support vets this Sunday with a free meal and dessert!
Drop by your favorite Mission BBQ location on Sunday to get a free sandwich and slice of cake (while it lasts).
Mission BBQ also honors military service members all year long by sharing “Stories of Service” on its website and offering careers for veterans.
23. On the Border
Ready to spice it up? On the Border continues its Veterans Day tradition by offering all military members a free create-your-own combo meal — that’s 150 combinations to choose from, so be prepared to make a tough decision!
But don’t worry, you’ll have time to decide, because this offer will be available all day long this Sunday! Just be sure to bring proof of service.
24. Perkins Restaurant & Bakery
All military service members are invited to Perkins Restaurant & Bakery to enjoy a complimentary breakfast. Some locations may be offering the freebie on Sunday and others on Monday, so make sure you contact your local Perkins before heading over.
And don’t forget to bring proof of service to receive your free Magnificent Seven breakfast, which includes two eggs cooked your way, two pieces of meat — sausage links, bacon or ham — and three pancakes. Make sure you go hungry!
25. Pilot Flying J
If you happen to be flying past a Pilot Flying J this Veterans Day, then be sure to stop in for some free breakfast! All active and retired military members can find an offer for a free coffee and a breakfast sandwich, packaged pastry item or Cinnabon Center of the Roll in the myPilot app.
26. Red Lobster
Red Lobster will offer vets and active service members a free appetizer or dessert from a special menu. The menu includes six appetizer options and five dessert choices. All you have to do is flash your ID or proof of service this Sunday.
27. Red Robin
This Sunday, you can enjoy a free Red’s Tavern double burger and a bottomless order of steak fries when you show proof of service at Red Robin (Yummm).
No purchase is necessary, but it won’t count toward your Red Robin royalty rewards accrual.
28. Romano’s Macaroni Grill
Stop by Romano’s Macaroni Grill this Sunday for a little bit of comfort food. All veterans and active military can enjoy Mom’s Ricotta Meatballs and Spaghetti for free with proof of service. And yes, that’s meatballs made with ricotta cheese… yum.
29. Ruby Tuesday
All former and active military members with military ID can enjoy any appetizer — up to a $10 value — for free at Ruby Tuesday on Sunday.
30. Scooter’s Coffee
This Midwest-based coffee chain is honoring all active and retired military this Sunday with a free beverage of any size with proof of service.
Scooter’s has also teamed up with Wounded Warriors Family Support to collect donations for families of wounded soldiers. Scooter’s customers are invited to add a dollar donation to their orders on Nov. 11 and Nov. 12 to help those families in need.
31. Shoney’s
If you’re too full of all of the freebies on this list for Sunday, then Shoney’s has breakfast covered on Monday, Nov. 12.
All veterans and active military members can enjoy free breakfast from the fresh food bar until 11 a.m. with a valid military ID.
32. Sizzler
Lunch is on Sizzler for all active and retired military members until 4 p.m. on Sunday. Be sure to bring proof of service or show up in uniform and be ready to choose from three delicious entrees, including jumbo crispy shrimp, a 6-ounce steak or Malibu chicken.
33. Sonny’s BBQ
Sonny’s is offering a big deal to all active and retired military personnel on Monday, Nov. 12. Grab your military ID and head over to your local Sonny’s to enjoy a free pulled or sliced pork big deal combo.
34. Spaghetti Warehouse
Spaghetti Warehouse will celebrate Veterans Day all weekend long with a three-day BOGO offer. Starting Friday, Nov. 9, and running through Sunday, Nov. 11, all military service members and friends and family can use this printable coupon to buy an entree and get one free. Be sure to print out the coupon before you go or present it to your server on your mobile phone.
You can choose from lasagne, any original recipe spaghetti or grilled chicken Alfredo, plus a side of sourdough bread and your choice of soup or salad.
35. Texas Roadhouse
Swing by Texas Roadhouse for lunch this Sunday to enjoy a free meal with proof of service. You’ll have 10 entrees to choose from, some of which include two sides, so make sure you go hungry!
36. The Melting Pot
If you love steak, this one's for you! The Melting Pot will honor all military service members on Saturday, Nov. 10, and Sunday, Nov. 11, with a complimentary steak-lovers entree. No purchase is required — all you have to do is show your military ID to enjoy this freebie.
37. Winghouse Bar and Grill
Veterans and active-duty military can score a free meal from Winghouse this Sunday. Just bring your military ID to your local Winghouse and choose between an order of boneless wings, 10 original or Buffalo wings, an all American burger, a Buffalo chicken sandwich or crab cake sliders (while supplies last).
The offer is available all day Sunday with the purchase of a beverage.
Other Veterans Day Freebies and Deals
Now that your belly’s full, check out these other freebies and deals that support veterans and military members this month. Some of these are open to civilians, so you can help celebrate our military members’ sacrifices even if you’ve never served!
38. Avocado Green Mattress
If you’re in need of a new bed, you can save $225 at Avocado Green Mattress in honor of Veterans Day. The deal is available for all active and retired military personnel with your verified military ID until Monday, Nov. 12.
If you’re not a member of the military, you can still save at Avocado Green Mattress. Take $150 off any mattress using the code 150GREEN anytime until Nov. 18.
39. Bed and Breakfasts for Vets
Maybe you want to celebrate Veterans Day with a getaway.
If so, consider staying at a bed and breakfast. Several inns and B&Bs have teamed up with B&Bs for Vets to offer a free room for a night on or around Veterans Day. All you need is proof of service and a credit card to hold the room. Please note: All cancellation policies will be in effect at participating properties.
40. Grace for Vets
Every year, Grace for Vets partners with the car wash industry to honor military members with free car washes on Veterans Day. More than 3,000 car wash businesses participated last year, so you’re bound to find a participating location near you.
41. Great Clips
Know a military member whose coif is looking a little less than shipshape? Need a quick snip yourself?
Head to Great Clips for a haircut this Sunday, and you’ll get a free haircut card to give to your favorite military member. They can redeem it anytime before Dec. 31, 2018, with proof of military service.
If you’re a retired or active military member yourself, head in on Sunday for a free haircut then and there, or grab a card if you want to come back later.
42. Publix
Psst, military members in Southern states: Maybe save your grocery shopping for Sunday.
Publix will offer active military members and vets 10% off their purchases on Veterans Day when they show their IDs. This might be a good time to stock up!
43. Sam’s Club
All military members who join or renew their Sam’s Club memberships will receive $30 in rewards in honor of Veterans Day. New members also receive a free rotisserie chicken, 20 free butter croissants, free apple pie and a $10 Sam’s Club gift card. Proof of service is required.
44. Southeastern Grocers
If you do your grocery shopping at Bi-Lo, Fresco y Más, Harveys Supermarket or Winn-Dixie — and don’t mind doing your grocery shopping on Veterans Day — then head on over to get your 11% discount.
The grocery chains have also partnered up with Folds of Honor and will be accepting donations from customers through Nov. 12.
45. Sports Clips
All active and retired military members receive a free haircut on Sunday — plus, Sports Clips is donating $1 for every haircut purchased between Oct. 15 through Nov. 11 for the VFW’s Sports Clips Help a Hero campaign.
46. Target
Target is offering a 10% discount to all active and retired military members now through Nov. 12. The offer is available in stores and online. Simply enter your information here to get the coupon.
47. The National Park Service
Need to get some fresh air after all that free food?
Head to your favorite National Park this Sunday, and you’ll get in for free. In fact, so will all your friends and family, even if they’ve never served.
What better way to honor your sacrifice than to go out and actually be on the land you served to protect?
Thank you again for your service. Now go get your freebies and deals — and don’t forget about your 100+ year-round military discounts and your discounted or free vacations!
Jamie Cattanach is a writer whose work has also been featured at The Write Life, Word Riot, Nashville Review and elsewhere. Find @JamieCattanach on Twitter to wave hello.
Jessica Gray is an editorial assistant at The Penny Hoarder. She updated this post for 2018.
This was originally published on The Penny Hoarder, which helps millions of readers worldwide earn and save money by sharing unique job opportunities, personal stories, freebies and more. The Inc. 5000 ranked The Penny Hoarder as the fastest-growing private media company in the U.S. in 2017.
The Penny Hoarder Promise: We provide accurate, reliable information. Here’s why you can trust us and how we make money.
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11 Metrics Every Marketing Manager Needs to Track
How successful are your marketing campaigns?
Believe it or not, this seemingly simple question puzzles many marketers and business owners I work with.
You’re running ads, and customers are buying what you’re selling, so your marketing efforts must be working, right? Not necessarily.
Don’t get me wrong. I’m not saying this means your strategies have failed. In fact, some of your campaigns may be working great. But you can’t make any assumptions.
The only way to know for sure whether your campaigns are working is to measure the results.
By tracking certain metrics, you’ll also be able to save some money. You don’t want to dump money into campaigns that aren’t working.
Here’s the problem. Sometimes it’s difficult to directly tie one promotion to a sale.
That’s why you need to track several metrics and infer based on the results.
This statement holds true for all marketers, regardless of your industry or the size of your business. It doesn’t matter if you’re running expensive campaigns or using tactics to market your company on a budget. You need to track the results.
As I’m sure you know, there are dozens of business metrics you could be tracking. But not all of these will benefit your marketing strategy.
That was my inspiration for this guide. I narrowed down the top 11 metrics every marketing manager needs to track to be successful.
Use this guide as a reference to measure the success of your marketing campaigns moving forward. Based on the results, you’ll be able to tell what’s working and which strategies need improvement.
1. Average order value
The average order value, or AOV, is one of the first things you need to prioritize as a marketing manager.
This metric will help you figure out how to get your existing customers to spend more money each time they shop. It’s arguably the most important number to track when trying to understand consumer spending habits.
The average order value formula is quite simple:
Just divide your total revenue by the total number of transactions.
You don’t need to look at it every day or after each campaign. AOV is a metric that you need to keep an eye on over time.
If it rises at certain times, you could potentially connect it to campaigns run during that time.
But if it falls, you’re obviously doing something you want to avoid. These issues need to be addressed.
In my consulting work, I see many businesses using only their number of transactions to gauge success. Is it great to make 100 sales in a day? It depends.
I’d rather make 50 sales for $2,500 than 100 sales for $1,000. Or even better, 100 sales for $6,000.
Do you see the difference? That’s where average order value comes into play.
You want to try to get as much money as possible from your existing customers. To do this, you’ll want to encourage them to add more items to their carts or buy other products of higher values.
Both of these will increase your AOV.
2. Customer lifetime value
The concept behind customer lifetime value is simple.
This metric will tell you the amount of money a customer will spend before leaving your business. Here is the formula to calculate it:
Customers who stay with your business for a long time become more profitable.
As a marketer, you need to make sure the lifetime value of your customers is as high as possible.
The best way to do this is by focusing on customer retention as opposed to customer acquisition, which I’ll talk about in greater detail shortly.
Yes, you want new customers. But it’s easier to market to people already familiar with your brand, products, and services.
Research shows that your existing customers will spend 67% more than new customers. This will also increase your average order value, which I just talked about.
Keep in mind customer lifetime value when thinking about your acquisition strategies as well. All too often I see businesses make the mistake of shying away from certain strategies because they don’t seem profitable.
But that’s only because they’re using the AOV to make this decision. If the AOV is less than the acquisition cost, they won’t use that acquisition strategy.
However, they’re not accounting for how much that customer will spend over time. That’s why this metric is so important to track.
Plus, you can also learn how to use lifetime value to create a Facebook audience that actually converts.
3. Sales conversions
This connects to a point I made earlier.
How can you tell if the number of sales you have each day, week, or month is sufficient?
To a certain extent, the number of transactions isn’t that important. What’s much more telling when measuring the success of your marketing efforts is your sales conversion rates.
To calculate this, divide the number of sales by the number of visitors to your website.
Here’s a look at the average sales conversion rates for ecommerce shops.
Based on this information, 3.3% is adequate. But who wants to be average?
By regularly tracking your sales conversion rate, you’ll be able to determine how much of your traffic is actually converting.
Having low conversions does not mean your marketing efforts are at fault. If people are navigating to your site at a high rate, something else could be preventing them from converting.
That’s when you need to analyze your web design. Websites with simple designs have higher conversion rates.
You’ll never get a 100% sales conversion rate. But you should always try to increase this number.
These people are already on your website. Sometimes they are just a click or two away from buying. It’s your job to make sure that happens.
4. Cart abandonment rates
Calculating cart abandonment rate is simple.
Divide the number of transactions by the number of carts created. You want this metric to be as low as possible.
As I just pointed out, when someone adds something to a shopping cart, they are only a step or two away from converting. You need to identify what stopped them from finalizing the purchase.
These are the top reasons for shopping cart abandonment during the checkout process:
Similar to sales conversions, your cart abandonment rate may not be a marketing issue.
There could be a problem with your site. But you don’t want to let your marketing efforts go to waste.
Change your promotions if you have to.
As you can see, high extra costs ranked first on the list of reasons for cart abandonment. Don’t charge your customers for shipping, and highlight that in your marketing campaigns.
You’re doing a great job of getting people to visit your site and add items to their carts. Now you just need them to convert.
5. Revenue by reference source
So, you’ve got lots of website traffic. But where is it coming from?
By tracking the revenue by referral source, you’ll be able to determine which channels are the most profitable for your business.
This is important for both B2C and B2B companies. Here’s a look at the top channels for leads and revenue on the B2B side:
You might be getting tons of traffic from one source, but if you’re not making money from those leads, you need to reevaluate your strategy.
On the flip side, maybe traffic from a certain source is not high, but the revenue from that channel is the highest.
You need to figure out how to get more traffic from your marketing channels yielding the highest revenue. At the same time, you must learn how to increase conversions and the AOV from your distribution channels resulting in the most traffic to your site.
6. Social media engagement
I’m sure social media is a huge part of your company’s marketing strategy, as it should be.
You’re posting content on all your social channels each day. That’s great. But how effective are those posts?
Again, the only way to find out is to measure the results.
These are the top metrics used to measure success on social media:
The information you get from tracking these metrics will be extremely beneficial to your marketing strategy.
You need to analyze the difference between your top performing content and the posts with lower engagement. Figure out why certain posts do better than others.
For example, you may find out your videos get more comments and shares than your photos.
Obviously, you’d want to run more video campaigns on social media once you know that.
7. Email open rates
Your email open rates should be easy to track. I doubt you’ll have to do any manual calculations for this metric.
Whichever software you’re using for email marketing should automatically do this for you.
That said, don’t just look at these numbers. Analyze them.
Are your open rates fluctuating? Do they stay consistent?
Find out what you need to do for your open rates to improve.
These are the top reasons why people open emails:
If your open rates are low, I recommend reading my guide on how to increase open rates with your subject lines.
You spend much time building your email list and segmenting your subscribers accordingly.
Then, you send various email campaigns to each group of subscribers. Don’t let those efforts go to waste.
Your message is useless if nobody reads it. That’s why you need to track your open rates for every campaign and compare those percentages over time.
8. CTA click-through rates
Customers can’t spend money unless they click on your CTA.
It’s necessary to track the click-through rates of all these buttons.
It doesn’t matter what landing page the button leads to or what channel it’s on, you have to track it. Your ads, emails, website, and social media campaigns will all have CTAs.
Compare these rates to each other. Which buttons have the highest CTR?
Based on these metrics, you can hypothesize which wording or types of offers people are more likely to click on.
Then, you can run A/B campaigns to check your theory: test CTAs’ wording, color, size, placement, etc. This strategy will give you the most optimal results for your CTA buttons.
9. Customer acquisition cost
Earlier, I briefly talked about customer acquisition when discussing customer lifetime value.
You need to know your acquisition cost, or you might run the risk of going broke. Here’s the simple formula for you to follow:
If your acquisition costs are too high, you’ll need to change your marketing strategy or potentially even raise your prices.
But a price increase could have its potential pitfalls as well.
Customer acquisition cost is crucial for all businesses, but it’s especially important for startup companies.
Those of you with a newer company know what it’s like to have to manage a tight budget. Simply put, if your acquisition costs get too high, you’ll run out of money before you have enough customers to give you a sustainable income.
That’s why investors always want to know your acquisition costs before they’ll consider giving you a dime.
Lower acquisition costs will result in a higher ROI for your marketing efforts and make it easier for your brand to grow exponentially over time.
10. Keywords that drive traffic
Marketing managers need to prioritize SEO.
You can’t just rely on traffic coming from your distribution channels and people navigating directly to your website. Your company needs to be visible and have a high ranking through organic search results as well.
That’s why you need to track metrics for keywords related to your brand. Then you’ll be able to use SEO tactics to drive ecommerce sales.
Find out which keywords are performing the best and which keywords are the most competitive. Once you start using these words and phrases, you’ll need to track the success of them as well.
This information will be useful for your on-page optimization efforts as well as your PPC campaigns.
You don’t want to pay for keywords that aren’t driving traffic and sales.
11. ROI of influencer campaigns
Influencer marketing is growing in popularity. If you haven’t tried this strategy yet, I highly recommend it.
But you need to approach this tactic like every other marketing campaign. If it’s not profitable, you need to abandon it.
Don’t just blindly throw money at influencers without knowing whether those efforts are working. Track the ROI of each campaign.
Take a look at how much businesses are spending on their influencer marketing programs:
Furthermore, 39% of marketers said they planned to increase their influencer marketing budget in 2018.
And 90% of these marketers say they use engagement metrics to determine the success of their influencer campaigns. I talked about the importance of tracking engagement earlier.
Basically, you need to find out whether the money spent on influencers is generating a return on your investment.
One of the best ways to do this is by giving each influencer a unique promo code. It will make it easier for you to track which influencers are driving the most sales.
You need to cut ties with influencers who aren’t profitable and continue working with the ones driving traffic and revenue to your site. But the only way to determine this is by tracking the ROI of each campaign.
Conclusion
Nobody said being a marketing manager would be easy. Anyone could just throw together a campaign and run it.
Successful businesses track metrics to ensure their marketing campaigns are profitable.
If you’re not doing this, you’re throwing away money.
If you haven’t been tracking metrics related to your marketing campaigns, it’s certainly not too late to start.
Don’t get overwhelmed. Start going through the list I’ve outlined above.
Some of these metrics will be specific to individual campaigns, while others should be tracked over time to help you identify patterns.
I’m confident your marketing efforts will improve and you’ll see higher profits once you start tracking these 11 metrics.
What metrics are you using to track the success of your marketing campaigns?
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Breaking Out of the ‘Cheap’ Cycle
For the longest time, Sarah and I bickered about my socks.
I’m pretty hard on socks for some reason. Maybe it’s just my tendency to keep wearing them too long. Whatever the reason, I had quite a collection of socks with little holes by the toes that I kept wearing, and Sarah loathed them.
The thing is, it seemed like I barely wore them at all before the toes would start to wear out, and then the heels. I’d always buy a bag of pretty cheap socks, wear them to oblivion, toss them in the rag bag when Sarah would complain about toe holes, and then buy more.
As a result, I was buying a bag of cheap socks on a pretty frequent basis, more frequent than I realized. I couldn’t really justify spending much on socks when they’d just wear out.
Finally, one day, after hearing Sarah complain about my beat-up socks, I simply suggested that if she wanted me to wear socks without holes, she should get me some well made socks.
For Christmas that year, she did just that. I received a few pairs of Darn Tough merino wool Hike/Trek socks (here are the specific ones that I have). They’re $18 MSRP per pair, which seemed absolutely crazy to me when I could buy a bag of 10 white ankle socks at the store for roughly the same price.
However, I’m still wearing those socks, several years later. I don’t even want to guess how many times I’ve washed and worn those first couple of pairs of Darn Tough socks and they still look basically new. Previously, when I would buy bags of socks, they would be showing major wear after 10 or 15 washings, likely have toe holes shortly thereafter, and then wind up in the rag bag, only to be replaced. The higher quality socks I have now have lasted for literally years – dozens and dozens of washings and wearings – and have saved me at least as much as the pair originally cost by simply eliminating my need to buy new socks.
Of course, the core issue is that many people can’t really afford to drop almost $20 on a single pair of socks. That’s something that seems crazy in a person’s monthly budget – it’s just outside the realm of what seems affordable. If a person on a tight budget starts to run low on socks, are they going to buy a single pair for $18, even though it might last and last, or are they going to buy 10 functional pairs for a similar price (or probably less) that will work well for a year or so?
This isn’t just about socks. It’s about things like food containers and light bulbs and dress shirts and kitchen knives and shoes and pillows and on and on and on. The reliable versions of these items – the ones that do the job well while lasting and lasting and lasting – are expensive compared to the cheap version that will get the job done for a little while before being junked out.
When money is tight, you’re often shoehorned into buying the cheap version of the item. While this solves the problem in the short term, what you’re usually doing is just kicking the can down the road six months or a year or two years or whatever until that version you just bought wears out and then you’re back to where you started.
On the other hand, if you spent a lot and bought a reliable version up front, that cycle gets much, much longer. It becomes a matter of five years or 10 years or a lifetime before you have to even consider replacing the item, and it does the job well, too.
Yet, when you’re on a tight budget, that high-quality, reliable version of an everyday item is just out of reach, or else it just seems like a frivolous purchase, even though the total cost of ownership is lower over the time you’re using the product and it’ll save you time and headache dealing with a failing item and replacing it down the road.
I’ve been there, and it’s rough. You’re trying to keep your spending low, but when you do that, you end up buying cheap items that end up costing you more down the road. Sometimes, you’re basically forced into that situation.
I like to put it like this: Sometimes, people can’t afford the low cost of ownership items. That seems strange, but the issue is that items that have a low cost of ownership are often items with a big upfront cost, and people often can’t afford that upfront cost. An $18 pair of socks might last for years and years and years and it’s very likely that such a pair will end up costing you less than buying bags of cheap socks, but it’s $18 for a pair of socks.
There is a road out, however. Here are several things you can do to help break out of the cycle of buying cheap versions of the items you rely on so that you can get reliable ones that won’t fail constantly.
Ask for reliable items you’ll actually use as gifts.
Simply mention to anyone who’s buying gifts for you to give you something really practical this year: a well-made and highly reliable version of an item you use all the time. A pair or two of well-made socks is a perfect example, but it can be anything. Maybe you’ll want some sturdy food storage containers. Maybe you’ll want a really well made shirt from Land’s End.
The point is that you’ll wind up with an item you’ll actually use that will last for as long as several “cheap” versions of the same item.
So, what happens over time? You’re no longer having to buy regular replacements for that specific cheap item. Instead, you can save up that money you’re not spending and buy another good reliable item. Over time, you can do it again, and again, and again. At that point, you’re far less likely to have to regularly replace things and when you do need to do so, you can buy something that’s of high quality and reliable.
Put aside a few spare dollars here and there for high-quality replacements.
Here’s another strategy to consider. Just put one or two dollars a week aside somewhere and then use it to buy a high quality item that won’t be replaced frequently.
Put aside two bucks a week, then buy a high-quality pair of socks after two months. Do that for a year and you have six pairs of socks that you basically won’t have to replace for years and years. The need to buy a big sack of socks on a regular basis more or less vanishes, which is a long-term savings.
Do the same thing for things like LED lightbulbs, high quality food containers, cast iron pans, truly well made shoes, and other items that will last and last and won’t have to be replaced for a very long time. Doing this eliminates the ongoing cost of replacing those items in your life, making it easier to save going forward, and when you run out of items to replace in your life, you’ll have a lot of money each week that you can easily put toward other financial goals (like saving for a new car or paying off debt).
‘Upgrade’ slowly, not all at once.
You don’t need to run out and replace all of your socks with expensive ones. Just replace one pair at a time and put the new socks in your normal rotation. Eventually, your full rotation will be high quality.
You don’t need to run out and replace all of your light bulbs at once. Just buy a single LED when you can afford it and replace a normal incandescent or CFL bulb with one. Keep doing this and eventually all of your bulbs are LEDs.
You don’t need to run out and replace all of your food containers at once. Just buy a really well made food container and start using it regularly, and slowly replace all of the others and toss the old beat up ones that don’t seal well. Keep doing this and you’ll eventually have a full repertoire of food containers that will last for many years.
Tackle the low-hanging fruit first.
Focus on buying well-made replacements for inexpensive items first, because even the well-made versions of things like socks or light bulbs are still relatively inexpensive. Then, as you find yourself rarely having to replace those inexpensive items any more, it will gradually become easier to save up for replacements for more expensive items, like pots and pans.
If you start with the less expensive stuff and use the “dollar a week” technique, you’ll soon break out of the regular replacement cycle with those things and can slowly move into buying well made clothing, well made shoes, a really great pillow, and so on. Over time, you’ll find yourself moving out of the old replacement cycle for those things as well, and that ends up cutting significantly into your regular spending.
Overall, the strategy is simple. Start small, a step at a time, even if you’re just putting a dollar a week toward the plan. Focus on the inexpensive things you use constantly and have to replace frequently. Find high quality reliable versions of those items and buy them gradually, integrating them into your life. As your regular expenses decline a little, use that savings to start gradually replacing more and more expensive things with high quality reliable versions that you won’t have to replace for a very long time. Eventually, you’ve cut a whole bunch of regular replacement spending out of your budget, just like magic.
Good luck.
More by Trent Hamm:
- When Is It Time to Spend More on Something?
- The ‘Buy It for Life’ Compendium, Vol. 2
- Hyperbolic Discounting and You
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Home buyers spend around £5,000 on unexpected legal fees
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Home buyers in the UK typically spend £5,500 on solicitor’s unexpected fees, according to new research from a digital conveyancer.
When You Move polled 2,000 homeowners in October and found thatthey had typically spent £5,500 on unexpected fees.Thousands of potential homeowners wrongly think they can’t get a mortgage
While those aged 55-plus spent only £2,691, on average, on unexpected legal fees and 18- to 34-year-old were not much worse off, spending £2,821, the worst hit age group were the 35- to 54-year-olds, who typically spent a whopping £9,498.
Some 58% of those polled felt ‘trapped’ when they moved by legal bills of between £1,000 and £4,000, while 14% were left with fees of between £5,000 and £10,000 – this represents homeowners who were unable to pull out by the time they found out about the unexpected fees.
Meanwhile, a quarter (25%) felt their solicitor wasn’t transparent about their conveyancing fees. A similar number (28%) said that had they been aware of all the costs associated with buying a home prior to hiring a solicitor, they would have pulled out of their property purchase.
One in five (20%) home buyers had to turn to friends and family to cover the cost of unexpected fees
Sally Roden, a primary school teacher from West Ham in east London, is a first-time buyer of a new-build property. She found that a number of survey fees the solicitor revealed late in the day were never made clear, costing her £800.
“There was also misleading information from the developer, which stated that, due to it being a new-build, we wouldn’t have to pay for as many surveys which evidently was not true,” Sally says. Meanwhile, legal fees were not as quoted. “We were quoted £800, but this ultimately came in at £2,200.”
Sally also had to pay unexpectedly for local searches as the developer had built on ground of historical value, which cost an extra £1,000, as well as unexpected valuation fees of £1,000. Other unexpected fees were an electronic transfer fee of £150 and a fee for wet signature/original documents of £300.
Other fees that home buyers can unexpectedly face water and drainage searches, chancel repair liability, etc.
“The developer gave us a list of three conveyancers to approach; we will not be taking a developer’s or estate agent’s recommendations again,” she adds.
The good news is that from December 2018, all regulated law firms will be required to publish information on prices they charge for their services. For a quick way to find out costs, When You Move has launched QuickQuote, which provides a breakdown of costs at the beginning of the solicitor selection process.
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A cheeky charge from Plusnet
Moneywise helps a reader who was charged more than normal when ending a contract
I joined Plusnet last year and I was asked to pay my first bill by debit card a few weeks before my contract started.
After a bad experience with the company’s customer service, I decided to leave at the end of my year’s contract and arranged the transfer of my telephone and broadband. I then received my final bill and I was surprised to see it was considerably higher than previous bills. I contacted Plusnet and was told that this was due to “special offers” expiring. When I explained that I was still in my contract, I was told that the offers are applied from when Plusnet take the first payment, not when services start, I thought this was rather cheeky.
CM/Watford
I agree. As far as you were concerned, the discount offer started the moment your service started. After 12 months of using the service, you decided to leave but Plusnet said you’d been with them for 13 months and so charged full price for the last month.
You reckon that was because it asked you to start payments before you actually started using the service and that other people could fall foul of the same process.
I put your argument to Plusnet and it responded: “CM joined with a 12-month discount. The discount ended a month before she left Plusnet, and so was charged an additional £8.99 for one month as the offer had expired. We have offered to refund the £8.99 due to her confusion, and she is currently thinking about whether she would like to accept it.”
You don’t think that’s enough.
You told me: “I would like Plusnet to ensure negotiated costs are applied for the duration of the contract and in view of its dreadful customer service in regard to this and other incidences, I would like them to donate £50 to food bank charity The Trussell Trust.”
I put this to Plusnet. I am still waiting for a response.
OUTCOME: Plusnet offers £8.99 refund
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Big ticket item? Think twice about 'Buy now, pay later' offers
Tempted at the till by deals that mean you can go home with your new sofa, TV or leopard skin coat on credit? It’s great if you know you’ll pay the loan back on time, but watch out for the sting in the tail…
Many online retailers offer ‘buy now, pay later’ (BNPL) deals, where not only is interest not charged on a debt for a set period of time, but there is no obligation to make any payments either.
These deals can be great for savvy shoppers with a tight grip on their finances – but they can turn out to be an expensive mistake if you fail to read the small print.
BNPL is typically offered by online catalogue stores such as Very (Very.co.uk), Grattan (Grattan.co.uk), Jacamo (Jacamo.co.uk), Littlewoods (Littlewoods.com) and Freemans (Freemans.com). This type of credit gives buyers of anything from a new sofa or TV to clothes and gadgets the option to buy an item immediately and pay for it later, often with no interest charged before a set date.
Shoppers need to open a credit or personal account to benefit from BNPL or other payment options, which let them spread the cost of a purchase. As with old-style store cards, there is usually an incentive to open an account and set up a credit agreement.
For example, Very offers selected customers a £30 discount if they open a Very account and spend at least £60. Grattan, Freemans, Look Again and JD Williams (which owns Jacamo and Simply Be) all offer customers 25% off their first order when they open an account, while Littlewoods offers a discount of 10%.
But while these offers might sound a great way to save money and delay paying for an item, it’s vital to know what you’re getting into.
“Opening a store card or account to get a sign-up discount can be a great way to save money especially on big ticket or large orders,” says MoneySupermarket’s money expert Sally Francis-Miles.
“However, always double-check the terms before signing up to anything and make sure that you pay it off before you’re charged interest.
“Debt can spiral quickly with store cards and catalogue accounts, especially as it’s tempting to worry about it later. It is a financial product and, as with all financial products, it needs to be carefully thought out before you commit.”
Calculating monthly repayments
Savvy shoppers can play BNPL deals to their advantage – but they need to be disciplined. One option is to calculate and make monthly repayments that ensure the debt is repaid before the end of the BNPL period. Be realistic about how much you can afford to pay each month and make a budget if necessary.
Consumers who have the cash to pay for an item up front could choose BNPL and stash their money in a savings account or high-interest current account, then withdraw the cash and pay off the debt before the deferred payment period comes to an end. This way, they can have the benefit of owning the item straight away, while also earning interest on their money.
Other people might expect their finances to improve in, say, six or 12 months’ time, and think they will be able to pay off the balance before interest charges kick in. Behavioural economists call this ‘present bias’: It’s human nature to see immediate benefits as more important than the distant pain of paying for the item.
Store cards can charge double average credit card rates
Missing the repayment deadline
But be warned, the hidden costs of BNPL deals become apparent if you fail to pay off the entire debt before the end of the deferred payment period. When interest starts being charged, the rates can be double the average credit card rate.
Littlewoods charges a typical APR of 44.9%, while Very is not much less at 39.9%. Look Again, Freemans and Grattan all charge 34.9%; Argos 29.9%; and JD Williams 24.9%. In comparison, credit cards from some mainstream banks can be found with an APR of around 18.9%.
Watch out for backdated interest
In many cases, failure to repay a debt in full by the end of the BNPL period could lead to interest being backdated to the date of purchase – not just the date the 0% period finished. Also, interest will be levied on the initial amount borrowed rather than just the outstanding amount. If you have been making some payments but not managed to repay the entire debt, this might seem unfair. In theory, you could pay the last £1 of the debt just one day late and be whacked with a massive interest bill.
An example on Grattan’s website shows the cost implications of not repaying a BNPL deal in time. It explains that if a customer borrowed £200 on a 12-month BNPL deal with an interest rate of 34.94% and failed to pay off the entire amount within the year, they would be charged interest of £69.88. This amount would then attract interest of 34.94% until repaid.
Adrian Lowcock, head of personal investing at Willis Owen, says there are plenty of reasons for people to be wary of this kind of debt.
“The reason such services exist is that companies know there are people who aren’t good at paying off any debts due before the interest rate charges apply, and therefore they recoup their costs and make more money from exactly the sort of people who should avoid these offers,” he explains. “The interest rates aren’t always clear up front and, instead, they are promoted with 0% offers and convenience messages.”
Grattan is in the minority when it comes to providing a worked example of BNPL before the customer commits to a purchase. Some other retailers only provide vague statements, but no figures.
Fashion website Very offers payment options where customers spending a minimum of £100 can delay payment for up to six months, and those spending £300 for up to a year. There is no interest to pay if you repay the debt in full within the payment-free period but when interest kicks in, the typical APR is 39.9%.
Very’s website states that “interest is calculated from point of order and charged at the end of the payment-free period, if you haven’t paid in full by this time”.
Customers are told exactly how much interest they will potentially have to pay when their order progresses through to the checkout stage. A £300 debt not repaid in full at the end of a 12-month BNPL deal would attract £119.70 in interest.
Littlewoods has a higher representative APR at 44.9%, meaning a customer who didn’t pay a £300 debt within a 12-month deferred payment period would be hit with an interest bill of £134.70.
A spokesperson for Shop Direct, the company behind Very and Littlewoods, says: “Helping customers understand our ways to spread the cost is vital in ensuring we maintain trusted, long-lasting relationships with our customers. In our most recent customer research, 96% said they are familiar with and understand how BNPL works. We continue to improve and look at new ways to make it even easier for customers to understand our ways to spread the cost.”
Andrew Hagger, financial analyst and founder of *Moneycomms, says the problem is many shoppers won’t pay too much attention to the small print regarding the interest-free repayment criteria.
“With such high rates of interest being charged, customers will be in for a nasty shock if they fail to pay up within the required timescale,” he warns.
Citizens Advice is calling for BNPL deals to be properly advertised with the consequences of not making a repayment on time clearly stated.
The charity cites the example of a man who bought a £600 iPad from a catalogue company on a year-long interest-free deal. He still owed £100 at the end of the interest-free period, and was hit with a backdated charge of nearly £700 interest – more than the original cost of the iPad.
Another potential issue with BNPL deals is that many shoppers will start out with good intentions to repay their debt before the BNPL period expires, but find their financial circumstances change and they can’t afford to pay.
“It is always worth saving money until you can afford to buy”
Caroline Siarkiewicz, head of UK debt advice at the Money Advice Service, says that before entering into any credit agreement it’s important to think about whether you can afford it, not just now but in the future.
“Be honest. If an unexpected bill arrives this month, can you still afford to pay your BNPL deal in full before the end of the interest-free period?” she says. “For retail spending, such as clothes, cosmetics or luxury items, it’s always worth saving money and waiting until you can afford to buy.”
For many people buying big ticket items or a series of smaller ones, a credit card will be a better option than retailer credit. A card offering 0% on purchases for a set period of time will be your best bet. But you need to make at least the minimum repayment each month – this amount will be included on your statement.
An even better plan would be to limit you spending until you have saved enough money to buy items with cash. That way, you won’t be caught out by the small print of BNPL deals and other ‘spread the cost’ payment options.
Emma Lunn is a personal finance journalist who writes for the Guardian, Telegraph, Mirror and Thisismoney.co.uk
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