Amazon's Dirty Little Secrets: How to Use the Power of Others to Market and Sell for You

by Greg Jameson

Overview

Many people believe that Amazon’s success is the direct result of a strong user shopping experience. This however is only part of the reason why Amazon is the number one ecommerce company in the world for almost two decades. The real reason behind Amazon’s success is that they have mastered the art of getting other people to market and sell for them. From affiliate partners that drive traffic, to online reviews and ratings where customers tell other customers why they should buy a product, to getting free publicity from shows like Oprah or 60 Minutes, Amazon is the online company to emulate. “Amazon’s Dirty Little Secrets" will show you how you can accomplish this for your company.

"Amazon’s Dirty Little Secret" is getting others to do their marketing and sales for them. This is so powerful that Greg created an acronym using the word POWER+.

P – Plenty of traffic

O – Offer something for free

W – Win their trust

E – Engaging experience

R – Request an action

+ – additional tips & secrets

Anyone engaged in Internet sales and marketing will benefit from the specific examples in this book.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781630472764
Publisher:	Morgan James Publishing
Publication date:	08/12/2014
Pages:	180
Product dimensions:	5.00(w) x 8.00(h) x (d)

About the Author

Greg Jameson is a Colorado Small Business of the year and Inc 500 Award-Winning Entrepreneur. He has created 3 commercial software programs – all of which remain on the market today – and spoken to audiences around the world about software solutions. Over the past 15 years, he has implemented numerous Internet projects ranging from websites, eCommerce, business Facebook pages, YouTube channels and more, as well as running his own online businesses. He continues to be the creative force at WebStores Ltd, developing applications that are now used by thousands of businesses all over the world. In addition to a weekly blog, he also authored “Grow Your Online Sales”. GregJameson.com.

Read an Excerpt

The first book Amazon.com ever sold was from Jeff Bezos' garage in July 1995. The book was Fluid Concepts & Creative Analogies: Computer Models of the Fundamental Mechanisms of Thought.

Since 1995, Amazon has established itself as the world’s leader in eCommerce. Its success is not a fluke, nor is it merely the result of being in the right place at the right time.

Amazon owns 80 enormous warehouses or fulfillment centers around the globe to serve the 30 million customers that buy stuff through the portal. These warehouses are massive, with a single building taking up 1.2 million-square-feet and containing miles of conveyor belts. The logistics of running a single warehouse with millions of items are mind-boggling. On top of that, Amazon doesn’t use any robots. Everything is tagged, placed and moved around by human hands. Even more amazing is the fact that Amazon doesn’t store items in an organized way. Everything is stored at random, but their location tagged with barcodes. Amazon calls the system 'chaotic storage,' and this is one of the key factors to Amazon.com's success in online retail.

Essentially, a product is stored wherever there is free space, much like data is stored on a hard disk in your computer. For instance, a computer might not be with other electronics and CDs might not be with other music or media. Items are organized by barcodes and shelved by code, instead. The result is that soap may be stored next to books. It seems crazy, but it actually increases accuracy, reducing possible delivery mix-ups.

The chaotic storage system allows Amazon to utilize more shelf space and doesn’t force employees to waste time organizing products. Locating items is a breeze thanks to computer-generated product lists, which help warehouse workers easily locate the specific products and prepare them for shipment.

The real advantage to chaotic storage is that it's significantly more flexible than conventional storage systems. If there are big changes in a product range, the company doesn't need to plan for more space, because the products or their sales volumes don't need to be known or planned in advance if they're simply being stored at random. Free space is also better utilized in a chaotic storage system. In a conventional system, free space may go unused for quite a while simply because stock is low or there aren't enough products. Without any kind of fixed positions, available shelf space is always being used. It’s also a major time saver to not organize products as they come in. Your business may not be ready for such a storage system, but don’t worry—that isn’t Amazon’s Dirty Little Secret.

Table of Contents

Introduction

Getting Started with Amazon’s Dirty Little Secret

P—Plenty of Traffic

Search Engine Optimization

Domain Factors

Page-Level Factors

Site-Level Factors

Back-Link Factors

User-Interaction

Special algorithm rule

Social Signals

Brand Signals

On-site Webspam Factors

Off-page Webspam Factors

Email

SPAM

Grow your list

Email Best Practices—What Would Jeff Do?

YouTube

Facebook

What This Means for Merchants

Increasing Engagement

Case Study

Images on Facebook

YouTube

Blogs

Twitter

Google+

Pinterest

LinkedIn

Location—Based Sites

Affiliate Marketing

Press Releases

O—Offer Something for Free

Cyberbase Trading Post

Case Studies

Get them to fill out an application!

W—Win their Trust

Ratings & Reviews

Testimonials

E—Engaging Experience

Payment Solutions

Product Descriptions

Product Videos

Test Your Web site

Mobile

Shopping Cart Abandonment

Shipping

R—Request an Action

Cross-Sell

Wishlist

Product Reviews

Add to Cart

Upsell

+ PLUS: Additional Tips & Secrets

P –Perform Analytics

Google Analytics

What Others are Saying

Email Analytics

Sales Analytics

L—Listen to your Customers

Subscription Programs

Selling on Amazon

U—Understanding Distribution Channels

B2B Wholesale Considerations

S—Start Now!

Appendix—Complete List of Google Ranking Factors

Editorial Reviews

Amazon’s Dirty Little Secrets" challenges you to ask the question, "What would Jeff Bezos do?" Jam packed with actionable insights, Greg Jameson has unlocked the vault and given you the keys to success by showing you exactly how to use the power of others to market and sell for you. Grab this book now. — Ken McArthur, Best-Selling Author of Impact: How to Get Noticed, Motivate Millions and Make a Difference in a Noisy World. http://kenmcarthur.com

“Amazon’s Dirty Little Secrets” is a great resource and learning tool for both company owners and online marketers. What makes this book so valuable is that Greg makes it clear what online activities and strategies will bring you the best results (i.e. building an email list, using YouTube, capitalizing on affiliate marketing, getting testimonial and reviews, etc.) and then explains how to accomplish each. His examples, case studies and links make it possible for you to see actual working examples of successful companies that have used the strategies and information that he has included in this book as you are reading it."— Melonie Dodaro, CEO, Top Dog Social Media, Author, The LinkedIn Code www.TopDogSocialMedia.com

“Whether you have an online business or operate a traditional storefront, you need to harness the amazing marketing power of the Internet that is available to every entrepreneur and small business owner. Be not afraid! The title of Greg’s book, Amazon’s Dirty Little Secrets, is actually lesson #1 in marketing—you have to standout and to get attention! Besides the great title, the pages of this book contain a veritable roadmap of how to attract and engage more customers and clients with email, video, and social media, often at little to no cost. Invest in this book, and more importantly, apply this information to your business.” — Jim Palmer, The Newsletter Guru, Author of Stop Waiting For it to Get Easier, Create Your Dream Business Now www.GetJimPalmer.com

“Greg is at the top of his game and that is very much apparent in his new book "Amazon's Dirty Little Secrets." The content is every bit as provocative as the title. This digs deeper than most surface books on the subject; the book is the one that will allow you to take action. The action you take will bring you the same actionable results that Amazon.com has used to become the world's top shopping destination. He has put so much content in here, I think I saw a kitchen sink even inside!” — John Lawson, CEO ColderICE Media, Author of Kick Ass Social Commerce for E-Preneurs @ColderICE www.ColderICE.com

"Few companies so accurately predicted their future through a brand name as did Amazon.com. Bezos has created a leviathan of a business model that has retailers all over the world scrambling to compete. What many entrepreneurs don't realize is that Amazon offers amazing opportunities for authors and creators of other products to leverage the power of this giant to grow their own business. In Amazon's Dirty Little Secrets, Greg Jameson pulls back the sheet to reveal the key strategies anyone can use to tap into the marketing genius that is Amazon.com" —Joel Comm, New York Times Best-Selling Author www.JoelComm.com

From the Publisher